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

– – – BRAND NEW REVIEW – – –

Merry Christmas everyone! 🙂

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

How fitting that on Christmas Day today, for the first time in the ‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon on ‘Bradley’s Basement’, I’m sharing a brand-new review on a ‘Doctor Who’ story in the new TV series. It’s time to check out the third of the three Series 13 Specials of ‘Doctor Who’, which happens to be the BBC Centenary Special to celebrate 100 years of the BBC in 2022, and it’s the final story in the Jodie Whittaker/Chris Chibnall era of the new TV show. Let’s check out ‘The Power of the Doctor’ by Chris Chibnall, starring Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor, Mandip Gill as Yaz, John Bishop as Dan, Janet Fielding as Tegan, Sophie Aldred as Ace, Sacha Dhawan as the Master, Jemma Redgrave as Kate Stewart, Jacob Anderson as Vinder, Patrick O’Kane as Ashad and plenty more special guest stars. There are also Daleks and Cybermen in this special ‘Doctor Who’ story, both voiced by Nicholas Briggs. In my brand-new review for ‘The Power of the Doctor’, I’m helped by Timelord007, WilliamsFan92, Wolfie and AFJ Kernow. Is ‘The Power of the Doctor’ a worthy conclusion to the Jodie Whittaker/Chris Chibnall era of ‘Doctor Who’? Did it satisfy me on all levels? ‘The Power of the Doctor’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer.

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘Legend of the Sea Devils’

Hello everyone! 🙂

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

It’s Christmas Eve today! So, let’s check out an Easter Special in today’s instalment of the ‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon on ‘Bradley’s Basement’! 😀 This is the second of the 2022/Series 13 Specials of ‘Doctor Who’, and the second Easter Special to be produced in the new TV series (the first being ‘Planet of the Dead’ in the David Tennant/Tenth Doctor era). It’s also the penultimate story in the Jodie Whittaker/Thirteenth Doctor era. This is ‘Legend of the Sea Devils’ by Ella Road and Chris Chibnall, starring Jodie Whittaker as the Doctor, Mandip Gill as Yaz and John Bishop as Dan. The story has special guest star Crystal Yu as Madam Ching and there’s Craige Els as the Chief Sea Devil. There’s also an uncredited cameo appearance of Nadia Albina as Di, who appeared in ‘Flux’. This ‘Doctor Who’ Easter Special continues the storyline that’s been going on between Yaz and the Thirteenth Doctor, where Yaz happens to have romantic feelings for her. Is it handled in a satisfying manner? Are the Sea Devils also well-handled in terms of their return to ‘Doctor Who’, following ‘The Sea Devils’ and ‘Warriors of the Deep’? ‘Legend of the Sea Devils’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer.

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

Hello everyone! 🙂

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

We’re now on the 2022 Specials of ‘Doctor Who’ – also called the Series 13 Specials of the new TV series. These are Jodie Whittaker’s last three ‘Doctor Who’ stories in her TV era as the Thirteenth Doctor. They’re also the last three stories to feature Mandip Gill as Yaz and John Bishop as Dan. The first of the 2022 Specials is ‘Eve of the Daleks’ by Chris Chibnall. This is the third and final New Year’s Day Special in the Jodie Whittaker/Chris Chibnall era, which was shown on the 1st of January 2022. The special has guest stars like Aisling Bea (who I’ve also seen in ‘Home Sweet Home Alone’ on Disney+) and Adjani Salmon as Nick. And of course, there are the dreaded Daleks, voiced by Nicholas Briggs. The special also has Pauline McLynn (who you might have seen as Mrs. Doyle in the Channel 4 sitcom TV series ‘Father Ted’) and there’s a cameo of Jonny Dixon as Karl from ‘The Woman Who Fell to Earth’. Comparing this New Year’s Day Special to ‘Resolution’ and ‘Revolution of the Daleks’, does ‘Eve of the Daleks’ hold up that well? Do I consider it a decent ‘Doctor Who’ New Year’s Day Special? ‘Eve of the Daleks’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer.

