Doctor Who - Peladon Tales Box Set [DVD]

After a fairly long absence, there's a sudden burst of Jon Pertwee stories getting released on DVD. After last year's rather excellent DALEK WAR set comes this collection of two stories set on the world of Peladon, separated by two years in production terms and fifty years in plot terms. THE CURSE OF PELADON is the second story of the 1972 series and finds the Doctor, (whilst still exiled to Earth) managing to get his TARDIS working just long enough to drag Jo Grant (Katy Manning) away from the prospect of a night out with Mike Yates and land her halfway up a mountain in a thunderstorm on an alien planet. Four episodes of political intrigue ensue on the rather feudal planet Peladon which still worships the furry terror that is Aggedor whilst being in negotiation for entry into the Galactic Federation, a situation that doesn't make certain members of the population very happy and is in absolutely no way reflecting a certain small nation's issues about entry into the "common market" that were happening at the same time. Ahem!

A range of alien ambassadors of various types (and successfulness) from the frankly disturbing face in a box called Arcturus to the rather endearing Alpha Centauri (who has to be seen to be believed) also have their own agendas, and a familiar set of foes from the Patrick Troughton era, the Ice Warriors are also along for the ride and this time around add a great deal of depth to a race of creatures raising their status to the realm of rather "classic" monsters. They are all given strong support by a fine set of character actors including Geoffrey Toone as the zealous High Priest Hepesh and a very young David Troughton as the naïve young King Peladon of Peladon who takes a bit of a shine to Jo (and why not?). Along the way, Jon Pertwee gets to sing and have a big fight and play up to his role as an intergalactic gentleman, all part of the charm that he adds to his very special and fondly remembered portrayal of the Doctor.

We are returned to Peladon some fifty years later in Jon Pertwee's penultimate story, made in 1974 and called THE MONSTER OF PELADON which, happily, is also in this set. Six episodes this time around revolving around the battle over a source of valuable minerals and unrest amongst the workers in the mines. This does of course in absolutely no way reflect a certain small nation's issues about miner's strikes that were happening around the same time. Ahem!! The expanded episode count does make the story a bit slower this time around, but Alpha Centauri and the Ice Warriors both return, as does Aggedor and this time we get to see more of the "ordinary people" of Peladon, although there's nothing ordinary about their hair. Nina Thomas plays the Queen - the daughter of King Peladon - who is still having trouble with her latest High Priest (the excellent Frank Gatliff). Some chats about "women's lib" from Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen - here in her first series playing the part) soon put her right about a few things. Another fine set of character actors including Rex Robinson and Donald Gee give convincing performances again and Jon Pertwee's Doctor gets a right old kicking before heading off to his fateful visit to THE PLANET OF THE SPIDERS.

The commentary on the first story is interesting enough, with the production team of Barry Letts, Terrance Dicks and Chris D'Oyly-John alongside actress Katy Manning (and her numerous alternative voices...Hmmm...) being moderated by Toby Hadoke. Sadly two of these contributors have died since they made the recordings which makes their comments seem just a little bit more poignant. Half the world - including a group of enthusiastic professional fans in part four - seems to turn up for commentary duties on the second story, but that's a good thing as it keeps the chat rattling along without going over old ground too much.

The usual range of extras like photo galleries, pdf material and loosely related clips from other shows are included alongside a solid set of documentaries including a two part "making of", a brief look at the history of the Ice Warriors, a short piece called "Jon and Katy" - which rather decribes itself - and a rather excellent piece on the writings of Terrance Dicks which will hopefully go some way in raising his profile as one of the best writers of children's fiction that there has ever been.

The Curse of Peladon
``````````````````
Brian Hayles had created an enduring race of Martian Reptiles in "The Ice Warriors" and so for the start of the ninth season, Letts and Dicks wanted to bring back some classic foes from the past. The Ice Warriors, en route became part of these plans. In The Curse of Peladon we see a story about an unprepared King facing decisions that will either make or break his planet. Its a wonderful story, there is a menagerie of monsters old and new, a brilliantly cast David Troughton as King Peladon and of course Jon Pertwee and Katy Manning at the height of their Saturday teatime power. The story exudes atmosphere, the dark and echoing corridors of the citadel look fantastic. Director Lennie Mayne does some pretty brilliant direction here, the story is very well made and considering that this story was made in 1972, it boasts some remarkable production standards.

At the heart of this tale are more of those Pertwee era political undertones, this time its the EEC. Great Britain was facing some dilemmas of its own back in the early 70's concerning the future of the country and its position in the EU, and so these dilemmas and choices certainly shine through in this adventure. The people of Peladon are not too happy about joining the Galactic Federation {EEC} and the King must decide what is best for his people, not let their primitive superstition dictate the planets future. A King must lead and lead courageously. Unfortunately for the good King, his desire to see Peladon as a great world amongst the community of neighboring planets are continually objected to by Hepesh, the High Priest. Over the duration of this cracking adventure, Hepesh is unmasked as the traitor and killed by his "God" Aggedor.

Overall this is a brilliant little 4 parter from the middle of Jon Pertwee's reign as the titular Time Lord. There's some great incidental music from Dudley Simpson, David Troughton's acting is superb and the direction is exquisite. A Must for any Pertwee era fan and highly recommended to even the casual viewer. 10/10.

The Monster of Peladon
````````````````````
1974's The Monster of Peladon is a not too different a beast to "Curse", here we have another young and inexperienced monarch not really ready to lead, Ice Warriors, a meddling High Priest, great directing from Lennie Mayne, great design work and of course Jon Pertwee returning for seconds. Except this time there's no Katy, Jo Grant having by this point left the series and handed the role of companion over to Sarah Jane Smith {Liz Sladen}. Like Curse, Monster has underlying political themes, this time its not the EEC its the miners strike of 74'. The costumes are not the greatest the series has ever produced, the badger like hair style of the miners is quite odd compared to everybody else's normal hair-dew.

