Category Archives: Novelizations

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘The Day of the Doctor’

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Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

The time has come for ‘The Day of the Doctor’ by Steven Moffat – the 50th anniversary special of ‘Doctor Who’. This was shown on BBC TV on the 23rd of November 2013. It stars Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor, David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor, Jenna Coleman as Clara Oswald, Billie Piper as the Moment and John Hurt as the War Doctor. There are special guest stars like Jemma Redgrave as Kate Stewart, Ingrid Oliver as Osgood and Joanna Page as Queen Elizabeth I. The story also features the Daleks as well as the return of the Zygons, who previously appeared in their first TV story ‘Terror of the Zygons’. There are surprise guest cameos of Doctors and companions that a keen ‘Doctor Who’ fan would need to look out for. 😀 This is a ‘Doctor Who’ anniversary special that’s highly rated by the fans. Do I agree with that? Do I think that this is a better anniversary special than ‘The Five Doctors’, the 20th anniversary special? Does it cover everything that I want to celebrate about 50 years of my favourite TV show? Are there things that I like about ‘The Day of the Doctor’? 😀 ‘The Day of the Doctor’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer. Continue reading

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘The Crimson Horror’

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Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

It’s time for us to check out ‘The Crimson Horror’, which happens to be the second contribution made by Mark Gatiss in Series 7 of the new ‘Doctor Who’ TV series (the first one being ‘Cold War’). In this ‘Doctor Who’ episode, Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor and Jenna Coleman as Clara visit Victorian London in the year 1893. There’s the return of the Paternoster Gang, including Neve McIntosh as Madame Vastra, Catrin Stewart as Jenny and Dan Starkey as Strax. Interestingly, the Paternoster Gang mostly appear in the first half of the episode, since the Eleventh Doctor and Clara don’t appear until the episode’s second half. 😐 An unnerving mystery takes place at a utopian community in Yorkshire called Sweetville, led by the late Dame Diana Rigg (well-known for playing Emma Peel in the 1960s TV show ‘The Avengers’) as Mrs. Gillyflower. There’s also Rachael Stirling (Diana Rigg’s real-life daughter) as Ada. Can our heroes solve the mystery as to what’s happening with ‘the crimson horror’? ‘The Crimson Horror’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer. Continue reading

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘The Christmas Invasion’

Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

Today, we begin the David Tennant/Tenth Doctor era of ‘Doctor Who’, as we check out the first Christmas Special in the new TV series. It’s time for ‘The Christmas Invasion’ by Russell T. Davies, starring David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor and Billie Piper as Rose. This Christmas Special also features Camille Coduri as Jackie Tyler, Rose’s mum, and Noel Clarke as Mickey Smith, Rose’s former boyfriend. There’s also the return of Penelope Wilton as Harriet Jones from ‘Aliens of London’/’World War Three’. This ‘Doctor Who’ adventure introduces us to the Robot Santas as well as the blood-obsessed Sycorax. Will the new Tenth Doctor recover from his recent regeneration to save the planet Earth from the Sycorax? ‘The Christmas Invasion’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer. Continue reading

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘Dalek’

Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

Today, we’re checking out a ‘Doctor Who’ episode that’s very special to me. This was the one that started it all for me. I was introduced to the TV series overall; Christopher Eccleston as the Ninth Doctor and Billie Piper as Rose; and a Dalek for the first time through this episode. It’s time for ‘Dalek’ by Robert Shearman, and I consider it one of the best ‘Doctor Who’ stories ever made in the new TV series. This episode also features the debut of Bruno Langley as Adam Mitchell, who becomes a short-time companion in the TV series. There’s also Corey Johnson as Henry van Statten and Anna-Louise Plowman as Diana Goddard. The Dalek is operated is Barnaby Edwards and the Dalek voice is by Nicholas Briggs. ‘Dalek’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer. Continue reading

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘Rose’

Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

And welcome to the new TV series of ‘Doctor Who’, which started back in 2005! 🙂 It’s time to check out the Christopher Eccleston/Ninth Doctor era, and we’re starting off with Series 1. We’re also introduced to the Ninth Doctor’s companion: Billie Piper as Rose Tyler, and the first episode of the Ninth Doctor era is of course called ‘Rose’ by Russell T. Davies. There’s also the introduction of Camille Coduri as Jackie Tyler, Rose’s mum and Noel Clarke as Mickey Smith, Rose’s boyfriend. This episode also features the dramatic return of the Autons, who were in ‘Spearhead From Space’ and ‘Terror of the Autons’ during the Jon Pertwee/Third Doctor era. ‘Rose’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer. Continue reading

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘The TV Movie’

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Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

It’s time for us to check out the Paul McGann/Eighth Doctor era, which is technically the shortest-lived ‘Doctor Who’ era ever on TV. Thankfully, Paul McGann’s Eighth Doctor has had a long life in the Big Finish audios. 😀 Let’s check out ‘The TV Movie’, which was shown on UK and USA TV in May 1996. The ‘Doctor Who’ TV Movie is by Matthew Jacobs and was directed by Geoffrey Sax. As well as Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor, there’s Daphne Ashbrook as Grace Holloway, Yee Jee Tso as Chang Lee and Eric Roberts as the Master. This story also features the regeneration between Sylvester McCoy as the Seventh Doctor into Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor. ‘The TV Movie’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and Britbox. Continue reading

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘Survival’

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Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

And here we are on the fourth and final story of Season 26 of the classic ‘Doctor Who’ TV series. This is also the last story of the Sylvester McCoy/Seventh Doctor era as well as the last story of the original 1963-1989 TV series. It’s time for ‘Survival’, a three-part adventure by Rona Munro, starring Sylvester McCoy as the Seventh Doctor and Sophie Aldred as Ace. This story has the Doctor taking Ace home to Perivale in the year 1989 and it also features the return of Anthony Ainley as the Master. There are also the Cheetah-People with their leader Karra, played by Lisa Bowerman (who would go on to play Bernice Summerfield in the Big Finish audios of ‘Doctor Who’). ‘Survival’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and Britbox. Continue reading

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘The Curse of Fenric’

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Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

Let’s check out the third story of Season 26 in the classic ‘Doctor Who’ TV series. It’s time for ‘The Curse of Fenric’, a four-part story by Ian Briggs, starring Sylvester McCoy as the Seventh Doctor and Sophie Aldred as Ace. The Doctor and Ace visit a British naval installation near Maiden’s Point on the Northumberland coast during World War II, where Ace gets to uncover more about her past. There’s also the appearance of the vampiric-like Haemovores. This story also features special guest star Nicholas Parsons as Reverend Wainwright. ‘The Curse of Fenric’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and Britbox. I highly recommend checking out the movie-length Special Edition version of this story, which is on DVD and Blu-ray. Continue reading

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘Remembrance of the Daleks’

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Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

It’s time for the 25th anniversary season of ‘Doctor Who’ – Season 25 – starring Sylvester McCoy as the Seventh Doctor and Sophie Aldred as Ace. We begin with my absolute favourite story from the Sylvester McCoy/Seventh Doctor era called ‘Remembrance of the Daleks’, a four-part adventure by Ben Aaronovitch. This story has the Seventh Doctor and Ace travelling back in time to the year 1963 where they visit Coal Hill School in Shoreditch, London. We’re also introduced to the Counter-Measures team, including Simon Williams as Group Captain Gilmore, Pamela Salem as Rachel and Karen Gledhill as Allison. ‘Remembrance of the Daleks’ can be checked out on DVD and Britbox. Continue reading

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘Dragonfire’

Hello everyone! 🙂

Welcome to ‘Bradley’s Basement’ blog and I’m Tim Bradley!

Here we are on the fourth and final story of Season 24 of the classic ‘Doctor Who’ TV series, starring Sylvester McCoy as the Seventh Doctor and Bonnie Langford as Mel. Gosh, this season went by quickly, didn’t it? 😀 We’re also introduced to new companion Sophie Aldred as Ace, and there’s the departure of Bonnie Langford as Mel. This is ‘Dragonfire’, a three-part adventure by Ian Briggs. The story also features the return of Tony Selby as Sabalom Glitz, and it features guest stars like Edward Peel and Patricia Quinn. Many ‘Doctor Who’ fans rate this story as being the best one out of Season 24. Do I agree with that notion? ‘Dragonfire’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and Britbox. Continue reading