By James Cooray Smith

Obverse Books, out now

A dissection of Colin Baker’s final two episodes.

The Black Archive has shed light on some interesting aspects of Doctor Who’s long history – Smith’s book on The Massacre I still regard as one of the best pieces of Doctor Who non-fiction I’ve ever read – and there’s plenty to look at in the 55 minutes or so that form Parts 13 and 14 of The Trial of a Time Lord. Parts of the story’s tortured genesis have been known for years, others are still emerging now.

After the usual rehearsing of the storyline (including a helpful “story so far” covering the first 12 episodes of the season), we get Notes on Terminology which goes straight into controversial ground – just what is the title of this story? The discussion is pushed back to the appendix but for the purposes of the book, the two episodes are called The Ultimate Foe. Basically, if you want to call it Time Inc. or anything else, tough. Deal with it.

Smith has had access to multiple sources not usually available to Doctor Who historians of the period – including transcripts of interviews with Eric Saward and Colin Baker that have previously been unpublished – as well as the research carried out by Richard Marson for his biography of John Nathan-Turner and this allows him to give a more balanced view of the often sorry saga than might otherwise have been the case. This is particularly the case in the first chapter, which looks at the whole concept of The Trial of a Time Lord going right back to the cancellation announcement in 1985 and the genesis of the different stories. It’s a fascinating read – and basically covers the rest of the Trial pretty comprehensively – and brings elements together that as a fan you may be aware of but not necessarily seen previously tied up like this.

Chapter 2 deals with Robert Holmes’ script for episode 13. And it’s here that Smith’s access to previously unseen material really throws open the door – he has read a copy of Holmes’ 21 page initial draft of episode 13. And that’s not the story that we saw on screen (although intriguingly, it informs Pip and Jane Baker’s novelisation of The Ultimate Foe more than you might guess). There’s a lot more to do with Jack the Ripper… but read the book to find out the rest!

Chapter 3 covers the transmitted Part 13 – including the genesis of the “Peri survived” scene – which receives due praise for its own strengths as well as the way it reworks Holmes’ ideas. It’s short, mainly because there’s no need to discuss much of it by this stage, but effective.

Before we get into part 14, there’s an “intermission” that discusses who the Valeyard is – from Holmes’ clear “12th and final incarnation” to Anthony Ainley’s line “somewhere between your 12th and final incarnations”. There’s dismissal in the footnotes of one of the worst ideas I’ve heard in a long time regarding Who history (note 148)…

Chapter 14 is the Saward version of part 14, something many people have read over the years but which Smith wisely covers in detail. He then deals with the argument between Eric Saward and JNT before analysing the pros and cons of Saward’s script, relating it back to the way in which the series was going under his tenure as script editor. It’s a strong piece of anaylsis.

Chapter 5 moves on to the broadcast version. Smith tells the familiar story of the Bakers’ involvement, but colours in details you may not be aware of. His opinion on elements of the script may surprise you…Finally, Chapter 6 delivers its verdict on the dysfunctional nature of Doctor Who at that time and the aftermath of the trial.

The Appendices start with the complicated story of the title of the serial (and the author’s own preferences, which don’t match his publishers’!), then cover the paradoxical nature of Mel’s departure (without reference to the numerous ways this has been dealt with in licensed fiction, a little surprisingly). The third appendix gives scene breakdowns from the two versions of part 13.

Verdict: A well-written analysis that allows the reader to make their own minds up about the relative merits of the four scripts that went into the two episodes. 9/10

Paul Simpson