Written by Rafaella Marcus

Starring Jodie Whittaker and Mandip Gill

Originally released : March 2026

Listened to: April 2026

Context: Back to the 13th Doctor, always a welcome return to this era of the show and this TARDIS team. The stories for 13 and Yaz have been consistently good to great so far, so when it’s a 13th Doctor month, I always look forward to getting cracking with the latest adventure. On we go….

THE REVIEW

What I thought: really good story. I started listening to it while I was doing some classic Dadmin (tidying the garage), and it made for an enjoyable hour that would otherwise have been annoying and tedious. The 1920s-esque setting is right up my alley, and the story is based on mediums, spiritualism post WW1 and an alien that feeds off emotion (not a new idea for Who, but one used in a unique way here, very effectively I thought). There are some moving and kind of sad elements to the story but its all done with gusto, pathos and as much fun as possible. Jodie and Mandip are in great form, and there are lots of lovely moments between them. The villainous Colonel Maltravers and the creepy sidekick/scientist Kidney are great, right out of a Victorian novella, penny dreadful, etc. (with an interesting context and motivation to do what they are doing here, so well written and played throughout this adventure). It’s all good stuff, and I was sucked into the story of Ester, Miriam and Nellie very quickly, bless them. I was very moved by the plight of our heroines, the motivations behind them and the underlying sadness from the Maltravers; it’s all about love and loss, such universal emotions. Great addition to this very strong run of 13th Doctor adventures.

Rating: 4 out of 5 Ouiji boards: another strong episode, which continues the increasingly strong run of this first series of 13 Doctor stories (sorry, stuck record I am). Fantastic in many respects, lovely story, tightly paced, and so well played, bravo all!

What am I left thinking/feeling/wanting?

• Where the Tourist fits in here?
• How the Doctor is going to find the Tourist (and the conclusion of the story makes it clear that the 13th Doctor is going after them now).

Memorable bits

• The Doctor melting Kidneys shoes with the sonic!
• Maltraver’s returning, spirit, family, and his desire to meet them again
• Yaz trying to get more from the Doctor, leading to a great and direct plan to find the Tourist
• The kiss!