The Masque of Mandragora Part One

The one where an energy wave hitches a ride in the TARDIS...

It's been some time since we had a proper look round the TARDIS. It used to be quite a regular thing in the Hartnell years to see extra rooms and areas, but there haven't been many glimpses beyond the control room in the 1970s, so it's nice to see the Doctor giving Sarah a guided tour here. In truth, we only really get to see some corridors, and the cavernous boot cupboard (an out of focus photograph of a living room from the same file as Mrs Farrel's CSO kitchen in Terror of the Autons!), but it's a lovely reminder that the Doctor's ship is infinitely bigger on the inside.

The greatest discovery on this guided tour is, of course, the secondary control room, resplendent in oak and stained glass. Designer Barry Newbery plays a blinder with the new control room, making it much more Victorian, like an academic's study. It has different levels and sections, and I can well imagine the First Doctor milling about in there (not so much the Second). The Doctor finds a frilly shirt and velvet jacket gathering dust, left there by his predecessor perhaps, while Sarah discovers the Second Doctor's recorder. It's a lovely scene, and a lovely new set. Somehow, it fits this moodier Doctor. Not sure what the shaving mirror's all about though...

It's not long before the TARDIS tumbles into trouble by landing at the heart of the Mandragora Helix, an intelligent astral force which is also able to chuckle demonically, something I'd rather it didn't do (same goes for the chuckling Krynoid in the last story). The effect of the Helix itself is achieved rather too cheaply, looking at one point like dishwater swirling down a plughole, and once the TARDIS lands, it's a blank void with a few crystals placed around (I half expect Michael Jackson to leap out in a dinner jacket and start singing Don't Stop Til You Get Enough!).

Five minutes into the episode, everything changes and we relocate to some woodland where a bunch of despotic soldiers are terrorising the locals. There's swordplay, horses and arson, which all looks very action-packed and expensive for Doctor Who. We seem to be in Renaissance Italy, and it looks simply splendid. As ever, Doctor Who does historicals well, and the combined work of director Rodney Bennett, set designer Barry Newbery and costume designer James Acheson makes it all look very authentic. The costumes are grandly Shakespearean, and Louis Marks's dialogue reflects the period well. There's even some sympathetically realistic lighting by Dennis Channon. The only area where things fall down a bit is the dodgy wigs, especially for Tim Piggott-Smith's Marco, which look exactly like wigs.

There's some remarkable hair on display though, especially Hieronymous's magnificent beard. Norman Jones is fantastic as the swivel-eyed doom-dealing soothsayer, who plays the part absolutely straight when it would have been much more fun (but less effective) to go over the top. The entire cast is treating this as if it's a BBC classic period drama, and this is probably thanks to director Rodney Bennett, who had a pedigree in costume dramas such as Madame Bovary, North & South and Mistress of Hardwick.

There is a struggle for power at the heart of San Martino, where the Duke has just passed away, as predicted by seer Hieronymous. The dukedom passes to his son Giuliano, but leering at his elbow is his nasty uncle Federico, who craves power over the dukedom for himself. He plots with Hieronymous to "predict" Giuliano's imminent death, and I suspect this death foreseen will be nudged along by Federico's own corporeal hand. John Laurimore plays Federico as a proper villain, relishing the nastiness but again, not overplaying it too much. It's good to have someone to boo at.

In the woods, Sarah is abducted by a bunch of mysterious cowled figures, but the Doctor refuses to let them get away with her. "STOP!" he commands, authoritatively. He is unarmed, but is more than capable of fending off an assault, although the rock to the back of the head is harder to brush off. It's a pity that Sarah is reduced to becoming a literal damsel in distress, tied up in a cave (with very unstable walls!) before being dressed in virginal white for sacrifice to the great god Demnos.

And while initially concerned for Sarah's safety, the Doctor seems more bothered about the fact he's accidentally brought the Mandragora Helix to Renaissance Italy (that'll teach you to leave the TARDIS door open behind you). He last saw Sarah being carried away unconscious by the cowled men. For all he knows, she could be dead, but his attentions turn to trying to warn the locals about the Helix, and by the time he's chatting glibly with Federico at court, he forgets to even ask about her.

By the episode's end, Sarah is about to be sacrificed, while the Doctor has been sentenced to be beheaded, and again, he doesn't look very bothered by this at all. Of the whole cast in this episode, it feels like Tom Baker is the one taking it least seriously, as if he's not 100% immersed in the plot.

Gorgeous, perfect location work though. I live not too far from Portmeirion, and have visited many times, and it's barely changed in the decades since Doctor Who filmed there. It was certainly worth the trip to North Wales to capture the ideal locations for an Italianate village.

First broadcast: September 4th, 1976

Steve's Scoreboard
The Good: The costumes, sets and lighting are gorgeous.
The Bad: The Mandragora Helix looks cheap, either a bowl of dishwater or a Bonfire Night sparkler.
Overall score for episode: ★★★★★★☆☆☆☆

"Would you like a jelly baby?" tally: 05

NEXT TIME: Part Two...

My reviews of this story's other episodes: Part Two; Part Three; Part Four

Find out birth/death dates, career information, and facts and trivia about this story's cast and crew at the Doctor Who Cast & Crew site: http://doctorwhocastandcrew.blogspot.com/2014/07/the-masque-of-mandragora.html

The Masque of Mandragora is available on BBC DVD. Find it on Amazon - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Doctor-Who-Masque-Mandragora-DVD/dp/B002SZQCB6