Podcast appearances and mentions of sara kingdom

This show has been flagged as Clean by the host. This is a further look at the stories of the First Doctor, portrayed by William Hartnell, during the 1960s. The First Doctor, Part 4 Galaxy 4 This science fiction story is focused on the idea of not judging a book by its cover. The Tardis lands on a deserted, dying planet. They see a funny looking robot that Vicki calls a “Chumbley”. Then another one appears, and they investigate, but are rescued by three beautiful women who tell them they were in great danger, and take the three travelers back to their ship, where they meet the leader, Maaga, another beautiful woman. But somehow these women are odd and cold. They tell of how they met another ship from a evil race, the Rill, and that in a space battle the ships damaged each other and landed on this planet. Then later the travelers meet the Rill, who initially refuse to reveal their appearance because it would frighten the humans. Turns out they were very alien in appearance, but not at all evil, and it was the beautiful women who were evil. Mission to the Unknown This short little story takes place on the planet Kembel, and agents from Earth realize that the Daleks are here, and up to no good. This is really a prequel to The Daleks' Master Plan, and is notable as the only Doctor Who story in which none of the regular cast appears. The reason is that this is an extra episode slot given to the Doctor Who team late in the day, and the regular cast were already given vacation time off. So it is best to take this as Episode 0 of The Dalek's Master Plan, not as a stand-alone story. The original story has been lost, like so many episodes of early Doctor Who, but a very nice version was done by the University of Central Lancashire, and you can view it on YouTube. It is introduced by Edward de Souza, who played Marc Cory in the original, and is worth a look. They really did a good job. The Myth Makers This is another “historical” story, though instead of verified history it is historical legends at play here, in the form of the Seige of Troy by the Greeks. So you have all of the Homeric cast here: Achilles, Priam, Hector, Odysseus. The Doctor is taken for a God by Achilles, though Odysseus has his doubts. Vicki is captured by the Trojans and taken to Troy, calls herself Cressida, and is taken for a Goddess. Steven goes to Troy to try and free her, but is seen as a Greek, and so Vicki is now suspect. She falls in love with a son of Priam named Troilus, and you think something might happen here, particularly if you are familiar with play of Shakespeare called Troilus and Cressida. This story only has faint echoes of the play, preserving that Cressida is Greek and Troilus is Trojan. In this case it is Cressida staying with Troilus, so instead going back to the Tardis Vicki is now out. One more companion gone. This marked the departure of Verity Lambert as producer, and she was replaced by John Wiles. Wiles tried to implement changes, such as making the show a bit darker, but ran into opposition from both Hartnell and BBC Management, and resigned after producing four stories ( The Myth Makers through The Ark). And the popularity of other SF shows on television made a move to more SF and less history desirable. And as for Hartnell's opposition, it is notable that he had become quite identified with the role of The Doctor and was very proprietorial with it. This would come to pose problems later as his health declined. The Daleks' Master Plan This story arc takes twelve episodes, or thirteen if you add Mission to the Unknown, as you indeed should. The reason for such a long story arc is that Sir Huw Wheldon, the Director-General of the BBC at that time wanted a “monster length” Dalek story because his mother was a big Dalek fan. And this story has a lot going for it. The length means that you can do more character development. The story starts out with Steven recovering from a sword-thrust during the fall of Troy, and being attended by Katarina, a Trojan maiden, who is now in the Tardis. They arrive on the planet Kembel, and meet with Space Special Security agent Bret Vyon, played by Nicholas Courtney, who in a few years would become the beloved Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. Vyon tries to force the Doctor to take him to Earth so he can warn the planet, but the Doctor recognizes the Daleks and wants to find out more about their plans. And this brings us to one the most evil villains in Doctor Who, Mavic Chen. You see, the Daleks have assembled a group of villainous aliens to join together in conquering the Earth, and Mavic Chen is part of the group. He is also the idolized Guardian of the Solar System. So he is a traitor! Katarina, the Trojan maiden, sacrifices herself to save the others from a convict they meet on a prison planet. Another wonderful character is Sara Kingdom (played by Peggy Marsh), head of Space Special Security, who has been told by Mavic Chen that Vyon and the others are traitors, and who kills Vyon, who is in fact her brother! But they manage to convince her that Chen is the real traitor, and she joins them. In the middle of this story arc Christmas happened, and this resulted in the most absurd episode ever of Doctor Who, called The Feast of Steven, capped by the Doctor breaking the fourth wall. The episode is now among the missing. but you can find reconstructions on YouTube if you want to see the absurdity of it. And there is a re-appearance of The Meddling Monk. This is a sprawling story, but overall worth a look. Mavic Chen, played by Kevin Stoney, is delightfully evil, and Stoney would return to play another villain in the Troughton story The Invasion. and it is interesting to see Nicholas Courtney before he got the role he would always be identified with. Doctor Who would not do anything this large again until _The Flux_ in 2021, and frankly this story makes more sense. The Massacre of St. Bartholomew's Eve You will often see this as simply The Massacre, which is fine since there is no other story with a similar title. And after that massive science fiction story, another historical story. This involves the true story of Protestants in France being massacred by the Catholics, and the main feature worth calling our here is that William Hartnell plays two roles in this story. He is the Doctor, of course, but also the Abbott of Amboise, a leader among the Catholics looking to rid France of the Protestants. This idea of playing two parts became even more nicely done by Patrick Troughton later in Enemy of the World. In any case, this leads to confusion by Steven who thinks the Abbott is actually the Doctor. In the story a servant girl named Anna Chaplette is rescued, and this opens up the interesting possibility that she is the ancestor of Dodo (i.e. Dorothea) Chaplet, a companion who appears at the end. She witnesses a car crash, and barges into the Tardis thinking she can call the police. While the novelty of Hartnell playing two parts may stand out on first look, this story is really a showcase for Peter Purves, in his role of Steven Taylor. Because Hartnell is not on screen very much, Purves really has to carry the plot, and does so admirably. Hartnell was on vacation when the second episode was filmed, and so didn't appear at all. And his health problems were beginning cause problems which contributed to this situation. He was having a lot of trouble with remembering his lines, which is a real problem for an actor. He was not that old by current standards, as he was 58 when this story was produced, and as I am 73 as I write this, 58 seems more like late youth to me. The Ark The Tardis materializes on a spaceship in the far future. It is carrying the future of the human race to a new planet, Refusis 2, because the Earth is falling into the sun. But it also has an odd race called the Monoids, who have one eye. They are an alien race who came to Earth when their own planet was dying, and now they serve the humans. Unfortunately, the Tardis crew carries germs for which humans and Monoids on the Ark have no immunity, and sickness breaks out. One faction wants to kill the Doctor and his companions, but instead the Doctor finds a cure for the disease, and they leave on the Tardis. Then the Tardis materializes back on the Ark, but they discover that hundreds of years have passed. The Monoids have rebelled and taken over, and now the humans serve them. As the old saying has it, be kind to those you meet on the way up, for you will meet them again on the way down. Links: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galaxy_4 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mission_to_the_Unknown https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NW8yk-m5Ig8 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Myth_Makers https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troilus_and_Cressida https://guide.doctorwhonews.net/person.php?name=JohnWiles https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Daleks%27_Master_Plan https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0785302/ https://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/The_Flux https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Massacre_(Doctor_Who) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ark_(Doctor_Who) https://www.palain.com/science-fiction/intro-to-doctor-who/the-first-doctor-part-4/ Provide feedback on this episode.

