Visit the official Doctor Who website

Visit the official Doctor Who website
Look to the future

Asylum seekers...

Asylum seekers...
Refuge of the Daleks

Doctor Who picture resource

Doctor Who picture resource
Roam the space lanes!

Explore the Doctor Who classic series website

Explore the Doctor Who classic series website
Step back in time

Infiltrate The Hub of Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood

Infiltrate The Hub of Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood
Armed and extremely dangerous

Investigate The Sarah Jane Adventures

Investigate The Sarah Jane Adventures
Fearless in the face of adversity

Call on Dani’s House

Call on Dani’s House
Harmer’s a charmer

Intercept the UFO fabsite

Intercept the UFO fabsite
Defending the Earth against alien invaders!

Uncover the secrets of the Dollhouse

Uncover the secrets of the Dollhouse
Programmable agent Echo exposed!

Hell’s belles

Hell’s belles
Naughty but nice

Love Exposure

Love Exposure
Flash photography!

Primeval portal

Primeval portal
Dressed to kill or damsels in distress?

Charmed, to be sure!

Charmed, to be sure!
The witches of San Francisco

Take on t.A.T.u.

Take on t.A.T.u.
All the way from Moscow

Proceed to the Luther website

Proceed to the Luther website
John and Jenny discuss their next move

DCI Banks is on the case

DCI Banks is on the case
You can bet on it!

On The Grid with Spooks

On The Grid with Spooks
Secret agents of Section D

Bridge to Hustle

Bridge to Hustle
Shady characters

Life on Ashes To Ashes

Life on Ashes To Ashes
Coppers with a chequered past

Claire’s no Exile

Claire’s no Exile
Goose steps

Vexed is back on the beat!

Vexed is back on the beat!
Mismatched DI Armstrong and bright fast-tracker Georgina Dixon

Medium, both super and natural

Medium, both super and natural
Open the door to your dreams

Who’s that girl? (350-picture Slideshow)

Monday 9 July 2007

Lash of the Time Lords


It’s perhaps a little strange, considering my aversion to new “Doctor Who”, that most of my “Doctor Who” posts are on the modern era of the show! I suppose it’s easier to criticise something than to praise it but I do, genuinely, mourn the programme’s loss of innocence that has transpired from the intervening years while the series was off-air. “Doctor Who” used to be fun. A fine example of this is the 1985 story “Timelash”. Not fine in the sense that it’s a particularly good story. It isn’t. But fine in the sense that it’s good fun to watch. It’s entertaining, if only to laugh at the monster which “terrorises” Peri for most of the story’s duration or cringe at “Blake’s 7” star Paul Darrow’s hammy acting, who seems to think he’s in “Richard II”!! He plays Tekker who has one of the best, scenery-chewing, lines in the whole piece as, threatening the Sixth incarnation with almost-certain fatal-death, he exclaims “Save your breath for the Timelash, Doctor. Most people depart with a scream.” Now, if that ain’t a hoot, what is?!! And, Paul’s performance in the story is by no means the worst. That honour must go to Dicken Ashworth who plays Sezon. He delivers some of his lines as if he’s only just learnt how to read!!!

I presume “Timelash” is being made available on DVD, from today, because it features an encounter with a famous author and, in this respect, ties in with the reinvention of the series. Christopher Eccleston’s Doctor criticised Charles Dickens while David Tennant’s upstaged William Shakespeare and, in this new budget-price release, Colin Baker has a close encounter with a young man called Herbert. It’s only at the end of the story that Herbert is revealed to be none other than H. G. Wells, assuming that you haven’t already guessed it by then! But, at least this writer gets a trip in the TARDIS and thus it’s explained how the great social novelist came to script “The Time Machine”. Ironically, this is the novel which inspired Terry Nation’s original Dalek serial where Wells’s leisure-driven Eloi became the pacifist Thals and the underground-dwelling Morlocks were reimagined as “The Daleks” themselves. “Timelash” also suggests that the villain of the two-part story, the Borad, played to great effect by Robert Ashby, ends his days as the often poorly-photographed monster of a certain Scottish Loch! He, no doubt, joins the cyborg weapon of the Zygons, from the earlier Tom Baker serial, which was the original explanation for Nessie in “Doctor Who”!!

11 comments:

Paul said...

I think you're being a bit generous in your review of Timelash, Tim.

I suspect the real reason that we have Robot, Timelash and Time-Flight all coming out this year is because unless they start balancing out the crap stories with the good ones, we'll be in the same situation as we were when they were released on VHS!

Having said that, I'd watch Timelash over Last of the Time Lords any day!

Old Cheeser said...

