After the Daleks appearance in The Genocide Machine, another old favourite gets a run out in Red Dawn. Given that the story is set on the planet Mars, its no surprise that we soon hear the hissing tones of the Ice Warriors.

It's the 21st Century and the first NASA mission to Mars touches down on the red planet. The mission has been co-funded by a private company and as part of the deal, two of the astronauts, Paul and Tanya Webster, are related to the financial backer. But both of them hide secrets, one knowingly, the other not.

Meanwhile, the TARDIS has landed the Doctor and Peri inside a building. They are mystified by the large blocks of ice that seem to appear around the structure, until the Doctor figures out what they must house. But by that time the blocks are beginning to defrost.

As human greed meets Martian honour, the Doctor has a race against time to bring things to a peaceful resolution, or see two planets plunged into war!

Justin Richards provides an excellent script and the actors really rise to the occasion. Actor Matthew Brenher makes Ice Lord Zzaal an honourable addition to the Ice Warriors of old. A performance of controlled power and grace, as befits a Lord of Mars. His final scene was extremely moving. These are the Ice Warriors that Brian Hayles envisaged during The Curse of Peladon, an honourable and ancient people.

The team of Peter Davison and Nicola Bryant show the missed potential of this pairing on television. I always felt it was a shame that they only really got one story together. Now that missed opportunity is being put right and I hope for many more audio adventures of this Doctor and companion combination.

As always with Big Finish, the guest cast make this a story that lives long in the memory, for all the right reasons. Hopefully it won't be too long before the Warriors of Mars are dethawed for a rematch.

In conclusion, this is an excellent entry into the Big Finish audio range. But then, I would expect nothing less from Justin Richards.