Short Trips (series)
"Short Trips" was a label applied to stories and books, published by both BBC Books and Big Finish Productions. Early publications released under the "Short Trips" banner were short story anthologies. The majority of these anthologies were collections of prose issued from 1998 to 2009, but Big Finish resurrected the name as a label for audio anthologies and single audio downloads beginning in 2010.
BBC Books
"Short Trips" was a name initially given to three short story anthologies published by BBC Books, starting in 1999. The notion was very similar to Virgin Books' Decalog anthology series. These three new books were published in conjunction with the BBC Eighth Doctor Adventures and BBC Past Doctor Adventures book series. Each book contained stories featuring the first eight incarnations of the Doctor. After publishing the anthology Short Trips and Side Steps in March 2000, BBC Books abandoned short stories for full length prose.
BBC Audio
BBC Audio also released a few collections of stories adapted from the print books, plus a few originals, in audio format.
| # | Title | Format | stories | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Short Trips | double cassette | 6 | 1998 |
| 2 | Earth and Beyond | 3 | 7 September 1998 | |
| 3 | Out of the Darkness | audio CD | 3 | November 1998 |
| 4 | Tales from the TARDIS: Volume One | MP3-CD | 9 (+3 novels) | 19 July 2004 |
| 5 | Tales from the TARDIS: Volume Two | 3 (+4 novels) | ||
| 6 | Tales from the TARDIS | audio CD | 2 | 2008 |
Big Finish Productions
In 2002, Big Finish Productions obtained the rights to the Short Trips series. The Big Finish Short Trips books, like the Decalog series, are built around themes. These include an annual volume dedicated to Christmas-related tales and one volume dedicated to Dalek stories. A total of twenty-eight volumes of new material — featuring several hundred stories featuring the first eight Doctors — were published by March 2009.
On 17 April 2009, Big Finish announced it was ending the Short Trips line, since the BBC had not renewed the company's license to issue Doctor Who stories in print. [1] A final Short Trips volume, a "best-of" collection, subsequently appeared in May 2009, coinciding with Big Finish briefly making its back stock of earlier Short Trips books available at a discounted rate.
3
A Universe of Terrors
3 July 2003
6
Past Tense
20 May 2004
7
Life Science
1 July 2004
8
Repercussions
26 August 2004
10
2040
2 December 2004
11
A Christmas Treasury
30 December 2004
13
A Day in the Life
7 July 2005
14
The Solar System
22 October 2005
17
The Centenarian
1 August 2006
18
Time Signature
1 September 2006
19
Dalek Empire
22 December 2006
24
The Quality of Leadership
10 May 2008
25
Transmissions
1 July 2008
29
Re:Collections
May 2009
CD releases
In less than a year, however, Big Finish revived the Short Trips format, this time as exclusive-to-audio readings of short stories, most performed by veteran cast members. It began by soliciting stories from fans, though seasoned writers also contributed stories (along with one short story from Colin Baker). Unlike almost every thing else produced by Big Finish, they feature only one actor reading a story, being audiobooks rather than audio dramas. All in the regular series are original to audio, and have not previously appeared in print.
