City of Death (1979)

City of Death goes French. For the first time in Doctor Who history, the show is filmed outside of the UK. It’s often been argued by some that it’s silly to film Doctor Who outside of the UK because it starts to get ridiculous. I don’t buy this and think that it’s always nice to film outside of the UK because it makes the story stand out and adds something different to the story. This story has the distinction of the highest ratings in Doctor Who history. Over 16 million tuned into this story due to a strike over on ITV. Set in Paris in 1979, the story spends a lot of the first episode with some lovely shots of Paris.

The story sees the Jagaroth scattered through time and the 1979 version trying to put together a machine that will enable him to prevent his original self from setting off in a ship which saw him splinter himself through time. There is a genius about how he gets the money to do this. His 1505 version gets Leonardo Da Vinci to paint several copies of the Mona Lisa and then his 1979 self sells them for around $100 million. It’s quite a clever idea and holds up over four episodes. That’s the thing that I like about this story, it’s quite a simple tale which manages to keep the drama and the entertainment going throughout the whole 100 minutes.

The two main stars perform well. Tom Baker runs about with the gusto that you would expect from him and as his sixth season gets going, he seems to be at this time starting to believe that he can exert his power on the producers and this is perhaps why the comedy starts to seep into his performance and the script. In her second story as a companion I think that Lalla Ward is very good and is given some good dialogue and spends most of her time with Tom Chadbon. Together the two actors perform well and whilst they are travelling through Paris in their unusual costumes, they come across as friends and the impression that they give is one of friends on holiday and that’s always good.

Julian Glover is fantastic in this story and really shines every time he is on screen. Both his 1979 and 1505 versions were very good. Glover had previously appeared in the 1965 William Hartnell adventure ‘The Crusade’ but in this he given some good dialogue and has the fashion to pull off the character who could quite easily be a Bond villain. Tom Chadbon is another fine supporting artist who starts off as a guy who will punch absolutely everyone without asking questions. By the end of the story he becomes something different and is a nicely written and acted character. There is a lovely cameo from John Cleese in Episode 4 who is playing some sort of art critic. It’s brief but it’s still a lot of fun.

The story isn’t perfect. The thing in Doctor Who about wobbly sets does show for one of only a few times. It occurs when Duggan tries to break the wall down and it clearly wobbles. The cliffhanger for episode is slightly let down by the fact that the mask nearly comes off the actors face. It’s also hard to believe that that big alien face would be able to fit underneath the human face of Julian Glover. I also wasn’t impressed with Catherine Schell as the Countess. I thought that her character wasn’t totally original because she is a character who helps the Count and doesn’t really understand what he’s really like. I don’t think it was Schell’s fault but the character could have been better written.

It’s at this time when the comedic side of the Doctor started to take over and it also coincides with Douglas Adams becoming Script Editor. To be honest about, the comedy is obvious but it doesn’t ruin my enjoyment of the story. Future stories would be this subtle. City of Death is an enjoyable story that mixes impressive location filming with good set designs. It’s arguably one of the best stories of the seventeenth series. None of the stories that would follow had any of the charm and entertainment of this story.

Industrial Evolution (2011)

After his previous story, I was hoping that Eddie Robson's next script would be an improvement, and I’m happy to say that this is the case with Industrial Evolution which is the final story of the latest Brewster mini-series. The story is a nice historical story where Brewster is trying to get use to a normal life. The first episode and a half is spent setting the story with a workplace that is unionised and people who are either the workers or the employees. The story really does have all walks of life. What seems like a typical run of the mill (sorry for the pun) story, soon turns into this story with machines wreaking havoc. The story sees a device which creates stuff using everything around and this creates monsters that are humans with bits and pieces bolted on, sort of like a historical version of the Cybermen. There is an interesting idea about this and there is a lot of good stuff happening when they start getting involved.

I think that out of the three stories involving Brewster this year, this is by far the best because he gets a bit more to do actually moves part of the story along. He forms a good partnership with Belfrage which is where there were some moments where it seemed like the Doctor and Brewster’s relationship was better than we had thought. The conclusion for Brewster is the best one that they could have gone for. If they had killed him off then it would have been a massive mistake and if they had let him walk off into the sunset that that too would have been a mistake but by letting him fly off with Belfrage means that there is room for Brewster to come back in future adventures with either the sixth or later Doctors.

The supporting cast was also on good form with Rory Kinnear my particular highlight. I found him to be a nice strong character that thankfully has the potential to come back with Master Brewster. I also like Joannah Tincey as Clara Stretton. She started off as some sort of human rights campaigner but by the end she had progressed into someone whose whole world had fallen apart with the destruction of her home and the death of her father. Tincey’s performance was very heartfelt and believable. Hugh Ross was another good piece of casting as Robert Stretton, I thought he was best when he had stopped being Clara’s father but as a baddie.

Colin Baker and Maggie Stables put in good performances as usual and whilst it’s been a long time since we had an Evelyn story, I have to say that it’s been worth the wait. Their relationship is one of the highlights and I also liked in these three stories how Evelyn is still willing to see the good side of Brewster and is forcing the Doctor to see the good in him even after everything that we know he has done. As the third ‘member’ of the TARDIS crew, I have to say that I quite like John Pickard as Brewster. I think that now he has a few more stories under his belt its easy to see why he is such a good companion because he’s not quite like what we’ve had before in Doctor Who.

With the departure of Brewster it’s clear that the next time we hear a story featuring the Sixth Doctor and Evelyn that it will just feature them and not Brewster. Industrial Evolution isn’t the best story of the year but compared to Prisoner of the Sun this is a massive improvement and it’s a satisfying conclusion to this mini series.

Destiny of the Daleks (1979)

Destiny of the Daleks is a very sorry story. It’s the first story since the truly classic Genesis of the Daleks four years earlier. Sadly the second story to feature Davros isn’t the story it should have been. This is the first story after the Key to Time series and Mary Tamm is replaced by Lalla Ward. There is a sequence where Romana goes through several different appearances to decide on what she should now look like. No reason is ever given as to why she does this, though there is one given in the 2005 Big Finish play Gallifrey: Lies. This moment seems to have irritated a lot of people because it implies she goes through several regenerations in quick succession but I don’t buy this. True, it’s a stupid and unnecessary scene but it’s a means to explain the change in actress. The story is set on Skaro but it’s not the same that we saw in 1975, there are more buildings than we saw last time and there is also greener. In this story we meet the Movellans who are a race of Robots who have been fighting with the Daleks and it’s an interesting idea that they are both in stalemate.

The story itself is perfectly sound It’s not the greatest Dalek story but its good that the Daleks have someone else to have a war with apart from the Thals who I find a bit dull. Unfortunately the dress sense of the Movellans leave a lot to be desired as do their guns which look like they’ve been nicked from Heathrow Airport. The fact that the Movellans are robots is a secret that kept well hidden for quite a while so that when I first watched this story I was genuinely surprised that they didn’t have blood and guts.

