The Fragile Yellow Arc of Fragrance by Moris Farhi, adapted by Nigel Robinson, directed by John Ainsworth

Doctor Who: The Lost Stories - 2.1B
The Fragile Yellow Arc of Fragrance
Written by Moris Farhi

Adapted by Nigel Robinson

Directed by John Ainsworth
Published: November 2010

What's It All About

The Fragile Yellow Arc of Fragrance is an interesting addition to Doctor Who history. Produced during the series' infancy in 1964 by Moris Farhi, it was never intended to be broadcast, but to serve as a pitch to show to script editor David Whitaker.

Whitaker obviously saw enough potential in Farhi to commission him to write a six-part historical story, which he later developed as Farewell, Great Macedon. Unfortunately, that story never made it to our television screens either and joined such other famous lost stories as The Masters of Luxor, The Giants and The Hidden Planet.

Nearly fifty years later, Big Finish Productions decided to bring many of these lost stories back from the dead and finally bring them back in some form. Working with Farhi, Nigel Robinson set about adapting both Farewell, Great Macedon and The Fragile Yellow Arc of Fragrance. After forty-six years and, despite never being intended for release, we finally get to visit the planet Fragrance.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

For this era of Doctor Who it is very unusual for an adventure to open when the Doctor and his companions have already been in one location for a few weeks, had a nice relaxing holiday while the locals have fashioned a replacement part for the TARDIS, and are now preparing to leave. It is certainly a welcome change of pace, seeing how the TARDIS crew are when they're relaxing, rather than running down endless corridors, shoving Daleks or tackling Voord.

Indeed, the Doctor is so relaxed he even agrees to let a couple of the locals have a good ole mooch around the TARDIS, much to Ian's amazement. This proved to be the most entertaining and informative part of the story as we learn more detail about how the TARDIS operates than we have in the 50+ years of televised stories.

Of course, the main focus of the story is on Barbara and her relationship with a local young man named Rhythm. Throughout their stay on the planet Fragrance, Barbara and Rhythm have spent a lot of time together and now he has fallen in love with her. This isn't a typical holiday romance that he'll get over in time, it is a biological imperative that she reciprocates. The people of Fragrance have two phases of life, the thin purple arc and the fragile yellow arc. The fragile yellow arc is only attained when a young person falls in love with another and it is reciprocated. If not, the person is biologically tuned to sail out into the ocean and sacrifice their life.

Naturally, Barbara, although not in love with Rhythm, is compelled to remain behind so that he can live, and almost decides to do so. However, the decision to do so is taken out of her hands as the Doctor sets the TARDIS off and they watch on the scanner as Rhythm sails out to sea.

The Fragile Yellow Arc of Fragrance is a very interesting and heartbreaking piece by Moris Farhi, and it is obvious to see how this story appealed to David Whitaker so much that he commissioned him to write the upcoming Farewell, Great Macedon. On its own, though, the story just wouldn't have fit into the era of Doctor Who that was being broadcast in 1964.

7/10

Short Trips: The Ghosts of Christmas - "Tell Me You Love Me" by Scott Matthewson

Short Trips: The Ghosts of Christmas
"Tell Me You Love Me"
Written by Scott Matthewson
Published: December 2007
Read: 8th August 2016

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BUY: Amazon UK

What's It All About

Arriving in Britain at the height of the Blitz, our travellers are quickly rounded up by an air raid warden and bundled into a communal shelter as the sirens sound and the bombs begin to drop. As a counterpoint to the grim reality of life on the homefront during the Second World War, are the glimpses to the fact that it is Christmas Eve and the stalwart resolution of people to cling to the happy traditions and memories of the season, whether it's making paper decorations to festoon the shelter or banging out Christmas carols to drown out the sounds of the bombs.

The bonhomie may be enough to raise the Doctor's spirit (he even quietly joins in with the carols, when he thinks nobody is listening) and peak Susan's curiosity, for one member of the party it is all too much to take. From the perspective of the Doctor and Susan, as well as us as the audience, we view this as a quaint little Christmas story about triumphing over adversity and keeping the home fires burning. What we forget is that for Barbara (and presumably Ian) the memories of the war and all of the terrible things that occurred are part of their childhood and helped to make them the people they are. It's no wonder that thrown back into this terrible world with bombs going off all around that Barbara freaks out and flees the shelter.

A typical communal shelter in 1940's Britain.

Unfortunately, the atmosphere of war-torn London isn't the only ghost that Barbara has to contend with as she roams the streets in despair. She is found and comforted by her "father", who manages to recognise her even though she would be twenty years older. While many may fall for the illusion, Barbara calls on her previous experiences while travelling with the Doctor to stay rational, knowing that her father had died prior to this point and come to the realisation that he must be some kind of alien.

Naturally, she is correct and we learn that her "father" and two other aliens had become trapped on Earth and separated. The love that the three aliens feel for each other is what they need to sustain them and, while separated, they were forced to feed on the love of humans by posing as loved ones. While one of the aliens had posed as Barbara's father, the other two were nearby and posing as the father of Sarah Miller, a local girl, who wished for her father to come home for Christmas.

With the three aliens reunited, they depart but leave everyone with a real Christmas gift: a vision of their real loved ones. In Barbara's case it was seeing her mother and father, happy together before he died; Ian gets a glimpse of his wedding day and to a woman he knows (wonder who that could be!) and the Doctor and Susan get to glimpse something to which we unfortunately aren't privy to.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

In summary, then, this was a quality tale written by Scott Matthewson. Long time readers of this blog will realise that Barbara Wright is out-and-out my favourite character in this era of Doctor Who and anyone who can shed new light on what makes her the character she is, earns big points from me. Bonus points must also go out to evoking the starkness and reality of life in 1940s Britain as it faced down the might of the Luftwaffe. Whether it be men not making it home for Christmas, parents forced to evacuate their children to the country or just not knowing whether their house will still be standing in the morning.

The only negative I have with this story is that the aliens weren't particularly well developed. The idea of aliens thriving on the power of love is nothing new, and it would have been nice to have some kind of twist to this well-worn trope.  Besides that, good stuff.

