Doctor Who: The Monthly Adventures
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Doctor Who: The Monthly Adventures, formerly subtitled as the Main Range,[1] is a full-cast audio drama series based on the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who. Produced by Big Finish Productions between 1999[2] and 2021,[3] each audio drama stars one or more of the original actors who played the Doctor in the programme's classic series.
Doctor Who revolves around the adventures of an alien called the Doctor, whose people are called the Time Lords. He travels in space and time using a spaceship called the TARDIS, which can travel in time as well as space. While travelling, the Doctor works to save lives and liberate oppressed peoples by combating foes. The Doctor often travels with companions. The programme has a concept of regeneration, in which, when a Time Lord is fatally injured, their cells regenerate and they are reincarnated into a different body with a different personality, but the same memories.[citation needed]
The Classic Series of Doctor Who which these stories are based on originally ran from 1963 to 1989 with a TV movie in 1996. In 1999, Big Finish obtained a non-exclusive licence to produce official Doctor Who audio plays.
Big Finish Productions began producing audio dramas featuring the Fifth Doctor, Sixth Doctor, and Seventh Doctors, under the "Main Range" banner, starting with the multi-Doctor story The Sirens of Time in July 1999. They gradually developed a pattern of thirteen releases per year, one every month with two in September or December. From 2001 to 2007, the main range also included releases featuring the Eighth Doctor; future releases with the Eighth Doctor were more sporadic, coincident with the beginning of the Eighth Doctor Adventures. Various companions appeared throughout the adventures in main and guest roles, mostly originating from television, though some originated from various spin-offs such as novels and comics, and some debuted in the Big Finish audios themselves.
In May 2020, Big Finish announced that The Monthly Adventures (which had recently changed its subtitle) would conclude with its 275th release, to be replaced with regular releases of each Doctor in their own boxsets throughout the year from January 2022, as part of a revamp. The number of these boxsets for each Doctor was announced in May 2022, with the first, second and fifth getting one boxset, and the other five, including the third and fourth, receiving two. With 275 releases over 22 years, the series holds the Guinness World Record for longest running science fiction audio play series.
History
Though the programme had been put on indefinite hiatus in 1989 (and despite the failed revival attempt with the 1996 TV movie), the BBC still published, as well as gave non-exclusive licenses to other companies to produce, Doctor Who stories through various mediums such as novels and comics.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. Big Finish Productions, which mostly consisted of fans who started out recording fan audio plays, were given the license to record some of the New Adventures, a series of novels from Virgin Books which had originally been licensed Doctor Who stories, into audio plays.[4]Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. This eventually transitioned into a license to produce original audio dramas featuring the past Doctors, with The Sirens of Time being the first story to be released in July 1999.[4]
A number of Doctor Who spin-off writers formed the group of original writers, including Gary Russell, Nicholas Briggs, Justin Richards and Mark Gatiss.[4]Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. Future Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat also joined, but left after it became clear that the license did not extend to the then-incumbent Eighth Doctor. The still alive actors of the Fourth to Eighth Doctors were approached for the role, but Tom Baker, the Fourth Doctor, declined.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. The releases therefore alternated between the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Doctors, with the license extended to include the Eighth Doctor in 2001, although his releases generally weren't included in the alternating schedule, instead that years 8th doctor releases would all come out one after the other before then returning to the normal rotation of the other doctors. Doctor Who was revived in 2005, returning to television, and the next few years saw the introduction of new spin-offs, including The Eighth Doctor Adventures, and the Eighth Doctor mostly moved away from the Main Range.[4]
Various companions from the television show returned across the next few years.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. March 2000 saw the first time a companion originated in Big Finish itself, with the introduction of Evelyn Smythe, played by Maggie Stables;Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. October 2000 saw Lisa Bowerman reprise her role of Bernice Summerfield from Big Finish's spin-off of the same name, a character who originated in the Virgin novels;Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. and November 2000 saw the introduction of Frobisher, who originated in the comics, with Robert Jezek playing the role.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. Since then, every televised companion has reprised their role in Big Finish (with the exception of Jackie Lane's Dodo Chaplet).Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.
Big Finish has been characterised as “augmenting the canon" by utilising "fan experiences and memories of fans" from TV, steeping itself in "fan nostalgia", even using the serial format of the original series and the corresponding theme tunes;Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. it has also been derogatorily referred to as being full of 'fanwank' for emphasising "fan pleasure" through references to continuity, over plot.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. The releases have also been compared to fanfiction, in the way they try to "correct perceived transgressions",Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. focus on and deepen the characterisation and emotions of characters,Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. and revitalise the earlier dynamics of some villainsLua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. while also recontexualising their motivations.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. On a more neutral level, they have been characterised as focusing more on the 'interpersonal' than the 'epic'; that instead of homages, they serve as supplements to the story, improving and emphasising other parts of the plot.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.
Though the BBC has not echoed the sentiment, executive producer Nicholas Briggs considers the audios to be completely canonical.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.