Donald Gee puts in a brilliant performance as the galaxy 5 agent Eckersley, funny thing really that Donald has appeared in both Pat Troughton and Jon Pertwee's penultimate serials. Alan Bennion returns for his third time as an Ice Lord, this time playing Azaxyr. Alan's portrayal of the Ice Lord is brilliant and adds that bit more atmosphere to the serial. This story marks the last time that Brian Hayles wrote for the series and the last appearance of The Ice Warriors. They are hopefully set to make a return in the new series in 2012, but this is just a rumour at present. Overall a very enjoyable 6 part romp with Jon Pertwee and Liz Sladen. 10/10.

So, two great Jon Pertwee serials finally released on to the ever expanding range of Doctor Who DVD's. Both these adventures have been lovingly restored and remastered by the Doctor Who Restoration Team for their release on to DVD. The BBC have seen fit to release both serials packed with bonus content, both stories feature a half-hour documentary about Peladon and the themes and politics involved in each. As ever, these documentaries are fascinating and highly entertaining so I suggest that when you have finished watching these Pertwee classics, you take a look and enjoy. Highly recommended release.

Many thanks for your time, its greatly appreciated.

M.B.

Neither of the stories in this set are highlights of Jon Pertwee's tenure as the Doctor, but both are unusually political ones drawing on the UK's uncertain state in the early 70s. The Curse of Peladon sees the Doctor finally released from his exile on Earth and getting the TARDIS working again only to find himself in the forbidding fortress palace of Peladon on a dark and stormy night, where there's much debate among alien delegates as to whether the planet should be allowed to join the Galactic Federation. If this is not a million light-years away from the debate over whether the UK should join the Common Market, at least Ted Heath didn't have to deal with homicidal saboteurs and the not-so mythical royal beast of Peladon, Agador...

In many ways it's The Old Dark House with aliens, a gothic number with the Ice Warriors now on the side of the angels, former Doctor Patrick Troughton's son David Troughton on the throne and Pertwee displaying both his pitfighting skills and his ability to sooth the savage beast with a Venusian lullaby. It's a good story but a surprising one to generate a direct sequel, even if it does move the story ahead a generation.

Six-parter The Monster of Peladon is interesting for the even more political (and often overtly Socialist) slant the script takes. Whereas social revolutions have been a staple of science fiction even before H.G. Wells wrote The Time Machine, it's rare for a film or television entry in the genre to focus on labour relations and class warfare so explicitly. Just as Frank Herbert's Dune saga was an allegory for the Middle East's political tensions during the oil boom, The Monster of Peladon is an allegory of its own time and place. 70s Britain is now almost ancient history, so many of the references will be lost on a new generation of viewers, but for those who lived through it, watching this show again brings it all back.

For Peladon, standing on the brink of great wealth or even greater disaster, read Britain, for its coveted rare minerals, read North Sea Oil. Joining the Federation (read the Common Market) has not improved the lot of the workers, only the rich; the miners striking for improved wages and conditions (read any of the militant trade unions of the early 70s) are dismissed as bolshie rebels by rulers who would rather confront them than negotiate; while outside enemies manipulate their divisions not so much for conquest as for profit (read the growing trade deficit that saw Britain hover on the verge of bankruptcy). Add a subplot where the Doctor's assistant urges the figurehead Queen of Peladon to seize power by explaining something they have on Earth called Women's Lib, and you've got a perfect reflection for the concerns and paranoias facing 70s Britain - that dark, depressing time of strikes, power cuts, IRA bombing campaigns, the three-day week and inept government.

As drama, it works well enough, but as social history, it's positively fascinating, and the documentaries on the decent extras package go into the parallels with 70s Britain in some depth. It's a shame that the Doctor Who restoration team aren't fond of the Jon Pertwee era despite it being every bit as much a part of the series' golden age as Tom Baker's: the Pertwee episodes tend to need more restoration work than most but always seem to be something of a low priority, and consequently The Monster of Peladon certainly doesn't have as good picture quality as the presumably better stored Curse.