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Link: index: blogs.independent.co.uk Link: start: Top of the songs-to-resuscitate-someone-to Pops Link: prev: Mark Beaumont and team rescued after boat capsizes in Atlantic Link: next: Online House Hunter: Rising concerns Link: canonical [IMG] The Independent For today's leading articles, commentators and columnists, click here Blogs _____________________ [ rechercher ] Headlines Click here...Click here... * FACEBOOK Follow The Independent on Facebook | [IMG] Navigation * News * Opinion * Environment * Sport * Life & Style * Arts & Ents * Travel * Money * IndyBest * Blogs * Eagle Eye * The Foreign Desk * Sport * Arts * Notebook * i * Student * Shop * from The Independent & The Independent on Sunday Home > Independent Blogs > Arts - News, notes and quotes on the Arts world - 0 Review of Doctor Who `An Unearthly Child' (Series 1) Neela Debnath * By Neela Debnath * Arts - News, notes and quotes on the Arts world - * Tuesday, 31 January 2012 at 12:00 pm * IFrame * 20120119 171609 300x247 Review of Doctor Who `An Unearthly Child' (Series 1)In the run up to the 50th anniversary of `Doctor Who' in November 2013, Neela Debnath, with the help of BBC DVD, will be writing a review focusing on one story from each of the previous 31 series of the show. Each review will offer readers a snapshot from every series of `Doctor Who' and celebrate the longest-running science fiction television programme in the world. The date is 23rd November 1963, the time is 5.15pm and JFK has been assassinated the day before. The tragedy has plunged the world into global mourning and there is a growing sense of fear that the planet is teetering on the brink of nuclear war - it is of course the middle of the Cold War. Despite this major historical event casting a long shadow over everything else, a British science fiction television show makes its humble debut. The first ever `Doctor Who' story was a four-part serial entitled `An Unearthly Child' and introduced audiences to the kooky Susan Foreman (Carole Ann Ford) and her gruff grandfather (William Hartnell), known only as the `Doctor'. The plot revolved around Susan's teachers Ian Chesterton (William Russell) and Barbara Wright (Jacqueline Hill) accidentally stumbling onto the TARDIS and being whisked away on a prehistoric adventure. From a science fiction perspective, it seems like a strange choice to go back in time rather than forward or to an alien planet, given that the TARDIS can go anywhere in time and space. Yet it is by no means a dull story considering that the Doctor is kidnapped and forced to make fire for a tribe of cave people. His companions are also captured during their attempts to find him and the serial becomes an examination into human nature and the psyche of primitive man. The formula of the story is the original mould which the majority of `Doctor Who' stories follow, whereby the Doctor turns up somewhere and unwittingly walks into trouble. The importance of `An Unearthly Child' is that it establishes the characters and how they react when placed in challenging situations. The most notable thing about the first Doctor is that he is not likeable, just like the grouchy grandfather you wouldn't want to visit on a regular basis. He may be searingly brilliant but he lacks any sort of warmth or compassion. Far from being a time meddler, in `An Unearthly Child' he is more than happy to leave others behind to suffer alone in their plight. Hartnell's Doctor did thaw later on but here he is very alien and does not have the human qualities of later Doctors, he is certainly not amicable or jovial. Due to Hartnell's age there were also physical limits on his capabilities and at times he comes across as frail and tired but this is all part of his Doctor. Instead it is Susan who seems to be closer in character to the more recent Doctors. She is highly intelligent and exudes a wealth of knowledge. Although she may be an alien, she is very human and sympathetic towards others. The only annoying thing about her is that she descends into screaming hysterics a little too often. Given that she was born on a different world and has travelled with the Doctor, would she not have seen more than the average 15-year-old? Then again, she is very much like other heroines of the time who vocalised their fear frequently. Every work of science fiction is a product of its time and it is clear from this story that the writer, Anthony Coburn, has drawn upon the unease and worry of nuclear war and radiation poisoning that existed in the 1960s. For instance, after landing the TARDIS, the Doctor checks the radiation levels before opening the doors. He even takes his Geiger counter with him when they venture out. Again, at the end of the episode, when they land on the planet Skaro, the Doctor asks Susan to check the radiation levels before they leave the ship. It is all very fitting for the era and is part of the show's appeal because it takes something from reality and adds a healthy dose of escapism to it. Overall, `An Unearthly Child' is an involving watch and the cliffhanger on which each episode ends genuinely does evoke curiosity as to what will happen next. There is an underlying creepiness to the whole serial and a sense of unpredictability, all of which adds to the viewing experience. The choice to go back in time, right to the beginning of human history, is an unusual one but it works and this serial lays a firm foundation for what is to come. A `Radio Times' preview of `Doctor Who' from 1963 surmises the show wonderfully: `The whole cosmos in fact is their oyster'. For more information about the classic series of `Doctor Who' visit: www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic DVD & image credit: BBC Tagged in: doctor who, science fiction Recent Posts on Arts - News, notes and quotes on the Arts world - * Stinkahbell: We just stink it up * Modern horror: Lay off the CGI and bring back prosthetics * Lone Scherfig: People weren't so critical to Anne's face about her accent * Techno pioneer Kevin Saunderson talks about Inner City's return to the Future * John Talabot: I could go three days without leaving the house blog comments powered by Disqus Most viewed * Read * Commented Read 1Lone Scherfig: People weren't so critical to Anne's face about her accent 2The false economy of the London 2012 Olympics 3Katie Price stuttered and mumbled her way through the 10-minute speech 4The future of the NHS 5Modern horror: Lay off the CGI and bring back prosthetics Commented 1The false economy of the London 2012 Olympics 2The future of the NHS 3Lone Scherfig: People weren't so critical to Anne's face about her accent 4Katie Price stuttered and mumbled her way through the 10-minute speech 5Modern horror: Lay off the CGI and bring back prosthetics Click here...Click here... 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