Released today, Forged in Fire tells the tales of the first adventures of the Doctor’s disavowed alter ego, played by Big Finish newcomer Jonathon Carley. These three, brand new, full-cast audio dramas pick up immediately after the events of 2013’s The Night of the Doctor, as the flame is lit for war.  

Doctor Who: The War Doctor Begins – Forged in Fire is now available at £19.99 as a collector’s edition CD box set or £16.99 as a download, exclusively HERE!

The Doctor is no more. In his place, a warrior, finally joining the Time War between the Daleks and the Time Lords.  

But how far will he go to end this conflict? What lines will he cross? How much of himself will he sacrifice?  

The War Doctor is only just beginning to find out who he is… 

Producer David Richardson said: “I don’t like to think of The War Doctor Begins as going back, or a recast of John Hurt. It feels like a different era – the very start of the War Doctor’s life. And in Jonathon Carley we have found an actor who has both captured the flavour of John Hurt’s performance while making the role entirely his own.  

“With that in mind, we were emboldened to reconsider The War Doctor and I’m so glad we did because I love this series. I think this first box set, Forged in Fire, is remarkable. Jonathon acquits himself from his first line, Louise Jameson masterfully directs, and we have a new sound designer, Jack Townley, bringing the chaos of the Time War to life.” 

Actor Jonathon Carley added: “When Nick first got in touch, I thought it was a joke – but we set up a Skype call and there he was on my computer! In my head I was thinking, ‘What could this be about, he must be looking for a guest voice actor’, but what Nick suggested went beyond any reasonable expectation I had! 

“And when Big Finish said they’d like me to play the War Doctor, it was amazing. I had a workshop with Louise, and I will take lessons from that workshop into every job I do in the future. Having someone you’ve admired for years putting time in and building you up was amazing – surreal touchstone moments which I will never forget.” 

The cast in this first box set is completed by Veronica Roberts (Peak Practice, The Fourth Doctor Adventures), Adèle Anderson (Fascinating Aïda, Doctor Who: Time War), John Dorney (The Omega Factor, Dalek Universe), Kit Young (Shadow and Bone, Endeavour), Chis Jarman (Dalek Universe 1, Thunderbirds Are Go),  Anna Andresen (ATA Girl 1 & 2), Amy Downham (Star Cops, Hollyoaks), Helen Goldwyn (ATA Girl, Survivors), Marylin Nnadebe (War of the Worlds, I May Destroy You), Tracy Wiles (The Beast Must Die, Space: 1999) and Nicholas Briggs as the Daleks. 

Doctor Who: The War Doctor Begins – Forged in Fire is now available at the special price of £19.99 as a collector’s edition CD box set or £16.99 as a download HERE.

Big Finish listeners can save money by pre-ordering the complete The War Doctor Begins series in a bundle (of all four volumes) from £76 on CD or £66 on digital download.  

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.