Volume 1
- Main article: Short Trips - Volume I
| # | Title | Author | Performer | Doctor | Featuring | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.1 | Rise and Fall | George Mann | William Russell | 1st | Susan, Barbara, Ian | November 2010 |
| 1.2 | A Stain of Red in the Sand | David A McEwan | David Troughton | 2nd | Zoe | |
| 1.3 | A True Gentleman | Jamie Hailstone | Katy Manning | 3rd | ||
| 1.4 | Death-Dealer | Damian Sawyer | Louise Jameson | 4th | Leela | |
| 1.5 | The Deep | Ally Kennen | Peter Davison | 5th | Nyssa | |
| 1.6 | The Wings of a Butterfly | Colin Baker | Colin Baker | 6th | ||
| 1.7 | Police and Shreeves | Adam Smith | Sophie Aldred | 7th | Ace | |
| 1.8 | Running Out of Time | Dorothy Koomson | India Fisher | 8th |
Volume 2
- Main article: Short Trips - Volume II
| # | Title | Author | Performer | Doctor | Featuring | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.1 | 1963 | Niall Boyce | William Russell | 1st | Barbara, Ian, Vicki | 28 February 2011 |
| 2.2 | The Way Forwards | Steve Case | David Troughton | 2nd | Victoria | |
| 2.3 | Walls of Confinement | Lawrence Conquest | Katy Manning | 3rd | Liz | |
| 2.4 | Chain Reaction | Darren Goldsmith | Louise Jameson | 4th | Sarah | |
| 2.5 | Sock Pig | Sharon Cobb, Iain Keiller | Peter Davison | 5th | ||
| 2.6 | The Doctor's Coat | John Bromley | Colin Baker | 6th | ||
| 2.7 | Critical Mass | James Moran | Sophie Aldred | 7th | Ace | |
| 2.8 | Letting Go | Simon Guerrier | India Fisher | 8th | Charley |
Volume 3
- Main article: Short Trips - Volume III
| # | Title | Author | Performer | Doctor | Featuring | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | Seven to One | Simon Miller | Nicholas Briggs, William Russell | 1st | Second Doctor, Third Doctor, Fourth Doctor, Fifth Doctor, Sixth Doctor, Seventh Doctor | 31 May 2011 |
| 3.2 | The Five Dimensional Man | Kate Orman | David Troughton | 2nd | Jamie, Zoe | |
| 3.3 | Pop-Up | Dave Curan | Katy Manning | 3rd | Jo | |
| 3.4 | The Wondrous Box | Juliet Boyd | Louise Jameson | 4th | Sarah | |
| 3.5 | Wet Walls | Mathilde Madden | Peter Davison | 5th | Peri | |
| 3.6 | Murmurs of Earth | Michael Deacon, Jamie Middleton, Chris Wraight | Colin Baker | 6th | ||
| 3.7 | The Riparian Ripper | Andrew Cartmel | Sophie Aldred | 7th | Ace | |
| 3.8 | All the Fun of the Fair | Bev Conway | India Fisher | 8th | Lucie |
Volume 4
- Main article: Short Trips - Volume IV
| # | Title | Author | Performer | Doctor | Featuring | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4.1 | A Star is Born | Richard Dinnick | William Russell | 1st | Barbara, Ian, Susan | 31 August 2011 |
| 4.2 | Penny Wise, Pound Foolish | Foster Marks | David Troughton | 2nd | Jamie, Zoe | |
| 4.3 | Lost in the Wakefield Triangle | Vin Marsden Hendrick | Katy Manning | 3rd | Jo | |
| 4.4 | The Old Rogue | John Grindrod | Louise Jameson | 4th | Romana II, K9 Mark II, Second Doctor, Jamie McCrimmon | |
| 4.5 | The Lions of Trafalgar | Jason Arnopp | Peter Davison | 5th | Nyssa, Tegan | |
| 4.6 | To Cut a Blade of Glass | Cindy Garland | Colin Baker | 6th | Peri | |
| 4.7 | The Shadow Trader | Charles Williams | Sophie Aldred | 7th | Ace | |
| 4.8 | Quantum Heresy | Avril Naude | India Fisher | 8th |
Monthly series
Starting in January 2015, new Short Trips have been released as monthly individual downloads.
