‘THE HEXFORD INVASION’
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A Life in Hexford with Mrs. Wibbsey and the Return of the Second Doctor(?)
This is the beginning of the end of ‘The Nest Cottage Chronicles’ in ‘Doctor Who’. 🙂
For the most part, ‘The Nest Cottage Chronicles’ have been mixed at best for me. I’ve enjoyed listening to these audios and it’s interesting how the writer Paul Magrs has constructed these three sets of stories featuring Tom Baker’s Fourth Doctor. But they’re not as good as the Big Finish audios.
The narration aspects of these stories are what let them down for me, and I hoped with ‘Serpent Crest’ that every story would be a full-cast audio drama with no narration in them like how ‘Tsar Wars’ did it. Sadly, that was not the case and I really wish the format for these audios were different.
Despite that, the plots featured in each story have been fascinating to listen to, and ‘The Hexford Invasion’ is a story that caught my interest. It continues the ‘Serpent Crest’ saga in a way that appeals to ‘Doctor Who’ fandom as well as how the Skishtari’s build-up as enemies gets unravelled. 🙂
Admittedly, the Skishtari don’t appear in this story, as their actual appearance is saved for ‘Survivors In Space’ next time. But it’s intriguing how everything that’s set up in the first three stories – ‘Tsar Wars’, ‘The Broken Crown’ and ‘Aladdin Time’ – concerning the Shishtari gene egg gets followed up.
In ‘The Hexford Invasion’, it’s been many months since the Fourth Doctor left Nest Cottage from the end of ‘Aladdin Time’. According to Mrs. Wibbsey, it’s now August. Mike Yates has also recovered from hospital since Mrs. Wibbsey went to see him in January of the New Year, which is a huge relief.
And yes, Susan Jameson as Mrs. Wibbsey is the narrator of ‘The Hexford Invasion’. I like how this story is told from Wibbsey’s point-of-view, as she expresses how anxious she is since the Doctor’s departure from Earth back in December the previous year. She keenly feels his absence in Hexford. 🙂
It’s interesting that Wibbsey has grown attached to the Fourth Doctor over the course of these stories in ‘The Nest Cottage Chronicles’. She’s quite a different character compared to how she started in ‘The Stuff of Nightmares’. She’s become quite likeable, despite some of her stern manner.
Wibbsey also becomes suspicious of her new neighbours in Hexford village, including Nerys Hughes as Deirdre and Joanna Tope as Tish. She’s in danger of becoming excluded from village life, especially when she has an argument with Cornelius Garrett as Reverend Tonge from sharing her suspicions. 😐
To be fair, the vicar was quite reasonable and polite to Mrs. Wibbsey when seeming to question her suspicions. I know I said Wibbsey has become likeable by this point in ‘The Nest Cottage Chronicles’, but there are occasions where she cannot see things from other points of view compared to hers. 😐
Eventually, Wibbsey receives visitors at Nest Cottage. It turns out to be Richard Franklin as Mike Yates, who has been sent by U.N.I.T. and has been joined by U.N.I.T. troops, I believe. He’s also joined by a strange new fellow, who happens to be the Second Doctor, played by David Troughton. 🙂
This was quite a surprise when listening to the story as much as it surprised Mrs. Wibbsey to meet a new Doctor that isn’t like the Doctor she knows. Throughout the story, Wibbsey is suspicious that the newcomer isn’t who Mike claims him to be. Judging by the story’s climax, that might be the case.
David Troughton is of course one of Patrick Troughton’s sons. In the TV series, he played an extra in ‘The Enemy of the World’, was Private Moor in ‘The War Games’, King Peladon in ‘The Curse of Peladon’ and lately Professor Hobbes in ‘Midnight’. David has also been in ‘The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot’.
I’ve also heard David Troughton in a number of Big Finish audios of ‘Doctor Who’ as well as a number of BBC audiobook readings, particularly for Target novelizations. He also played Saul in ‘The Stranger’ BBV series with Colin Baker and he’s been in four episodes of the ‘Grantchester’ TV series.
There was a time where I thought that David Troughton could play Patrick Troughton’s Doctor in a possible 50th anniversary special of ‘Doctor Who’ with all the Doctors. David Tennant said in a DVD audio commentary for ‘The Five Doctors’ that David Troughton is like a chunkier version of his dad. 🙂
Over the years, there have been more actors playing the Second Doctor in audio productions, like Frazer Hines in several Big Finish audio stories as well as Michael Troughton, Patrick Troughton’s other son. Reece Shearsmith has also played Patrick Troughton in ‘An Adventure In Space and Time’.
