Ice Heist! was the first story of the twelfth series of The Fourth Doctor Adventures, produced by Big Finish Productions. It was written by Guy Adams and featured Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor, Louise Jameson as Leela and Nerys Hughes as Margaret Hopwood.
Publisher's summary[]
Recently, the world changed for Margaret Hopwood. Everything she knew was turned upside down by the arrival of a strange man in a blue box. And now nothing in her life seems the same. So when he comes back with a lady called Leela and an invitation to an unusual art gallery, she's more than happy to join him for the ride. And what a ride it is. Because it's an art gallery on a distant world...where a deadly plan is about to commence - one involving creatures called Ice Warriors.
Plot[]
Part one[]
Margaret Hopwood enters a shop in an attempt to purchase a bottle of wine, only to be told that she has stepped into a newsagent's by mistake. After leaving the newsagent's, the vicar approaches her to check if she's alright, but Margaret insists that she's fine and the vicar should focus on fixing the roof of his church, much to his frustration.
In her house, Margaret ignores the ringing phone in hopes of seeing Harry Mason in court. Once the phone stops ringing, Margaret hears the Doctor's TARDIS materializing outside her house. She opens the door to be greeted by the Fourth Doctor who invites her to an art gallery.
The TARDIS arrives at its destination and Leela explains to Margaret how the Doctor likes to arrive somewhere and then leave after a few minutes before introducing herself and promising to keep her safe along with the Doctor. She asks Margaret about the witch she helped the Doctor defeat at Ravencliff, and after admitting that she enjoyed the experience, Margaret explains that she is a sculptor. Eventually, the Doctors enters talking about how cold it is and both Leela and Margaret decide to follow him.
While the Doctor talks about how everyone in the universe needs pockets, Leela replies that she doesn't need pockets as she has pouches, but the Doctor tells her that she cannot place her hand into a pouch as deeply as a pocket. The trio exits the TARDIS to find themselves at an enormous art gallery inside a climate-controlled dome, outside which is a snowy landscape where anyone who steps outside will be frozen in seconds. Every five minutes, there is an ice burst that causes a rain of ice chunks.
Margaret is completely taken aback at being on a different planet and needs to get her bearings. The Doctor tells her that they are on a planet called Terra Glacier which is known for its exhibitions and auctions, with an auction dedicated to sculpture happening tonight. The Doctor and Leela are looking at a piece of art that Leela thinks is ugly. Margaret suggests that it should have fewer tentacles and mouths, but the Doctor points out that it's a self-portrait of the artist, Baretti Vetzi-Snori. Upon hearing this, Leela apologizes for insulting the artist, but the Doctor tells her that he is used to being insulted.
The group is soon approached by Allerdyce Benexa, the head curator and auctioneer, who asks them if they have invitations. As he tries to see if they have invitations, the Doctor talks about how he wanted to be a zookeeper, but changed his mind when he saw too many bars, likening zookeepers to prison wardens. Just after Allerdyce calls for security, the Doctor produces four invitations, allowing him and his companions to enjoy the auction. Allerdyce hopes that they decide to purchase something of interest at the auction.
In the security office, the chief is told of some strange readings from outside the dome, but he is adamant that no life forms can hope to survive the cold environment outside the dome, though he still asks for the sensors to be patched to central command. After seeing two figures moving outside, the chief orders a full sweep of the area.
The Doctor, Leela and Margaret find themselves at a party which is being held before the auction, much to Leela's displeasure. Among the many non-human attendees is a female Martian named Kaltakk who considers the name "Ice Warrior" to be archaic. Leela is distrusting of Kaltakk due to her previous experiences with the Ice Warriors, prompting Kaltakk to ask for forgiveness for troubling her, before walking off while remarking how Earth is full of racists.
