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13 July 2014 at 10:25 #28951
I have yet to re watch this. Still watching the previous episode however a few comments. Before I escaped Oz in ’82 I heard part of the last episode of the radio play and remembered “telephone sanitisers” and the twist on evolution. I re-discovered the series when I returned to Oz four years later to find people quoting Marvin and Pan-galatic-gargle-blasters on sale in cocktial bars. It will still a few years before I watched the series and then read the books and I have yet (I blush to admit it) to listen to the radio play though I have it now and intend to inflict it upon the family the next time we take a car holiday. It should be just the thing to keep three teenage males from killing each other enroute.
Are or were there ever telephone sanitisers? I had never heard of them and the very absurdity of the concept added to the hilarity of the story. I have encountered market researchers sad to say and watching after working some years in the hotel which served Pan-galatic-gargle-blasters I find all too much of social critique spot on. When I am really cynical I think of it as social commetary not humour.
A note on Aubrey Morris, he was in B.5 as Duncan in “Exogenisis”, Series 3 (not a recommended episode unfortunately.)
Cheers
Janette
12 July 2014 at 13:49 #2892611 July 2014 at 12:28 #28888Having been set on a series 4 rewatch course after watching Partners in Crime I think that Silence in the Library is looming on my viewing horizon. It is one of my favourites too. The Vashta Nerada would top my “most scary Dr Who monster list. (Well maybe second top if I knew for certain that the “white man” who terrorised my childhood was a Dr Who baddie.)
Cheers
Janette
9 July 2014 at 15:22 #28840Having a top ten seems a little ill mannered to me given that there have only been twelve doctors to date and after Night of the Doctor Paul McGann definitely deserves a mention. (Before Colin Baker at least.) I agree with @TheKryniodMan. This list certainly deserves “a good kicking”.
Cheers
Janette
9 July 2014 at 07:48 #288337 July 2014 at 12:59 #28797I forgot to mention for those interested in costume history that Barbara Murray’s 18th Century costume was made for this story which is surprising given the usual Dr Who budget. It was reused in AG Who, in Girl in the Fireplace, worn by Sophie Myles. You can read more about it here. http://recycledmoviecostumes.com/stuartgeorgian007.html
Cheers
Janette
7 July 2014 at 07:12 #28794We rescued the hard drive from the old machine just in time to catch up the Fourth series for as @craig says “Yay Donna” and Yay to Wilf too. This series is by far and away my favourite of the Tennant years. As with so many RTD stories the joy is in the details. The humour of the opening sequences is underpinned by the pathos of Donna’s desperate search for something meaningful in her life, so perfectly captured in that first precious scene on the hill with Wilf. Right from the start Donna is a heartwinner. (I was perhaps fortunate not to have been exposed to the Catherine Tate show so did not have the prejudice of many U.K viewers against the actor.)
The story itself is simplistic and so similiar to the first Sarah Jane Adventures story that I often confuse the two. I do enjoy RTD’s use of modern paranoias to drive his plots though the adipose, I suspect, are designed purely for the merchandisers. The concept only just holds up but it hardly matters. This story is really about Donna and the Doctor. I loved the scene in the beginning when he is in the Tardis, talking about what he is doing then looks up and realises there is no audience. The Doctor needs an audience and he is about to find just what he needs. Donna is his perfect foil. She prunes his ego, reminds him of his “humanity”, and is jolly good company.
cheers
Janette
7 July 2014 at 05:17 #28792A very enjoyable story. I have watched this before but so long ago I recall very little about it. Nice to see Barbara Murray again too.
I too like the inconsequential stories where entire universes are not at stake. This obviously inspired Unicorn and the Wasp. The English country house is a classic story setting and provides an excellent claustrophobic back drop to the “base under seige” action. Though the script is rather predictable it is a lot of fun but…
Watching this reminds me of why I have seen so few Davison stories. It isn’t Davison’s fault. I was never able to appreciate his portrayal of the Doctor because of the three annoying companions. I don’t know why he didn’t just space them. Also watching this after watching Partners in Crime I was struck by just how different companions are portrayed in AG Who. The BG actor’s struggled, I think, to give depth to their characters that was not provided by the scripts.
Cheers
Janette
4 July 2014 at 16:20 #28706Thanks for the warning @wolfweed. I like spoilers but not ruiners so I will avoid that link. I don’t want to know anything that spoils the fun of speculation.
Cheers
Janette
3 July 2014 at 03:46 #28667It was episode ten not eight and the list was posted by @phaseshift. (apologies for the errors and omission in the above post.)
