The Trial of a Time Lord

Indictment
For whatever reason, Doctor Who was off the air for over a year before returning in 1986. The season was shorter and the episode length was back to the usual 25 minutes. It has often been said that the programme itself was on trial for its life- so the wisdom of making a comeback season of one fourteen episode story seems a bit flawed to me. Of course it is not really one story, but four, but is does have a linking theme- the trial of the Doctor. I said, many moons ago in my review of The Keys of Marinus, that courtroom drama is, perhaps, the most constricting genre of all. Courtroom sets are constructed very similarly, the dynamics are similar, even the plot is dictated by the mechanics of the trial. The best courtroom dramas rely on performances and truly inspired direction. Even so, the best courtroom scenes I have watched occur in other types of drama- a good example are the astonishing court martial scenes in Kubrick's Paths of Glory. Which brings me to this season. A multi-camera videotaped production is almost certainly never going to match a feature film as far as visual creativity is concerned and, indeed, as soon as the lights go up, we see a perfectly average set and three main participants- the Doctor, the Inquisitor and the Valeyard. Whatever else the season might reveal, visually exciting courtroom scenes are not on the menu. I shall return to this aspect periodically but, I think it is useful to examine each of the separate epistopic interfaces of the spectrum before looking at the story as a whole. So…

The Mysterious Planet
The season opens with a four parter by Robert Holmes himself. Although it is by no means a 'Holmes classic' it contains much good dialogue and tells a reasonably effective story. The script is, indeed, skilful enough to make one forget that it is basically a retread of The Face of Evil- a human society split in two by an artificial intelligence, with a pallid group of humans living under the control of the AI and a savage group living outside it. Holmes creates some good characters; however, Glitz and Dibber (on the page, at least) are very similar to Garron and Unstoffe from The Ribos Operation. Despite having quite a few quibbles with the plot (water jars on display, two light years being nothing in galactic terms) the story manages to paint a believable environment and believable people to go with it.

The season as a whole opens with the most spectacular effects shot the programme had in the twentieth century. The shot of the space station is breathtaking and still impressive today. However from this story on, both location and studio scenes (bar a few effects shots) are shot on videotape, which gives a greater sense of visual unity to the programme. Unfortunately, Nicholas Mallett's direction, although not bad, is hardly inspired, with the overlit scenes in Marb Station being particularly unimpressive. The costume for Drathro is superb, but Mallett fails to shoot the robot with the requisite skill to make it appear like the vast automaton it should have appeared to be.

The best guest performance in the story is easily Tony Selby's Glitz and it is entirely due to his performance that the character is so memorable. Most of the other performances are sound, especially Adam Blackwood as Balazar, but Joan Sims is a major disappointment as Katryca- much as I love Maid Marian and Her Merry Men, it is not the thing I should be thinking of every time Katryca issues an order!

Colin Baker continues to impress as the Doctor. His greater affection for Peri and his more moral outlook is a joy to behold. Nicola Bryant is given some strong character material and she attacks it with relish.

The Mysterious Planet is a good run-of-the-mill story- something we hadn't seen for some time.

Mindwarp
Phillip Martin returns to Doctor Who with this fun story with a shocking twist. Like Vengeance on Varos, there is the slight feeling that Martin might drop one of the plates he is spinning- the script covers economic exploitation of less developed civilisations, genetic engineering, brain alteration, revolutions etc, whilst incorporating the possibility of an unreliable narrator. However, as before, Martin just about manages to pull it off- although there is the subplot about the Alphan rebels which is unnecessary (and probably not the work of Philip Martin). The central thread is the imminent death of Lord Kiv, leader of the Mentors and each plot thread is somehow connected to that. To bolster the plot, Martin brings back Sil, perhaps the greatest character of the Sixth Doctor era and he is accompanied by other great characters such as Kiv and Yrcanos. There are some instances of rushed scripting- Crozier’s move from brain transplants to mind transfers is rather sudden- but the story works well, with some choice dialogue- the financial conversations between Sil and Kiv, and later Sil and the Doctor are a delight.

The story is further helped by its excellent visualisation. This is the first use of paintbox image manipulation in the programme and the resultant Thoros Betan landscape is impressive (if typically gaudy for the era). There is great use of matte work and some highly effective lighting and the camerawork is very impressive. Ron Jones has been very inconsistent as a director but, with a good production team behind him, he does a good job here. The costuming and make-up are also first rate- the work for the Mentors is even more impressive than it was for Vengeance on Varos with great attention to detail- it is easy to forget that Christopher Ryan wears two similar, but not identical costumes. There is also the terrifyingly effective make-up for the Lukoser, a truly horrific creation. Jones clearly knows how to disguise the production’s shortcomings- the Raak doesn’t look very good, so it is never fully glimpsed. Overall, this is a highly impressive production.

