Tag Archives: doctor who (60th anniversary)

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘The Haunting of Villa Diodati’

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

It’s time for another historical ‘Doctor Who’ adventure. This is ‘The Haunting of Villa Diodati’ by Maxine Alderton, where the Thirteenth Doctor TARDIS team go back in time to the year 1816 and they visit the titular Villa Diodati near Lake Geneva somewhere in Switzerland. Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor, Bradley Walsh as Graham, Tosin Cole as Ryan and Mandip Gill as Yaz meet Lili Miller as Mary Shelley, along with Maxim Baldry (who was in ‘Mr. Bean’s Holiday’ in 2007 and recently in ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’) as Dr. John Polidori, Nadia Parkes as Claire Clairmont and Jacob Collins-Levy as Lord Byron. There’s also the return of the Cybermen – or in fact, it’s the debut of Patrick O’Kane as Ashad, the Lone Cyberman. This story is supposed to depict the ‘Doctor Who’ origins of how Mary Shelley became the author of ‘Frankenstein’ from her meeting with the Thirteenth Doctor TARDIS team and her encounter with the Lone Cyberman. But is this ‘Doctor Who’ episode very satisfying for me? Is there something about the episode that doesn’t work for me on a certain level? ‘The Haunting of Villa Diodati’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer. Continue reading

Day 17 – ‘Bradley’s Basement’s Advent Calendar 2023

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

It’s Day 17 of ‘Bradley’s Basement’s Advent Calendar 2023. Continue reading

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘Can You Hear Me?’

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

In today’s instalment of the ‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon, we’re checking out the Series 12 episode called ‘Can You Hear Me?’ by Charlene James and Chris Chibnall. Charlene James is a new ‘Doctor Who’ writer at this point in the new TV series. Apparently, she’s the second black ‘Doctor Who’ writer to follow in the footsteps of Malorie Blackman, who co-wrote ‘Rosa’ in Series 11 with Chris Chibnall. In ‘Can You Hear Me?’, Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor, Bradley Walsh as Graham, Tosin Cole as Ryan and Mandip Gill as Yaz are being stalked by a strange being called Zellin, who forces them to confront their worst fears and nightmares. This happens in 14th century Syria as well as modern-day Sheffield. The episode’s guest cast includes Ian Gelder as Zellin. Ian Gelder previously voiced the Remnants in ‘The Ghost Monument’ and he played Mr. Dekker in Series 3 of ‘Torchwood’ called ‘Children of Earth’. There are also special guest appearances of Sharon D. Clarke as Grace, Graham’s deceased wife and Bhavnisha Parmer as Sonya, Yaz’s sister. ‘Can You Hear Me?’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer. Continue reading

Day 16 – ‘Bradley’s Basement’s Advent Calendar 2023

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

It’s Day 16 of ‘Bradley’s Basement’s Advent Calendar 2023. Continue reading

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

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

Let’s begin the second half of Series 12 in the new ‘Doctor Who’ TV series by checking out ‘Praxeus’ by Pete McTighe and Chris Chibnall. Pete McTighe contributed to ‘Doctor Who’ in Series 11 with the episode called ‘Kerblam!’. Is ‘Praxeus’ a step-up from ‘Kerblam!’ or do I think ‘Kerblam!’ is better than ‘Praxeus’? In the episode, Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor, Bradley Walsh as Graham, Tosin Cole as Ryan and Mandip Gill as Yaz search across multiple countries, as they investigate strange phenomena, including birds acting strangely and a British astronaut called Adam Lang. The episode’s guest cast includes Warren Brown (who usually plays Sam Bishop in the new ‘U.N.I.T.’ audio series and the ‘Lady Christina’ audio series – both by Big Finish) as Jake Willis, and Matthew McNulty (who I’ve seen in Series 3 of the BBC TV series ‘The Musketeers’) as Adam Lang. Although entirely coincidental, ‘Praxeus’ has parallels to the Covid-19 virus, which was something that hadn’t come into full effect at the time of the episode’s transmission on BBC TV in February 2020. 😐 ‘Praxeus’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer. Continue reading

Day 15 – ‘Bradley’s Basement’s Advent Calendar 2023

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

It’s Day 15 of ‘Bradley’s Basement’s Advent Calendar 2023. Continue reading

Comic Review – ‘Origins’ (Doctor Who)

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

At this point in time, I’ve yet to check out ‘The Fugitive Doctor’ audio stories by Big Finish, starring Jo Martin. Hopefully, when they become available, I’ll be able to check them out and share my thoughts on them. For now, let’s check out a ‘Doctor Who’ comic story by Titan Comics called ‘Origins’, featuring the Fugitive Doctor. The comic adventure is by Jody Houser, with the artwork by Roberta Ingranata. Continue reading

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – Reflection on the Fugitive Doctor

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

It’s fair to say that this is a particularly unusual incarnation of the Doctor to be portrayed in the ‘Doctor Who’ TV series – both classic and new. Arguably, Jo Martin is the first black person to be cast in the role before Ncuti Gatwa came along. The second if you count Lenny Henry playing the Doctor in 1985. 😀 Continue reading

Day 14 – ‘Bradley’s Basement’s Advent Calendar 2023

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

It’s Day 14 of ‘Bradley’s Basement’s Advent Calendar 2023. Continue reading

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘Fugitive of the Judoon’

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

We’re halfway through Series 12 of the new ‘Doctor Who’ TV series and today, we’re onto one of the most insane episodes ever made. It’s time for ‘Fugitive of the Judoon’ by Vinay Patel and Chris Chibnall. Yes, the Judoon are back in this ‘Doctor Who’ episode and are voiced by Nicholas Briggs! Vinay Patel previously contributed to Series 11 as a ‘Doctor Who’ writer with his episode ‘Demons of the Punjab’. In ‘Fugitive of the Judoon’, the Judoon visit modern-day Gloucester in search for a fugitive. Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor, Bradley Walsh as Graham, Tosin Cole as Ryan and Mandip Gill as Yaz attempt to regulate the situation. This episode features the surprise return of John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness. There’s also the introduction of Jo Martin as Ruth Clayton, who turns out to be a previously unseen incarnation of the Doctor and is labelled ‘the Fugitive Doctor’. There’s Neil Stuke (who guest starred in the Big Finish audio drama ‘The Crooked Man’ with Tom Baker) as Lee Clayton and there’s Ritu Arya as Gat. So, how insane was this ‘Doctor Who’ episode when I first saw it on TV in 2020? ‘Fugitive of the Judoon’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer. Continue reading