Doctor Who audio review: The Lost Stories (The Seventh Doctor)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two years ago, when I had a day off work or was free during the weekend, I was listening to all four stories from what it supposed to be 'Season 27' of the Seventh Doctor era. Butsince Doctor Who was cancelled in 1989, Season 27 was unmade, however, in 2011, Big Finish Productions produced four stories under 'The Lost Stories' series. These stories are 'Thin Ice', 'Crime of the Century', 'Animal' and 'Earth Aid'. It is important to note, that I have discovered on Tardis Wiki, another story was meant to be part of 'Season 27' and Big FinishProductions had produced in 2006, it was entitled 'Night Thoughts'.

The reason I have decided to review 'The Lost Stories: The Seventh Doctor' is because first of all, near the end ofNovember 2024, Sylvester Mccoy was coming to Sydney (orgainsed by the podcasters: Sirens of Audio) and I am curious to hear if the Seventh Doctor Lost Stories are worth listening to. By the way, on Instagram I have listened and reviewed to a few 'Lost Stories' such as 'Nightmare Country', 'The Queen of Time' and 'Lords of the Red Planet'. 

The Lost Stories: The Seventh Doctor Edition (Why was it made?)

In addition to the full-cast Sixth Doctor Stories, 'The Lost Stories Range' includes a collection of The Seventh Doctor. Unlike, The First Series of The Sixth Doctor Lost Stories, The First Series of The Seventh Doctor is closer to the intention of the unmade Season 27. This may be due to the involvement of then-script editior, Andrew Cartmel, this branch of 'The Lost Stories' hit the main beats planned for that season. A new companion named Raine Creevy (portrayed by Beth Chalmers) joins the Tardis team alongside the Seventh Doctor and Ace.  Additionally, Brigadier General Winifred Bambera and UNIT returned were planned. Moreover, Raine made her first appearance outside of 'The Lost Stories' in 'UNIT: Dominio', acting as companion later in the Seventh Doctor's life whilst Ace is on Gallifrey. 

My thoughts: Main characters

The Seventh Doctor: As always, Sylvester McCoy is in top form whenever he portrays The Seventh Doctor; having listened to numerous Big Finish audio dramas featuring The Seventh Doctor, I continue to be impressed by how effortlessly McCoy slips back into the role. his performance captures everything I enjoy about the Seventh Doctor: his humour, intelliegence, manipulative nature and quieter, more compassionate side. 

Throughout all four stories, the Doctor demonstrates why this incarnation is often regarded as one of the most complex. On one hand, he enjoys exchanging witty banter with Ace, Raine and talking in a professional manner when speaking to the supporting characters. On the other hand, he remains several steps ahead of everyone else, carefully revealing only as much information as he believes is necessary. 

His chemistry with Ace remains one of the highlights of the range. Their friendship is built upon years of travelling together, allowing their conversations to flow natrually between light-hearted banter and verbal conflicts. These conflicts become incresingly important as Ace begins to question the Doctor's tendency to manipulate and keep secrets from her. 

I also enjoyed the Doctor's interactions with the numerous side characters, particualrly Lt Bharaki, Colonel Felnikov, Markus Creevy and Prince Sayf Udeen. Each relationship highlights a different aspect of the Seventh Doctor's personality whether it be his diplomancy, sense of humor or ability to remain calm under pressure. 

Overall, Sylvester McCoy once again proves why the Seventh Doctor remains one of my favourite incarnations of the Doctor. 

Ace McShane: It is obvious to Doctor Who fans who are familiar with the beloved character will understand that Sophie Aldred, once again gives an outstanding performance as Ace.

One aspect I particularly appreciated throughout these stories is how much Ace continues to develop as a character. Rather than simply acting as the Doctor's loyal companion, she increasingly begins making her own decisions and questioning the Doctor's methods.

This is especially noticeable in 'Thin Ice', where we learn The Doctor is preparing Ace's application to attend the Time Lord Academy on Galifrey. I found this storyline fascinating because it explores an idea that is never shown in the TV series.

The emotional conversations between Ace and the Doctor are among the strongest moments in the range. Ace openly expresses how hurt she feels by the Doctor's manipulative behaviour and his constant refusal to tell her everything he knows. These scenes add genuine emotional depth to their relationship and make it feel like a natural continuation of where the television series had left them.

I also enjoyed Ace's role in 'Earth Aid', where she unexpectedly finds herself acting as captain aboard the spacecraft Vancouver. Watching her secretly communicate with the Doctor over the radio while trying to appear confident in front of the crew creates several genuinely funny moments. Although Ace is clearly out of her depth at times, her determination to protect everyone aboard the ship makes her impossible not to root for.

