Checkmate (The Time Meddler Episode 4)

The one where the Doctor makes the Monk's TARDIS smaller on the inside...

The Monk is impossibly likeable, isn't he? I mean, if you set aside his outrageously irresponsible plan to change the course of human history, he's essentially a rather sweet, fun person to be around. He'd be a real hoot to travel through time and space with, even if some of his "adventures" involved some rather naughty outcomes. Perhaps he needs a travelling companion, someone to stop him...?

The Monk's plan - the repeated references to his "master plan" are retrospectively meta - is as catastrophic as it is reasoned, and Dennis Spooner manages to summarise both sides of the argument in dialogue given to the Monk and Steven.

The Monk's reasoning: "King Harold, I know he'd be a good king. There wouldn't be all those wars in Europe, those claims over France went on for years and years. With peace the people'd be able to better themselves. With a few hints and tips from me they'd be able to have jet airliners by 1320! Shakespeare'd be able to put Hamlet on television."

Steven sums up the impact: "That means that the exact minute, the exact second that he does it, every history book, the whole future of every year and time on Earth will change, just like that and nobody'll know that it has? There's more to this time travelling than meets the eye."

The Monk's ultimate reason is to improve things, to help humanity by accelerating its technological progress. His way of doing things might be questionable, but he's only using the tools at his disposal, which is future knowledge and time travel. His meddling aims to do some good, despite being against the rules (as the Doctor points out). The Doctor is adamant that the Monk cannot be allowed to carry out his plan, but turns a blind eye to the fact the Monk has already altered history by giving the Ancient Britons an anti-gravitational lift to build Stonehenge (thinking about the idea that Stonehenge might never have been built, that has considerable influence on the events of The Pandorica Opens and its Underhenge - under what?!).

The scenes between William Hartnell and Peter Butterworth continue to be delightful to watch, and once we get inside the Monk's TARDIS and the Doctor is reunited with his companions, the chemistry oozes out of the screen. The Monk's TARDIS is a more advanced model than the Doctor's (intriguingly, from 50 years in his future), and one that has its console on a plinth and possesses an automatic drift control for safe suspension in space. The teasing between the Monk and the Doctor is joyful ("What Type's yours, Doctor?" queries the Monk; "Mind your own business!" snaps a clearly embarrassed Doctor).

I do wish the Monk had been more of a recurring character in Doctor Who because Butterworth is so endearing in the part. I love how he scarpers at the earliest opportunity, running out of the TARDIS when the Doctor's back is turned, and then hoisting up his cassock and scarpering when being chased by the Saxons. It's a comedic but tempered performance. While the Monk is an amusing character, he has depth and truth, which is more in Butterworth's gorgeous performance than it is the writing. The Monk would return to Doctor Who six months later and then disappear from the TV series forever. Peter Butterworth didn't die until 1979, so we can only imagine what adventures the Monk could have had against the Second, Third and Fourth Doctors, and in colour!

The episode comes to a gentle conclusion with the Saxons working out for themselves that the Monk is not all he seems (they believe him to be a Viking spy) and storming the monastery, all based upon what Wulnoth and Edith are told by the Monk and the Doctor. The Doctor has no part to play in activating the Saxon rebellion, but his visits to the village and his befriending of Edith ("Charming woman, charming!") means he empowers them to act independently. That's the sort of thing the Doctor would be doing in the 21st century version of the series, enabling others to take a stand, although it's unfortunately quite circumstantial here.

So the Doctor removes the dimensional control from the Monk's TARDIS and reduces the interior to fit the size of the exterior (a sarcophagus). Very clever, and Hartnell is great in these scenes, at first scolding his companions for getting in the way, then hooting gleefully like a child when he manages to pull off his plan. What the Doctor does to the Monk is a little cruel and irresponsible - leaving somebody "marooned in 1066" with so much foreknowledge of Earth's future is surely unwise? - and his suggestion that he will return some time in the future to free him is an empty promise, as we're told he cannot control his TARDIS or return to previous times and places. It's not the last we'll see of the Monk, however...

The final clutch of images, of the TARDIS travellers' faces superimposed over a starfield as the titles roll, is done beautifully, and mirrors the end of Season 1 when the Doctor's words echoed over a starscape in Prisoners of Conciergerie. Our heroes are part of the universe through which they travel, they are at one with the stars and the planets. These images perfectly illustrate the Doctor's words from 1964 ("Our destiny is in the stars, so let's go and search for it") and I kind of wish they'd kept these erudite bookends to each season beyond Checkmate.

The Time Meddler is a strange beast. It's well written, slightly plotted, but packed with character and charm. Everyone in it is good, it's designed and directed well, but it feels pedestrian, uneventful, sort of elderly. It's a definite slowing of pace after the excitement of The Chase, and although the relationship between the TARDIS regulars is given attention, there's actually very little to do for Steven and Vicki (Steven in particular has yet to properly fulfill his role as man of action vacated by Ian). It brings Season 2 to a charming, juddering halt. Let's hope Season 3 launches with an exciting space adventure (this is the first time we've had no "Next Episode" caption at the end, so contemporary viewers would have no clue as to what was next, or when!).

First broadcast: July 24th, 1965

Steve's Scoreboard
The Good: The scenes in the Monk's TARDIS are delightful, with Hartnell and Butterworth playing off each other splendidly.
The Bad: I'm really disappointed the Doctor didn't follow through on his promise to Edith to return to the village to celebrate with the Saxons!
Overall score for episode: ★★★★★★★☆☆☆ (story average: 6 out of 10)

NEXT TIME: Four Hundred Dawns...

My reviews of this story's other episodes: The Watcher (episode 1); The Meddling Monk (episode 2); A Battle of Wits (episode 3)

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.co.uk/2013/08/the-time-meddler.html

The Time Meddler is available on DVD. Find it on Amazon - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Doctor-Who-Time-Meddler-DVD/dp/B0010S3PUS