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The TARDIS is reluctant to land, and ends up materialising
in two places at once. The Doctor and Evelyn find themselves
in England, although the exact era is at first unclear. They
find the people of the English Empire preparing to celebrate
the 100th anniversary of the defeat of a Dalek invasion...
This year marks the 40th anniversary of not only Doctor
Who but also the Doctor's most famous foes, the Daleks.
So it's entirely appropriate that the fiendish pepper pots
should appear in Big Finish's first Who release of
2003.
Coming
from the pen of Robert Shearman, it comes as no surprise that
this tale is more idiosyncratic than your average Dalek romp.
If you thought that Daleks quoting Shakespeare in last year's
The Time of the Daleks was bizarre, just wait until
you hear the trailer for a Hollywood-style movie about the
Dalek invasion of Earth. Shearman has created a world in which
the defeated invaders, though still feared, have also become
figures of fun, rather like the Nazis in many popular movies
and TV shows. The public have been desensitised to the Daleks'
atrocities by all manner of media depictions, including merchandise
such as soap, chocolate wafer biscuits and even underpants
- sound familiar? There are aspects of Animal Farm
in this story, as it becomes clear that the human victors
of the conflict have become as corrupt as their former oppressors.
The
notion of a captured alien who is not permitted to die with
"honour" is similar to the plot of the BBV audio adventure,
Old Soldiers, which dealt with a Sontaran. And the
concept of two time periods vying for the Doctor's attention
is rather reminiscent of the merging timelines in The Time
of the Daleks. However, Shearman's plot is entirely different
to those of his earlier stories, The Holy Terror and
The Chimes of Midnight, which is a relief, as I had
been a little concerned that he might turn into an M Night
Shyamalan style one-trick pony.
As
it happens, Jubilee is replete with surprising plot-
and character-based twists. The execution of these is aided
by excellent performances from Martin Jarvis as the deranged
ruler Nigel Rochester and Rosalind Ayres as his equally unbalanced
wife, Miriam.
I
am also pleased to report that the use of the 1987 theme arrangement
during December's Bang-Bang-a-Boom! was not a one-off.
Jubilee makes similar use of Dominic Glynn's 1986 arrangement,
which certainly helps to catapult the listener back through
the mists of time to Colin Baker's TV tenure.
This
audio drama is, quite possibly, the most inventive Dalek story
ever told.
Richard
McGinlay
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