Let’s be honest, most of us would have exactly the same reaction as Malcolm to meeting the Doctor. You’re correct about the desert, it was a location shoot. All of the desert scenes were filmed in Dubai. They had to ship the distinctive London double decker red bus over for filming, and the bus actually wasn’t supposed to be damaged in the original script. The prop got damaged en route- the crane that removed the shipping crates from the barge they transported it on slammed into it at quite high speed because the operator wasn’t used to things quite that tall being on the barge. There wasn’t the time or money to ship another bus across the ocean, so they just wrote the damage into the script!
Some interesting facts: - Yes, it was indeed an Easter special. There are only two "Doctor Who" easter specials, and the second one will be after 13th season. - Bus number 200 was a nod to "Planet of the Dead" being 200th TV story of "Doctor Who" overall - This was the first episode of "Doctor Who" aired in HD. From this point on, "Doctor Who" is always HD Also, this is my favorite episode of all time (yes I know "Blink" objectively better, but I like "Planet of the Dead" more) and lady Christina de Souza is my favorite companion of them all. That was my favorite type of chemistry between the Doctor and companion.
I think it would be a nice addendum if the Doctor went back to the day that chalice was made and convinced the smiths to cast a second one, exactly duplicating the first-you know, just in case it happens to get stolen and lost forever. With no historians tipped off to two being made, the history of the chalice would not be changed, but we don't have the disappointment of a valuable piece of history destroyed (though it was for a critically-important reason).
9:03 He is saying that the scanner/rader can't see the wormhole, it shows up as nothing. He scanned the area and everything was detected, but the area that is the wormhole. He then inverted the results. That eliminated everything that could be detected, leaving just the undetectable wormhole. He then deduced its dimensions from the area that was not able to be seen on the scanner.
Bernard is referring to Bernard Quatermass. Quatermass was the most important British sci fi show before Doctor Who. Writer Nigel Kneale created what we now think of as television. Before that, all shows were either theatre with a camera pointing at the stage, or radio with pictures. As big a landmark in television as Citizen Kane was in cinema. There's a modern remake of the first Quatermass series starring David Tennant which you could check out if you wanted. It's a live performance.
Oh such a good episode. Always felt that in addition to being sad over his previous lost companions he feels that he and Christina are made for each other and doesn't want her to get hurt in his world. She would have made such a great companion.
She (the actress) was officially offered because the showrunners really liked their chemistry in this episode but for some reason it didn't happen, I'm not sure why so I won't speculate.
@@MrIcelander I didn't know that. My best guess is that she was an actress in a soap opera around that time so maybe just wanted to stick with that. Who knows
I'm kind of glad that it didn't work out, because the character was a horrible person. A spoiled rich girl who, when told an entire planet's worth of people had been killed by those creatures, she was worried about her friggin' HAIR. A truly good companion would be a little disturbed about the sand being made of dead people, but more out of sadness for the dead, not disgust that the dead people were messing up her pretty rich girl hair. And also stealing things, not out of necessity, but out of fun, as if other peoples' property is her entertainment. (And don't bring out the Doctor stealing the TARDIS. He stole her out of the necessity to quickly get away from Gallifrey with his granddaughter, not out of fun.) She was an interesting character, but as an indictment against the rich and privileged, not as a good partner for the Doctor.
'Special' episodes (Christmas, easter etc, seasonal episodes that aren't part of the regular series) are always a bit longer, which is nice. Fun to see Mgumbo back, we saw a parallel version of her in Turn Left helping Rose with the time machine. You're right about the song quote being from the Ood. That's two psychic people both picking up the same warning..... Thanks as ever, love your reactions
This was filmed in Dubai (the desert scenes anyway) the bus got damaged when they shipped it there. So RTD just wrote into the script that the damage was caused by the wormhole.
You need find the comedy sketch where David Tennant takes part of a supply teacher calledJohn Smith and Catherine Tate takes a part of a stroppy teenager. Comedy gold and the chemistry between them is brilliant
Yes! I loved that! I laughed at that line in the full edit, but it didn't make the youtube cut. I think I edited this one not long after someone complained in the comments that I laugh too much, so it left me feeling a bit self conscious.
@@julesreacts Given the amounts of times I see you cry (which, you know, given the context is more than fair 😅), I don't think I would complain about you laughing. Like... after the last Buffy episode you reacted to, it's a welcome change to see you giggling at 10's crazy antics. 😁 On that topic... "he will knock four times". 🙉
Malcolm says he had read all the Doctor's files and the Doctor asked "Really? What was your favourite? The Giant Robot?" This is a reference to the 4th Doctor's 1st serial called "Robot". The scarf Malcolm wears is actually based on the Doctor's pinstripe brown suit
@@Scripture-Man Not likely, since UNIT weren't involved in that one. =:o} Also, the Target novelisation of "Robot" is titled "Doctor Who and the Giant Robot", and publicity/tie-in material for the show (such as Terrance Dicks's "The Doctor Who Monster Book", and the Weetabix character cards... Ah, such happy memories! =:o} ) usually refers to the titular metal hunk as "the Giant Robot".
@@therealpbristow What do you mean UNIT weren't involved? Weren't involved in Robot? They 100% were. I feel like I must be misunderstanding this comment.
@@TheZebbga I was replying to @Scripture-Man's comment. UNIT weren't involved in "the previous ep" (i.e. "The Next Doctor"), although it did have a "giant robot" (the Cyberking).