6/10

Short Trips: The Ghosts of Christmas - "Tell Me You Love Me" by Scott Matthewson

Short Trips: The Ghosts of Christmas
"Tell Me You Love Me"
Written by Scott Matthewson
Published: December 2007
Read: 8th August 2016

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BUY: Amazon UK

Arriving in Britain at the height of the Blitz, our travellers are quickly rounded up by an air raid warden and bundled into a communal shelter as the sirens sound and the bombs begin to drop. As a counterpoint to the grim reality of life on the homefront during the Second World War, are the glimpses to the fact that it is Christmas Eve and the stalwart resolution of people to cling to the happy traditions and memories of the season, whether it's making paper decorations to festoon the shelter or banging out Christmas carols to drown out the sounds of the bombs.
The bonhomie may be enough to raise the Doctor's spirit (he even quietly joins in with the carols, when he thinks nobody is listening) and peak Susan's curiosity, for one member of the party it is all too much to take. From the perspective of the Doctor and Susan, as well as us as the audience, we view this as a quaint little Christmas story about triumphing over adversity and keeping the home fires burning. What we forget is that for Barbara (and presumably Ian) the memories of the war and all of the terrible things that occurred are part of their childhood and helped to make them the people they are. It's no wonder that thrown back into this terrible world with bombs going off all around that Barbara freaks out and flees the shelter.

A typical communal shelter in 1940's Britain.

Unfortunately, the atmosphere of war-torn London isn't the only ghost that Barbara has to contend with as she roams the streets in despair. She is found and comforted by her "father", who manages to recognise her even though she would be twenty years older. While many may fall for the illusion, Barbara calls on her previous experiences while travelling with the Doctor to stay rational, knowing that her father had died prior to this point and come to the realisation that he must be some kind of alien.

Naturally, she is correct and we learn that her "father" and two other aliens had become trapped on Earth and separated. The love that the three aliens feel for each other is what they need to sustain them and, while separated, they were forced to feed on the love of humans by posing as loved ones. While one of the aliens had posed as Barbara's father, the other two were nearby and posing as the father of Sarah Miller, a local girl, who wished for her father to come home for Christmas.

With the three aliens reunited, they depart but leave everyone with a real Christmas gift: a vision of their real loved ones. In Barbara's case it was seeing her mother and father, happy together before he died; Ian gets a glimpse of his wedding day and to a woman he knows (wonder who that could be!) and the Doctor and Susan get to glimpse something to which we unfortunately aren't privy to.

In summary, then, this was a quality tale written by Scott Matthewson. Long time readers of this blog will realise that Barbara Wright is out-and-out my favourite character in this era of Doctor Who and anyone who can shed new light on what makes her the character she is, earns big points from me. Bonus points must also go out to evoking the starkness and reality of life in 1940s Britain as it faced down the might of the Luftwaffe. Whether it be men not making it home for Christmas, parents forced to evacuate their children to the country or just not knowing whether their house will still be standing in the morning.

The only negative I have with this story is that the aliens weren't particularly well developed. The idea of aliens thriving on the power of love is nothing new, and it would have been nice to have some kind of twist to this well-worn trope.  Besides that, good stuff.

6/10

Short Trips: Time Signature - "The Ruins of Time" by Phillip Purcer-Hallard

Short Trips: Time Signature
"The Ruins of Time"
Written by Phillip Purser-Hallard
Published: 1st September 2006

Short Trips: Time Signature has a special place in my heart. Along with Short Trips: Dalek Empire and a trio of Doctor Who: The Audio Scripts books, this was my first exposure to the work of Big Finish Productions. A bizarre form to discover the releases of a company that works predominantly in audio, but we'll roll with it.

Truth be told it was probably Christmas 2006 and I was in that first flush of fandom where everything is wonderful and you don't notice those small imperfections. David Tennant was the Doctor and the only Doctor. So, naturally, that Christmas my father decided to buy me anything Doctor Who related he could get his hands on. Unfortunately, it was Classic Who.

Long-time readers may recall that my first experiences with Classic Who weren't the best. An old college friend tried to get me to watch the show in 2002/3 when it was being shown on UK Gold on weekend mornings. I can't remember which exactly which story, but it was a rather dull Pertwee. Probably The Mutants as I still despise that story! The next experience was buying The Dalek Invasion of Earth when I was in the grip of Dalekmania following the broadcast of "Bad Wolf" / "The Parting of the Ways" in the Summer of 2005. Needless to say, that was a bit of a culture shock.

A new world... a new adventure...

Due to the enticing cover and my love of all things timey-wimey, I naturally commenced my reading with Short Trips: Time Signature. It may seem like a bad choice, but the story opens with a story featuring the Third Doctor (from that rather dull repeat) and Sarah Jane Smith who had only recently re-appeared in "School Reunion", so I felt I knew enough for it to carry me through. Which it did and, even better, the next story featured the First Doctor, Susan, Ian and Barbara who I'd seen in The Dalek Invasion of Earth. Nearly ten years later, it is time to return to "The Ruins of Time"...

Essentially "The Ruins of Time" is a post-apocalyptic vampire story. The people of Torcaldia were caught in a terrible cataclysm which began at a concert hall in the capital city. From that day, time has been draining away from the entire planet and its population are slowly running out of time and turning into statues. However, some desperate Torcaldians have developed the ability to drain time from other beings (and objects, but it's not as satisfying!) and prolong their own lives. Naturally, those averse to the law have formed into raiding parties and use these special Torcaldians to feed off everyone else.

When two Gallifreyans arrive on the planet it doesn't take long for the raiders to discover them, make off with them and learn about the abundance of time energy stored within them. Indeed, they've found the ultimate prize. It does, however, play a part in their eventual downfall as, even after draining the Doctor dry, the Time Lord still has centuries of time energy left to him and is not turned into a timeless statue as the rest.

The perfect feast.

Away from the slightly different twist on the vampire tale, Phillip Purser-Hallard has succeeded in recreating the style, feel and structure of a typical Hartnell story complete with episode titles after a section and little cliffhangers. Indeed, the television story that it evoked for me the most was The Daleks. In "The Twilight City", the TARDIS lands on the Torcaldian planet and the travellers wander around a seemingly dead world taking in the sites before stumbling into the Torcaldian, Verdirioi.

Through Verdirioi we learn much about Torcaldian culture as well as physiology as we see Ian and Barbara come to terms with the fact that the Torcaldians are hermaphrodites. I must admit, that most of the laughs in this story are to be had with the two schoolteachers trying to guess which sex the various Torcaldians are, and finding themselves completely flummoxed.

Continuing the comparison to The Daleks, Ian and Barbara then have to join forces with the Torcaldians in rescuing the Doctor and Susan from the bandits, which involves a lengthy expedition to another city and a bit of a trek through the wilderness, although not through a lake of mutations and a mountain of boredom.

The denouement to the story offers something slightly different, with Susan convincing the bandits time-drainer, Tranell, to turn against the Bandit leader, Balthar, and drain time from him instead of her. Thus freeing the remaining citizens of Cantosi from the threat of the bandits. However, the main problem facing the people of Torcaldia remains unsolved: the Doctor is rather cagey about what has occurred, and indeed, systematically refuses to follow Susan's suggestion of leaving a piece of the TARDIS behind so that Veridiroi might survive indefinitely. Fortunately, Susan secretly defies her grandfather and leaves behind a game board and pieces that she brought with her from Gallifrey.

