So here we are with the Sixth Doctor, you all know the story by now, a Doctor who got off to a really rough start that made him very unpopular with fans. After a near cancellation and a second season, Colin Baker was wrongly fired from the role. Cut to Big Finish over a decade later and the character gained redemption in the eyes of the fans with better quality stories, a shift in personality to a more mature and gentle figure and having companions who weren’t afraid to challenge him during his more arrogant and rude moments. Chief among those being Evelyn Smythe voiced by the late Maggie Stables who basically helped housetrain Six into losing his old TV persona and became a much stronger Doctor we’ve grown to love today. The Sixth Doctor is one of my absolute favourites with some of the best stories you’ll ever come across in Doctor Who
Vengeance on Varos - If you watch any episode of the Sixth Doctor era make it this one. The Doctor’s a lot more toned down with his arrogant and loud personality compared to other episodes. It also features one of the best creations of this era, Sil. There is of course that “controversial” scene where everyone keeps claiming the Doctor kills two people in an acid bath. Firstly, he doesn’t, I’ve seen this plenty of times, one gets knocked in by his partner and the other gets pulled in by the first guy, that claim is a load of bull. Secondly, it’s not as if the Doctor hasn’t killed/caused deaths in self defence numerous times in the show anyway, maybe the Tenth Doctor is “the man who never would”, but THE Doctor is a completely different story.
The Marian Conspiracy - If you’re gonna start anywhere with the Sixth Doctor audios, I can’t think of a more ideal story than this one, the Doctor’s first meeting with Evelyn Smythe, someone with a personality to match the Doctor’s, someone who wouldn’t be cowed by his speeches or put up with his arrogance and above all someone who wasn’t afraid to call the Doctor out on his decisions, a trait I value greatly in companions. Modern Who has a tendancy of having the companions be in constant awe of the Doctor rather than being a bit more challenging when it’s called for. The Marian Conspiracy is a great introduction to a new companion with all the hallmarks of being a series opener.
The Holy Terror - My favourite Sixth Doctor story of all time, I could listen to this once a year every year for the rest of my life and never get tired of it. Written by my favourite Doctor Who writer, Rob Shearman, The Holy Terror is funny, clever, has great commentary on religion, dark, heartbreaking and so much more. One thing I’ve noticed that I’ve not heard many people point out, it’s seems very clear to me that this story influenced Steven Moffat when writing The Empty Child, I won’t give away what that connection is but trust me, once you’ve noticed it, you can’t unotice.
The One Doctor - Colin Baker and Bonnie Langford’s first work together since Trial of a Time Lord and one of the earliest stories in Mel’s redemption in the eyes of fans as well as the Sixth Doctor. Both came out of the show with a negative reputation and this was around the time they started to turn things around. The One Doctor is a story I’m surprised has never been though of before, the closest we’ve had in the show was The Next Doctor, inf act I think it would’ve worked so well if it were more like The One Doctor. This is a story that in a lot of ways is a parody of Doctor Who but not in the way that completely takes the mick out of it. More in the way of reminding us why we love Doctor Who despite how silly and ludicrous it can be.
Jubilee - This was my first Big Finish audio as is the case for many new listeners and…yeah it more than lives up to its reputation. The story that would later be remade two years later in Dalek, but Jubilee has so much more going for it, I could go on about why you should give this a listen, but let’s face it, you’ve either already listened to this or are planning to listen to it when you make a start on Big Finish.
Doctor Who and the Pirates - This does pirates and musicals so brilliantly in a way that the show (both Classic and Modern) has failed at numerous times. This story is so gloriously silly and over the top and it just embraces that, we get a phenomenal guest performance from Bill Oddie as the pirate captain and some really fun musical numbers with a surprisingly moving solo.
