If you haven’t listened to Big Finish’s War Doctor stories starring John Hurt, this is your chance — because BBC iPlayer is uploading episodes for you to enjoy for free. But be fast: they’re already disappearing from the service.
The stories have been playing on BBC Radio 4 Extra, so they’re being added to iPlayer one episode at a time, with each being available to listen to for a month after broadcast. The first two episodes from The War Doctor: Only the Monstrous have been deleted now, with episode 3, The Heart of Battle, due to be taken down this coming weekend. Nonetheless, there are still plenty of episodes still to enjoy now and over the coming weeks — in total, 13 episodes will be on iPlayer. As DWC reader, Jason Zerdin, points out, Hurt only recorded 12 but Legion of the Lost, the concluding part of the debut boxset, has been been split in two, accounting for this discrepancy.
Big Finish’s War Doctor stories are comprised of four boxsets: Only the Monstrous, Infernal Devices, Agents of Chaos, and Casualties of War, each still available to buy as downloads from the audio company’s website. The range has been expanded since Hurt’s passing with The War Doctor Begins, in which Jonathon Carley plays a younger version of the character.
We first saw the War Doctor in The Name of the Doctor, and we learnt more about him in The Night of the Doctor and the 50th anniversary special, The Day of the Doctor. Can you believe that was a whole decade ago now?!
Head over to BBC iPlayer to listen to The War Doctor range now!
(Thanks for Jason Zerdin.)