3 July 2014 at 03:44 #28666There was the glaring omission of a director/writer for episode eight which I thought had Peter Jackson written all over it.
@purofilion Toby Stephens for master… That too would be very interesting,. I haven’t seen him play too many villians but I have no doubt of his ability to do so and I think the Master should always temper his villiany with charm.
Cheers
Janette
2 July 2014 at 04:18 #28639@fosterferris I think you make a good point there regarding the Master. I think the “madness” was overdone but could be explained within the story. The Master has spent so long at the end of universe, not to mention having died a few times, that he has become slightly unhinged. I hope all the same that if the character returns he will be somewhat less insane. RTD did have a tendency to ramp up the theatricals and I agree with John Simm re’ his performance. It was too OTT but that is what was demanded of him.
I commented on Rose last night in the post which I accidentally deleted before posting. Like @arbutus she is certainly not one of my favourite companions but there were moments when I really warmed to her character. I preferred her as “bad wolf girl” however and was extremely thankful that SM brought her back in the way he did.
cheers
Janette
1 July 2014 at 15:18 #28630Hear hear @Purofilion Tennant is in my humble opinion one of the greatest actors of his generation. I didn’t always like the scripts he was given but never had an issue with his acting.
Cheers
Janette
1 July 2014 at 03:37 #28625Excellent excelent and along with her assisant “scarf girl” who now wears a bow tie I note. Thats for that spoiliery spoiler @stickfiddler
Cheers
Janette
1 July 2014 at 03:34 #2862430 June 2014 at 06:17 #28603Wonderful stuff. If I had a make a list of favourite Dr Who stories City of Death would still be on top. We watched eps three and four together so I withheld comments last week in case of accidental spoilers. Watching this alongside Hitchikers made me realise just how much D.A. is stamped all over it. (Such a pity Shada was never completed.) The art critics reminded me of Arthur Dent and Ford critiquing the Vogon captain’s poetry. D.A. really disliked art critics. In fact I think he disliked pomposity and pretension wherever he encountered it and so does the Doctor, especially in this incarnation. Douglas Adams writing style is perfectly suited to Tom Baker’s performance. As has been said above, all the elements work to perfection here, the writing, the acting, the setting. Paris really deserves its own credit in this story.
I think Duggan would have worked as an occasional character, (like Strax) rather than as a regular Tardis traveller.
A few years ago when listening to Richard Dawkins talking about the origins of life I wanted to shout out, “but your wife saw it happen silly man”.
Cheers
Janette
29 June 2014 at 09:29 #28576I love the Christmas specials but when it comes to Voyage of the Damned I am in complete agreement with you @thekrynoidman
Cheers
Janette
29 June 2014 at 08:09 #28574@phaseshift‘s excellent breakdown helped me understand why this is the one Christmas special which I never rewatch. Appart from featuring Kylie, who is as much a national embarrassment as Nicole, Mel and Tony, (well no that isn’t fair. The last two are in a class all their own) it is inspired by a genre of film which I really dislike.
Oh and thanks for the video link. Nice to hear Verity talk about the resurrection of her “baby” even though she denies that term, especially after watching An Adventure in Space and Time. I did not know that RTD was also born in 1963, As I always say, what a good vintage. I hope he has time now to set back and simply enjoy watching the show, for if it was Verity’s baby it was RTD that rescued it.
Cheers
Janette
29 June 2014 at 07:29 #28573I note that in @phaseshift‘s episode list both writer and director for 10 are TBC. I wonder if it is Peter Jackson.
As for the ring, I am afraid that the “blue boringers” theory is the most likely but I trust Moffat to make it very “unboring” indeed. I suspect that the identity confusion, memory loss and darkness will wear off within the first episode but until it does there will be some very uncomfortable moments in the Tardis. As per the scripwriting guidelines the Doctor will remember who he is in the eleventh hour and save the day. Another problem with reducing creativity to a set of rules but that is a different rant for somewhere else…
cheers
Janette
28 June 2014 at 10:22 #28519I knew I was forgetting something. There has be at least one scene from “Galaxy Quest.” “he” suggested “all of it really”.
