Doctor Who: The Dead Star

Doctor Who: The Audio Novels

by Kate Orman, Michael Troughton (Narrator )

It's 1968, and the Earth has one month to live. The Doctor, Ben, and Polly race to escape a frightening lifeless London. But as the city folds in on itself, it is a warning of a far greater danger. Someone has misused terrifyingly advanced technology to make Earth the target of a primordial black hole - a tiny, invisible world-killer. Struggling to avert the catastrophe, the Doctor must send his companions on dangerous undercover missions. Can the Doctor and his friends prevent the planet Earth from being erased from space and time?

Genres: Doctor Who, Audiobook, Science Fiction

Audiobook

Published January 1, 2023

About the author

Kate Orman studied biology at Sydney University and worked in science before becoming a professional author. Orman is known for her sci-fi work, and especially her frequent collaborations in the "Doctor Who" universe. For Virgin Publishing and BBC, she wrote more than a dozen full-length novels, as well as numerous short stories and non-fiction pieces related to "Doctor Who". She was the only woman and only Australian to write for the initial range of novels, the Virgin New Adventures.

As of 2022, Orman lives in Sydney and is married to fellow author Jonathan Blum.

Reviews

[Irredeemable Shag · Rating 4 out of 5]

Truthfully would rate this 3.5. First, I LOVE Kate Orman’s previous Doctor Who books! She’s one of the best in the business. Second, I LOVE Michael Troughton’s reading of this book! Excellent job capturing the essence of the characters, the pace, and excitement. Third, the sound design was excellent; truly immersive! Fourth, really enjoyed the interview extras at the end! Wonderful hearing from everyone involved. Really nice overall package!

My struggle was some of the more esoteric sci-fi concepts that felt more 2023 than 1966. The parts that echoed the 1960s on-screen sci-fi bits worked wonderfully! But when more modern sci-fi concepts were woven it, it took me out of the story. I got hung up on a lot of those items, which would probably have felt at home in a Virgin New Adventures novel, but didn’t feel quite right here.

Overall really glad I listened! But not sure I would revisit.

[Rick · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was a bit disappointed with this one. While I love the (Second) Doctor, he’s one of my favorites from the classic series, this isn’t quite the (Second) Doctor. And while Michael Troughton does a fine job reading the book, I did get find that some of the character voices he did, got more than a bit tedious - particularly his “female” voices. As for the story itself? It’s a fascinating tale of black holes (no spoiler there as black holes were originally thought of as dead stars), some of the bits can get a bit campy and crazy, but it’s still a very entertaining narrative.

[Lennon · Rating 5 out of 5]

An astonishingly original Second Doctor tale featuring surreal soundscapes, warped timelines, new horizons and baffling, cosmic entities which push even the Doctor to his very limit. Kate Orman, renowned Doctor Who, wilderness years novelist is finally back with an entire novel, and what an excellent way to do it. Michael Troughton returns as well to play his father’s part with his own style. As well as every other character! The audiobook novel range is at it’s strongest with these two experienced and talented hands shaping the experience.

At around seven hours, Ben, Polly and the Doctor sneak, bluff and run their way around four, unique and (in?)tangible environments. Beginning and ending in some of the most bizarre and liminal spaces ever visited in the Doctor Who universe. Perhaps only rivalled by The Mind Robber. I must not spoil these bizarre and exciting places, as it would do you, potential listener, a disservice. But know that this novel is bookended by some of the most experimental and re-listenable content ever.

The other two settings comprising the majority of the book are an ode to the Troughton years in their elevated 60s eccentricity and charm. Occupying two ends of a mysterious time corridor which the gang crashes into are 1968 Earth, plagued with weird astronomical cults/clubs and espionage. And at the other end, a distant and isolated research space station orbiting a micro black hole which is more than it seems. Conspiracy and overwhelming responsibility follow the team along the corridor too however, as the seemingly disparate environments culminate in a cohesive and clever conclusion. The twists, turns and utter insanity which grasps the team and the well fleshed out, compelling original characters are marvellously thrilling.

Despite this, maintaining a consistent level of tension and excitement isn’t the easiest task for a 7 hour production, and not everyone is integral, or features a well storied history. There are a few weaker characters given the short end of the stick, which are usually, at the very least however, sacrificed to increase the brutal life-threatening stakes, or are utilised for a good joke or a political prodding. Additionally, the extended period of time dwelling on Earth as the conspiratorial space plot slowly unveils itself spreads out the characters a little too thin. As Ben, Polly and the Doctor each had ongoing plots, engaging with elitist clubs and suppressed scientists. Their division ensured the Earth portion was a slow burn – providing plenty of opportunity for underrated companions Ben and Polly to show off. But this also resulted in the ultimate revelations feeling a little underwhelming as their simplistic and anticipated nature are dwarfed by the meatier, battier stuff to come later on.

Alongside the myriad of fascinating antagonists, colleagues and doomed scientists however, the lulls are few and far between. Ben, whilst still occupying his drier, more reserved companion role was given lots of changes to prove himself. He had numerous instances of lateral and improvised thinking, and had some fun smug and self-assured opponents to bounce off of. Polly largely proved herself smart and strong – even kicking some robotic ass, but she became hindered by some all too familiar 60s screaming. Further hampered by the stock scream effect replayed over and over for the audio.

