I was so curious about this one, as an 8/Charley fan, and a fan of Alex Macqueen’s all-systems go version of The Master, but the studio version of this absolutely serviceable but by no means overly inspiring story is a strange experience. This could not be more clearly written to be performed live, with moments where you’re supposed to cheer or boo or gasp or applaud all very signposted, but without the actual response. I suppose I should’ve gone with the live version, had I known that was so much the reason for it existing at all, but even as a music fan I’m not really into live albums, I got my degree in audio production because I like everything you can do with a studio, live albums don’t always translate the actual experience of a song as well as a crafted studio version, for me.

The positives here are that McGann and India are do-it-in-their-sleep good in this pairing, still, they haven’t lost their charming double act and they really don’t sound much different than they did in Time Of The Daleks. Added to that, hearing the original 8 theme arrangement with that churning synth bass really put a smile on my face, that’s one of my all time favorite versions. And Alex Macqueen is deliciousness itself as The Master, he’s playing it for the back row even in this studio version, but then that’s just how he plays it even in Dark Eyes (and this story is intriguing in being maybe the earliest time 8 meets this Master, this is definitely Charley’s first meeting with any Master, or at least the first she will remember, referencing The Light At The End).

The one-off extra companion Emily Barnfather could’ve been a little stronger, the thing of having her narrate from the future with a very different voice made the character feel disjointed, and I’m not sure the folklore and legends element was actually used all that much. The Daleks were my real problem here. A pretty lazy inclusion of them to just juice up the anniversary vibe, and they sound terrible. Dunno what Nick was going for with this particular set of voices, he’s enough of a nerd about it that he’s probably trying to make them the specific squad of Daleks from Destiny or something, but they just sounded silly.

Seemed like there were several plot elements that just went nowhere, but I now see this would be much more fun with some cheering and hooting and hollering from an engaged crowd. Studio version is a bit strange! 3.25/5

7️⃣⏹️ = ENJOYABLE!

Thworping through time and space, one adventure at a time!

“RAIDERS OF THE LOST PROFESSOR!”

Please note, that this is a review based on the studio recording of the live event. I have not seen the live version of this story.

This story begins like any other: the Doctor and Charley arrive in Cornwall in 1963 and stumble upon a man throwing himself to the sea, only to then get entangled in the local goings-on. They begin delving into local folklore and a missing professor living in the area.

Their exploration turns into a bit of a treasure hunt in the style of Indiana Jones. The Doctor and Charley are accompanied by Emily Barnfather, whose fascination and willingness to explore make her a very natural fit for this TARDIS team. She’s a bit like a new Charley, but from the 60s, and Nisha Nayar plays her very well.

Here, we meet the Bucca, mysterious binary creatures greatly performed by Annette Badland. The aliens are pretty typical for Doctor Who, but their binary nature at least makes them somewhat special.

The end of Part 1 finally tightens the tension a bit with the inclusion of Robomen, Daleks the Bucca, and the Master. Alex Macqueen is delightful as always in the role of the latter—sly and calculative, but with a certain wit and charm. Part 2 is then a thrill ride (literally) with the Master's machinations intertwining with the Daleks exterminating left and right.

This story sort of lives up to its name by being a mix of very typical Doctor Who elements—the stuff of legends. It makes for a safe and perfectly listenable adventure that hardly tries to tread new ground. The studio erosion is perfectly fine, but I suspect it worked much better as a live-stage performance.

Charley impersonating a Dalek and being very bad at it is hilarious. Brings back memories of Ian coding similar things in The Daleks (1963-1964).

Love how the older Emily (voiced by Badland) narrates the story as if telling a bedtime story for us. The final scene, with the Doctor and Charley picking up the older Emily for another adventure, is also very nice.

I had my Fun with the Story even if I just listened to the Studio Version. Yes, this Story is very much a more “Standard”-affair for Doctor Who, but nothing wrong with it. I would imagine if I was able to go to the Event, I probably would enjoy it a bit more, but as it is, it’s a pretty fun Story.

As a big Fan of the Companion Chronicles, it was quite fun listening to the Narration bits here, which I thought were all well done and enjoyable. Similarly, if not more fun is the Chemistry between 8 and Charley, who are a personally favorite TARDIS Team of mine, so no surprise there. But the real Scene Stealer here was easily Alex MacQueen as the Master, he played the Part as brilliantly as ever! Wish we can get more of his Incarnation, as nice as it is having plenty of the revived Show Masters on Audio, he deserves more Stories!!

Still it was fun, so really I can’t complain and really the whole Idea about doing a Live Perfomance is just lovely, here is hope one day the Footage will be released somewhere  (Yes I know it won’t happen, but let me be delusional!)

great concepts but it drags a little bit too long, i think if i'd seen it live it would've been a different story. some nice moments throughout and always great to hear the macqueen master!

It was a little long and feel the main appeal was the live experience so I can’t give it a 10 but still solid