However despite of what I thought of the plot, it’s the production side of things that I had a major problem with. The state of the Daleks is so depressing to see. It’s understandable that the Daleks take a bit of a knock when they are not being used but you would think at the beginning of the series, there would be enough money to have some work done to them. The first appearance of the Daleks is hardly the greatest in Dalek history. Repeatedly telling Romana to not move several times when her back is against a wall and she couldnt move even if she wanted to. There is a particular shot which shows what is wrong with this story. It’s clear that some of them are being moved by the Dalek operator walking. Another problem is Davros, it’s unfair to blame it on David Gooderson because he does an adequate impression of Michael Wisher who as a superb Davros was always going to be a hard act to follow. No the problem is number one with the mask because it seems to be Wisher’s mask and obviously Gooderson’s face is not the same so the mouth doesn’t quite move properly when he talks.

For her second outing, Lalla Ward does a better job than as Princess Astrid. I don’t know whether her outfit was quite the right choice but I thought that she did a good job and out of the two Romana’s, she is the best one. Tom Baker’s performance starts to border on the comedic side and not in a good way. I think there are moments where clearly Tom should have been rained in and told to still to a more dramatic area of the character. The best line in the story comes from Tom Baker when he tells the Daleks to ‘Spack off’. The supporting cast do an ok job with no single performance really standing out. I think that David Gooderson is perhaps the best purely because of the role he plays. As I mentioned earlier, it was always going to be difficult to top the superb performance by Michael Wisher but Gooderson wasn’t given the tools to do a good job. Had he been given a better mask and perhaps even a new chair to suit him then his performance would have been better.

Destiny of the Daleks is the weakest Dalek story ever. The story is a disapinting start to the series and it’s a sad way for the Daleks to come back. The next time we see them thankfully they will be restored to their former glory but on this occasion they show why they are the most popular monsters in Doctor Who.

The Horns of Nimon (1979/80)

The Horns of Nimon is clearly one of the weakest stories and it doesn’t start off very well at all. The model spaceship is poor and a primary schooler could have done a better job, at least they would have added some colour to it. Written by former script editor Anthony Read, the story has a lot of mythological stuff about it which is probably why it formed part of the Myths and Legends boxset. It’s the final story of season seventeen though Shada was suppose to take that honour and its shame because this story isnt the best way to sign off the season. The story starts off on the rubbish spaceship and we meet the Co-pilot who’s performance is more suited to the pantomime and it’s difficult to see how anyone could take him seriously or be scared of him. The story works along the lines that the Nimon is sacrificing young children in the belief (by presumably their parents) that they will be restore their empire to its former glory.

The story doesn’t start well and stays at that level for all four episodes. We get the rubbish joke just before the first cliffhanger which is “The Nimon waits for no-man”. Do you see what they did there? Very clever, actually not really and this sort of joke sums up what’s wrong with this time in Tom Baker’s era. Then there is the moment in episode two where the Doctor tries something in the TARDIS, it blows up and there are a series of comical noises. This is just an awful thing to stick in the show. I’d find it funny if I wasn’t so annoyed. It’s hard to believe it’s the same show and Doctor from what we saw in stories like The Deadly Assassin and Horror of Fang Rock.

The Nimon is another thing that doesn’t work in this story. It doesn’t help that it does look like a bloke with a massive mask with horns on it. Also the sound effects that are added to the voice is not particularly good and lacks anything creepy or scary about it. It’s hard to believe that anyone would find this scary.

Graham Crowden (Soldeed) was apparently tipped to play the Doctor so this is a classic case of ‘What if?’ but I think he probably wouldn’t have made as good a Doctor as people think. He does do the job of someone scared of their master pretty well but apart from that it’s an average role. The most famous of the children was Janet Ellis as Teka. Ellis would go on to star in the show ‘Blue Peter’ but in this story she’s actually better than the more senior members of the cast.

Tom Baker’s performance was far more comical than it should have been and it was the fault of Graham Williams and Douglas Adams for not reigning it in and getting a more toned down performance. I really cant stand David Brierley as K9. As much as I dislike the character, at least when John Leeson was doing the voice it was more suited to the character and it sounded more computer like that the theatrical tone that Brierley gave it. Lalla Ward is again the best of the main cast, she is the one given all the serious stuff to do and actually holds the story together. It’s so often the case during her time on the show that she is the one who has to lead the story and it’s a shame she didn’t stay in the story longer than she did.

The cliffhanger for episode one is terrible. Tom Baker just hams it up and there is no sense of drama or tension. If I had been watching this on December 22nd 1979, I would have been trying to think of a reason to come back next week. Though to be fair to Baker, the build up in terms of direction and music left a lot to be desired. It’s shocking that the show gained nearly three million viewers for episode two (must have been another strike by ITV) .The other cliffhangers were also a little lacking in drama.

I’m really struggling to find anything positive to say about this story which is unusual for because there is normally something that redeems it slightly. Even Underworld has a plus point which is Episode One. In The Horns of Nimon, I can’t think of a single good thing. Maybe someone else can show me why I’m wrong. The Horns of Nimon is a story that suffers from a lacklustre script and very poor production values. The models look decidedly ropey and there is a moment where the model looks like a bunch of egg cartons painted grey. I know Doctor Who was on a pretty small budget but it could have done better than this. Doctor Who often gets a bad rap saying it looked cheap and a bit rubbish but in this rare case, that argument is valid and the story continues to inconsistent quality of stories from the latter half of the Tom Baker era. This is a story that drags and by the half way mark I have all but given up and just waiting for the final credits of Part Four to come around. Very bad.

The Deadly Assassin (1976)

The Deadly Assassin was once described as a landmark story in Doctor Who history and it’s hard to argue with that. This story is the first to feature the Master since the 1973 story ‘Frontier in Space’. Sadly Roger Delgado died shortly after this story and so it was a curious and brave choice to bring back the character and do it in such a big way. The story is a companionless story after Elisabeth Sladen left in the previous story. Tom Baker has said that he would prefer to have done the rest of his stories without a companion but thankfully Philip Hinchcliffe disagreed and this remains his only solo effort. I must say that the story does gain something from not having a companion thrown into the mix, this means that the Doctor only has to worry about himself and nobody else. The story is written by Robert Holmes and directed by David Maloney. These are two reasons why this story is so good because Holmes is one of the best writers in Doctor Who history and David Maloney is one of the best directors.

