The Mind Robber |
BBC Inside the Spaceship aka. "The Edge of Destruction" |
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| Episodes | 2 |  |
| Story No# | 3 | |
| Production Code | C | |
| Season | 1 | |
| Dates | Feb. 2, 1964 - Feb. 15, 1964 |
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With William Hartnell, William Russell, Jacqueline Hill, Carole Ann Ford. Written and script-edited by David Whitaker. Directed by Richard Martin. Associate Producer: Mervyn Pinfield. Produced by Verity Lambert. |
| Synopsis: A powerful force takes hold of the TARDIS, threatening to destroy it and its crew, or so the Doctor believes. But could the force itself have gotten inside the spaceship...? |
A Review by Francis Salvi 18/5/11
I was shocked to learn that Doctor Who was originally only to last for 4 episodes, which would have meant the dreadful An Unearthly Child would have been the only story in the series. Thankfully, the episode count was increased to 13, after a lot of goading from Verity Lambert, the series' producer. However, The Daleks only lasted for seven episodes, and the episode count had again been increased, this time to seventeen episodes. With only An Unearthly Child, The Daleks and the seven-part historical Marco Polo in the works, a quick two-part filler was needed. Enter script editor David Whitaker.
This is without a doubt one of the finest and well-directed two-parters out there. The cast are given plenty of amazing dialogue to work with, I must praise William Hartnell for the way he handles that long speech in the second episode. If I'm right, this is the only 'psychological horror' story the classic series produced, and I'm sad they didn't make any more. Just imagine the likes of Robert Holmes or Steven Moffat crafting a story of this genre.
Following on directly from The Daleks, the story begins when there's a malfunction in the TARDIS console. The way the TARDIS crew are knocked unconscious is a bit pants, but this isn't the driving force behind the story for very much longer. When any of the cast speak, I can see the tension and distrust ooze out. In one of the most disturbing scenes in the William Hartnell years, Susan threatens Ian with a pair of scissors, something which I was completely taken aback by. The Doctor is portrayed as utterly ruthless in places, resorting to drugging his companions so he can find out what's going on, and threatens to throw the two teachers into space.
The second episode moves a bit slower, but it's by no means any worse. Ian and Barbara outright deriding the Doctor is quite a tense moment and you can't help but agree with them. The way they resolve their differences is a bit rushed and the Fast Return Switch gimmick is a bit unlikely, but it didn't spoil my enjoyment of this story one bit.
Add another exciting cliffhanger to lead into Marco Polo, and you have another classic serial that bodes well for the future of the series.
Verdict: 10/10