Landing on the Welsh coast, the Doctor and Ruby embark on the strangest journey of their lives. In a rain-lashed pub, the locals sit in fear of ancient legends coming to life.

This Doctor-light episode (Ncuti Gatwa was completing his stint on Sex Education) boasts a high concept and gives Millie Gibson an opportunity to show how good she is, and while there is a twist at the end (apparently it always happens now) it’s probably best to not think about it too much.

As Doctor-light episodes go, this must be the lightest so far. Blink, Turn Left, Love & Monsters – they all featured more than a single location scene with the Time Lord. Yes, the Doctor is taken out of play within a minute or two, leaving Millie to carry the episode, which was in fact the first she filmed chronologically. And she’s great, conveying the sadness she experiences when those she loves turn against her, following interactions with a mysterious, gesticulating woman who keeps a steady 73-yard distance and is forever blurry.

This story plays the long game, with Ruby going from 20 to 25 to 30 to 40, until she finally twigs what she needs to do, and that means dealing with far-Right leader of the Albion party, Roger ap Gwilliam, played believably by Aneurin Barnard.

Sitting somewhere between rural folk horror and writer Russell T Davies’ warning about dangerous leaders (following Harriet Jones in Tennant’s era and Emma Thompson’s PM in Years and Years) it works well until the very end, where it finishes without a satisfying conclusion.

I’m all for the ‘you don’t need to tell the audience everything’ method of storytelling, and this is still a huge improvement on the opening two episodes, but there’s elements of mystery that really would have benefitted from being resolved a little more tidily. Oh, and longer hair and a pair of spectacles do not convincingly make Millie look twice her age.

Verdict: Loads to enjoy, with the high concept to be lauded, but ultimately it doesn’t go the whole nine yards, let alone 73. 8/10

Nick Joy