I love this string of specials. The problem for me was, they’re all longer than an hour and, when I saw them on BBC America, they had been cut down to fit in an hour time slot. For this episode, one of the scenes that had been cut was when that woman revealed her warning to the Doctor about someone knocking four times, so it was confusing when the Doctor referred to the prediction in upcoming episodes. Also, I was really disappointed that Lady Christine didn’t become a companion.
What BBC-A did was infuriating. And if you dared to contact them, however politely, the response you got acted as if you were annoying dirt stuck to their shoe rather than statistically very significant audience feedback (as a tiny percentage of viewers bother to make their feelings known-more so especially in writing-so they represent the views of a large percentage of their audience). While there might be any number of reasons they truncated the shows, being rude when replying goes beyond being uncalled for. I’m just sorry I didn’t have the time/energy to contact the BBC in GB and copy their PR dept on the entire exchange-not to correct the show truncation issue but to deal with the rude customer contact; while BBC-A is independent of the BBC there are business ties and cross-license agreements and who knows what else. Bottom line the Beeb would be very protective of its image and wouldn’t take kindly to the way BBC-A acted.
The Season (or Series as they are called in the UK)4 specials have a longer runtime because between December 2008 and January 2010 there were only five Doctor Who episodes broadcast. The specials are a bridge between S4 and S5. Russel T Davies bowed out as showrunner at the end of Season 4 and the gap year was to help the new production team and new showrunner Steven Moffat get everything just so for S5. Planet of the Dead aired on April 11, 2009 hence the Easter reference. The third special was broadcast November 15th. The final two episodes aired on December 25th and January 1st. As of S5 the show returned to its 45-ish minutes or so format and a full slate of episodes. Trivia: Planet of the Dead was the first episode to be filmed in HD.
A flying bus isn't all that unusual in the Doctor Who universe. Look into the spin-off character, Iris Wildthyme, some day. She appears in novels and audioplays, both with the Doctor and her own series. Her TARDIS is in the form of a classic Routemaster bus - the number 22 to Putney Common. By curious happenstance that very bus appears in the background of the opening scenes of "Rose". Who knows - perhaps Iris was there on her own adventure that day. ^_~
Iris is a wonderful character. RTD and Steven Moffat were both fans of the spinoff media in the "wilderness years", hence so much of it being echoed (or frankly nicked) in the new series. Another example is River Song (from the Library) being partially based on another great character, Bernice Summerfield, a time-travelling archaeologist who had a, um, close relationship with the Doctor in the novels. My daughter loved Lady Christina at the time. She got her own series of audios later! But, well, that's true of every character I've mentioned in this post...
Me too, in a way. I'm not sure how much the Doctor would tolerate her recklessness, though...on the other hand, he did deal with Leela's homicidal tendencies.
I like that this is basically the anti-Midnight. I used to hate this episode but have come to really enjoy how cozy and optimistic it is. I’d have loved if Lady Christina got to be a full time companion.
could have been interesting, having a 'posh' version of ace tagging along. though let's be honest, Ace never looked stereotypically working class even for the era she originally showed up in, always looked like someone in 'poor cosplay' to me. lol.
So apparently the bus when it was being transported to the country they used for the desert planet it was damaged quite heavily and they just went with it. Also lovely to see Daniel Kaluuya although hes not doing much here
Yes exactly. It was on Doctor who confidential. The bus was on a boat being shipped to Dubai and it got smashed. They didn't exactly have another so they wrote the damage in
It must have been so weird to watch this without knowing who Lee Evans is 😂 he’s a stand up comedian who was at the height of his fame just before this episode was released, so when it aired most people knew who he was and that’s why he’s such an important character in the story. But if you didn’t know that you’d probably have a totally different perception of the character, and I can’t imagine what that must be like. If I didn’t know him I’d be like “who is this guy? Why’s he getting so much screen time? Is the actor famous?” Lol
Fun fact, the original idea was for the Double decker bus to be pristine in the desert, but its roof was damaged when it was imported out to the United Arab Emirates for filming, so the damage was written into the script and the CGI dent was added to the top in the transportation scene.
I always like this one. I’m sorry to be slow in responding: I’ve been in hospital for a while. The story manages to be fun despite the vast amount of death implied in the background. Doctor Who does sometimes deal very briskly with large amounts of death: “Too bad, cheer up, the show must go on.” Lady Christina could have become a regular companion, but it didn’t happen-above all, I think, because RTD was about to bow out as showrunner, and the new showrunner wanted to make a fresh start.
They were in another country. Apparently the bus was damaged in transit so they had to write the damage into the script! I can’t remember which desert it was…
It was filmed in South Africa. The bus was damaged being unshipped at the docks, so they tweaked the plot to have it damaged in transiting the wormhole.
I know they did a few “Big Finish” audio plays about Lady Christina after this episode but I don’t know how they are. Big Finish Doctor Who stories are something to consider checking out if you like audiobooks for a few reasons: - They’re a cool way to bring Doctors back after they’ve left the show (David Tennant has done a few with Billie Piper (Rose) and Catherine Tate (Donna)) - They’re a chance to see Classic Who Doctors fight New Who Monsters/more stories when they had limited time playing the Doctor (Paul McGann who played the 8th Doctor only the one time in the TV Movie finally got more time as The Doctor because of them. - Like Christina Big Finish gives a for secondary characters like her and Captain Jack stories of what they’re up to when not with The Doctor
I like looking back on episodes from this era and seeing now famous actors as minor characters. In this episode it’s Daniel Kaluuya from Get Out, Spider-Man Across the Spiderverse, etc. 🙂
Funny thing, because I watched the episodes more recently, I actually recognized Lady Christina. She played the Bionic Woman in the recent single season remake here in the States. Goes to show you never know who will show up on Who and where you will recognize them from.
