“And housemate Harry has, I think, a similar sort of attitude, of energetic sort of pluck. “It was a reference I enjoyed hugely, because I love Harry Sullivan,” he explains. For reasons best known to himself, Bartlett decided that Harry would be the grandson of the Tom Baker companion, Royal Naval surgeon Harry Sullivan. But in the new Doctor Who Magazine, Bartlett reveals a backstory for housemate Harry that never made it to screen. This may be the most oblique reference yet, given that it doesn’t even feature in the episode. And there’s a clear familiarity, even affection there. It delivers a serene recital of Beethoven’s Für Elise, switching to Pop Goes the Weasel when the Doctor tells it a story that involved lots of death. The thing in the vault is skilled at piano, whiling away its imprisonment. The way Suchet conveys all that menace using only his eyes is quite something. Truth be told, I would have liked to see even more of him, but understatement was the name of the game here. Suchet apparently signed up without even reading the script – it’s a nice reminder of the status of this show. The Time Lordy name given to the character had led to speculation that he would be a Time Lord, but no, just a lonely old man with serious mummy issues. The way they “killed” Harry made my stomach cramp.Īnd of course, this week’s star turn goes to David Suchet as the Landlord. These look very similar to normal creepy-crawlies but just … bigger. Two main reasons to jump behind the sofa this week (viewers with a bug phobia are probably still hiding there). Bill asks of the photo of her late Mum, “my own place – are you proud of me?” Fear factorĪ nice reminder of this show’s status … David Suchet took the role of the Landlord without seeing a script. “I thought you’d have more stuff,” the Doctor remarks as he helps her move. Dodgy landlord, creaking floors, seven people sharing who barely know each other – it’s Doctor Who does the housing crisis! On a similar theme, there are subtle yet definite nods to Bill’s life in relative poverty. It’s unclear how much time has passed since last week (paradox!), but since the first three episodes took place in one continuous span of real time, it has presumably been business as usual at St Luke’s for quite a while.Īnd for all the classic horror, this return to modern-day Earth feels remarkably current in reflecting one of the scariest elements of modern life. True, he’s hanging around to avert death and catastrophe, but you get the sense that even if that were not the case, he simply would not get it. She’s visibly irked that her “Grandfather” has clear boundary issues. And Bill is putting down roots of her own despite the promise of adventures in space and time. Clara held down that teaching job throughout. Amy and Rory had their bunk beds for a time, but by the end they were fully domesticated – a monstery adventure doubling up as their summer holiday. Before him, it was usually implied that these people would drop everything and move into the Tardis for their adventures. Here’s a fun new way to play the companion dynamic – the Doctor as nightmare stalker! One feature of Moffat’s Doctor Who is that the Doctor’s friends always have lives of their own. He may be hanging around to avert death and disaster, but ‘Grandad’ has clear boundary issues.
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