Death in Blackpool (audio story)

Death in Blackpool was the first story in the fourth series of the Eighth Doctor Adventures, produced by Big Finish Productions. It was written by Alan Barnes and featured Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor and Sheridan Smith as Lucie Miller.

Even though she would make an appearance in five more stories, this story marked the end of Lucie's travels aboard the TARDIS, and also closed the "Aunty Pat" story-arc.

Publisher's summary
Lucie Miller always loved Christmas back home in Blackpool. Her Mum running a still-frozen turkey under the hot tap at ten. Great-Grandma Miller half-cut on cooking sherry by eleven. Her Dad and her uncle arguing hammer and tongs about who was the best James Bond all through dinner. And in the afternoon, Aunty Pat, haring up to the house on the back of a moped weighed down with ridiculous presents.

Christmas 2009 didn't turn out like that.

Christmas 2009, the Doctor turned up...

Plot
to be added

Cast

 * The Doctor - Paul McGann
 * Lucie Miller - Sheridan Smith
 * Auntie Pat - Helen Lederer
 * Billy - David Schofield
 * Father Christmas / Security Guard - Jon Glover
 * Natasha / Marika / Receptionist - Harriet Kershaw
 * Shopkeeper - Nicholas Briggs

Individuals

 * Billy had a teacher called Mrs Williams.
 * Billy has a son.
 * Lucie sarcastically refers to the barista as Paolo Panini.
 * The Doctor wonders if Flo still works at the services.
 * Lucie used to have a boyfriend who was diabetic.
 * Pat has previously taken Sven and Wolfie to Blackpool at Christmas.
 * Doctor Millington works at Blackpool General.
 * Bill is a patient at Blackpool General.
 * His friends include Stubbsy, Banksy and Barnesy.
 * The Doctor mentions Trevor

Species

 * Lucie remembers the Only Ones.
 * "Billy" uses cats as an examle of a different state of awareness.

Locations

 * Billy mentions Roedean.
 * Billy travels to Warrington.
 * He plans to drop Natasha there, from where she can take the M6 north to Blackpool.
 * Billy has a motor business in Sydenham.
 * Bramlington is located just of the M62.
 * Lucie says that spelling her name with a Y, instead of IE, makes it "all Home Counties and horsey".
 * Lucie lives as 46 Cheney Road, Blackpool.
 * Father Christmas mentions Blackpool Tower.
 * Lucie mentions the Golden Mile.
 * Father Christmas mentions the Pennines.
 * The Doctor says he once rode a magic carpet over the Khyber Pass.
 * Lucie mentions Saint Annes.
 * The Doctor suggests taking Lucie to Kal-Med One or the Bi-Al Foundation.

Technology

 * Billy's son used play with a yellow Dinky hot rod, so Billy's bought him "the big version".
 * Pat drives a blue Nova.
 * Pat used a Parabolic diverter to pull the TARDIS out of the vortex into 2008.
 * Pat mentions the Skarasen.
 * Billy's hot rod has the registration FW15BB.
 * Father Christmas suggests checking CCTV.
 * "Billy" uses a Zynog diadem to get inside Lucie's head.

Popular culture

 * Lucie mentions James Bond.
 * Lucie mentions Del Boy.
 * Father Christmas is looking for his reindeer: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen. He also mentions Rudolph.
 * Lucie jokingly refers to Pat as Parker.
 * Lucie mentions Holby City.
 * Lucie compares "Billy" to Saint Peter.
 * "Billy" mentions Casualty.

Music

 * Billy sings "While shepherds washed their socks", a variation of "While shepherds watched their flocks".
 * The variation of the song mentions Sunlight Soap.
 * Pat likes James Blunt.
 * Pat tells Lucie "You're beautiful", making her think of the James Blunt song.
 * Lucie has never heard of Siouxsie and the Banshees.
 * Father Christmas sings "In the Bleak Midwinter".

Continuity

 * The TARDIS materialises in the same service station in Bramlington as it previously visited in 1974. (AUDIO: Horror of Glam Rock)
 * Lucie discovers that her aunt Patricia Ryder died in 1984 and that her identity was assumed by her Zygon husband Trevor. (AUDIO: The Zygon Who Fell to Earth)
 * The Doctor refers to Cal-Med One and the Bi-Al Foundation. (TV: The Invisible Enemy)
 * There is some confusion as to the timeline placement of this story. The Publisher's Summary gives a year of 2009. In the story itself, the Doctor is aiming for Lucie's time and ends up one year earlier, in 2008. Furthermore, Within the story, the Lucie Miller of that time, not travelling with the Doctor, is present when the "current" Lucie and the Doctor arrive. However, Lucie's introductory story, AUDIO: Blood of the Daleks establishes she originally hailed from 2006.
 * The obvious solution to this is that the Lucie which appeared in the story was the one present on Earth after she was taken home by Straxus (AUDIO: The Vengeance of Morbius) and before she was reunited with the Doctor on Orbis. (AUDIO: Orbis)