On hearing the news...

[thisbluespirit]

What a thing to wake up to - and I can see my flist is saying everything that I might say, and more, and better, so I'll link to this news article that says it all very succintly, rather than waffle.

And so I'll just do what I always do, and make fic recs, because the Brigadier would never have been the awesome character everyone loves to read/write about were it not for the immense charm and likeability of Nicholas Courtney, who with his seemingly endless fondness for the role and the show became far much more to everyone involved than 'just' an actor who was in it for a few years.


The article suggests watching Inferno - well, here's a clip: "There's nothing like a nice happy ending, is there?"

Fics - I don't suppose there'll be much that is new to people here, but I've aimed for celebratory things in as many eras as possible. (In fact, a quick count of the good Brigadier fics I could think of have nearly about all been recced on calufrax, which just goes to show how awesome the Brigadier is, obviously.)

All These Things That We've Done by netgirl_y2k.
The one where the Brigadier and Liz Shaw travel as companions to the Third Doctor. (1963 words, All ages. Three, Brigadier, Liz. Slight Brig/Liz.)

Ground Rules by jjpor
“The Doctor?” The Brigadier thought about that for a moment. “He’s the Queen’s sworn enemy as well?”. (3554 words, All ages. Brigadier, Benton, UNIT, Torchwood.) 1970s UNIT and the Brigadier pwn Torchwood. Hurray.

Patterns by Selena
There are patterns in the Doctor’s lives. Just ask the Brigadier, or Harriet Jones. (3125 words, All ages. Three, Ten, Brigadier, Harriet Jones, The Master.)

Still Waiting by Sheila Adamson
The Brigadier and Jo practise life without the Doctor. (2688 words, All ages. Brigadier, Jo.)

I could here say 'everything primsong's written in Three's era', but I'll come down to: The Annual UNIT Picnic (All ages, 3538 words. Three, Brigadier, UNIT. On a picnic, yes.) and a longer fic: The Eggs of Destruction (33,461 words, All ages. Three, Brigadier, the Master, lots of egg-related puns, but mainly Three and the Brigadier investigating a puzzle together.)

Au revoir by Von Quixote
Post-Battlefield. After the fight, after the supper, the Doctor and the Brigadier share Scotch and extended metaphors. (689 words, All ages. Brigadier, Seven.)

Small Creatures by paranoidangel42
The Ninth Doctor uncovers a mystery in the Brigadier's garden. (3716 words, All ages. Nine, Brigadier.)

Time Lines, Schmime Lines by SleepySheep683
In order to repair his TARDIS, the Doctor braves crossing his own time line. With Donna in tow, this turns out to be the least of his problems. Brig/Donna (6092 words, Teen. Ten, Donna, Brig.) (Brig/Donna with horrified!Ten standing by has to be one of the funniest things ever.)

Postcards by uktechgirl
Doris Lethbridge-Stewart enjoys a relaxing holiday in the Highlands. Ish. (836 words, All ages. Doris, Harry Sullivan, Brigadier.) Glimpses into the Brigadier's non-retirement.

Filthy Lucre by calapine
Where the Doctor got his paper bag of cash from in The Lodger. (1063 words, All ages. Eleven, Brigadier.) Yay.


:-(

Comments

[endeni]

Wow, thanks for the great list. Also, I seem to have some problems with the link to "Time Lines, Schmime Lines"?

[thisbluespirit]

No problem! :-)

I was tired doing this - knew I was bound to slip up somewhere! There was no link in the html, but all fixed now.

[pedanther]

scarfman has marked the occasion by reposting one of his old stories about the Brigadier.

I should probably add a reassurance that it's not nearly as gloomy as it appears it's going to be at the start.

[thisbluespirit]

Thanks!

[curuchamion.livejournal.com]

Thank you for that link! THAT IS AWESOME. And sweet.

[thisbluespirit]

*salutes*

[aralias.livejournal.com]

hadn't read postcards (and some of the longer ones - which hopefully i will get to at some point), and really really liked it. thanks for posting this list :)

[thisbluespirit]

I think they really *have* all been on calufrax, but glad you liked the list, anyway! :-)

[persiflage-1.livejournal.com]

I'm having Big Finish Brigadier tribute day:

Old Soldiers (Companion Chronicle)
The Spectre of Lanyon Moor (Six, Evelyn and the Brig)
Unbound: Sympathy for the Devil (Alt!Three (voiced by the awesome David Warner), The Brig and David Tennant's Col Brimmicombe-Wood)
Unbound: Masters of War (Alt!Three & the Brig, sequel to Sympathy)

I don't have Minuet in Hell...