The story is set on Gallifrey for the first time and we get a sense of the pomposity of the Timelords. The Doctor is framed for the assignation of the President and the Master is behind it to ensure that he gets the power of the Eye of Harmony. Normally the Master’s plans always tend to border on the convoluted but in this instance it’s a very sound plan. Peter Pratt does a very good job as the Master in what must have been a daunting experience. Obviously we only get to see Pratt’s voice and not his face but it’s enough and his performance is one of the best in this story.

Tom Baker put’s in a great performance because it’s unlike anything we had seen before or since. There is very little in this that suits his comedic style and instead shows us his serious side and why he is such a great Doctor. Bernard Horsfall returns to Doctor Who after stints in ‘The Mind Robber’ (1968) and ‘The War Games’ (1969). He starts off as a senior figure on Gallifrey and is expected to become President but what I like is that there is something not right with his character from the very beginning and its shown to be true when we discover he’s working for the Master and the scenes with Baker in the Matrix scenes are solid because Horsfall. Two performances which aren’t as powerful but still quite enjoyable and that is of George Pravda as Castellan Spandrell and Angus Mackay as Cardinal Borusa. Pravda’s performance is very good because its somewhat laid back. Mackay’s performance is comical because he is playing a politician. When there is debris and all the chaos, Borusa is coming up with spin to make things seem better. His line to the Doctor was also good when he says “Nine out Ten”, a reference to the Doctor’s younger days.

The story really shines in the Matrix scenes. It’s some of the finest moments that I can remember because there’s very little dialogue but a lot of tension and drama and two of the best cliffhangers of the Tom Baker era where the Doctor gets his foot stuck in the railway tracks with a train coming towards him and when Goth holds the Doctor under water with that last frame frozen. This is what caused Mary Whitehouse to get her knickers in a twist and to be honest I think that it’s a fantastic cliffhanger because it’s a wonderfully dark moment and obviously putting the Doctor in a potential death situation is silly but its always great to see how he will get out of a situation.

The Deadly Assassin is a truly superb story that has everything that makes Doctor Who fantastic with some wonderful acting from Tom Baker and Bernard Horsfall. Holmes and Maloney have done a great job putting it all together and everyone who hasn’t seen this story should buy it immediately because it’s a must for any Doctor Who fan.

Logopolis (1981)

So after seven years, the Tom Baker era comes to an end. The longest serving actor to play to the Doctor on TV and as a result the story needed to be a fitting send off. Admittadley this season hasn’t been the strongest but the after the very good previous story there was an sense that this might be the story it should be. Written by script editor Christopher H Bidmead, this story does revel in hard science which Bidmead was a fan off. This story introduces Janet Fielding as Tegan and sees Sarah Sutton return as Nyssa after her appearance in the previous story. What I do like about this story is how it’s essentially the middle story in a trilogy of adventures with the fall out from The Keeper of Traken and what will happen in Castrovalva.

Tom Baker’s final performance is quite a downbeat one. Over the course of seven years, his performances have ranged from standard to comical and then to this where it’s almost at times seems like he isn’t acting and the realisation that he is about to become and out of work actor after such a long time dawns on him. Matthew Waterhouse is window dressing in this story because all he seems to do is to follow the Doctor around and occasionally open his mouth. Sarah Sutton’s involvement was a last minute decision and it feels like it because without her the story wouldn’t have been any different. It’s a shame because Sarah Sutton is very good as Nyssa and in future stories she would show why but here she doesn’t really contribute anything. Janet Fielding is the mouth on legs that we knew she would be. She stumbles into the TARDIS and spends a long time running up and down corridors. Her whiny tone does get a bit grating after a while but it does get drowned out by everything else that is going on this story. Anthony Ainley is the Master properly in this story and its his involvement that causes things to go a bit crazy. It must have been a bit strange for viewers at the time getting use to the actor playing Tremas one week and then playing the Master the next week. In this story, Ainley is quite good in this story and the Master’s plan is not as convoluted as previous plans. Ainley’s tenure as the Master starts off quite well.

Every so often the a white figure appears and its quite a mystery as to what he is but we soon learn that it is in fact the fifth Doctor which is quite a good idea and it’s something that could only really be done once because it would lose its mystique and effectivness everytime it appears. The story moves to the planet Logopolis after various set pieces in a layby on a dual carriageway and on a ship on the Thames. The planet Logopolis doesn’t really look very good. It doesn’t help that one of the Logopolitans look a lot like Noel Edmonds. As a race they are pretty irrelevant because they don’t seem to have anything about them. Yes they are clever but that only goes so far and when they start being wiped out I don’t really find myself caring.

The regeneration sequence is very good. The flashback of various enemies that the fourth Doctor has faced over the seven years was quite a good idea and then Tom Baker’s final scene was very solum and downbeat but I think that it was very emotional and had is a sad moement everytime I watch it. Tom Baker’s final words are very fitting and it’s better than what Colin Baker gets. Logopolis is not the story that I think Tom Baker deserves but there are things that I quite liked. Due to some of the inconsistent stories in this season the end result of Logopolis is quite enjoyable and a nice end to this season.

The Ark in Space (1975)

The Ark in Space is a story that usually rates highly in Doctor Who fandom. Despite this story being known for the monster that was made out of bubble wrap. This story follows on from Tom Baker’s debut series and is written by legendary writer Robert Holmes. At this time, Tom Baker still hadn’t got a handle on the Doctor yet and there are moments in episode one where his attitude to Harry is slightly out of character for the fourth Doctor. The first episode is very good partly because it only features the three main characters. At times the episode is quite eerie because it’s not normal for their to be just three characters. When the rest of the cast join in that’s when the story really gets going. The next three episodes move along at a progressive pace as the Wirrn start to grow in numbers and take over the ark. The setting of the ark is one of my favourite settings because its isolated with no chance that anyone will be able to come in and save the day so it’s a battle of wits between the Doctor and the aliens which is when the positive points of the Doctor are shown. The story benefits not only from the setting but the minimal number of characters. Apart from the main characters, there are five members of the ark and one of those is Noah who isn’t really in it as himself for that long. This means that the supporting cast get more screen time and possibly more dialogue.

Tom Baker is on fine form in this story. It was still early days for Baker but he still does a good job as his performance is more dramatic and less comedic whereas in later series it would be the other way round. Elisabeth Sladen starts the story by stumbling into a locked airless room before ending up in one of the hibernation chambers. The Sarah Jane we get in this story seems completely different from the Sarah Jane we got during the previous series. Ian Marter suffers in this story being treated quite poorly by the Doctor in episode one and pretty much being sidelined for most of the story and the series. The supporting cast is quite good but the two main ones that stand out are Vira and Noah. Vira starts off as a quite snotty and snobbish individual but by the end of the story she has mellowed out and is quite likeable. I thought that Wendy Williams did a good job but I wasn’t totally sold on the character. Noah is the one that turns into a Wirrn. His progression towards his fate is well handled and brilliantly acted by Kenton Moore.