Jean Marsh passed away on the 13th April 2025 at the age of 90. She was a reknowned actress both in the UK and abroad, having worked in TV, film and theatre. For Doctor Who fans, she is best remembered for her roles as Johanna in The Crusade, Sara Kingdom in The Daleks' Masterplan, and Morgaine in Battlefield. She reprised the role of Sara on audio for Big Finish in The Companion Chronicles and Early Adventures ranges. Writer Simon Guerrier joins us for this episode of the podcast, and shares some of his memories of the times he spent with Jean. We'll also discuss his Sara Kingdom trilogy, which features the stories, "Home Truths", The Drowned World", and "Guardian of the Solar System". There'll be spoilers, so if you haven't heard them, we recommend you grab them from the Big Finish website and have a listen to them first. They are fantastic! We also have some special tributes to Jean from her Battlefield co-stars, Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred. Thanks to them both for joining us.Theme music by Joe Kraemer.Website - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.sirensofaudio.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow us on Instagram - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://instagram.com/audiosirens⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow us on Facebook - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/audiosirens⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow us on X - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/audiosirens⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow us on Bluesky - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bsky.app/profile/audiosirens.bsky.social

We sadly learned that another member of the Doctor Who family had passed away at the weekend. Jean Marsh - better known to fans as Princess Joanna, Morgaine and perhaps best of all as Sara Kingdom - died at the age of 90. In tribute Kenny and Dave discuss their memories of Jean, and are joined by Simon Guerrier, who wrote five of the six main stories to feature Sara. And courtesy of our friend James Hadwen-Bennett, we present Jean speaking at the Invasion convention in 2003, when she was interviewed by J Jeremy Bentham. James also shares his memories of Jean's panel. Jean Marsh - 1934-2025.