She had a longstanding role on UK soap Eastenders. One of the most legendary scenes actually. "You're not my mother!!" Said to her sister... "Yes I am!!" Replied her mother
WOW!!! You are burning through these "Hamlet Specials" (my name for it; ask your Patreon folks why I've called them that!) and I couldn't be happier!!!" "Midnight--The Happy Version" ("Noon?" ) :) The Doctor with his own Catwoman :) "HE WILL KNOCK FOUR TIMES" (Oooo, have the tissues ready!) THANKS for this!!!!
This is just a good fun episode, a nice little adventure which is sorely needed because the final three specials get pretty heavy. This is like a last hurrah before things heat up. You have to understand Jules, this episode was hyped up a fair bit back in the day. Since we didn't get a full season in 2009, they sort of went all in with the marketing for the specials. This one was extra special though because it was heavily touted as being Doctor Who's 200th story, hence the 'Number 200' bus (Classic who stories were made up of multiple episodes, typically between four and seven parts. However, there's some debate over the numbering of stories, depending on how you count them). I still have an Aussie TV Guide with the Doctor and Lady Christina on the cover. They really did do a good job of making this special feel big though, even if the 'Easter Special' description doesn't extend beyond the Doctor eating an Easter egg. The fact that they filmed on location in Dubai definitely added to the grandeur and this was heavily publicised in the lead up to the broadcast, especially in Doctor Who Magazine. I'm sure by now you've heard that the bus was really damaged in transit, but they were able to work it into the story. Lady Christina is great fun and a perfect foil for Tennant. She's definitely set up as a possible companion, but at the time it had already been said that the Doctor would be solo for the specials, joined by "one-off companions" in each one. You might be interested to know though that Christina has gone on to have further adventures with her own audio drama spin-off series, The Adventures of Lady Christina, with the actress reprising her role. Malcolm is also wonderful and it's nice to see a new scientific advisore for U.N.I.T - that's the job the Doctor had when he worked for them back in the day. By the way, when Malcolm says he's read all of the Doctor's files and he asks if he liked the 'giant robot', that's a reference to the Fourth Doctor's debut story, Robot. Fittingly, this year is the 50th anniversary of that story's broadcast. "I think your song must end, Sir. It is returning through the dark. He will knock four times." Hmmm... I'm sure that's nothing to worry about. You're spot on too Jules, Ood Sigma told the Doctor that his song would be ending soon, back in Planet of the Ood. I'm looking forward to the next few weeks Jules, I can't wait to see what you think of the remaining specials.
See, I don't know all those little references! The 200th episode! The hype beforehand! That's very cool. The comments here seem mixed though, a lot of people don't like this episode. I thought it was great! Other than the bit of cheese with the bus at the end 🤣 TV Guide!!! I remember those! I don't buy magazines anymore, but back in the day I used to love quite a few of them. I vaguely remember Smash Hits was one. And of course Dolly and Girlfriend 😆
@@julesreacts I guess that's the the downside to watching it years later, you don't get to experience the context surrounding the episodes. In a way though, that's also good because you go into everything completely blind without prior knowledge like cast announcements, especially when it comes to Doctors leaving (it's always a big deal when a Doctor announces that they're leaving). I'm old-fashioned so I still buy Doctor Who Magazine regularly and a few others on occasion too, like SFX. I'm also a big comic book collector.
So they filmed in Abu-Dhabi, the first time (I think) they flew to another country to film the show. The bus was shipped out there on a boat for location shooting but got damaged in a storm, so they wrote it into the episode that the wormhole damaged it. The interior shots were filmed back in Wales but all the exterior scenes with the bus were on location. David Tennant was working with the Royal Shakespeare company the year this was filmed so it was a year of specials as he wasn't available for long periods of time to shoot a full season. The UNIT captain is the same character from Turn Left in Donna's alternate world where they help her to see the time beetle on her back, so technically a returning character. Edited for spelling.
This is a really fun one! I always enjoyed the setting with the desert world, and I thought the alien metal stingray swarm was an intriguing threat, especially since they only really managed to escape it rather than eliminate it - that swarm can just go on to another planet later on. I also liked the helpful fly aliens - proof that you can't judge a book by its colour! "Humans on buses, always blaming me!..." Yeah, to be fair, the last time we saw The Doctor on a bus was in Midnight, and that didn't go well for him! Oh, and you've met Cpt. Orisa Magambo from U.N.I.T. before! Well, a parallel universe version of her, at least. She was working with Rose in Turn Left, you may recall! The Lady Christina would have made a fun longer-term companion, but alas it wasn't to be. I'm so psyched for next week though...
I have heard (but don't know if it is true) Elizabeth II was a fan of Dr. Who. So I am sure she wouldn't mind him parking the TARDIS at Buckingham Palace.
This was a great episode but yeah I totally agree with you about the ending it felt alittle cliched. I thought David Tennant and Michelle Ryan had a really great chemistry and it's such ashame she didn't become a regular companion because I think a thieving companion would had add something new to the series and to have the same dynamic but different view points between the Doctor and Christina she'd be like the Emma Peel of Dr. Who. The different planet setting in the episode was filmed in Dubai the bus that was used in the episode originally wasn't suppose to be damaged at all it was meant to arrive in Dubai intact but it was damaged by a tow truck during the transport from London to Dubai the production crew started to panic but then came up with a very clever storyline that the bus was damaged due to going through the wormhole so all was sorted in the end. Lee Evans who plays Malcolm was a well known comedian back in the 1990's and early 2000's I recommend checking out a film he was in called "Mousehunt" (1997) if you not seen it I highly recommend it it's very funny he was also in other movies such as "There's Something about Mary" (1998) and "The Fifth Element" (1997). The giant robot that the Doctor mentions to Malcolm was a reference to the Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker's) first story "Robot" from Classic Who.
