The first season of Bernice Summerfield audio plays are all adaptations of New Adventures novels originally published by Virgin Publishing. Each of the plays spans two CDs, except for Dragon's Wrath, which was issued on a single CD.
The plays deviate from the original novels, in terms of plot and characters, to varying degrees. This is particularly evident with the productions of Birthright and Just War, both of which were originally Doctor Who novels. These changes were necessary because, at the time of their production, Big Finish Productions weren't licensed to produce Doctor Who audio plays.
Bernice Summerfield's investigation into the lost civilisation of Perfection takes a turn for the strange when her cat Wolsey turns into the pantomime character Puss in Boots.
Bernice Summerfield takes her two students Emile and Tameka on a field trip, but when her ex-husband Jason turns up, they all become embroiled with the dangerous super-weapon of a lost civilisation.
Bernice Summerfield travels back in time to ancient Babylon to try to prevent the powerful race known only as the People from destroying the city with a singularity bomb.
The Doctor and his companions land in German-occupied Guernsey in 1941 where the Nazis are pursuing a top-secret weapon which could change the course of the war.
Bernice meets the Time Lord Irving Braxiatel and soon becomes involved in the hunt for a jewel thief who is after a rare artefact.
Season 2 (2000–01)
For the second season of Bernice Summerfield audio plays, Big Finish Productions experimented by developing ongoing character arcs that alternated between two different mediums—the audio plays and novels. Fans who did not collect the novels were initially confused to discover that Benny was pregnant during the final audio play of the season, The Skymines of Karthos. The pregnancy was explained in the novel The Squire's Crystal by Jacqueline Rayner.
The run of plays from the second season onwards take part in what has become known as the Collection continuity, as they are set primarily on the Braxiatel Collection, a combined museum and university located on the planetoid KS-159. A number of regular characters are introduced, most notably Irving Braxiatel. First referenced in the 1979 Doctor Who story City of Death (written by Douglas Adams and Graham Williams), Braxiatel first appeared in person in the New Adventures novel Theatre of War.
On the Earth colony Chosan,Bernice finds herself caught up in war between two nations. Close to death,she is rescued by the captain of the Cassandra only to find herself in even more danger.
Reclusive billionaire,Bratheen Traloor,has invited Bernice to examine a mysterious artefact but is there another reason for his interest in the archaeologist?
Only one object survived the destruction of the planet Halstead - a harp. Bernice visits an auction house to buy the Halstead Harp but finds that someone else also has an interest in it - and they're willing to kill...
4
"The Skymines of Karthos"
Ed Salt
David Bailey
Brax
September2001(2001-09)
Caitlin Peters,a friend of Bernice's,disappears on the mining colony of Karthos. When Bernice visits the planet,she finds herself under attack from a race of vicious alien creatures.
Season 3 (2002–03)
Whereas the previous seasons had focused primarily on the character of Bernice Summerfield,Big Finish used the third season as an opportunity to introduce an ensemble feel to the productions. This is most evident in The Green-Eyed Monsters and The Mirror Effect where the characters Jason Kane,Adrian Wall and Irving Braxiatel are significantly developed. The latter,in particular,suggests that Braxiatel has a darker,more mysterious past than the audience has previously been led to believe.
The other two plays that comprise the third season focus more specifically on Bernice. The Greatest Shop in the Galaxy remains the most light-hearted play of the season,while The Dance of the Dead reintroduces the Ice Warriors from Doctor Who.
While not officially part of the third season (at least as far as the numbering is concerned),the Bernice Summerfield audio play The Plague Herds of Excelis (the fourth play in Big Finish's Excelis series;the first three plays fall under the Doctor Who umbrella) takes place between The Green-Eyed Monsters and The Dance of the Dead. Chronologically,the short story anthology A Life of Surprises also falls within this gap.
No.
Title
Directed by
Written by
Featuring
Released
1
"The Greatest Shop in the Galaxy"
Alistair Lock
Paul Ebbs
Joseph
February2002(2002-02)
Bernice visits the Gigamarket to buy shoes but,typically for her,ends up facing time anomalies and rampaging monsters.
Bernice finds herself hungover on a space cruiser. Suddenly,explosions rock the ship and she has to join forces with Ice Warriors and a bored steward in order to survive.
4
"The Mirror Effect"
Gary Russell
Stewart Sheargold
Brax,Jason,Adrian,Joseph
March2003(2003-03)
Inside the derelict remains of an old mining station,there's a mirror. And inside the mirror,trapped with distorted versions of her friends,is Bernice Summerfield.
