Doctor Who: When Sacha Dhawan appeared in another Master’s story
By James Aggas
With his recent appearance in Spyfall, we flashback to when Sacha Dhawan appeared in another Doctor Who story with a different Doctor – and a different Master…
If you’re reading this, you’ve probably watched Doctor Who‘s epic opening episode to Series 12 Spyfall (and major spoilers follow if you haven’t). And you’re bound to have some strong feelings on Sacha Dhawan’s brand new character. Love him or hate him, Sacha Dhawan definitely made an impression, especially in the last few minutes.
But while we’re eager to learn more about his Master, it’s definitely worth noting that Sacha Dhawan has been in a couple of other Doctor Who stories. I’m not even referring to his performance as director Waris Hussein in the documentary drama An Adventure in Space and Time, although that was a great performance.
No, I am of course referring to several of Big Finish’s audio adventures. While Spyfall was his first appearance in the TV series, Sacha Dhawan has met several different Doctors across several different audios.
His stories so far have included Fallen Angel, in which his character Joel not only met the Fifth Doctor but also the Weeping Angels; Ghost Walk, a very timey-wimey story by James Goss that’s highly recommended, and Dark Eyes 3. And it’s this one that feels most appropriate to talk about, considering who features in it…
Dark Eyes 3
The third box set in the Eighth Doctor audio series, Dark Eyes 3 stars Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor, Ruth Bradley as Molly O’Sullivan, Nicola Walker as Liv Chenka and Alex Macqueen as the Master.
I’ve written a great deal about Macqueen’s Master before, so I won’t go into too much detail. But he’s an incarnation unique to Big Finish’s audios. (Which is frankly a crying shame, as he’s so bloody brilliant in the role.) He’s an incarnation that distinctly fits between the Classic and New Series eras, making him a perfect opponent for McGann’s Doctor.
Dark Eyes 3 is a four-part epic for these two opponents. The Doctor is trying to stop another of the Master’s grand schemes, one that we get to see built from the ground up. It takes place across various times and places during a fifty-year war between humanity and a powerful alien force called “the Eminence”.
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The Reviled
One of the episodes, The Reviled, concerns a world that’s on the fringes of that war, and it’s this episode that Dhawan appears in. He plays two roles: Jaldam and Vaughan. These are two very different characters: the former is the leader of the Ramosans, the race that has recently risen up against human oppression, and the latter is a human colonist. Thanks to great sound effect work on Jaldam and a solid dual performance from Dhawan, it’s difficult to tell that they’re played by the same actor – something that’s common to many of Big Finish’s stories.
Sadly, the Master has a rather small role in this story, although it’s always fun to hear from Macqueen’s take on the iconic villain. It’s even more fun to listen to this story now and hear Sacha Dhawan with another Master entirely, five years before he would play the role himself.
You can get Dark Eyes 3 on CD or download from Big Finish’s website.
Next. 5 questions we have after Spyfall: Part 1. dark
Have you heard Sacha Dhawan’s appearance in Dark Eyes 3, or even in other Big Finish audios? Do you think he will be a good fit for the Master? Let us know in the comments below.