Project Lazarus - I’d recommend listening to Project Twilight to get the better picture of this story. One of the most dramatically heavy stories in Doctor Who and one of the darkest days in the Doctor’s lives as the Doctor is almost tortured to death by the Forge. A secret British militray that capture, study and weaponise alien technology to defend their borders “for king and country”. Bassically Russel T. Davies looked at the Forge and said “I wanna do that!”. But after being rescued by friend turned vampire, Cassie, the Doctor watches helplessely as she’s killed by their leader Nimrod. Cassie’s death and the Doctor’s aline manner to her passing causes Evelyn to have an emotional breakdown, driving a rift between the two. And that’s only the first half! The Sixth Doctor’s story ends there but in the second half, we return to the Forge not long after only this time they’re visited by the Seventh Doctor, and if you know the Seventh Doctor you know that out of all the Doctors to be seeking revenge, Seven’s basically the John Wick!
Davros - Celebrating the 40th anniversary of Doctor Who, Big Finish were spearheading the celebrations with the Eighth Doctor starring in the main 40th anniversary story, while Doctors Five, Six and Seven were paired off with individual villains that were more of a deep character dive into said villains. Here we get the Doctor being forced to work alongside Davros which gives us our first hints at his life prior to his accident and also shows us just how deadly Davros can be even without his Daleks flanking him. Terry Molloy is my favourite Davros actor and here he delivers his best performance. Six and Davros are my favourite pairings of the two, they just really bring out the best in each other .
Arrangements for War - Picking up from Project Lazarus, Evelyn and Six’s relationship reaches a crossroads where Evelyn is unsure whether or not she should stay. To try and mend things, the Doctor takes her to the planet Vilag where the two become embroiled in a love affiar that threatens the arranged marriage between two warring nations. It’s a bit of a Romeo and Juliet type story with a Doctor Who spin on it but it has some wonderful character moments such as Evelyn talking about the heart condition that’s slowly killing her, her growing romance the the govenor, talking about how the Doctor approaches the subject of grief, and then the ending where after seeing too many people he cares about die, the Doctor reaches his emotional breaking point and attempts to break the laws of time. What follows is one of the best endings in Doctor Who history and my favourite performance from Colin Baker whilst showing why Six and Evelyn make forone of the strongest pairings of all time.
Thicker Than Water - Despite chosing to remain with the Doctor, all things come to an end as Thicker Than Water reveals how Evelyn came to leave the TARDIS, but uniquely it’s not a story set during their travels. The story is actually set years later during Six’s travels with Mel and Evelyn’s departure is shown via flashback. The main story is a bit laid back and kind of whatever, not in a bad way, just not something to be excited about. But the real crux of the story is the Doctor reuniting with Evelyn and making up for his bad manner at her departure, you really do feel the love both characters and actors have for one another.
The Reaping - One thing I could’ve done without in this story is how it’s recorded, there were a number of stories around this time where I can’t quite describe it but everything sounds like it was recorded in an echoey sound chamber and the actors talked with their mouths so close to the microphone that you can hear their tongues smacking the inside of their mouths whenever they opened. You know like in The Dark Knight when the Joker would make that tongue sound before talking well imagine that with every actor in this story. It’s pet peeve in all honeslty but it’s just not pleasant to listen to either. But The Reaping does do a great job with it’s premise of Peri returning to her family and having to face up to the damge she caused from going missing. This succeeds where Aliens of London fails where Jackie would be rightfully shocked and angry at Rose having been gone for a year, then just leaves her to hang out alone with the man she went missing with the very next scene, and then only bring up Rose dissapearing when the script needed it. It’s also a solid Cyberman story with some brutally violent moments, though as many have said, the ending is really out of left field and completely unecessary. Especially given that it’s never been refrenced in any other audios since! Peri’s mum dies, and there’s no emotional follow-up or refrence from here on out! It basically had all the weight and meaning of South Park killing Kenny!
Urgent Calls - Tied to a frankly terrible main story in ID, Urgent Calls is a short but sweet (and I do mean sweet) story where the Doctor converses with a woman named Lauren through a series of random phone calls in order to track down a virus that geenrates coincidences. Lauren is such a likable character and her interactions with the Doctor as just so lovely to listen to, you really feel bad for her never getting to meet the man she’s clearly grown fond of over the course of the story.