Cliffhangers are very good in this story. The first one especially made me jump slightly when the Wirrn falls towards the camera (and essentially to us). The second episode cliffhanger was quite good because it was the first visual sign that Noah was changing (even though his hand was changing into Bubble Wrap). The third one was also good because it saw the final change between Noah and the Wirrn and it was done very well.

There are problems with the story. The model sequences are not very good and let the story down slightly. Thankfully they are kept to a minimum but they are noticeable. Then there is the use of Bubble Wrap. In 1975, Bubble Wrap wasn’t as common as it is now but as someone who spends his working day selling Bubble Wrap in a stationery shop, its shows how silly it is even more. Piece of advice. If you want to get past the dodgy model work then turn the CGI effects on via the special features section on the DVD. They improve the story greatly. The Ark in Space is a very solid adventure which does a good job despite being completely studio bound. The Ark in Space is one of the best stories of this season but the best was yet to come.

Lies (2004)

The first release of the second series of Gallifrey or Chapter Five depending on your point of view starts off with a scene with Mary Tamm who played the first incarnation of Romana from 1978 to 1979 during the Key to Time series. The first thing that I noticed is that there is a distinct improvement in quality. The opening scene is set when Romana was in the academy and it’s immediate that her intelligence is greater than other Timelords. It’s a lovely little scene. What more, we get another outing from Lynda Bellingham has the Inquisitor who is totally different from her stint in ‘The Trial of a Timelord’ where is trying to oust Romana after she orders the transduction barrier to be lowered. It’s good that this new liberal view is starting to grate other Timelords.

The story is highly enjoyable even though I wasn’t totally sure what was going on some of the time. What I quite liked was the explanation as to how Romana went from being in E-Space to becoming President of Gallifrey and that is what I have been waiting for since this Weapon of Choice. If I did have an issue it’s that we are expected to believe that Romana did that joke regeneration in ‘Destiny in the Daleks’ was a desperate attempt to purge the Imperiatrix influence from her mind. It seems just a tad bit too much.

Of the performances I thought that Mary Tamm gives a good performance despite not playing the proper Romana. It would have been a bit disappointing if it were a blink and you’ll miss it outing but we got our moneys worth. Lalla Ward was on good form as usual. She worked well with Mary Tamm and it was nice for me as a fan to see both Romana’s talking to each other. It was another version of a multi-Doctor adventure. Lynda Bellingham is brilliant, she has a wonderful voice and it’s a delight whenever she’s around. Louise Jameson gets a bit more emotional stuff to deal with and I think that Leela has grown quite a lot since the first story and is almost unrecognisable from her time on TV but that’s a Big Finish trait.

Credit to Gary Russell (Writer and Director), he has done a good job in getting quite a lot of stuff in a story that lasted just over an hour. Actually that leads me to my biggest issue with this story and that there seems to be a lot of exposition and not enough drama. The thing with the previous story (A Blind Eye) was that there was quite a bit of action but there wasn’t so much here. At the end of the story I did find myself thinking about this story in a positive light. Granted there are flaws with this story but on the whole it’s a good story and a good start to what has potential to be a very good season.

To The Death (2011)

2011 TOMS TARDIS AWARD WINNER

• Best Eighth Doctor Adventure

So it all comes to an end. After five years, Lucie Miller’s time has come to an end. After the brilliant first part, I was wondering whether I would enjoy this one as much and I have to say that it definitely was. It’s a rare case in 21st Century Doctor Who were the concluding part is better than the set up. Like the previous episode, it’s a while before we get to hear from the Doctor but it’s well worth the wait. At the end of Lucie Miller the ship that the Doctor was on had been blown up and the beginning of this it seems that he had died (though of course we all know he doesn’t).

The three deaths are absolutely shocking. Tamsin’s was the first jaw dropping moment. I genuinely didn’t see it coming and the reaction from the Monk was also quite surprising. It was good that Tamsin has seen sense and realised that the Monk was bad and was responsible for loads of deaths. Nicky Wardley’s time might have been short but I think that it was just the right amount of time because the character never really seemed to suit the eighth Doctor but that said the latter half of her time in this series was her best. Alex’s death was also quite a shock because I think that there a little bit more mileage in the character because he was starting to get really good and I think that Jake McGann was really good over these two stories. The death of Lucie Miller was quite obvious because of all the build up that doenst mean it was any less impressive. She went out quite literally in a blaze of glory. It wasn’t a wimpy exit, it was the exit she deserved. Over the course of these four series, the character has really come on leaps and bounds and I think that she is one of the best companions that Big Finish have created.

Paul McGann puts in one of his best performances since probably The Chimes of Midnight. The Doctor has lost three people close to him and its bad enough when he loses someone who walks away from him but to lose three people is much more than he’s ever had to deal with and McGann does a wonderful job of showing an Doctor that is trying to deal with the grief. I was particularly impressed with the moment where he shouts at the Monk there is a moment where he contemplates going back in time. I was also really impressed with Graeme Garden’s performance. It was like it usually is and that great because it borders on comedy but then it really stepped up a gear after Tamsin’s death. Hopefully this wont be the last time that we hear from Garden because the role of the Monk is well portrayed by him. I was also really impressed with Carole Ann Ford in this, she was absolutely fantastic moments after Alex had been killed but for the rest of the story she was strong throughout. It’s a shame that she was never able to be like this on TV. Like with the Monk I hope that we get another Susan story in the main range very soon.

Apart from the main performances the plot itself was really good. It was great how it tied in with Patient Zero and the Time Controller Dalek. The idea that this particular Dalek travelled back and had found the virus. It did seem like the Doctor was really going to go through with his plan to go back or forward to change the events and prevent the plague from taking hold. I actually found the plot to be sort of in the background because it was the emotional drama that I found to be the most interesting.

To the Death is one of the best stories of the year, it was a well crafted piece of drama with some wonderful performances and if this isn’t in my top three of the year then I will be truly surprised. Nicholas Briggs has written and directed a superb story that manages to live up to my expectations. Thankyou Lucie Miller, you were a superb companion.

The Leisure Hive (1980)

This story marks the first story of the new look era of Doctor Who with a new intro, new logo and new outfit for Tom Baker. After six years with the same outfit it was decided by new Producer John Nathan-Turner to revamp the show with former producer Barry Letts as a watchful eye over JNT. It doesn’t really get off to a good start with one of the longest and dullest opening shots ever in TV. There is a panning shot across Brighton beach and it’s nearly two minutes before there is any dialogue, luckily moments later K9 is blown up and that’s his involvement in the story at an end.

