The Land of the Dead ( audio story ) The Land of the Dead was the fourth story in Big Finish ' s monthly Doctor Who range . It was the first audio story to feature Nyssa , played by Sarah Sutton . Publisher ' s summary . Landing in Alaska , the Doctor and Nyssa encounter a group of people in a most unusual house , cut off not only by the harsh climate but by their individual secrets and obsessions . Millionaire Shaun Brett is utilising chunks of the local area to construct a shrine to his dead father . But when deadly creatures start roaming outside , and a terrifying discovery is made inside the house , the Doctor realises that Brett has unleashed an unimaginably ancient force . Plot . It ’ s 1964 , briefly at least , and the Fifth Doctor has just recently left Tegan Jovanka at Heathrow Airport in the wake of Adric ’ s untimely death . Travelling alone with Nyssa of Traken , he materialises the TARDIS in the icy north of Alaska . I say “ materialises ” rather than “ lands ” because he doesn ’ t land ; the TARDIS arrives in mid - air , giving it a close call with a small plane . The TARDIS seems to have a mind of its own , locking in on an odd energy source and disappearing back into the vortex ; it rematerialises in the same location , but thirty years in the future , in 1994 . Here it does land , and the Doctor and Nyssa find themselves chased by a dangerous creature across the tundra to an unusual house , and an odd group of individuals . Multi - millionaire Shaun Brett has made a fortune in Alaskan oil , but at a price : the death of his father in 1964 . He is now building and furnishing the house — sourced from local materials , which is a desecration in the eyes of the local natives — as a shrine to his father ’ s memory . He is matched with Tulung , a half - Koyukon native hired by Brett to liaise with the locals , whose father died in the same incident as Brett ’ s father . Each blames the other ’ s father for the tragedy . Brett is assisted by Gaborik , another Kolyukon , who is secretly sabotaging the work so as to ensure his own continued employment , and is also stealing pelts from the house to sell . Also on site is Monica Lewis , an interior designer who has been working at the site for three years , crafting the interior of the house . The creatures — for there are more than one — are found to consist of only bone , and ancient , mostly - fossilised bone at that . They are held together by a bio - electric field , which seems also to be their weapon , as it exerts damaging effects on the minds of those around it — especially Nyssa , who seems to be particularly harmed , although not controlled by the effect . The Doctor determines that the creatures are much older than the dinosaurs , although still somehow living ; they date , in fact , to the Permian era , and thus he nicknames them “ Permians ” . Further , they consume sources of energy , including living beings , as revealed when one of them manages to kill and devour Gaborik . The situation devolves , as Brett and Tulung each try to confirm their own version of history — and discover that Nyssa , somehow , was there , when she identifies the plane she witnessed in 1964 . With the Permians ’ electric field affecting his mind , Tulung decides that Nyssa is supernaturally powerful , and kidnaps her to protect himself and Brett from the creatures as they make their way to the site of their fathers ’ deaths . Once there , Tulung discovers the truth : That their fathers unearthed a Permian and were attacked — but that Brett ’ s father fled in the plane Nyssa witnessed and left Tulung ’ s father to die . He defeated the Permian , but died in the process , and his remains are still on the ground inside the dig site . Meanwhile , the Doctor and Monica are forced to battle the monsters in the house , and escape via a shortcut , arriving at the dig site . Brett refuses to believe the truth about his father , and attempts to destroy the Permians with dynamite , sacrificing himself in the process . However , the attempt reveals that they are vulnerable to fire . The Doctor and the others rig the house to burn , then trap the creatures inside and burn it to the ground . With the threat eliminated , Monica and Tulung — now free of the field ’ s influence — leave in the site ’ s transport , and the Doctor and Nyssa depart in the TARDIS .