It's a long-debated subject among Doctor Who fans: Who counts as a companion? It used to be that traveling in the TARDS, typically across different stories, meant you made the list — and might even end up in a support group years later with Kate Stewart et al. But a mere TARDIS ride is too low a bar: Does that mean the policemen in Black Orchid are companions? You could say you need to be in more than one story, but then Astrid and Sara Kingdom are out. And what about “bad” TARDIS passengers like Turlough and Adam Mitchell? What's clearly called for is a new system for deciding who is an official companion and who isn't. Luckily, we've got one! Inspired by a recent trip to the DMV, where certain types of personal identification count for more than others, the Pull To Open Companion System awards a character a Companion badge only if they earn a certain number of points. They can earn points by achieving specific goals as they adventure with the Doctor, but only once per goal — think of each as an “achievement unlocked.” Once you get 10 points, you get the label. Here are the goals, and the points earned for each: a) Explicit invitation accepted (e.g. Rose, Turlough): 10 points b) Companion invitation: 5 points c) Take a trip in the TARDIS: 4 points d) In more than 1 story: 4 points e) Travel in time: 2 points f) Name in opening credits (new series): 2 points g) Face or eyes in opening credits: 8 points h) Evil/working against the Doctor: –6 points And here's where various characters land: TURLOUGH: 10(a)+4(c)+4(d)+2(e)-6(h) = 14 ✅ BRIGADIER: 4(c)+4(d)+2(e) = 10 ✅ KATE STEWART: 4(d) = 4 ❌ BRIAN: 4(c)+4(d)+2(e) = 10 ✅ ADAM MITCHELL: 5(b)+4(c)+4(d)+2(e)-6(h) = 9 ❌ SARA KINGDOM: 4(c)+2(e) = 6 ❌ POLICE FROM BLACK ORCHID: 4(c) = 4 ❌ ASTRID: 10(a)+2(f) = 12 ✅ LADY CHRISTINA: 2(f) = 2 ❌ MISSY: 10(a)+4(b)+4(d)+2(e)-6(h) = 14 ✅ Who makes the cut might not be what you expect, and there are arguably some bold exclusions and inclusions, but generally this feels in the right direction, if not right. What do you think of our system? Where does it need refinement? Please reach out via a review or on social media (links below), and let's perfect the system! Rate and review Pull To Open on ⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠! Join the conversation on ⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠! Follow us on: TikTok! ⁠⁠⁠@pulltoopen⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠@pulltoopen63⁠⁠⁠ Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠@pulltoopen63⁠⁠⁠ YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠youtube.com/pulltoopen⁠⁠⁠ Pull To Open: Who Is a Companion? Season 4 Episode 14 Hosts: ⁠Pete Pachal⁠ and ⁠Chris Taylor⁠ Music: Martin West/⁠⁠⁠Thinking Fish

This week we survived the massive 12-parter that is The Dalek's Master Plan and celebrated with The Shire Percheron for our Whiskey of the Week.  We also say goodbye to Katarina as well as hello and goodbye to Sara Kingdom.  Can we just have our Vicki back now?   Email: mediaontherockspod@gmail.com Instagram: @on_the_rocks_pod       Diana's Reading List: About Time by Tat Wood and Lawrence Miles  TARDIS Eruditorum  by Elizabeth Sandifer Doctor Who The Unfolding Text by John Tulloch and Manuel Alvarado Doctor Who Celebrating Fifty Years by Alan Kistler Doctor Who & Race edited by Lindy Orthia   Thanks to @dinodannysart on Instagram for the sweet logo!

Two more Companion Chronicles this episode as we visit Charley trapped in the Toymaker's shop - or is it? - and we close out the Sara Kingdom trilogy with Guardians of The Solar System. How does Charley get on facing up to a Hartnell-era villain? Does the Sara Kingdom trilogy get the conclusion it deserves? And how does Jean Marsh fair third time round. Plus we have our usual recommendations section. www.jgmcquarrie.scot

We're back to regular Doctor Who coverage this episode as we drop into the Companion Chronicles range to cover a Leela story with Empathy Games and a Sara Kingdom episode with Home Truths. How does Sara - one of the shortest-lived of all companions - work in audio and can she support a whole story? Is Leela able to carry a story pretty much by herself? And do these releases continue the quality expected of this range? Plus in recommendations we have a slightly less enthusiastic nod than normal from JG and a series of movies recommended by Kev.

