The Doctor Who Ratings Guide: By Fans, For Fans

Harry Sullivan

Ian Marter
Reviews

Harry Sullivan: The friendly imbecile by Michael Hoeller 2/4/98

Harry was the victim of perhaps the strongest, and most blatant insults by any one of the eight Doctors ("Harry Sullivan is an imbecile!"), yet he does not really deserve such a title. Perhaps it could be said that he wasn't overly bright (but no worse than someone like, for example, Jo Grant). But it is also worth mentioning that he was quite likeable, never allowing overt anger to surface. However, I think he suffers the same way as Adric does: ultimately, he's an unnecessary character.

As it was originally thought that an older actor would play the part of the Doctor after Jon Pertwee left, a character would be needed to handle any physical conflict, like Ian Chesterton some twelve years previously. But Tom Baker was chosen for the part, and Harry was relegated to a secondary role, providing comedy relief by some amusing verbal stoushes with Sarah-Jane Smith (perhaps seen best in Ark In Space). Unlike Adric, who was brought in partially to aid the transition between Tom Baker's "all-knowing" Fourth Doctor and Peter Davison's "vulnerable" Fifth Doctor, Harry original purpose had been removed, and he was little more than a comedic device.

Which leads me to the conclusion that except under the right circumstances (where there is an older Doctor, and/or when there are no female supporting characters), a male character in the style of Harry Sullivan has no purpose, and is therefore of no use. But all the same, he was a nice old imbecile, eh?

A Review by Stuart Gutteridge 9/12/03

If the Fourth Doctor had turned out to be less physically capable, it is reasonable to suggest that Harry Sullivan would`ve travelled longer in the TARDIS. Certainly there is something about the character which would suggest that he was out of his depth and not due to a lack of intelligence. Harry is at his best when use of his medical knowledge is brought to the fore, as The Ark In Space demonstrates. Similarly however his work with UNIT is a joy to behold and it is largely down to Ian Marter that this comes across so well. Harry may well be somewhat bumbling, but is by no means an imbecile.

GREATEST MOMENT:Going undercover to infiltrate Thinktank in Robot, complete (in perhaps a nod to The Avengers) with bowler hat.

A fine gentleman, an unprecedented companion by Konstantin Hubert 4/8/04

"You're improving Harry, your mind is beginning to work. It's entirely due to my influence -- you mustn't take any credit."
- The Doctor to Harry Sullivan in part 1 of Ark in Space.
If companion Harry Sullivan didn't lack self-confidence, if he were as prudent and respected as Ian Chesterton and permeated by the self-esteem and megalomania of an illustrious diplomat or businessman, if he weren't portrayed as an occasional target of mockery and as a TARDIS member unsuited to endure for a long time the perils and hardships of time travelling and had he not been as temperate as good-natured, then I deeply doubt he would have been the popular and unique character he really is. Unique not only in the pantheon of Doctor Who's regular characters but everywhere because, it should be acknowledged, we very rarely meet a character more or less similar to the bumbling but intelligent Harry Sullivan and still more rarely in science fiction (in Doctor Who I can think right now of only one character who resembles, to some extent only, Harry in demeanour and in the way he is treated by the others, the scientist Kerensky in City of Death). The defects of this companion - clumsiness, no self-esteem, undue calmness which he demonstrated even when disrespected - abase him in an undesirable level but compensatively render him original and sympathizing. No rational and self-respecting man would ever want to be like Harry in real life, to be object of disrespect, to be treated as a somewhat retarded person. So "negative" a man Harry Sullivan seems that Ian Marter, who animated him so convincingly and truthfully, had stated, perhaps because he feared they might associate him with his character, that Harry didn't represent at all his real-life demeanour and that he wasn't very satisfied with his character. And yet countless are those who have been fond of the unforgettable Lieutenant Surgeon Harry Sullivan.

His decision to abandon at the first opportunity the TARDIS after a compatively short period (seven serials, Robot, Ark in Space, The Sontaran Experiment, Genesis of the Daleks, Revenge of the Cybermen, Terror of the Zygons and then a brief return in The Android Invasion) and especially the fact that he joined the Doctor during the so-called Golden Age of his adventures have surely contributed to making him still more unforgettable in the minds of fans, who by and large remember him more fondly in his "bad" moments. Who hasn't chuckled or been amused upon seeing the Doctor crying out "Harry Sullivan is an imbecile!", when Harry tried to remove the bomb attached to the Time Lord's body in Revenge of the Cybermen or when the Doctor taunted Harry by calling him a clumsy ham-fisted idiot in Ark in Space? In the first part of The Sontaran Experiment Harry helps Sarah stand up and yet she gives him a haughty reply, while in Robot the Doctor ties Harry up and shuts him up in a cupboard locker! His reaction to this treatment never included indignation or anger or self-defense as if he didn't feel any offence.

