A box set of four stories starring Ian McNeice as the legendary war-time Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
1. The Oncoming Storm by Phil Mulryne
Late 1939. Britain faces the might of Germany. Winston Churchill serves as First Lord of the Admiralty. But Churchill soon finds himself facing a more immediate threat than the looming Nazi menace. A ‘Stone’ with the most mysterious properties is discovered in the Thames’ sands, and soon oddly spoken soldiers are creeping round London ruthlessly trying to acquire it. Who are they? Can Churchill and his new secretary Hetty Warner defeat them? And what about the man in the battered leather jacket that Hetty meets? Churchill feels sure they can rely on the Doctor to help them! Except that this Doctor seems to want to stay hidden in the shadows…
2. Hounded by Alan Barnes
In the dark days of 1941, Britain is in the midst of war. Churchill must stand strong against the might of the enemy – but he is plagued by a darkness in his own psyche. Something he calls ‘the Black Dog’.
Can a visiting Swami hold the answer to his troubles? And can Hetty Warner prevent the Prime Minister’s adversaries from taking advantage of the situation?
Across London, the Tenth Doctor’s arrival may be the nation’s only hope – but the Time Lord’s plan to help his friend is endangered when he finds himself declared a traitor by the agents of the country he has come to protect…
3. Living History by Justin Richards
Finally given the chance to travel in the TARDIS, Winston Churchill cannot resist the opportunity of meeting Julius Caesar. But the trip does not go quite as planned. With the TARDIS gone, and Churchill stranded in ancient Britain with a young man he barely knows and who comes from the future, it seems things can hardly get any worse.
Until he is captured by the invading Romans.
Still, at least that means Churchill will meet Julius Caesar after all. But then Churchill learns of the Bronze God, feared and worshipped by the Ancient Britons. A god that he recognises as anything but divine when he meets it.
4. The Chartwell Metamorphosis by Ken Bentley
Comfortably retired to his home at Chartwell, Churchill plans to live out his days in peace, in the company of his butterflies – if his attendants would just leave him alone.
But it isn’t simply Lepidoptera breeding in the gardens, as a far more sinister species is about to emerge from its cocoon – and is ready to feast on something more than just the shrubberies.
Surrounded on all sides, the former Prime Minister must put a life’s worth of experience into action in order to win the day. Can his new nurse Lily Arwell offer her assistance?
THE CHURCHILL YEARS
THE CHURCHILL YEARS: THE ONCOMING STORM
Big Finish certainly hasn’t been shy about exploiting their new series license – we’ve had the War Doctor, UNIT, River Song, Strax, and an upcoming David Tennant set. The oddest of these early releases, though, is “The Churchill Years,” a box set of adventures Winston Churchill had with the Doctor. They’re told in the style of the Early Adventures: Ian McNeice narrates in character as Churchill, and the stories are full-cast apart from the Doctor himself.
The first story, Phil Mulryne’s “The Oncoming Storm,” features a rare appearance by the ninth Doctor. It’s difficult to appreciate the Doctor’s appearances in any of these stories because everything about the Doctor is told secondhand and McNeice doesn’t do impressions, which is probably for the best. So while this story certainly captures this Doctor’s reluctance to get involved and desperate need to prevent bloodshed, it obviously doesn’t incorporate any of Christopher Eccleston’s performance. But with such a small number of Eccleston stories available, anything is welcome. “The Oncoming Storm” addresses the aftermath of the Time War, with the Doctor trying to shut down a Time Lord weapon before an alien race can get their hands on it. As Doctor Who plots go, it’s fairly straightforward, complete with the threat being defeated through its own hubris. There’s a pseudo-companion, Hetty Warner (Emily Atack), who’s the usual unexpectedly-heroic-1940s-woman you get in stories like this.
Fortunately, McNeice ties the whole thing together with a great central performance every bit as good as his turns on TV. “The Oncoming Storm” is a solid opening story: it’s entertaining and it’s a rare opportunity to hear a new ninth Doctor adventure.
6/10
THE CHURCHILL YEARS: HOUNDED
The second story in the Churchill Years box set is “Hounded,” from long-time BF writer and editor Alan Barnes. The real Winston Churchill dealt with periods of depression he referred to as his “Black Dog,” and this story attempts to put a Doctor Who twist on the idea.