Cheers
Janette
28 June 2014 at 10:19 #28518From a very subjective perspective I would want to see in a top 100 best sci fi moments Aragorn arriving in the pirate ships at the battle of the Pelennor Fields as it is written. Neither BBC radio Play or film has done justice that that moment. I would have to include a B.5 clip, the one from Series 3 Severed Dreams when Delen appears on the screen and makes her, “Only one human has ever defeated the Minbari” speach. I loved that moment too because in at least 90 % of sci fi the humans are the “good guys” and the aliens the enemy. B.5 turned that on its head. Another classic moment from another personal favourite is Walter’s acid trip in Fringe, just for the sheer audacity of it. I would have to include something from Brazil but it has been so long since I last watched it that I cannot highlight a single scene. The sword fight from Princess Bride is a classic, and I would also include Dr Smith, (Lost in Space) as a carrot for the sheer absurdity of it as well as scenes from Metropolis, Nosferatu, the Cabinet of Dr Caligari and the classic Melies “A Voyage to the Moon” shot, though it has been so long since I watched any of those that I could not be specific.
As for my Dr Who top ten, well that requires careful consideration and a few more glasses of wine. (We started working on it over dinner at our “local” last night.)
Cheers
Janette
26 June 2014 at 04:41 #28458That scene wouldn’t even make it onto my top ten Dr Who moments. (Not that I have ever compiled such a list or even considered one.)
Cheers
Janette.
26 June 2014 at 04:29 #28457@purofilion “Going to the footy on a Saturday arvo with an esky fill of tinnies” used to be a favourite to confuse the Brits when I was in the Uk (I have never even been to a “footy match” let alone with an esky full of tinnies but it always raised a few eyebrows.) I was discussing a couple of Victorian slangs terms recently, to “snib” the door and spoutings around the house. No wonder I couldn’t get my South Australian partner to clean the “spoutings”.
A few years ago my son was given a set of books on Aussie slang and it’s origins which I read cover to cover. Language and how it develops is fascinating.
Enjoy your holidays. My sons finish up tomorrow too. The eldest is heading over to Yorke Peninsula on a fishing trip with friends so I am doing the full, “anxious Mum” thing at the moment.
Cheers
Janette
24 June 2014 at 08:07 #28433I don’t have a strong opinion about Davison stories either as I have not seen many of them. I do like the idea of discussing Black Orchid as it is rather an unconventional Who story.
@scaryb. I hope you are feeling better now.
Cheers
Janette
24 June 2014 at 08:07 #28432Thanks for the link @whisht. Several there I am not familiar with. Slang varies between the states too. Recently a Sydney friend used the word “tip” for the classic school yard game “chasey”, in a video for the boy’s school. I pointed out that in S.A. the term is, “gang up chasey” and none of the children would know what “tip” meant. In Victorian schools the game is simply referred to as “chasey”. What we refer to as “bathers” are called “swimming cossies” in N.S.W. I think the term “sparkie” for electrician, also is predominately east coast.
Cheers
Janette
24 June 2014 at 04:01 #28430I hope the BBC aren’t overworking him. He looks very tired in that clip.
Cheers
Janette
24 June 2014 at 03:58 #28429I suspect there is more rumour than fact in those stories. I have no doubt The Master will return at some stage and it is as likely to be in this series as any but I just hope that they do not cast a “big Hollywood name actor” and rather cast someone who can actually act, preferably a fine character actor. (I would settle for John Noble who is more than overdue for a cameo.)
Cheers
Janette
18 June 2014 at 05:00 #28329Tom’s Tom Baker cat is almost as scary as the merchandising. I have seen Tardis rubbish bins but I think the bird feeder is taking it rather too far.
cheers
Janette
17 June 2014 at 04:02 #28324Looks as though the Tardis is going to get very small indeed. I hope the Doctor isn’t still in it when it turns into a USB hub.
Cheers
Janette
16 June 2014 at 09:00 #28307I will have to look up that site @purofilion. Sounds just like what I need when the news is too depressing. Bob was retired at the time but he was breakfasting with Blanche, before it all went public, which amused me as I had written an essay on him as PM for 2nd yr Oz History and so knew the backstory but nobody else even blinked over it.
@blenkinsopthebrave. Thankyou. Will take care if possible.
Cheers
Janette
16 June 2014 at 03:03 #28303I once served Bob Hawke Coffee. He was very curteous and yes it does resemble him. (Just to keep on topic.)
Cheers
Janette
14 June 2014 at 07:10 #2821913 June 2014 at 14:18 #28199Wow @Bluespeakpip I am impressed. I picked the Harry Potter and V for Vendetta clips but none of the others. I certainly missed The Avengers one but then I have not watched the series for many years, not since it gave our four year old “night terrors”. He is 18 now so it’s more than time for a re-watch. I still haven’t seen “The Prisoner” but I only recently re-watched Day of the Triffids so I should have picked that.
