The Jabari Countdown written by Alan Flanagan and directed by Scott Handcock

What’s it about: Arriving on a mysterious island, stranded with a group of mathematicians, the Doctor and his companions find themselves on the fringes of the Second World War. Trapped with only each other and an unknown threat, the group must work together to solve a puzzle greater than just one world’s war.

The Real McCoy: Chris and Roz figure that the Doctor presses buttons just for show on the console, an elaborate theatrical effect rather than out of necessity. He’s that impish little devil in this one, especially amusing as he adopts a pirate accent to try and explain why he is a stowaway. Amusing he introduces Chris as his manservant and Roz as his personal secretary. The other way around, surely? When the Doctor tries to explain where they have come from he sounds like a complete fruitloop. You would think that after all this time he would have some go-to explanations for every time period he finds himself in on Earth. Sylvester McCoy is brilliant during the climax of this story but it’s unsurprising given the Doctor gets such strong material. Succinctly working out who brought them to the house, growling accusations at the guilty party, desperately trying to figure out how to save everybody’s lives. I’m usually extremely critical of McCoy’s performances and so it’s wonderful to be able to shower him with so much praise. I guess it comes down to the quality of the writing. The Doctor is such a smart bloke, and how he puzzles out all the meaningful numbers is inspired.

Moody Copper: The Doctor calls a slap from Roz shorthand. I’m glad that Roz was the one to go back to the TARDIS and seek information about the Jabari. She’s a character that is often treated as a grumpy old copper but her best writers gave her a steely intelligence too. I’m pleased to see that passed over here and she’s already reached some interesting conclusions about their foe before presenting the data to the Doctor.

Puppy Dog Eyes: Chris is such a great big kid and he’s exactly the sort to want to play hide and seek in the TARDIS. I mean think about it for a second…hide and seek in a Ship where the dimensions shift! That means you might never be found should the TARDIS get in on the game and keep secreting your hiding place away! Infinite fun! Chris longs to be treated as something more than a well-muscled heavy, but the Doctor selects him for all the physical work. Chris has a very good point when he says if they were trying to think of an appropriate alibi would they seriously go for the ‘we travel in time and space’ route. His romantic goodbye with Eleanor feels earned, despite the fact that they have hardly spent any time together. Portrayed this well, I would very much like to spend more time with Chris…and I NEVER thought I would say that.

Standout Performance: I really love Janine Duvitski. Having appeared in two of my favourite sitcoms in strikingly different roles, she’s one of those British actresses who tends to get remembered for a particularly vivid role rather than a versatile character actress. But as this story proves, she’s extremely talented and she elevates the story whenever she appears. I loved the moment where she calls the Doctor out, thinking that she is just some dotty grandmother along for the ride. ‘With as many grandchildren as I have you get used to organising an army!’

Sparkling Dialogue: ‘Earth takes its time on too many things’ – never a truer word spoken but the NAs suggest that we get there in the end with the important issues.

Great Ideas: The house isn’t a house, it’s a spaceship belonging to the Jabari who conquer through mathematical infection. There’s no pattern to the worlds they have invaded, it’s completely scattershot. It’s almost as if they are avoiding certain planets where the infection won’t take. Alpha was seeking the best, recruiting people to save her world.

Audio Landscape: I listened to this in candlelight alone in my flat and there were a few times where I found myself looking over my shoulder to make sure I was on my own. Handcock directs the suspenseful moments really cleverly, recognising that less means more.

Isn’t it Odd: Doesn’t Alpha get away rather lightly given what she has put everybody through? I’m no sure I would be so forgiving.

Standout Scene: Chris’ sexuality has always been a malleable thing. He’s a guy from the future and he has never let somebody’s gender get in the way of finding them attractive. Not so much bisexual as pansexual. The reveal about Eleanor is a fantastic moment, not only because it says something profound about the sexual politics of the time (given how terrified she is of anybody finding out that she was once a man) but because it is at that moment that Chris chooses to show that he is attracted to her. It’s one of those audio moments when you want to cheer at the sheer beauty of the writing and the performances.

Result: ‘A mysterious island, a group of scientists, a dash of mathematics and a dollop of inclement weather…’ We’re introduced to far more interesting characters in the first ten minutes of The Jabari Countdown than in the entirety of Vanguard and its good sign that this will be a far more engaging and thoughtful listen. Trapping a group of characters in an isolated location isn’t just a staple Doctor Who set up but a recognisably dramatic construct stretching back to the birth of storytelling. And so it takes some skill to pull it off with this much dexterity, with a plot that constantly surprises and thrills. What Alan Flanigan has done here is take the essence of a base under siege story from Troughton’s era and run it through a sieve, thrown away all the fatty bits and presented it as a perfectly structured, beautifully characterised story in less than an hour. Not a second is wasted. It’s a fairly big cast but they're pretty vivid given most of them die before the hour is out, especially once their secrets are out. He uses the team of the Doctor, Chris and Roz well too, a story that is once again presenting them as a cohesive unit with a likeable seventh Doctor and friends. Chris is especially well written and Oliver gives his finest performance to date. Take a dash of Agatha Christie’s And The There Were None, add a pinch of The Chimes of Midnight, fold in a generous helping of The iterations of I and serve for 60 minutes with delicious performances and suspenseful direction: 9/10