Doctor Who: The Paternoster Gang will meet Henry Gordon Jago in 2020!
By James Aggas
In 2020, the Paternoster Gang will meet another iconic Victorian investigator from Doctor Who in their own spin-off series: Henry Gordon Jago!
Next year, Madame Vastra, Strax and Jenny will return in two more volumes of their own Doctor Who spin-off series The Paternoster Gang. Following the release of the first two volumes of Heritage, the arc continues in the next two box sets – one of which will feature a very special guest character. But what can we expect in the meantime? Here’s what script editor Matt Fitton has revealed.
"In Heritage 3, events step up another gear, and we start to realise what the overall threat of the series might be. Issues of heritage and family are to the fore for each of our Paternoster trio: Jenny faces her past, Strax finds himself ‘requisitioned’ back into the Sontaran army, and Vastra discovers a relic from prehistory, which inspires her to seek out more."
Now this definitely sounds like a very interesting box set. Particularly Strax’s story. The idea of Strax having to face the Sontaran army is an exciting one. While he constantly acts militaristic and aggressive, we also know that he’s essentially different from the rest of the warrior race, thanks to his experiences with both the gang and the Doctor.
But perhaps, even more exciting than that, is the announcement of who shows up in Heritage 4…
Christopher Benjamin will return to play Henry Gordon Jago once more!
Image Courtesy Big Finish Productions
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Jago and the Gang
For many years, I was a huge fan of Big Finish’s long-running Doctor Who spin-off series Jago & Litefoot. The duo had originally appeared in the classic Fourth Doctor story The Talons of Weng-Chiang in 1977, but it was in their own spin-off series that the pair truly had a chance to shine.
The death of actor Trevor Baxter (who played Professor George Litefoot in both the series and the original TV story) brought the series to an end. You really couldn’t continue it otherwise.
However, Henry Gordon Jago has appeared since then, specifically in The Diary of River Song episode The Talents of Greel, a story that acts as a direct prequel to Talons. And he’ll be appearing once more in Merry Christmas Mr Jago, just one of the episodes from Heritage 4. Producer David Richardson has revealed why Jago will be meeting the whole of the Paternoster Gang later in the new year.
"I’d had the most brilliant time working with Christopher Benjamin and Trevor Baxter over the course of 13 series of Jago and Litefoot, and we were all so saddened to lose Trevor – and also see that much-loved series come to an end. Christopher has said he feels very strongly that Jago doesn’t have a future without Litefoot, but he has remained open to doing the occasional guest spot in other series. A team up of The Paternoster Gang and Henry Gordon Jago at Christmas seemed the most enchanting idea, and I’m so pleased we’ve been able to pull it off."
That sounds like a really fantastic idea, and I can’t wait to hear what happens when these two eras of much-loved Doctor Who characters share an adventure together!
Heritage 3 will be released on CD and download in May 2020, and Heritage 4 will be released in October 2020.
Next. What stories could Big Finish tell with John Simm’s Master?. dark
Are you a fan of Henry Gordon Jago? Are you excited about him meeting the whole of the Paternoster Gang? Let us know in the comments below.