It seemed like such a good idea at the time – robot law enforcement officials. They’d be the perfect symbol for the Mayor of London. And they were until they started attacking people…

There are certain adversaries from the worlds of Doctor Who that you’d think anyone would seriously take a step back and reconsider bringing to audio. And while WOTAN had a distinctive voice (and I’m so pleased that Big Finish were able to get WOTAN back to reprise its role after 52 years) its machines were… well, not exactly a sleek ED-209. So full marks to Matt Fitton and the rest of the Torchwood One production team for keeping the focus firmly on the battle against them, rather than on the machines themselves.

The other thing about WOTAN is that it was very much a foe of its time – and in 1966, it could have been state of the art (to anyone in the general public rather than anyone with a knowledge of computing). Forty years later (remember, Torchwood One’s adventures are set prior to 2008), it’s not, and Fitton has a great deal of fun in this story counterpointing the 1960s’ idea of future computing with the state of play as it actually was then.

There are plenty of shout-outs to The War Machines, some obvious, others more subtle, but setting all that aside, there’s also the perfect scene summing up Yvonne Hartman’s attitude to life, the universe and everything, as she tells the Mayor bluntly exactly what’s what. You may not like Yvonne – and she’s certainly a character who’s willing to go the extra mile that many “heroes” won’t – but she is forthright in her approach.

It’s also good to see the Yvonne/Ianto relationship grow, although I am a little concerned that giving him so much agency while at Torchwood One makes his actions in series 1 of the TV show a bit odd – but I have faith that this has occurred to the team, and even now some ghastly bit of business is coming Ianto’s way!

Verdict: Plenty of surprises and a very appropriate reappearance by WOTAN! 9/10

Paul Simpson