It’s hard to say who can be the definitive actor to play Patrick Troughton’s Doctor apart from Patrick Troughton himself in any audio production. With that said, David Troughton is very good playing his dad’s Doctor, getting the mannerisms right as well as getting to say, “Oh my giddy aunt!” in the story.
However, as Mrs. Wibbsey follows her suspicions, it turns out the Second Doctor isn’t who he seems to be in this story, especially when he goes out at night planting peculiar trees in Hexford village. It’s revealed that the Second Doctor seems to be collaborating with the aliens attacking Hexford village.
Why the Second Doctor is doing this isn’t explained in this story and even Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor is shocked by this revelation. There’s a moment in the story where the Second Doctor snaps rather viciously at Mrs. Wibbsey, insulting her along the way. This makes her doubt he is the Doctor.
Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor does take a while to appear in the story. When he does appear, Mrs. Wibbsey and Mike Yates are delighted to see him. The Fourth Doctor explains what he’s been doing with dropping off Alex and Boolin back to their home planet and with returning to Hexford village. 🙂
As established, the Fourth Doctor is surprised and eventually shocked by the Second Doctor’s presence on Earth, since he doesn’t remember these events and being in collaboration with the Skishtari. He does know that the Shishtari have come to collect their egg buried under Nest Cottage.
I’m surprised the Fourth Doctor didn’t meet the Second Doctor in this adventure. Perhaps that’s being saved for the next story: ‘Survivors in Space’. I enjoyed the Fourth Doctor’s interaction with Mrs. Wibbsey, especially when they’re inside the TARDIS. Tom Baker excels in these BBC audio stories.
Cornelius Garett, who plays Reverend Tonge, has also been in ‘Emmerdale’ and ‘The Bill’. The character Reverend Tonge is a traditional English village vicar, who is keen for Wibbsey to star in the Hexford village Christmas show. He’s pleased when the Second Doctor agrees to appear in his panto.
Nerys Hughes, who plays Deirdre, is no stranger to ‘Doctor Who’. In the classic TV series, she played Todd in ‘Kinda’. In ‘Torchwood’, she played Brenda, Rhys’ mum in ‘Something Borrowed’. Nerys Hughes has also done Big Finishes, including an episode of ‘The War Master’ story ‘Only the Good’. 🙂
Deirdre, whose surname happens to be Whatsit (Seriously? That’s her surname?! 😀 ) is Welsh. I did wonder if Nerys Hughes would use her normal voice like she did for ‘Kinda’ and the ‘Only the Good’ episode. Instead, she uses the strong Welsh accent she had when she played Brenda in ‘Torchwood’.
Joanna Tope, who plays Tish, has also been in ‘The Tomorrow People’ and ‘The Omega Factor’. Her character, Tish Madoc, happens to be a novelist. I believe she’s Welsh too, due to being Deirdre’s cousin, though her accent isn’t as strong as Nerys Hughes’ Welsh accent in this ‘Doctor Who’ story. 🙂
Wibbsey is easily suspicious of Tish Madoc, thinking she is evil. This isn’t helped when Tish is with the Second Doctor during the extraction of Hexford village from Earth. Tish also happens to keep hives of insects in her garden. This does cause Wibbsey to be more suspicious of Tish’s true motivations. 😐
I did wonder if perhaps the evil alien hornets from ‘Hornets’ Nest’ would make a return in this ‘Doctor Who’ story, since Wibbsey has had a bad history with insects like bees and hornets. In fact, we haven’t had a follow-up to the Demon character that appeared in ‘Demon Quest’. Where is it? 😐
The story also features Jack Sandle, Jay Villiers and Sam Hoare as the villagers in Hexford, who say a couple of lines during meetings at the village hall. Sam Hoare previously played Lucius in ‘Tsar Wars’. I hope that the actors who played villagers in this story and ‘Survivors in Space’ got paid really well. 😀
‘The Hexford Invasion’ concludes with Hexford village extracted from the planet Earth with the Second Doctor, Mike Yates, Deirdre, Tish, Reverend Tonge and everyone else. The Fourth Doctor and Wibbsey are safe in the TARDIS, and they exit to find what’s left of Hexford to be utterly decimated.
Thankfully, the Skishtari didn’t take the gene egg, which is still buried under where Nest Cottage used to be. Taking the egg with them, the Doctor and Wibbsey return to the TARDIS and head off to find where the extracted Hexford village is. Hopefully, the Doctor and Wibbsey will soon fix things. 🙂
I enjoyed listening to ‘The Hexford Invasion’ very much. It’s quite a compelling adventure, featuring Mrs. Wibbsey’s reunion with the Fourth Doctor as well as with Mike Yates. The story does leave you wondering why the Second Doctor has behaved strangely and what has become of Hexford village. 🙂
‘The Hexford Invasion’ rating – 8/10
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