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Doctor Who "Once and Future" Big Finish Preview: Tennant, Gomez & More

Here's a preview for Big Finish's David Tennant & Michelle Gomez-starring Doctor Who - Once and Future: The Martian Invasion of Planetoid 50.

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As we inch closer to what the BBC, Disney+ & showrunner Russell T. Davies have in store for the three-episode 60th anniversary Doctor Who special event, we're also getting a chance to preview what Big Finish Productions has been up to with its eight-episode full-cast audio drama adventure Doctor Who – Once and Future. Kicking off in the middle of The Time War, an injured Doctor is being cared for at a field hospital when he begins to glow. Regeneration time, right? Wrong. The Doctor begins to go through a "degeneration" that finds him face-to-face with a number of his other selves as he seeks to find an answer before it's too late. Back in July, we learned who David Tennant's Tenth Doctor would be going up against in September's Doctor Who – Once and Future: The Martian Invasion of Planetoid 50  – Missy (Michelle Gomez).

doctor who
Image: Big Finish Productions

The villainous rogue Time Lord and an invading army of tripods (think HG Wells for context) are set to cause some serious issues for the Doctor. Thankfully, the Doctor has some allies on his side in the form of The Paternoster Gang – Madame Vastra (Neve McIntosh), Jenny Flint (Catrin Stewart) & Strax (Dan Starkey). But the Doctor still isn't feeling quite himself…

Doctor Who 60th "Once and Future": Tennant's Tenth vs. Gomez's Missy
Image: Big Finish Productions

So with that in mind, here's an official trailer/preview (with an overview) for Big Finish's Doctor Who – Once and Future: The Martian Invasion of Planetoid 50:

The First Doctor arrives in Victorian London amid a Martian invasion. But he discovers all is not what it seems when Missy appears…

Soon, the Doctor is propelled into a future incarnation – the Tenth – but he is not alone in battling Missy and her Martian invaders. The Paternoster Gang – Madame Vastra, Jenny Flint and Strax – are also here to assist. But can they offer the Doctor any help in solving his own degeneration mystery?

"I feel privileged to have produced this very special episode, and the recording session was very special too," shared series producer David Richardson. To have all of these wonderfully rich characters together was a treat, and to have David Tennant and Michelle Gomez going head-to-head was joyous. Michelle loves to play with the script, and she improvised beautifully – and David took her improvisations and matched her. During the recording, I wondered how much might make it to the edit, but it's all there within the final scenes. Joyous – I've used the word again. I've no other way to describe it."

Writer Jonathan Barnes added, "I always try to include a personal element in my stories, so I was pleased to be able to write a sort of love letter to the work of HG Wells as well as the required ingredients. It's a commentary on fandom, too, in some ways. The Doctor lands on a planet which seems to have been remodelled as an exact replica of the fictional London in Wells's 'War of the Worlds'… but who could be responsible for such devilry? Well, check out the front cover! Hopefully, there are a few surprises along the way, too." Joining Richardson and Barnes on the project are director Ken Bentley, script editor Matt Fitton, and executive producers Nicholas Briggs & Jason Haigh-Ellery.

Doctor Who – Once and Future: The Martian Invasion of Planetoid 50 is now available to order as a single-disc collector's edition CD (+ download for just £10.99) or digital download only (for just £8.99), exclusively from www.bigfinish.com. In addition, fans can purchase all eight "Once and Future" audio adventures in a bundle for just £72 (on collector's edition CD & download) or £60 (download only). But that's not all, because there's also a special edition series bundle you can order that contains extended behind-the-scenes extras and music suites for each story (available for pre-order for just £62 as a digital download only). Once again, all of that information and answers to your question are available over at the Big Finish website.

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Ray FlookAbout Ray Flook

Serving as Television Editor since 2018, Ray began five years earlier as a contributing writer/photographer before being brought onto the core BC team in 2017.
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