Leela tells Margaret about the time she and the Doctor prevented the Ice Warriors from freezing Blackpool as part of a plan to take over the Earth, but the Doctor believes that not all Martians are evil. He then explains to an amazed Margaret that the Ice Warriors are a military race that are highly concerned with honor and only attempted to freeze Blackpool in order to preserve the safety of their race, adding that the humans are of quite a similar mind when it comes to colonialism, before deciding to go and look for canopies to put things in perspective.
The security chief informs Allerdyce about the anonymous readings that were picked up, but Allerdyce tells him that nothing can survive outside the dome. When she is shown a recording of movement, Allerdyce is unconcerned and tells the security chief to continue with his job while she continues with hers.
The Doctor, Leela and Margaret are relaxing inside a canopy and indulging in some pastries. Leela tells Margaret that when she first met the Doctor, her world was going to be different from how she used to see it. She then gains an interest in a knife that burns as it cuts, which the Doctor explains is used to create ice sculptures.
Allerdyce Benexa welcomes everyone to the auction of what is considered to be the finest pieces of sculpture in the known universe. She introduces Kaltakk, who is the cultural envoy of Mars and is introducing an important piece of Martian social history. After being told that Benexa has no Martian relatives, Kaltakk presents a ten-thousand year old statue of Isskar, one of the most respected Martian generals in history. She goes on to explain that the statue was built to commemorate his death. After the statue was removed by human archaeologists, it was returned to the Martian government to make piece between the humans and the Martians, and Kaltakk tells the attendees that every credit that is raised by the statue will help to rebuild the Martian civilization on Mars.
Up next is Dorn Callister, who presents his first piece of sculpture work, which is inspired by the indigenous people who previously lived on Terra Glacier. The collection, called "Buried", includes representations of the Warrior Queen named Pangladasha and four members of her court who could extend icy sections of their bodies to use as tools and weapons. Dorn explains that the sculptures have been created from liquid contained inside a very specially-programmed force barrier. Leela is suspicious of Dorn and tells the Doctor not to buy his sculptures.
After Allerdyce Benexa says that "Buried" will be one of the final exhibits to be sold during the evening, along with a piece known as "Hope", created by Margaret Hopwood. The Doctor explains to a shocked Margaret that this is the reason he wanted to bring her to this auction. After Benexa says that Hopwood's work has become increasingly rare after her death 300 years ago, a horrified Margaret runs out of the room. Leela tells the Doctor that he showed Margaret her gravestone before deciding to go after her.
Margaret accidentally collides with an alien before coming across a door that opens before she can figure out how to operate it. Another alien steps through the door and Margaret runs off due to her inability to understand it.
At the party, Kaltakk approaches the Doctor who offers her a canopy and apologizes to her for what Leela said to her earlier, but Kaltakk leaves to attend to some things that she has to do.
Margaret tries to open a door with a keypad, only to be found by a security guard who tells her that she is trying to open the main exit and stepping outside would be a fatal mistake. He explains that the blue light above the door shows whether the thermal bubble is in effect so that opening the door doesn't kill anyone in the room that he and Margaret are in. Margaret explains to the guard that she didn't expect to see any of the stuff that she has seen today, prompting him to tell her that whenever he gets twitchy, he reminds himself that he can speak Delphon since the age of ten.
Suddenly, the guard is killed by Kaltakk who opens the main exit doors and allows the cold air to enter the room, along with a squadron of Ice Warriors who are ordered to kill Margaret so that she cannot alert anyone else at the auction about the warriors' arrival.
Part two[]
Before the Ice Warriors can kill Margaret, Leela arrives with a laser blaster which she picked up from the dead guard. She uses the laser to distract the warriors so that both she and Margaret can escape. The squadron's leader, General Shakeer, chastises his warriors for scattering when Leela fired at them as he now believes that the women will inform the security that the Ice Warriors are in the building. He orders three Ice Warriors to stop the women.
Kaltakk orders Shakeer to adjust the temperature, to which Shakeer replies that he is a general in the Martian army, but Kaltakk reminds him that he is no longer considered a general. Angered, Shakeer orders two more Ice Warriors to accompany him.
