Sounds Like Doctor Who...

Terry Pratchett has a lot to answer for. The most jarring aspect of The Resurrection Casket, by Justin Richards, and read by the Doctor himself - David Tennant - is a giant, apologetic monster called Kevin who could have walked straight off the page of one of Prachett's Discworld novels.

Thankfully there is enough good material in this galactic re-imagining of Treasure Island to overlook such silliness; although the anachronistic introduction of a robot called Elvis also sticks out like a sore thumb!

The Doctor and Rose find themselves on a strange steampunk world called Starfall, after the TARDIS cuts out passing through the 'zeg' - an area of space that acts like an electromagnetic pulse, freezing all its electronic systems.

There, amidst the gas lamps and steam-powered robots they meet a selection of archetypal characters, and get drawn into the hunt for the long-lost treasure of pirate Hamlek Glint.

While The Resurrection Casket has a twist that I didn't see coming, it is, of course, David Tennant's reading that makes this story worth the price of admission. His characterisation of the different characters is distinct and his timing is perfect.

A little while ago, I made a wild claim about the lack of Dr Who "full-cast audio plays" - completely forgetting about Big Finish, a production company whose primary function is to continue the Dr Who legacy in professional audio play format.

Featuring the voice talents of recent Doctors - Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy and Paul McGann - and their companions, these are all original (possibly canon) plays, released on a regular basis. These include the new Eighth Doctor (Paul McGann) stories that were first broadcast on BBC7 earlier this year.

The only disc I currently own is The Reaping, a solid, small-scale tale of Colin Baker's Doctor and his feisty American companion Peri returning to New York, 1984, to investigate the death of the father of one of Peri's friends.

This story also stars Babylon 5's Claudia Christian as Peri's mother. Set four months after The Doctor first met Peri in Lanzarote, The Reaping also tackles the emotional aftermath for companion's families after their loved one is whisked off to part's unknown by the mysterious Doctor - a strong element of the new TV series.

And there's cybermen!

Short of being a Dalek episode I couldn't have asked for much more from Doctor Who. Before Martha Jones came on the scene, Peri (Nicola Bryant) was always my top companion (inching ahead of Leela and Nyssa)...