(Continuing my review of the Beyond War Games box set...)

In Wrath of the Ice Warriors, the TARDIS arrives in Scotland where the Doctor meets up with Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge Stewart, played brilliantly by Jon Culshaw. The story slots in nicely between The Web of Fear and Spearhead from Space, so the Brigadier is still relatively young. Now, entirely by coincidence, also for Christmas, I was gifted another Big Finish adventure set in Scotland and featuring Culshaw as the Brigadier, this time paired with Sylvester McCoy’s 7th Doctor. However, in The Grey Man of the Mountain, Lethbridge-Stewart is an older, wiser man at the end of his career post Battlefield. It was nice to contrast Culshaw’s portrayal of the same man at different times in his life. I’d never realised before, how much thought Culshaw puts into his vocal mimicry; it’s not just a party-trick he does with his voice, the man really is a genius. Listening to him talking (as himself) in the extras, it’s clear that Jon Culshaw feels a responsibility to get his performance right and honour Nicholas Courtney’s legacy. He succeeds in that admirably. Even though they are not designed that way, I’d recommend listening to Wrath of the Ice Warriors and The Grey Man of the Mountain back to back.

By the way, someone else who impressed me with their vocal dexterity in Wrath of the Ice Warriors was Katy Manning. I’d quite forgotten seeing her name on the box, and I actually listened to her performance in the story without realising it was her. Mind you, Katy’s impression of Omega in the talking book of The Three Doctors was nothing short of staggering, so I shouldn’t really be surprised.

At the beginning of Wrath of the Ice Warriors, when the 2nd Doctor realises that he’s in Scotland, he remarks that it’s a pity Jamie isn’t with him. I agreed. In fact, there was no reason at all why this story had to be a 6B adventure, it could just as easily have been set in the 2nd Doctor’s established continuity. Once again, I was left scratching my head wondering why Big Finish are going down the 6B route when not just Frazer Hines but also Wendy Padbury are still available for work. In fact, we already know that Jamie will be returning for these 6B adventures which, for me, makes the whole set up all the more pointless.

In a nutshell, Beyond War Games is deeply flawed but still enjoyable. It is the 2nd Doctor after all. Okay, Big Finish, I’m in. Let’s see where Bargain Bin Servalan (Raven) sends him next.