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The Early Adventures #1.2
Doctor Who: The Doctor's Tale
England, 1400. Winter. Blood in the snow. Henry IV has usurped the throne, and deposed King Richard II languishes in Pomfret Castle.
Meanwhile the Doctor and his companions preside over New Year revels at Sonning Palace.
But Sonning is a prison, treachery is in the air and murderous Archbishop Thomas Arundel will stop at nothing to crush the rebellion.
As the Doctor and Barbara take the road to Canterbury, Vicki finds a royal friend and Ian is dragged into a dark web of conspiracy at whose heart sits that teller of tales, Geoffrey Chaucer.
Meanwhile the Doctor and his companions preside over New Year revels at Sonning Palace.
But Sonning is a prison, treachery is in the air and murderous Archbishop Thomas Arundel will stop at nothing to crush the rebellion.
As the Doctor and Barbara take the road to Canterbury, Vicki finds a royal friend and Ian is dragged into a dark web of conspiracy at whose heart sits that teller of tales, Geoffrey Chaucer.
Audio CD
First published October 1, 2014
About the author
Marc Platt
101 books45 followersMarc Platt is a British writer. He is most known for his work with the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who.
After studying catering at a technical college, Platt worked first for Trust House Forte, and then in administration for the BBC. He wrote the Doctor Who serial Ghost Light based on two proposals, one of which later became the novel Lungbarrow. That novel was greatly anticipated by fans as it was the culmination of the so-called "Cartmel Masterplan", revealing details of the Doctor's background and family.
After the original series' cancellation Platt wrote the script for the audio Doctor Who drama Spare Parts. The script was the inspiration for the 2006 Doctor Who television story "Rise of the Cybermen"/"The Age of Steel", for which Platt received a screen credit and a fee.
He lives in London.
After studying catering at a technical college, Platt worked first for Trust House Forte, and then in administration for the BBC. He wrote the Doctor Who serial Ghost Light based on two proposals, one of which later became the novel Lungbarrow. That novel was greatly anticipated by fans as it was the culmination of the so-called "Cartmel Masterplan", revealing details of the Doctor's background and family.
After the original series' cancellation Platt wrote the script for the audio Doctor Who drama Spare Parts. The script was the inspiration for the 2006 Doctor Who television story "Rise of the Cybermen"/"The Age of Steel", for which Platt received a screen credit and a fee.
He lives in London.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
January 3, 2022
Quite good. Solidly entertaining and in the style of the old historical episodes that don’t feature monsters or aliens or anything science fiction besides the time travel present in the TARDIS. As much I usually enjoy the historical style episodes from the first six seasons of the show, this one just isn’t quite as good as others. Still it is, as I said, solidly entertaining, and the Doctor and TARDIS team get to meet Geoffrey Chaucer.
December 12, 2020
Someone said that Doctor Who set in the past are boring. Indeed they are very boring. And this tale was no exception. Good voices and special effects but it was not that interesting story. That's unfortunately.
November 13, 2014
Was never a fan of these historical Dr. Who plots ...
October 14, 2018
The second in this series of narrated multiple-actor stories reaches the classic show's second season, and thus replaces Susan with Vicki, with Maureen O'Brien joining William Russell as narrator. Perhaps more notably, however, it's a straight historical - one with no aliens or other SF elements. Unlike the modern TV show, Big Finish have, of course, written such stories ever since the beginning of their run, but it's a style particularly associated with the First Doctor (who had all but two of this type of story on TV).
Here, the action is set in the winter of 1400 during the events of the Epiphany Rising, when supporters of the deposed King Richard II attempted to restore him to the throne. For dramatic purposes, the timing of the events depicted here have been compressed, but they otherwise seem fairly accurate, with a number of historical figures making an appearance along the way.
The story itself is primarily a human one, with Richard II's infant bride Isabella a key focus, as is, in the latter half, the largely mysterious fate of Geoffrey Chaucer (hence the title) who probably died at around this time. It is a good piece of straightforward historical adventure, similar to some of the TV stories of around this time.