I liked Christina as well! A few people have mentioned what a great companion she'd make. It would really play on the good/bad side of the Doctor as well, with her penchant for taking trinkets!
Ah this was always a fun episode, as I recall this was an Easter Special in 2009 since after Series 4 it was a bunch of specials over the year, the previous episode was Christmas, this was Easter, I think the next episode isn’t a holiday time, was just in September or so and the episodes after that are Christmas and New Years, won’t say what happens but the next 3 are banger episodes.
David Tennant took a year off from filming Doctor Who so that he could get back to playing other roles and not get stuck in this one. To make up for it he did 3 or 4 specials to keep the audience going then the series got back to its normal schedule the next year again.
I really hope you continue through at least till the end of the Capaldi era. I really love DW but ive rewatched it many a times so i dont want to do that again, this is a nice way to re-watch without re-watching. Especially with your reactions its like re-watching with a friend who has the same love for the series as me ❤
Fun Fact: The damage on the bus was unintentional and happened when it was being shipped to the filming location. Instead of delaying filming for another bus to get shipped over, they decided to use it's damage as part of the story.
You were right, they were in another country filming, they shipped the bus to Dubai for filming. The bus got damaged being unloaded in Dubai port, so they had to incorporate the damage into the story.
Oh Jules...I'm very much looking forward to your viewing of the next episode, and to be honest the two that follow it but this next one in particular is just one of my absolute favourite stories told in Doctor Who.
To summarise the science briefly. You can map something without being able to read it. You map the dimensions by the absence of other things you would expect to find. So say there was an area where the elements that we know should be present but aren't and there is a projected dead spot, we would be able to map the dimensions of the dead spot. We might not necessarily know what the dead spot is but we could measure it. You could also say map any gravitational inconsistencies since we know that gravity is constant or the speed of light is constant except in areas where mass is concentrated, like black holes, which warp space time and slow time and light. Also if she'd shot him, no one would have been able to close the wormhole in time and she'd have destroyed the human race. I think it is why the Doctor objects to firearms. They aren't a solution, they just cause a myriad of problems and unnecessary suffering.
"People on buses always blaming me!" Midnight reference. As will probably already have been stated, 'Bernard' is Bernard Quatermass, probably the BBC's first SciFi hero. There were three Hammer Quatermass films, good to watch as the TV serials are incomplete but if you can, watch the full BBC 'Quatermass and the Pit' which still exists, great! Michelle Ryan was primarily a soap star in the BBC's Eastenders but went to America to do one season as 'The Bionic Woman'.
Following David's third series (the fourth overall of the revival), they decided to do a series of four Specials the following year, rather than a full series. I think it _might_ have been partially a scheduling thing for David. I'm not positive on that; it was quite a while ago, but that seems vaguely familiar.
The reason they went from a Christmas special to an Easter special is because season four ended with Journey’s End, the remainder of “season 4” (as it’s usually lumped in on streaming services) were released throughout late 2008-late 2009 as specials rather than plain episodes
"This is too scientific for me" Eureka! Archimedes said as he found he could find the volume (3d space) of the object (his body, gold, silver, whatever) by measuring the volume of water that overflowed from a full bathtub. Similar thing by Malcolm. He used what was missing to calculate the object.
"I fear your song is ending soon." "Meaning?" "All songs must end." That's where her line about his song ending came from. As for "He will knock four times," well, you'll just have to wait...
I think Lady Christina is my second favourite "in episode" character. As in not a doctor or companion with a many episode arc. The first being Madame du Pompadour.
I thought this episode was fun! I also thought that it was intended to be a crossover pilot for a series featuring Lady Christina, and I kept an eye out for it as well! But alas, it became available as a podcast in 2018! It was called Lady Christina, and was on through 2021! She even had.... well, spoilers.... so we can leave it at that! The actor portraying Christina, Michelle Ryan, really enjoyed the character and was a fan of the show already! So she reprised her role as Christina a few times before finally making a podcast! But can you imagine a series based on her? Might be pretty good!!
Honestly, one of those that I don't rewatch much and instead tend to skip. ...Possibly way too much than actually necessary though, it ain't bad one, just bit boring'ISH. That said, Malcolm is definitely a reason TO watch this one instead of skipping, even if one wouldn't be that much a fan of this one imo. I dunno how much fun Lee Evans had PER-SE while playing Malcolm, nor have I any idea how much of a fan of the show he is, but the impression I get from his performance is that he loved absolutely every minute on the set. :D
Damaged bus - Was damaged by vandalism. "Knock 4 Times" - Will keep you watching rest of series 4 (all specials). Next: See Torchwood Series 3 & Sarah Jane Adventures Series 3 for connecting plots and events. RTD era coming to an end as well. So lots of threads will be tied up.
Malcolm is fantastic in this episode. Gotta love Malcolm 😂 “I’ll just step inside this police box and arrest myself.” Don’t know why but I always found that line extremely funny when I was a kid. I was 9 when this came out.