Patient Zero - A story that sets up the climax of the Sixth Doctor’s travels with his future companion Charlotte Pollard. The story is basically that Six rescues Charley after she gets seperated from the Eight Doctor and Charley has to keep her true identity a secret (she does so terribly I should point out). Here the Sixth Doctor’s finally had enough and demands Charley reveal who she truly is, but before he can get any answers, Charley collapses from a mysterious virus and falls into a coma for a number of years while the Doctor works tirelessly to find a cure. The word to describe Patient Zero is intense! By the time it was over I just let out a deep breath it was that full on. The Daleks are at their most ruthless with the introduction to the Dalek Time Controller, and shocking revelations are made that date back whole lifetimes in the Doctor’s past. You should probably listen to the Six/Charley audios to get the better picture, they’re solid enough but again, Charley being so terrible at not drawing suspicion and Six so easily accepting her obvious lies rather than pressing the matter is frustrating to listen to at times.
Blue Forgotten Planet - The almost immediate sequel to Patient Zero and the finale to Six & Charley’s story, it’s one hell of a climax almost with the same intensity as Patient Zero. I really can’t give much away given all that was set up heading in and some of the twists from Patient Zero, but I will say that Charley’s final farewell to the Doctor was just heartbreaking to listen to.
Peri and the Piscon Paradox - Peri’s kind of like Ace in a lot of ways where Doctor Who really can’t seem to make it’s mind up on what happened to her. Everyone at first was happy with her supposed death in Trial of a Time Lord, only to reveal she was rescued offscreen by King Brian Blessed and lived on as his queen. All of which was told by the Master who of course is such a trustworthy guy that the Doctor takes him at his word and never thinks to go check! And it’s a retconned ending that many fans hated, so the expaned universe comes along and we get multiple versions of what happened to Peri post-Trial. To me Peri and the Piscon Paradox is the best of these, it’s a real love letter to the character, ironic given the writer and his relationship with Nicola Bryant, we see Peri at two different points in her life caught up in an adventure with the Fifth Doctor battling the evil Zarl. Where the Sixth Doctor comes in, I won’t dare ruin but all I’ll say is the first half is a great but silly adventure, but when we get to the second half told from older Peri’s perspective and we see hwo the pieces fit together, it becomes a hilarous masterpiece!
To Cut a Blade of Grass - A small scale story in Volume 4 of the Short Trips range, a story with no villain or stakes but just a charming little character piece around a friendship the Doctor formed with a man who’s now living out his final days in hospital
The First Sontarans - As the title suggests, this story gives us an origin story to the clone warrior race and gives us some background on their homeworld, what led to the war with the Rutans and even the original inhabitants of Sontar. This didn’t disapoint as an origin story and it’d be good if the show could try and adapt this at some point.
Trial of the Valeyard - The sequel to Trial of a Time Lord, both six times shorter and six times better. The Doctor is brought back to the courtroom of the Time Lords, only this time he’s been summoned as council for the defence, his client, the very man who attempted to prosecute him previously. This story is a great dive into the Valeyard’s character and gives us some enticing snippets into his origins. This story is highly engaging and my favourite Valeyard story.
The Curious Incident of the Doctor in the Night-Time - Part of the Breaking Bubble & Other Stories release and the clear highlight, Nev Fountain has a real talent for comedy, especially where Peri and Six are concerned and when your villain in a Nev Fountain story is a killer garden gnome, you know you’re in for something special
The Widow’s Assassin - Although Peri and the Piscon Paradox is the best out of the stories that attempt to retcon Peri’s terrible exit from the show, The Widow’s Assassin is a close second (from the same writer no less). One of the many things I love about this story is how it openly mocks Trial of a Time Lord for not just the confusing writing in Mindwarp around the Doctor’s shift in character, which goes on to play a huge role in this story’s climax and villain, but for just how utterly stupid the idea that Peri would just marry a guy she’d only known for a day. Which kind of depresses me now that the show (and Big Finish it seems) appear to be glorifying that ending with the recent DVD trailers, Tales of the TARDIS and Trials of a Time Lord from this year. I was really loving this new line of continuity where Peri rejoins the Sixth Doctor’s travels, older, stronger and wiser, and the longing to know where it was heading to and what Peri’s final farewell would ultimately look like. Based on this year’s Trials of a Time Lord, I’m a bit worried that they’re just gonna forget about it, it kinda sucks that Big Finish may jetison a really good storyline thanks to a well meaning but soppy DVD trailer/mini-episode.
