It's episodes like this that make me dread seasons 3 to 5. This is the
first missing episode of series 2, and I'm glad there's only one more to
go because I found it heavy going. After a couple of false starts Isaac
and I decided to repeat our experiment from The Reign of Terror:
watch a reconstruction, but sync it with the narrated soundtrack. This
worked better, though I still felt I was missing out on a lot.
Still, many of the viewers at the time of original broadcast wouldn't
have said so. This was the first time since before the last Dalek serial
that the ratings dropped below 10 million (though to be fair the
appreciation index shows that those who remained were enjoying this
serial more than they did the second half of The Web Planet).
Perhaps the ones who left had heard the announcement the day before that
William Russell and Jacqueline Hill were going to be leaving, and
decided the show had run its course.
And actually, we're lucky to be able to hear this one at all! For a long
time we had nothing but the script and telesnaps. It was only in 1995
that an off-air recording of the soundtrack was discovered - one of the
final few needed to 'complete the set'.
The one benefit of the situation is that I really had to concentrate on
the dialogue because that's most of what there is. And I realised that
the distinction between the Shakespearean characters (who inhabit the
world of the play) and the TARDIS crew (who are just visiting) still
exists. When the crew are talking amongst themselves they speak in a
much more natural fashion. It's like the difference between a private
conversation with friends or family, full of rapid-fire comments,
colloquialisms and in-references; and speaking clearly and
rhythmically, using carefully-prepared sentences, for a public audience.
Nicely done.
So, putting its missing status to one side as much as I can, what else
do I want to say about the story? Well, I was surprised to see Ben
Daheer, the market trader, again; I'd thought he was a one-off, but it
seems he is going to provide a comic relief subplot. His bit with
William Hartnell this week is short but still amusing, the Doctor
handling the situation believably and well. We also meet Joanna for the
first time, played by Jon Pertwee's ex-wife Jean Marsh, who we'll be
seeing more of a little later in this marathon. It could have been
another actress, Adrienne Hill, who was also up for the part; and we'll
be seeing her even sooner. I don't have a great deal to say about Joanna, yet; nor about the Chamberlain. Maybe next time.
The most important thread of the plot is Barbara's, and it takes a turn I
wasn't expecting. Rather than being forced into storytelling she is
tricked and kidnapped by El Akir before escaping into the streets of
Lydda. We meet two more new characters in the process, the maidservant
and Ferrigo; and I can't judge them at all in this format.
Last time I was trying to figure out where I'd seen the actor who played
El Akir before, but it wasn't until the credits that I finally got
there. Walter Randall was the rather stiff (many would say wooden)
Tonila in The Aztecs, but here he gets the chance to show off his
slimy and sadistic side - which seems to suit him better. I think he
has a tendency to hold something back, which worked against him when he
was Tonila; but as El Akir - where someone like John Ringham might have
gone for scenery-chewing EEEEVIIIILLL! - Randall's more subdued style is
actually an advantage, taking the edge off a cartoon villain just
slightly and bringing him back towards the space occupied by Bernard
Kay's Saladin and Julian Glover's King Richard.
Richard is involved in the second-most important part of the
proceedings, the one that forms the focus for the linking material on
the DVD/video: the knighting of Sir Ian Chesterton. William Russell was
no stranger to playing a knight, of course. He was the eponymous (love
that word!) warrior in The Adventures of Sir Lancelot in 1956-7, which was the first British series to be shot in colour thanks to success in the American market.
I'm sure most of us would agree that Ian deserves knighting. We'll see
what he does with the honour (beyond a quick chat with William des
Preaux) next time.
Broadcast:
Date: Saturday, 3rd April 1965
Viewers: 8.5 million
Chart Position: 29
Appreciation Index: 50
Rating:
4.5/10.
Next Time:
The Wheel of Fortune.
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