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Series 4 Episode 7: “The Unicorn and the Wasp”Broadcast on BBC1, Saturday May 17th, 2008 As premiered ondanowen.blogspot.com
Series 4 Boxset:
Series 4 Part 1:
Series 3 Boxset:
Director:
- Graeme Harper/b> (TV: Rise of the Cybermen, The Age of Steel, Army of Ghosts, Doomsday, 42, Utopia, Last of the Time Lords, Planet of the Ood, Unicorn and the Wasp, Turn Left, Episode 4.12, Journey’s End)
Screenplay:
- Gareth Roberts
(TV: The Shakespears Code, The Unicorn and the Wasp)
Cast:
- The Doctor: David Tennant
Donna Noble: Catherine Tate
Agatha Christie: Fenella Woolgar
Lady Eddison: Felicity Kendal
Robina Redmond: Felicity Jones
Colonel Hugh: Christopher Benjamin
Reverend Golightly: Tom Goodman-Hill
Professor Peach: Ian Barritt
Greeves: David Quilter
Roger Curbishly: Adam Rayner
Davenport: Daniel King
Mrs Hart: Charlotte Eaton
Miss Chandrakala: Leena Dhingra
Synopsis: The Doctor and Donna arrive in 1926 and have to help Agatha Christie solvea murder that appears to involve a giant wasp…
Gareth Roberts returns after The Shakespeare Code with another storythat puts a sci-fi spin on a literary author. This time he sets his sights onAgatha Christie (Fenella Woolgar) explaining her infamous 10-daydisappearance in 1926 as a consequence of helping The Doctor (David Tennant)and Donna (Catherine Tate) defeat an alien murderer…
As you’d expect from the premise, The Unicorn And The Wasp iscrammed full of murder mystery iconography: an English country mansion, poshresidents, a kindly vicar, a thunderstorm, a jewel thief, a stabbing during ablackout, a body in the library, two secretly gay men, a suspicious-lookingButler, a Drawing Room scene where the villain is unmasked, etc.
There are even a few allusions to the board game Cluedo in the alliterativeProfessor Plum, whose death by lead piping kicks off this whodunit. Roberts isclearly a fan of Christie’s work, as there are plenty of clever in-jokes andreferences — most of which have entered pop-culture, so don’t exclude anyone.But for Christie aficionados, there are a few cleverer moments such asa plot-point of a wasp sting in Death In The Clouds being linked to events inthis episode.
David Tennant is very good, as usual with The Doctor as captivated byAgatha Christie’s presence as he was Charles Dickens’ in The Unquiet Dead,although it was amusing to see Christie turn her nose up at his (slightly) distastefulglee at being in a murder mystery. As the world-famous authoress, Fenella Woolgarwas excellent, and one of those actresses with a “period face” well-suited tothe 1920s. Woolgar gave a measured, believable performance, and the scriptmanaged to make her a decent temporary companion for The Doctor, but one whonever overshadowed proceedings.
Catherine Tate was okay, but does anyone else think Donna’s role in recentepisodes has been purely to add the occasional joke and be The Doctor’s conscience?She does it better than most people expected, but I’m not really sensing a bigarc for her character. She’s just along for the ride, with her granddad’sblessing.
Tate gets a few nice comedy moments to play (more playfulness last seen inThe Fires Of Pompeii), a handful of dumb sequences (her magnifying glassversus the giant wasp scene – below-right – was far too silly) and her obligatory face-pullingin exaggerated shock. This was the first episode Tate filmed as Donna afterher Runaway Bride debut, so I can overlook a few lapses as her learningto adjust the character.
The supporting cast were all playing stereotypes, as befitted the spoof style –but Felicity Kendal (The Good Life) and Tom Goodman-Hillstood out as Lady Eddison and Reverend Golightly, respectively. Everyone elsewas perfectly fine, and the script did a good job of keeping the killer’s identitya secret (neatly avoiding the comedy resolution of “the butler did it”).
I was a bit disappointed in how jewel thief “The Unicorn” factored into thestory, and must confess that the eventual solution to things involving an alienlover for Lady Eddison and a mysterious Firestone gem began to strain credibility.A part of me would have preferred a more human climax to events, but I supposeDoctor Who has to strike a balance between pleasing adults with a worthwhilewhodunit, and kids who just want to see The Doctor battling a giant insect.
Overall, this was an amusing and spirited adventure that unfortunately becamea bit too preposterous towards the end. But the script’s sense of fun, boundlessenergy, and intelligent links to reality made up for a few lapses. Writer GarethRoberts clearly intended to put a pseudo-historical spin on Agatha Christie’s1926 disappearance, while indulging all the whodunit clichés and just havingfun with literary traditions.
The Unicorn And The Wasp totally succeeds on that level and providedplenty of entertainment. It got a bit too silly at times (the Time Lordcyanide “detox” scene was fun, but overcooked), and the resolution wasn’tas neat and concise as I’d hoped for. But for sheer enthusiasm and narrative bounce,this really hit the spot.
Join in the discussion about this episode atDan’s Media Digest
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.