The War Master, announced in June 2017, is a Big Finish Productions audio play series based on the TV show Doctor Who. It sees the return of Sir Derek Jacobi as the Master, a role he previously portrayed in the TV story "Utopia". The first volume consists of a four-CD box set; it was released in December 2017.[1] In July 2018, a further 3 series were confirmed for release between December 2018 – December 2019.[2][3]
The War Master | |
---|---|
Big Finish Productions audio drama | |
Series | The Worlds of Doctor Who |
Featuring | The Master |
Written by | various |
Directed by | Scott Handcock |
Produced by | Scott Handcock (2017–2024) Robert Valentine (2024–present) |
Executive producer(s) |
|
Starring | Sir Derek Jacobi |
Music |
|
Release date | December 2017 |
In January 2019, Paul McGann was confirmed as an appearance within the third series, Rage of the Time Lords, as the Eighth Doctor alongside Jacobi.[4][5][6] Seán Carlsen reprised his role as Narvin from the Gallifrey series alongside Pippa Bennett-Warner and Nicholas Briggs as Livia and the Daleks.
The series was created by Scott Handcock, who is the producer of the range as well as director and script-editor for sets released between 2017 and 2024. It was announced that he will be succeeded by Robert Valentine, after Handcock became a script editor for future series of Doctor Who on screen.[7][8]
Cast
editThis section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in at least one season.
- A green cell indicates the actor is a main cast member.
- A red cell indicates the actor is a recurring cast member.
- A light blue cell indicates the actor is a guest or special guest cast member.
Actor | Character | Appearances | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
S1 | S2 | S3 | S4 | S5 | S6 | S7 | S8 | S9 | S10 | S11 | ||
Sir Derek Jacobi | The Master | ✓ | ||||||||||
Professor Yana | ✓ | |||||||||||
Mark Gatiss | Alternate-Universe Master | ✓ | ||||||||||
Seán Carlsen | Narvin | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ||||||||
Paul McGann | The Doctor | ✓ | ✓ | |||||||||
David Tennant | ✓ | |||||||||||
Jonny Green | Cole Jarnish | ✓ | ✓ | |||||||||
Nicholas Briggs | The Daleks | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |||||||
Sherlock Holmes | ✓ |
Notable guests
edit- Silas Carson as The Ood
- Samantha Béart as Martine King
- Maeve Bluebell Wells as Cassandra King
- Pippa Haywood as Teremon
- Pippa Bennett-Warner as Livia
- Colin McFarlane as Captain Morski
- Luyanda Unati Lewis-Nyawo as The Scaramancer
- Katy Manning as Jo Jones
- Sarah Sutton as Nyssa
- Alexander Vlahos as Dorian Gray
- Richard Earl as Dr. Watson
- Gethin Anthony as The Shadow
- Murray Melvin as Bilis Manger
Episodes
editSeries 1: Only the Good (2017)
editNo. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Featuring | Released |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Beneath the Viscoid" | Scott Handcock | Nicholas Briggs | Daleks | December 2017 |
2 | "The Good Master" | Scott Handcock | Janine H Jones | Cole Jarnish, Daleks | December 2017 |
3 | "The Sky Man" | Scott Handcock | James Goss | Cole Jarnish | December 2017 |
4 | "The Heavenly Paradigm" | Scott Handcock | Guy Adams | Cole Jarnish | December 2017 |
Series 2: The Master of Callous (2018)
editNo. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Featuring | Released |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Call for the Dead" | Scott Handcock | James Goss | Ood, Martine King, Cassandra King | December 2018 |
2 | "The Glittering Prize" | Scott Handcock | James Goss | Ood, Martine King, Cassandra King | December 2018 |
3 | "The Persistence of Dreams" | Scott Handcock | Guy Adams | Ood, Martine King, Cassandra King | December 2018 |
4 | "Sins of the Father" | Scott Handcock | Guy Adams | Ood, Narvin, Cassandra King | December 2018 |
Series 3: Rage of the Time Lords (2019)
editNo. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Featuring | Released |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "The Survivor" | Scott Handcock | Tim Foley | Alice Pritchard | July 2019 |
2 | "The Coney Island Chameleon" | Scott Handcock | David Llewellyn | Giuseppe Sabatini | July 2019 |
3 | "The Missing Link" | Scott Handcock | Tim Foley | Eighth Doctor, Alice Pritchard | July 2019 |
4 | "Darkness and Light" | Scott Handcock | David Llewellyn | Eighth Doctor | July 2019 |
Series 4: Anti-Genesis (2019)
editNo. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Featuring | Released |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "From the Flames" | Scott Handcock | Nicholas Briggs | Narvin, Livia | December 2019 |
2 | "The Master's Dalek Plan" | Scott Handcock | Alan Barnes | Narvin, Livia, Daleks | December 2019 |
3 | "Shockwave" | Scott Handcock | Alan Barnes | Narvin, Livia, Daleks, The Master (Unbound) | December 2019 |
4 | "He Who Wins" | Scott Handcock | Nicholas Briggs | Narvin, Livia, Daleks, The Master (Unbound) | December 2019 |
Series 5: Hearts of Darkness (2020)
