PODCAST: The Return of Doctor Mysterio

Yes! It's Christmas in April. Normally these updates are written in the third person, or as "we" but on this occasion, it's definitely Chris here apologizing to you for the tardiness of this podcast (not to mention the TARDISness). Recorded in January, it's finally limped out when my hand was forced by an upcoming new series of Doctor Who. Not to mention that the Class finale podcast is also planned to arrive prior to then.

I don't have good excuses so I won't offer them. The podcasts absolutely won't suffer from this problem all the time the series is on and I, and indeed we, hope you'll enjoy this late festive offering.

I chose not to go with a Christmas-themed playlist, though, as I figured that'd be taking the piss.

Listen to THE RETURN OF DOCTOR MYSTERIO

PODCAST: The Name of the Doctor

Introducing ERASMUS and SONIA as THE ELEVENTH HOUR PODCAST!

Only joking, but we had you going there, didn't we? We didn't? Ah well. At least would explain why this episode was so late, and be more exotic than the real reason (Chris, writing here in the third person, is very lazy).

Anyway, that was Doctor Who series 7b. A bunch of question marks, followed by a really big question mark. You could be forgiven for thinking that all the events of 2013's episodes have been solely to set up the plot for the 50th anniversary, primarily because that actually seems to have been the case. Still, this is about The Name of the Doctor and whether we liked it or not.

Join Joe and Chris as they continue to baffle audiences with the fluidity of their names, decry poorly defined footsoldier villains, imagine being phoned by The Silence, retcon the Dragonfire cliffhanger and say "tele pls" as they transport their voices into the internet in order for them to be splintered thousands of times (or, to be honest, more around the area of 923 times).

Also: John Hurt. Sorry to hear that, John.

Listen to THE NAME OF THE DOCTOR

Image courtesy of Grande-Caps
Available playlist on Spotify

EMERGENCY PODCAST: Nightmare in Silver

We were going to refer to this as "the most late episode of The Eleventh Hour Podcast ever", being that it's being released on the same day as the NEXT episode of Doctor Who but that's pure nonsense when one investigates the relaxed release schedule for the A Good Man Goes to War episode, the Torchwood double final and any given Christmas Special, and that's before you even consider the famously relaxed The Mind Robber episode.

Also, technically we still haven't released a proper episode for The Lodger, but that's because to this day only half of it exists due to some technical problems (Chris deleted his voice recording by mistake).

And speaking of those technical difficulties, we had similar ones this week which led us to abandon over 40 minutes of dynamite, top-quality material that you will never hear (featuring the brand new pseudonyms, Antoine McSkank and Ian Blast).

But, because we're us, we couldn't leave it without giving you chaps something and so here is our EMERGENCY PODCAST. Recorded on a phone in the middle of Best Friend of the Podcast Seb's 1970s party and without any post-production or music (but with an uninterrupted voicermail from Donald Pleasence*), it's the very definition of "the least we could do".

Also, we are far drunker than ever before on the podcast and frankly are still too drunk to be able to tell if this is noticeable or not. You fine, sober people be the judges.

LOVE YOOOOOOOU!

*not actually Donald Pleasence.

Listen to NIGHTMARE IN SILVER

Image, as has become customary, courtesy of Grande-Caps.

PODCAST: The Snowmen

Nothing says "late February" like a Christmas episode, and with that in mind here comes the most delayed Eleventh Hour Podcast Christmas episode ever. For the first time ever, Chris has a synthesizer set up and frankly takes too much advantage of this fact.

Join Joe and Chris as they make the song "For Your Eyes Only" even more sickening, say ever more inadvisable things (almost immediately and throughout) and solve the riddle to "Doctor Who?" (it involves homeopathy). This year, we have a playlist light on the Christmas and Snow but big on the Tears. Enjoy!

