Review by Daniel Mansfield

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After a three-year hiatus, the much-loved Companion Chronicles range returns with a new box set of four adventures for the First Doctor and his fellow TARDIS travellers.

The Temple of Light by Jonathan Morris opens the set, featuring the always-wonderful Maureen O’Brien as companion Vicki Pallister. Unlike most Companion Chronicles, this story is presented as a full-cast drama rather than a narrated one, with Duncan Wisbey starring alongside O’Brien as all the other characters in the piece. And there aren’t just one or two side characters here – there are loads, Wisbey giving each one a unique voice in a stunning show of acting talent.

This story sees Vicki cast into a strange world after the TARDIS malfunctions, where she must work with a young man called Nebron to make her way back to her friends. Along the way, they face the threat of sacrifice, time dilation, monsters and a terrible decision. The true nature of this world is a clever, if a little predictable, twist – a glorious idea that I’m surprised has never been done before. The Temple of Light is a fantastic start to the set – a slice of 1960s goodness full of excellent performances.

Ian Potter‘s Stardust and Ashes opens in a familiar setting to Who fans, the wartorn, post Dalek Invasion of Earth London, where the Doctor’s granddaughter Susan (Carole Ann Ford) is struggling with the death of her son Alex. We soon travel back to her time in the TARDIS, as Susan tells the story of her and her friends’ encounter with a merciless intelligent machine, though we periodically return to her in the present day to learn more about how she’s feeling in the wake of her recent tragedy.

There’s no denying that this framing narrative is far stronger than the flashbacks, with Ford delivering one of her greatest performances in the role – raw, emotional and guaranteed to leave you misty-eyed by the time you’ve finished listening. This isn’t to say, however, that the main narrative is poor in any way – it’s got some strong moments, despite feeling a little pedestrian at times. Overall, then, Stardust and Ashes is a moving story that only just misses out on greatness.

The last two stories in the set see the incorporation of Stephen Noonan‘s First Doctor as a secondary voice, where previously the character had only been represented via narration. While this may seem anathema to the companion-focused brief of this series, the second half of the boxset still feels of a piece with what came before it.

Paul Morris‘s The White Ship sees the Doctor and Steven (Peter Purves) arrive in France, where a tragedy that leads to the death of England’s future king is about to take place. In typical 60s Who fashion, this story sees Steven mistaken for a real historical figure – Stephen of Blois- and must fight for his life aboard a sinking ship. Purves’ narration is evocative, and his assured performance as Steven is complemented by Noonan’s twinkling turn as the Doctor, and, impressively, as other side characters.

Rounding off the boxset is Christopher Cooper‘s The Y Factor, featuring Lauren Cornelius‘s Dodo Chaplet. Cornelius provides some energetic narration, with Cooper’s present-tense prose making the story seem immediate and urgent, but the plot feels quite traditional, and not enough is made of the main guest character, Edith, a septuagenarian jiujitsu expert. Nevertheless, this is still an enjoyable story, even if it doesn’t quite hit the heights of its three predecessors.

Despite a slightly weaker closing instalment, Families is a gem of a boxset – a delightful throwback to Doctor Who‘s earliest days brought to life with some impeccable performances. Let’s hope this isn’t the last we’ve heard from the Companion Chronicles series.

Families is available on CD or as a download from http://www.bigfinish.com