The story is set on Argolis which had a war lasting just 20 minutes. The Argolins are a relatively smart race that are playing around with Tachyonics but don’t seem to have got a handle on it. They are at odds with the Fomasi, I was impressed at how they managed to create this in studio and on a small budget. There are three main Argolins that we meet but its Pangol (David Haig) that’s the star. I’m a big fan of his and he really is great, especially in episode four when his plan goes into full swing. I wasn’t wild about Mena to begin with but she grew on me. The cliffhangers were very good, especially the first one which was quite grim. It was more like a Philip Hinchcliffe type ending. The Cliffhanger where the Doctor ages 1200 years was another cracking one because of the performances of everyone involved.

There are problems with this story. The revelation of Brock to be a Fomasi was dodgy. It was on the same level as the Scaroth revelation in ‘City of Death’. I also thought the Fomasi or the look of them is far from impressive. Also the revelation that when their ship was blown up in episode four but really it has left with a rogue Fomasi and the others hadn’t gotten on board was a bit silly. Something else that I wasn’t wild about were the props in the Hive they were so 1980’S and in the 21st century, they really standout and not in a good way.

Apart from the supporting cast the main cast were ok. Lalla Ward carried the story because Tom Baker was busy playing a 1200 year old Timelord for the majority of the story. It was clear that Tom’s enthusiasm was on the decline and the importance or relevance of the Doctor in this story isn’t perhaps as big as it is in future stories. I like Lalla Ward because her Romana is more likeable than Mary Tamm’s. It’s because whilst there is snobbery about lesser species, there is a greater sense to roll her sleeves up and help solve a problem. It’s also the rare occasion where the companion is trying to save the Doctor though she isn’t entirely successful.

The Leisure Hive kicks off Tom Baker’s final season off well with some good performances and also some good writing and directing. There may be a few issues with bits of the story but compared to Meglos and Warriors Gate they pale into insignificance.

Time & Space (2010)

Little Doctor Who specials are commonplace since the show return in 2005, there was of course the mini episode which bridged the gap between The Parting of the Ways and The Christmas Invasion which gave us a proper introduction to David Tennant but the last time there was a proper Doctor Who Comic Relief story was ‘The Curse of Fatal Death’ in 1999 written by a certain Steven Moffat.

The TARDIS appears inside itself which echoes the scene in ‘Logopolis’ except in this case we get several Doctors, several Amy’s and several Rory’s. This story is just a bit of fun and I know that it’s not to be taken seriously but essentially all this happens because Rory looks up his wife’s skirt and drops something. Now I don’t wish to sound like an old fuddy duddy but I just think things need to be toned down a bit. Apart from that there is a lot to like about this story because its there’s a lot of wibbly wobbly stuff that is Moffat’s signature.

Matt Smith does his comedy bit well and my favourite line was something like “So this is how it ends, with Pond flirting with herself!”. It shows again how he can do serious acting as well as comedy. Arthur Darvil was just there to play the husband who liked the idea of having two versions of her wife and Karen Gillan quite literally loved herself but seriously this is starting to get a bit boring now. No more in series 6 please.

As a bit of fun its enjoyable and its always good to see Doctor Who be part of either Children in Need or Comic Relief in a better way that 90 seconds of the opening of an episode. It’s not quite on par with Time Crash but I think that if you have nothing to do for seven minutes then this would be a good way of using that time.

Short Trips - Volume II (2011)

After enjoying the first volume, I was looking forward to volume two. There are some familiar authors in this one as well as new contributors. James Moran (Torchwood and Fires of Pompeii) as well as Simon Guerrier (Perpetual Bond and Home Truths). This is a nicer mix than just having a entire release of new writers or vice versa.

1963 by Niall Boyce and Read by William Russell

The opening story is for the first Doctor read by William Russell who has a wonderful reading voice. The story opens with a very dark scene which involved Barbara. It seems quite grown up from that time on TV. The Doctor takes Vicki, Ian and Barbara to Earth on November 23 1963 which was the very day that Doctor Who started with An Unearthly Child. The people on Earth are frozen and the explanation is quite a silly one. The TARDIS was at fault because it’s heartbeat was out of sync. Nope, sorry I don’t buy it. It was a good setup which was wasted . What I did like was how Barbara was suppose to visit a relative who she was meant to meet at a bar before being swept away in the TARDIS. It was quite a sad thought that someone Barbara was close to would never get to see her probably forever. There was a nice symmetry at the end in mentioning the body in the alley which opened this story.

1963 sadly isnt as good a story as it should be. There didn’t seem a point to it and as a result. I was disappointed with this opening story.

The Way Forward by Steve Case and Read by David Troughton

The second Doctor story is about a young man called Sherman who has a theory about time travel and uses it at a science fair who is basically a smart kid but is overlooked. The story doesn’t rush in getting the Doctor involved. The story is how due to the Doctor’s involvement, a paradox is created by Sherman and we get a peculiar setting where things are changing rapidly. The story concludes with multiple Shermans in various stages of raginess and age and within seconds of the Doctor and Victoria arriving, they decide to put right what Sherman has done and that’s the end of the story.

I quite liked this story, it shows that sometime the Doctor makes a poor decision and that those decisions have consequences. The Sherman character is likeable despite what he has done because there was no malice or plans or world domination. Just some decent kid who got involved in something that was way beyond him. The Way Forward was a better story that the one we got in volume one. There was a sense of drama about the whole thing and David Troughton like William Russell has a nice reading voice and does a good job.

Walls of Confinement by Lawrence Conquest and Read by Katy Manning

The Doctor get a day off in the third story. It’s quite hard to believe the Doctor would take a day off but anyway he decides to go to a circus/funfair where his enjoyment is short lived by a boy who is a bit too close to a tiger. What is quite a clever plot point is that the little boy pickpocketed the Doctor’s dematerilisation circuit and the boy used it to go from cage to cage. The boy is revealed to be the Brigadiers godson.

The reason why the brigadier asked the Doctor to babysit was to show him there was more to Earth than UNIT and alien invasions. It’s a nice if slightly out of character thing for the Brigadier to do. It’s a nice ‘theres more to life’ moral message that is weaved in well to a short story. There is also a message about the treatment of animals at Circuses and also animals in captivity.

This was another good story which was brilliantly read by Katy Manning and the story grabbed my attention at the very beginning and kept it all the way through.

Chain Reaction by Darren Goldsmith and Read by Louise Jameson

The fourth Doctor story is about a chain reaction of events which isnt normal Doctor Who territory but has potential in a short story format. I have to say that this story is confusing and also rather dull. I have listened to it three times and each time I found it difficult to follow. This is partly due to Louise Jameson who doesn’t give a particularly good performance which is unusual for her.

The thing about this story is that it suffers the same problems as 1963 in that I just don’t understand why it was produced. There’s nothing that I found gripping about this story. Just behind 1963 in terms of enjoyment. I’m surprised really because the volume one story for the fourth Doctor was one of my favourites.