The Last Adventure - The last leftover thread in the Sixth Doctor’s redemption story arc being a proper regeneration story and having the chance to shine in the Sixth Doctor’s final hour. Fittingly going out against his televised nemesis, the Valeyard, The Last Adventure takes place across several points in the Sixth Doctor’s life, including introducing new companion Constance Clarke. Each adventure revolves around the Valeyard plotting his ultimate scheme and the Doctor making the ultimate sacrifice to defeat him once and for all. This gives Colin Baker the regeneration story he 100% deserved
Jago & Litefoot Series 11 - The Sixth Doctor became a featured guest character in the Jago & Litefoot range, even inviting them on a sadly short run of travels in the TARDIS (you could’ve gotten years of the Monthly Range out of this idea!). But the Doctor reunites with the investigative duo as they need his help more than ever against the Doctor’s Moriarty counterpart, the Master!
Static - This has garned the reputation of being one of Big Finish’s best releases of all time, I don’t quite think it’s on that level but I do see where people are coming from. It’s a fantastic horror piece where a near empty caravan park is surrounded by a mysterious forest, anyone who brings a radio or TV can hear the voices of the dead through the static and when the camp phone rings, they hear the voice of a dead loved one tell them they’re coming. It’s an excellentl and haunting tale with huge consequences for one of the companions.
Jago & Litefoot Forver - Bit of a cheat as the Doctor’s only involved during the final scene, but as the finale to the long running series of adventures of Jago & Litefoot, it delivers in being a wonderful sendoff. Sadly Trevor Baxter had already passed away before this was recorded, hence why they had to cancel the planned Series 14 (at least until 2021 when they released an audiobook version). Big Finish incorporates past recordings from Litefoot to make up for Baxter’s absence which is a little off at times but not too distracting. The real star is Christopher Benjamin, you really feel in his performance how much he misses his co star.
The Darkened Earth - A Short Trip featuring the Doctor’s WWII WREN Constnce Clarke in a story that really challenges her perspective on how the war affects the innocent on the side she’s fighting against, it’s some great character work for her.
The Lives of Captain Jack Volume 2 - Yeah I think they just wanted Six in this box set so that they could have to cover art of Jack in that coat. Jack and the Sixth Doctor have some great and widly entertaining back and forth in this story.
Scorched Earth - This is a story tailor made for a TARDIS team with companions of two different time periods, we see Constance and Flip clash over the mob mentality of a French village punishing who they believed was a collaborator in WWII, a falling out that nearly destroys their friendship. Again it would be nice if Modern Who would pull their thumb out and really try something similar with their companions sometime in the near future.
The Sixth Doctor and Peri Volume 1 - Very poorly named as there’s not even been a hint at volume 2 four years later. This represents the latest in Peri rejoining the TARDIS following her rescue in The Widow’s Assassin. As I said before, I’m really hoping Big Finish come back to this instead of throwing it away, cos we get some really fun stories in this set, particularly the concluding story, Conflict Theory where the Doctor and Peri visit a psychiatric space station manned by hundred of Freud robots.
These Stolen Hours - A rare revisit to the Six and Charley storyline, one thing I’ve noticed about these revisits is they’re less on the nose about Charley’s unusual relationship with Six, so we don’t get those moments of her constantly slipping up and having to backpedal in a blatantly obvious way. India Fisher is always stellar with her narration and here is no different in a poignant story that ties well into her unique situation with time.
