Tick-Tock World

First Doctor Adventures #3.2

Released: 29 January 2019

Listened: 1/16/20

The gimmick in this story is that Carole Ann Ford appears, credited as “Woman,” but it becomes clear quickly that she’s an older version of Susan. Not the Susan from Earth, but an alternate future Susan. Claudia Grant still sounds quite different than Carole Ann, but either she’s toned down her RP accent some since starting, or I’m just getting more used to it now. The oddest vocal clashing is that the guest characters all use their own regional accents, which makes the four leads stand out more than usual. This is another high-concept time-traveley story, from Guy Adams, and another that probably wouldn’t have worked on TV in 1964. Susan, as you can imagine, is the focus, with a lot of attention being paid to her growing up and becoming more of her own person. If they were in the regular timeline, it would make a great lead-in to “The Dalek Invasion of Earth.” There are also much stronger hints at a deepening relationship between Ian and Barbara, which kind of fits in the timeline as well. Carole Ann Ford does well in the role, despite being mostly a phantom with not much to do. She bounces off Bradley in just the same way she would Hartnell, which works nicely.