Sock Pig by Sharon Cobb & Ian Keller and Read by Peter Davison

The next story is one that has toys coming life which reminds me of Toy Story but also like Terror of the Autons where the troll came like a kills Farrely Senior. We are introduced to a single woman who has a meddlesome mother. Due to a tear in time by the Anama ‘race’, the Doctor arrives to try and sort it out. It’s quite funny how she loves the sock pig, overlooking the fact the inanimate object is now moving. There is a wonderfully sad moment where the Doctor and the woman are standing in the bathroom with the Doctor holding the sock pig.

It’s a story which I don’t understand the point of but still found it enjoyable to listen to. Peter Davison does well in giving a different type of performance from what he would normally give in a full cast story. hen it ended I found myself liking Sock Pig and feeling sad at times. Credit to the writers for giving a story that works in the way that it does.

The Doctor’s Coat by John Bromley and Read by Colin Baker

The next story sees the Doctor stopping somewhere really hot when his coat is stolen. The Doctor deals with a suntiler who has a Geordie accent which whilst not being important I found bizarre. The coat has been taken by a young suntiler who though that because the Doctor had taken his coat off which is similar to what they do this this was ok to take. This is one of the shortest stories but it manages to find time to fit in a part about how a coat is just a coat and how he went through a lot to get that coat because just like a companion, it’ll become history eventually.

This is another cracking story brilliantly read by Colin Baker. I thought that this was better than the volume one story and its good that we had two Doctors reading the last two stories because it makes it seem one up from a companion chronicle.

Critical Mass by James Moran and Read by Sophie Aldred

The penultimate story is written by the Same man who has written for Torchwood and new Doctor Who so I had high expectations for this adventure. The Doctor and Ace arrive at a base which is about to detonate a bomb which is basically melts humans. However its gone wrong and it is Ace who comes in and saves the day.

I really liked this story and was happy that my expectations were met. It has a feeling of ‘The Curse of Fenric’ when they arrive at a base pretending to be an important figure which I quite enjoyed and I also enjoyed the feel of the story. It was a snappily paced story that actually felt like it could be a TV Doctor Who story which given the writer isnt a complete surprise. Sophie Aldred also does a good job reading the story and gives a enthusiastic performance.

Another good story and that makes five good stories and two not so goo.

Letting Go by Simon Guerrier and Read by India Fisher

The final story is voiced by India Fisher who is now more recognisable as the voice of Masterchef (the BBC cookery show). This is another story I had high hopes for because it is by the author of Home Truths and The Guardian of the Solar System. The story is set shortly after Charley has joined the TARDIS but she is telling the story after joining the Sixth Doctor. It sees the Doctor and Charley go and see the family of someone called Stan who has died. Charley has a message for them and that was from Stan who said that he was wrong.

It’s not the best story but I do like it because its about tieing up loose ends and meeting the families of those that have died and become close to Charley. The story does take a while to get into its stride but once it does then it becomes a nice story. India Fisher puts on a lovely performance and seems to enjoy talking about something other than steak with stupid names given by people who are better cooks than me. Once I got past the Masterchef thing I was able to enjoy this story and it’s a nice end to the second volume.

Volume Two was overall an enjoyable release but it’s the two weak stories that let it down. All the stories that I liked were one that could be padded out and made into either a Big Finish full case audio or even a new series Doctor Who. The directing was done by Nicholas Briggs and Ken Bentley and I don’t know who did what but both must have had their fair share of the good stories.It’s going to be May before we get Volume Three but I am looking forward to more short stories.

Warriors Gate (1981)

The final of the E-Space trilogy is the weakest of the three stories because it is the most complicated. It pretty much shows what I find wrong with the Christopher H Bidmead era of the show. It might be nice to be have a bit of science but don’t forget it’s essentially a drama and you lose something if you get bogged down in science. The story stands out as being seeing the departure of Lalla Ward as the second Romana. The story is strange because it doesn’t seem to be set on a planet but in a void as there is a lot of blank sets apart from the TARDIS, the slave ship and the banquet hall.

The reason why I don’t like this story is that it’s dull and as it’s hard to enjoy anything when it’s dull. Several of the characters don’t have much in the way of likeable personalities about them. Rorvik should be someone that was supposed to dislike but actually I didn’t find him menacing or anything like that. The only character was Packard as played by Kenneth Cope. It’s only because I recognised him from being in the Randall and Hopkirk series. As a race the Tharil’s are too cuddly looking for my liking. Also their story didn’t actually make me care. I thought that Biroc was actually quite good but his performance gets lost in the story. As her swansong, this story is a bit of a let down because the character of Romana has been highly entertaining both as Mary Tamm and as Lalla Ward. I certainly never got the impression that they were dropping hints about a departure. Certainly nowadays a lot is made of an exit but in this story there is almost a sense that it’s been rushed because they lost track of time.

Ultimately the story suffers from a confusing plot which even after years and countless times of watching it still doesn’t make sense. The writer (Stephen Gallagher) has gone on to do quite well apparently but this isn’t one of his finest pieces of work. Visually the story is all over the place with the stuff in the banquet hall being the highlight. Graeme Story (Production Designer) should take responsibility for this because Paul Joyce (Director) did an ok job but was hampered by a lack of budget and also the material.

Warriors Gate is the embodiment of the new era in Doctor Who but it’s not quite as successful as it’s intended to be but it’s still better than Meglos. Also its time to say goodbye to K9 who after three year he stayed with Romana though it’s a debatable point as to how complicit he was in this. However Warriors Gate is getting closer towards the end of the Tom Baker era and the moment has been been prepared for.

A Blind Eye (2004)

I had high hopes for this final story of the first series of Gallifrey, the series so far. Written by Alan Barnes ‘A Blind Eye’ had a lot to live up to, tell a good story but compliment the other stories from the first series. When listening to the trailer at the end of ‘The Inquiry’ I thought that the story would feature Charley but instead we get Cecilia Pollard who is Charley’s sister who is a fascist sympathiser. The story is the first (and to date only) story to be set on Earth and it’s an interesting tale which for some reason doesn’t quite fit in with the other stories. It’s about (as the title suggests) turning a blind eye. At the beginning, Romana is asked to turn a Blind eye to what Arkadian is planning on doing. There is also a mention of the events of ‘Neverland’ (2003) where Romana turns a Blind Eye and this theme carries on.

The story is set largely on a train and is a different type of my favourite story setting. The isolated setting is always a fantastic way of telling a story because it gives that theatre play feel which means that the focus can be put on the acting and what’s going on instead of remembering where people are and wasting time in journeys toeing and froing.

