Joining Paul McGann in his exploits during the Time War, Rakhee Thakrar is to play his new companion in an adventure like no other.

After last week’s news that our November Time War release is part 1 of 4, we can now also reveal that a new companion will be joining in Eighth Doctor in a universe at war.

Rakhee Thakrar, who Big Finish listeners may recognise from her role as Shabnam Masood in Eastenders, will join Eight as Bliss.

We caught up with producer David Richardson to find out more. ‘He may be trying to avoid getting embroiled in the Time War, but the Eighth Doctor has found a new friend who knows how to blow up a Dalek - enter Bliss, a scientist trying to stay alive in the heat of temporal battle. Matt Fitton wrote the part for Rakhee Thakrar, and it was lovely when Rakhee accepted the part with such total delight. She’s brilliant and lovely and fits right in with the ever growing Big Finish family.’

‘Getting to voice the role of Bliss alongside the Doctor is an absolute dream,' Rakhee tells us, ‘She's a character who I'd like to be more like; someone who puts aside her own fear to help others. I think Big Finish have created a great companion with Bliss, she's incredibly bright but is not excluded from making mistakes and having a sense of humour. I find her very real, and she's a joy to play. I'm thoroughly excited to join the Doctor Who team.’

The Time War part 1 is available for pre-order, at the reduced pre-order price of £23 on CD or £20 download or you can save a bundle by ordering in… a bundle! You can pre-order the Time War series 1-4 on CD for £88 or £80 for download, saving you over £50. Or we have a Time War saga bundle, which includes the first Time War release, and our four War Doctor stories starring the late Sir John Hurt, for £100 for CD or download.

And beyond the Time War, we will be returning to the Eighth Doctor's travels with Liv Chenka and Helen Sinclair, and following up the events of Doom Coalition 4. Stay tuned for more news soon!