Cheers
Janette
13 June 2014 at 11:52 #28197Thanks for the link @bluesqueakpip It was indeed fun identifying the Dr Who clips. I am curious as to the many of the non-who ones which I didn’t know. Clearly my Sci-fi lore is sadly lacking.
Cheers
Janette
12 June 2014 at 04:42 #28188Thanks for that and all the wonderful stuff you post for us @wolfweed. He does sound more like a B- or a C+ than a D student to me.
Cheers
Janette
11 June 2014 at 08:32 #28177@stormy72 I hate to disagree but Germany has Playmobil. Adelaide is the white spot on the map of cool things.
I’m not sure quite what you mean by “released officially”. It was shown on BBC if that helps.
@arbutus. The funny thing is that now the book looks huge and clunky compared to our smart phones. Must have been an amazing concept then, to be able to carry the repository of all knowledge in one’s pocket.
Cheers
Janette
11 June 2014 at 04:11 #28174At the time I thought of Romana’s costume as reflecting her ineptness at “being human.” She has attempted to be very clever and do some research but got it slightly wrong. Also at this stage I am sure the scripts weren’t written with the realisation that there was anything more between her and the doctor than the usual, slightly suggestive Doctor/Companion duo. However the person chemistry between the two actors gives that an electric charge and so the school uniform becomes a rather unfortunate costume choice, still that wouldn’t be the first time for the series or the last.
Re the point made by @phaseshift about the locations.Yes he is certainly taking her for the pleasure tour but I think that is not so unusual. Most incarnations set out to impress the new companion with a whiz bang tour of the sights of the universe which invariably goes wrong. It is just that the chemistry between the two actors adds unintended innuendo to the stories.
cheers
Janette
10 June 2014 at 12:26 #28160Agree with all that has been said.
@scaryb. “The trouble with Rik Mayall tributes is that he keeps making you laugh” I think that is the greatest tribute and just how he would have wanted it.
Janette
9 June 2014 at 14:44 #28142@stormy72 Hitchhikers began life as a radio play. Douglas Adams then, rather reluctantly, wrote the novelisations. The TV series was made in the early 80s. I know fans of the radio play who wouldn’t go near the TV series and fans of the TV series who could not stomach the movie. (I probably belong to the later group.) I don’t know of anyone who has objected to the books other than the author himself, whose non-sense incidentally makes a hell of a lot of sense. I do recommend getting hold of a copy of the BBC TV series. Well worth it.
@craig. Many thanks for that video. It was brilliant and shows just how well Dr Who and Hitchhikers mix. I would love to see the Guide entry for the Doctor.
@scaryb. I agree absolutely re’ the casting. I was familair with Simon Jones from Brideshead Revisited playing a not dissimiliar character and I too love the graphics for the book. It has a lovely 80s feel so is only “dated” in the best possible way.
Re’ the joke about the plans, like so many others in the series, it was rather spot on. I once quoted it in reference to some local council plans which were not exactly made publically accessible only to be met with a stony silence and I realised, much to my horror, that not one other person in the room had heard/read/watched Hitchhikers and that I think points to a fundamental problem with politics, it being a political meeting that I was at. My political allegiance was salvaged somewhat when a few months later I spotted a Dr Who tee-shirt at a State convention. There was hope after all..
Cheers
Janette
8 June 2014 at 13:17 #28125I think my avatar shows just what I think of Ward’s Romana. Watching this as a teenager, Romana II was the first female companion that I could really identify with or a at least aspire to be. She was the first and only companion to view herself as the Doctor’s equal. I am always amused when I read acticles proclaiming that AG companions are stronger, more feisty than the BG ones. It is obvious that whoever says that has not watched City of Death.
City of Death is one of my favourite Dr Who stories. Firstly it is set in Paris. At the time I first watched it I was still only dreaming of travelling O.S. so the location was magical in my teenage eyes. It was also such a long overdue and refreshing change from London or one of those gravel pits. Tom Baker was at his peak in the role and he had Lalla Ward beside him. They sparkle together. It was no surprise at all that they married at the end of the series. I loved the rapport between them. (Every time I have visited Paris since I have pictured Tom Baker and Lalla Ward there and looked for the cafe they were at. For me now Paris is synonymous with Dr Who, something the French would no doubt NOT appreciate.)
Julian Glover is wonderful as the comic book villian, (and one of the few good things about GoT which I am still struggling to like). He was also memorable playing the older Monet in The Impressionists. I wasn’t so impressed with the Countess who was a little too B move Hollywood sterotype for my taste. Duggan though manages to carry off being a two dimensional sterotype.