The Doctor approaches Benexa to see if everything is alright with her as both Leela and Margaret have disappeared, as has Kaltakk. He points out that the air pressure has deterred and the air conditioning seems to be causing the museum to become colder, but Benexa dismisses his concerns. Dorn asks the Doctor if he is a buyer, to which the Doctor replies that he knows everything about art but can't decide what he likes.
The Doctor asks Dorn if he is an engineer with knowledge in force barrier technology, and Dorn answers that he comes up with the design while his facilitators create the technology. After hearing this, the Doctor decides to go and look for Leela and Margaret, leaving Dorn to remark how lucky the Doctor is to have two friends.
Leela and Margaret continue to run from the pursuing Ice Warriors so they can inform the Doctor what is happening. Margaret wonders if Leela and the Doctor show up somewhere and wait for trouble to arise so that they can put things right, to which Leela replies that they don't have to wait on good days. An Ice Warrior appears and fires its sonic weapon.
Allerdyce Benexa meets the head of security who tells her that he is unable to raise one of his fellow guards who was checking the main entrance and both video cameras and communications are deactivated throughout the whole sector, leaving him only able to cover the auction room and the central atrium. The guard has sent a maintenance crew to repair the cameras and some guards to investigate the main entrance.
When he tries to get in touch with one of the other guards, Kavanagh, Shakeer destroys the communication device that his voice is emanating from before hissing that Kavanagh cannot hear his voice because he is dead. He goes on to order one of his warriors, Zzaar, to cut the communication circuits, which Zzaar quickly does, allowing the Ice Warriors to complete their mission with some professionalism. Krall and Fossk inform Shakeer that they are still pursuing Leela and Margaret whilst sealing off the section they are in so they cannot escape.
Leela and Margaret attempt to open a door while Leela complains that doors with buttons go wrong unlike doors with handles. They open a ventilation duct and begin to crawl through so that they can enter the next section. The Ice Warriors inform Shakeer that Margaret and Leela have entered the air conditioning vents, which pleases Shakeer as he states that they will soon be dead. He orders Zzaar to reduce the localized heating to its lowest setting.
The Doctor enters the security office where he meets the head of security, Stringer, who tells him that the guards are investigating the deactivation of the security cameras and they were picking up movement outside the dome. Benexa tells Stringer to remove the Doctor, but Stringer refuses due to trusting him. The Doctor convinces Stringer to leave the security office to investigate the movement and keep the guests in a single secure location. After telling Benexa about the dangers of putting all the eggs in one basket, he leaves as well.
Kaltakk chastises Shakeer for letting Leela and Margaret escape, but Shakeer insists that Kaltakk is to blame for their mission not being completed yet and making Leela and Margaret a problem for them. Shakeer is told that the Ice Warriors will have access to the transmat system shortly, then they will be reprogrammed in 7 minutes, much to his frustration.
Leela and Margaret are still crawling through the vents which are gradually becoming colder. Having memorized the route she took from the party, Leela leads Margaret through the vents, while assuring her that she made no mistakes. If she hadn't left the party and Leela hadn't followed her, then they wouldn't have known how many Ice Warriors had arrived on Terra Glacier, adding that if she saw the certainty of her own death, then she would have run away just like Margaret did. They both talk about how the Doctor usually expects people to be impressed with what he wants to show them even when it turns out they aren't impressed, yet despite this, he is still a hero and a great teacher.
The Doctor adapts Stringer's pocket messenger to act as a life-sign tracker, only for Stringer to reveal that he has a life-sign tracking app anyway. The app tells them that there are fewer life-signs than there should be. The number of life forms normally consists of 60 staff members and 112 guests, with Benexa and Stringer being the only senior staff members on-site and the guests sticking to the public sector, which includes a guest hotel that is accessed through the transmat. Stringer sees that the number of life-signs has been slowly decreasing.
The Ice Warriors are attacking everyone at the auction as Leela and Margaret look on in horror from the vent.