It goes without saying that Nabil Shaban puts in another wonderful performance as Sil, a character he clearly loved playing, but he is ably supported by Christopher Ryan as Kiv, who amusingly treats Sil like an annoying illegitimate sprog who he has some regard for, finds occasionally useful, but is not above ordering the death of. However, there is one guest performance which cannot help to stand out- Brian Blessed as Yrcanos. Blessed is one of the very few actors who can go completely over the top and still make the character believable, which is exactly what he does with Yrcanos. There are wonderful little touches he gives to the role, like the throat singing he employs as a farewell. There is not enough room to fully do justice to Blessed here- he is a force of nature and the world will genuinely be a poorer place when he passes on. There are some other nice performances- Patrick Ryecart as Crozier is worth a mention- and a strangely poor one from Gordon Warnecke. Mind you, Ron Jones is no Stephen Frears.

Colin Baker has a very tough challenge- he must make the Doctor look more dislikeable than he has ever done before which, considering The Twin Dilemma is really saying something. The juxtaposition of the Doctor acting his worst on Thoros Beta and his noblest in the trial room is very nicely done and baker acquits himself well. However, this does mean that the story is Doctor-less for long stretches and it is Peri who steps up to the challenge. This, Nicola Bryant’s final story as Peri, is also one of her best performances- and she is given one of the most shocking exits for any companion ever. It seems that her mind has been destroyed and the intelligence of Kiv now inhabits her skull. The last words heard from her lips are ‘Protect me! I am your Lord and Master’ with her staring at Yrcanos with infinite menace. The Doctor’s realisation of what happens is wonderfully effective- Baker is understated and then coldly furious.

Mindwarp may not be 100% successful, but it is extremely enjoyable throughout- a fine story!

Terror of the Vervoids
Pip and Jane Baker's second contribution to Doctor Who is a return to the simple monster tale, with a heavy helping of Agatha Christie. This is nothing new- The Robots of Death also had touches of the Dame of Detection. However, the earlier story used a Christie type plot merely as the framework for a thoughtful script that aspired to so much more and succeeded. Terror of the Vervoids is a very watchable story, but the trouble is, it is too much like Christie- puzzles are more important that emotion or characters and there are numerous badly thought out ideas- notably, why the Vervoids have a lethal capability if they were genetically engineered. There is also the question of the dialogue. The Bakers showed they had no ear for naturalistic dialogue in The Mark of the Rani, but that is nothing compared to some of the appalling lines the poor actors have to say! Also present are little educational nuggets- there were thousands of children who would forever know the difference between an agronomist and a thremmatologist, that plants had chloroplasts and what a Judas Goat was.

The money is obviously running out- the space sequences obviously look bad compared to the opening shot of the season. However, the design is very clever and the story doesn't actually look cheap. Even the costumes for the Vervoids are rather good- although I'm sure their look caused all sorts of adult neuroses for anyone who saw them as a child! Chris Clough does the best that he can with what he is given and does a pretty good job, helped by some effective lighting. He also helps give the story some excellent cliffhangers, most notably the terrifying revelation of Ruth Baxter, brilliantly shot and lit, with some superb make-up.

The performances are generally good, although Honor Blackman seems a bit listless as Professor Lasky. Maurice Tierney as Doland deserves special praise for making his character seem real, with a surprisingly nuanced performance. Mind you, considering what they had to say, it is a testament to the skill of all the actors that they emerge with dignity intact. Colin Baker is wonderfully energetic in this story, a true pleasure to watch. However, there is another regular present. Bonnie Langford is obviously a hugely talented individual but Mel is, to be frank, fingers-on-the-blackboard irritating. True, she's energetic and seems to be enjoying herself, but her voice and line readings are too mannered. Then there's her screaming… Still, early days.