In summary then, "The Ruins of Time" is an interesting beast. It's faithful to its roots in that it recreates the feel of a typical Hartnell sci-fi story, yet puts in a couple of twists and an overarching mystery that won't be solved until future stories. Phillip Purser-Hallard has done a wonderful job of creating a new alien world, an interesting alien civilisation and more importantly, some great and memorable characters.

7/10

Gallifrey to Trenzalore #17: Destiny of the Doctor - Hunters of Earth by Nigel Robinson

Destiny of the Doctor #1
Hunters of Earth
Written by Nigel Robinson
Directed by John Ainsworth
Released: January 2013
Heard: 23rd February 2016

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BUY:Amazon UK | Big Finish

Our final stop on our pre-An Unearthly Child adventures is the first entry in the Destiny of the Doctor series, Hunters of Earth. This series was launched by Big Finish Productions and AudioGo and was designed to celebrate the 50th Anniversary with a different story dedicated to (at the time) all eleven Doctors.

I remember being incredibly excited about this range at the time. Not so much about the earlier Doctor releases, as their deaths had rendered them unavailable, but for the release of the first ever audios for the New Series. In the early days of 2013, not much detail was given about the later releases and I was excited to hear David Tennant and Matt Smith on audio. Alas, Matt Smith proved unavailable and the entire series was like a run of The Companion Chronicles.

Not that I'm complaining too much, but I so wanted some proper full-cast audio dramas for the New Series. Of course, fast forward two years and we have Sir John Hurt recording War Doctor boxsets, Alex Kingston back as River Song on audio and most exciting of all, David Tennant and Catherine Tate returned in May for The Tenth Doctor Adventures.

Anyway, moving back to Hunters of Earth. If you were asked to do a First Doctor story to celebrate the show's 50th Anniversary, then you'd definitely be tempted to do a story set pre-An Unearthly Child and use Susan as the key figure. So, I really can't blame Nigel Robinson for that. I also can't blame him for having this story dripping with the atmosphere of the early 1960's: mods and rockers, The Beatles, John Smith and the Common Men, bombed out buildings, transistor radios, Magpie Electricals!

The entrance to Coal Hill School.

Thankfully, Robinson hasn't just used the 1960's as a bit of window dressing and a nod to the anniversary. He scratches beneath the surface and looks at all of the social changes that were occurring in Britain during the era, especially the rise of the teenager. No longer were they miniature adults in training, now they were separate entities with their own music, their own fashion, and their own lives away from their parents. Obviously, the rise of the teenager scared many of the older generation and this was presented in this story, especially during the Doctor's encounter with the mods.

One of the other major changes in the years leading up to the 1960's were the arrival of many immigrants from the former holdings of the British Empire, and those that had fled to Britain during the war years escaping the Nazi's. Through the character of Rosa, a former refugee from Europe, the hostility and fear that foreigners meet when they arrive and true to establish lives are touched upon.

In short, then, Britain in the 1960's was a melting pot and all it needed was the unearthing of an experimental German weapon in a bomb site to stir the pot a little. The science of producing hypersonic sounds that only the young can here is nothing new. It's application through music is also not much of a leap. Robinson may indeed remember news reports from a few years ago which saw a few stores setting up loudspeakers outside and either playing classical music or hypersonic sounds to stop teenagers loitering outside.

What Hunters of Earth really exceeds at though is really drawing out the character of Susan. We really delve into her life at Coal Hill School and come to understand how difficult it must have been to avoid letting slip some knowledge of the future (as evidenced in "An Unearthly Child") and even touches on her latent telepathic abilities, which is later evidenced in The Keys of Marinus, The Sensorites and The Transit of Venus. Away from the supernatural, though, and we get to see that she actually had friends and enemies, a social life, and, most interestingly a budding romance with Cedric.

Susan "feels the beat".

Cedric was Susan's rock throughout this story, acting as a confidante, defending her when the teenagers had turned and either tried to attack her with a knife at Rosa's cafe and even putting himself at serious harm when he was protecting her from the mob that formed at the bomb site. You could tell that Susan held real affection for him, but perhaps the Doctor's reaction and mistrust of him was a good signpost of what was to come.

Cedric was working for his uncle, Colonel Rook and a top-secret military crew. When Susan had arrived at Coal Hill months earlier, Cedric had quickly noted her "other-worldliness" and reported it to his uncle. Rook quickly took a role at the school himself and became interested in the girl and her grandfather, especially as their arrival seemed to coincide with the detection of alien signals, which it turns out, emanated from the unearthed German device. Once this is all revealed to Susan, she is understandably heartbroken at his betrayal and I couldn't help be reminded of Ace's relationship with Sergeant Gilmore in Remembrance of the Daleks.

The resolution of the story is a tiny bit bizarre, though. It is discovered by the Doctor that the alien signal has attached itself to the radio waves and seems to mostly affect the teenagers when they are listening to The Beatles. However, the Time Lord, having been kidnapped by Rook, is clueless on how to stop the signal and preventing the teenagers from killing him and Susan. This is the interesting bit: Earlier on in the story, while at Rosa's cafe, Cedric and Susan are listening to the radio and the DJ gives them a message from "The Doctor" (not our Doctor) who tells Cedric "it's all in the beat".

The Doctor is trying to repair his broken TARDIS.

It isn't until this final confrontation that Cedric realises what the message means and the Doctor and Susan, working with Rook and his associates, are able to tap into the communications satellite Telstar and broadcast the music of Bob Dylan to pacify the teenagers and resolve the crisis. The ending feels rather contrived, but Rook decides to let the Doctor and Susan carry on as they are, even though he has discovered that they are aliens. Still, one supposes they did just save the world.

In summary, then, Robinson had a lot of balls to juggle with this one, yet manages to pull it off well. The evoking of the spirit of the Sixties doesn't come at the detriment of the story, the background of the social war going on creates some of this stories creepiest and dark moments, from the Doctor's encounter with the mods to Susan's terrifying encounters in the cafe and the bomb site.

My only criticism would be that the resolution felt rather sign-posted thanks to the message from "The Doctor" and the scene with Susan and Cedric listening to Bob Dylan music and discussing how different it is to The Beatles and similar groups.

Taken as a stand-alone story, Hunters of Earth works really well and considering that it is the first part of an eleven part story, there aren't that many plot threads to be picked up by other stories, just a bit of intrigue regarding the sending of the message and the Destiny of the Doctor. I can't wait to hear how it unfolds, but there's a long way to go yet.