Theme music
From the start of the Main Range in July 1999 with The Sirens of Time up to the November 2002 release The Church and the Crown, the 1970s version of the theme tune by Delia Derbyshire was used anachronistically for all Fifth Doctor, Sixth Doctor, and Seventh Doctor stories in the Main Range, with the exception of the Seventh Doctor story The Rapture, released in September 2002, which used electronic dance remixes of the theme tune in keeping with the Ibiza nightclub theme of the story. At the time, the budget of Big Finish didn't extend to being able to pay Dominic Glynn and Keff McCulloch for their versions of the television theme tune from 1986 and 1987–1989 respectively. Derbyshire was a BBC employee at the time when she made her versions of Ron Grainer's theme tune, so Big Finish wouldn't have to pay her or her estate any royalties for using any of her versions of the theme tune. Derbyshire's 1970s theme tune was also considered more definitive than Peter Howell's version from 1980–1985. Howell had also been a BBC employee when he did his version of the theme tune.
Eighth Doctor Big Finish stories from the Main Range first used a new arrangement of the theme tune by David Arnold, starting from the first Eighth Doctor release, Storm Warning, in January 2001, up to The Girl Who Never Was in December 2007. The July 2009 release, The Company of Friends, used a new arrangement of the theme tune by Nicholas Briggs, while the trilogy of stories from October to December 2011, featuring the Eighth Doctor with Mary Shelley as his companion, used a new arrangement of the theme tune by Jamie Robertson.
From December 2002 onwards, beginning with Bang-Bang-a-Boom!, which had the correct McCulloch theme tune for a Seventh Doctor and Mel story, Big Finish was financially secure enough to start using the specific era versions of the theme tunes. There was a rare exception to this with the December 2006 release, Year of the Pig, which is set in between the TV stories Timelash and Revelation of the Daleks, but uses the anachronistic Glynn version of the theme tune instead of the Howell version that was used during season 22 of the television series. The December 2020 release, Plight of the Pimpernel, takes place just before The Trial of a Time Lord, yet uses the Glynn theme, creating a debate among Big Finish Doctor Who fans as to whether the Glynn theme or Howell theme for Plight of the Pimpernel should have been used.
Cast
The following table includes characters who have appeared in at least one year as a main character. Main cast refers to those who appeared multiple times across unrelated stories in a given year, while those marked guest only appeared across one set of stories in a given year.
| Template:Chk | Main cast |
| • | Guest cast |
1999–2010
2011–2021
Notable guests
The following list mentions the guest actors who have never appeared as a main character in any year, but have appeared as allies or enemies of the Doctor various times in the Main Range, or were allied multiple times in other mediums. They are listed alphabetically by character's last name (or only names when the last name is unknown or does not exist):
Companions in the show
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Others
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Releases
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1999
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2000
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2001
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2002
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2003
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2004
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2005
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2006
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2007
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2008
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2009
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2010
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2011
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2012
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2013
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2014
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2015
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2016
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2017
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2018
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2019
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2020
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2021
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Continuation
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In May 2020, Big Finish announced that the Main Range would conclude with its 275th release, to be replaced with regular releases of each Doctor in their own boxsets throughout the year from January 2022.[39] With 275 releases over 22 years, the series achieved the Guinness World Record for longest running science fiction audio play series in 2021.[40] However, in terms of time-span the claim is contestable, as Ruby the Galactic Gumshoe by the ZBS Foundation has run sporadically since 1982, with a release as recently as 2025, and at the time of The Monthly Adventures receiving the award, had made a release in 2018, a 36-year lifespan then, and a 43-year lifespan as of the most recent release.
The revamp was stated by Big Finish to be an effort to be more accessible to newcomers, by allowing for "a natural 'stepping on point'" for them; they also stated that it would also allow for more "exciting new possibilities and creative freedom" in the cast combinations and story lengths and arcs.[39]
Appearances
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- ^ a b Appeared in 198 as Grant[12] and 51, 245 as WildthymeLua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.[22]
- ^ Appeared in 50Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.
- ^ Appeared in 50, 230Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.[6]
- ^ Appeared in 9, 19, 272Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.[7]
- ^ Appeared in 133 – 135, 199[8][9]
- ^ Appeared in 11, 33, 50, 119Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.[10]
- ^ Appeared in 200[11]
- ^ Appeared in 200[11]
- ^ Appeared in 198[12]
- ^ Appeared in 139, 162 – 164[13][14]
- ^ Appeared in 50, originating in the Virgin New AdventuresLua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.
- ^ Appeared in 107, 110, 113, 143 – 145Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.[15]
- ^ Appeared in 149, serves as a companion to the Eighth Doctor in other Big Finish releases[16][17]
- ^ Appeared in 11, 15, 32, 40, 65, 72, 93, 114, 121, 124, 129, 156, 177, 193, 201, 218, 224, 254, 269 – 270 as the Daleks; in 17, 34, 58, 86 – 87, 103, 112, 135, 153, 199, 240, 258 as the Cybermen; in 8, 98, 104, 117, 263 as the Ice Warriors (look at the individual releases for sources)
- ^ Appeared in 48, 65, 72, 156, 177Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.[18][19]
- ^ Appeared in 260, and has appeared in various other releases for Big Finish[20][21]
- ^ Appeared in 14, originating from a comic stripLua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.