This episode does a great job of dealing with the Andred disappearance story-arc. It wasn’t what I was expecting but oddly it was believable and I think that it enabled Louise Jameson to put in some of her finest acting in this series so far. I also thought that Lalla Ward put in a good performance but was in this case outshone by Louise Jameson. The supporting cast do a great job with India Fisher being the biggest name. At the time she was putting in strong performances as Charley and as Cecilia Pollard she is also very good but it is hard to like her as much due to her views on the Nazi’s. Hugo Myatt is for me a massive name because I am massive fan of the Children’s show Knightmare that aired on ITV1 from 1987 to 1994 (he played Treguard). I thought as Arkadian he was very good and the character was funny and entertaining. Susan Engel (Ms Joy) was another character that was livened up the story. The ‘regulars’ such as Narvin (Sean Carlsen) and Braxiatel (Miles Richardson) also work well in this story. In fact there isn’t a dud performance at all.

The final scene is very sad. Cecelia is writing a letter to a sister that we know is travelling in time and will never read it. The last sound that we hear is a gun which signals that Cecelia has killed herself like we are told earlier. This story isn’t the final story that I was hoping for but that’s not to say it’s a bad story. I think that all the performances are all very good and it’s a nice end to this first series. I think that so far the Gallifrey series has been everything that I would expect with strong performances in every single story. Now onwards with series two.

Full Circle (1980)

Full Circle is the third story of Tom Baker’s final season but more importantly it’s the first story of the E-Space trilogy. Three adventures taking place in E-Space which have negative co-ordinates but visually the only difference is that it’s slightly green. After the horrors of Meglos and the disappointing feeling I got watching The Leisure Hive, this is the first story of the 1980/81 series that felt like proper Doctor Who. Written by Andrew Smith (The Invasion of E-Space), this story sees the Doctor and Romana arrive on Alzarius where there is a Starliner that is going back to Terradon however things aren’t always that simple (when are they ever!) and the colonists are being bothered by Marshmen. I liked the idea that people are replacing parts of the Starliner that are perfectly fine and they could have taken off centuries ago but the deciders don’t know how to pilot the Starliner. The best part is that the Starliner hasn’t been of Terradon for 40 generations but more like 40,000 generations. Essentially the Marshmen and the colonists are the same.

The problem with this story is Adric. I really can’t stand him and he has to go in my top two worst companions (tied with Dodo). In the first episode he faints in the TARDIS and his actions lead to the death of a decider. Matthew Waterhouse wasn’t quite right for the role and I think that had another actor being cast then we would think quite differently of Adric. There is a scene where he twists Keara’s arm and is suppose to act aggressive but just fails. Tom Baker and Lalla Ward put in fine performances and there isn’t a much of Baker’s comedy in this despite a disparaging line about the Marshmen when Baker say “I usually get on so well with Children”. Apart from that he’s on good form.

Despite being Deciders, they aren’t very good at deciding. They put a lot of faith in the manuals, thinking that they are helping them but in fact they are hindering them. The line that the Starliner had been there for 40,000 generations helps makes the fact that no one knows how to pilot the Starliner believable. Alan Rowe and George Baker are two very good actors and are very good in this. The great thing about the deciders which these two show is that despite being in a position of relative power, they don’t abuse it like you would expect in any other story. Alan Rowe previously appeared in Horror of Fang Rock as well as The Time Warrior and has a fantastic on-screen presence. The Outlers are quite good even with the inclusion of Adric. I thought that despite them being fairly rubbish in trying to steal some melons they were still entertaining and were suitable opposite the deciders.

Full Circle is a good start to the E-Space Trilogy. I think that as a stand alone story it’s got some interesting characters and the Marshmen are very well realised. Peter Grimwade does a good job directing and is by far a better director than writer. All the location work is minimal but is still very good. As part of the trilogy it’s better than Warriors Gate but not as good as State of Decay (only just).

State of Decay (1980)

State of Decay is the best of the E-Space trilogy pure and simple. This story was written by former Script Editor Terrance Dicks. The bones of this story were meant to form a story that later became Horror of Fang Rock (1977). The story arrives on a planet that seems to be in a feudal period. The inhabitants are being ruled by three Lord who have more than an interest in the red stuff. Sadly this story doesn’t feature the demise of Adric but thankfully there are more reasons (if any more were needed) to dislike the character.

The villagers that the Doctor and Romana meet are quite backward in terms of development and there is a wonderful moment when they are looking at a computer which is so 1980’s and if this story were made today it would be an iPad or a PC. The fact that the lords are descendants of humans in an interesting twist on the normal vampire story. Their names are different versions of normal everyday names. The lords are trying to protect the Great Vampire which is a great idea. It was clear that they wouldn’t be able to realise the creature properly and they clearly learnt their lessons from the Erato creature in The Creature from the Pit and we only saw a hand/claw. The story is very eerie and that is what is best about State of Decay. The lords are tremendously camp at times and it’s that mixed in with their appearance which is impressive that which carries the story. What does let the story down are the model sequences. The shots of the tower looked dodgy and as the heart beating of the Great Vampire also looked dodgy but was slightly better.

Of the three regular cast, Tom Baker and Lalla Ward put on good performances. The comedy from Tom Baker was a little more visible in this story but Matthew Waterhouse is drowning in this story and is very poor in this. I think that the story is hindered when Waterhouse is on the screen. Out of the three lords it was Emrys James that really stood out for me. He was totally creepy and was the one out of the three that posed the greatest threat to the regulars. Camilla (Rachel Davies) and Zargo (William Lindsay) are great as the King and Queen but slightly lack the terror that Aukon has.

State of Decay is a very good story that is only let down by the model sequences. It manages to avoid that trap that middle stories in a trilogy have and that is just being a holding place until the final story. This is a story that doesn’t rest on its laurels and goes for its own adventure and leaves the story arc to the beginning and end of the story. There is some really nice location work and Peter Moffatt has done well directing this story with what seems like a lot of stuff in it. The studio sets were great, the acting was some of the best that I have seen from this season and at the end of the day it is the best of the E-Space trilogy and one of the best stories from the season.

Robot (1974/75)

Robot is the opening story for the Tom Baker era and whilst it’s a good story its probably the weakest story from this series. The first story of a new Doctor is always a bit of a gamble. Not because of the actor so much but more to do with the story because sometimes its felt that the story needs to be overfilled to cover up any shortcomings that the actor playing the Doctor may have. Thankfully this story doesn’t need to be overfilled because of Tom Baker. Written by Terrance Dicks who had just left the post of Script/Story Editor and what he gave us what a story that was good in theory but sadly didn’t hit the mark.