7/10

Next Story

An Unearthly Child

Continuity Corner

• The story is set in October 1963, and the Doctor and Susan arrived in Shoreditch "four months earlier" in June. This is consistent with Susan statement in An Unearthly Child that "the last five months have been the happiest of my life", and also dates that story as occurring in November 1963.
• Susan began attending Coal Hill School at the beginning of the Autumn term (early September).
• The Doctor has been trying to obtain parts to fix his broken TARDIS. He refers to finding a replacement for a faulty filament in "An Unearthly Child".

Gallifrey to Trenzalore #15: The Splintered Gate by Justin Richards

Short Trips: Companions
"The Splintered Gate"
Written by Justin Richards
Published: 24th April 2003
Read: 2nd March 2016

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BUY: Amazon UK

We've had a couple of Doctor-lite stories in this marathon so far, but now we come to our first Doctor-less story in the form of "The Splintered Gate" and good old Ian Chesterton is there to step into the breach and take the lead role. Ironically, while Ian is a level-headed man of science, this story deals with the far more mystical aspects of clairvoyance, palm reading and fate.

It's the Summer of 1963, and Ian has decided to let his hair down and takes a holiday to one of the beautiful seaside towns along the coast of Dorset. Getting caught in a rainstorm while walking along the promenade, Ian rushes back to his accommodation and upon opening the green gate to the property, he gets a splinter in his hand which causes quite a graze.

Weirdly, the rain stopped the minute he touched the gate and so, after extracting the splinter, he decides to turn around and his make his way to the promenade and decides to pay a visit to a palm reader he noticed earlier Rosy Parks. Rosy takes one look at his bleeding palm and takes off in fear and revulsion, leaving the science teacher somewhat baffled.

Some time later, Ian is attending a party held by Barbara Wright and the hostess, keen for Ian to interact with the other guests, introduces a palm reader named Rosemary to him. After a brief conversation, Ian reluctantly agrees to meet up with Rosemary at a later date and have his palm read.

Barbara Wright

At that meeting, things take a turn for the bizarre as brings out her crystal ball and state that Ian will be going on a long journey which will see him face much peril, which, in hindsight, is absolutely true. To add further intrigue, Rosemary gives Ian and parcel and suggests that some years down the line he will be sitting in a cafe very similar to the one they are in and he will have to deliver the package, but not reveal himself. Ian is naturally sceptical and somewhat incensed, feeling he has been ripped off, yet Rosemary quickly snatches her payment from the school teacher and has it away on her toes.

In summary, this is a nice little character piece by Justin Richards. This story is told from the first person perspective and so we are given an insight into Ian's thought processes as the story unfolds. In my mind, he gets the science teacher spot on. After all, it is difficult to imagine Ian truly letting his hair down while on holiday to the coast, probably still walking around in a suit even when it's 25 degrees centigrade! Richards seems to be the same thinking, as he shows Ian wishing he'd saved some money and just sat in his garden at home, with the plus being that he didn't have to eat ice cream.

As the story progresses into darker, mystical territory. Richards is again true to Ian's character as the rational man of science, sceptical and even annoyed at the whole issue of clairvoyance and the charlatans who claim to be psychics just to part people with their hard-earned cash.

My only critique would be that we have no pay off in this particular story to Ian, Rosemary, the crystal ball, and the mysterious package. However, as the story is part of a larger anthology, it's possible that we might find those very answers as the marathon progresses.

7/10

Next Episode

"Echoes of Future Past"

Gallifrey to Trenzalore #14: Losing the Audience by Mat Coward

Short Trips: Defining Patterns
"Losing the Audience"
Written by Mat Coward
Published: 5th June 2008
Read: 2nd March 2016

The Doctor's tinkering with the TARDIS again and that can only mean one thing: trouble! Having been safely living in Shoreditch, 1963 for some time, a very frustrated and crotchety Time Lord decides to mess around with some purple wires and before they know it there's a flash of light and the TARDIS dematerializes. Thankfully, they've only travelled back eight years and several miles to the BBC Paris Theatre on Lower Regent Street, London. Unfortunately, something in the area is preventing them from leaving.

Further mysteries arise in the form of radio comedians and (divorced) partners Max and Maxine Wheeler. They've been doing they're a comedy show on the BBC since 1948 and have built up a small, but loyal following, who attend all of their recordings at the Paris. However, in recent months, they've both noted that these followers have started to thin out, and not just because of the rise of the likes of The Goon Show and Tony Hancock's Half Hour. No, they are getting reports that their followers are dying of sudden heart complications and Max is worried that "something" from the Second World War is returning to haunt him.

The entrance to the BBC Paris Theatre. (Image: Orbem.co.uk)

The sudden death of their producer shortly after he was embraced by a strong entity, leads Max to seek out the help of the Doctor and Susan, who he has encountered prowling around the BBC. Although he believes the Doctor to be an old hammy actor or magician who insists on staying in character and costume, Max finds himself confiding in the older man. He tells him about the early days of the war in 1940 when he and a band of mischievous miscreants were recruited by the British Army as part of 'Operation Shaker' to serve as a guerilla army against German invasion. However, Max had always believed there was more to it as stated when they were advised at the time that they shouldn't be surprised if large numbers of German occupiers started dying suddenly.

The Doctor is certainly intrigued, especially when he learns that the TARDIS is prevented from leaving by a strange resonance emanating from Broadcasting House, known locally as the "BBC hum" and put down to the state of the art air conditioning system. Setting out to find the cause of the hum, the Doctor has Max and Maxine re-enact one of their shows at Broadcasting House and, modifying a canned laughter track, is able to draw out the Shakers.

The "hammy actor" and Susan.

 The Shakers, alien beings from a different realm, were somehow contacted by the British government during the early days of the war and were promised the whole of India in exchange for their assistance in killing the Nazi's. However, once Soviet Russia had entered the war and the threat of invasion halted, the government imprisoned the Shakers in the very fabric of Broadcasting House. It is the patterns of the laughter and the performance of Max and Maxine's show that led to the Shaker's awakening, and they assumed that the audience were German occupiers. Upon learning the truth, the Shakers declared war on the British and the Doctor was forced to wipe them out.

Leaving Max and Maxine to get on with their lives, the Doctor and Susan depart in the TARDIS, unsure if they'll be able to make it back to 1963.

An interesting tale by Mat Coward which see the Doctor and Susan take a little trip back to 1955 and investigate the "BBC hum". Although I don't have extensive knowledge of the early TV and radio of that era, it just oozes with various references to the Goons, Hancock and the various radio programmes that were broadcast at that time. As a bonus, Coward also delves into the Second World War and investigates just how desperate the British government were to defend these Isles from the Nazis, which ticks all the right boxes for me.