I've just been reminded of how fun this episode was. And relatively upbeat, with very little casualties, save for the bus driver, but he brought it on himself 😄 And the two insectoid aliens, but we didn't see much of them, so hard to really feel sorry. And yes, Malcolm is a real gem 😄 Next episode, oh-hoh, it's gonna be a doozy...probably one of my absolute favorite episodes of the whole series 😉 Ready the kleenex and a blanket... 😝
Rejecting Christina was in line with the traits the Doctor values most whenever he chooses his companions. Notice how all his companions showed selflessness, compassion, kindness and they value life above all else. Therefore he considered that Christina has that dash of selfishness that could one day be fatal to them. I love how human values is one of the things promoted by this series, but not directly most of the times, instead they are hidden beautifully between the lines by screenwriting. As for what's to come, you need to remember that one thing: "He will knock 4 times"
But there's a bad massage here. how the Doctor turns his companions into completely different people than what they were before starting to travel with him. Christina was different and could've been a healthy lesson to the Doctor as well, as he could see that he's not always responsible for the way people around him behave. they always have this cliche of "the Doctor's companions keep him human" while forgetting that humanity doesn't always translate in being good exactly and history has proved it over and over. why the Doctor couldn't learn the same lesson?
Hello, Jules!💜 A great special (extra long episode) which is not all that loved by the fan horde. Many disliked Christina, and the story itself. I have always liked this one. Sort of a The Doctor meets Lady Lara Croft. It has many humorous moments - and a lot of them involving the character Malcolm, Lee Evans - whom I first saw in the science fiction adventure film, really more of a comedy/romance - The Fifth Element - one of my favorite cult films, but that is not Doctor Who and the Easter Special... 🤭 Great moments here, which you note - as the Doctor puts everyone at ease, on the bus. I do love when he cracks on UNIT people, and here was a good one - "... did you just salute..." 😅 Which was a callback to a previous saluting incident. Other, random callbacks as well, from Christina, "No stranger than you, Spaceman." and the minor one, which, to my mind, makes her a fun, adventuresome character - "I hate you!" which takes me back to the Forest of the Dead episode, when where River says "I hate you sometimes!". And, again, great recall on the back reference to the Ood quote, "I think your song must end soon... Every song must end." - from Planet of the Ood. Well done, yet again, Jules!🥰 Initially you were confused, but you came back on fire very soon, and started predicting the course of action, as at 13:08, when you guess Christina will use her rope contraption to get the piece, and you went on a roll from there! My favorite Doctor line in this one, was also one you noted - "You look Time Lord." 🥰 I too was happy the Doctor aided and abetted Christina with her escape, it fits with the overall tenor of this one - more of a lark than a serious episode, but I always wonder about the technology she got away with - it could advance human science years ahead of time, to the point that it could one day be part of an X-Files investigation - I can hear Scully scolding Mulder now - "It hasn't been properly tested Mulder. I don't think you should push that....". 🤣 A great episode, well edited. I know you enjoy the extra scenes in the specials, but I also know they require extra care, and time in order to make the react videos. I think you for your diligence and patience. Have a wonderful day, Jules💜🤗💜 Enjoy the time, knowing that once you are finished doing what you do this day, you will have a grand sleep, and awaken on the front step of another Weekend! Thank you, and Be Well.😊
Tom 😊💜 Thank you for your very kind words and wonderful review! It was a delightful episode! Very reminiscent of Midnight with the bus and a group of strangers, but with a MUCH bigger set and budget, to boot! I wasn't sure if it was a set or they were really in a desert, and to my surprise I learned that it was actually in Dubai. I think it may be their first time they've filmed overseas that I know of? I just think that's impressive! I would LOVE to have seen an X Files/Doctor Who crossover!! Mulder would be beside himself, he'd have a field day with the Doctor! My goodness. Talk about a missed opportunity 😅 YES! Tomorrow is indeed Friday, I'm not feeling too bad so I should be all good tomorrow. No, I have not taken time off 😆 It hasn't really been that bad. Try not to scold me too much 😜 Enjoy your dip into the weekend, Dear Tom! I am so looking forward to some relaxation 💜
This was the first ever episode of New Doctor Who I ever watched and the second Doctor Who episode I ever saw! At the time, I thought there were only two Doctors, the grumpy old grandfather in greyscale and the reboot doctor with the pointy hair XD Had no idea until years after that the show had been ongoing since the 60s! Regarding the whole "You look human, "You look Time Lord," thing - I once heard that the leader of the Time Lords, named Rassilon, one of his regenerations anyway, previously travelled the galaxy before the Time Lords kind of stepped back, and somehow Rassilon was directly responsible for so many species on different planets turning out to look like Time Lords, including both humans and the species the Daleks mutated from. True story. Well, fictional, and I can't remember who even told me all this, but you know, comment over. :P
The bus driver wouldn't pull over unless someone rang the bell. And maybe not even then. Michelle Ryan was very famous from her role in EastEnders so this was quite a thing. One of those companions who never happened, like Sally Sparrow, Astrid Peth, Lynda With A Y, Jenny. I always thought Michelle was going to be a huge star - beautiful, talented - but it never really happened. I believe there are some Big Finish audio stories that continue the adventures of Lady Christina. This is why Doctor Who fans take a deep breath when they realise they've accidentally knocked four times . . . Sorry, got to go, someone at the door . . . 😨
This is an all around good episode. I know a lot of people aren't too fond of Christina but I LOVE the scene where the Doctor reassures he will get them home - Russell always emphasises the humanity so well. I can't wait to see your reaction to the next episode!
