Trying to take a holiday, the Doctor and Rose get caught in-between two feuding families…

The box set cover gives away the nature of the foes that the 10th Doctor and Rose encounter in this solid opening tale written and directed by Helen Goldwyn. It’s set at that time in the travellers’ lives where they seem to feel that they can do no wrong, and although we know that they’re eventually heading for disaster, they are there righting wrongs and dealing out justice.

As with the Ninth Doctor Chronicles, Big Finish don’t have the services of the TV actor to play the role but whereas Nicholas Briggs provided the voice for Eccleston’s incarnation, here Jacob Dudman steps up as both narrator and David Tennant’s Doctor. As with Tim Treloar’s portrayal of the Third Doctor, this is not a strict impression, but rather it’s approached in the same way that the original actor did – Dudman understands the vocal idiosyncrasies that Tennant brought to the role, particularly in the “Mockney” accent, and this feels like the 10th Doctor, which is precisely what’s required. It’s always clear who Rose is meant to be – Billie Piper’s own accent fluctuated quite a bit so Dudman picks one version and sticks with it – and Goldwyn and her sound designer play with the raw audio in various clever ways to add to the enjoyment.

Verdict: A solid start to this collection. 8/10

Paul Simpson