Listen to THE SNOWMEN

Image courtesy of Sonic Biro
Available playlist on Spotify

PODCAST: Patrick Troughton in The Mind Robber

Oh, yes. Recorded in 2010 and now lovingly released in 2012 it's the podcasting equivalent of the Brian Wilson album, Smile! Indeed, it is time to venture into The Mind Robber, Peter Ling's odd psychedelic 5-part tale that was beset by behind the scenes problems and managed to turn them into positives, even the unplanned temporary absence of one of the series' lead actors.

Join Joe and Chris as they finally talk about this classic, play some guitar, laugh at themselves and provide a somewhat belated preview of the then-forthcoming 2010 Christmas special and series 6 of Doctor Who. Oh what days they were. Days when we had never even heard of The Curse of the Black Spot. We shall never see their like again.

Listen to THE MIND ROBBER

Image courtesy of the Doctor Who Image Archive
Available playlist on Spotify

TORCHWOOD PODCAST: Miracle Day Final - The Gathering & The Blood Line

A mere eleven months after it was recorded (and thus more punctual than our episode for Patrick Troughton surreal-fest "The Mind Robber" can ever hope to be) it's our final episode of the short-lived Miracle Day podcast! You can find out what we thought of episodes nine and ten of Miracle Day (except that we've already told you our basic opinion in a completely different episode) as well as hearing our usual impeccable music choices resolutely talked over. In a newly-recorded intro section, your lovely hosts talk about the new Doctor Who trailer, but if you wish to completely avoid such chat you can do so by winding on to exactly 25 minutes dead. See, we're nice to you spoilerphobes. Remember to check in below for our playlist (themed for the Miracle Day episode, whatever we felt like for the intro) and enjoy! Finally.

LISTEN TO "MIRACLE DAY FINAL" - Playlist on Spotify

PODCAST: The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe

Here at EH? Towers we'd like to wish all our listeners a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. And also a jolly rest of January. And also a generally decent first half of February. Yes, it probably hasn't escaped your collective attentions that our Christmas special this year is a tad on the late side (beating last year's tardy offering by more than three weeks). While we could give the usual party line about us being lazy bastards, or busy bastards, or crazy bustards (what a day that was!), but we know that you're a generally forgiving and saintly bunch - handsome too! - and that you're just pleased to have us back in the game. After all, it IS all about The Game, and how you play it etc.

Anyway, this year's Christmas offering was, if we cast our collective mind back all that way, probably the smallest and gentlest feeling of any of the specials so far. Was that a bad thing? There's only one way to find out. So, if you wish, try and get yourselves back in the Christmassy mood as you listen to our hosts discuss the philosophical issues raised by half-bees, why the Doctor is like a time-travelling Barney Stinson, outdated claims about the Domino's Pizza thirty minute guarantee, more American Christmas music than we claim there'll be and what single degree of separation Joe has from actress Holly Earl. If you don't fancy that, why not approach it with a hard, cynical February mood? That works for us too.

Good to be back, and hopefully we won't be away for so long the next time.

LISTEN TO "THE DOCTOR, THE WIDOW AND THE WARDROBE"

Image from Sonic Biro.

Playlist on Spotify.

Last Christmas episode, we plugged a Doctor Who site so this year, have a plug for new-ish podcast The Sonic Toolbox!

PODCAST: The Girl Who Waited

Here at The Eleventh Hour Podcast, we've always been fans of the way that podcast releases are staggered over the week so that if you're a fan of a show, and an avid podcast listener, there's always a new one coming out that you can listen to. The Eleventh Hour Podcast, true to its name, has tended to be geared towards the end of the week but on this occasion (for which Chris accepts full responsibility) it's much later than usual.

Mind you, since the crux of The Girl Who Waited involves Amy being trapped for an incredibly long time in a dull, joyless hell without any indication that she will ever smile again, one could say that we were merely using the podcast in a metatextual fashion in order to bring this experience to your lives. Would you buy that?

Listen, finally, to THE GIRL WHO WAITED

Image from SONIC BIRO

PLAYLIST ON SPOTIFY