The Watcher (The Time Meddler Episode 1)

The one where the TARDIS crew gains a new recruit...

The crew of the TARDIS is the smallest it's been since the very first episode, with just the Doctor and Vicki left to continue their adventures in time and space. The departure of Ian and Barbara in The Planet of Decision is not forgotten about or glossed over, and writer Dennis Spooner wisely spends a little time addressing this monumental change in the show's regular cast.

The Doctor and Vicki talk about how much they'll miss the schoolteachers, and there's a lovely, tender scene between William Hartnell and Maureen O'Brien which is framed by director Douglas Camfield in as reassuring a way as one can imagine. The Doctor beckons Vicki over to speak to her, and she kneels dutifully by his side on the floor and listens to his thoughts. It's like watching a grandfather read a bedtime story to his granddaughter beside a log fire, reassuring her that all will be well, and even going so far as to ask if Vicki might want to leave too. It's beautifully done, and Hartnell seems to be using his natural speaking voice at times too, rather than his "Doctor voice" (if you watch his Points West interview from 1967, or listen to his Desert Island Discs from 1965, you can plainly tell there was a difference).

We then discover what happened to space pilot Steven Taylor in the last episode, last seen staggering through the jungle of Mechanus - in fact, he stumbled into the TARDIS before collapsing in the living quarters, and is very quickly accepted by the Doctor as a new travelling companion. This is not the Doctor of 1963 who resented Ian and Barbara pushing their way into his Ship. He's now a much mellower, understanding man, and perhaps one who recognises the need for a strong young space pilot aboard the TARDIS.

A dynamic develops between Hartnell, O'Brien and Peter Purves almost instantly, one in which Steven's questioning attitude irks the Doctor, while his gentle teasing of Vicki gives them a younger sister/ older brother dynamic. While Ian and Barbara felt more like Vicki's uncle and aunt, this new relationship has a dynamic that many younger viewers would have recognised and related to.

Steven (and so the viewer) gets a crash course in the world of Doctor Who, learning incredulously that the TARDIS is a time machine that is bigger on the inside than the outside, that the Doctor struggles to control when and where it goes, and that its ability to camouflage itself wherever it goes is on the blink (the term "chameleon circuit" wouldn't be introduced for another 16 years).

I think Steven is a breath of fresh air for the series, played with exuberant gusto by Peter Purves. After the slightly fuddy-duddy Ian and Barbara, the series needed someone who would reflect the times, and although Steven is a square-jawed space pilot from the future, he's a very recognisable character, an independent thinker with a healthy sense of humour and a gently mocking attitude to the new world he finds himself in. He represents the young male viewers of 1965, a new kind of hero, while Vicki represents the plucky young girls and the Doctor is the (grand)parental figure. I kind of wish Steven had kept his beard, but you can't have it all...

Meanwhile, a mysterious watcher has seen the TARDIS arrive on a beach, a monk who seems to know something about it. He also wears a ring similar to the Doctor's, and later explores the TARDIS shell with a knowing suspicion. The character does not speak at all for the entire episode, but already he's piquing our interest. The whole episode is peppered with moments like this, such as when the Doctor hears the monks' chanting slow down and slur, like a recording, and when Steven finds a 20th century wristwatch on the ground.

It's very intriguing. We're to believe that the year is 1066, that we're in Northumbria just prior to a Viking invasion, but there's evidence of distinctly non-11th century technology. Until this episode, Doctor Who only ever did future/ space stories or historical stories, and never mixed the two, but this is the first time the two styles have clashed.

The Doctor's discovery of the gramophone in the monastery is a real shocker, as it confirms the fact that 20th century tech exists in 1066. Is the monk a time traveller too? The Doctor certainly seems to have his suspicions about the monk, based upon next to no information at all. He appears to be suspicious of the monk's recent arrival at the monastery, and seems to predict that the monks' chanting isn't all it seems. I love the scene between Edith (Alethea Charlton) and the Doctor, who tries to figure out when and where he is by asking certain questions. There's a warmth between the two actors which comes right out of the screen ("You must have patience with an old man").

Although The Watcher has a glacially slow pace, it's also dripping with atmosphere, thanks to Douglas Camfield using the monks' chanting as a replacement soundtrack (apparently Camfield refused to use musician Dudley Simpson after hearing how much the composer was paid!). The slow panning shots through the derelict corridors of the monastery, to the sound of the chants, is eerie and creates a slightly supernatural feel. There's a mildly unsettling quietness to The Time Meddler which sets it apart from the bluster of other Season 2 stories, giving it a contemplative atmosphere perfect for a story set in a monastery!

First broadcast: July 3rd, 1965

Steve's Scoreboard
The Good: William Hartnell is very strong in this episode, and has already clicked with new recruit Peter Purves.
The Bad: It's quite slow, but that's not necessarily a bad thing for this particular story.
Overall score for episode: ★★★★★★★☆☆☆

NEXT TIME: The Meddling Monk...

My reviews of this story's other episodes: The Meddling Monk (episode 2); A Battle of Wits (episode 3); Checkmate (episode 4)

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