Doctor Who - Horror of Fang Rock [1977] [DVD]

A bit silly in places but generally excellent throughout. One of the best Tom Baker stories, in my humble opinion. Great twist!

The Philip Hinchcliffe era of Doctor Who was renowned for its gothic horror stories. It is ironic really that the best ever Doctor Who horror story was produced not under Hinchcliffe but under his successor Graham Williams. 'Horror of Fang Rock' is a wonderful story, you'd never guess it was a last minute rush job which was written to replace a story about vampires (which later became 1980's State of Decay'), its very tightly constructed. The lighthouse setting is very well used.The story makes perfect use of its isolated setting and its small cast. The idea of a murderous alien landing in the sea, isolating the nearby people by means of fog and then killing them one by one is chilling. All the sets are fantastic, the interior lighthouse sets are remarkably convincing and the sets for the exterior scenes on the rocks are very good. The model work for the lighthouse is also very impressive. Director Paddy Russell maintains her strong record of directing Doctor Who.Tom Baker is on fine form as the Doctor bringing his usual energy and charisma to the role. Baker delivering the line 'This lighthouse is under attack and by morning we might all be dead!' and then grinning is a sight to behold. Louise Jameson gives a superb performance (as usual), and it's one of the best ever Leela stories. It is nice, for a change, to have a companion who is physically brave and scared of nothing; she even tells the Doctor not to be afraid. Another interesting point is how she is ignorant of early 20th century English customs; she starts undressing in front of Vince. Leela's loyalty to and faith in the Doctor is touching as well.The guest cast are generally very good. Colin Douglas does a very good job as the kind old man and is also quite brilliant as the sinister, grinning Rutan in human form later on. John Abbott gives a strong performance as the young Vince Hawkins. The characters of Palmerdale and Skinsale are also very good, it is appropriate that both of their deaths are essentially brought about by their greed. The character of Adelaide's main function seems to be to scream, cry and faint.Admittedly, the Rutan's true form isn't very impressive, but we don't see it very much and it really isn't as bad as some would have you believe; after all, it may be a green blob but its a green blob that can kill people merely by touching them.In conclusion, 'Horror of Fang Rock' is one of the very best Doctor Who stories (it's in my top 5) and I would recommend it very highly.There isn't a 'making of' documentary as such, but the writing and production processes of the story are delved into in the other extras. 'Terrance Dicks: Fact and Fiction' is a superb 36 minute feature mostly about Dicks' contributions to Doctor Who, although some of his other projects are mentioned.The other main extra is 'Paddy Russell: A life in television', A good 14 minute long feature on Russell, one of the first ever female directors. Russell's admiration for William Hartnell is very nice.'The Antique Doctor Who Show' is a short 'Antiques roadshow' style feature in which Doctor Who fans bring in items of Doctor Who merchandise to be valued.

A really creepy Dr Who adventure. Claustrophobic and dark. Some good moments along the way. Not the greatest storyline, but Tom Baker is electrifying and deals with the shocks in style. Well worth a watch...

Teatime television had two fixed points on winter weekends in the 1970s. Sunday brought the `Classic Serial', highly-regarded adaptations of Dickens, Austen, the Brontes etc. in half-hour episodes. Saturday gave us a modern classic serial - the first Saturday of September meant a new season of `Doctor Who'!In September 1977 these two weekend fixtures seemed to merge in the Space-Time Continuum, producing the outstanding `Horror of Fang Rock'.Terrance Dicks' script is superb, full of tension, incident, excellent dialogue and even some humorous moments, each character's motivation and personality clearly drawn and believable. The first-rate cast bring this script to life as sincerely if they were playing one of the Sunday classics, from the opening friendly argument between the lighthouse keepers about the rival merits of oil and electricity, to the arguing shipwrecked aristocrats (who are not feeling friendly to each other at all). The convincingly cramped lighthouse sets and swirling studio fog add greatly to the claustrophobic mood as danger closes in.Tom Baker is in fine form, as the Doctor slowly pieces together the puzzle and even makes a rare mistake along the way - the Doctor's realisation of this is a dramatic moment. Of course he recovers from this to finish off his adversaries in a typically inventive manner before delivering the memorable final lines of the story, a quotation that stayed with me for more than 35 years.Louise Jameson is excellent as Leela. The script gives her plenty of great material and she plays it perfectly as usual, laying down the law to timid earthlings, pushing heedlessly through Edwardian social conventions, even teasing the Doctor at one point and clearly enjoying it. Leela is still the fearless warrior, but also very intelligent and learning fast from her travels with the Doctor.It must be said that the enemy, when it finally shows itself, is a product of its pre-CGI time in terms of special effects, but it's certainly different and the concept is a good one in a strong story.`Horror of Fang Rock' must be one of the scariest DVDs to carry a U certificate. It was a brilliant response to the critics who said `Doctor Who' had become too violent. The critics were wrong anyway - I'd watched since Jon Pertwee's early years (my early years too) and yes, `Doctor Who' was frightening sometimes, it was meant to be, and we loved it!DVD Extras include the interesting commentary with good anecdotes and Terrance Dicks giving the writer's perspective on this unforgettable tale, and a documentary about his career - one of the key figures in the success story of classic `Doctor Who'.5*