editNo. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Featuring | Released |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "The Edge of Redemption"[9] | Scott Handcock | David Llewellyn | Narvin | October 2020 |
2 | "The Scaramancer"[9] | Scott Handcock | Lisa McMullin | – | October 2020 |
3 | "The Castle of Kurnos 5"[9] | Scott Handcock | David Llewellyn | Eighth Doctor | October 2020 |
4 | "The Cognition Shift"[9] | Scott Handcock | Lisa McMullin | Eighth Doctor | October 2020 |
Series 6: Killing Time (2021)
editNo. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Featuring | Released |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "The Sincerest Form of Flattery" | Scott Handcock | James Goss | – | August 2021 |
2 | "A Quiet Night In" | Scott Handcock | Lou Morgan | Jo Jones | August 2021 |
3 | "The Orphan" | Scott Handcock | Lou Morgan | Nyssa | August 2021 |
4 | "Unfinished Business" | Scott Handcock | James Goss | – | August 2021 |
Series 7: Self-Defence (2022)
editNo. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Featuring | Released |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "The Forest of Penitence"[10] | Scott Handcock | Lou Morgan | – | June 2022 |
2 | "The Players"[10] | Scott Handcock | Una McCormack | – | June 2022 |
3 | "Boundaries"[10] | Scott Handcock | Lizbeth Myles | Cole Jarnish | June 2022 |
4 | "The Last Line"[10] | Scott Handcock | Lizzie Hopley | Tenth Doctor | June 2022 |
Series 8: Escape from Reality (2022)
editNo. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Featuring | Released |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "The Wrath of Medusa"[11] | Scott Handcock | Rochana Patel | Daleks, Medusa, Perseus, Hecate | December 2022 |
2 | "The Shadow Master"[11] | Scott Handcock | Lizzie Hopley | The Shadow | December 2022 |
3 | "The Adventure of the Deceased Doctor"[11] | Scott Handcock | Alfie Shaw | Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson | December 2022 |
4 | "The Master of Dorian Gray"[11] | Scott Handcock | David Llewellyn | Dorian Gray | December 2022 |
Series 9: Solitary Confinement (2023)
editNo. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Featuring | Released |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "The Walls of Absence" | Scott Handcock | James Goss | – | June 2023 |
2 | "The Long Despair" | Scott Handcock | Tim Foley | – | June 2023 |
3 | "The Life and Loves of Mr Alexander Bennett" | Scott Handcock | Alfie Shaw | – | June 2023 |
4 | "The Kicker" | Scott Handcock | Trevor Baxendale | – | June 2023 |
Series 10: Rogue Encounters (2023)
editNo. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Featuring | Released |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Runtime" | Scott Handcock | Tim Foley | Daleks | December 2023 |
2 | "Manhunt" | Scott Handcock | Rochana Patel | TBA | December 2023 |
3 | "The Sublime Porte" | Scott Handcock | James Goss | Bilis Manger | December 2023 |
4 | "Alone" | Scott Handcock | Scott Handcock | Professor Yana | December 2023 |
Series 11: Future Phantoms
editNo. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Featuring | Released |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "His Close Companions" | Scott Handcock | Jonathan Barnes | TBA | November 2024 |
2 | "The Foxglove Cylinders" | Scott Handcock | James Goss | TBA | November 2024 |
3 | "The Sitter" | Scott Handcock | Lizzie Hopley | TBA | November 2024 |
4 | "Signal and I’ll Come to You" | Scott Handcock | Tim Foley | TBA | November 2024 |
Awards and nominations
editAward ceremony | Year | Category | Work(s) | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
BBC Audio Drama Awards | 2019 | Best Actor | Derek Jacobi (Beneath the Viscoid) | Shortlisted | [12] |
Scribe Awards | 2019 | Best Audio | The Master of Callous | Nominated | [13] |
References
edit- ^ "Doctor Who: The War Master". Big Finish Productions. 16 June 2017.
- ^ "War Master Returns". Big Finish Productions. 24 July 2018.
- ^ "Doctor Who bringing back Derek Jacobi as the Master for more audio adventures". Digital Spy. 25 July 2018.
- ^ "War Master vs Eighth Doctor - News - Big Finish".
- ^ "New Doctor Who drama sees Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor take on Derek Jacobi's War Master".
- ^ "Paul McGann's eighth Doctor will face Derek Jacobi's Master in Doctor Who spin-off". Digital Spy. 7 January 2019.
- ^ "The End of an Era for The War Master - News - Big Finish". www.bigfinish.com. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ^ "Scott Handcock joins Bad Wolf - News - Big Finish". www.bigfinish.com. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ^ a b c d "5. The War Master: Hearts of Darkness". Big Finish Productions. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
- ^ a b c d "Jacobi vs Tennant!". Big Finish Productions. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
- ^ a b c d "8. The War Master: Escape from Reality". Big Finish Productions. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
- ^ "The 2019 Shortlist". BBC.
- ^ "Previous Scribe Award Winners". 24 June 2013.