This week Deb, Erika, Liz and Tansy revisit an oft maligned (by Deb) story -- "The Daleks' Master Plan". There are a few disagreements as to pace, plot, story, Katarina... and while may not all agree on which companion actually clocks in as the official 7th companion in Doctor Who history, we do all agree that Sara Kingdom is a BAMF. How do you feel about this "epic" adventure? Is it a rambling mess? A beloved Doctor Who romp or BOTH? And what is your preferred method for consuming this phantom of a story? Leave us a comment or send us a tweet and let us know how you feel about Bret, Sara, The Meddling Monk or any one of the other 1,183 plot points in "The Daleks' Master Plan"? ^D Happy Things: Deb (and most of Doctor Who fandom) is excited about the new Series 12 Trailer -- new baddies, old baddies -- can't wait! Liz is particularly excited about the cosplay options the trailer inspired -- FORMAL WEAR! Erika is delighted Handwavium is covering one her favorite stories -- "The Sensorites"! Tansy is once again filled with admiration and glee at Big Finish's commitment to delving into the cracks of Doctor Who history -- particularly the new release Daughter of the Gods, which lets Katarina shine! Bonus Links: Chicks Unravel Time Companion Piece "Mission to the Unknown" recreation by by the University of Central Lancashire Support Verity! on Patreon

This week features a Companion Archive featuring Sara Kingdom.

Adam and Andrea begin their journey through the twisted Timelines of River Song's life story with, " A Good Man Goes to War." Then it's off to the Librarians and the Sword in the Stone, and Andrea and Adam talk about Morgan Busse's book, "Tainted." Then Adam has a few thoughts on the Big Finish Audio Dramas, "Guardians of the Solar System" (conclusion of Sara Kingdom trilogy) and, "You Will Obey Me," start of the Two Masters trilogy.

Adam and Andrea welcome back the Tenth Doctor and Donna in, "Technophobia." Then Adam plunges into the middle of the first Seventh Doctor Klein trilogy as the Doctor travels with a Nazi scientist to a planet of giant Insects. Then the Fourth Doctor and Romana face an alien plot involving 1970s Pirate Radio in, "The Wave of Destruction," and join forces with a Vampire hunter in, "The Labyrinth of Buda Castle. Also why is Sara Kingdom running a bed and breakfast after she died. Find out in, "Home Truths." Then Adam turns to the Twilight Zone radio episode, "King Nine Will Not Return." And finally, a look at, "Captain America: White."