Let’s be honest, most of us would have exactly the same reaction as Malcolm to meeting the Doctor.
You’re correct about the desert, it was a location shoot. All of the desert scenes were filmed in Dubai. They had to ship the distinctive London double decker red bus over for filming, and the bus actually wasn’t supposed to be damaged in the original script. The prop got damaged en route- the crane that removed the shipping crates from the barge they transported it on slammed into it at quite high speed because the operator wasn’t used to things quite that tall being on the barge. There wasn’t the time or money to ship another bus across the ocean, so they just wrote the damage into the script!
“Humans on buses - always blaming me!”
I haven’t watched this ep in a long time and so forgot there’s such a great reference to Midnight
Some interesting facts:
- Yes, it was indeed an Easter special. There are only two "Doctor Who" easter specials, and the second one will be after 13th season.
- Bus number 200 was a nod to "Planet of the Dead" being 200th TV story of "Doctor Who" overall
- This was the first episode of "Doctor Who" aired in HD. From this point on, "Doctor Who" is always HD
Also, this is my favorite episode of all time (yes I know "Blink" objectively better, but I like "Planet of the Dead" more) and lady Christina de Souza is my favorite companion of them all. That was my favorite type of chemistry between the Doctor and companion.
This is a very good episode, , but I think I slightly prefer the next one. Objectively, it has some problems too, but, as you say, ....
I know you, don't I?
Malcom is just having the best day of his life.
And yes, it was the Ood from he beginning of the season who told The Doctor "you song is ending".
The chalice was worth $18 million pounds. And I love how you describe Lady Christina as "a bit naughty." Absolutely perfect! :D
HEHE! She has that kind of personality that I don't feel I could be too upset with her. She'd be able to get away with anything 🤣
I think it would be a nice addendum if the Doctor went back to the day that chalice was made and convinced the smiths to cast a second one, exactly duplicating the first-you know, just in case it happens to get stolen and lost forever. With no historians tipped off to two being made, the history of the chalice would not be changed, but we don't have the disappointment of a valuable piece of history destroyed (though it was for a critically-important reason).
@@julesreacts Except for the part where she's more concerned about her hair than the deaths of billions. That was absolutely unforgivable.
£ not $. Typical Am*ricans
Lee Evans doing a Welsh accent wasn't planned but he already had a Welsh character called Malcolm.
I love Malcolm spotting at the supermarket car park 😂
9:03 He is saying that the scanner/rader can't see the wormhole, it shows up as nothing. He scanned the area and everything was detected, but the area that is the wormhole. He then inverted the results. That eliminated everything that could be detected, leaving just the undetectable wormhole. He then deduced its dimensions from the area that was not able to be seen on the scanner.
basically the same way black holes are found. We just find the area no info comes back from (plus the fuzzy distorted area around it)
@@IISheireenII Precisely
Bernard is referring to Bernard Quatermass. Quatermass was the most important British sci fi show before Doctor Who. Writer Nigel Kneale created what we now think of as television. Before that, all shows were either theatre with a camera pointing at the stage, or radio with pictures. As big a landmark in television as Citizen Kane was in cinema. There's a modern remake of the first Quatermass series starring David Tennant which you could check out if you wanted. It's a live performance.
I love Quatermass and the Pit!
Jules has already seen 1 Quatermass reference - British Rocket Group sent the probe the Sycorax picked up.
Oh such a good episode. Always felt that in addition to being sad over his previous lost companions he feels that he and Christina are made for each other and doesn't want her to get hurt in his world. She would have made such a great companion.
She (the actress) was officially offered because the showrunners really liked their chemistry in this episode but for some reason it didn't happen, I'm not sure why so I won't speculate.
@@MrIcelander I didn't know that. My best guess is that she was an actress in a soap opera around that time so maybe just wanted to stick with that. Who knows
She was the main protagonist for the remake of the "Bionic Woman" series which, sadly was canceled after the first season....
@@Metzwerg74 Good to know. Thanks
I'm kind of glad that it didn't work out, because the character was a horrible person. A spoiled rich girl who, when told an entire planet's worth of people had been killed by those creatures, she was worried about her friggin' HAIR. A truly good companion would be a little disturbed about the sand being made of dead people, but more out of sadness for the dead, not disgust that the dead people were messing up her pretty rich girl hair. And also stealing things, not out of necessity, but out of fun, as if other peoples' property is her entertainment. (And don't bring out the Doctor stealing the TARDIS. He stole her out of the necessity to quickly get away from Gallifrey with his granddaughter, not out of fun.)
She was an interesting character, but as an indictment against the rich and privileged, not as a good partner for the Doctor.
'Special' episodes (Christmas, easter etc, seasonal episodes that aren't part of the regular series) are always a bit longer, which is nice.
Fun to see Mgumbo back, we saw a parallel version of her in Turn Left helping Rose with the time machine.
You're right about the song quote being from the Ood. That's two psychic people both picking up the same warning.....
Thanks as ever, love your reactions
This was filmed in Dubai (the desert scenes anyway) the bus got damaged when they shipped it there. So RTD just wrote into the script that the damage was caused by the wormhole.
Yeah, robot arm at the port. They had told the arm to put the bus on top of containers but failed to tell it about the extra height.
You need find the comedy sketch where David Tennant takes part of a supply teacher calledJohn Smith and Catherine Tate takes a part of a stroppy teenager. Comedy gold and the chemistry between them is brilliant
The actor who plays Barclay, his name is Daniel Kaluuya. He's was in the first Black Panther Film & Get Out.
I didn't recognise him, but I have seen Get Out!
