Enemy Aliens is the 8th Doctor instalment of the 50th anniversary box set Destiny of the Doctor that was a co-production between AudioGo and Big Finish. To all intents and purposes it is a Big Finish release and the 8th Doctor instalment is the most obvious evidence for this featuring, as it does, Charley Pollard – the 8th Doctor’s most iconic audio-only companion. Not only that, but there are a number of references to her debut story, Storm Warning, what with this story being set in 1935 which is, effectively her ‘home’ time period.

Another link to Charley’s BF stories is that, at the beginning of this story, she and the Doctor have just finished an adventure which is a similar set up to one of her earliest BF adventures – The Stones of Venice. But it is not that adventure we are concerned with. Attempting to head off from London 1935, the 8th Doctor receives a message from 11th Doctor concerning ‘enemy aliens’ and ‘William Tell’. So, it’s back out on to the streets to try to decipher the 11th Doctor’s mysterious message.

Eventually, the Doctor and Charley end up at a music hall and witness a memory act which culminates in the act being shot on stage and Charley suspected of doing the shooting. Bundled away to safety by one Hilary Hammond, who claims to be with the police, Charley ends up on the run whilst the Doctor is apparently arrested.

Eventually, the Doctor and Charley find themselves entangled in a plot by German spies as well as a potential, unrelated, alien invasion.

This weird two-plot strand was rather confusing. I have listened to this before, but got about two thirds of the way through this listen and thought I had missed something when I tried to work out the link between the spies and the actual aliens in a cloaked spaceship. As it turns out, there isn’t a link. The Doctor and Charley foil the spy plot up in Scotland and then head back to London to stop a broadcast of the William Tell Overture and prevent the alien invasion. It’s a bit of a disconnect and I’m not sure the alien bit is really needed (although this aspect does tie in with the overall arc of the box set which is basically why it’s there). The enemy spies part is far more interesting and ties the story in nicely with the 1935 setting with World War Two on the horizon. After the relatively timeless The Abominable Snowmen, it’s good to be back in a story which is building on elements seen in stories such as The Alchemists.

The story has a few fun details that made me smile. Charley makes reference to her experiences aboard the R101, an event recognised by Hilary reinforcing this story’s historical placement, especially welcome because of the way I am carrying out this marathon. When the Doctor and Charley visit the music hall, one of the acts on the bill is a certain Six Gun Sadie, last referenced in The Talons of Weng-Chiang.

And although the alien plot seems a bit tacked on to the end of the story, the climax at the BBC is lots of fun.

Charley actress, India Fisher is on narration duties as, as always, does a brilliant job. She is such an engaging reader and, obviously, is a delight as Charley. She is ably supported by Michael Maloney as Hilary Hammond. Maloney has a long-running relationship with India Fisher and Charley Pollard as he is also the voice of the Viyrans for Big Finish and the chemistry between them is evident, particularly in the scenes at Gretna Green where Charley thinks Hilary is sweet on her and proposing marriage.

As an addition to the Big Finish range of 8th Doctor stories, whilst not an official part, this is a great addition and, although the overall arc of Destiny of the Doctors is less than the sum of its parts, Enemy Aliens is, after Smoke and Mirrors and Trouble in Paradise – two other parts of this story that have already featured in my marathon, another entertaining story to spring from the set.