Season 4 (2003–04)
The fourth season was unofficially dubbed the "classic Who monsters" season,with each play featuring an alien adversary that previously appeared in the Doctor Who television series. The Bellotron Incident predominantly features the Rutan Host (their major enemies,the Sontarans,are also referred to but don't actually appear),The Draconian Rage features the Draconians,The Poison Seas casts a more sympathetic light on the Sea Devils,while Death and the Daleks (the first double CD release in the series since Just War) sees the first appearance of the Daleks within the Bernice Summerfield series. Prior to its release,Death and the Daleks was entitled The Axis of Evil to keep the appearance of the Daleks a secret.
Big Finish also published an anthology of short stories,entitled Life During Wartime,that was specially written as a prelude to the Death and the Daleks audio play. Paul Cornell,the anthology's editor,described Life During Wartime as "a novel written by multiple authors". Each of the collection's stories are told in chronological order,detailing events that occur when the Collection is occupied by a powerful alien force. The anthology ends on a cliff-hanger that is resolved in Death and the Daleks.
Bernice has been invited to the heart of the Draconian Empire to investigate why twenty million of their race have committed suicide as part of an ancient ritual. Soon,she discovers that the event is related to something that happened in her past.
Bernice returns to the planet Chosan to help a Sea Devil colony who are under threat from terrorists. She soon realises that the colony,and the entire planet,is actually in danger from something far worse.
The Braxiatel Collection has been occupied by the Fifth Axis. Shortly after the events depicted in Life During Wartime Bernice discovered that the Axis was actually being controlled by the Daleks. She must return to the planet Heaven to rescue her father and overthrow the Daleks.
Season 5 (2004–05)
The previous season's tradition of using classic monsters continues into the fifth season,with the Grel (previously heard in Oh No It Isn't!) returning in The Grel Escape,a knowing pastiche of The Chase. The Bone of Contention features the Galyari,who appeared in the Doctor Who audio play The Sandman,while the title and plot of The Relics of Jegg-Sau was inspired by a 1970s Doctor Who licensed jigsaw puzzle that depicted a scene with giant robots identical to the one that appeared in Robot.
The Masquerade of Death brings the fifth season to a close in a dark and surreal fashion.
Bernice visits the home of the Galyari to recover an artefact for the Perloran government. The job is complicated when a young Galyari latches onto her.
Bernice and Adrian find themselves trapped in a theatrical world where nobody is who they seem to be.
Season 6 (2005–06)
By the end of The Crystal of Cantus,the true dark and manipulative nature of Braxiatel was revealed and he left the Collection. Its future is now uncertain,with the Draconians claiming they own the planetoid on what it is based. The entire series was directed by Gary Russell.
Bernice visits Marlowe's World to try and stop a pulsar that threatens to destroy the Braxiatel Collection. There she meets some ancient beings who can grant her every wish.
While asleep,Bernice hears a voice in her head which leads her to a strange planet where a race of one-eyed monsters keep a slave race subdued by mutilating them.
Bernice visits the unstable planet Etheria to help a group of monks verify their claim to have found the last resting place of a mighty warlord. Soon she finds herself under threat from both the planet,its inhabitants and even from an old friend.
Bernice,Jason and Irving Braxiatel visit the planet of Cantus to locate its fabled Crystal. There,they unearth what seems to be a tomb of Cybermen. When even that isn't what it first appears to be,Bernice discovers that she can no longer trust one of her oldest friends.
Season 7 (2006)
The seventh season follows the staff of the Collection as they attempt to keep things running smoothly in Braxiatel's absence. Collected Works and Old Friends,two books published during this season's run,also develop the running plots that planetoid KS-159 is under threat from the Draconians and Mim,and that the Collection itself is falling apart literally as well as figuratively without Braxiatel at its helm.
No.
Title
Directed by
Written by
Featuring
Released
1
"The Tartarus Gate"
Gary Russell
Stewart Sheargold
Jason,Joseph
July2006(2006-07)
Bernice has been removed from time and space and even though the Collection has problems of its own,Jason is doing his best to find her. He receives information that she is on the planet Cerebus Iera,a world that is said to be linked to the gateway to Hell.
For years the great Labyrinth of Kerykeion has been home to one of the largest libraries of human incunabula in the galaxy. Here,otherwise lost volumes are all carefully preserved. From tomorrow,it is under new management. Professor Bernice Summerfield is sent to acquire some of the rarest books for the Braxiatel Collection before the new corporate owners bulldoze their way in. She is hoping for a quiet time searching the archives. Some chance. Soon she is investigating a horrible murder and is caught up in a last-ditch scheme to save the entire library. There is a vicious,insane killer cyborg on Benny's heels. And then ancient subterranean powers begin to stir.
The Drome was set ↵Now Benny finds herself in a desperate fight for her life. A fight so desperate that she will be forced to do something she has never done before,a horror that she never imagined she could bring herself to commit. The worst thing in the world.
