Written for Big Finish Productions last year, The Dalek Occupation of Winter is a four episode serial starring Maureen O'Brien as Vicki and Peter Purves as Steven, both companions on television to the very first Doctor William Hartnell in 1965. Hartnell himself sadly passed away ten years later, but his performance is lovingly recreated for this audio by Peter Purves himself, who imbues the Doctor's dialogue with all the little tics and chuckles that Hartnell himself was so known for. It's an effective and heartwarming tribute to the man who was the Doctor, one that Peter has perfected for Big Finish over the last decade.
I was also surprised and delighted to be asked to write for Doctor Who's ultimate foe, the Daleks, with a brief to write a different type of Dalek story from that previously seen on television or heard in Big Finish's enormous back catalogue of adventures. Lord knows whether I've achieved that or not, but it was certainly a thrill to hear my Dalek dialogue spoken aloud in the studio when I attended the recording last week! Nicholas Briggs has voiced the Daleks on-screen since Doctor Who's return in 2005, and hearing my first professional "Exterminate!" was a unique pleasure.
The power of nostalgia really is quite extraordinary. I was there at the recording, watching the actors performing my script, and very much aware that I was sat in a studio... And yet hearing the metallic rasp of a Dalek voice, opposite two of the good Doctor's companions (sounding as if they've just stepped off screen from a 1960s episode), really brought back all the memories of watching this show for the first time on UK Gold repeats. I'd have been about 10 years old, I think. And last week, I was 10 years old again.
The Dalek Occupation of Winter is available on CD and download from September - pre-order now!
And click here for more information about Doctor Who: The Early Adventures.