Terror of the Vervoids is an enjoyable, if shallow entry which ends with the Doctor being accused of genocide…

The Ultimate Foe
So, the trial comes to its conclusion with a script that was only half complete when its author, the great Robert Holmes, died. Moreover, Eric Saward, who wrote the final episode based on what Holmes had told him, refused to allow its use, meaning that Pip and Jane Baker had to write a replacement in less than a week. So it is, in fact, a miracle that The Ultimate Foe works as well as it does. Holmes returns to the nightmare virtual reality of the Matrix and creates another memorable dream realm- the Christmas Carol influence of the whole Trial season is, appropriately, concluded with a heavily Dickensian setting. Upon the shock revelation of the Master (which is rather well done) it is revealed, in a very atmospheric moment, that the Valeyard is an entity created from the distillation of the dark side of the Doctor's personality and he can only gain a truly independent existence with the Doctor's death. Although the story lacks the depth and impact of The Deadly Assassin, episode 13 is a startling piece of television and, it has to be said, that the Bakers do quite well with their concluding episode (with the obvious caveat concerning their dialogue). Holmes creates the wonderful character of Popplewick, a Dickensian clerk whose belief in a circumlocutory 'procedure' is part of the Valeyard's evil plan. There are some problems, most of which I will address later, but there are a few things that annoy me- for example the Master thanking Mel for calling him 'utterly evil' undermines the character somewhat.

Chris Clough, while he is no David Maloney, works wonders with the Matrix scenes. The Dickensian courtyard is wonderfully atmospheric and the scene of the Doctor being dragged under the beach by chthonic arms is also very memorable. There are a few silly bits (Mel being tripped up by the Keeper, for instance) but they are minor. The performances are good, with Glitz making a welcome return and an excellent performance by Geoffrey Hughes as the Popplewicks. Anthony Ainley is also very effective in his return as the Master. Bonnie Langford is still annoying as Mel, however.

So, we have watched each separate story. But that is not all that needs to be said…

Verdict
If you ignore the linking theme of the season, what you have is four respectable stories. There are many moments of near greatness in them, in Mindwarp, particularly. However, the linking theme cannot be ignored as the trial scenes permeate the entire narrative. The first point that must be made is the bizarre nature of Gallifreyan justice- the prosecutor can add charges at will, the Doctor is held responsible for things he hasn’t done yet. It would appear that the most the writers had done was half-watch a courtroom drama and get a very basic idea of legal practice. This makes the actual stories far more streamlined, but it becomes increasingly obvious that trial sequences are sometimes inserted to pad out the running time. With its theme of unreliable narration, the trial scenes in Mindwarp are the most ’necessary’, but are far from the best part of the story. By the time we get to Terror of the Vervoids, the trial scenes are pointlessly intrusive- most notably the silly part where the Doctor is revealed to have trashed the radio equipment. As a whole, the trial sequences weaken the story. A notable example is the Valeyard using a series of incidents that directly point to the secret plan of the Time Lords and, rather than removing incriminating scenes, clumsily bleeps over them. In Mindwarp it is immediately obvious that anything that occurs after the Doctor is taken out of time is a fabrication, as there is nothing there to record incidents for the Matrix. And in Terror of the Vervoids, surely the fact that the incidents in question are from the future either means that the Doctor definitely gets off and the Trial is pointless, or it is only a potential future and therefore can hardly be seen as admissible.

As I predicted, the trial scenes are visually dull- it is a big step down from the stunning opening sequence to when the lights are turned on in the trial chamber. And, speaking of the opening sequence; it is stunning, beautiful- but strangely pointless. There is no sense of the trial taking place on a giant space station- indeed it could be on Gallifrey for all that it matters to the plot.

Apart from the Doctor, the only characters to appear in every segment are the Inquisitor and the Valeyard. The Inquisitor is basically characterised and her motivation, level of authority and, indeed, knowledge of the events shown is totally inconstant- most notably when she suddenly has full knowledge of the events leading to Peri’s apparent death. Lynda Bellingham deserves credit for making the character seem believable, considering what she had to work with. Michael Jayston’s voice makes him immediately memorable as the Valeyard and it is his masterful performance that makes the character so memorable. It certainly isn’t the writing- in fact, although we are told what the Valeyard is, we are never actually told who or what brought him into being and how (in the story’s defence, this is because the original idea- that the Valeyard is a future incarnation of the Doctor- was discarded at the eleventh hour). Nicola Bryant is, eventually denied her dramatic exit, but I am glad that Peri got to live, despite that- it would have been the most miserable exit possible, her mind being destroyed believing that the Doctor betrayed her. As I indicated before, Bonnie Langford does not agree with me, more due to irritation than incompetence.

