Vampire of the Mind (audio story)

Somewhere off the South Coast of England, there's a lonely island. On that island stands a solitary castle, long since abandoned – haunted, they say. But the truth is, that castle houses something far worse than mere ghosts.

The castle is what lies at the end of a trail followed by the Doctor in search of several missing scientists – all of them connected to the top secret Dominus Institute and its elusive CEO, Sir Andrew Gobernar...

But the Doctor will soon discover that he's the one being haunted, by a ghost from his past... or perhaps, his future.

Plot[[edit] | [edit source]]

Part one[[edit] | [edit source]]

The Doctor comes to visit an old friend, Professor Threadstone, but he is not home; his daughter, Heather, informs him that he is looking for an old friend of him, Arthur Meekly, who has vanished. As they have tea, the assistant of another scientist, an acquaintance of her dad, calls Heather to ask her if she knows something about his whereabouts. The Doctor becomes suspicious about the disappearance of scientists, and together with Heather starts looking into it.

Upon their research, the Doctor and Heather find that all the missing scientists had their projects approved and funded by the Dominus Institute, a scientific research centre founded by some sir Alexander Gobernar. The name of the Institute raises the Doctor’s suspicions, since “dominus” in Latin may be another term for "Master". Seeing that the Institute is holding a review of the projects on which they are working, the Doctor calls UNIT and manages to obtain special passes for him and Heather so they can assist.

Meanwhile, Professor Threadstone becomes curious about a strange house in the whereabouts of the Dominus research centre, which locals say is haunted. Sometimes lights are seen at the windows, and creatures had been spotted in its surroundings. Coming to investigate, Threadstone is attacked by those creatures, which stand guard to something, and discover Meekly, the friend he was seeking, has become one of them.

At the review, where sir Gobernador does not appear (arising once again the Doctor’s suspicions), Heather and the Doctor meet Dr Damian Scott. He is presenting a device capable of storing human memories and putting them into someone else’s brain. The applications of such a technology worry the Doctor, and he and Heather decide to apply two different projects for the Institute to fund so that they can get in. To the Doctor’s frustration, his proposal is rejected, but Heather’s one is approved.

Upon their arrival, the Doctor and Heather are greeted by Sir Gobernar. The Doctor accuses him of being the Master, but after shaking his hand and feeling he has just one heartbeat, he starts thinking his suspicions may be wrong.

Part two[[edit] | [edit source]]

to be added

Part three[[edit] | [edit source]]

to be added

Part four[[edit] | [edit source]]

to be added

Cast[[edit] | [edit source]]

Uncredited[[edit] | [edit source]]

Mind Leach - Catriona Knox (BFX: Vampire of the Mind)

Crew[[edit] | [edit source]]

Cover Art - Simon Holub
Director - Jamie Anderson
Executive Producers - Nicholas Briggs and Jason Haigh-Ellery
Music and Sound Design - Andy Hardwick
Producer - David Richardson
Script Editor - Alan Barnes
Writer - Justin Richards

Worldbuilding[[edit] | [edit source]]

The Master is using the alias "Dr. Damien Scott".
The island is home to one of the prisons where UNIT held the Master.
Sir Andrew Gobernar's sister has advanced Alzheimer's disease.
The Master chose "Dominus" (the Latin word for "master") and manipulated Gobernar (whose surname is the Spanish word for "master") as part of the trap for the Doctor.
The Mind Leach is a native of Carmentia.
The Master believes himself to be suffering from post-regeneration amnesia. In actuality, he has not regenerated at all, having instead had his body switched with a future incarnation of himself.

Notes[[edit] | [edit source]]

This story was recorded on 9 and 11 November 2015 at the Moat Studios.

Continuity[[edit] | [edit source]]

When Heather asks the Doctor if it is safe to proceed, he replies, "Oh, I shouldn't think so for a moment". (TV: The Web of Fear)
The Doctor claims that he has "the directional instinct of a homing pigeon". (TV: The Chase)
The Doctor again uses a hairpin that once belonged to Marie Antoinette as a lock-pick. (TV: Pyramids of Mars)
The Doctor refers to UNIT capturing the Master at Devil's End (TV: The Dæmons) and his subsequent imprisonment. (TV: The Sea Devils)
The Doctor tells Heather and Professor Threadstone that the Master has a penchant for disguises. (TV: Castrovalva, Time-Flight, The King's Demons)
This audio drama has the Doctor cite his UNIT password as "buffalo"; this password had been introduced in the television episode World War Three, where the Ninth Doctor relays it to Mickey Smith, and in turn Mickey reveals the password (along with a second) on his website in the short story Hoax This!.
While tied up, the Doctor tells himself that he should have taken the same escapology lessons as Jo Grant. (TV: Terror of the Autons)
The Mind Leach absorbs the Doctor's short term memory, causing him to forget what this incarnation of the Master looked like. The Doctor once again met this version of the Master for the "first time" during his seventh incarnation. At that time, the Master was posing as a future incarnation of the Doctor. (AUDIO: Dominion)
One of the blanks says, "When I say 'run', run." (TV: The Tomb of the Cybermen) Another says, "I have reversed the polarity of the neutron flow". (TV: The Sea Devils)
The Doctor mentions that the Master's TARDIS might be a grandfather clock (TV: The Deadly Assassin, The Keeper of Traken; AUDIO: And You Will Obey Me), an iron maiden (TV: The King's Demons) or a horsebox. (TV: Terror of the Autons)
The boatman was later revealed to be an agent of a future version of the Master. (AUDIO: The Two Masters)

External links[[edit] | [edit source]]

Official Vampire of the Mind page at bigfinish.com