Guys, it’s extremely cool that even during this time where we’re all staying in our homes doing our best to mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus, that we’re still getting brand new Doctor Who releases from Big Finish. But also: Tom Baker’s face in this Zoom recording session, oh my god.
The way Big Finish’s audio recordings are usually set up means that the transition to working remotely for the company has not been too much of a problem; its regular—currently primarily digital—release of more good adventures in time and space than you could shake a particularly sonic stick at has continued relatively unabated. But the latest release in the Fourth Doctor Adventures line, Rob Valentine’s Shadow of the Sun, marks a special occasion: It is the first of the company’s audio dramas recorded entirely since its move to remote working when the United Kingdom went into government mandated lockdown orders on March 23.
[referenced url=” thumb=” title=” excerpt=”]
Set aboard a futuristic luxury starliner, Shadow of the Sun sees Baker’s Fourth Doctor and his companions Leela (Louise Jameson) and K-9 (John Leeson) investigate the strange goings on of disappearing guests and a navigation course set in to bring the ship and its passengers to an unavoidable doom. There’s a bit of a problem though: None of the passengers seem to mind.
Big Finish had always intended to record and release the adventure as part of its ongoing schedule. But because this is the first completed during these peculiar times we find ourselves in, and given the legions of Doctor Who fans excited for new material to dig into from the comfort of their own homes—especially now that the show’s back to not being on TV for a good while yet again—the company has announced that it’s bringing the release up to just a few weeks away, on May 12, 2020.
It’s a great gesture, and a nice surprise for Who fans. But you know what’s also great? These pictures Big Finish also put out of the remote recording sessions:
Good to know that Tom Baker is always Extremely Tom Baker at all times. Doctor Who: Shadow of the Sun is available to pre-order directly from Big Finish now, both as a £9 ($17) digital release or as an £11 ($21) physical CD, which will ship once the company’s warehouses re-open (but comes with a digital code, so you can listen while you wait).