Doctor Who: New audio spin-off The Robots is announced starring Nicola Walker
By James Aggas
A brand new Doctor Who spin-off series has been announced, which will star Nicola Walker as Eighth Doctor companion Liv Chenka, as she faces a difficult year on her home planet of Kaldor in The Robots.
Yesterday, a brand new Doctor Who spin-off series was revealed by Big Finish. The Robots, starring Nicola Walker as Liv Chenka and Claire Rushbrook as her sister Tula, will take place on the planet of Kaldor. It will also feature the Voc Robots as originally introduced in the classic Fourth Doctor story The Robots of Death.
What’s particularly exciting about this series is that we know both how it begins and how it ends already. In Eighth Doctor box set Ravenous 2, Liv was reunited with Tula in Escape from Kaldor. While things were difficult between the two at first, by the end of the story, Liv wanted to stay on Kaldor for a while. But not forever. So the Eighth Doctor and fellow companion Helen arranged to see her again in one year.
Thanks to time travel, the Doctor and Helen got to see their friend just seconds after leaving her. However, the implication was that during that year, Kaldor had changed a lot, and Liv was more than ready to leave and join her friends for more adventures.
The Robots takes place during a gap at the end of Eighth Doctor episode Escape from Kaldor, when Liv decides to take a break from the TARDIS crew for a whole year.
(Image credit: Doctor Who/Big Finish Productions.
Image obtained from: Big Finish Productions.)
A rich world
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”
The moment this gap was created, it was clear that it was going to be explored at some point. However, while some of us were expecting it to be addressed in a future Eighth Doctor story, I’m not sure any of us were expecting a full-on spin-off series!
But it has to be said that this is hugely exciting. The fact that the writers are taking their time to tell Liv’s story shows that they’re clearly confidant that there’s a lot to tell with this series. And considering how rich the world of Kaldor has always been, even in The Robots of Death thanks to creator Chris Boucher, that’s not surprising.
Here’s the official description of the series as announced by Big Finish:
"During the events of Doctor Who – Ravenous 2, Liv Chenka left the Doctor and the TARDIS behind. Just for one year. A year during which she would live on Kaldor, and get to know her sister Tula all over again.But Kaldor is going through a period of tumultuous change. Technology is changing at an advanced rate – the robots are evolving, artificial intelligence is adapting, and with these changes so politics is altering too. Dangerously.Can Liv and Tula make a difference during the most turbulent time in the world’s history?"
The fact that politics will be a key aspect of this series is definitely exciting. Big Finish are excellent when it comes to political storytelling – Gallifrey is more than proof of that. And with a world like Kaldor, there’s a lot of potential for rich political storytelling there.
With strong leads like Nicola Walker and Claire Rushman and a rich world to explore, The Robots looks set to be a very exciting Doctor Who spin-off!
Big Finish will celebrate major anniversary with twenty hour live stream!. dark. Next
Are you looking forward to The Robots? Are you a fan of Liv Chenka from the Eighth Doctor’s audios? Is The Robots of Death one of your favorite stories? Let us know in the comments below.