The Curse of Davros was not a story I had intended on including in my marathon yet. I am quite a few years behind in my listening to Big Finish’s output. When new stories are released I make a quick check as to when they are set, stick in my spreadsheet and then get around to them at a convenient point in the future. Some, of course, are difficult to place without getting spoilered of their contents, or I make make assumptions about the dating which turn out to be wrong. The Curse of Davros is an example of the latter. Although I was aware that a chunk of the story was set in 1815, during the Battle of Waterloo no less, I was under the impression, from reading synopses (including in my fan bible, A History) that an equally sizeable chunk was set in the modern day.


My non-marathon listening eventually brought me to the ‘Flip trilogy’ and so I settled down to listen to The Curse of Davros. What transpired was a story with the first episode set in the modern day and then three whole episodes most definitely set only in 1815. So, here we are, reviewing it as part of my 19th Century marathon!

Because I was initially just listening for pleasure, rather than with an ear to writing a review, this write-up may be a little vague and muddled. The story sees Flip Jackson, a character from a previous Big Finish story, The Crimes of Thomas Brewster, re-encounter the Doctor when he arrive on Earth in a crashed spaceship. The Daleks are on his tail and eventually, and bizarrely, the Doctor, Flip and her boyfriend, Jared, end up in 1815 at the Battle of Waterloo. They find Daleks and Davros are aiding Napoleon Bonaparte in his battle against the English armed forces.


However, if this was not odd enough, the Doctor is behaving rather strangely. He doesn’t initially recognise Flip and has a rather odd speech pattern. He also seems more callous than usual, even for the 6th Doctor. What is revealed, in one of Big Finish’s best cliffhangers, is that the Doctor and Davros have swopped minds!


Once this reveal is made, both Colin Baker and Terry Molloy go for it in their respective alternative roles. Colin does a great ‘Davros in the Doctor’s body’ impression and Terry Molloy’s ‘Doctor in Davros’s body’ is equally impressive. Their performances are so nuanced that it is quite easy to imagine the minds have indeed been swopped.


Flip is a companion I haven’t seen a huge amount of love for on the forums but on the basis of this story (I can’t actually remember much about her from her first appearance in The Crimes of Thomas Brewster) I think she is very likeable. There is a Lucie Miller vibe about her with a dash of Rose Tyler (particularly in the relationship between her and her boyfriend, Jared). Jared is also a good character, getting stuck into aiding the armed forces and its almost a shame that he is returned to Earth at the end of the story, whereas Flip decides to travel with the Doctor. Having both of them may have been interesting to see – the 6th Doctor has never had two companions and although the girlfriend/boyfriend set up may have been a bit similar to Rose/Mickey or Amy/Rory, it’s not like Flip, as a lone female companion is setting new precedents!


Historically, this story is packed with detail. We are at the Battle of Waterloo on the 18 June 1815. Historical figures appearing include Napoleon Bonaparte, the Duke of Wellington and Marshal Ney. Napoleon and the Duke of Wellington have both appeared already in my marathon (although chronologically, this is Napoleon’s second appearance and Wellington’s first). Napoleon appeared briefly in the final episode of The Reign of Terror and Wellington, played by Ron Moody, featured in the 8th Doctor audio, Other Lives.


Having British and French armies discussing ray guns and Davros and Daleks is all a bit odd and one of those things a bit like the giant dinosaur in Deep Breath or the Cyberking. It’s knowledge historical figures shouldn’t have and hopefully fell down a crack in time like the Cyberking did!


I’m not a fan of Dalek stories, but this is much more a Davros story. The Daleks are very much in the background; little more than tanks aside from the few that are within Davros’s inner circle. When two Daleks are forced to torture themselves for failing Davros (and I can’t actually remember now if it is the Doctor at that point, in Davros’s body) there are some chilling scenes, a little reminiscent of the torture scenes from Jubille and Dalek.

Great performances, a delicious central conceit and a fun new companion make for a good listening experience and, although they won’t feature in the marathon for a long, long time, I’m looking forward to listening to the rest of this trilogy.