Still in an alternate universe, Bernice is not convinced that the Doctor is quite the right person to be ruler. Trouble is, she’s not the only one who thinks that way…

This year’s Benny box set sees Lisa Bowerman’s Professor very definitely sharing the limelight once more with David Warner’s alternate third Doctor (introduced in Sympathy for the Devil 15 years ago, and brought back for last year’s adventures), with “Sam Kisgart”, that well-known anagrammatical writer and actor, also returning as the Master. Bowerman and Warner  bring an unexpected edge to the Benny/Doctor relationship that makes everything even more unpredictable – which, of course, is something that you’d expect from a box set co-written by Guy Adams and James Goss.

Whereas normally I’d go into some detail about each story, this really is best approached knowing simply the basics – where the pair are, and the threat that’s hanging over them (the end of the universe – same old, same old, except this time it’s a small universe and it really could happen). The format of the second episode, in which the Doctor sees a counsellor, beautifully played by Annette Badland, has elements of the Seventh Doctor’s fluid attitude to cause and effect, but at its heart is an examination of who and what the Doctor is. We’ve recently had Peter Capaldi’s Doctor wondering if he was a good man or not; the discussions in this set, and that second story particularly, get to the nub of the matter in a way that the TV show didn’t, and show that there are certain things at the core of who the Doctor is that remain central no matter the outer trappings.

Putting Bernice in unusual situations always brings out a strong performance from Lisa Bowerman, and this is no exception – it’s around 20 years since she first played the role, and Bowerman continues to find new facets to Benny. The end of this set puts us in a very interesting position – I’ll be intrigued to see where it goes from here.

Gatiss’ Master is at his best to date in the finale, and there are a couple of moments when it feels as if he’s channelling Roger Delgado (notably one very sharp reminder of where, effectively, we are in the Doctor Who timeline with this Doctor/Master pairing). This is a Master who appreciates the fine things in life – but, as the Third Doctor said of his counterpart (at least in one of the novels), you can believe that he would stop an execution to pull the wings off a fly.

Scott Handcock’s direction is also some of his best, with the humour allowed to come out naturally alongside some of the powerful dramatic moments.

At its best Star Trek’s Mirror Universe episodes shone lights on aspects of the characters’ personalities that were sometimes beneath the surface; in this set, Goss, Adams and co. have peeled back some of the layers of the Doctor, Bernice and the Master to very good effect.

Verdict: A strong set for both Bernice and the Doctor (and the Master!). 9/10

Paul SImpson