Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Cast: Paul McGann, Emma Campbell-Jones, Sonny McGann, Nadia Albina, Gareth Armstrong, Nicholas Boulton, Nicholas Briggs, Michael Chance, Ian Cunningham, Indigo Griffiths, Jaye Griffiths, Grieg Johnson, Simon Shepherd, Homer Todiwala.

In all of space and time in which the Great British public have been entertained and engaged by the mysterious and enigmatic being from Gallifrey, there are a number of shocks reveals that assure the series, whether on television or in audio format, retains its loyal fanbase that one moment we all wish for, the surprise that keeps the tale blowing us away and allows that little shriek of former childhood to be heard as we revel in the moment and just what it could mean.

In recent history there is one to which may stand out in memory for fans of Paul McGann’s portrayal of the Doctor, a single line to which delivered in a special brought the Time War rampaging into reality after years of being mentioned in dark corners and explanations for the reason why the Timelords were no longer to be found in the long running serial on television.

One sentence threw everything into the air, one passing encounter with a woman who was about to die as her spaceship crashed on the planet Karn, a simple introduction to which an entire ethos came to be, and in typical tremendous style, the creative souls of Big Finish leap at the opportunity to explore that moment and expand it as part of the Eighth Doctor’s immersion into the depth of the war he has so valiantly managed to avoid.

In the fifth instalment of The Time War story line, Cass stands out as a turning point in showing just how a line can become a narrative, just how important it can be to focus on the belief of interpretation, and as the four tales by Tim Foley; Meanwhile, Elsewhere, Lou Morgan; Vespertine; and James Moran’s sublime two-part tale of Previously, Next Time play out, so the listener is teased with just what might have happened in time between the Doctor and Cass as the mere seconds of their time together on board the falling ship could have entailed if the choice had been different…if the presence of the future had been avoided at the hands of The Sisters Of Karn.

Time that never was, or perhaps was carefully hidden, and in Cass the listener is given a fresh perspective in the detail in what could have transpired as The Doctor, along with his grandson Alex Campbell, is given a more definitive interaction with the woman to whom flatly denied him the chance to help, to survive.

With superb performances by Sonny McGann as Alex, Emma Campbell-Jones in her return as the character Cass, and Jaye Griffiths as Hieronyma Friend, the four-part box set is one for collectors and enthusiasts alike, but also for those who enjoy time being inserted into Time, the heartbeat, the tick between the tock of existence.

Time is running out in The Time War, and it may have been the War Doctor who fought the battle, but it was, as Cass lovingly points out it is in the hands of the Eighth Doctor to start the flame of its ending.

A terrific reminder that even if we know the story, there are always chapters hidden from us until we are ready to accept them. Superb storytelling.

Ian D. Hall