It's the hottest summer the Braxiatel Collection has ever seen,and as neighbouring aliens try to take advantage of the weakened state of affairs,the inhabitants find themselves with only one thing on their mind - sex.
Arriving in Athens in 430BCE,Bernice and Jason soon find themselves encountering a mysterious cult,the war with the Spartans,a threat to all of time and a man called Socrates.
In the eighth season,Braxiatel returns to the Collection,which is threatened by crossfire and politics in the war between the Draconians and Mim. The war comes to an unexpected conclusion shortly after his return,and several regular characters pay a heavy price for realising too late that Braxiatel himself is the real threat. The season ends with Benny cutting her ties to the Collection and Braxiatel,and going on the run with her son Peter. The books The Two Jasons and |Nobody's Children also fit into this season's arc.
he Collection is caught up in the war between the Draconians and the Mim. As Bev tries to ensure they stay neutral,it becomes apparent that the Draconian Ambassador may have other motives for seeing her...
Bernice travels to Venus to obtain the secret publishing royalties of her deceased husband Jason Kane and becomes embroiled in the politics of Venus' twin artificial moons,Eros and Thanatos.
Bernice's son,Peter,is kidnapped by the seemingly immortal Mr. Frost. Bernice travels to the ruined city of Buenos Aires to rescue Peter.
Season 11 (2010)
The entire series was again directed by John Ainsworth. The animated short Dead and Buried,released online for free,acted as a prelude to this series.[2]
Braxiatel's plans seem to be coming to fruition. As Adrian and Peter search for a missing Bernice,Robyn and Bev must investigate to find why Benny has been so important to Braxiatel for so long...
Joseph,Brax,Adrian,Bev,Peter,Ruth,Jack,Leonidas,Iris,Panda,Seventh Doctor
November2012(2012-11)
The New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield
Following the conclusion of the Bernice Summerfield box set range,a new range starring Lisa Bowerman as Bernice Summerfield alongside Sylvester McCoy as the Doctor entitled The New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield was launched.
Bernice Summerfield in a series of adventures with a version of the Doctor from the Unbound series,played by David Warner. Mark Gatiss returns as a version of the Master from the same series,[3] appearing in The Emporium at the End and The True Savior of the Universe,as well as a brief appearance in a flashback in The Library in the Body.
No.
Title
Directed by
Written by
Featuring
Released
1
"The Library in the Body"
Scott Handcock
James Goss
The Doctor (Unbound)
August2016(2016-08)
2
"Planet X"
Scott Handcock
Guy Adams
The Doctor (Unbound)
August2016(2016-08)
3
"The Very Dark Thing"
Scott Handcock
Una McCormack
The Doctor (Unbound)
August2016(2016-08)
4
"The Emporium at the End"
Scott Handcock
Emma Reeves
The Doctor (Unbound),The Master (Unbound)
August2016(2016-08)
Volume 4:Ruler of the Universe (2017)
No.
Title
Directed by
Written by
Featuring
Released
1
"The City and the Clock"
Scott Handcock
Guy Adams
The Doctor (Unbound)
September2017(2017-09)
2
"Asking for a Friend"
Scott Handcock
James Goss
The Doctor (Unbound)
September2017(2017-09)
3
"Truant"
Scott Handcock
Guy Adams
The Doctor (Unbound)
September2017(2017-09)
4
"The True Saviour of the Universe"
Scott Handcock
James Goss
The Doctor (Unbound),The Master (Unbound)
September2017(2017-09)
Volume 5:Buried Memories (2019)
No.
Title
Directed by
Written by
Featuring
Released
1
"Pride of the Lampian"
Scott Handcock
Alyson Leeds
The Doctor (Unbound)
September2019(2019-09)
2
"Clear History"
Scott Handcock
Doris V Sutherland
The Doctor (Unbound)
September2019(2019-09)
3
"Dead and Breakfast"
Scott Handcock
April McCaffrey
The Doctor (Unbound)
September2019(2019-09)
4
"Burrowed Time"
Scott Handcock
Lani Woodward
The Doctor (Unbound)
September2019(2019-09)
Volume 6:Lost in Translation (2020)
No.
Title
Directed by
Written by
Featuring
Released
1
"Have I Told You Lately?"
Scott Handcock
Tim Foley
The Doctor (Unbound)
September2020(2020-09)
2
"The Undying Truth"
Scott Handcock
JA Prentice
The Doctor (Unbound)
September2020(2020-09)
3
"Inertia"
Scott Handcock
James Goss
The Doctor (Unbound)
September2020(2020-09)
4
"Gallifrey"
Scott Handcock
Guy Adams &AK Benedict
The Doctor (Unbound)
September2020(2020-09)
Volume 7:Blood &Steel (2022)
David Warner died on 24 July 2022. Recording of the series had been completed and was released posthumously.
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