Raine Creevy: This range introduces a new companion named 'Raine Creevy' portrayed by Beth Chalmers. 

Raine is introduced in 'Crime of the Century' as a talented safecracker whose intelligence immediately earns the Doctor's respect. Rather than trying to imitate Ace, Raine quickly establishes herself as her own character. She is clever, resourceful, witty and perfectly capable of holding her own alongside both the Doctor and Ace.

One thing I couldn't help noticing throughout the range was how Raine's voice and overall personality reminded me of a combination of three different Doctor Who companions and characters. She has some of the warmth, bubbly personality and optimism of Melanie Bush, the adventurous spirit of Jo Grant, and, interestingly, her voice reminded me of Gatlin, the supporting character portrayed by Charlie Hayes in the Bernice Summerfield audio drama 'Bernice Summerfield and the Criminal Code'. I'm not suggesting that Raine is based on any of these characters, but there were moments where Beth Chalmers' performance and Raine's mannerisms brought all three to mind.

While I felt Raine could be slightly forgettable during parts of her debut story, she becomes increasingly likeable as the season progresses. By 'Earth Aid', she feels like a natural member of the TARDIS team, and her chemistry with both the Doctor and Ace becomes much stronger.

One moment that particularly stood out to me was learning more about her family, especially her father, Markus Creevy. Hearing what eventually happens to him genuinely made me feel sorry for Raine and added another emotional layer to her character. It helps explain some of her motivations and makes her feel like more than simply "the new companion."

Although Ace remains one of my favourite companion in these stories, Raine proves to be a welcome addition whose intelligence, humour and growing confidence make her a valuable member of the TARDIS team.

My Thoughts: Supporting Characters 

One thing these stories do particularly well is creating memorable supporting characters. Rather than existing simply to move the plot along, many of them receive enough development to become genuinely engaging in their own right.

Thin Ice: Being set in Soviet Russia, 'Thin Ice' introduces a large of Russian military personnel and scientists. 

Among them, Markus and Raina Creevy (Raine's parents) immediately stood out as characters I wanted to learn more about, especially knowing that they would continue appearing throughout the season. 

Another interesting inclusion is the mysterious Time Lord known as the Adjudicator (using the alias 'Vitali Semyonovitch Wolshkin') who prepares Ace to attend the Time Lord Academy. 

Crime of the Century: With the introduction of Raine, this story also expands the supporting cast significantly.

Markus Creevy and Colonel Felnikov both return, helping strengthen the feeling that these adventures are genuinely connected.

I also enjoyed Prince Sayf Udeen, whose interactions with both the Doctor and Raine provide several entertaining moments throughout the story.

Animal: One of the biggest highlights here is undoubtedly the return of Brigadier Winifred Bambera (portrayed by Angela Bruce).

It was wonderful hearing Bambera back in action alongside UNIT, and I honestly wish she had appeared more often in Doctor Who.

The university students—Scobie, Willa, Juno and Percy—also help bring some energy to the story, while St Achterberg proves to be another enjoyable UNIT officer who works well alongside the Doctor and Ace.

Earth Aid: This story probably contains my favourite supporting cast of the four adventures.

Lieutenant Baraki immediately became one of my standout characters. Although she is extremely authoritative and often frustrated by the Doctor's habit of ignoring orders, their constant disagreements create some genuinely funny dialogue.

Ace's subordinates, Shepstay and Yanikov, also deserve a mention. Watching them struggle to understand Ace's unusual leadership style leads to several humorous exchanges, particularly during moments of crisis.

Victor Espinosa initially doesn't leave much of an impression beyond sounding distinctly American and spending much of the story confined to sick bay with PTSD. However, I certainly wasn't expecting the revelation that he was secretly working against the crew for financial gain. While his motivation is fairly straightforward, it still provides an effective twist during the later stages of the story.

Overall, I thought each adventure introduced enough memorable supporting characters to make the worlds feel believable without overwhelming the central cast.

My Thoughts: The Plots

Thin Ice: This story is a brilliant start of the lost Season 27. It is dramatic and action-packed. Alhtough, the story focuses on Ace and The Seventh Doctor arriving in Moscow in 1967. A few Russians military personnel discover a Martian relic (An Ice Warrior helmet) as well as the rebirth of an Ice Warrior Lord named Lord Sezhyr (how Lord Sezhyr was reborn was an absolutely tremendous moment that I was the edge of my seat throughout that moment). The other sub-plot of 'Thin Ice' involves Ace's preparations to attend the Time Lord Academy (The Doctor submits Sce's application but, unfortunately gets denied however, it was revealed that Ace didn't want to go to Gallifrey and she becomes extremely bitter towards The Doctor because he was too secretive). The highlight of 'Thin Ice' was the spectacular battle between Ace and Lord Sezhyr (although, the Doctor prevented Ace from fighting Sezhyr but, Ace insisted on fighting for revenge because Hhesh was killed by Lord Sezhyr). 

Crime of the Century: A quite forgettable story that honestly, I gained almost nothing from this story (Part One and Part Two were bland but, Part Three and Part Four was quite action-packed, but nothing to write home about). This story introduces Raine Creevy (Markus and Raina Creevy's daughter), who is a safe cracker, Markus Creevy and Colonel Felnikov are back. The main plot involves Ace and The Seventh Doctor being separated during the majority of the story (Ace is in the Middle East and Raine + The Seventh Doctor are still in London and later they meet Prince Sayf Udeen). Also, it is the Metatraxi's first appearance. 

Animal: This story is slightly much more entertaining than the forgettable 'Crime of the Century'. Here are the highlights that I remember from listening to 'Animal': The beginning where The Seventh Doctor, Ace and Raine admire the river that leads towards the entrance to Margrave University (I enjoyed the amusing line from Ace when she was saying that the duck can be good with plum sauce and fried rice after Raine excitedly called them beautiful). The scene where Ace and Raine go undercover as 'Freshers' and they meet Scobie and Willa at Margrave University's bar, just listening to Bambera and The Seventh Doctor interact will always be entertaining (it is just like how they interacted in the Doctor Who TV story 'Battlefield'), just hearing the moment when Percy was scratched by one of the specimens inside the greenhouse sounded realistic as Juno, Scobie, The Seventh Doctor and Ace find out who did it, the scenes that feature the Numlocks are filled suspense and intrigue, hearing what happened to Scobie at the end of 'Animal' shocked me and the scene when Raine discovered that her father (Markus Creevy) had died in 2001 saddened me. 

Earth Aid: This was the story I was most excited for (not only because Ingrid Oliver is featured in it) but I would like to know why the Metatraxi play a key role in this story. also, there's a small sub-plot about Raine Creevy coming back to investigate her father's deth (alhtough, it was thought that Raine Creevy was staying in London to mourn her father's death). There are a few significant moments in this story such as, the Metatraxi are hanging upside down and trapped by organic secretion, the Grubs are found in the grain silo and a sentient named The Great Mother (who is voiced by Lt Bharaki through using a communication device) on the planet Safenesthome'. I enjoyed this story better than 'Thin Ice'. I found 'Earth Aid' to be an dramatic and engrossing final story to the lost Season 27. The highlight for me was when Lt Bharaki became the sentient planet whilst using the Seventh Doctor's communication device.

My Thoughts: The Villains

One thing I appreciated throughout these four stories is that each adventure features its own distinct antagonist while also contributing to the larger Season 27 narrative. Rather than relying on a single recurring "big bad," each story presents a different type of threat, allowing the Doctor and his companions to face a wide variety of challenges.

Thin Ice: The Ice Warriors appear in this story and they sound absolutely menacing (just like their televised appearances),  especially whenever Beth Chalmers portrays 'Lord Sezhyr'. 

I also found Colonel Felnikov to be one of the more interesting human antagonists. Although he initially appears to be a loyal Soviet officer, his increasingly suspicious behaviour made me question whether he could be trusted. Even after the story ended, I was pleased yet surprised to discover that his role wasn't over.

Crime of the Century: All I can say is that, there is the return of Colonel Felnikov as the bad guy and The introduction of the Metatraxi (sounding menacing) also adds another layer of mystery that continues into later stories.

Animal: A few things to mention; the Metatraxi only appeared as a cameo (via a hologram), the main villains are the Numlocks who talk in strange way; they do love to repeat "come to know harm." Additionally, there's a twist relating to what happened to a Margrave Univeristy student named Scobie (facing the charges sabotage, treason, attempted mass murders and failing to return several library books). 

Earth Aid: For me, 'Earth Aid' contains the strongest collection of antagonists.

The Metatraxi make their final appearance; sounding a lot more menacing that the previous two stories (because they brought in their warship and they are in conflict with the Grubs on the planet Safenesthome. Honestly, the Metatraxi sound similar to the Tetraps featured in 'Time and The Rani'). The return of the Metatraxi immediately raises the stakes and helps reward listeners who have followed the previous stories. I always enjoy it when Doctor Who allows seemingly standalone adventures to connect together, and their return helps make the season feel much more cohesive.

Additionally, Victor Espinosa's betrayal also came as a genuine surprise. At first, I simply assumed he was another member of the crew recovering from PTSD, so discovering that he had been secretly working against everyone purely for financial gain was an effective twist.

