The 12th Doctor is persuaded to do a podcast…

We’ve not had too much yet from the 12th Doctor’s era from Big Finish, although that’s going to be changing soon. The previous Short Trip was narrated by Neve McIntosh but this time Jacob Dudman – who’s rapidly becoming the ‘go-to’ for 21st century Doctors by the company – picks up the reins.

John Richards’ story plays with some interesting ideas, and heads off in something of a different direction than you might anticipate from the opening few minutes. The concept of this particular Doctor taking over the airwaves is one replete with opportunities for humour, both with the Doctor and at the character’s expense, and Richards captures Capaldi’s incarnation’s ability to not quite get things right and to make asides that slightly jar. He also obliquely addresses the whole issue of this Doctor’s self-imposed exile to Bristol echoing the third Doctor’s involuntary exile to Earth centuries (for the Doctor) earlier – something that is ripe for further discussion.

This is Dudman’s debut as Capaldi, and it’s not as assured as his David Tennant or Matt Smith, both of which for a large part of the time are hard to distinguish from the original. It feels as if it’s sometimes pitched fractionally too high, but there are a number of places when it’s spot on.

Verdict: An interesting return visit to Series 10. 7/10

Paul Simpson

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