Damaged Goods was the sixth story in Big Finish Productions' Novel Adaptations range. It was adapted from the novel of the same name, originally written by Russell T Davies and adapted to audio by Jonathan Morris, and featured Sylvester McCoy as the Seventh Doctor, Travis Oliver as Chris Cwej and Yasmin Bannerman as Roz Forrester.
Publisher's summary
The year is 1987 and there's a deadly new narcotic on the streets of London. As part of their investigations the Doctor and his companions Chris and Roz move into the Quadrant, a rundown housing estate. An ancient alien menace has been unleashed, a menace somehow linked to a local gang leader known as The Capper, a charmed young boy called Gabriel and his mother Winnie, the enigmatic Frei Foundation, and Eva Jericho, a woman driven to the brink of madness.
As London descends into an apocalyptic nightmare, the Doctor must uncover the truth about the residents of the Quadrant and a desperate bargain made one dark Christmas Eve.
Plot
Part One
to be added
Part Two
to be added
Cast
- The Doctor - Sylvester McCoy
- Chris Cwej - Travis Oliver
- Roz Forrester - Yasmin Bannerman
- Winnie Tyler - Michelle Collins
- Eva Jericho - Denise Black
- Bev Tyler - Georgie Fuller
- Gabriel Tyler / Steven Jericho - Tayler Marshall
- Harry Harvey - Richard Hope
- David Daniels - Daniel Brocklebank
- The Capper - Peter Barrett
- Mr Thomas / Doctor Greco - Robert Duncan
- Scott Delaney - Damian Lynch
Crew
- Cover Art - Tom Webster
- Director - Ken Bentley
- Executive Producers - Nicholas Briggs and Jason Haigh-Ellery
- Music and Sound Design - Howard Carter
- Producer - David Richardson
- Script Editor - Joseph Lidster
- Writer - Russell T Davies, adapted by Jonathan Morris
Worldbuilding
- The Long Good Friday is one of David's favourite films.
- Chris tells David that there is no taboo about homosexuality in the time he comes from.
- Reference to Jayne Mansfield in The Girl Can't Help It.
- David mentions Sammy Jo and Krystal (characters from 80's soap opera 'Dynasty'), saying that Sammy Jo said to Krystal "All cats are grey in the dark." 
- "The Stolen Child" by William Butler Yeats, is referenced several times.
Notes
- This audio drama was recorded on 28 and 29 July 2014 at The Moat Studios.
- Along with The Well-Mannered War, this story was released in Novel Adaptations: Volume 2. Listeners who purchased this version of the release from the Big Finish website received 40 minutes of additional interviews as a download, totalling 90 minutes of content for Damaged Goods and 30 minutes for The Well-Mannered War.
- Although originally intended to be released in May 2015, Big Finish announced an early release for April 13th 2015. However, retailers besides Big Finish did not release the story until May 2015.[1]
- Tom Webster's cover artwork for this story emulates the cover of the original novel.
- This story introduces a new theme for the Seventh Doctor, closer in style to the one used in the TV movie. It makes one more appearance in this range with Original Sin.
- A number of people involved in this story have worked with Russell T Davies before, including Travis Oliver and Michelle Collins who were in series 3 of Doctor Who, Yasmin Bannerman who was in series 1 of Doctor Who and series 1 of Torchwood, and Denise Black who is better known for playing Hazel Tyler in the series Queer as Folk.
- A news reader indicates that the date is Sunday the 26th of July.
Continuity
- The Doctor says that he is "the definitive article." (TV: Robot)
- The Doctor has never heard of the Torchwood Institute. (TV: Tooth and Claw, et al.) The Eighth Doctor later found cryptic references to Torchwood in files at the Edinburgh Herald, intending to look into them in the future. (AUDIO: The Scent of Blood) The Tenth Doctor, having evidently forgotten the identity of James Greco's employers, would later claim that he had never heard of Torchwood before his arrival at Torchwood One. (TV: Army of Ghosts)
- The N-Forms were engineered by the Time Lords during the time war against the Great Vampires. (TV: State of Decay) The Doctor is surprised to learn there is another Time War yet to come.
Deviations from the original novel
- The Quadrant is located in London, rather than in the north of England.
- The drug is named SMILE rather than cocaine.
- The opening scenes featuring the Doctor in New York City are cut.
- Chris and David only kiss, rather than having sex.
- Mrs Hearn is excised from the story, although she is referred to.
- The Capper jumps from a building rather than setting himself on fire.
- Mrs Jericho runs Thomas over rather than sticking cutlery in his chest.
- Dr Greco works for the Torchwood Institute rather than the Brotherhood of the Immanent Flesh.
- Lines where the Doctor speculates that the N-Form may have been reactivated by the Time Lords for a time war are reproduced from the original novel, but without the added context of the cliffhanger leading into So Vile a Sin (and its reveal that the Brotherhood of the Immanent Flesh are responsible) the audio leaves an implication (later picked up on in Desperate Measures, et al.) that the N-Form was reactivated for the Last Great Time War.
- Both Bev and Gabriel survive, whereas in the novel only Gabriel survived in a coma. After Winnie dies, the siblings are adopted by David and Harry, thanks to the Doctor's intervention in the processing of the paperwork.
Footnotes
External links
- Official Damaged Goods page at bigfinish.com
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