I was terrified that this story was going to minimize Churchill’s actual struggles with depression by revealing his depression to be the manifestation of some sort of alien. Fortunately, Barnes has more sense than that, instead opting to have an alien being take advantage of Churchill’s existing depression for its own ends. But while the story takes a solid approach to history, it rather fails in terms of its own structure. The first half of the story is consumed with an utterly pointless runaround that serves only to pad out the running time, and that leaves the second half to feel rushed and unsatisfying. This is a tenth Doctor story, and again McNeice plays the Doctor’s part – it definitely fits the tone of the era and really increases my anticipation for the David Tennant box set coming later this year. And pseudo-companion Hetty Warner is back, involved in a temporal paradox plot that’s fun in theory but, again, takes far too long to resolve. This isn’t quite as good as the opening story, but again, it’s a pleasant way to pass an hour.
5/10
THE CHURCHILL YEARS: LIVING HISTORY
The third story in the set is “Living History” from Justin Richards, and it’s the most divorced from the central concept. Instead of the Doctor dropping in on a period of Churchill’s life, here he takes Churchill on an adventure in time and space. The destination: ancient Britain in the midst of Julius Caesar’s campaign, meaning that two of the more celebrated military leaders in history get to meet.
Unfortunately, Richards doesn’t do much of anything with this idea. We meet both Caesar (Alistair Petrie) and Briton queen Tristahna (Laura Rogers), and both are the most predictable sorts of stock character. The TV series has made a living out of these celebrity historicals, but it has done so by making the celebrity the most compelling character on screen – look at Churchill himself for an example. Here, there’s nothing compelling about either leader, neither in personality nor in action. I admit it’s hard to expect more than that from a Justin Richards story, but in direct comparison to the TV show this doesn’t hold up very well.
Also along for the ride is Kazran Sardick (Danny Horn), on his travels with the Doctor in the midst of “A Christmas Carol.” If this sounds like a bit of a stretch, you’re right, but at least it makes sense in the context of the episode. It’s also in the grand Big Finish tradition of “Let’s bring back as many old characters as possible!” even if it’s rather obscure for an early attempt. Still, Horn is fine, and with the eleventh Doctor largely off-screen he adequately fills the man-from-the-future role. Oh, and there’s a Bronze God (Nicholas Briggs… you can guess what this really is) that does exactly the sorts of things you would expect a Bronze God to do.
It’s reassuring, I suppose, to see that Justin Richards is exactly the same writer of new series material that he is of everything else. “Living History” is comfortable, exciting Doctor Who storytelling with a couple of solid ideas but absolutely nothing imaginative or boundary pushing. For the third time in three tries in this set, it’s a pleasant way to pass an hour.
6/10
THE CHURCHILL YEARS: THE CHARTWELL METAMORPHOSIS
The final entry in the Churchill Years box set comes from regular Doctor Who audio director Ken Bentley, sitting in the writer’s chair for “The Chartwell Metamorphosis.” Unlike the other stories in the set, this one actually adds some shade to Churchill’s character, but it’s still rather clunky and uneventful.
The central idea here is fantastic, and insane in the best Doctor Who traditions. Churchill can see the end of his life approaching, can see his abilities fading, and wants to do whatever he can to prolong his time. So he works with the staff in his retirement home to consume mysterious larvae so he can metamorphose into a butterfly and live eternally! As one does. What I love about this is how it’s rooted in Churchill’s own insecurity, and how his desperation to survive hurts the people around him without turning him into a cartoon villain. This sort of plot is also well matched to the eleventh Doctor, who actually plays a fairly significant role in this one.
The problem, again, is that the story isn’t structured particularly well. Much like “Hounded,” it takes forever to get going and then crams most of the story into the second half. It also features a recurring character – which I didn’t even notice until the Doctor commented on her presence, and then I had to pause the story and look the character up. Turns out it’s one of the kids from “The Doctor, the Widow, and the Wardrobe,” also known as the worst TV story since the revival. Fortunately, it’s okay not to get the reference, as she could just as easily have been Hetty Warner for all the difference it made.
Overall, The Churchill Years is a confusing release, in that I’m not entirely sure why they decided to make it. Yes, Ian McNeice is consistently great as Churchill throughout the four stories, but none of these stories are particularly adventurous and none of them shed light on any of the recurring characters. And unlike the War Doctor set, or even the UNIT set, was anyone clamoring to see the further adventures of Winston Churchill? Certainly there’s nothing bad in here, and each story is pleasant enough, but you’d think an investment into four hours of material would yield something other than some random Doctor Who stories. But that seems to be the raison d’être of Big Finish’s new series material thus far: hit the obvious crowd-pleasing marks and quit while you’re ahead. Hey, I’m sure it’s profitable.
6/10
Box set average: 5.8/10