The transmat system has finally been accessed by the Ice Warriors. Kaltakk decides to return to the auction so that she is not suspected, but Shakeer orders her to stay, saying that he agreed to being employed by her so that he would be given full control of the military part of their operation. Kaltakk replies by saying that Shakeer lost his right to be in charge of the military years ago and is little more than what she considers a common thief. Shakeer tells Kaltakk that his warriors are sweeping the area between the transmat room and the auction room so they can ensure that nothing ruins their operation.
Angered, Kaltakk tells Shakeer that their operation was supposed to be carried out with stealth and minimal loss of life, to which Shakeer replies that she let Leela and Margaret escape. He goes on to say that video and radio for the functional area of the base are deactivated and anyone who is still alive in the area will be killed.
Unable to use his Sonic Screwdriver to open a door that the Ice Warriors have sealed off, the Doctor is told by Stringer that there are 6 Ice Warriors in the building's main engineering room. He assumes that they are trying to reclaim an important piece of their history. Stringer picks up 2 life-signs in the ventilation ducts which are colder than the corridors. Upon hearing this, both the Doctor and Stringer make their way to an access hatch.
Stringer opens the access hatch and calls into the duct whilst the Doctor uses the map to see the location of the life-signs. When they see that the life-signs are not moving, the Doctor decides to enter the duct due to having a higher tolerance of the cold than Stringer does. Before going in, he advises Stringer to raise the alarm and check on Allerdyce Benexa.
Coming to a security panel, Stringer initiates the shutdown procedures, causing the transmat controls to be locked out. This prompts Kaltakk to chastise Shakeer again for not being subtle as the auctions, including the statue that they wanted, are now being transmitted into the vault, to which Shakeer replies by killing Kaltakk, something that he states he should have done as soon as he arrived at Terra Glacier. Shakeer then orders his warriors to converge on the main auction area.
The Doctor finds Leela and Margaret in the ventilation duct and begins to bring them out.
At the auction, Allerdyce Benexa tries to assure the auctioneers that everything is under control, but Callister is worried about his work as it has environmental needs to ensure its safety, to which Benexa replies by telling him to let her get on with her job.
The Doctor brings Leela and Margaret out of the ventilation duct and is then told by Stringer that the Ice Warriors are gathering on the other side of the door which they soon destroy. This prompts the Doctor, Leela, Margaret and Stringer to run into the auction room where Shakeer and his warriors appear. Shakeer states that he and his warriors want the art and he will kill everyone at the auction if they don't transport it to their ship.
Part three[]
to be added
Part four[]
to be added
Cast[]
- The Doctor - Tom Baker
- Leela - Louise Jameson
- Margaret - Nerys Hughes
- Dorn Callister / Security Guard - Oliver Chris
- Allerdyce Benexa / Pangladasha - Beth Goddard
- Stringer / Skoob - Robert Whitelock
- Kaltakk - Adele Lynch
- Ice Warriors / Vicar - Nicholas Briggs
Crew[]
- Cover Art - Ryan Aplin
- Director - Nicholas Briggs
- Executive Producers - Jason Haigh-Ellery and Nicholas Briggs
- Music - Jamie Robertson
- Producer - David Richardson
- Script Editor - John Dorney
- Sound Design - Toby Hrycek-Robinson
- Writer - Guy Adams
- Ice Warriors created by Brian Hayles
Worldbuilding[]
to be added
Notes[]
- This story was recorded on 3-4 September 2018 at Audio Sorcery.
- This story depicts the Fourth Doctor's first encounter with the Ice Warriors in performed Doctor Who.
Continuity[]
- Leela asks Margaret about the witch she helped the Doctor defeat at Ravencliff. (AUDIO: The Ravencliff Witch)
- A statue of Isskar is put up for auction by Kaltaak to help with the rebuilding of Mars. (AUDIO: The Judgement of Isskar)
External links[]
- Official Ice Heist! page at bigfinish.com
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
.jpg){kind=link}