Among the many highlights of the story include Max mistaking the TARDIS for a new-fangled TV prop and had the Doctor down as an old hammy actor who would never be out of character. To top it all though, would be to actually see the Doctor guffawing at a Goons recording and then get to appear in a play   My only quibble would be that the Doctor was just a tad too crotchety and snappy, especially to Susan and Maxine, although that is nicely deflated when he hugs Susan when she finally convinces him to watch a show and Max's impression of him at Broadcasting House.

8/10

Next Episode

"The Splintered Gate"

Gallifrey to Trenzalore #12: Quinnis by Marc Platt

Doctor Who: The Companion Chronicles - 5.06
Quinnis
Written by Marc Platt
Directed by Lisa Bowerman
Published: December 2010

Episode 1: "The Rainmaker"

What a wonderful experience it was listening to "The Rainmaker" in the early hours of this Monday morning.  Not that I would normally be crowing about being up at 3AM on a Monday morning, but we in the UK (and probably elsewhere in the Northern Hemisphere) were treated to not only a supermoon but a lunar eclipse.  As I gazed out of the window at the majestic display, Carole Ann Ford's narration of Quinnis provided the perfect accompaniment.

This isn't the first time I'd listening to Marc Platt's Quinnis, as I'd heard it during my last marathon in June 2012 and listening to it a couple of times just for fun, so I was aware of what was coming up, but just wanted to see if I developed any different impressions this time.

For those who aren't aware, the background to Quinnis picks up on a line from the TV story The Edge of Destruction, when Susan mentions that she and the Doctor had visited the planet Quinnis in the Fourth Universe "four or five journeys back" and we were treated to a still picture on the TARDIS scanner of a jungle-type environment.

Using that sparse information, Platt has created a well-realized planet, in particular, Bridgetown where this story is set.  The descriptions of brightly-coloured wooden houses built upon rows and rows of bridges proceeding up a large mountain, as well as the foreboding plains beneath it all with unidentified figures prowling around.  The cherry on this particular cake though has to be the inhabitants of Bridgetown that fill out and add flavour to the market scenes.  Though we only have three main inhabitants that we meet in this episode, Umlante (quickly nicknamed the Piglet woman) on the market stall, Booweyan and of course the street urchin, Meedla, they certainly provide a well-rounded view of the inhabitants. They are a superstitious people who believe that only Rainmakers can bring the rains and end the seasons' long droughts and the belief in a bad luck bird.

When the Doctor and Susan arrive, it doesn't take long for the Time Lord to have the position of Rainmaker foisted upon him, after the last one had been thrown out of time for his failure.  Literally. While the Doctor is hard at work attempting to make it rain, Susan is reduced to fetching and carrying from the TARDIS, and soon strikes up a conversation with the urchin, Meedla.  Meedla seems to be on the periphery of Bridgetown society, mocking the inhabitants as they burn down the old Rainmaker's house as it brought "bad luck" and then wasting their precious water supplies to bring the fire under control, as well as serving as a harbinger of doom stating that things will change when the rain comes.

Only time will tell what happens in the second and final episode, "The Plains of Despair", but it has started raining in Bridgetown and the TARDIS has been swept away in the deluge...

Episode 2: "The Plains of Despair"

It is rather a bizarre experience to be listening to and forming thoughts about this particular episode about a year after the first episode was written.  A year ago I had listened to the episode and was preparing to write the blog post, but then I hit a wall of uncertainty and writer's block.  Naturally, I overcame this and the blog continued, so it was interesting for me to revisit the episode and see where I stand on the story twelve months later.

While "The Rainmaker" was all about painting a picture of the planet Quinnis, Bridgetown and its many and strange inhabitants, "The Plains of Despair" goes beyond settlement and begins explaining why this planet functions the way it does.  The people of Bridgetown are a superstitious people because of the fear of the schrazer, a so-called "bad luck bird" that is viewed as a harbinger of doom. Bridgetown is built up high and on stilts because once a rains the pastures below undergo a massive acceleration of growth and the plants become very hungry, climbing their way up to consume anything in their path.

A stiltman of Bridgetown.

With the Doctor's problem of trying to bring rain to this parched land, the relationship between Susan and Meedla is brought to the fore. It should probably come as no surprise that Meedla is a schrazer who is preying on the gentle folk of Bridgetown, feeding off their fear. Where Meedla is different from the common-all-garden schrazer is the fact that she is vindictive and malicious: killing Umlante's husband as it was his trap that she fell into at the end of the previous episode as well as bullying Susan so that she can gain access to the TARDIS and travel far and wide.

A clever and manipulative villain has to be matched by an even more clever and manipulative hero and her arrives in the form of Parch. I absolutely adore Parch, in my mind he was the embodiment of a Victorian adventurer and hunter with a tinge of Van Helsing, travelling the world on the trail of fantastical beasts. Armed with his ornithopter and an arsenal of trinkets, Parch assists Susan in stopping Meedla, taking on the wild plant-life on the plains and making their way back to the TARDIS.

To sum up, Quinnis was a cracking great adventure filled with some great guest characters such as Umlante and Parch, and a great villain in the form of Meedla.  What is really amazing is the fact that these characters were only brought to life by two actors, Carole Ann Ford and Tara-Louise Kaye, and yet each one was distinctive. A marvellous piece of work and you can see why Big Finish Productions were keen to get more pre-An Unearthly Child Companion Chronicles off the back of this particular story.

8/10

Next Story

Operation Proteus

Continuity Corner:

• The TARDIS' chameleon circuit is still functioning as the ship takes an appearance of a brightly coloured shed upon their arrival in Bridgetown.
• The Doctor and Susan have previously visited Constantinople where they acquired some Turkish delight, which they trade for goods at the market.  They were also aboard the Golden Hind, where they acquired some salt peter.
• Susan believes that the next place the TARDIS landed after leaving the Fourth Universe was London, Earth in the Summer of 1963.

Gallifrey to Trenzalore #9: The Price of Conviction by Richard C. White

Short Trips: The Quality of Leadership
"The Price of Conviction"
Written by Richard C. White
Published: 10th May 2008
Read: 26th February 2016

Being set prior to An Unearthly Child, it is interesting to see how the Doctor and Susan handle this visit to Earth's past. While in the actual series, our heroes stumble out of the TARDIS dressed in their normal outfits and soon bungle into trouble, in this, the Doctor makes efforts to restrict all interference and remain incognito. He ensures that repairs are conducted on the chameleon circuit so that it takes on the appearance of a small hut in pre-Renaissance Germany, he also ensures that he and Susan dress for the period in which they are visiting. In all, this is a very scientific and Star Trek-y approach to visiting history and, I must say, I prefer this approach. Think how the other historical stories could have changed had our heroes made the effort to blend in.