The story is about a group called Think Tank who are behind a series of thefts from supposedly secure premises. The group are using a giant robot to carry out these crimes (hence the title). The leader of the group is Miss Winters who is one of the best things about this story. I found Patricia Maynard’s performance to be on par with some of the male performers at the time. Edward Burnham is also marvellous but purely because of his bonkers hair. To be honest that hair should have got an on screen credit but going back to Burnham I thought that he did well as the creator of the K1 robot and it was sad when his character was killed off. The story featured UNIT which was one of the things that made the Third Doctor era so memorable. Sadly the fourth Doctor’s personality didn’t really suit the Brigadier or UNIT and as a result the performances of Nicholas Courtney and John Levene don’t really shine. It was only a few stories later before they were written out. That said, its always good having them in a Doctor Who story and with the recent passing of Courtney it makes it even more enjoyable to see him on screen.

For his first story its quite difficult to actually like the Doctor. I think after this story his performance goes to what we know it would be. This story doesn’t really feel like a Tom Baker story which is why the main plot helps a little bit. Elisabeth Sladen does well to carry the story for a while using her journalistic talents. It’s her relationship with Tom Baker that is far more successful than her relationship with Pertwee. Sadly it wouldn’t be long before the journalist side of her character is replaced with the more traditional character trait of screaming and running down corridors.

The story has some major problems and sadly they are in the production which is a shame because this story is a Christopher Barry directed story and he is normally a excellent director. The first being is the robot which is frankly rubbish. I know that it was 1974 but its still quite poor. The meer thought that this robot could somehow be a threat is laughable and that it develops feelings for Sarah Jane is ripped off from King Kong even to the point that there is a scene where a massive robot grabs Sarah Jane and walks around for a bit. The CSO is a bit dodgy on the scene where the robot grows because at times parts of its leg vanish and reappear. Another iffy moment is where the robot vaporises a tank which is a toy tank that they have plonked in front of a camera to give the impression that it’s the real thing when even to a four year old it looks like a toy.

Robot is an important story because it marks the beginning of Tom Baker’s seven year tenure as the Doctor and the golden age of Doctor Who would begin after this story.

Lucie Miller (2011)

Well all good things must come to an end. After 29 adventures Lucie Miller bows out. Being the only companion that I know of in Doctor Who history to have a story named after them. This is the first of a two parter written by Nicholas Briggs. The story is where all the seemingly random elements from the series come to fruition with the Daleks thrown in. A lot of the early part is more like a companion chronicle with Lucie Miller talking about her story after Relative Dimensions which involves her going to Thailand with Alex and then going blind in one eye and having problems with her legs. There is a link to the Dalek Invasion of Earth (1964) which is set some 30 years before this story. There is a plan by the Daleks to decimate the earth, mine out the centre of the earth and use it as some spaceship.

What Nicholas Briggs has done is write a story that doesn’t have much in the way of big things happening but still makes it exciting. There is a fair amount of time spent telling Lucie and Alex’s story before Susan comes in and then more people in that we’ve never heard of before, then the mighty Daleks appear. We also have the return of the Time Controller Dalek who was thought to have been blown up in Patient Zero (2009). The story moves along at a steady pace with moments reminding us of the Daleks Invasion of Earth. There is a wonderful sense of being pushed to the edge and not having the Doctor around to act as a safety net. The fact that this story is split into two hour long (ish) parts means that there is no break in the flow and it can build up to just the one cliffhanger. Speaking of the cliffhanger, its obvious the Doctor’s not dead but the way that it happened and how it ended was a bit of a surprise and well acted. It’s going to be interesting to see how its resolved.

A lot has been thrown into this story and it all works well. It’s Sheridan Smith’s story in many ways but she handles it well. She’s come a long way since Blood of the Daleks (2006/07). I was also quite impressed with Jake McGann. He’s definitely improved since An Earthly Child. In that story he was a sort of supporting cast member to Carole Ann Ford’s Susan but in this he stands out away from her and the double act of Smith and McGann Jnr is a very strong one. As one of the TV companion, Carole Ann Ford is there for emotional linkage between the Doctor and Alex. It’s always good to have her in a Big Finish audio. Giving her a son was a really good idea as it gave Susan something that we hadn’t seen before from her. She is stronger as a result. Hopefully she will feature more in the future especially with Jake because the two of them work well. It’s been a while Nicky Wardly was last in a Doctor Who because Tamsin went off with the Monk. I like her because she seems a bit normal and that’s not something we get often. I think Prisoner of the Sun would have been better with her in it. In this story its good that Tamsin saw sense (or started to) over the Monk. I suspect that she will shine in the final story. A quicker mention should also go to Graeme Garden who has been superb as the Monk this series. He is very cool and calm in this story but its clear that the Monk will come unstuck but Garden make it memorable.

It’s difficult to properly review this story until ‘To The Death’ comes out but judging this story on its own the story the thing that stands out in my mind is how dark it feels at times but there is more to come.

The Inquiry (2004)

The third instalment of the first Gallifrey series that was released in 2004 is arguably the best written by Justin Richards, this story sees an inquiry opened to examine the events of the previous story and whether Romana over did it. This story sees the return of the Inquisitor played by Linda Bellingham. Considering the story is called The Inquiry, there is very little of it. Instead we get a threat to blow up the Matrix because some sort of Anti-Tamper device has been activated by K9 which is another reason to dislike K9. This is a good story that gets bogged down in science jargon, to the degree I actually thought that Christopher H Bidmead was involved somehow. The story does have a B-Plot to give Leela something to do. There is a bit more on the whereabouts of her husband. You now that never sounds right in my head.

The stuff with finding proof of the Titmoic device was interesting. The idea the proof of something was erased after it went off was different. I may have got it slightly back to front but it sounded very exciting. Just when I thought that I had understood that Cardinal Braxiatel was somehow involved it all disappeared and it took me another listen to understand it properly what was going on. This is becoming a regular thing which I find slightly annoying which is a fault with the series so far. The plot with Leela was far more exciting as we had more than scraps to digest. There was still no real definitive news but I found this stuff had more dramatic weight to it than the Romana stuff. It seems like Louise Jameson had the better deal in this story.

The supporting cast were very good with a great showing from Sean Carlsen as Coordinator Narvin. He was written as a slim character and Carlsen played him brilliantly. I also thought Miles Richardson gave a good performance as Braxiatel. I also liked John Leeson’s contributions though. I still don’t like K9. I also thought that the partnership between Leela and Romana was vey strong. It was Louise Jameson’s best performance because there was a proper reason for her character to be there as opposed to just making up the numbers. Overall a strong cast.

The Inquiry is the best release of the series so far. We had two quite important plots that continue to keep us guessing. Hopefully there will be a satisfying conclusion in the next story which if the trailer is to be believe features the inclusion of a familiar voice and possibly character who at the time was quite a big character. So far all three stories have impressed me but they are slightly more complicated than a normal Doctor Who adventure. It’s a good if slightly more realistic portrayal of the Timelords than we ever saw on TV.