Apart from being an object of disrespect he was portrayed also as a rather unlucky man and perhaps his lack of luck, his unluckiness must have originated his lack of self-confidence. In the beginning of Revenge of the Cybermen for example as soon as he moves to pick up the Time Ring, which brought the time travellers back in the Space Station Nerva, it disappears, to Harry's embarassment, while in the subsequent adventure he is the one whose mind is possessed by the Zygons. In The Sontaran Experiment poor Harry falls down a deep hole, a pit, fortunately without injuring himself but in this two-parter his contribution proves of paramount importance and without his assistance the Sontaran might not have been defeated. In the end, the Doctor makes him realise he has succeeded but Harry is at a loss, perplexed. In his undesirable condition, Harry demands some compassion from the viewer and whoever likes him feels empathy for him, so that Harry through his defects, his fragility and weakness, neither physical nor mental, becomes popular, beloved.

His defects, although the highlights of his character, didn't overshadow his charismatic qualities, which he always displayed at moments of urgent need. Harry has been sometimes described as a man that couldn't succeed, that usually erred in his actions, an unjust and incorrect description. His high social status of Lieutenant-Surgeon, a doctor of the Royal Navy and therefore an educated person, considerably shields him against literal railleries of his being a loser or a fool.

In Harry naivety and clumsiness coexisted with intelligence and in every adventure he ended up being more or less useful, helpful to the independent Doctor, who had asked for his assistance few times. His contribution in The Sontaran Experiment, where he assisted in the defeat of Styre, makes no exception. In Ark in Space he demonstrates his medical knowledge and was the only regular character who used force against the Wirrn by shooting at an assaulting green larva, which he compelled to back out, thus protecting the Doctor and the humans. In Genesis of the Daleks, Revenge of the Cybermen and Robot, he cooperated or interacted well with the Doctor and Sarah, despite some unfair remarks or actions, which served humorous purposes. The Doctor and Sarah loved him as much as they loved to make fun of him (or would it be more accurate to say that they loved to tease him?) and knew he was a capable person as much as they realised that being calm by nature he was not liable to get angry. He had been at times unfairly treated by those two and yet he always remained peaceful and modest, never grumbled nor complained, while his good disposition never weakened. He was a kind, pleasant man and if one were willing to get along with him, to reciprocate his good disposition would have been sufficient.

If there is a defect that has really harmed Harry, then it has to be stability. In every adventure he helps and shows interest and his innocent, naive nature is more or less manifested, so that in every adventure Harry remains the same individual and unlike Sarah Jane he is presented only in one state of spirits; in other words, he isn't changeable in mood. We never saw him seized by wrath or by sadness or boasting himself and he showed not true joy or fear, while his not selfish nor vengeful attitude constantly refrained him from rivalling the Doctor and Sarah. In Terror of the Zygons he is transformed into a savage maniac, who attempts to kill Sarah but this wickedness doesn't astonish the viewer because it is attributed of course to the Zygons, who by possessing his mind had taken control of him. Harry in Robot doesn't contrast with the Harry of Revenge of the Cybermen and he is good, enjoyable in all adventures but there is no adventure where he excels. He is a somewhat predictable personality, it should be indulgently acknowledged however that during the short period he wandered in time and space, he didn't have much time to evolve.

Although Harry's introduction coincided with the Fourth Doctor's, Ian Marter's first involvement in Doctor Who goes back to Carnival of Monsters, where he played the role of John Andrews, an one-off character. It is said that his second and criticized character had been devised while the plans of the production team called for the Fourth Doctor to be elderly, but the casting of Tom Baker, who was just slightly older than Ian Marter, had made Harry look redundant. Producer Barry Letts had originally in mind the first TARDIS team and intended the new team to be modeled on it. This plan was never fulfilled and it was thought that alongside the youngest hitherto Doctor, Harry would come across as either as a rival or as a stooge and that he had to be removed soon and so since his debut his inability to endure time travelling for a long time and his innocent, bumbling attitude were made up as an excuse for his early departure.

Instead of becoming the first "Ian Chesterton" of the colour episodes, he was transformed into a genuine comic mechanism. And yet with this "redundant" and comical companion was formed a very good TARDIS team consisting of the 4th Doctor, Sarah Jane Smith and of course Harry: none of them old but all mature and clever adults, lively and vigorous, with a sense of humour that added flavour in their interaction and suggested their fellowship, Three Musketeers of Time and Space and as a symbol of their unity, I envisage the circle the three of them form while spinning through spacetime interlinked with the Time Ring; in other words, the last scene of Genesis of the Daleks and the opening scene of Revenge of the Cybermen. A symbol of their collectivity, all for one and one for all. Regardless of the fact that one member was at times derided, theirs was a wonderful and arguably the most suitable for adventures TARDIS team.

Ian Marter passed away in 1986 leaving this world early just like he bade farewell to the Time Lord early. Harry's departure didn't entail the end of Ian Marter's involvement in Doctor Who: he has been credited with the novelisation of nine serials and authored the novel Harry Sullivan's War, a freewill contribution that evidenced his affection for the programme. In the minds of all DW fans however, he will be remembered as the actor, who under unfavourable circumstances incarnated always pleasantly a character who with his innocent eccentricity, his good-natured, peaceful and naive demeanour, his unfortunate moments and a remarkable manner of disciplining his feelings won our hearts.