Doctor Who: Brave New Town

The Eighth Doctor Adventures #2.3

by Jonathan Clements

It's like The Village That Time Forgot!

The inhabitants of the quiet seaside town of Thorington in Suffolk are living the same day over and over again.

What's so special about the 1st of September 1991? Why haven't the villagers noticed that the same song has been number one for years? And just where on Earth has the sea disappeared to?

The Doctor and Lucie must solve the mystery before the 'visitors' return...

Genres: Doctor Who, Science Fiction, Audiobook, Media Tie In, Time Travel

Audio CD

First published March 1, 2008

About the author

Jonathan Clements is an author, translator, biographer and scriptwriter. His non-fiction works include biographies of Confucius, Marco Polo, Mao Zedong, Koxinga and Qin Shihuangdi. He also writes for NEO magazine and is the co-author of encyclopedias of anime and Japanese television dramas.

Reviews

[April Mccaffrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

This audio felt very the Prisoner style-esque. With a bunch of people trapped on a village in the middle of nowhere, that's not actually what it appears to be.

Very Jon Pertwee style kind of story, but glad the autons made an appearance.

[Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice Story but I don't know how I feel about the ending though.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Returning old enemies and isolated towns are two of the things Doctor Who is known for. This one begins with the Doctor and Lucie landing in the wrong place again. The Doctor is certain it's 2008, but everything around them seems to be from 1991. Soon it appears that every day is the same day and that the town is trapped in a horrible recurring day in 1991, truly the height of horror.

This isn't a big episode, but it provides a new take on an old enemy. The ending even questions the motives of one of the Doctor's oldest allies: UNIT. I've never been a fan of the Autons, but I love this take on them. The idea of fragments of a larger mind seeking their own sentience and even finding happiness in an mundane assumed role is the stuff that great classic science fiction is made of. Overall, these little episodes that explore bigger concepts are what I love about Doctor Who and this is a great example.

[Jamie Revell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I seem to be in something of a minority in really liking this one. It's set in a British seaside town that's not only in the middle of a desert but is stuck perpetually on the same date in 1991 - which means, tragically, that Bryan Adams has been at Number One for seventeen years.

The story, of course, is about trying to solve the mystery of this, as well as that of a missing teenage girl. Once the answers come, they make a surprising amount of sense, and the story switches to trying to stop the sinister force that's partly responsible.

The whole piece is well acted, and the 60-minute format makes this feel like it could well be an episode of the new series. It's perhaps more of a 4.5 stars than a full 5, since it doesn't really break new ground or anything, but it's very solidly done, and makes a good story.

[Emilija · Rating 4 out of 5]

2021 52 Book Challenge - May Mini Challenge - 3) Sunshine On Cover

I thought this was a very good book, and I really enjoyed it. It felt very Groundhog Day-esque and is possibly one of the best stories I've seen for the Autons.

[Ellie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars, pretty enjoyable but there was just a lil bit of oomph missing.

On another note, they changed the theme tune and I'm not happy. Give Eight his own theme back you cowards and stop putting the Pertwee/Baker theme on everything.

[H.K. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. Average story for this series. I did like to see the Autons again.

[Vanna Book-Mage · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this. Love 8th and Lucie's interactions.

[Marcel Driel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this one! Great story, tight storytelling, good plottwist. Little light on interesting characters, but the actors all did a good job bringing them to life.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first dive into the audio company Big Finish and I loved it. This isn't just a narrated story, it is a full audio play, with several different actors. It's an 8th Doctor story, including Paul McGann as The Doctor. I listened to it in one sitting- I was so riveted to the story that I didn't want to walk away from it. It's a short little mystery about a town that's stuck in a time loop in 1991, and it involves recurring baddies the Autons. The Doctor's companion, Lucie, does wander off, but she's capable of taking care of herself and helps unravel the mystery at hand. There's no filler here- just 60 minutes of solid Doctor Who storytelling. It did feel a little rushed at times, and the ending wrapped up a little quicker than I would have liked, but I thoroughly enjoyed myself and will be coming back for more Big Finish Doctor Who stories in the future.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an audio play that I listened to on Audible. The eight doctor is traveling with Lucy Miller. They end up at an English seaside town in 2008, if I remember correctly. Only, things aren't what they seem.