An epic Doctor Who episode deserves an epic celebration of it. Yes, a celebration. Shana and Daniel have a long and lively conversation about the (arguably) longest single story in Doctor Who history: The Daleks' Master Plan, with Mission to the Unknown as prequel. Along the way, we see some excellent (and not-so-excellent) costume design, the gaining of (and loss of) some important companions, some very silly science, a pair of amazing performances from Kevin Stoney as Mavic Chen and of course William Hartnell as the Doctor, the welcome return of the Meddling Monk, and of course Daleks with fucking flamethrowers for arms. Our main topic of discussion: the culpability of the Doctor in the risks taken by his companions, a topic that the current era of the show tries (and fails) to address as well as it's done here.    Main Topic: Mission to the Unknown/The Daleks' Master Plan.  Segment One: To 34:35. General Thoughts. Getting Used to Reconstructions/Animations. Why Don't People Like Master Plan? The Monk Returns. A Batman/Joker dynamic. Recurring characters as plot devices. Describing "The Feast of Steven" and "Volcano." Doctor Who Christmas episodes. We Hope No Who Nerds Listen To This Podcast. The Daleks as Nazi/communist metaphors. Mission to the Unknown as Verity's last episode. A major period of transition. Proto-Brig! The Relationship between Bret Vyon and Sara Kingdom. Shana has completely forgotten Steven. "Steven sits on the floor in a daze." Looking at Mission to the Unknown: The Varga Plants. The hypothetical Terry Nation Dalek show. Fluffy Hartnell.  Intermission: Mavic Chen plays politics with some Daleks. Segment Two: 34:35 to 53:10 Mavic Chen, the racism and the genius. Terry Nation doesn't know what a galaxy is. Officious Daleks. "Dalek Supreme and the Football Hooligans." The Doctor pits different enemies against one another. The Daleks as more than "tank aliens." What does Shana think of Katarina? Taking death seriously. Did Katarina sacrifice herself intentionally? Steven as moral center and audience avatar.  Intermission: Katrina's death, from the excellent audio version. Segment Three: 53:10 to end. The Death of Bret Vyon, and Steven's great moment. The police state of Daleks' Master Plan. "Doctor Who is a kid's show." Daleks with fucking flamethrowers. Diluting the serious. Very attractive young Jon Pertwee. The legacy of Sara Kingdom. Before Terry Nation became a hack. Shana voluntarily watches a reconstruction. Hartnell's voice. Just, Hartnell's voice. A plug for the audiobook. What do we think of the Monk? A litany of man-thigh. The ancient Egyptians as pawns in this story. "My Doctor is a hero, not a clown." Ending the epic. Recounting episodes eleven and twelve. The mechanics of the Time Destructor. The Death of Sara Kingdom. "So much scarier than the Angels." What does war get us? Death. Jessica's gonna laugh. Hartnell allows each companion to be the best version of themselves. The moral culpability of the Doctor. The ethics of war. The agency of a follower. Doctor Who inspires amazing conversations. Big Ideas. A return to this kind of Dalek. Wrapping up.  Ending: The final words of the episode, as Steven and the Doctor reflect on the loss of their friends.   Amazon link to the audio play version of Mission to the Unknown/The Daleks' Master Plan. Highly recommended! Animation of Mission to the Unknown Part One. Part Two. Further Reading (I.E. stuff Daniel found useful in understanding this story and talking about it): Wood and Miles's About Time, Volume One. An excellent resource for the first three seasons of Classic Who. Phil Sandifer writes a love letter to Verity Lambert and discusses some of the history behind Mission to the Unknown. And writes the best general-consumption "way to watch "The Daleks' Master Plan" Daniel has yet seen.  Find Our Stuff: Find us on iTunes! Or Facebook! We love email (oispacemanpodcast@gmail.com)! And all our episodes are on oispaceman.libsyn.com. Daniel's Tumblr Twitter Shana's Tumblr Twitter 

In which Shana and Daniel discuss the 2014 Christmas special, "Last Christmas," which probably should have just been called "Moff-ception." Or "The One With Crabs That Have Mouths in Their Butts." Among the topics discussed: the infantilization of Clara, the kinds of people that look like scientists, and the process of grieving. What a fun Christmas episode this was.      Main Topic: Last Christmas. Shana took a bunch of notes. General Impressions about the Christmas special. Nick Frost/Simon Pegg/Edgar Wright. Praise for (most of) the technical side. "The Moffat Hate Hour." Moffat as the self-underminer. Dan Starkey. Moffat-era Who as a fairy tale. Twelve vs. One. Shana has Sara Kingdom on the brain. Clara being saved by men. Why does Santa get the Doctor role? Last Christmas and female characters. Patrick Troughton's son gets to eat a turkey leg. The Ur-Moffat villain. Shana will vomit if it's the Great Intelligence. Dream logic in Moffat scripts. A hypothetical David Tennant "Last Christmas." "You Don't Seem Much Like a Scientist." The TARDIS of the Magi. Why bring up serious loss if you're not going to deal with the fallout? What if the Doctor had been Clara's Santa Claus in this episode? Internal inconsistency with the headcrabs. Shana cries about the way Moffat handles grief and loss. Clara and survivor's guilt. A Latin-speaker's pun. Shana talks about writing workshops. Infantalized Clara. Daniel makes another Pixar reference. No mention of the Christian roots of Christmas. "Am I supposed to feel bad about their real lives?" The very gendered roles of the scientists after they wake up. Daniel makes a Red Dwarf reference. Suicidal Clara. Discussing the multiple endings. The anatomy of the dream-crab. Getting philosophical about Moffat fans. Wrapping up.    Spherical cows.  Find us on iTunes! Or Facebook! We love email (oispacemanpodcast@gmail.com)! And all our episodes are on oispaceman.libsyn.com. Daniel's Tumblr Twitter Shana's Tumblr Twitter 

In this GoG we talk about The Dalek's Master Plan, Katarina being a martyr and Sara Kingdom being like a black widow baby.