The usual limitations of the narrators having to play dual roles do come into play again, with the Doctor missing off-stage for a while, and Barbara absent for even longer. It's a little uneven in places, with part of the final resolution feeling as if it was tacked on when the writer ran out of ideas, but for the most part it works as what it's intended to be, and successfully evokes the tone of the era.
Here, the action is set in the winter of 1400 during the events of the Epiphany Rising, when supporters of the deposed King Richard II attempted to restore him to the throne. For dramatic purposes, the timing of the events depicted here have been compressed, but they otherwise seem fairly accurate, with a number of historical figures making an appearance along the way.
The story itself is primarily a human one, with Richard II's infant bride Isabella a key focus, as is, in the latter half, the largely mysterious fate of Geoffrey Chaucer (hence the title) who probably died at around this time. It is a good piece of straightforward historical adventure, similar to some of the TV stories of around this time.
The usual limitations of the narrators having to play dual roles do come into play again, with the Doctor missing off-stage for a while, and Barbara absent for even longer. It's a little uneven in places, with part of the final resolution feeling as if it was tacked on when the writer ran out of ideas, but for the most part it works as what it's intended to be, and successfully evokes the tone of the era.
July 9, 2020
I'm always up for another Vicky/Ian/Barbara story (so sad Steven can't be added to that mix...) but that is really all the joy I get from this; adding another story to my collection of adventures of some of the best companions. The plot itself is a bit thin, and it all seems hurried and kind of off. Hard to explain. But maybe it is just because I'm comparing this to such classics as Doctor Who: The Space MuseumDoctor Who: The Space Museum, which it really isn't meant to battle. So.... yeah, I liked it, not loved, but liked...
May 1, 2024
This story was very true to the original Doctor Who, featuring an educational plot that includes Geoffrey Chaucer (thus the name of the audiobook). It was well-acted and really good for the most part, just overly long which is why I am not giving it four stars. As with other stories in this Early Adventure series, there is a break with an extended music track that would have been used for the television show and post-story interviews. Not bad but probably best suited for completist rather than casual fans of Doctor Who.
August 21, 2017
This story is done as a true historical story as was done in the first doctor's era.
November 20, 2021
I think I enjoyed this a bit less than the previous one. Good banter here and there, though.
March 20, 2023
A really fun, really solid historical. But the way Marc Platt ships Ian and Barbara makes me want to not ship them.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 13, 2015
This was very enjoyable. It was almost a full cast audio with just a little narration. I thought William Russell did an excellent job as the Doctor, and Maureen was likewise very good as Barbara. This really felt like a first doctor historical. It was a nice glimpse of the history with interesting sub plots. I enjoyed the young Queen and her relationship with Vicki. It was nice to see two different women of a similar age in such different places in their lives. I will have to listen to more of the early adventures range it was nice to have a proper new story with the older companions.
January 21, 2016
Excellent old adventure. The Doctor, Barbara, Ian and Vicki end up in the 1400's during the reign of Henry IV. The Doctor and Barbara goto visit with Geoffery Chaucer. Vicki befriends Queen Isabella and Ian get some how involved in the assassination attempt on Henry IV. What happens you'll have to find out.
January 31, 2017
I'm not the biggest fan of the historical stories as they usually involve someone famous whose fate is well-known. Also prefer the audioplay style stories to the narrated ones, this being a mix of both. William Russell is now old enough that his Bill Hartnell voice is getting better than his Ian Chesterton.
July 26, 2021
A very good pure historical with some great characterization. The pure historicals have always been more of a marmite kind of affair in the show but when they're good, oh boy their really good and this is no different, a really good historical written by Marc Platt! 8/10
May 2, 2015
Another good 1st Doctor story.
September 18, 2020
Marc Platt was like: I'm gonna write a well-characterized yet unmemorable DW story but none of that even matters because I need the entire world to know how big of a Barbara-Ian Shipper I am
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews