The last thing you want when an aircraft is in trouble is someone encouraging you to panic… or at least so Hawa Hassan thinks…

Paul F. Verhoeven makes his Big Finish debut with this tale for the 10th Doctor, read by Ayesha Antoine. It’s very much one of those stories that presents the Doctor as others see him, in all his manic state, and without beating the point home, shows how he brings out the best in people that they don’t realise is there. Like Hawa, we’re wondering what the hell he is playing at, but once he explains the method in his apparent madness, we’re very much supporting them both – and while things go a little over the top at times, there’s a good reason.

Director Lisa Bowerman and sound designer Richard Fox do a great job of creating the atmosphere aboard the airplane, with some very familiar background noises mixed with ones that don’t appear to make sense initially. As with the Master story earlier in the set, though, I do wonder if we need the epilogue – sometimes less is more and we know already that once they land Hawa is set for a great future.

Verdict: Perhaps not one to listen to as you’re on board an aircraft taxiing down the runway, but a solid evocation of the 10th Doctor. 8/10

Paul Simpson

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