The Masque of Mandragora Part Two

The one where the Mandragora Helix takes control of an ancient cult...

Director Rodney Bennett uses the stunning Portmeirion location to its fullest, particularly here in part 2 as the Doctor is chased by Federico's guards. It's like a whistlestop tour of San Martino, and having visited the location many times, they're all still recognisable today (although I think the steps leading down from the statue of Atlas are now out of bounds). I adore the brief scene in the marketplace, dressed so well by Barry Newbery, with its baskets of fruit and grain, and tapestries and sheets hanging on lines.

Also designed well are the masks worn by the brethren of the Cult of Demnos, an ancient Roman brotherhood that apparently died out in the third century, but is still going strong in the late 15th century. These masks represent hollow-eyed men in some sort of perpetual scream, although sometimes that scream looks like horror or fear. The golden mask worn by Hieronymous is something very special again, a face of demonic malice which looks magnificent however Dennis Channon chooses to light it. Hieronymous's purple robes are the icing on the cake, cleverly reflecting the natural colour of the mandrake/ nightshade plant family.

The Doctor manages to outrun the guards - I love the little scene between Peter Walshe and Jay Neill as the pikemen, Giovanni and his unnamed pal! - and literally slips Sarah away from the brotherhood just before they sacrifice her. It's a gruesome fact that, had the Doctor not rescued Sarah at just the right moment, she'd have been stabbed in the face by the priest's dagger. Not a nice way to go!

The Mandragora Helix convinces Hieronymous that his loyalty will be rewarded with ultimate power, being appointed supreme ruler of the Earth. This promise of dominion over all life on the planet goes to Hieronymous's head, and Norman Jones gives the seer a disturbing fractured presence, all wide eyes and power-crazed proclamations. There's also a lovely scene between Jones and priest Robert James (one of my favourite Doctor Who character actors) where Hieronymous reveals that Demnos has apparently "spoken" to him before, telling him to seek his fortune in San Martino. This initially suggests the Helix has been influencing events longer than we thought, but seeing as it hasn't been on Earth for very long, it's more likely that Hieronymous is just mad, and hearing the voice of an ancient god in his head is what's kept the supposedly dead Cult of Demnos going these last few decades.

Meanwhile, the Doctor and Sarah dine with Giuliano and Marco, who he describes as his "companion". You get the distinct impression, mainly from the way Gareth Armstrong and Tim Piggott-Smith play their scenes together, that this is not a companion in the Sarah Jane Smith sense of the word, but perhaps something more. I think it's lovely that the implication is left hanging for those who wish to pluck it, but could just as equally be a more innocent, cordial relationship.

Giuliano keeps the charred, mottled remains of a guard in his ante-room, and what a gruesome sight it is too, all blue and eaten away (thanks for the close-ups, Rodney!). It also comes to light that the new Duke (that "arrogant puppy") has invited the glitterati of Italian society to San Martino to celebrate his ascent to power - "philosophers, scholars and their patrons" - which will presumably lead to the titular masque. Although not specified on screen, Philip Hinchcliffe's novelisation of this story dates it to 1492, which means the invited dignitaries are: King Ferdinand I of Naples, Duke Gian Galeazzo Sforza of Milan (who may have been a heavy influence on Louis Marks in the writing of this story), and Agostino Barbarigo, Doge of Venice. It seems Marks was being a little creative in mentioning the fictional Duke of Padua (although Oscar Wilde did write a play called The Duchess of Padua), and the Signoria of Florence is a government rather than one person, so who knows who'll turn up?

There's a lovely theme running through this story of science vs religion, an all too common dynamic in science-fiction storytelling, but one which is given subtlety and reason by Marks here. The bad guys are the Brotherhood of Demnos, representatives of an ancient religion who continue to make human sacrifices and generally undermine the development of human scientific knowledge. Then there's Giuliano, a young whippersnapper focused on expanding his own understanding of the world around him. The brief scene between him and Sarah Jane - "I have this theory, you see. The world is really a sphere..." - is delightful, and the sweet expression on Elisabeth Sladen's face as she gently coaxes more out of him is typical of the actor's subtlety.

We get a triple threat cliffhanger too, as Giuliano is cornered and sentenced to death by nasty uncle Federico, Sarah is recaptured by the Brotherhood, and the Doctor is under some kind of mental attack by the Helix energy. The Masque of Mandragora is far from fast-moving, but it looks good, and there's a real determination to make something special at its heart.

First broadcast: September 11th, 1976

Steve's Scoreboard
The Good: The design of the Brotherhood of Demnos's masks, particularly Hieronymous's golden mask, and Dennis Channon's lighting.
The Bad: The story moves at a glacial pace.
Overall score for episode: ★★★★★★☆☆☆☆

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

NEXT TIME: Part Three...

My reviews of this story's other episodes: Part One; 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