''Trail of the White Worm'' is an

audio drama Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine t ...

based on the long-running British

science fiction television Science fiction first appeared in television programming in the late 1930s, during what is called the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary ...

series ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

''. This audio drama was produced by

Big Finish Productions Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays (released straight to compact disc and for download in MP3 and m4b format) based, primarily, on cult science fiction properties. These include ''Doctor Who'', the ...

. This is the first part of a two-part story, the second part being ''

The Oseidon Adventure ''The Oseidon Adventure'' is an audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. This audio drama was produced by Big Finish Productions. This is the second part of a two-part story, the first part ...

''.

Plot

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

, 1979. A legendary giant white worm is sought after by the Doctor, Leela and the Master.

Cast

* The Doctor –

Tom Baker Thomas Stewart Baker (born 20 January 1934) is an English actor and writer. He is well known for his portrayal of the Fourth Doctor, fourth incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the science fiction television series ''Doctor Wh ...

* Leela –

Louise Jameson Louise Jameson (born 20 April 1951) is an English actress with a wide variety of television and theatre credits. Her roles on television have included playing Leela in ''Doctor Who'' (1977–1978), Anne Reynolds in ''The Omega Factor'' (1979), ...

* The Master –

Geoffrey Beevers Geoffrey Beevers (born 15 January 1941) is a British actor who has appeared in many different stage and screen roles. Career Theatre Beevers has worked extensively at the Orange Tree Theatre in Richmond upon Thames, both as an actor (including ...

* Colonel Spindleton –

Michael Cochrane Michael Cochrane is an English actor. Biography Cochrane was born in Brighton, East Sussex. He was educated at Cranleigh School. He has had many television and radio roles including Oliver Sterling in the Radio 4 soap opera ''The Archers'', ...

* Demesne Furze –

Rachael Stirling Rachael Atlanta Stirling (born 30 May 1977).. is an English stage, film and television actress. She has been nominated twice for the Laurence Olivier Award for her stage work. She played Nancy Astley in the BBC drama ''Tipping the Velvet'', and ...

Continuity

*Geoffrey Beevers played the Master, alongside Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor, in the 1981 television story ''

The Keeper of Traken ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

''. *The Fourth Doctor also encountered the Master in ''

The Deadly Assassin ''The Deadly Assassin'' is the third serial of the 14th season of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 30 October to 20 November 1976. It is the first seri ...

'' and Tom Baker's last television story, ''

Logopolis ''Logopolis'' is the seventh and final serial of the Doctor Who (season 18), 18th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC One, BBC1 from 28 February to 21 March ...

''. *The version of the Master that Beevers plays has an emaciated, corpse-like appearance. This was first seen in ''The Deadly Assassin'', although in that story, the Master was played by

Peter Pratt Peter Pratt (21 March 1923 – 11 January 1995) was an English actor and singer. He was best known for his comic roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas. Pratt started his career in the chorus of the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in 1945, ...

. *For the Doctor and the Master, ''Trail of the White Worm'' takes place between ''The Deadly Assassin'' and ''The Keeper of Traken''. *The Doctor notices that the Master looks different, less emaciated, reflecting the differences in appearance in ''The Deadly Assassin'' and ''The Keeper of Traken''. This may have been a result of the aborted rejuvenation at the end of ''The Deadly Assassin''. *Beevers previously reprised the role of the Master in two Big Finish audios, ''

Dust Breeding ''Dust Breeding'' is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. The story marks the return of Caroline John to ''Doctor Who'' and the introduction of the Master to ...

'' and ''

Master Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...

'', both with the

Seventh Doctor The Seventh Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', and the final incarnation of the original Doctor Who series. He is portrayed by Scottish actor Sylvester McCoy. W ...

. In those dramas, the Master had reverted to his former deteriorated state, after losing the form he gained at the end of ''The Keeper of Traken''.

Notes

*Michael Cochrane appeared in the Doctor Who television stories, '' Black Orchid'' in 1982 and '' Ghost Light'' in 1989 and also appeared in another Big Finish story

No Man's Land No man's land is waste or unowned land or an uninhabited or desolate area that may be under dispute between parties who leave it unoccupied out of fear or uncertainty. The term was originally used to define a contested territory or a dump ...

featuring the Seventh Doctor in which he also played a colonel.

Critical reception

Doctor Who Magazine ''Doctor Who Magazine'' (abbreviated as ''DWM'') is a magazine devoted to the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Launched in 1979 as ''Doctor Who Weekly'', the magazine became a monthly publication the followi ...

'' reviewer Matt Michael called the play "lightweight", and criticised the plotting, but praised the cast.

References

External links

Trail of the White Worm
{{DEFAULTSORT:Trail of the White Worm Fourth Doctor audio plays

UNIT audio plays