Professor McBride calls for the Doctor and friends’ help when she makes a shocking discovery in a Scandinavian research facility…

Jonathan Morris returns for a second adventure for the Sixth Doctor, Mel and Hebe, and it’s a cracking tale that uses the TARDIS in ways that I’ve expected it to be used far more frequently than has been the case – not simply to enable the Doctor and his friends to arrive somewhere almost immediately (which of course can only apply for those incarnations that have proper control of the time machine) but also whose infinite dimensions mean a lot of people can be housed within.

Andy Hardwick’s sound design has to do some very heavy narrative lifting in this, and Helen Goldwyn ensures the storytelling is clear when combined with good performances from all of the core and guest cast – in particular Homer Todiwala, whose Tarek Gamal has some hard choices to make, and makes them credible. Once again, we have a story where Mel’s computer programming knowledge is actually put to proper use (as compared with the TV series), and Hebe is now slotting in well into the TARDIS team. My reservations about the score are still there to an extent, but the level of melodrama is lessened in this story anyway.

Verdict: With some truly horrific moments, this is a very enjoyable fast-paced tale. 9/10

Paul Simpson

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