Series 5
- Main article: Series 5 (ST)
| # | Title | Author | Performer | Doctor | Featuring | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5.1 | Flywheel Revolution | Dale Smith | Peter Purves | 1st | 5 January 2015 | |
| 5.2 | Little Doctors | Philip Lawrence | Frazer Hines | 2nd | Jamie, Zoe | 6 February 2015 |
| 5.3 | Time Tunnel | Nigel Fairs | Katy Manning | 3rd | Jo, the Brig, Yates, Benton | 5 March 2015 |
| 5.4 | The Ghost Trap | Nick Wallace | Louise Jameson | 4th | Leela | 6 April 2015 |
| 5.5 | The King of the Dead | Ian Atkins | Sarah Sutton | 5th | Nyssa, Tegan | 5 May 2015 |
| 5.6 | The Shadows of Serenity | Nigel Robinson | Nicola Bryant | 6th | Peri | 10 June 2015 |
| 5.7 | Dark Convoy | Mark B. Oliver | Sophie Aldred | 7th | Ace | 20 July 2015 |
| 5.8 | Foreshadowing | Julian Richards | India Fisher | 8th | Charley, Yates | 31 August 2015 |
| 5.9 | Etheria | Nick Wallace | Peter Purves | 1st | Vicki, Steven | 24 September 2015 |
| 5.10 | The Way of the Empty Hand | Julian Richards | Frazer Hines | 2nd | Jamie, Zoe | 22 October 2015 |
| 5.11 | The Other Woman | Philip Lawrence | Katy Manning | 3rd | Jo, the Brig | 20 November 2015 |
| 5.12 | Black Dog | Dale Smith | Louise Jameson | 4th | Leela | 23 December 2015 |
Series 6
- Main article: Series 6 (ST)
Series 7
- Main article: Series 7 (ST)
Series 8
- Main article: Series 8 (ST)
Series 9
- Main article: Series 9 (ST)
Series 10
- Main article: Series 10 (ST)
| # | Title | Author | Performer | Doctor | Featuring | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10.1 | The Infinite Today | Sharon Bidwell | Katy Manning | 11th | Jo Jones | 30 January 2020 |
| 10.2 | Deleted Scenes | Angus Dunican | Frazer Hines | 2nd, 4th | Jamie, Sarah Jane Smith | 14 February 2020 |
| 10.3 | Decline of the Ancient Mariner | Rob Nisbet | Mark Reynolds | 3rd | Sarah | 31 March 2020 |
| 10.4 | Dead Woman Walking | Roland Moore | Sophie Aldred | 7th | Ace | 30 April 2020 |
| 10.5 | Regeneration Impossible | Alfie Shaw | Jacob Dudman | 11th | Twelfth Doctor | 23 May 2020 |
| 10.6 | Out of the Deep | John Pritchard | Peter Purves | 1st | Steven | 30 May 2020 |
| 10.7 | Downward Spiral | Alan Flanagan | Sarah Sutton | 5th | Nyssa | 28 July 2020 |
| 10.8 | These Stolen Hours | Grace Knight | India Fisher | 6th | Charley | 28 August 2020 |
Subscriber exclusives
- Main article: Subscriber Short Trips
In addition to the above, several stories taken from the Short Trips books (up to Tweaker) have had readings recorded and made available for special subscriber-only downloads.[2] In December 2014, Big Finish announced a retroactive expansion of the subscriber exclusives with stories written specially for audio (from A Room with No View onwards). The expansion resulted in having four subscriber exclusives per year from 2010 onward.[3] All successive stories were also written specially for audio.
Rarities
- Main article: Short Trips Rarities
Starting in September 2016, Big Finish began re-releasing their Subscriber Short Trips stories in the Short Trips Rarities series.[4]
Miscellaneous
One Small Step..., originally printed in Short Trips: Past Tense in 2004, was read by Nicholas Briggs and played as part of the The Big Finish Podcast in 2009. It was played again on the podcast in 2016.
The Toy, read by Sarah Sutton, was originally released to subscribers of The Complete History in 2015. The following year, it was made available to purchase as part of the Short Trips Rarities range.
External links
- Official Short Trips page at bigfinish.com
Footnotes
- ↑ Big Finish - News - Short Trips Announcement (17 April 2009). Retrieved on 11 September 2009.
- ↑ Doctor Who - Subscriber Short Trips. Retrieved on 31 Dec 2016.
- ↑ Big Finish - News - Doctor Who Subscribers Get More - Short Trips (22 December 2014). Retrieved on 21 April 2016.
- ↑ Big Finish - News - Doctor Who Short Trips Offers! (30 September 2016). Retrieved on 30 September 2016.
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