This is, of course, the anticlimactic end of the Colin Baker era. One thing that I can definitely say in the story’s favour is how much I enjoyed his performance in this season and that he would have gone from strength to strength. Whatever the quality of the stories, he had what it took to play the Doctor and his firing (the first unwilling departure since Hartnell) was totally unwarranted.

There is a common cliché used when evaluating The Trial of a Time Lord, which I cannot improve on- it is much less than the sum of its parts. If you watch it, there is much goodness- but you will have to bite through layers of fat and gristle to get there.

NEXT: Time and the Rani

Vengeance on Varos

Whatever else one can say about Vengeance on Varos, one thing is clear- it is obviously the work of a professional writer. Philip Martin's script is based on solid ideas and these ideas are well executed, which is more than can be said for the amateur drivel that was The Twin Dilemma and the fan-pleasing twaddle of Attack of the Cybermen. The main concept behind the story is the debasement of mass-entertainment- the Doctor's actions in this story are followed by cameras and are broadcast into the homes of the Varosians, two of whom (Arak and Etta) comment on what they are seeing. This is brilliantly brought to a head with the greatest cliffhanger of the Colin Baker era- the Governor directing the filming of the Doctor's apparent death. Varos is a well realised world, depicted as a former prison colony where the descendants of the prisoners and guards have formed a twisted version of a democratic society, where personal freedom is severely restricted and insurrection ruthlessly quashed- but the Governor is held totally accountable, even until death. This is brilliantly stated in one piece of dialogue:

Arak: 'I'm entitled to my opinion'
Etta: 'You're entitled to a vote, that's all.'

Martin populates this twisted world with suitably twisted characters. The Governor is a good man brought up in a bad world. He remembers the value of compassion and wants the best for his people- but he still presides over televised tortures and executions. The dynamic between him and the Chief is subtly and interestingly written. I will come to another supporting character later. Not all of the story works- the whole transmogrification plot and the character of Quillam verge on the ridiculous- but this is an excellent script, overall.

The production values for the story are excellent and the lighting is very atmospheric- however, Ron Jones (the most frustratingly inconsistent director the programme ever had) directs on autopilot- Sil's revelation is totally undramatic and there is little art to the framing and composition. He has little energy for action sequences, which comes to a head in one of the few production failures- the realisation of the cannibals as gurning men in nappies. He also allows some rather weak performances. Jason Connery would soon star in Robin of Sherwood where, under the direction of some of the best directors ever to work on the small screen, he would be effective. Here, he is rather weak, as are the other rebels. However, there are far more effective performances elsewhere- Forbes Collins is very good as the Chief (it is odd to see Prince John from Maid Marian and her Merry Men sharing screen time with Robert of Huntingdon from Robin of Sherwood). Martin Jarvis is simply superb as the Governor, excellently portraying the ambiguities inherent in the character. However, I must be predictable in handing the Best Supporting Actor award to Nabil Shaban's Sil. Shaban is a hugely talented and outspoken actor and he makes Sil both funny and repulsive- his laugh has to be heard to be believed! This is helped by a truly outstanding costume that is a masterpiece of design.

This story has a wholly unwarranted reputation for gratuitous violence. True, there is the acid-bath scene, which is unfairly maligned- true the Doctor makes a quip after the death of two men, but he is not actually violent. Indeed, most of the violence in the story is either implied or 'sci-fi'- the opening torture scene is, visually, a man having a light shone on his body. Colin Baker is allowed to be Doctor-ish again in this and puts in a good performance, as does Nicola Bryant in a sadly underwritten role.

Vengeance on Varos is by no means perfect, but it is the first Colin Baker story that I can easily recommend.

NEXT: The Mark of the Rani

Frontios

Frontios sees the very welcome return of Christopher H. Bidmead to the Doctor Who fold. While Frontios lacks the resonance of Castrovalva and Logopolis, the story is structured in a more linear way, making it more accessible to the casual viewer. This is not to say that Bidmead has been dumbing down- he takes a simple premise like colonists threatened by aliens and builds a well thought-out world out of it with striking imagery, such as Frontios 'burying its own dead', the Tractators' mastery of gravity and, most notably, the destruction of the TARDIS- which is tied in very well with the story. There is also some wonderful dialogue and characterisation. Bidmead might have intended to bring a greater level of real science to the programme, but he understood what the building blocks of good writing were and could write some very funny lines, when required. Even the character names have a Dickensian creativity- Captain Revere, Plantagenet, Brazen, Range- that add to the richness of the story and I'm sure the erudite Bidmead had Wittgenstein at the back of his mind when he named the monsters Tractators. The whole tale is given a sense of unease by the revelation that they have travelled beyond the scope of Time Lord knowledge- 'Whereof one cannot speak, one must remain silent'.

