Tag: The Eleventh Doctor

The Doctor and Amy happen upon an enormous vehicle in deep space in the 29th century: the Starship UK, a spaceborne version of the entire country. But the Doctor instantly senses that something isn’t right: the population of the Starship UK is silently living in fear. Amy discovers that something alive – and alien – is aboard the vessel, but she is then captured by robed monks and shown a history of the ship, a history which she is then asked to protest or forget. The Doctor arrives, and he and Amy discover that the survival of the British people in the future has come at a horrifying price to an innocent life form. But if Amy doesn’t stop the Doctor from taking further action, the price may become even higher.

written by Steven Moffat
directed by Andrew Gunn
music by Murray Gold

Cast: Matt Smith (The Doctor), Karen Gillan (Amy Pond), Sophie Okonedo (Liz 10), Terence Hardiman (Hawthorne), Hannah Sharp (Mandy), Alfie Field (Timmy), Christopher GoodMorgan), David Ajala (Peter), Catrin Richards (Poem Girl), Jonathan Battersby (Winder), Chris Porter (voice of Smilers / Winder), Ian McNeice (Churchill)

Notes: Oscar-winning actress Sophie Okonedo makes her second Doctor Who “appearance” here; her first was in animated form in the 2003 BBCi webcast Scream Of The Shalka. Though unrelated to this episode, an episode was developed by writer Pat Mills in the 1980s, though never produced, called Song Of The Space Whale; that unused script was itself reworked into one of Big Finish Productions’ “Lost Stories” audio releases as The Song Of Megaptera in May 2010, starring Colin Baker (as it would have on TV).

A made-for-DVD short, Meanwhile In The TARDIS, bridges the gap between The Eleventh Hour and The Beast Below; it’s a bonus feature on the series 5 DVD box set.

LogBook entry & review by Earl Green

At an exhibit of Vincent Van Gogh’s artwork, the Doctor thinks he’s spotted – in a painting – evidence that an alien creature that may have been stalking the Earth in Van Gogh’s time. The next stop for the TARDIS is in Provence, where something has indeed been claiming the lives of numerous people – and Van Gogh, considered a crazy outsider, has been blamed for the deaths. The Doctor and Amy offer to help, but how can the Doctor save any lives when Vincent is the only one to actually see the alien creature? And will helping Vincent fight the beast change the painter’s own future?

written by Richard Curtis
directed by Jonny Campbell
music by Murray Gold

Cast: Matt Smith (The Doctor), Karen Gillan (Amy Pond), Tony Curran (Vincent), Nik Howden (Maurice), Chrissie Cotterill (Mother), Sarah Counsell (Waitress), Morgan Overton (School Child), Andrew Byrne (School Child), Bill Nighy (Dr. Black)

Notes: Guest star Bill Nighy – whose name was not shown in the end credits of the episode – was, at one time, considered the hot contender for the role of the Doctor when the series’ return was still in pre-production (in fact, one prominent British newspaper announced that Nighy was picked for the role of the ninth Doctor). He has featured in the Harry Potter film series and appeared as Slartibartfast in the 2005 film adaptation of The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy. Oscar-nominated writer Richard Curtis penned the screenplays for Four Weddings And A Funeral, Notting Hill and Love, Actually; prior to his film career, however, Curtis wrote or co-write every episode of Blackadder, starring Rowan Atkinson, who would play another ninth Doctor in the 1999 Comic Relief spoof The Curse Of Fatal Death (written, coincidentally, by one Steven Moffat). Curtis also founded the Comic Relief charity.

LogBook entry & review by Earl Green

The TARDIS lands on Earth, only the Doctor isn’t expecting it to land there. When he steps out the door, the TARDIS practically ejects him – and then dematerializes with Amy aboard. The Doctor is able to contact Amy and deduces that something is preventing the TARDIS from making a full landing. The Doctor decides to rent a room from an affable bloke named Craig, who spends most of his time trying to overcome his fear of telling his friend Sophie that he has romantic feelings for her. But that’s far from the worst of Craig’s problems: a slowly spreading stain on the ceiling accompanies a recurring series of strange noises from whoever is renting the upstairs room. The Doctor is convinced that whatever is making the noise and the stain is also keeping the TARDIS from landing. As he spends several days at the house, the Doctor impresses Craig’s other friends, meets Sophie, and becomes a constant but still strange fixture in Craig’s life. When Craig decides to throw caution to the wind and investigate the room upstairs, that life may come to a quick and unpleasant end if the Doctor can’t intervene.

written by Gareth Roberts
directed by Catherine Morshead
music by Murray Gold

Cast: Matt Smith (The Doctor), Karen Gillan (Amy Pond), James Corden (Craig), Daisy Haggard (Sophie), Owen Donovan (Steven), Babatunde Aleshe (Sean), Jem Wall (Michael), Karen Seacombe (Sandra), Kamara Bacchus (Clubber)

Notes: This episode is based on a comic by the same name that appeared in an issue of Doctor Who Magazine, originally centered around the tenth Doctor and Mickey Smith (with a very brief appearance by Rose) and set shortly after The Christmas Invasion; in that version of the story, of course, the Doctor moved in with Mickey, who would’ve rather been spending more uninterrupted time with Rose. When the Doctor telepathically transfers his knowledge to Craig, his fifth, sixth and seventh incarnations are not shown (whereas it’s the second appearance this season for the second Doctor, and the season’s third visual reference to the first Doctor).

LogBook entry & review by Earl Green