Doctor Who: The Morton Legacy review (Second Doctor audio)

The Second Doctor, Jamie, Ben and Polly arrive in Victorian London, and encounter an unusual murder mystery in Early Adventure audio The Morton Legacy.

We have a nice little historical with The Morton Legacy, an Early Adventure audio with the Second Doctor. Set in Victorian London, Ben and Polly get to see some of their city’s history. It’s interesting hearing their reaction and exploring the world they’re in. There’s a great deal that’s different about their city, and it’s still an alien environment to them.

But at the same time, this is a historical setting that’s more personal to them than in most other stories. So hearing them discover London in a different way is great to listen to. It’s very understandable for them to be curious about some of the history of their home.

More from Winter is Coming

• For All Mankind finally gives us information in Episode 405, “Goldilocks”
• Watch a stunning VFX breakdown of The Wheel of Time season 2
• Of course Steve Toussaint (Corlys Velaryon) thinks Eve Best (Rhaenys Targaryen) should rule Westeros
• Confirmed: The Last of Us season 2 will air in 2025
• Final season of Star Trek: Discovery will have “a lot of action, a lot of adventure, a lot of fun”

In fact, it’s safe to say that a lot of us have wondered what our home towns or cities were like, in their earlier days. It’s great that The Morton Legacy explores that. It’s a story idea so interesting, in fact, it almost makes you wonder why the TV series didn’t originally tell this kind of story.

But that’s what makes The Early Adventures so great to listen to. They don’t just feel completely of their era. They also find ways of exploring new perspectives for our favourite characters.

An intriguing murder mystery

Plotwise, The Morton Legacy is a rather fun story. There’s a mixture of intriguing murder mystery and wonderfully written characters.

David Sibley in particular is great to hear as Josiah Morton. A Big Finish veteran at this point, he’s given a variety of diverse and equally brilliant performances already.

His role as Morton is no exception. Initially, you’re uncertain whether his character is the villain of the story, or someone rather more innocent, and a lot of that comes down to both his performance and the writing.

Speaking of which, Justin Richards has written another great script for Big Finish. That’s not surprising, as he seems to be at home when writing Victorian era stories. Not just for Doctor Who, either. As script editor of the highly recommended spin-off series Jago & Litefoot, he’s rather effective at fleshing out both the period and many colorful characters that would fit such a story.

The story unfolds in a really interesting way, too. It takes directions you don’t expect it to take, and just when you think you know what’s going on, something happens to change that. However, the story also allows plenty of room to continue having fun with all its characters, which just makes it even more enjoyable.

Next: Ravenous 1 review (Eighth Doctor audio)

The Morton Legacy is a very low-key story, but it’s also a rather brilliant one. With many interesting characters, and an intriguing mystery that slowly unfolds, The Morton Legacy is a perfect balance between Victorian mystery and Sixties era. Another highly recommended listen.