The look of the story is stunning, with fantastic sets and spectacular, if not exactly photo-realistic matte paintings. The lighting is subdued and based on reds and greens, which aids the atmosphere of the story considerably. Ron Jones's direction is masterful, creating memorable shots and scenes- most notably the climax. The TARDIS, the only regular set in the programme is shown intermeshed with Frontios- a startling enough sight, which Jones works wonders with. Jones is probably the most infuriatingly inconsistent director ever to work on the programme- he can do excellent work in this and yet send one to sleep with Arc of Infinity. If there is a flaw to the story, it is in the realisation of the Tractators, but they are by no means awful.

Bidmead's memorable characters are brought to life by a superb cast, who are very effectively marshalled by Jones. Peter Gilmore makes Brazen totally believable and a very young Jeff Rawle gives Plantagenet a real sense of humanity. The regulars are given some very strong material. Turlough's race memories are excellently conveyed by Mark Strickson, who manages to show very raw emotions without being overwrought. Tegan has a lot more to do than usual, and Janet Fielding attacks the role with relish. However, it is Davison who continues to astonish, improving on his already stellar best in the role.

Frontios is not that well remembered, so if you have never seen it before, you are in for a very pleasant surprise.

NEXT: Resurrection of the Daleks

Arc of Infinity

For a Doctor Who story, or indeed any story, to succeed, it is essential to have a situation that the viewer will care about. If the Doctor is threatened, if a planet is in danger, we must feel that danger, understand the nature of the threat. I say this now because, while Arc of Infinity is, in every way, a better made piece of television than Time-Flight, it utterly fails to connect to me as a viewer. The threats to the Doctor are explained by using the most extreme barrage of technobabble that the programme has ever seen and it never ceases. This is a story that progresses entirely by constructing, deactivating or bypassing various contraptions, rather than anything involving actual ideas or characters. The adversary of the story is Omega, but his identity is revealed far too late in the story and only those who remembered The Three Doctors would be able to pick up on the mentions on anti-matter to guess the identity of the antagonist. The Amsterdam section of the story is very poorly integrated with the Gallifreyan section and shows a shocking lack of anything approaching invention or imagination.

Visually, the story is competent, but dull. The location filming in Amsterdam is so unimaginative that it could have been shot anywhere- Only Fools and Horses would shoot in the same location with far greater flair two years later. Gallifrey is realised as a kind of futuristic coffee shop. Ron Jones's direction is hardly memorable, but he can have hardly been galvanised by the material. The most disappointing thing of all is the Matrix, which is realised as a bunch of criss-crossed lines.

There are some excellent actors here, but most are wasted. Leonard Sachs makes a rather disappointing Borusa and Elspet Grey is given little to do. Michael Gough, however, refuses to be cowed by the blandness and plays his part with vigour. On Earth, the performances are less good, with Andrew Boxer coming off more as a talented amateur, rather than a professional. Peter Davison manages to be engaging throughout and Sarah Sutton fills the role of sole companion rather better than I would have expected- however it is good to see Janet Fielding back.

If the story has a success it is the eventual portrayal of Omega. He is not just a villain- he thanks Hedin for his help and is genuinely angry at his death. Ian Collier is pretty good in the role (a far cry from his previous appearance in The Time Monster). Omega's costume design is excellent and the Ergon, while it is hardly the best Doctor Who monster, is about a thousand times better than the Gel-Guards. The best thing of all is Davison's child-like performance as the reborn Omega, which gives the final 15 minutes of the story more drama, wonder and excitement than the rest of the story put together. It is far too little, far too late, though.

NEXT: Snakedance

Time-Flight

Of all the stories of Season 19, Time-Flight stands out the most, for one reason- it's bad. Time-Flight drives home how well the John Nathan-Turner era started- from The Leisure Hive to Earthshock, there was not a single story that was not wonderful on at least one level. Time-Flight breaks this remarkable winning streak. The first episode is actually quite good, very reminiscent of The Faceless Ones. However, as we carry on it is obvious that there is very little plot for the next 72 minutes. Basically, the Master (sorry to let the cat out of the bag) has been stranded on Jurassic Earth and has discovered the Nucleus- the collective intelligence of the people of the planet Xeriphas- is also there. To help him gain control of it, he kidnaps humans from 1982.

