Marking 50 years since the Sontarans first appeared in television story The Time Warrior, Sontarans vs Rutans is a four-part audio mini-series exploring the seemingly endless war against their shapeshifting foes and the scars it has left across the universe. 

The second instalment, The Children of the Future, brings the story right back to where Doctor Who fans first encountered Robert Holmes’ potato-headed warmongers – during the Third Doctor’s exile on Earth. 

The Children of the Future stars Tim Treloar as the Doctor, alongside Sadie Miller (daughter of original series actor Elisabeth Sladen) as Sarah Jane Smith and Jon Culshaw as Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. 

Doctor Who – Sontarans vs Rutans: The Children of the Future is written by Tim Foley and is now available to own for just £10.99 (collector's edition CD + download) or £8.99 (download only), exclusively here.  

The Brigadier is used to the Doctor acting strangely, but this time there’s something decidedly different about the whole affair. As he looks into the Time Lord’s odd activities outside of UNIT, there’s a mystery that’ll take Lethbridge-Stewart to a site very familiar to Sarah Jane Smith.  

Can the Brigadier trust his old friend? Who are his new mysterious allies? And is the future of humanity really at stake? A Sontaran threat could spell the end of their long-standing friendship… and the entire planet! 

Actor Tim Treloar said: “It’s always fantastic to work with Sadie and Jon, and this is a wonderful script by Tim Foley. It’s quite unusual; usually with the Third Doctor, you get the sense that he’s a man in control, but on this particular occasion, he’s somewhat perturbed and baffled. And then we find out that there’s the possibility that it’s not the Doctor at all...” 

Jon Culshaw added: “It’s fascinating to revisit the Sontarans, and the Rutans as well, with a delicious harking back to one of my favourite stories of all time, The Time Warrior. 

“The Brigadier and Sarah have some fabulous scenes in this story, and Sadie Miller really brings the energy, the gumption, and the investigative verve of Sarah Jane. It’s so wonderful and very moving to hear her playing as her dear, wonderful mum.” 

The cast also includes Nicholas Boulton (Captain Saint), Lucy Goldie (Sergeant Moss) and Jeremy Ang Jones (Stanley). 

Doctor Who – Sontarans vs Rutans is being released in monthly parts between January and April 2024, with a story which weaves through the lives of the Third, Sixth, Eighth and War Doctors.  

The series cast also includes  Paul McGann (the Eighth Doctor), Colin Baker (the Sixth Doctor) and Jonathon Carley (the War Doctor), with Dan Starkey playing a variety of Sontarans.  

The complete Doctor Who – Sontarans vs Rutans series bundle is available to pre-order for just £40 (collector's edition CD + download) or £32 (download only), exclusively here. 

All the above prices include the special pre-order discount and are subject to change after general release.

Please note that Big Finish is currently operating a digital-first release schedule. The mail-out of collector’s edition CDs may be delayed due to factors beyond our control, but all purchases of this release unlock a digital copy that can be immediately downloaded or played on the Big Finish app from the release date.