The latest release in the popular Doctor Who – The Lost Stories range of audio dramas begins with the Fifth Doctor (Peter Davison) and his companions Tegan (Janet Fielding), Nyssa (Sarah Sutton), and Adric (Matthew Waterhouse) landing on a planet where the population is dying out. 

The TARDIS crew do what they can to help this doomed race, but when they travel thirty years into the future, they see what they’ve helped bring about – the planet’s population have become the deadly Cybermen! 

The emotionless Mondasian villains have had many origin stories through the years, but Genesis of the Cybermen is based on the original one – a story that Cybermen co-creator Gerry Davis pitched to the Doctor Who production office in the 1980s. 

Though this was rejected, an outline of it was printed in the 1988 book Cybermen by David Banks. The story has now been adapted by David K Barnes into a full-cast audio drama. 

Doctor Who – The Lost Stories: Genesis of the Cybermen is now available to own from just £13.99 (download to own) or £16.99 (download to own + collector’s edition 2-disc CD), exclusively here. Please note: the collector’s edition CD is strictly limited to 2,000 copies and will not be repressed. 

A King lies dying in his castle. His eldest son Prince Sylvan is an artist with no desire to inherit a kingdom, while Prince Dega toils in his laboratory, dedicated to saving their dying people from extinction. They will all burn unless he succeeds. 

When the TARDIS arrives, its crew believe they can help. But this planet is Mondas. And this is the Genesis of the Cybermen... 

The Cybermen are played by Big Finish creative director and regular Doctor Who monster voice Nicholas Briggs. The guest cast of Genesis of the Cybermen also includes Nuhazet Diaz Cano as Prince Sylvan, Kelly Price as Queen Meta, Colin Tierney as King Dega, Michael Abubakar as Young Dega/Raith, and Evie Ward-Drummond as Young Meta/Shan. 

Writer David K Barnes said: “The Cybermen book loomed large in my early fandom, because when I was 11 my teacher lent me her husband’s copy of it. I pored over that book: all those wonderful pictures of Cybermen through the ages! That’s the reason I’ve always had a sneaking preference for the Cybermen over the Daleks. 

“The setting that Gerry envisaged is a wonderful fusion of futurism and fairy tale, all kings and castles and rival princes, with the Cybermen representing the perils of science without culture. I’ve tried to develop Gerry’s characters further, giving the story’s villain a stronger motivation, while digging into themes that seemed especially resonant today like climate change, mental burnout, and the tension between art and AI.” 

Praise for the previous Lost Stories release, Deathworld: 

“Offers everything you love about 1970s Doctor Who but amped up to eleven.”
Geek Vibes Nation 

“One of the strongest entries in the Lost Stories range, equally outstanding as Operation Werewolf.”
The Doctor Who Companion 

“Brings the original tenth-anniversary tale to life brilliantly”
Big Blue Box Podcast 

Big Finish listeners can save money by purchasing Doctor Who – The Lost Stories: Genesis of the Cybermen together with 2025’s second Doctor Who – The Lost Stories adventure (title TBA, due for release in September), in a multi-buy bundle for just £26 (download to own) or £32 (download to own + collector’s edition CD).  

All the above prices (including pre-order and multibuy bundle discounts) are fixed for a limited time only and guaranteed no later than November 2025. 

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.