The Veiled Leopard (audio story)

was a full-cast audio drama initially released on CD as a bonus with DWM 367. It features Peri and Erimem in part one and Ace and Hex in part two, conducting two separate missions at the same location for their respective Doctors. Neither the Fifth nor Seventh Doctors appear, though they are referenced in dialogue.
Leopard predates the Companion Chronicles series, and differs from them in that it is a full-cast audio dramas (as opposed to most Companion Chronicles which usually feature a single narrator and a second voice). The two sets of companions never meet, although their paths do coincidentally cross once.
Following the same basic plot of The Pink Panther, it is a rare instance of a Doctor Who story in any medium being a pastiche of a comedy.
The Veiled Leopard was later made available for free download from Big Finish's Soundcloud website, and was one of several stories made available for free download with the purchase of the 50th anniversary special edition of DWM 467 in 2013.
== Publisher's summary ==
Monte Carlo, 1966:
Four time travellers. Two missions. One costumed ball. The Doctor has sent Peri and Erimem to prevent the fabulous Veiled Leopard diamond from being stolen. Which is odd, seeing as the Doctor has sent Ace and Hex to steal the diamond. How will the two teams cope with this contradictory task? Will Peri's asp slip? Why does Ace have to pretend to be a French maid? How will Erimem cope with Pharaoh Rammalamadingdong? And can Hex really "do posh"?
== Plot ==
=== Part one ===
The Seventh Doctor has previously talked to the Fifth Doctor about a plan to stop the theft of the Veiled Leopard, a precious diamond which contains a code to rebuild a world which was lost. They talked about returning it to its owners. Peri and Erimem stop the jewel thief and return it to its safe, completely ignorant that it is, in fact, a piece of alien technology.
=== Part two ===
Ace and Hex go to find the diamond to steal it. Luckily, this happened after Peri and Erimem stopped the jewel thief. This time, the Doctor has explained why it is so important. Unfortunately, they arrive too late and have to stop another thief who is trying to steal the diamond so that the owner can become even more rich. Ace finds a shortcut, and stops the thief, but before she can leave, she must explain herself to Peri, Erimem and a few other people.
== Cast ==
* Peri Brown - Nicola Bryant
* Erimem - Caroline Morris
* Ace - Sophie Aldred
* Hex - Philip Olivier
* Lady Lillian Hawthorne - Lizzie Hopley
* Peter Mathis - Alan Ruscoe
* Gavin Walker - Steven Wickham
* Jean, the Commissionaire - Stephen Mansfield
== Worldbuilding ==
* Ace and Hex use the Doctor's sonic screwdriver.
* Peri, Ace and Hex all refer to the James Bond film series. Peri mentions that she used to watch the films with her late father Paul Brown while growing up and compares the Casino Majestique in Monte Carlo in 1966 to the sort of venue frequently featured in the films.
* Lillian dresses as Queen Elizabeth I at the fancy dress party while Ace dresses as Queen Victoria.
* Hex likes marmalade.
* Ace has seen Upstairs, Downstairs.
* Ace claims to be one of the Perivale Smiths.
== Notes ==
* The CD contains trailers for other Big Finish titles.
* Peri and Erimem on the one hand and Ace and Hex on the other observe their counterparts in the crowd several times over the course of their respective episodes but do not actually interact. Consequently, each companion pair remains ignorant of what they have in common.
* The first and second halves of this story take place at the same time. The same is true of audio stories Flip-Flop and Peri and the Piscon Paradox.
* With the exception of the charity Children in Need special Dimensions in Time, this was the first story in performed Doctor Who to feature both Peri and Ace. Both characters would later appear in the audio story The Light at the End, in which they met and interacted.
* Before the events of this story from their perspective, Peri and Erimem observed the Doctor arguing with a "goofy little guy in a weird pullover" who kept staring at them strangely. They are curious as to his identity.
== Continuity ==
* The Fifth and Seventh Doctors met each other in PROSE: Cold Fusion and AUDIO: The Sirens of Time. They would later meet each other again in their eighth incarnation's TARDIS in AUDIO: The Four Doctors and in AUDIO: The Light of the End, though neither retained any memory of those experiences, as well as in AUDIO: Collision Course.
* Erimem is still uncomfortable talking about her father Amenhotep II following the recent revelations about him. (AUDIO: The Roof of the World)
* After dropping off Peri and Erimem in 1966, the Fifth Doctor travels to Brisbane, Australia on 22 September 2006, where he is unexpectedly reunited with his former companion Tegan Jovanka. (AUDIO: The Gathering)
* Peri would meet the Seventh Doctor formally on Krontep. (PROSE: Bad Therapy) While she was travelling with the Sixth Doctor, she met both the Seventh Doctor and Ace in an alternate timeline. However, she lost all memories of this encounter when the proper timeline was restored. (AUDIO: The Light at the End)
* Hex tells Peter that he worked at a hospital for years. (AUDIO: The Harvest)
== External links ==
* 
Category:Big Finish special releases
Category:Fifth Doctor audio stories
Category:Seventh Doctor audio stories
Category:2006 audio stories
Category:Stories set in 1966
Category:Stories set in Monte Carlo
Category:Erimem audio stories
Category:Audio stories that use the Peter Howell theme
Category:Audio stories that use the Keff McCulloch theme
fr:The Veiled Leopard