Tom Baker’s Doctor takes on new, female Toymaker – see BTS pics

RadioTimes.com has an exclusive look behind the scenes!

By Katelyn Mensah

Published: Thursday, 08 February 2024 at 16:00 PM

While the Toymaker was defeated back in the Doctor Who 60th anniversary special, The Giggle, the villain couldn’t stay gone for long.

Over the years, Michael Gough, David Bailie and Neil Patrick Harris among others have portrayed the all-powerful, interdimensional player of games.

And now the infamous villain will be voiced by Annette Badland (EastEnders) in The Fourth Doctor Adventures: Metamorphosis.

In three new full-cast audio dramas, set to be released in June 2024, the Doctor (Tom Baker) and his companions, Surgeon-Lieutenant Harry Sullivan (Christopher Naylor) and UNIT secretary Naomi Cross (Eleanor Crooks), find themselves caught in a deadly game.

The box set also includes Lydia West (It’s a Sin) as Cahlo, Mark Gatiss (Sherlock) as Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Nicholas Briggs as Padro, and RadioTimes.com has an exclusive look behind the scenes with Lydia and Tom!

Lydia West and Tom Baker looking at one another in a picture.Lydia is wearing a dark black and brown top while Tom is wearing a pink shirt with red straps.
Lydia West and Tom Baker.

The three tales in the audio set are as follows: Matryoshka, The Caged Assassin and Metamorphosis.

Each stories will include the Doctor and his companions heading on fresh adventures as they encounter new creatures and planets.

The synopsis for the first episode reads: “When a strange force drags the TARDIS to Earth, it’s clear that the Doctor, Harry and Naomi are up against an incredibly powerful being.

“And when they encounter Lord Pearson, inventor of games and toys, searching for his vanished daughter… it becomes clear exactly who that being might be.

“Hide and seek is one of the simplest games devised by man… but in the hands of the Toymaker… it may also become the deadliest.”

“It’s great to work with Big Finish again – there’s something about working with audio that’s really powerful,” West said of her role in the audio series. “And the privilege of working with Tom is just dreamy!”

Badland added: “I really engaged with this script and was intrigued from the outset by the idea of Russian dolls and changing personalities. The Toymaker is quite fascinating – complex, unpleasant, seductive!”

Doctor Who – The Fourth Doctor Adventures: Metamorphosis is available to pre-order exclusively at bigfinish.com.