Jackie Tyler’s life now is literally worlds away from where she was brought up – and even some “fixed points” aren’t what she’s expecting…

At the conclusion of Journey’s End, the Tenth Doctor got rid of an embarrassing problem by leaving the Metacrisis Doctor with Rose Tyler in the alternate universe (Pete’s World, as it seems to have become known, although obviously not to its inhabitants – Mr Tyler’s ego would be insufferably large if it were!). It gave a lovely romantic ending to the Rose/Doctor relationship… but that didn’t mean it was right for the Doctor – the one left behind, that is. As Joseph Lidster brilliantly extrapolates in this first story to feature the character, he sees being stranded in this universe on a similar way to the way he did when he was exiled to Earth by the Time Lords, and you can see his point. He might not have Time Lord biology – indeed, he’s half-human, half-Time Lord which sounds vaguely familiar from a couple of decades ago – but he has the memories and knowledge of the Doctor, all eleven of him at that point. And he doesn’t want to be stuck…

I won’t spoil any of the surprises Lidster throws the listener’s way during this highly enjoyable half hour tale. Camille Coduri, as ever, drops straight back into Jackie Tyler’s character and Lidster gives her some great material, both comedic and dramatic, to work with. This is the first of two such stories, and I really hope we get the second quickly – and that the potential of Pete’s World is explored further.

Verdict: Spot-on character work, excellent extrapolation and a fun rendition by Coduri makes this one of the best Short Trips of recent times. 10/10

Paul Simpson