The opening chapter of Dalek Empire is an ambitious, sometimes unwieldy blend of space opera, character drama, and relentless momentum. Nicholas Briggs wastes no time throwing the listener into the chaos: Earth is on the brink, and the Daleks have begun their most brutal conquest yet. In place of a traditional Doctor figure, we’re introduced to Alby Brook, a space pilot with a tragic past, and Susan Mendes, a geologist-turned-revolutionary whose transformation becomes the spine of the saga.

What works best here is the way the story uses its Big Finish DNA to craft something distinct. This isn’t a standard Doctor Who audio—it’s more akin to Blake’s 7 filtered through Dalek logic, with humans pushed to the brink and forced to compromise. Sarah Mowat’s performance as Susan is the standout, giving real depth to a woman who sees survival as the only form of rebellion. The introduction of Kalendorf,the mysterious Knight of Velyshaa, adds a layer of ambiguity, suggesting bigger games being played.

But the cracks are already visible. There’s a heavy reliance on coincidence to pull the threads together—Susan just happens to meet Kalendorf, who just happens to be the man Alby was sent to find. Some of these overlaps feel unnecessary, bordering on contrived. Still, there’s an energy to Invasion of the Daleks that carries it through. It’s brutal, fast-paced, and occasionally harrowing. As a starting point, it sets the tone for the series: messy, bold, and not afraid to look at what happens when the Daleks win.

good start to the excellent dalek empire series, showing us how the daleks usually operate of course, but also including an alternative take on resisting them which i found quite interesting

I feel a bit conflicted on this Story. Technically speaking it’s a solid Opener, setting up Bits and Pieces in place which will (I am sure) later pay off. Susan is honestly a pretty great Character from the Bits we have gotten here, and a lot of the Things presented here are Concepts which I do genuinely like (especially the second Half of the Story). The big ‘but’ here is sadly that I really couldn’t connect much with this Story that much, maybe my Opinion will change on it as I continue this Series/Spin Off Series, but I don’t know.

Solid Story, just not one, which doesn’t do much for me sadly.

I’m not a huge Daleks fans at all, especially on audio where I find I zone out if they have lots of dialogue. But something about this series just works.

The humans characters are great - Alby with his ‘everyman’ attitude but with secrets under the surface and knowing more than he lets on. Kalendorf, another man with secrets and powers and Suz - a woman thrust into an unenviable position.

The three main cast members, Mark McDonnell, Sarah Mowat and the incomparable Gareth Thomas give their all and Nick Briggs is on his A game as the many different Daleks (I’m especially fond of the booming Emperor).

The humans are what makes this work - their plight (which rattles along giving the audience hardly time to draw breath) is horrific. Suz and Kalendorf are literally at the rock face of Dalek occupation. Alby meanwhile is thrown from near death situation to near death situation. Self-preservation almost makes him seem selfish but his knowledge of the Daleks means he knows he has to play the long game if he is to survive long enough to find Suz and complete his mission.

But what surprises me here is the Daleks. As I say, they often lose me on audio but this group are fascinating. This is the scheming Daleks of David Whitaker. Their manipulation of Suz is astounding but the subtle in-fighting gives them an edge rarely seen in the Daleks. Lower ranked Daleks questioning how Suz is being allowed to dictate Dalek policy and being shouted down by the Supreme but then the Emperor shouting down the Supreme - the hierarchy is fascinating and really makes their scenes something worth listening to.

Even though I’ve listened to this before, I can’t actually remember many of the details as to where the story goes so I’m looking forward to exploring this world again.

(It would help, though, if they didn’t have Nick Briggs and Ian Brooker obviously playing so many different parts in the same episode though…)

I really liked this, I wasn't sure at first but over the course of the episode I found myself really buying into this new corner of the Whoniverse. Really liked Susan and Alby! I'm intrigued as to how this spin-off manages to last for so many series, but it has me excited!