Blood of the Time Lords

Fourth Doctor Adventures #11.1

Released: 16 March 2022

Listened: 3/22/22

This particular set of Fourth Doctor Adventures, released in 2022, takes place specifically just “hours” after “The Deadly Assassin.” The Doctor is feeling responsible for a change, and lands on Gallifrey’s moon, the Recusary, which is apparently where old Time Lords retire when they’re getting close to death. There’s a lot of continuity stuff going on with this one, but not so much that it becomes a burden. The old hermit friend who the Doctor mentions from time to time gets a name, Ansillon, and is currently running the Recusary, so that makes for some interesting interactions. Of course, there has to be a companion substitute, in the form of Elanora, played by Emma Noakes as a mousy librarian who’s a bit more than she seems. Timothy X Atack produces a story with rather a lot of layers and misdirection, and a villain that I really didn’t see coming. The Doctor is at a pretty arrogant point in his life, without Sarah, having just saved Gallifrey from the Master, and it almost seems like he treats the proceedings with contempt. He certainly succeeds in getting under everybody’s skin. As a bonus, there’s even a hint of explanation about one of the Doctor’s oldest mysteries, although I don’t know if any other story will pick up on it. Definitely worth a listen, and probably a re-listen.