The best line was this: Jason, "You ask difficult questions Doctor.", Doctor: "You haven't heard the answers yet."

It was a middling episode, decent enough for Doctor Who, nothing special but not bad either.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Brave New Town” è un episodio interessante con molte buone idee, in cui le aspettative date dalla trama vengono ribaltate per scoprire che quello che poteva apparire a prima vista non è affatto quello che sta succedendo.
Iniziando con l'arrivo del Dottore e Lucie in questa cittadina decadente, in cui tutti i residenti sembrano ripetere lo stesso giorno da oltre 17 anni, si potrebbe pensare di essere finiti nell'ennesimo loop temporale. Eppure alcune cose non tornano: i cortesi abitanti sono del tutto consapevoli che si tratti sempre dello stesso giorno e non si pongono alcun tipo di domanda, il mare non si vede da nessuna parte e le abitazioni e gli oggetti non sono affatto preservati come dovrebbero, e in più un'adolescente è recentemente scomparsa. Mentre indagano su questo caso, si scopre che il quando e il dove e il chi non sono affatto quello che pensavano inizialmente.
Non aggiungo altro per non rovinare la sorpresa nell'ascolto, solo che ricompare una specie aliena vista più volte sia nella serie classica che in quella nuova, ma il modo in cui viene utilizzata qui è molto diversa. Non credo si possa neanche parlare di un vero e proprio nemico, anche se ci sono dei contrasti tra due fazioni, il che è quasi una rarità.
La prima metà è più tranquilla, andando a costruire le basi del mistero e dipingendo molto bene questa surreale ambientazione e i personaggi (mi ricordava per certi versi, lo stile di alcuni episodi ambientati nell'Universo Divergente con Charley), mentre verso la fine si aggiunge un po' di azione, ma senza mai arrivare al cardiopalma. Si presenta invece con una soluzione intelligente e calma, molto più incentrata sui personaggi.
Quindi decisamente un episodio ben costruito con idee originali, che pur nella sua semplicità riesce ad intrigare con il suo mistero.

[MindProbe · Rating 3 out of 5]

a succession of perfectly decent scenes, with perfectly decent dialogue and some perfectly decent ideas, that nonetheless leaves me rather underwhelmed, somehow amounting to less than the sum of its perfectly decent parts. on this listen I wondered if perhaps the story as written had overrun and required trimming down - there's a breezy, almost weightless quality to the way it's paced that that might account for, lots of very short scenes and a certain sense of functionality, getting through the necessary beats of the plot in an economical fashion but not allowing itself space to breathe, to flesh out the meat of the story.

also the ending is very abrupt.

[John Parungao · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Doctor and Lucie Miller have arrived in a mysterious town where the townspeople all seem to think that it's 1991. What is wrong with this picture? Are these people suffering a mass delusion, or is there something more going on here? As the pieces of the puzzle fall into place the Doctor discovers a familiar foe is responsible for the strange behavior of this town.
Everyone loves a good mystery and this one unfolds slowly and develops well as the Doctor and Lucie both uncover different parts of this puzzle. Once the Doctor realizes the true force behind the strange behavior of the townsfolk, he comes up with a good way to free the town from a strange alien influence.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

1991年9月1日を繰り返し続ける街に彷徨い込んだドクターとルーシ。サリーという娘が行方不明となり探している父親に遭遇。二人はサリー探しを手伝うことにする。

ウズベキスタンにソビエトがつくったスパイ養成の街。そこに置かれたマネキンがネスティーンコンシャスネスによって操られオートンとなり、石油の採掘に近づくものを殺すという。理由がわかるまでのミステリアスな雰囲気はよかったと思う。オートンを殺すことなく自分の好きに生きるようにと救ったドクターもいい感じ。

[SuperPiggy5000 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was great! Time loops intrigue, Autons, and some great moments with Lucie and the Doctor. Very atmospheric, almost felt like Chimes, had that same vibe to it.