- ^ Appeared in 256 – 258, 267[23][24]
- ^ Beevers appeared in 21, 49, 211, 213;Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.[25][26] Macqueen in 212, 213;[27][26] Dreyfus in 261[28]
- ^ Appeared in 105, 116, 143Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.[29][30]
- ^ Appeared in 200, 262[11][31]
- ^ Appeared in 152, 162 – 164, 181, 191[32][14][33][34]
- ^ Appeared in 194, 205[35][36]
- ^ Appeared in 33, 50, 64Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.
- ^ Appeared in 123, 153 – 155[37][38]
- ^ Appeared in 13, 42, 123Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.[37]
Notes
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References
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- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Main Range Special Offers". Big Finish. 14 February 2019. Archived from the original on 7 November 2020. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."001. Doctor Who: The Sirens of Time - Doctor Who - The Monthly Adventures - Big Finish". www.bigfinish.com. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."275. Doctor Who: The End of the Beginning - Doctor Who - The Monthly Adventures - Big Finish". www.bigfinish.com. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
- ^ a b c d Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Jeffrey, Morgan (23 June 2017). "Celebrating Big Finish: How A Gang Of Fans Reinvented Doctor Who For A New Audience". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 28 September 2018. Retrieved 21 September 2018.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Knight, Lewis; Griffin, Louise (18 February 2025). "Doctor Who Companions In Order: From Susan Foreman To Belinda Chandra". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 21 February 2025. Retrieved 26 February 2025.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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- ^ Template:Multiref2
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
m149was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Jefery, Morgan (5 January 2017). "Nicola Walker Loves Doing Doctor Who On Audio – But She Never Wants To Appear In The TV series". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 28 May 2023. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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m260was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Jeffery, Morgan (30 July 2021). "Mark Bonnar Wants His Doctor Who Villain The Eleven To Face Tom Baker's Fourth Doctor". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 30 July 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
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- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Jeffery, Morgan (25 May 2020). "Big Finish To End Monthly Doctor Who Audio Range In 2022 Revamp". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 21 May 2023. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Jeffery, Morgan (10 December 2021). "Big Finish Will Continue Producing Doctor Who Audio Drama Up Till 2030". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 10 May 2023. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
Books
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- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Booth, Paul; Jones, Craig Owens (February 2020). Watching Doctor Who: Fan Reception And Evaluation. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 9781350116740.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Britton, Piers D. (March 2011). TARDISbound: Navigating The Universes Of Doctor Who. I.B. Tauris. ISBN 9780857720092.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Frankel, Valerie Estelle (February 2018). Women In Doctor Who: Damsels, Feminists And Monsters. McFarland & Company. ISBN 9781476672229.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Hills, Matt (January 2010). Triumph Of A Time Lord: Regenerating Doctor Who In The Twenty-first Century. I.B. Tauris. ISBN 9780857717535.
Big Finish Productions
Page Template:Refbegin/styles.css has no content.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Dinnick, Richard (November 2011). The Big Finish Companion: Volume 1. Big Finish Productions. ISBN 9781844355242.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Farrington, Ian, ed. (December 2002). Doctor Who – The Audio Scripts Volume One. Big Finish Productions. ISBN 1844350053.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Farrington, Ian, ed. (July 2003a). Doctor Who – The Audio Scripts Volume Two. Big Finish Productions. ISBN 1844350495.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Farrington, Ian, ed. (December 2003b). Doctor Who – The Audio Scripts Volume Three. Big Finish Productions. ISBN 1844350630.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Farrington, Ian, ed. (January 2005). Doctor Who – The Audio Scripts Volume Four. Big Finish Productions. ISBN 1844350053.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Smith, Kenny (February 2013). The Big Finish Companion: Volume 2. Big Finish Productions. ISBN 9781781780718.
Doctor Who Magazine
Page Template:Refbegin/styles.css has no content.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Barnes, Alan, ed. (January 2002). "The Complete Fifth Doctor". Doctor Who Magazine. No. Special Edition 1. Panini Comics.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Hickman, Clayton, ed. (November 2002). "The Complete Sixth Doctor". Doctor Who Magazine. No. Special Edition 3. Panini Comics.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Hickman, Clayton, ed. (December 2003). "We Love Doctor Who". Doctor Who Magazine. No. Special Edition 6. Panini Comics.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Hickman, Clayton, ed. (April 2005). "The Complete Seventh Doctor". Doctor Who Magazine. No. Special Edition 10. Panini Comics.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Neary, Paul, ed. (July 2003). "The Complete Eighth Doctor". Doctor Who Magazine. No. Special Edition 5. Panini Comics.
- Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Spilsbury, Tom, ed. (April 2010). "In Their Own Words Volume Six: 1997 – 2009". Doctor Who Magazine. No. Special Edition 24. Panini Comics.