Meanwhile, this may be the Second Doctor’s finest outing on audio. A bold claim, with numerous stellar companion chronicles and an exciting new Adventures range kicking off, but nevertheless, he showcased a new range of grim resolve, as well as childlike wonder never seen before. Heightened of course by Michael Troughton’s performance. The stakes which shrouded the back half of this novel pushed the Doctor into uncomfortable places – his head kept in place perhaps only be the presence of the novel’s finest and most interesting original character. A certain mysterious, fellow time-traveller who’s implicated in all the trouble at both ends of the time corridor. They’re both immensely charismatic, rivalling the Doctor in their eccentricity, whilst also deeply introspective and thoughtful. That thoughtful quality trended across most of the characters too, in a most intelligent way. The roles the supporting characters occupied were usually clearly contextualised and compatible with their respective attitudes.

Overall, The Dead Star is a dense, enthusiastic explosion of 60s Who brought to life by Troughton with charm and consistency. The atmosphere is fun, eerie and confounding, whilst the under-utilised TARDIS team of Ben, Polly and the Doctor have perhaps their finest outing yet. Each proving to be capable under extreme circumstances. The worlds created are grand and vivid, and the sci half of sci-fi is brought to the forefront to great effect. Best release of 2023 dare I say?

[Matthew Kresal · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 1960s were the formative years of Doctor Who. They were a time when the series, and its seemingly ever-changing production teams, were figuring out what this then-young series was capable of, even changing its lead actor when needs must. And, arguably, just as formative were the wilderness years of the 1990s and early 2000s when the series, now off-air, found a new voice and life via a new generation of writers. One of whom was the Australian Kate Orman, whose works would be among the highlights of that era. Now, as Doctor Who prepares to celebrate its sixtieth anniversary later this year, the two have come together in The Dead Star, Big Finish's latest audio novel and their first release of 2023.

Orman's The Dead Star features the underused (never mind underrated) TARDIS team of the Second Doctor, Ben, and Polly. And Orman drops them into a tale that evokes the different facets of this Doctor's incredibly varied tenure on-screen. Opening with surrealist imagery evocative of The Mind Robber but on a scale that would have been well beyond the BBC's capabilities in the mid-late sixties. From there, The Dead Star shifts into a sixties-based thriller such as The Invasion as the extent of the threat uncovered become abundantly clear with an Earthbound connection. Then, to round off the tale, the TARDIS trio find themselves off into the late 21st century with a setting that manages to evoke serials like The Moonbase and The Seeds of Death but with more up-to-date science.

It's a heady brew of a story. But one which Orman, writing her first Doctor Who novel in twenty years, handles beautifully. The various plot strands neatly weave in and out of each other, despite their seemingly contradictory styles, even when they eventually come up against one another as the plot unfolds. Indeed, the greatest compliment a fan of this Doctor's era can give is to say that the focus on these elements with hard science makes it feel like a 21st-century update of Kit Pedler's efforts back in the sixties.

And beyond that, to compliment the author on how well she captures the quicksilver characterization of Patrick Troughton's incarnation of the Doctor. If there is a Doctor that writers have struggled to bottle on the page, it's Troughton's, with his ever-changing and unpredictable reactions to events. Once more, Orman does with ease this reviewer hasn't encountered in prose since David A. McIntee's The Dark Path, letting the Doctor slide from playfulness to serious stakes in a few lines, just as Troughton did on-screen. Orman also gives Ben and Polly plenty to do, using them to explore the implications of what's uncovered in their own very near future and asking what the life of a time traveler must be like. The result fleshes out a solid plot and makes it stronger.

It's also in Big Finish tradition well-realized as a production. Michael Troughton, who has been playing his father's role for the company in addition to his own acting career, serves as narrator to superb effect. That he captures his father well goes without saying, with the results being downright uncanny at certain moments. Troughton's Ben and Polly are distinct and recognizable, though by no means an imitation of Michael Craze or Anneke Wills, even though his voices for various female characters become less distinctive as the audiobook wears on. Steve Foxon returns once more to offer sound design and music for the production, managing to top his previous work for the range in the process, particularly with the underscore, which, like Orman's plot, runs the gauntlet of musical styles employed across this Doctor's TV tenure.

Being the latest Big Finish Audio Novel and the company's first release of Doctor Who's sixtieth anniversary year, The Dead Star is nothing short of a triumph. And how could it not be? From the return of one of Doctor Who's best prose writers capturing the Second Doctor's era in all of its glory to narration and atmospheric underscoring that highlights what Big Finish does so well. If you only get one of the Audio Novels, The Dead Star would be this reviewer's recommendation as the must-buy of the range to date.

Not to mention a heck of a way to launch another year of Doctor Who on audio.

[Billy Martel · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book is actually 4 stories. Each story reduces rather than increases the stakes of the previous one. They keep you hooked by saying “there’s a mystery here! We gotta solve the mystery!” And then they don’t solve the mystery or really provide any conclusion at all.

Here’s a tip. If you’re writing a story that takes place in a world of a pre-established tv show, and you blow up the earth, I will no longer care about what’s going on after that. Cause I know you’re just gonna reset button that shit.

Before I was interested cause I was like, “wow really seems like the world’s gonna end how are they gonna get out of this one?” But I guess the answer is the world just ends but then it doesn’t.

Oh no we’re too late to stop the black hole! Don’t worry if we go inside the black hole any magical bullshit can happen so it’s fixed now. How convenient.

Oh no the black hole super computer is tempting us to use it! We used it! Oh I guess that’s actually fine…

This was 7 hours.

[Lyn Cox · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a hoot! I really enjoyed listening to a season of the second Doctor. Kate managed to write a novel that is both rooted in the 60s and the kinds of problems and settings that speculative fiction was working through at the time, and also a novel that lifts up some of the ethical /societal issues we have going on right now.

Michael Troughton was absolutely brilliant as the voice of the novel. It was like a full cast production where every character is played by the same actor.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty good Second Doctor story, though Michael Troughton’s Doctor voice ends up sounding more like the First Doctor at times.

[Debra Cook · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn’t finish. Too long