Doctor Who: The Daleks' Master Plan (BBC Radio Collection) [Audiobook] [Audio CD]

Terry Nation (Author), Dennis Spooner (Author), Peter Purves (Narrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2001

The Daleks threaten to destroy the fabric of Time itself. A dangerous chase ensures across jungles, deserts, and futuristic cities, as the Doctor and his companions struggle to prevent the Daleks plans coming to fruition. Peter Purves narrates these 13 episodes, only two of which survive in the television archives.

Editorial Reviews

From AudioFile

For someone who once knitted a floor-sweeping Doctor Who scarf, and who cried when Doctor Who (as played by Tom Bell) was killed in an episode, any resurrection of Doctor Who is cause for celebration. Alas, these BBC productions are sorely disappointing. Although billed as radio dramas, they are actually early television programs that have been digitally re-mastered and to which linking narration has been added. I want to say it works, but it doesn't. The re-mastering does not improve the sound quality. Actors' voices become audible, then inaudible as they move about on the television set, necessitating much irritable adjustment of the volume control on one's CD player. And the linking narration is simply that--a somewhat dull narrative of what's happening during the surprising number of silent action shots. The lesson may be that the beloved early "Doctor Who" television shows should be left alone--re-mastering does not do justice to our memories. A.C.S. © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: BBC Pubns (October 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0563535008
• ISBN-13: 978-0563535003
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,421,422 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of many great Doctor Who Epics, September 2, 2002

By 

"tman3001" (Brick, NJ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Doctor Who: The Daleks' Master Plan (BBC Radio Collection) (Audio CD)

The Daleks, possibly one of the most evil, vile, and dangerous creatures to ever emerge in the world of science fiction. In their first appearance one might almost laugh at their appearance, until soon realizing just how deadly they truly are. In this incredible 13 part epic story (I include Mission to the Unknown as part of the whole story) the good Doctor (William Hartnell) once more does battle against his arch-enemies the Daleks, as he is chased once more through time and space, attempting to prevent the Daleks from completing activation of the Time Destructor, a terrible device which harnesses the very forces of time itself into a weapon. Although the visuals are currently missing, with the exception of two episodes, it is still very effective as an audio drama, with linking narration by Peter Purves. the performances are top notch, including William Hartnell as the Doctor, Peter Purves as Steven Taylor, Nicholas Courtney as Bret Vyon (the future Brigadier Lethbridge Stewart) and Kevin Stoney as Mavic Chen. in addition the wonderfully joyful Christmas episode 'Feast of Steven' is definitely a nice break from the dark and impending doom of the main story plot. this is definitely a must have for any Doctor Who fan.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Covetted Epic Comes to CD, March 6, 2002

By 

"doctorwho01" (Charleston, WV) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Doctor Who: The Daleks' Master Plan (BBC Radio Collection) (Audio CD)

As you probably are already aware, this is one of the most sought after stories in Doctor Who's long history. The fact that both the teaser episode "Mission to the Unknown" and the further 12 episodes for the most part are now missing (with the exception of some wonderful clips from Eps 1-4 and Eps 5 & 10 in their entirety). Further appeal may be the added bonus that the Doctor's greatest enemies, the Daleks are on hand to again chase our hero through time and space.

I won't bore you with story details, as I'm sure you know it well. And if not, you can certainly hear all about it in other reviews. I will however instead, tell you that the real appeal of the story is not in its length, nor in it's covetted return of the Daleks yet again. But, is in the regular cast, and the guest cast. William Hartnell is superb as always as the First Doctor. And with him at the beginning of the story is Steven and Katarina.

The latter dies early on in Ep 4 to basically move the plot. I think the producers and writers really did not know what to do with the simple minded Katarina, thus her quick departure from the series here. In comes Sara Kingdom, played to perfection by the lovely Jean Marsh. This story also boasts the first appearance of Nicholas Courtney (of Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart fame) as Sara's brother Bret Vyon.

Most of the performances are good, if not spot on. But, the story is greatly weighed down by being so very long. And thus, much padding can be found within, slowing the plot way, way down at times. The best bits are early on, and then later it all picks back up when the wonderful Meddling Monk reappears to dog the Doctor's path. The Monk is again as superb as he was in "The Time Meddler" the previous year, played here again by the great, late Peter Butterworth, who, for me, absolutely steals the show!

I won't spoil any endings for anyone who hasn't yet seen, read or heard this adventure. But, unlike most Doctor Who stories, things don't necessarily turn out all rosey in the end. All and all this is a terrific story, if perhaps about 4 episodes too long. Enjoy!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Daleks` Master Plan, January 17, 2004

By 

"a1bartlett" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Doctor Who: The Daleks' Master Plan (BBC Radio Collection) (Audio CD)

The Daleks` Master Plan is a true classic. The story is absorbing and is a great addition to any Doctor Who collection. The strong narration by Peter Purves helps to bridge the gap between audio and video. Viewing any of the (now) three episodes on video would also be worthwhile for anyone who did not see the original airing back in 1966.

Master Plan borrows some ideas from the previous Dalek story "The Chase", these being the Dalek time machine, the ensuing pursuit through time and the alternative episode ("Journey into Terror" and the comic relief "Feast of Steven" respectively, for the Chase and Master Plan stories). Master Plan also sees the return of the time travelling monk. All of these ingredients work well.

Master Plan has many varied and interesting situations. Clearly, a lot of effort was put into this story. I like the idea of the lead-in episode "Mission to the Unknown", although this idea loses something without having the "Myth Makers" story that followed it. It is a pity also that the identity of the main protagonists was revealed so early on. Keeping us guessing until the end of this first episode would have made it more exciting and still served its purpose.

The Master Plan story progresses through a series of separate situations, each with their respective characters. This works well and adds interest, but the demise of so many companions along the way is a negative. As with The Chase, there is also an improbable sequence of short stays on Earth.

The worst part of the story for me is the ending. Although the climax is exciting enough all we know at the end is that the patrol of four Daleks was destroyed. It may well have been that the main Dalek force deep in the mountains survived. The story ending would have definitely benefited from a final scene depicting the fate of the Daleks in their underground control center.