I have distant memories of "Timelash", but they aren't great! (Or "Timeslash" as me and my DW friends referred to it when teenagers - nowt like going for a timeslash eh? I don't know, how juvenile...)

I think like you said Tim, it's a fun story to watch but not necessarily for the right reasons! The things I recall in particular are the silly "strapped to the TARDIS console" bit near the start with the Dr and Peri. Paul Darrow's bad wig and bad acting (hammier than Avon from "Blake's 7" although he always carried off THAT role with a certain panache). The rubbish "ageing" special effects.

I think Paul's right, they're deliberately starting to release some of the "bad" stories now, otherwise there won't be any decent ones left! I'm actually looking forward to seeing "Time Flight" in a twisted kind of way - Anthony Ainley's hammy turn as Chinese conjuror Kalid, the crap special effects versus the sophistication of Concorde and poor old Tegan getting dumped at Heathrow!

However I'd really like to see the Black Guardian trilogy released before too long. As for Mr Colin Baker, nearly all of his catalogue has been released, so he's a lucky fella!

TimeWarden said...

I just wanted to be a little more positive about something, Paul, than I have of late and didn't think anyone else would be concerning "Timelash"!

I was reluctant to invest in the DVDs, until last year, having bought many of the original VHS releases. In the case of "Timelash", I still have my original off-air recording, on Beta, but haven't watched it in about 20 years!

I'd rather watch "Timelash" over the recent season finale, too, hence the title of my post!

There's also an anagram of "Timelash", Simon, of 2 words with 4 letters in each, which possibly sums up that serial!

I would've preferred "Attack of the Cybermen" which is now the only season 22 story that hasn't seen the light of day on DVD. You mention a number of Davison stories you'd like to see released. "Frontios" is top of my list which I don't have in any format!

Steve said...

I can see there's a whole DW back catalogue that I've missed out on! I'm considering in investing in some Tom Baker DW's but I've never liked Colin Baker so would have real difficulty watching him!

Paul said...

Don't get me wrong. Timelash isn't all bad. I'm having some trouble thinking of the good points but i'm sure they'll come back to me! ;-)

Well, Colin Baker recorded a DVD commentary for Attack of the Cybermen a couple of weeks ago, and its being shown as part of UKTV Drama's Doctor Who weekend on the 14th and 15th of July, so I suspect a release can't be far off!

As for Davison stories... He's always been my favourite Doctor, so any are welcome - even the dreadful ones! But I'd love to see Black Orchid, The Guardian Trilogy, Frontios, The Awakening, Planet of Fire and a proper release of The Five Doctors, with both versions on it...

Old Cheeser said...

Could the anagram possibly be .... Lame Sh*t??

Whoops, I just swore.

Yes "Frontios" was a good one, a wonderful Christopher Bidmead script and a chance for Peter D to shine as the Dr. Tegan was good in that one too.

TimeWarden said...

Steve, I would recommend starting your Tom Baker "Doctor Who" collection with "Genesis of the Daleks". It's the story most fans regard as the pinnacle of the original series. Good time to buy it, too, as it was reissued last week, with 7 other titles, at half the original RRP! It features Sarah Jane, introduces Davros - creator of the Daleks - and has a decent running time of 2 1/2 hours!!

It's a shame you don't like Colin Baker, though, as 1 of the other 7 reissues is "Revelation of the Daleks", one of my all-time favourites, full of jet-black humour and rather grisly to boot!

Paul, I remember rather liking David Chandler's portrayal of Wells. It probably wasn't very accurate but came over as rather sweet! I liked the scenes of him with the Doctor in the console room.

Good news regarding a possibly-imminent release of "Attack". I, too, would welcome a DVD release of "Planet of Fire", despite having a VHS copy, if only for episode 1! I'd even be happy to see "Warriors of the Deep" made available, not owning that on any format either.

Turlough was also very good in "Frontios", Simon, foaming at the mouth at memories of the Tractators' devastation of his home world! I've noticed you have a great fondness for Ms Fielding's character!!

Karen said...

I have added this one to my collection but yet to watch it. Don't really feel in a rush to do so. When I first watched it I didn't enjoy it but I didn't hate it either. I was never much of a fan of Colin Baker especially at the time of first viewing this one.

TimeWarden said...

No one seems to like poor old Colin, though I've heard he's a nice guy and intelligent with it!

Andrew Glazebrook said...

I don't recall watching this story at all, funny seeing as though Nicola Bryant was still in it !!??

TimeWarden said...

"Timelash" was originally broadcast between "The Two Doctors" and "Revelation of the Daleks", Andrew, so you can be forgiven for not remembering it!