Of course, this being a Doctor Who story, our heroes don't stay out of trouble for long. Pretty soon, Susan is set upon by a couple of would-be assassins after she overhears them, and she and the Doctor are soon taken into protective custody by the local High Magistrate. You see, the person that they planned to assassinate is Martin Luther, who is soon to face a trial for speaking out against the Pope. What unfolds is the traditional intrigue and twisty-turny plot that we saw in The Massacre and several other historical stories.

What makes this story stand out for me though is the various insights it gives us. Not only do we explore the story from Susan's perspective, indeed this is a great story for her, but we also look at the Doctor's approach which is very much one of non-interference, and that he only becomes involved once the lives of himself and Susan are at stake. What this makes this different from the upcoming "Urrozzdinee" is that Susan is determined that they stay and try and resolve the situation, which she didn't do in the previous story. Indeed, she is the active element in the resolution and saved Martin Luther's life, while the Doctor stood back.

Highlights for me would have to be Susan's interactions with Martin Luther and the pro-active role she took in this story. Not being interested in religion, I must admit that I was fascinated in how Martin Luther was portrayed and everything he stood for. It certainly wanted to make me read up some more. Kudos to Mr. White.

9/10

Next Story

"The Arboreals"

Gallifrey to Trenzalore #8: The Gift by Robert Dick

Short Trips: The History of Christmas
"The Gift"
Written by Robert Dick
Published: 26th November 2005
Read: 1st March 2016
BUY: Amazon UK

Another first in the marathon and I certainly wasn't expecting this one as we have an appearance from Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart. However, this isn't a young Brigadier very early on in his career prior to The Web of Fear, this is the Brig in his 70's, still married to Doris, and pining for some adventure or action long after his retirement from U.N.I.T. To this end, he has brow-beaten his second wife into buying him a boat for Christmas, though she's really not happy about it. Taking the boat out on Christmas Eve, Alistair discovers a young girl drowning in a river, and successfully rescues her and takes her back to the house to rest and recover. It is then that the Stewart's receive the girl's grandfather: the Doctor.

It really is interesting to watch Alistair on the back foot as he has to deal with a Doctor who hasn't met him yet in his personal timeline. However, the Doctor knows exactly who Alistair is and, indeed, it was because he knows who Alistair and Doris are that is the reason for him coming here. After an argument resulting from the Doctor strongly hinting at Alistair to get sell the boat, Alistair walks out. The Doctor then reveals his purpose to Doris, telling her that every single Doctor will be at Alistair's funeral. That those Doctors who knew him best carried the casket and how he has the special reserved place as being the Doctor's best friend. Of course, she presses him about how he dies and how it relates to the boat, but the Doctor refuses to say, his purpose is to just warn and that is his gift to them.

A Christmas-y TARDIS.

It's impossible not to be moved by this story, which certainly has a lot more impact following Nicholas Courtney's death and the Brig's demise in "The Wedding of River Song" (Cyber-Brig not withstanding). It's good to see some good old Moffat-brand "wibbly-wobbly timey-wimeyness going on in the Classic Series and the old faithful of having one character meeting another out of order, one at the beginning of their long life and career, the other approaching the end. Despite the nostalgia and the general good feeling generated with this story, the whole drowning Susan thing is all rather unexplained. Initially, I thought that the TARDIS had materialized at the bottom of the lake, but the Doctor was absolutely fine. We're just going to have to live with that little mystery.

7/10

Next Story

"The Price of Conviction"

Gallifrey to Trenzalore #7: Indian Summer by James Goss

Short Trips: Snapshots
"Indian Summer"
Written by James Goss
Published: 30th June 2007
Read: 1st March 2016

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BUY: Amazon UK

"Indian Summer" sees a change of pace and perspective for the marathon as we have an adventure with Suresh Parekh and witness his encounters across time with the spectre-like old man known as the Doctor and his timeless granddaughter, Susan.

The story begins in the Summer of 1816 and the young Parekh is working as a waiter at a hotel on the road to Bombay. With India being under the "protection" of the British Empire, the hotel and restaurant is a frequent waystation for British soldiers, miners, the well-to-do and the adventurous lady explorers. It is through Parekh's eyes that we meet all these people and Goss states many truths about the British character: i.e. we're always demanding explanations; with enough will, we can ignore anything, even if it is staring us in the face.

The one mystery that intrigues Parekh though is the sporadic appearances of the apparition of an old gentleman that appears at a dining table ever so often. Following the ghosts first appearance to a trio of soldiers playing cards, one of them died days later. As the years progress many of the people that the apparition appeared to had gone on to die after they felt the cold, terrifying stare. The mystery is further compounded by the occasional visit by a young girl who doesn't seem to age over decades and simply drinks a lemonade and asks about her grandfather before leaving.

As the decades pass, Parekh is concerned that he ages at a very slow rate when compared to those around him. Not only does he outlive the hotel's original owner, the Irishman Rawson; Rawson's 'adventurous' elder sister; his mother; but in a heartbreaking twist, his wife, several of his children and even his grandchildren. He finally finds answers when he receives a note from Rawson's sister, received following her death on the journey back to India. She too had seen the apparition of the old man in the day's before his death and had quite a lengthy conversation with him before he disappeared. During the conversation, he left instructions for Parekh to construct an interesting contraption involving a wine glass, a couple of forks and some wine corks.

The "apparition" and his granddaughter.

After several attempts, Parekh is able to assemble the contraption and save the old man from his spectral hell. Having lived well beyond his years, Parekh is quick to accept the Doctor's explanation that he and his granddaughters are travellers through time and that his time as an apparition was simply an accident involving his TARDIS. He then goes on to explain that he hadn't "cursed" all those people to death, but that they had simply been temporal anchoring points of the nearly deceased that he could attach himself to and appear.

As the 19th century passes into the 20th, Parekh has to assume a new identity as a relative of Parekh and starts a new family. After several years though, he returns to work as a manager at the very restaurant he used to own. Who knows how long his life has been extended thanks to his close interaction to the time travelling old man and his granddaughter? All we know is that his tales of their encounters and the deaths that followed keeps his customers entertained.

When I initially read this story as part of an earlier marathon in January 2013, I posted this very brief review:

My review of this story will probably be one of the shortest I will write. You see, my little reviews will more often than not, feature a brief recap of the story, then on to my likes and dislikes, a few observations and then bang. With this story, I feel that to reveal any of the details will be a bit of a spoiler just in case you wanted to read it which, I STRONGLY URGE YOU TO DO.

