Doctor Who: Jubilee Review

Released in January 2003, Jubilee was the 40th Doctor Who audio drama to be released by Big Finish. It stars Colin Baker as the Sixth Doctor and Maggie Stables as companion Evelyn Smythe. It is written by Robert Shearman and is directed by both Robert Shearman and Nicholas Briggs. It later became the 2005 TV story Dalek starring Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper.

Big Finish's synopsis:

Hurrah! The deadly Daleks are back! Yes, those loveable tinpot tyrants have another plan to invade our world. Maybe this time because they want to drill to the Earth's core. Or maybe because they just feel like it.

And when those pesky pepperpots are in town, there is one thing you can be sure of. There will be non-stop, high octane mayhem in store. And plenty of exterminations!

But never fear. The Doctor is on hand to sort them out. Defender of the Earth, saviour of us all. With his beautiful assistant, Evelyn Smythe, by his side, he will fight once again to uphold the beliefs of the English Empire. All hail the glorious English Empire!

Now that sounds like a jubilee worth celebrating, does it not?

This is a brilliant story! I was a bit hesitant on buying it because I thought it might be too similar to Dalek which I've seen so many times before, but it ended up being very, very different, hell, it was better than Dalek!

Other than The Marian Conspiracy, this was the first story I listened to that featured Evelyn and I must say I'm completely sold on the companion and will definitely be buying more stories that feature her!

So, the acting - Colin Baker is bloody brilliant and really shows us that with a good script, he's an amazing actor. Maggie Stables is just as good as Colin and as I said before, Evelyn is a great character. Martin Jarvis is very good, Rosalind Ayres is great, Nicholas Briggs plays all three of his roles extremely well. A story FULL of good actors.

Jubilee feels so different to Dalek... It's longer, darker, more developed. Just amazing, one of the best audios I've listened to so far. The daleks are at their best here and how could anyone forget about the Dalek song? We are the Daleks and this is our song, we are very naughty and do lots of wrong!

I LOVED the setting of the Tower of London. Thanks to the amazing production and direction, you actually feel as if you're there watching it if you're really in to it.

I loved how everyone in Britain seemed to love the Daleks so much and find them fascinating, despite hating them so much.

My favourite non-main character in this story is Nigel Rochester. Can't really say I know why, I just like him.

My favourite line comes from Evelyn - "You're still my dearest friend... Still the best thing that ever happened to me. The places you've taken me, the wonders you've shared... I know that whatever happened to me along the way, even death, it was worth it." - such a beautiful line that really helped me like Evelyn!

Excellent, interesting, entertaining Dalek story that really had me hooked. I really wish Dalek was a bit more like this, but still... Another fantastic Robert Shearman story and I really hope we get to see more of his work in future Big Finish audios! And again, if you're worried about it feeling too similar to Dalek, then let me tell you the two are nothing like eachother, and this still feels like a whole new amazing adventure! One of the best Doctor Who stories of all time!

I'd certainly recommend this as your first Big Finish audio, although I'd recommend listening to Evelyn's first story (The Marian Conspiracy) first... At £2.99 each, they shouldn't be too hard to afford!

Overall Rating: 10/10

You can buy Jubilee for £2.99 download or £5.00 CD here.