Time travel can always bring complications. The Doctor, Leela and K9 find themselves at different ends of strange temporal effects – from two time zones on the same planet to two locations that couldn’t be more different. But the peril they find in all of these places is the same. 

The Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker) returns alongside his companions Leela (Louise Jameson) and K9 (John Leeson) in the forthcoming audio drama box set The Fourth Doctor Adventures: The Ruins of Kaerula, which comprises three episodes of exciting time travel adventure. 

The first two stories in the set, The Remains of Kaerula and The Ruins of Kaerula, are set at different points in the timeline of the same planet. The TARDIS travellers first explore a world dealing with the consequences of a past crisis, and then head back in time to find themselves caught up in that very history. 

The third story, Cry of the Banshee, reunites the Doctor and his companions with Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart (Jon Culshaw), making his Fourth Doctor Adventures debut, in an adventure that takes them from Geneva to Jupiter. 

Doctor Who – The Fourth Doctor Adventures: The Ruins of Kaerula is now available to pre-order from just £19.99 (download to own) or £24.99 (download to own + collector’s edition 3-disc CD box set), exclusively here. Please note: the collector’s edition CD box set is strictly limited to 1,500 copies and will not be repressed. 

The three adventures for the Fourth Doctor and co. are: 

The Remains of Kaerula by Phil Mulryne

When a time anomaly brings the TARDIS down on the planet Kaerula, the Doctor and his companions set out to investigate. They soon meet two escapees from a nearby containment camp, who warn them of mysterious cave creatures. 

While Leela and K9 venture deep into the caves, the Doctor must broker a peace between the Kaerulans and the Rems... but on this occasion, time may not be on his side. 

The Ruins of Kaerula by Phil Mulryne 

The TARDIS crew have attempted to depart Kaerula, only for an experiment gone awry to drag them back to an earlier point in the world’s history. 

Now stranded, the Doctor, Leela and K9 encounter very different versions of people they’d only just met, and must deal with the consequences of their own actions. And the experiment has brought something else to this planet – something terrifying and deadly. 

Cry of the Banshee by Tim Foley 

The Brigadier uses the Time-Space Telegraph to summon the TARDIS to a stormy Geneva, where a World Peace Conference has been interrupted by a mysterious death. The Irish delegate has died of fright... after seemingly being visited by a Banshee. 

Tracing the source of the attack, the Doctor takes the Brigadier, Leela and K9 to a thirtieth-century space station orbiting Jupiter, with a boggy marsh for an interior. Deep within the station lie the answers to the puzzle… as well as secrets and dangers best left undiscovered. 

Writer Phil Mulryne said: “This is such a classic TARDIS team and it is a privilege to write for them. Leela and K9 are at opposite extremes of the Doctor's personality, which can provide great stories and lots of fun dynamics. 

“We didn't want to do a conventional four-parter, but thought it might be fun to have two linked two-part stories, with some slightly timey-wimey element, which classic Doctor Who definitely did sometimes – City of Death has a lot of that. And that's why we ended up with this idea of the first story taking place after a great disaster, dealing with the consequences of it, and then going back and letting us see more of the crisis actually occurring.” 

In a further time-bending twist, the guest cast of the third episode, Cry of the Banshee, features two names well known to Big Finish listeners, though the episode was recorded before they signed up for their recurring roles. 

Producer David Richardson explains: “Cry of the Banshee is another script from the magnificent Tim Foley, which was recorded almost five years ago, and guest stars Jonathon Carley – this was the day he auditioned for the War Doctor! – and Jaye Griffiths – long before she was cast as the Eighth Doctor’s companion Audacity.” 

All three of 2025’s Fourth Doctor Adventures box sets (due for release in March, June and September) can be pre-ordered together in a bundle from just £57 (download to own) or £70.50 (download to own + collector’s edition CD). All the above prices include the special pre-order discount and are subject to change after general release. 

Alternatively, listeners can buy this series as part of a bundle of all 15 Classic Doctor Who box sets released in 2025 from just £275 (download to own) or £335 (download to own + collector’s edition CD box set). Please note: the above multi-buy bundle pre-order prices are discounted for 2024 only and guaranteed no later than 31 January 2025. 

Please note that Big Finish is currently operating a digital-first release schedule. The mail-out of collector’s edition CDs may be delayed due to factors beyond our control, but all purchases of this release unlock a digital copy that can be immediately downloaded or played on the Big Finish app from the release date.