My Thoughts: Incidental Music and Sound Effects

Like many Big Finish productions, these stories rely heavily on the listener's imagination, and the music and sound effects make that remarkable easy. Combined with the excellent performances from the cast, it's not difficult to picture these adventures as fully realised television episodes. 

Music: The music used in these four stories are dramatic and epic. Whenever, there were sad scenes, the music sounded sombre.

Sound effcts: As always when it comes to listening to Doctor Who Big Finish audio dramas, the sound effects are realistic and some of the noises from the electronics such as button mashing and the spaceship interiors sounded brilliant. 

Hey, wait a mo! I've noticed something

This special reccuring moment or story arc does not appear until I have started listening to 'Crime of the Century' towards 'Earth Aid'. Let me explain, the Metraxi were extremely significant in those three ('Crime of the Century', 'Animal' and 'Earth Aid'), Although in 'Animal', the Metraxi made a cameo appearance in part four using a hologram, they played big part in 'Crime of the Century' and 'Earth Aid' (The Metatraxi invaded Kaffirstan; occured in 'Crime of the Century' and The Metatraxi attacked a spaceship entitled 'The Vancouver' on the planet Safenesthome, The Great Mother ordered The Metatraxi to live in peace with the Grubs; occured in 'Earth Aid'). 

Another thing that was reccuring (in 'Thin Ice' and 'Crime of the Century') was shady Colonel Felnikov. Honestly, I wished he died or arrested due to his shady dealings with the Ice Warriors and The Metatraxi. He is such an untrustworthy character, I was glad Raine manipulated him.

Overall Scores:

Thin Ice: Overally, 'Thin Ice' provides a strong opening to the Season 27 range.

I really enjoyed the Cold War setting, which gives the story a distinctive atmosphere compared to many other Seventh Doctor adventures. It also does an excellent job of establishing several plot threads that continue throughout the season, including Ace's application to the Time Lord Academy, the introduction of Colonel Felnikov and the Creevy family, all of which help create a stronger sense of continuity.

Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred are both on top form, and I particularly enjoyed the emotional moments between the Doctor and Ace, which hint at the changing dynamic between them.

Although there were a few moments where the pacing slowed slightly, I still found Thin Ice to be an engaging and enjoyable start to the season. 9/10

Crime of the Century: This is, unfortunately, my least favourite story of the four.

While I appreciated the introduction of Raine Creevy and enjoyed finally meeting a companion who had originally been planned for the unmade Season 27, I found the story itself much harder to stay invested in. The heist premise certainly had potential, and there were some entertaining moments scattered throughout, but I felt the overall plot became unnecessarily complicated at times and didn't hold my attention as well as the other stories.

That said, Crime of the Century still contains several important developments for the season. It introduces the Metatraxi, continues the story of Markus Creevy and Colonel Felnikov, and lays the groundwork for future adventures. These elements help strengthen the overarching narrative, even if the story itself didn't quite work for me.

Raine is undoubtedly the highlight here, and I enjoyed seeing the Doctor, Ace and Raine begin forming the TARDIS team that would continue through the remaining stories.

Although it wasn't a story I enjoyed as much as the others, I still appreciate its importance within the wider Season 27 arc. 5/10

Animal: What I enjoyed most was its willingness to tell a very different kind of Doctor Who story. Rather than focusing on political conspiracies or large-scale space adventures, it explores environmental themes alongside some genuinely creepy science-fiction concepts.

The return of Brigadier Winifred Bambera and UNIT was another major highlight, and I thought they fitted naturally into the story.

While I found the pacing stronger than Crime of the Century, I didn't think it reached the same overall standard as Thin Ice or Earth Aid. Some of the antagonists weren't quite as memorable, but the story still contributes meaningfully to the season's ongoing narrative and offers plenty to enjoy. 7/10

Earth Aid: Without question, 'Earth Aid' is my favourite story in the collection.

Everything comes together beautifully in what feels like a genuine television season finale. The return of the Metatraxi rewards listeners who have followed the previous adventures, while Ace's unexpected role as captain aboard the Vancouver leads to some of my favourite moments in the entire range. Her secret radio conversations with the Doctor are both humorous and surprisingly tense.

Lieutenant Baraki also became one of my favourite supporting characters thanks to her entertaining interactions with the Doctor, while Raine feels far more confident and established as part of the TARDIS team by this point.

I also appreciated how the story brings together many of the season's recurring plot threads without feeling forced. Combined with Big Finish's excellent music, sound design and performances from the cast, 'Earth Aid' delivers a thrilling and satisfying conclusion to the Lost Stories version of Season 27.

For me, this is the story that best captures what the Seventh Doctor era could have become had the original television series continued into the 1990s. 10/10