This could have been made into a run-of-the-mill Doctor Who story in the hands of a skilful writer. However, the script is overloaded with technobabble- there are times when you realise that the Doctor and the Master are, basically, intoning random collections of words at each other. The Master is disguised as Kalid- a mysterious magician. The trouble is, there is no more reason for a tubby conjurer to be on Jurassic Earth than a goateed baddie and there is certainly no reason for the Master to keep up the silly voice when he's on his own. The portrayal of the Nucleus as a collective intelligence with a split personality is an intriguing, if not very original idea, but it emerges too late in the narrative and is not adequately developed or even properly integrated into the story. There is also one criticism I have held since I first watched this story at the tender age of six- this is the second story where we are teased with mentions of dinosaurs, but none appear!

However, a patchy script can be invigorated by a good production and, again, the first episode looks great, with good location filming in and around Concorde. However, the production team was fighting a losing battle when the story had to portray Concorde crashing on Jurassic Earth. The sets have all the greyness of lumps of rock without any of the other features that would make it a convincing rocky landscape. The Plasmatons bring to mind the Gel-Guards with the added 'advantage' of also being a dull grey colour. Ron Jones's work in the first episode is very good- Nyssa's vision of the dead Xeraphin is a real 'behind the sofa' moment. However, he seems to lose interest in the story after the first episode and pretty much directs on autopilot.

The performances are competent enough, if a bit lifeless- only Nigel Stock is memorable amongst the guest cast. It is here, however that we see Peter Davison's tremendous strength in the title role. Davison plays it like he believes it and it is this that lifts the story from unwatchable to barely watchable. Janet Fielding continues to impress and Sarah Sutton puts in a nice performance.

There are worse stories than Time-Flight- but after typing this review, I have lost the motivation to actually name them.

NEXT: Arc of Infinity

Black Orchid

Black Orchid is a wonderful little interlude for the programme- the first time since The Highlanders where the only sci-fi element is the TARDIS. The effectiveness of the story depends on whether one truly appreciates what the script is trying to achieve. This isn't a period murder mystery (there's only one suspect) but can be seen as Doctor Who barging into a BBC period drama- one can imagine a drama called The Cranleighs where the explorer George Cranleigh disappeared in the 1980 season, Latoni appeared in the 1981 season and the 1982 season finale was a crossover with Doctor Who, where the family secret was finally outed. Despite a great deal of contrived coincidence, Terence Dudley's script is delightful, full of great dialogue and good characters who all come alive in the mere 50 minutes it takes to tell the (very intriguing) tale.

As one would expect from the BBC, the production values are first rate, with splendid sets and costumes. Ron Jones directs very well and I must, at this point, highlight the effectiveness of the opening 90 seconds or so, before the TARDIS appears. We open with a shot of a man being strangled by an unseen assailant, followed by a shot of what appears to be Nyssa sleeping. The assailant walks in, but then we have a shot of the assailant tied up, which is followed by a shot of an Amazonian Indian reading a book- all in less than 2 minutes. If you had never seen this story before, this totally bonkers and brilliant montage would pique your interest immediately. The story also fulfils the 'scaring small children' requirement. The realisation of George Cranleigh, with his horrific scarring and gargling vocalisation is very memorable, as is the most striking visual in the story- the scary Harlequin mask.

This story cannot be discussed without mentioning the cricket match. The effectiveness of this part is highly dependant on how one views cricket. North and South American, Mainland European and East Asian viewers might be baffled and/or bored, but British, African, Caribbean, South Asian and Australasian viewers will appreciate these wonderful sequences, especially Peter Davison's genuine and wonderful wicket. The scoring is a bit peculiar, though.

The guest performances are all wonderful with Michael Cochrane, Barbara Murray and Moray Watson effortlessly bringing their characters to life. Davison is his usual brilliant self, but I must make special mention of his trio of companions. Tegan is enjoying herself for the first time and Janet Fielding is wonderful; flirty, loving the 20s dances and clearly proud of being with the Doctor. Sarah Sutton is very effective in her dual role of Nyssa and Ann, but the biggest surprise is Matthew Waterhouse, who doesn't put a foot wrong in this and is actually fun to watch.

This is 50 minutes of wonderful television and highly recommended.

NEXT: Earthshock