Jubilee is frequently front and centre of any recommendations for newer listeners, mostly due to vague elements of Jubilee being repackaged in a certain episode of Series 1 of Modern Who written by the same writer. Though I should emphasise that Jubilee and Dalek are two very different stories conveying very different meanings.

Jubilee sees the Doctor and Evelyn land in an alternate timeline where the Daleks attempted to invade in 1903 but were defeated by the Doctor and Evelyn in an adjacent timeline. In doing so they unwittingly created a darker world of 2003 where the British Empire used the remains of the Dalek technology to fully conquer the world and now rule it with similar ideals to the Daleks. The last Dalek alive has been locked away in the Tower of London and regularly tortured, for the 100^th anniversary of the English Empire’s formation the Dalek is due to be executed with the Doctor as the guest of honour.

As I said, Jubilee does have familiar elements that were later used in Dalek, such as a single damaged and slightly insane Dalek being held prisoner and tortured to try and make it talk, the scene where the Doctor and the Dalek first meet which is almost line for line, the Dalek forming an attachment to the companion and even a similar and clever ending that I won’t spoil as it’s not quite the same as in Dalek. If you love Dalek, then you’ll love this just as much if not more. Dalek was more of an action thriller whereas Jubilee is more complex and psychological, it employs meta-commentary for how the Daleks, a race of fearsome killing machines have become a top merchandise seller and absorbed into pop culture, the same way the Daleks have in reality, while also drawing parallels to how the Nazis were treated in a similar fashion after their defeat. Going from a powerful and feared force to being the butt of many war jokes and parodies, the token villains of war films and spy novels. The story even opens with an over-the-top Hollywood Dalek movie trailer where the Doctor’s remembered as an action hero. It delves into how the winning side in history glorifies themselves and belittles their enemies while being unaware of how corrupt they in turn may become.

Now something to warn new listeners about, in Big Finish’s early days they had free reign to put whatever they wanted in their stories as they weren’t constrained by audience restrictions. As a result, a lot of their early stories contained inappropriate elements like swearing or sex or grotesque violence. Sometimes it’s handled well, and I like Doctor Who with a bit of meat on it, but it can come as a bit of a shock to newer listeners and Jubilee in particular is a bit messed up in places!! Especially in part three where we learn some of the darker secrets of this alternate fascist England. It’s awesome but messed up and you’ve been warned.

Nicholas Briggs at this point had been voicing the Daleks for a couple of years and it was his work in Big Finish that got him noticed by regular listener Russell T. Davies and hired to voice the Daleks on TV, Everyone knows that Briggs is the voice of the Daleks through and through and there’s not been a better voice, in this story he gives what I consider his best performance as the Daleks. Particularly playing this single broken down Dalek that is similar to the one from Series 1 but has its own story and dilemma, it’s the true highlight of the story and has so many spectacular scenes with the Doctor and Evelyn.

There’s a good reason why Jubilee is often the first Big Finish audio many listeners, including myself, experience. It is every bit the masterpiece it’s been hyped up as and should be at the top of every fan’s list of must listen stories.