Really enjoying series 2 so far. I like it much better than series 1.

4/5

[Sara Habein · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good, quick-moving story with a classic monster.

[Sidney McKidney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I rather liked this one? It was an interesting take on the Autons, and the town had a nice unsettling vibe to it. Also the end was amusing.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good use of the Autons in this one.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good but forgettable story. The story needed more time to flesh out. But good concept and very good use of an old Classic Who villain.

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've found all the auton audio stories are mostly duds. This one was okay. I wouldn't say it was the most exciting story and I probably won't remember a week from now.

[ava · Rating 5 out of 5]

*4.5 stars.

[Alyce Caswell · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story really needed more room to breathe, but this was still a pretty solid audio drama.

[Gabriel Mero · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was meh for me.

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was a good short story. The plot was entertaining and kept my interest.

[Rob Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Top notch Auton adventure.

[Hayden English · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably the most interesting thing that’s been done with the Autons

[Zach · Rating 4 out of 5]

Highly recommended especially if you are a 3rd Doctor fan. Exciting plot.

[Leila Anani · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Doctor (Paul McGann) and Lucy (Sheridan Smith) take a trip to the seaside. They end up in a deserted Suffolk village where everything seems to have stopped in 1991. Absolutely adore the set up here and not just because, since I'm a Suffolk girl, it's of the local interest. It's really creepy. And when you start bringing in Autons and autonomous ones at that, you think creepy central - sadly not the case and it soon goes downhill, largely due to the plot.

1st off Autons are a very visual enemy and don't work too well in audio. I am pleased this didn't go down the cliched route, rehashing what has gone before: Describing people being attacked by plastic items would be tedious in audio. However I fear this moved a bit too far from the Auton concept - There's no way you would mistake an Auton for a human, they look like plastic mannequins. And yet... the Doctor and Lucie and all the Uzbek soldiers believe they are human. I know these are autonomous autons, but I don't quite get the new appearance.

Secondly one of the biggest strengths of the Auton/Nestene consciousness is its basis in Lovecraft - Anyone who's seen the TV spin off series Auton will note the elder god like Nestene (heck we even get tentacles in Spearhead from space) but we get none of that here. And instead of a nice creepy Suffolk town (again very Lovecraft) it turns out to be oil mines in Uzbekistan and we get this whole plot about the autons wanting to preserve the oil because its the basis for plastic. Having the Nestene Consciousness as a signal was a bit of an anticlimax.

The story also didn't give the Doctor much of a chance to shine. Lucie had a slightly more interesting role, connecting with the missing Auton girl Sally. But I don't know, the Doctor himself isn't very dynamic here.

Overall I was disappointed with this one - production vales are great and the cast do a good job with what they have, however the story is a missed opportunity and this isn't a great vehicle for the Doctor. I love the fact that it features Autons, but honestly it doesn't feel very, for want of a better word... Who-y.

[Gayle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally listened to this when it was broadcast on Radio 7 but I was doing something else at the time so it was really "background noise". Glad I got a chance to listen to it again.

A village is seemingly stuck in time, reliving the same day - 1st Sept 1991 - over and over again, until the Doctor and Lucie arrive, determined to find out exactly what's going on.

As someone who was ten years old on the 1st Sept 1991, I can well remember the Bryan Adams "classic" being constantly number one seemingly forever (well, until Wet Wet Wet's "Love Is All Around" took the longest-number-one spot a few years after). I did not see the truth behind the villagers so that was a nice surprise (usually, I can guess these things pretty quickly).