The Big Finish Short Trips range continues with a 1960s flavour in the Penelope Faith story, Lost and Found. Narrated by Anneke Wills (who played Polly in the TV series) it tells how the second incarnation of the Doctor arrives in 1948 London with Ben and Polly, to find a city starting to recover from the ravages of war, only to find another kind of war being fought inside a department store.

One of the strengths of this particular range is its ability to tell a class of story without needing to focus on action. This is a story driven by settings, by a strong sense of place and time, and a good grip on characters. Its use of narration supports an exploration of both Ben’s character (remember Ben first appeared in 1966, so this story is set in his and Polly’s childhood) and also of the contrast between his life in London and hers growing up in Hampshire.

Of course with Polly as the narrator, the focus is on her and we get a slice of Polly’s childhood memories driving a story with what has to be the oddest, most surreal, alien life-form in Doctor Who for many years. To explain would be to spoil, and like the rest of the range Lost and Found is something to savour. At heart it is a small story; no universes were saved, no threats to the fabric of time averted and no cosmic forces were rebalanced. Small is, however, beautiful, and Lost and Found definitely falls into this category.

Potentially too fantastical for all fans, it is still a tale worth telling, and again this range justifies listener’s investment.

LOST AND FOUND (DOCTOR WHO) / AUTHOR: PENELOPE FAITH / PUBLISHER: BIG FINISH / STARRING: ANNEKE WILLS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW