Musings

9 June 2018

Life has been very busy lately: doing two jobs, working on two books (medieval bastards and a guidebook to the Chilterns) and selling my mother's bungalow, so not much time for blogging, or for Doctor Who.

I did read the Target novelisation of The Day of the Doctor, which was excellent, in a very Steven Moffat way.  Naturally he had to tell the story from multiple viewpoints and include a running gag about Chapter Nine. On the subject of Moffat, we also re-watched Silence in the Library and Forest of the Dead recently.  They are still great stories, and what struck me particularly was how well River Song's first appearance stands up even when viewed with the benefit of hindsight. The Doctor's face when someone accuses him and River of bickering like 'an old married couple' is priceless. I still want to know why Audrey Niffenegger didn't sue, though.

There are rumours that Captain Jack will return to our screens to meet Doctor 13.  These seem largely fuelled by the fact that Chris Chibnall was the showrunner for Torchwood. Whilst I would love to see the Captain back on our screens, the TARDIS is already going to be quite crowded.  I hope Jodie Whittaker has enough space to be the Doctor, and doesn't get crowed out as Peter Davison did at times.

Oh well, all will be revealed in due course.

How Doctor Who Changed My Life

Yes, it's true, Doctor Who has changed my life. 

Or at least marrying a Doctor Who fan changed my life. By that I don't just mean the Daleks in the bathroom and the ever-expanding DVD and novelisation collection colonising all the available storage space.

No, marrying a fan all those years ago brought about a sequence of events that has led to my paddling a canoe on the Orinoco, travelling on the Trans-Siberian express and extolling the virtues of High Wycombe on local radio, as well as becoming far better acquainted with the works of Shakespeare than ever seemed likely. 

You see it's like this. I happened to be a member of Mensa.  (Honestly, it's not that difficult - I got sucked into doing the test after entering a competition when I was 17 and thought it would be a good thing to put on my UCAS form.) After we were married, my husband was looking through my magazine, and noticed that there was a Doctor Who special interest group, so persuaded me to sign up for it.  Fast forward a year or so and the Doctor Who SIG  was seeking contributions for Future Imperfect, multi-author  story for the 30th anniversary, and my husband wanted to join in, so he joined Mensa as well. (I told you it wasn't that difficult!)

Before long, he heard that there was a vacancy for editor of the newsletter for the Travel special interest group, and as he was getting interested in desktop publishing, he volunteered. After a while he put together an anthology of some of the best contributions which was published for charity.  Through the special interest group he got to interview Hilary Bradt of Bradt Guides, attended one of their travel writing workshops and later went on to win a travel writing competition.

Next, he decided to write a travel book himself, based on the places that Wombles were named after (Doctor Who is not the only programme from our childhoods that has made a big impression.) He didn't want to travel alone, so Muggins became assistant researcher and photographer, as we travelled up the Orinoco, by train to Tomsk, walked in Bulgaria, ate French food in Cholet etc.  You get the idea. Despite the fact that I ended up paddling a dugout canoe while he remained safely on dry land 'looking after the camera' I can't really complain about this, as I have a nagging feeling that I might have been responsible for the original idea.

The next project is a guidebook of our local area for Bradt.  This time I am not only assistant researcher and photographer, but co-author and exhibit A, as I have lived all my life in the area and can trace my local connection back for centuries.

Meanwhile, as is obvious from the rest of this blog, I decided that the best way to live with a Doctor Who fan was to become one. As regular readers may have inferred, I became particularly keen on the Tenth Doctor, as played by David Tennant.  So it was not surprising that I wanted to see his Hamlet. A few years later we went to see David in Richard II.  I saw from the programme that the RSC was embarking on a cycle of the entire repertoire of Shakepeare's plays over a six year period, and thought that it would be good for my general education to see them all. Now I'm a Patron of the RSC and we visit Stratford several times a year.

It's possible that some of these things might have happened without Doctor Who but I doubt it.

St George's Day

23 April 2016

It is St George's Day, and the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death (or at least the 400th anniversary is being celebrated today.)

To honour the occasion, the BBC have decided to announce the new Doctor Who companion at half time of a football match.  Do Doctor Who fans watch football?  The new companion turns out not to be David Tennant as Doctor 10.2 (my ideal choice), or Frank Skinner (my second choice, after his performance in Mummy on the Orient Express), but then Peter Capaldi is on record as saying that he didn't want a male companion, in case he got to do all the action stuff. It is actually a girl named Bill, played by Pearl Mackie.

This will naturally led itself to some great puns and headlines in Doctor Who Magazine. How long before they run with 'Kill Bill!'

Meanwhile in Stratford-upon-Avon, the DoctorDonna (i.e. David Tennant and Catherine Tate) are hosting the Shakespeare Live! gala at the RSC. The start was a bit shaky, and there was rather too much music and not enough Shakespeare but it cheered up no end after the Nine Hamlets sketch with David Tennant, Tim Minchin, Paapa Essiedu, Harriet Walter, Ian McKellen, Rory Kinnear, Benedict Cumberbatch, Judi Dench and, er... Prince Charles.

I was left a little disappointed though that it didn't start with Dean Lennox Kelly coming on and saying 'Shut your mouths'

A girl can dream...

30 January 2016

So Steven Moffat is leaving Doctor Who. He must really need a holiday by now.  Interestingly, when I just went to google this story, Google suggested 'Steven Moffat has ruined Doctor Who' as a search term.  Everyone's a critic! 

Seriously, I cannot agree with that sentiment, though I do think that Moffat produced better Doctor Who episodes as a writer than as a showrunner.  The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances, The Girl in the Fireplace and Blink are among my all-time favourites. I'm less keen on the convoluted story arcs that take a couple of years to pay off ('silence will fall') or personal relationships that 'need a flowchart', as I think they tend to alienate the casual viewer.  I had the same problem with The X-Files.

It will be interesting to see the direction that Chris Chibnall will go in when he finally takes over.  Until then, I'm secretly hoping for a 'Tenth Doctor wakes up in the shower/TARDIS and it was all a dream' plot. After all, Chibnall is working with David Tennant on Broadchurch and there does seem to be a tendency for producers to work with the same people over and again. 

A girl can dream, can't she?

Zygon Times

Sunday 1 November 2015

My German colleague (notable as the only German I have ever met who watches Doctor Who) has raised a question about The Woman Who Lived? Why didn't she use the repair chip to save one of her children?  Were none of them 'good enough'?

Oh well, moving on to this week's episode, The Zygon Invasion.  I like Zygons.  Their debut story, Terror of the Zygons is one of my favourites.  But I found The Zygon Invasion a bit tedious to be honest. 

In 2005, when we were all just so surprised and happy to have Doctor Who back on our screens, there was a two-part story Aliens of London/World War Three in which aliens disguised as politicians took over 10 Downing Street, and attempted to start a war, claiming that there were aliens with 'massive weapons of destruction' that could be deployed within 45 seconds. I was so amazed at the sheer cheek of this topical reference in the run up to a general election that I almost fell off the sofa.

Ten years later, and the (real) world is not a safer place.  The Zygon Invasion starts by reminding us of the small piece of unfinished business from  Day of the Doctor.  You know, the peace treaty between humans and Zygons that was to be negotiated with neither party knowing which side they were on. What with saving Gallifrey, and the Great Curator and everything, no one bothered to ask how it turned out.  Cue another flashback to the Tenth Doctor (and the Eleventh and the other one). Sadly, it all went downhill after that.

It turns out that the Zygons have been living among us, but now a faction among the young are being radicalised.  They are taking hostages, making videos and killing people. One of their bases is in a country ending in -stan.  It doesn't take a degree in Media Studies or Politics to see where this is going.

So we have heavy-handed political satire, locations that range from the amusingly-named Truth or Consequences in New Mexico to somewhere in (presumably) Central Asia, via a London estate; a regular who has been replaced by a Zygon, UNIT (run entirely by women now, it seems) and it somehow fails to gel.  It felt more like an episode of Torchwood  or The X-Files to me.

At least Osgood is back (for now). And it's always nice to see David Tennant.

Update: My aforementioned German colleague wants to know why the Doctor needed a Presidential Plane to get to the Zygon-istan.  He has a point.  I'm not sure where exactly this Zygon village is supposed to be, but it must be at least 6 hours flying time. Husband's response (as per Girl in the Fireplace) 'they can't use the TARDIS, they are part of events now.' 

The Girl Who Died

17 October 2015

Oops, we are away again. So watching The Girl Who Died from Travelodge somewhere in Cumbria. [Is it just us, or is everyone else unable to walk down hotel corridors without saying either 'All these corridors look the same to me' or 'Praise Him?']

This was another of those annoying stories where the aliens (great design, by the way) seem to be rather a minor side-show compared with the Doctor's angst.  I need to see it again before passing judgement, but so far:

Good things about the episode:

• David Tennant!
• Donna!
• Goodbye to the sonic shades

Bad things about this episode

• Vikings with horned helmets (No.)
• That bit of alien repair technology
• Surely there has to be a simpler way of getting adrenaline and testosterone?

Under the Lake

10 October 2015

Last Saturday night we watched an epic battle, and a Welshman hitting an Englishman with a leek.  No, we weren't watching Doctor Who, and weren't at the rugby either.  The thing about being a middle-aged fan, is that you find yourself going to the Royal Shakespeare Theatre to watch Henry V.  (I blame David Tennant for the fact that I am now going to Stratford 3 or 4 times a year).

Anyway, to cut a long story short, we didn't get to see Under the Lake until Sunday.  A classic  base under siege story, but was it more Waters of Mars or Warriors of the Deep?

It was definitely more the former, with something nasty affecting the crew and turning them into monsters (or 'ghosts') and a remotely-controlled device used to fetch an otherwise inaccessible object, operated by waving the arms around. The final scenes where the Doctor and Clara are separated by the flooded corridor was reminiscent of 42. I also felt that there was something of The Curse of Fenric about it, with an artefact (in this case the alien ship) controlling people so that they carry out the alien's plan.

However, that brings me to a problem. I'm not sure that the plan really comes together. I mean, how much use would those 'co-ordinates' be for a rescue mission from another planet? It's not even as if there is only one drowned town or village with an underwater church on the planet.

But no doubt all will become clear this evening. We are actually at home to watch it live.

And am I the only one who really wants to see the clockwork squirrel?

Crossing Over...

So this weekend I'm going to a convention.  Danny Hargreaves will be there, blowing things up.  Maybe I'll get to see Steven Moffat or Mark Gatiss...

Sadly, it's a Sherlock convention.  My other half, who got me into Doctor Who is also a Holmes fan.

I like late 19th and early 20th century crime fiction, but the works of Arthur Conan Doyle are not among my favourites.  Moffat and Gatiss' revamped version for the 21st century is very clever, and certainly watchable, but it's just a (good) TV programme. Maybe the problem is that Benedict Cumberbatch just isn't David Tennant...

Update

Just back from Sherlocked. In comparison with the Doctor Who 50th, which was the last convention I attended at ExCel, it was disappointing.  Not really surprising, when Doctor Who has 50 years of episodes, fiction and related stuff (albeit with a long gap in the middle), whereas Sherlock has only 9 ninety-minute episodes.  We had basic tickets, rather than one of the event 'packages' which meant that we were second-class citizens.  We didn't even get passes, just ink stamps on our hands. With this level of access we were entitled to admission to the main event space and could attend talks on the second stage (most of which seemed to be about cosplay, which doesn't interest me) and the special effects demonstration by Danny Hargreaves in the main stage.  We could also see a taxi and a bus (big deal!)  some room sets and a costume and prop display.  We were however able to buy tickets for another of the main stage talks, 'Ladies of Sherlock', which also gave us free entry to a session with Messrs Moffat and Gatiss.  Without that, it wouldn't really have been worth our while to attend the event.

Wedding outfits from John and Mary's wedding

The problem with the prop and costume displays is that most of the Sherlock  costumes are just fairly ordinary clothes. It's not quite the same as coming face to face with a Silurian or a Cyberman, or meeting K9.  I mean, taking a photo of a London bus is not actually that difficult, if you live or work in London.

I noticed quite a few TARDIS bags (and even dresses) among the attendees, and one of the merchandise stalls had Doctor Who action figures.  It would have been perverse to go to a Sherlock event and buy a 10th Doctor figure, though, wouldn't it?

Och Aye the Doctor!

14 November 2014

Tonight I went to a lecture for alumni of my former university history department. With the aim of giving the event some topical relevance, it was on ‘Making the Union Work, 1707-2014’.  Although wine and canapes were provided, we could tell that it was a serious academic event.  There was even a handout, giving an ‘illustrative chronology’, starting with the union of the crowns in 1603 and proceeding via various political and cultural landmarks such as the abolition of the Scottish privy council in 1708 and the publication of the first of Sir Walter Scott’s Waverley novels in 1814.  The distinguished professor explained that this was intended to give us something to look at if our attention wandered during his lecture.

Somewhere around Adam Smith, I found my attention wandering and  turned over the sheet to read ‘2013 – Peter Capaldi as Dr Who; the third Scot to play the role, out of 12 – is that right Helen and Neil? Towards the end of the talk, the DP, making a point about Scotland’s place in ‘British’ culture duly referred to Peter Capaldi as the third Scottish Doctor out of 12, at least according to Wikipedia, and turned to us for corroboration. My other half agreed that this was correct (it wasn’t the time or place to get into Steven Moffat’s messing with the incarnations) and mentioned the ‘I’m Scottish, I can complain about things’ line from Peter Capaldi’s  first episode. I was far too shocked at the Astor Professor of British History using  Wikipedia  to be able to comment.*

But it got me thinking about Scottishness in Doctor Who. 

I am too young to have seen The Highlanders (though we do have the Target novelisation), but it seems to be based on the romanticised view of Scottish history purveyed by Sir Walter Scott.  (Distinguished Professor is not a fan of the Waverley novels.) It also introduced Jamie McCrimmon, the kilt-wearing companion.

The romanticised view of Scotland was still somewhat in evidence with gratuitous tartan-wearing in Terror of the Zygons in which the Brigadier suddenly seems to remember that his name is Lethbridge-Stewart, and even Nessie makes an appearance (though it turns out she’s an alien creature).

Tooth and Claw is rather less self-consciously Scottish.  Although it gives David Tennant a brief opportunity to use his own accent instead of the Tenth Doctor’s terrible estuary accent, there is rather less of the tartan, bagpipes and Bonnie Prince Charlie in evidence.  They have Kung-fu monks instead for reasons which still escape me.

Steven Moffat’s Scottish stereotyping has been of a rather more modern kind.  As a Scot himself, he can get away with writing  lines such as ‘you’re Scottish – fry something!’

*I should point out that Professor in question does not watch Doctor Who, but was the Head of Department whose meeting was once crashed by Derek the Departmental Dalek. It was clearly a traumatic experience.

New New Doctor?

January 2009

It has been been an exciting few months.  First there was David Tennant’s live announcement at the National TV Awards that he would not be playing the Doctor in series 5.  Although the timing was a surprise, the actual announcement was not that much of a shock.  Any actor is likely to be wary of staying in one role too long, and although I had been hoping that Tennant would stay for at last part of Steven Moffat’s first season in charge, I had an inkling that this was not going to happen when Russell T Davies revealed at the Cheltenham Literature Festival that he had already written the penultimate line of his final ‘special’.

Then there was the media excitement over the casting of the next incumbent, coupled, cleverly, with the Next Doctor hype. Quite how Russell T Davies and co managed to milk the speculation following Tennant’s departure to promote The Next Doctor when it was really fairly clear that the character played by David Morrissey in the Christmas Special couldn’t really be the next Doctor, is a mystery.  Two major stumbling blocks were the fact that Tennant was contracted to appear in further specials (OK , so I suppose he could be playing Doctor 10.2, who has escaped from the alternative universe, but that seems rather contrived) and the fact that Morrissey’s character, as shown in the trailer, was very clearly imitating the Tenth Doctor (“Allons-y” etc.) whereas a real new incarnation would have his own characteristics.

Meanwhile all the usual old chestnuts are kicked around in the press.  If not Morrissey, could it be a woman? Catherine Zeta Jones? Billie Piper? [Yawn].

Then, in December, Tennant was invalided out of Hamlet for back surgery, missing his London press night.  Hugely disappointing for him, and for the fans who had managed to get tickets.  Also worrying for the Doctor Who production team, who were expecting him to start filming again in mid-January. However, even though he was unable to attend the press launch for the Christmas special he apparently recovered sufficiently to do a last-minute round of radio interviews. Meanwhile, David Morrissey’s position as a bookies’ favourite for the role seemed to slump after the press launch. 

Christmas Day, and all became clear (well, the reasons for Tennant’s bad back, anyway – look at all that wire work!).  Obviously the Dickensian setting was used not only for its ‘Christmassy’ appeal, but to enable them to include a fob watch in Morrissey’s costume as a red herring.

Into the New Year, and speculation mounted about the significance of an episode of Doctor Who Confidential scheduled for BBC1 on 3 January. Then it was confirmed that the casting announcement will indeed be made during this show.  In trailers for the special programme David Tennant looked as if he could scarcely conceal his glee that someone else was going to have to cope with the massive media interest for a change. 

Let’s just take stock here. They actually broadcast a special programme to tell us who was being cast in a role which would not start filming for about six months and would not be seen on the screen for a year, and it got one of the highest audience figures of the day.  

Finally, all was revealed.  The collective jaws of the nation dropped as the youngster with the interesting hairdo appeared on screen.  I have to admit that my first reaction was not favourable, mainly because Matt Smith seemed a little like a younger, unformed version of David Tennant, and I was hoping for more of a contrast (such as Julian Rhind-Tutt or Rupert Penry-Jones).  I also realised that I must have seen him in The Ruby in the Smoke without having noticed him at all.  However, I trust Steven Moffat, and if he says that Matt Smith was the clear favourite out of all those auditioned, there must be something about him. Time will tell.

However, David Tennant managed to trump the announcement with a surprise return to Hamlet on the very night of the announcement, and completed the run to rave reviews.* That is true star quality.  Mr Smith (convenient name, that) will have a lot to live up to.

*I got a late ticket for London in January, having seen the preview in Stratford.

March 2007: Enter Martha Jones

31 March 2007

Well, after a week of David Tennant on Graham Norton, John Barrowman on Charlotte Church and everyone on a Weakest Link special, it was finally time for the start of series 3.  Or, as it may become known, ‘The One with the Space Rhinos’.  A bit of a conflation of the previous two season starts – starting from the point of view of a new companion whose everyday existence is changed as a result of an encounter with the Doctor – and set in a hospital in an alien environment. Oh, and the Doctor once again gets to kiss his assistant, no, sorry, make that ‘genetic imprint’. Actually, I thought it was the best season start so far.  The villainess, an apparently sweet old lady who brings her own straw for sucking her victims’ blood is really rather chilling, and the prosthetic Judoon head is very convincing.

And yes, Martha, it IS bigger on the inside.

April 2006: The Tenth Doctor

15 April 2006

So we have seen the first full outing of the new Doctor.  My first thought was that David Tennant was clearly made for the role.  He simply IS the Doctor – there is none of that feeling of awkwardness while waiting to see how the new Doctor settles down that usually accompanies a regeneration.  Christopher Eccleston had taken some getting used to, though I shed a tear at the hologram speech in The Parting of the Ways.  Five minutes into New Earth, and it was a case of Christopher Who?

 RTD’s intention with New Earth was apparently to bring back some familiar elements from the last series in order to bridge the gap. This was only partially successful, if my exhaustive survey of one casual viewer of the last series is anything to go by: “has the Face of Boe been in it before?”  To be honest, he was not really needed in this episode, but it was nice to see him again.

Cassandra, on the other hand was a revelation.  I had not really taken to her in The End of the World.  I found her character a bit, well, two-dimensional. Putting her into Billie Piper’s body dealt very effectively with that problem.  Much as I like Rose as a companion, I found the bitchy Cassandra/Rose a fascinating twist, and would have been quite happy for Cassandra to stay put for a while. It was rather strange to have a story involving body-swapping so soon after the introduction of a new Doctor, but David Tennant coped very well.  I wonder if Zoë Wanamaker has forgiven him yet?

Overall, though, there seemed to be rather too many disparate elements crammed in to the episode.  Next week looks like an improvement.

22 April 2006

That was better.  Pauline Collins was an excellent Queen Victoria, and the CGI werewolf worked well.  But kung fu monks in Victorian Scotland? What can Russell T Tarantino have been thinking?  Perhaps the plan is to use them later as station idents and thus save the Beeb some money. I wonder what the production team have against the Royal family though.  In The Christmas Invasion they were reportedly on the roof (I would have been up there too), and now it is being suggested that they are werewolves.

29 April 2006

Now we’re getting somewhere.  This could have been terrible, but fortunately was brilliant.  Anthony Head was great as the creepy Headmaster, and as for Lis Sladen, well, either she has a picture in her attic, or L’Oreal has missed an advertising opportunity.  Billie Piper got to do some seriously cheesed off acting as a dinner lady, and a lovely bitchy act with Sarah Jane.  And Mickey has discovered his role in life. At the end when the Doctor said goodbye to Sarah again and left her with K9 mark whatever, I was quite overcome. 

 

December 2005: A Christmas present

25 December 2005

Wow! 

The Christmas Invasion was definitely unsettling, particularly if, like me, your blood is A positive and you don’t care for heights!

Forget the gimmicky killer Santas and Christmas tree. 

David Tennant, brought to life by a cup of tea, saves the planet by playing Luke Skywalker whilst dressed as Arthur Dent in a setting from Star Trek: TNG.  Then goes home to his turkey dinner.

What could ever improve on that?

June 2005: end of the season

Saturday 4 June 2005

Busy day producing reports for exam board, so time out to watch Boom Town was a welcome relief. Again, some good lines, as when Mickey asks Jack what he is a captain of - “the innuendo squad”?  The answer to which being a very definite yes. On the whole a very odd episode, but I enjoyed it.  The trailer for next week looks worrying though – the Doctor in the Big Brother house? 

Saturday 11 June 2005

Against all the odds, this episode actually worked.  I particularly enjoyed Jack’s encounter with the futuristic Trinny and Susannah.

Saturday 18 June 2005

A strange episode. A truly moving moment, when the Doctor’s emergency hologram explains to Rose that he is about to die and she should return home and forget him, but a rather cop-out ending. Although saving the universe with the help of your boyfriend, your mum and a borrowed tow-truck is an interesting idea.

Our first glimpse of David Tennant.  It’s hard to tell what he is going to be like.

It’s going to be a long time until Christmas.

April 2005: the new series continues

Saturday 2 April 2005

Find two month old copy of Doctor Who Magazine.  Russell T Davies’ column has a lot in it about the fun he and David Tennant had on the set of Casanova, doing Doctor Who in jokes.  Was the writing already on the wall?

Watch The End of the World. This is really good.  It’s a bit rushed – they could have stretched it to two parts easily, but the effects are great.  And we get to see the fabled Moxx of Balhoon, if not for long.

Watch live version of Quatermass.  After a few minutes, husband remarks that David Tennant is supposed to be in it, but he hasn’t seen him yet.  “No,” I reply, “I think he’s playing the doctor….”

Sunday 3 April 2005

Watch double bill of Enterprise.  O look, the planet Earth is being destroyed.  Again.  But Doctor Who’s exploding planet effect was better!

Watch BBC3 repeat to make sure.

Yes.  Definitely more impressive.

Monday 4 April 2005

Doctor Who still ahead of Ant and Dec.  Keep up the good work.

Saturday 9 April 2005

Russell T Davies has said that Christopher Eccleston was never going to do more than one series.  The end of the final episode was apparently meant to be a big surprise.  This doesn’t surprise me much (see 2 April above) but how on earth can they have imagined they were going to keep that secret?

Watch The Unquiet Dead.  Aaarrgghhh!  It’s actually frightening.  Some of the lame jokes could usefully have been edited out though -“happy medium”, indeed!

Saturday 16 April 2005

Oh dear!  Nice spaceship crash, shame about the pig and the farting aliens.  Jackie Tyler’s reaction to the Doctor was quite amusing though.

Saturday 23 April 2005

Definitely better than last week.  I can’t believe they were allowed to get away with the ‘massive weapons of destruction’ line this close to an election though.  Presumably no one in politics (except Tim Collins?) is expected to watch it. 

Sunday 24 April 2005

On the subject of politics, off to the West Midlands to assist friend’s doomed campaign. Am horrified to discover that her children haven’t watched Doctor Who yet.  What sort of parent is she?

Saturday 30 April 2005

The one with the Dalek.  Apparently we are supposed to feel sorry for the Dalek at the end.  I don’t.  I’m too busy wondering when they decided that Dalek mutants were now to be a fetching pinky-mauve instead of green.

March 2005: the Aftermath

Saturday 25 March 2005

 

Huge sigh of relief.  It looked brilliant, Billie Piper was excellent, Christopher Eccleston was not as irritating as I had feared, and the story was not at all bad.  It was a bit rushed, there were a few too many comedy bits and there were some holes in the plot, but it was recognisably Doctor Who. The first episode has a difficult job to do, establishing the characters and fitting in a story, within the space of 45 minutes.  I particularly liked the bit where Rose’s boyfriend offers to take her down the pub to cheer her up, and she asks whether there is a football match on…

Sunday 26 March 2005

Visit Winchelsea.  Buy Sunday Times – AA Gill’s review of last night’s episode misses the point.  It is not clear whether he actually watched it. He seems to have been reviewing his memories from the seventies.

Monday 27 March 2005

Return home.  Watch recorded version of Rose. No, I didn’t imagine it, it’s still good.

Ratings for Rose beat Ant and Dec hollow. Excellent.

 Wednesday 29 March 2005

The BBC has commissioned a second series.  Yippee!

 Thursday 30 March 2005

But Christopher Eccleston isn’t going to be in it.  Hmmm.

But the BBC want David Tennant to replace him.  Double yippee with extra pepperoni!!!

March 2005: the build-up

A week or two before

A Doctor Who trailer!  It must actually be going to happen.  Nice looking TARDIS. Billie Piper looks promising.  Slightly worried about new Doctor. He was OK until he opened his mouth.

 Wednesday 23 March 2005

Last day at work before closing for Easter.  Try to persuade eminent Professor of Medieval History that he should try watching Doctor Who, as a change from Desperate Housewives. Not much success, though he is amused at the idea of killer wheelie bins.

Friday 24 March 2005

Drive down to Sussex for Easter weekend, praying that television in hotel room works (it does), and that series isn’t going to be a huge disappointment.  Still, have seen Mine all Mine, which was brilliant, and a bit of Casanova which was also brilliant, apart from David Tennant’s estuary accent.

 Watch Christopher Eccleston on Jonathan Ross. He might be OK as the Doctor, but I doubt if he is going to be comfortable with going to conventions.                        

Saturday 25 March 2005

Wander round Rye, visiting locations from the Mapp and Lucia books. Am entirely focussed on the works of E F Benson.  Try to persuade husband that The English Way of Death is clearly a pastiche of Mapp and Lucia.

 Return to hotel and sit through Strictly Graham Norton or whatever.  Why do all the dances look the same?

 At last!!!!  What have they done to the theme tune?   

 

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