I recommend this fanvid too. Lovely work.

[thisbluespirit]

It would take me about a month to listen to all those!! :-)

*hugs* again

Thanks for the fanvid rec - I am still annoyed that the Brigadier fanvids that I used to like have been taken off YouTUbe.

[persiflage-1.livejournal.com]

It's going to take me several days, around work, to listen to them. (I'd forgotten he's also in Zagreus, and 3 of the 5 UNIT audios.)

[dbskyler.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the fic recs. I don't know all of these, and it's nice to have handy links to the ones I do know. I think I'll be doing a fair amount of Brig reading over the next few days.

[thisbluespirit]

Yes, I think you won't be alone in that. :-(

Glad it's handy for you! :-) (I have a sticky for when I do these proper recs posts, so if you lose this, it'll be in that. When I put it there very shortly!)

[sallymn.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the recs!

I was crushed when I heard...

[thisbluespirit]

:-)

Yes, looking at the reaction, I think we've all reacted about the asme. *salutes again*

[jjpor.livejournal.com]

Yes, it really is a sad day I think. I'm sort of telling myself I shouldn't be so affected by the death of someone I've only ever seen on a television screen, but... :(

[thisbluespirit]

It's different when it's Nicholas Courtney / The Brigadier. We're allowed to feel sad. Our fandom is in mourning, cos there are many Doctors and companions, but only one Brigadier. *nods*

There have been people's its saddened me to hear going, but few if any much this much, at least, not since when I was back at uni and the person on the computer next to me suddenly said, "Bloody hell, Jon Pertwee's died!"

[jjpor.livejournal.com]

You're right, of course. There is only one Brigadier, and I've been..."pleased" is the wrong word, but the sheer amount of reaction and kind words I've seen in response to this on the internet is sort of heartening, because he deserves it, I think.

Yes, Pertwee is probably the most recent loss comparable to this. I remember hearing about it and feeling sort of...well, I don't even know how much Pertwee I'd even seen at that point, but the sense that Doctors shouldn't die, not ever, was pretty strong I think. :(

[thisbluespirit]

Yes, it really has been sad, but good to see everyone reacting in such a way.

[jjpor.livejournal.com]

*nods thoughtfully*

See, "fandom" as an entity isn't always as infuriating as I sometimes imagine it to be. I'll have to remember this when battle inevitably recommences over S6! :)

[thisbluespirit]

I looked back at some old posts this morning and found this comment.
See, "fandom" as an entity isn't always as infuriating as I sometimes imagine it to be. I'll have to remember this when battle inevitably recommences over S6!

And did you, one can't help but ask? :-D

[jjpor.livejournal.com]

Er...I tried to. ;D

[curuchamion.livejournal.com]

Small Creatures, yay!

(Somehow I keep thinking of Clocket's "Home" in this context. It's Three and post-Time-War Nine, and I can't actually remember any Brig in it at all, but it feels right.)

[thisbluespirit]

:-)

I know the one you mean - it's very good (as ever, with Clocket, of course), and I'd forgotten it - but I was keeping to a sort of positive celebratory theme for this list. I just wish I could have got the 60s and the 80s in there a bit more - couldn't seem to find many to hand.

[clocketpatch]

Thank you for all of the recs. I'll be reading them all once this homework is done because I'm certain once the business is over I'll start being sad again.

[thisbluespirit]

*hugs*

It is sad news, but it was good to have an flist to share it with, if you know what I mean.

[belantana.livejournal.com]

Oh no! I only know the Brig from your fics, and from that one with the maggots where you said he was the only Who character whose awesomeness everyone agreed on. How sad.

[thisbluespirit]

Yes, it is sad. He was 81 & had been ill, of course, but while there have been many Doctors and companions, there has only ever been one Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, and I think we all believed he'd make one last appearance in New Who. And Nicholas Courtney seems to have been one of the nicest people in existence. I have never, never seem my flist so unanimous over anything as over this.

dbskyler posted some fanvid recs, and if you've not seen so much of him, this one is probably the best introduction, but they were all great.

Plus, calapine did a wonderful and funny picspam of The Brigliness of the Brig, which is a perfect introduction (and I feel sure will amuse you!!).

Silly, I suppose, but there.

[belantana.livejournal.com]

Oh my, that Brigliness picspam was the BEST THING EVER. I haven't giggled so hard in ages and I feel I know him already. :D I think my favourite is Epic Brig.

[thisbluespirit]

:-D I thought you would like that.