I will say that having dabbled in a bit of writing myself, that creating and running with original characters is one of the hardest task, but to have little snapshots of one characters life and to fully flesh them out into 20-odd pages is, frankly, a masterstroke.

Three years later and I have to agree with my statement, though obviously I've changed my mind in relation to spoilers. Goss creates a fully-rounded endearing, curious and lovable character in Parekh and you can't help be lifted by his initial triumphs and getting promoted to head waiter and then manager despite all that stood against him as an Indian man in the time of the Raj. Indeed, you also feel real sympathy for the man as we learn that he is losing everyone that he loves as he outlives them.

All in all, a wonderful tale, well told. This is the first James Goss story of the marathon and I can't wait to read more.

10/10

Next Episode

"The Gift"

Continuity Corner

• The Doctor admits to Parekh that he only has a "working" understanding of the TARDIS and the "little accident" was the result of him attempting to prove to Susan that he could operate the TARDIS.
• The Doctor is disappointed that Susan takes so long to track him down, but is pleased that she has got an opportunity to practice piloting the TARDIS.
• The contraption that Parekh builds is remarkably similar to a similar contraption built by the Third Doctor to interfere with the Master's time experiments in The Time Monster. During that story, the Doctor recalled building them at the Academy.

Gallifrey to Trenzalore #6: The Sleeping Blood by Martin Day

Doctor Who: The Companion Chronicles #10.01

The Sleeping Blood

Written by Martin Day

Directed by Lisa Bowerman

Published: June 2015

Episode 1: "The Sleeping Blood"

The Sleeping Blood is the first story in The First Doctor - Volume One, a boxset from Big Finish and a revival of the Companion Chronicles.  To say that I was pleased that Big Finish was going to continue releasing stories under this banner is an understatement.  It is an absolutely fantastic range with very few clunkers, at least that I've heard.  So, downloading it upon release was a no-brainer, but unfortunately I hadn't had time to listen until today.

 When it comes to a new stories that I haven't seen or heard before, I like to go in blind, not reading the cover blurbs, listen to trailers or read reviews so that I can get the full effect of the story.  Just from the title, The Sleeping Blood, I was expecting some kind of variation on a vampire or werewolf story.  What we got during episode one, "The Sleeping Blood", was not so fantastical as that, but hit a little closer to home.

The basic premise is that the Doctor seriously ill after being infected by a plant on an inhabited alien world, he and his granddaughter hop from planet to planet in the hopes of finding antibiotics to treat the Doctor as he falls deeper and deeper into deliriousness.  They eventually arrive on an inhabited planet named Ruah, and with the Doctor unconscious, it is up to Susan to venture outside and search for the drugs to help her grandfather.

This was a storyline that I hoped would form the background of a story somewhere.  I know the series briefly dealt with a character falling ill in the TARDIS in the past (or the future for us) with Barbara in Planet of Giants and Steven in The Myth Makers and The Daleks' Masterplan, but wasn't a major plot point.  Which is a shame, as it's so terrifying!  Imagine if you were travelling with the Doctor in these earliest days when he has no control of the TARDIS, you fall ill or are attacked and wounded.  There is little or no medical help aboard the TARDIS, and the only option is to keep hopping from planet to planet looking for medicine.  On some planets, you find no signs of civilization, on others you are treated with fear and suspicion.  Of course, this story goes one step further, and have the Doctor himself struck down!  The only one that can (apparently) fly the TARDIS!

Listening to this story at 9:30PM on a dark and rainy Autumn night, the creepiness as Susan walks around the abandoned medical research centre, really gave me the chills.  That was soon remedied by Susan having a chat with the centre's computer, echoing what was going on with Susan herself.  Her chat with the computer dealt with an issue that we are facing in the very real present on Earth, and perhaps serves as a cautionary tale.  Antibiotics were abandoned centuries ago as diseases grew resistant to them, forcing humanity to look to other ways to fight of diseases, including nanotechnology.

As a Star Trek fan, nanobots and the like instantly set my hackles rising as I have images of the Borg with technology augmenting their bodies, their mottled grey skin.  Terrifying.  However, what Martin Day has done with this story has come up with something equally as terrifying.  The nanobots themselves are harmless, they're injected into the bloodstream, deal with whatever ailment the patient has and then lay dormant until needed again.  Enter the Butcher:  A hacker and terrorist who has somehow got control of every nanobot and has used them to kill many of Ruah's leaders and has the power of life and death of the planet's inhabitants.

As episode one ends, we have Susan working with a commando team who's primary mission is to deal with the Butcher by any means necessary.  I can't wait.

Episode 2: "The Butcher's Citadel"

While the timing at the atmosphere was absolutely perfect for listening to "The Sleeping Blood", I'm afraid it wasn't quite perfect for listening to this final installment of the serial, "The Butcher's Citadel": 10:30 on a bright and sunny Autumn morning.

When we left our intrepid heroes, the Doctor was lying unconscious in the TARDIS after contracting a fever from a nasty plant, while Susan had set off into an abandoned medical research facility on the planet Ruah in search of antibiotics for her ailing grandfather.  Naturally, it's not as easy as collecting a prescription, and the young Time Lady has fallen in with an elite commando unit who are in search for "The Butcher", a hacker and bio-terrorist who is holding the planet's inhabitants to ransom as he controls the nanobots that are within all of their bodies.

The Sleeping Blood

With that build-up, I was expecting an action packed finale that would make any Hollywood blockbuster proud.  We didn't get that though, what we got was a rather thought provoking ending, with a bit of a twist.  I don't want to reveal too much information and spoil someone too much, as that is something I've become conscious of as I've written these reviews.  However, I will say that this story seems to take a thinly veiled assault on various governments and the power of pharmaceutical companies.  While my mind immediately went to the United States, but let's be honest, it's exactly the same in the United Kingdom.

In closing then, one of the best things that the Companion Chronicles does is give the companions a chance to shine in a way that modern companions do, as well as get their perspective on things.  Susan especially has benefited from this, in that she has moved behind the silly child screaming and twisting her ankle, and use the fact that she is an intelligent child of Gallifrey with knowledge far beyond Earth.  In The Sleeping Blood, it is Susan that drives the story forward and is critical to the resolution of the story.  Such a shame we didn't see more of this Susan on television.

6/10

Next Story
"Indian Summer"

Continuity Corner:

• Some time has passed since The Beginning as Susan states that the TARDIS is starting to feel like home.  Probably after The Alchemists as well, as she and the Doctor have visited Earth and have had enough contact with humanity to be aware of Human customs and sayings.