Plight of the Pimpernal - One of the last stories of the Monthly Range and coming at the end of one of the most depressing years in our lifetime. Plight of the Pimpernel sees the Doctor and Peri assisting the master of disguise himself to evade capture not only of the French but a damaged yet still deadly robot who’s travelled a long way to seek that damned elusive Pimpernel. It’s a slow burner for the first half, but when we reach the second and the truth around the Pimpernel is revealed, what follows is one of the most intense performances Colin Baker has ever delivered, he was just stunning in this one.
The Eleven - As I mentioned in my Fourth Doctor list, the Eleven is one of Big Finish’s triumphs, creating a Time Lord villain who lives with all his past lives stuck in his mind and taking over his speech. The Eleven is a box set soely dedicated to the character and his encounter with the Sixth Doctor, Mark Bonnar steals the show as he always does, it’ll never happen but in a perfect world, he’d be front of the line for villains I’d love to see make the jump into the show.
Together in Eclectic Dreams - When you look at the lineup for Volume 3 of Classc Doctors New Monsters, this looks like a pretty pathetic line up of monsters. I never believed they’d come back to this series give how long it had been since the previous release and that they’d kind of used up all the interesting Modern Who monsters. And yet Stuff of Nightmares works way better than it deserved and I ended up appreciating the care and effort they put in to giving some of Modern Who’s less popular monsters some time in the spotlight. Together in Ecclectic Dreams sees the Sixth Doctor encounter the Dream Crabs with new companion Mari, and right away you’re caught off guard by a huge twist in the first few minutes nd the story keeps you engaged every step of the way.
Purity Undreamed - The second volume of a rare four box set story arc for the Sixth Doctor, similar to what they’d do for the Eighth Doctor. Purity Undreamed sees the new TARDIS team of Six, Mel and wheelchair user marine biologist Hebe acquire a new member of the crew in Professor Patricia Davies. But all may not be as well as they thought as Patricia has some very extreme views about the future and how people should be, it kicks off the Purity story arc very strongly.
Purity Unleashed - Following on from the ending of Purity Undreamed, our third box set features Six and Mel search desperatly for Hebe following her erasure, after a fun respite in Broadway Belongs to Me, the main story arc resumes with the Doctor at odds with Patricia (now calling herself Purity) meddling with history in just the tiniest of ways, it’s kind of like a story arc that would’ve worked well with the Meddling Monk had he been less silly and more threatening.
Purity Unbound - The ending of this series I’ll admit is disappointing but the buildup was still very promising as the Doctor and Mel have found Hebe, but she has no memory of her travels and is trapped in a new world created by Purity. The best parts are just the worldbuilding and the Doctor’s attempts to unravel the new future caused by Purity.
The Queen of Clocks - Once again, Six steals the show in Volume 4 of Classic Doctors, New Monsters with and encounter between him and an army of clockwork robots laying seige to a castle awaiting rescue. These aren’t necessarily the same as those from Girl in the Fireplace and Deep Breath, but then again the robots in those episodes weren’t necessarily the same either so it works well in the context of this story. It starts out as a fun base under seige with the Doctor working out ways to outwit the clockwork robots, but then it gives us a huge putpunch of an ending. This major plot twist and the Doctor’s success at thwarting the robots had me floored the first time listening to it
The Quinn Dilemma - And lastly we have the first release of the Sixth Doctor’s 40 year celebration. A story where five brothers, for the prize of becoming king, are sent on a hunt for the Sixth Doctor. Each one locates a different version of the Sixth Doctor in the midst of an adventure with different companions. This was a very fun story, marking the return of Lisa Greenwood to Big Finish following her three year hiatus after contracting long-term covid, though I couldn’t help but notice how limited her dialogue was in this story. We also get a very heartfelt conversation between him and Peri and Peri finally after all these years airs her feelings towards the Sixth Doctor after their uneasy beginnings and ponder on whether or not it’s time to go their seperate ways. And for the more canon obsessed fans, we also get a complete chronological listing of all of Six’s companions.
And that’s my list for the Sixth Doctor, again this was meant to be for yesterday but what can I say,lots of Christmas parties to attend, but I’ll definitely have the Seventh Doctor up today, I am trying to keep these timed to end before the new year. So feel free to drop your thoughts down below and I’ll see you later folks!