The Brigadier enlists the Doctor’s help in solving a mystery on an oil rig that they might prefer to forget… before the TARDIS crew travel back in time to Egypt and one of the most memorable romances in history.
14.6 Conspiracy of Silence by Jonathan Morris
Something happened to the oil rig. Something so swift and unexpected that the one hundred and fifty people aboard couldn’t summon help. Everyone who has tried to investigate has disappeared.
So now the Brigadier is sending the Doctor and Leela. But is there anything to find there? Or is there nothing to be found there? No-one on board... but the Silence.
14.7 The Last Queen of the Nile by David K Barnes
The TARDIS lands a few miles from Alexandria in Egypt, where the Doctor, Leela and K9 encounter Mark Antony, returning from a military campaign. As he joins Cleopatra, they realise they are about to witness one of the most famous romances in history.
But this romance threatens the power of Rome, where the ambitious Octavian Caesar is attempting to convince the Senate to declare war on the Queen of the Nile. A tragedy of Shakespearean proportions is about to unfold - and the time travellers are trapped in the middle.
Brigadier Alistair Lethbridge-Stewart © Haisman & Lincoln and used under licence.
With thanks to Hannah Haisman and Candy Jar
**Please note: the collector's edition CD boxset is strictly limited to 1,500 copies**
Recorded on: 4 and 14 December 2018, 9 April 2019
Recorded at: Audio Sorcery
Producer David Richardson said: "It's been a joy to bring the Brigadier back into the Doctor's life this season, and in Conspiracy of Silence, he joins the Doctor, Leela and K9 on an adventure that is unforgettable. Or, given that the Silence are involved, can that even be possible?
"And Last Queen of the Nile is a belting historical story by the genius writer David K Barnes, as the TARDIS crew encounter Cleopatra and Mark Antony in Egypt. It's a story packed with peril, incident and drama, and a huge two-parter to end the season on."
Writer David K Barnes added: "I was always thrilled by those old Hollywood epics like Spartacus, Ben-Hur, and Cleopatra – those huge sets, all those costumes, lots of thesps strutting about with deliciously florid dialogue. I really loved all that and always wanted to see Doctor Who do that story.
"And, I really like putting Leela into historical periods. The Doctor is almost godlike, stands back, gets involved in chats and jokes, but still has that Time Lord detachment. Leela doesn't understand our history, yet she's very much a part of it. If you put Steven or Vicki or Harry into a historical like this, they'd be horrified by the bloodshed, but Leela just gets on with it and gets straight through to the heart of the story."
John Leeson, Tom Baker, Louise Jameson © Paul Midcalf