Gallifrey to Trenzalore #5: Childhood Living by Samantha Baker

Short Trips: The Centenarian
"Childhood Living"
Written by Samantha Baker
Published: 1st August 2006
Read: 25th February 2016

At it's core, "Childhood Living" is about two grandfathers and their granddaughters and the relationship between them. For those who have read The Centenarian, you'll be aware that every story features Edward Grainger at various points throughout his life. Thanks to previously progressing to the Pertwee era, I had already encountered Grainger at an earlier point in his timeline (1949 to be precise), so I was a little more invested in the character.

The story is split into two as we have Grainger and his young granddaughter, Linda, being given a guided tour of a British submarine stationed at Portsmouth, while the Doctor and Susan are orbiting Earth in the TARDIS on a bit of a guided tour of the entire Earth. Naturally, things go pear-shaped when the TARDIS drifts into the path of a Slarvin spaceship, and the Doctor is unable to get the ship out of the way, but thankfully they are rescued by the slug-like Slarvin. Despite the near miss, the Slarvin are very helpful, by making some minor repairs to the TARDIS and even go so far as to provide power. Quite how, the Slarvin were able to gain access to the TARDIS is unexplained. Despite the Doctor's claims in The Daleks about the complexity of the lock, this group of slugs were able to gain entry with ease.

As the rest of the story unfolds, it turns into an alien invasion story with a little bit of a twist. These Slarvin and their Empress are out to incubate some eggs that crashed to Earth on a ship a couple of years earlier. Unsurprisingly, these eggs are aboard Grainger's submarine. In what appears to seem a rather unusual act at this point in the Doctor's timeline, he risks his and Susan's life to get the Slarvin ship off of Earth and save the planet.

Still, the adventure really isn't the main point of this story. It is all about little Linda as she examines her grandfather anew, get's to see him in his element as he returns to Naval service and realize that she really knows nothing about Edward at all. Wonderful story, with a few cliche elements.

8/10

Next Story
The Sleeping Blood

Gallifrey to Trenzalore #4: The Alchemists by Ian Potter

Doctor Who: The Companion Chronicles 8.02
The Alchemists
Written by Ian Potter

Directed by Lisa Bowerman
Published: August 2013

Episode 1: "Wedding Gold"

Today did not go entirely as planned. Due to a visit to London at the beginning of next week, it was my intention to listen to both episodes of The Alchemists and write both reviews today so I had a bit of a buffer. That plan fell apart at 7 AM when I was called into work to cover for someone off sick. What's that saying about the best laid plans. Ah well. Still, I did manage to listen to the first episode of The Alchemists today after getting home from work, and what an absolute treat it was.

The Alchemists is another Companion Chronicle by Big Finish Productions and was written by Ian Potter. In this story, we have the Doctor and Susan's arriving in Berlin in January 1933 on the eve of Hitler's rise to power. As one would expect from a story set during this era and within Germany itself, there is a sense of foreboding about what is to unfold, from sly references to boarded up shops and a shopkeeper removing writing from their store windows to overt references to the hatred directed at the Jewish inhabitants and Hitler's brown shirts keeping "order" across the city.

The feeling of history strongly enthuses this entire episode as we learn how Germany has suffered in the years following the Wall Street Crash of 1929 and the economic fall-out that followed. Memories of my GCSE History classes came rushing back as brief references to the hyper-inflation, the various political parties all vying for power and the chaos brought by two elections in four months. Considering I got an 'A' in history, it can safely be said that I lapped it up.

Where my history did let me down was the knowledge regarded the assemblage of the greatest scientific minds in the city. I did think that the Doctor meeting these scientific geniuses would be the crux of the entire story, so I was surprised as the narrative followed Susan as she split away from her grandfather to continue exploring Berlin. Again, we had a glimpse of the harsh reality of the time as she is greeted by a group of children who want to do anything for her to earn a few coins to allow them to live another day.

The cliffhanger of the episode was excellent and took me completely by surprised, with a drugged Susan stumbling to find the Doctor, before he is snatched away.  More tomorrow as we experience the second episode, but I can guarantee one thing: Pollit's a bad 'un.

Episode 2: "Dahlem Lead"

I've been struggling all day trying to gather my thoughts about today's episode, and considering I listened to it at 8:30 this morning, is quite a bit of time. All of the elements from yesterday's episode that I praised are all here, it's still atmospheric, history is masterfully alluded too, the characters are engaging. Yet, I was left feeling rather unsatisfied with the story's conclusion.

To cut a long story short, the Doctor had been kidnapped by the antique dealer that he and Susan had sold the Roman gold to upon landing in Berlin. The dealer had been working with Pollit, a agent from the British Secret Service who was investigating the German scientist Fritz Harber and rumours that he had found a way to economically extract gold from sea water. So when, the Doctor turns up with freshly minted antique gold, suspicion naturally falls on the Time Lord and his granddaughter.

The Doctor and Susan.

Naturally, with the Doctor out of the picture to the closing scenes of the episode, this is Susan's story. She's has a lot of stuff thrown at her in this story and she excels at all of them. Whether it's admonishing a couple of SA thugs who were supposed to help her find her grandfather; suffering through Pollit's torture and her eventual escape attempt; haggling to gain more money with the Roman gold and best of all, overcoming Pollit using her knowledge of chemistry. There's very little trace of the whiny child we see in later TV stories, in fact the only time she cries and shouts about her grandfather is when she's undergoing her interrogation from Pollit, and I'm sure we can forgive her that.

Ultimately, The Alchemists treads the familiar ground of cautionary tales when it comes to meddling with history. The Doctor and Susan could have quite easily given the knowledge of alchemy to Pollit and stop World War II from breaking out, and even preventing the rise of Hitler. Maybe, then it also deals with the temptation to alter history to see where it leads. We certainly see other renegade Time Lords do that very thing later in on the series.

Overall, I give The Alchemists...

8/10

Next Story
"Childhood Living"

Continuity Corner

A new section in which I keep track of all continuity and timeline references so I can keep track of where we are in universe.

• The Doctor and Susan are now frequent visitors to Earth, with Susan commenting that they seem to land here every two landings. Among the time periods visited are during the time of the Roman Empire (where they acquire a supply of gold coins); England in 1941 during the Blitz; a Zeppelin raid during the First World War. The Doctor and Susan have also visited a gateway to another universe.
• The Doctor wishes to land on 20th century Earth so that he can work on a strange chest which he brought with him from Gallifrey (also referenced in The Beginning). This is undoubtedly, the Hand of Omega (Remembrance of the Daleks).
• The framing sequence takes place later in Season One when the Doctor and Susan are travelling with Ian and Barbara. It takes place sometime after Marco Polo and The Aztecs, but before Here There Be Monsters, as Susan has no desire to leave her grandfather.