Doctor Who: The Brigadier and Liz Shaw have been recast in the Third Doctor Adventures!

The original UNIT family are finally reunited! Next year, in the fifth volume of The Third Doctor Adventures, two major roles in Doctor Who will be recast: Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart and Liz Shaw, now played by Jon Culshaw and Daisy Ashford!

Today, Big Finish announced some major news for Third Doctor fans. If you’ve been following their audio adventures, you’ll know that Tim Treloar has been playing the role for the past couple of years now. And he’s been doing a splendid job, especially with both Katy Manning and Richard Franklin reprising their roles of both Jo Grant and Mike Yates, respectively.

But as much as these stories have recaptured that distinctive early Seventies era, there’s been something crucial missing – the Brigadier. Ever since Nicholas Courtney’s death in 2011, his much-loved character of Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart has been greatly missed, both on and off the screen. And while The Third Doctor Adventures have been very enjoyable and are strongly recommended, it’s hard not to notice the absence of such a crucial member of the UNIT family.

However, that’s very soon to change. Because, in a very bold move from Big Finish, the role of the Brigadier has now been recast, appearing under license from the Haisman Literary Estate, with actor and impressionist Jon Culshaw taking over the iconic role.

You can check out a clip of Culshaw’s performance below:

A strong impression

Executive producer Nicholas Briggs describes what it took for them to cast Culshaw in the role, after remembering him mentioning that he’d love to play the Brigadier for Big Finish.

"After checking his rendition of the character in the BBC Audiobook of The Five Doctors, we just gave him the job! It was a very tricky thing casting someone to do justice to Nicholas Courtney’s brilliant, original performance. Jon has done this with honour and love for what the splendid Mr Courtney did all those years ago."

It  sounds like the producers are incredibly happy about Culshaw’s casting already. But what about the Haisman Estate?

"We’re thrilled at the choice Big Finish have made. We’ve always admired Culshaw’s voice work, and in particular enjoyed his rendition of the Brigadier in The Five Doctors audiobook. We look forward to hearing the Brigadier returning to Big Finish in such a substantial way!"

So it sounds like Jon Culshaw has already made quite a strong impression. But it’s not just the Brigadier who’s being brought back…

Daisy Ashford, Tim Treloar, Jon Culshaw and Katy Manning will be bringing the old UNIT team back in volume five of The Third Doctor Adventures.

(Image credit: Doctor Who/Big Finish Productions. Image obtained from: Big Finish Productions.)

Familiar voices

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Another key character that’s been recast is Liz Shaw, the Third Doctor’s first companion. Daisy Ashford will be portraying the character, which is incredibly fitting, as she’s the daughter of original actress Caroline John, who passed away in 2012. So that sounds like another example of a perfect recast, and Ashford herself sounds really happy to take on the role.

"I’m really excited and honoured to have been asked to play Liz, and to step into my Mum’s brilliant shoes!"

But, along with new faces in familiar roles, old faces will also be joining the cast. John Levene will be playing his much-loved role of Sergeant Benton, who was another key part of the UNIT family. It’s wonderful to know that so many major UNIT characters will be included in the next release of The Third Doctor Adventures.

And it’s a release that sounds brilliant, too. Along with the excellent cast, we’ve got two stories to look forward to: Primord by John Dorney, his first story for the Third Doctor, and The Scream of Ghosts by Guy Adams.

Both Dorney and Adams are excellent writers, and the fact that it sounds like the first story will be something of a sequel to Inferno, one of the greatest stories ever, is incredibly exciting. Overall, this looks set to be the most authentic volume in the series yet.

Volume five of The Third Doctor Adventures will be out on CD and download in May 2019.

Are you excited that the Brigadier will finally be showing up in The Third Doctor Adventures? Are you a fan of the original UNIT team?  What’s your favorite Third Doctor story? Let us know in the comments below.