And I am really looking forward to re-watching this episode Tuesday. (When I next have the house to myself.) I am sure I will be able to say a lot more then.
Cheers
Janette
7 June 2014 at 12:12 #28060P.C will be suffering from RSI before the series even airs from all that autograph signing me-thinks.
Cheers
Janette
7 June 2014 at 09:03 #28056@jacobrjmorrison Actually it was Colin Baker not Tom I mentioned but you are right. Tom was “one of a kind” and is always a favourite. (Rather unfortunate that the best and worst shared the same surname.)
Cheers
Janette
7 June 2014 at 05:09 #28052@jacobrjmorrison I often think the best Doctor is the one you happen to be watching at the moment. (With the notable exception of poor Colin Baker of course.) I think Tennant’s Doctor was often hampered by poor scripts, but when he shone, as in Blink, he really shone. Tempting though it is to compare two actors playing the same role I think it best to appreciate each for his individual merits and both Tennant and Smith had those in abundance.
Cheers
Janette
6 June 2014 at 14:19 #28043@fatmaninabox. I stared at that photo for ages and just didn’t “get it”. Then I looked away and looked back and saw it. Very good.
@bluesqueakpip I have not seen Quirke but did not have a problem with Sean Harris in Jamaica Inn, perhaps because he was eclipsed by Jessica Brown Findlay’s overacting. (And I don’t object to subtitles.)
Cheers
Janette
6 June 2014 at 04:07 #28041@bhj60 I think you have just given even more reason for the likeness between the 13th Doctor and a certain Roman once encountered in Pompeii to be ignored completely. IT simply does not need to be addressed. P.C. is an actor. In Pompeii he was a Roman Citizen. Now his is the Doctor. Unfortunately I think Moffat has implied that it will be dealt with and your proposal would certainly throw the cat amidst the pidgeons so to speak.
Cheers
Janette
5 June 2014 at 04:34 #28001Silence in the Library would top my list of scary episodes. An enemy that can’t be seen, that lurks in the shadows and devours the victims, leaving only a fleeting imprint in their space suits, the “ghosting”. I think that the scariest thing for the Doctor there however was meeting a woman who knew more about him than he did.
Cheers
Janette
1 June 2014 at 14:47 #27937Saddened to hear that Barbara Murray died. I am currently re-watching Pallisers in which she was one of the highlights.
Thanks for the news updates, @wolfweed
Cheers
Janette
1 June 2014 at 12:08 #27930I agree mostly with @thekrynoidman but I would recommend watching at least the very first episode “An Unearthly Child”. If slow B&W is not your thing there is really no need to watch the following episodes in that story. That story sets up all that follows. If you don’t mind the occasional slow B&W then watch at least one Troughton story. I recommend The Mind Robber, generally considerded a classic.
Happy Watching,’
Cheers
Janette
1 June 2014 at 06:07 #27922I re-watched again last week. This is one of my favourite Pertwee stories. I do love a temporal paradox, the sheer brain teasing impossibility of it. Maybe Sir Reginald will magically get his lovely old house back, for if war is prevented, there will be no Dalek invasion and no guerillas to blow it up. (though, being a man of limited imagination this does not excuse his indifference to the loss of his house as remarked upon by @scaryb.) Sir Reginald is possibly the weakest character in the story. He comes across as a arrogant, petty minded bureaucrat, entirely lacking in the persuasive skills required for a sucessful diplomacy.
I think the Controller recognises the paradox when he lets the Doctor go. He is only dying in a reality that will shortly cease to exist as a result of his sacrifice. It reminded me of another character doing something similiar in a favourite AG episode that will be discussed soon.
I would recommend watching the Special Edition over the original simply for the end scene of the Dalek attack. I still recall my disapointment when watching the original. The mis direction of the attack really let down the entire story.
Cheers
Janette
1 June 2014 at 05:39 #27921I think that @bluesqueakpip and @phaseshift have covered this so well there is little to add, especially as I am relying upon memory because all of our Tennats eps are on a hard drive which is currently inaccessible. This was a fun episode played very much for comedy, the evil alien with the straw, the big, simple “police” and of course Tennant finding his feet and delivering the “judoon on the moon lines” with his customary delight in the absurd. I always throught it as shame that he did not use his natural accent.
Martha begins her tenure well. She has the potential to be a great companion. It is a pity that that potential was squandered by the persistant ghost of Rose.
Cheers
Janette
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