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

Hello everyone! 🙂

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

Here we are on Series 13 – Jodie Whittaker’s third and final season as the Thirteenth Doctor in ‘Doctor Who’. This is a six-part story called ‘Flux’, mainly written by Chris Chibnall. The six episodes of the story include ‘The Halloween Apocalypse’, ‘War of the Sontarans’, ‘Once, Upon Time’, ‘Village of the Angels’ (co-written by Chris Chibnall and Maxine Alderton), ‘Survivors of the Flux’ and ‘The Vanquishers’. ‘Flux’ stars Jodie Whittaker as the Doctor and Mandip Gill as Yaz, and they’re joined by John Bishop as Dan. There are special guest stars like Craige Els as Karvanista, Steve Oram as Joseph Williamson, Nadia Albina as Diane, Sam Spruell as Swarm, Rochenda Sandall as Azure, Jacob Anderson as Vinder, Thaddea Graham as Bel, Annabel Scholey as Claire, Jonathan Watson and Dan Starkey as the Sontarans, Sara Powell as Mary Seacole, Jo Martin as the Fugitive Doctor, Craig Parkinson as the Grand Serpent, Bhavnisha Parmar as Sonya, Barbara Flynn as Tecteun, Kevin McNally as Professor Jericho, Vincent Brimble as Gerald, Jemma Churchill as Jean, Blake Harrison as Namaca, Robert Bathurst as Farquhar and Jemma Redgrave as Kate Stewart. ‘Flux’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer.

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

Hello everyone! 🙂

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

It’s time to check out the first post-Covid-19 pandemic ‘Doctor Who’ adventure in the new TV series, which happens to be ‘Revolution of the Daleks’ by Chris Chibnall – the 2021 New Year’s Day Special. It stars Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor, Bradley Walsh as Graham, Tosin Cole as Ryan and Mandip Gill as Yaz. It also features the second return of John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness, who previously made his first return in the Thirteenth Doctor era in ‘Fugitive of the Judoon’ in Series 12. There’s also the return of Chris Noth as Robertson, who previously appeared in ‘Arachnids in the UK’ in Series 11. There’s Harriet Walter as Jo Patterson and Nathan Stewart-Jarrett as Leo Rugazzi. And of course, there are the Daleks, voiced by Nicholas Briggs. ‘Revolution of the Daleks’ follows up on plot elements that were left unresolved in the 2019 New Year’s Day Special called ‘Resolution’. This ‘Doctor Who’ story also features the final regular departure of Bradley Walsh as Graham and Tosin Cole as Ryan, whilst Mandip Gill as Yaz continues her travels with Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor. ‘Revolution of the Daleks’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer.

‘Doctor Who’ 60th Anniversary Marathon – ‘Ascension of the Cybermen’/’The Timeless Children’

Hello everyone! 🙂

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

Here we are on the two-part season finale of Series 12 in the new ‘Doctor Who’ TV series, starring Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor, Bradley Walsh as Graham, Tosin Cole as Ryan and Mandip Gill as Yaz. This is ‘Ascension of the Cybermen’/’The Timeless Children’ by Chris Chibnall, where not only do we have another appearance of Patrick O’Kane as Ashad, the Lone Cyberman, from ‘The Haunting of Villa Diodati’, but we also have the debut of the Cyber Warriors – a new breed of Cybermen in ‘Doctor Who’. This story also features the return of Sacha Dhawan as the Master, who finally reveals the truth about the Timeless Child to Jodie Whittaker’s Thirteenth Doctor and how the Time Lords of Gallifrey lied to her all those years ago. Once again, the Timeless Child reveal has divided a lot of ‘Doctor Who’ fandom since it was introduced in 2020. Some are okay with it, others really loathe it. Where do I stand on this? Am I okay with the Timeless Child reveal? Does it affect my enjoyment of the Thirteenth Doctor era and the ‘Doctor Who’ TV series – both classic and new – in general? ‘Ascension of the Cybermen’/’The Timeless Children’ can be checked out on DVD, Blu-ray and BBC iPlayer.

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

Hello everyone! 🙂

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.

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

Hello everyone! 🙂

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.

‘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.

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

Hello everyone! 🙂

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.