The Doctor, Greg and Nadia arrive on Earth in the 1990s. They soon discover an alien conspiracy to fundamentally alter the planet for colonization. The key to defeating the Rigellons lies in Earth's orbit. The connection of 13 satellites could signal doom for humanity.

Originally released in 1985 as part of the first season of audio plays from Audio Visuals (a non-profit-making fan organisation).

CONNECTION 13

Connection 13 is very much in the experimental mould of The Space Wail. However, Connection 13's plot is a very basic story of alien invaders attempting the conquest of Earth, and in that genre it fulfils all the requirements perfectly adequately. There is very little to take the listener by surprise, and so the best way to enjoy this story is to expect rigid adherence to the 1950s 'B' movie formula with a touch of 1970s Pertwee era Doctor Who thrown in for good measure.

A justifiable misconception which has grown up about this story is that it features UNIT. The line in the script referring to UNIT was intended to give the impression that the military force featured in Connection 13 was part of another organisation which was aware of the existence of UNIT. The line is unintentionally ambiguous and therefore its intended meaning is academic. It certainly has become more convenient to identify this as 'the UNIT story'.

PRODUCTION NOTES

Connection 13 was the first story I recorded (preceeding The Time Ravagers), but my involvement began before the recording session. Having been asked by Bill Baggs to play the Doctor, I went to look over my first script - a bundle of faintly typed shhets covered in crossings-out and scribbled notes. I was invited to make sense of it and offer input. This I dutifully did, delivering a lengthy, critical speech.

It was then that I suddenly realised I was expected to engage my pen to implement practical solutions to the problems so boldly pronounced by my mouth! Working together, Bill and I gave Connection 13 some structure, but alas, no originality. As we scribbled, Marilyn Layton (Colonel Drayton) typed. Eventually we had a script, but not one the director had ever seen before... he still has the old version - it made for some lively debate during the rehearsals and recording!
Nicholas Briggs, March '92

CREDITS
Cast
The DoctorNicholas Briggs
Greg HolmesRichard Marson
NadiaSally Baggs
Colonel DraytonMarilyn Layton
TalvarTim Keable
RomneyNadir Meerza
MerzerIan Edmond
LievNick Layton
ListonJane Squires
Corporal JamesChris Corney
GrahamMat Duggan

Production

ScriptStuart Palmer
MusicBrian Marshall
EditorNick Layton
DirectorJohn Ryan
Cover ArtSean Ditchfield
DesignBRIX
ProducerWilliam Baggs
Audio Visuals is a non-profit-making fan organisation

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