I am a big Doctor Who fan. I *love* it. I'm not wild about the most recent of the new series for a lot of reasons (enough to make me think then deserve their own blog - we'll see how this Saturday's episode goes) but the classics from the old ones are great.

What you may or may not know is that there are also a heap of radio plays (and novels) out there continuing the adventures of the pre-reboot Doctors. I'm not their biggest fan because I never know who any of the characters are, but this one, Protect and Survive - linked to at the BBC iplayer above and which is available until next Monday the 25th November worldwide - is pretty damn special.

First, it's got Ace in it. I had two heroines when I was growing up - Evangeline Eliott from The House of Eliott, and Ace from Doctor Who. I loved Ace because she was brave and blew things up, two qualities I still aspire to have. 

Second, it's in-your-bones scary. Maybe it's an age thing, but I'm just about old enough to remember this type of thing. My Mammy was involved in Greenham Common. 

Third, the first part owes a massive, massive debt to Raymond Briggs' graphic novel, When the Wind Blows. Even if you don't listen to the rest of it, listen to the first part. Also, go and read that book because it is fucking amazing.

(Cynics may also add a fourth reason: because Sylvester McCoy hardly puts in an appearance. They will be dealt with harshly.)

Really liked this one. I've never seen an episode from the Seventh Doctor's tenure, so I'm ill-equipped to judge Malorie Blackman's character portrayals, but the actual story itself was really interesting and even kind of moving. It was perhaps too big of a story to try to tell in a little e-short, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Definitely looking to check out some more of Blackman's other stuff now. Only four Doctors left now. I'm still suuuuper curious who's going to get Ten and Eleven.

Well, this I believe was one of the last Missing Adventure Books that I have read (and while I would not be adverse to reading more, it really comes down to finding them, and I suspect that, with the exception of scouring second-hand bookshops, it may be expensive, particularly if I am ordering through Amazon). Anyway, this book involves Tegan, Adric, and Nyssa (whom I vote to be the Doctor's sexiest companion, at least for the older series, though I also quite liked Jo, Liz, and Romana II) and is set between Castrovalva and Four to Doomsday, but is also includes the Seventh Doctor from one of the novels, so in a way it is one of those two Doctors adventures.

The story takes place on an ice world which is ruled by a scientific elite that keeps the rest of the planet oppressed. However the planet, being an ice planet, is also a ski resort. This adventure is set quite a ways into the future there, where it appears that humanity has colonised vast swaths of the galaxy. It is always interesting to hear the Doctor praise humanity and its resourcefulness, in the belief that humans, deep down, are a good race of people. The Doctor always mentions that Earth is his favourite place, and humans are his favourite peoples.

I do not believe that this book has anything to do with the energy producing method called Cold Fusion, but I will speak a bit about it. As from my understanding (at least from year 12 physics) that fusion as a means of generating electricity was not possible, namely because the technology to enable the construction of a magnetic containment field simply has not been developed. Fusion power involves fusing two hydrogen atoms, which results in a huge burst of energy, however the amount of energy that is required to fuse the atoms requires an atomic explosion (fusion bombs, or hydrogen bombs, are detonated through the use of a fission bomb, otherwise known colloquially as atom bombs – both are nuclear weapons). However, the concept of cold fusion is that the fusing of the hydrogen atoms can be performed without resorting to nuclear power. While the idea may be enticing, as far as I believe, it is currently impossible.