He’ll always be tealeaf for me! He was excellent as Bing in Black Mirror.
"Oh! Humans on buses, always blaming me!"
That was a reference to "Midnight".
Yes! I loved that! I laughed at that line in the full edit, but it didn't make the youtube cut. I think I edited this one not long after someone complained in the comments that I laugh too much, so it left me feeling a bit self conscious.
@@julesreacts
Given the amounts of times I see you cry (which, you know, given the context is more than fair 😅), I don't think I would complain about you laughing.
Like... after the last Buffy episode you reacted to, it's a welcome change to see you giggling at 10's crazy antics. 😁
On that topic... "he will knock four times". 🙉
That's SO true!! I usually ignore or even block the mean people if they are too bad. I'll try and remember your wise words though!!
Malcolm says he had read all the Doctor's files and the Doctor asked "Really? What was your favourite? The Giant Robot?" This is a reference to the 4th Doctor's 1st serial called "Robot". The scarf Malcolm wears is actually based on the Doctor's pinstripe brown suit
Coulda been a reference to the previous ep?
@@Scripture-Man Not likely, since UNIT weren't involved in that one. =:o}
Also, the Target novelisation of "Robot" is titled "Doctor Who and the Giant Robot", and publicity/tie-in material for the show (such as Terrance Dicks's "The Doctor Who Monster Book", and the Weetabix character cards... Ah, such happy memories! =:o} ) usually refers to the titular metal hunk as "the Giant Robot".
@@therealpbristow What do you mean UNIT weren't involved? Weren't involved in Robot? They 100% were. I feel like I must be misunderstanding this comment.
@@TheZebbga I was replying to @Scripture-Man's comment. UNIT weren't involved in "the previous ep" (i.e. "The Next Doctor"), although it did have a "giant robot" (the Cyberking).
@@therealpbristow Oh, okay. That makes sense. To be honest, I didn't understand their comment either.
I love this string of specials. The problem for me was, they’re all longer than an hour and, when I saw them on BBC America, they had been cut down to fit in an hour time slot. For this episode, one of the scenes that had been cut was when that woman revealed her warning to the Doctor about someone knocking four times, so it was confusing when the Doctor referred to the prediction in upcoming episodes.
Also, I was really disappointed that Lady Christine didn’t become a companion.
That's crazy. Lucky I checked them out of the library in the box set.
@@HuntingViolets I've since seen the full episodes.
What BBC-A did was infuriating. And if you dared to contact them, however politely, the response you got acted as if you were annoying dirt stuck to their shoe rather than statistically very significant audience feedback (as a tiny percentage of viewers bother to make their feelings known-more so especially in writing-so they represent the views of a large percentage of their audience).
While there might be any number of reasons they truncated the shows, being rude when replying goes beyond being uncalled for. I’m just sorry I didn’t have the time/energy to contact the BBC in GB and copy their PR dept on the entire exchange-not to correct the show truncation issue but to deal with the rude customer contact; while BBC-A is independent of the BBC there are business ties and cross-license agreements and who knows what else. Bottom line the Beeb would be very protective of its image and wouldn’t take kindly to the way BBC-A acted.
This was the first Doctor Who Episode shot in High Definition
The Season (or Series as they are called in the UK)4 specials have a longer runtime because between December 2008 and January 2010 there were only five Doctor Who episodes broadcast. The specials are a bridge between S4 and S5. Russel T Davies bowed out as showrunner at the end of Season 4 and the gap year was to help the new production team and new showrunner Steven Moffat get everything just so for S5.
Planet of the Dead aired on April 11, 2009 hence the Easter reference. The third special was broadcast November 15th. The final two episodes aired on December 25th and January 1st. As of S5 the show returned to its 45-ish minutes or so format and a full slate of episodes.
Trivia: Planet of the Dead was the first episode to be filmed in HD.
You mentioned how realistic the desert looked, and that's because they filmed on location in Dubai!
Yeah, I actually found that out and it's SO COOL! I'm so glad they went on an adventure 😅
A flying bus isn't all that unusual in the Doctor Who universe. Look into the spin-off character, Iris Wildthyme, some day. She appears in novels and audioplays, both with the Doctor and her own series. Her TARDIS is in the form of a classic Routemaster bus - the number 22 to Putney Common. By curious happenstance that very bus appears in the background of the opening scenes of "Rose". Who knows - perhaps Iris was there on her own adventure that day. ^_~
Iris is a wonderful character. RTD and Steven Moffat were both fans of the spinoff media in the "wilderness years", hence so much of it being echoed (or frankly nicked) in the new series. Another example is River Song (from the Library) being partially based on another great character, Bernice Summerfield, a time-travelling archaeologist who had a, um, close relationship with the Doctor in the novels.
My daughter loved Lady Christina at the time. She got her own series of audios later! But, well, that's true of every character I've mentioned in this post...
I thought Christina was so cool and really hoped she would be the next companion
Her and Sally Sparrow.
Same
Me too, in a way. I'm not sure how much the Doctor would tolerate her recklessness, though...on the other hand, he did deal with Leela's homicidal tendencies.
I like that this is basically the anti-Midnight. I used to hate this episode but have come to really enjoy how cozy and optimistic it is.
I’d have loved if Lady Christina got to be a full time companion.
I love Christina.
I really wished she stayed as a companion, would have been neat to see The Doctor with a thief.
'He will knock 4 times'
>:3
That would have been kind of interesting. _"There must be some way out of here," said the Doctor to the Thief . . ._
could have been interesting, having a 'posh' version of ace tagging along.
though let's be honest, Ace never looked stereotypically working class even for the era she originally showed up in, always looked like someone in 'poor cosplay' to me. lol.
So apparently the bus when it was being transported to the country they used for the desert planet it was damaged quite heavily and they just went with it. Also lovely to see Daniel Kaluuya although hes not doing much here
Yes exactly. It was on Doctor who confidential. The bus was on a boat being shipped to Dubai and it got smashed. They didn't exactly have another so they wrote the damage in
It must have been so weird to watch this without knowing who Lee Evans is 😂 he’s a stand up comedian who was at the height of his fame just before this episode was released, so when it aired most people knew who he was and that’s why he’s such an important character in the story. But if you didn’t know that you’d probably have a totally different perception of the character, and I can’t imagine what that must be like. If I didn’t know him I’d be like “who is this guy? Why’s he getting so much screen time? Is the actor famous?” Lol
Lady De Souza is Michelle Ryan she was in Eastenders a UK soap she played Zoe Slater. and Malcolm is Lee Evans a well known comedian.
Fun fact, the original idea was for the Double decker bus to be pristine in the desert, but its roof was damaged when it was imported out to the United Arab Emirates for filming, so the damage was written into the script and the CGI dent was added to the top in the transportation scene.
When I was a kid and watched this episode, I had such a crush on Lady Christina haha
When I was 45 years old and watched this episode, I had such a crush on Lady Christina haha
@@y00t00b3r Oh don't get me wrong, I'm in my twenties now and I'm still in love with her.
short question...
who had not a crush on Her... that list would be much shorter...
Just left EastEnders.
Oh, to this day I still think Michelle Ryan is one of the most gorgeous gals to grace new-"Who"...and that actually says quite a lot.
I always like this one. I’m sorry to be slow in responding: I’ve been in hospital for a while.
The story manages to be fun despite the vast amount of death implied in the background. Doctor Who does sometimes deal very briskly with large amounts of death: “Too bad, cheer up, the show must go on.”
Lady Christina could have become a regular companion, but it didn’t happen-above all, I think, because RTD was about to bow out as showrunner, and the new showrunner wanted to make a fresh start.
They were in another country. Apparently the bus was damaged in transit so they had to write the damage into the script! I can’t remember which desert it was…
It was filmed in South Africa. The bus was damaged being unshipped at the docks, so they tweaked the plot to have it damaged in transiting the wormhole.
Filmed in Dubai
I know they did a few “Big Finish” audio plays about Lady Christina after this episode but I don’t know how they are. Big Finish Doctor Who stories are something to consider checking out if you like audiobooks for a few reasons:
- They’re a cool way to bring Doctors back after they’ve left the show (David Tennant has done a few with Billie Piper (Rose) and Catherine Tate (Donna))
- They’re a chance to see Classic Who Doctors fight New Who Monsters/more stories when they had limited time playing the Doctor (Paul McGann who played the 8th Doctor only the one time in the TV Movie finally got more time as The Doctor because of them.
- Like Christina Big Finish gives a for secondary characters like her and Captain Jack stories of what they’re up to when not with The Doctor
And they add lore to my 2 favourite villains, Dalek Prime (Emperor) and Black Dalek leader (classics Supreme). W for that
I tend to fall asleep with audiobooks, but I absolutely adore radio plays ("the theatre of the mind").
She was in some of the comics as well.
I like looking back on episodes from this era and seeing now famous actors as minor characters. In this episode it’s Daniel Kaluuya from Get Out, Spider-Man Across the Spiderverse, etc. 🙂
Black panther IIRC He's the Wakandan general.
@@AlmightyCRJ Yep, was in a relationship with Okoye, sided with Killmonger and rode a rhino into battle.
I was hoping Michelle Ryan (Lady Christina) would be the new companion. She seemed perfect for the part.
Funny thing, because I watched the episodes more recently, I actually recognized Lady Christina. She played the Bionic Woman in the recent single season remake here in the States. Goes to show you never know who will show up on Who and where you will recognize them from.
She had a longstanding role on UK soap Eastenders. One of the most legendary scenes actually.
"You're not my mother!!" Said to her sister...
"Yes I am!!" Replied her mother
WOW!!! You are burning through these "Hamlet Specials" (my name for it; ask your Patreon folks why I've called them that!) and I couldn't be happier!!!"
"Midnight--The Happy Version" ("Noon?" ) :)
The Doctor with his own Catwoman :)
"HE WILL KNOCK FOUR TIMES" (Oooo, have the tissues ready!)
THANKS for this!!!!
A Bernard is named after Bernard Quatermass.
A character from a completely different set of British TV shows/ movies...
One which was sort of teased as existing in-universe back in Rememberance of the Daleks if I'm not misremembering.
Wasn't Tennant in that or the remake?
@@saltysaltmaker3848I thought that was Doctor Who itself, since the episode is set in November 1963.
@@Sparx632 There's a couple of lines as follows:
"I wish Bernard were here."
"The British Rocket Group's got it's own problems."
@@Sparx632 Oh no, that was in it too.
I think the not-Unit scientist mentioned 'Bernard' and the 'British Rocket Group'
This is just a good fun episode, a nice little adventure which is sorely needed because the final three specials get pretty heavy. This is like a last hurrah before things heat up.
You have to understand Jules, this episode was hyped up a fair bit back in the day. Since we didn't get a full season in 2009, they sort of went all in with the marketing for the specials. This one was extra special though because it was heavily touted as being Doctor Who's 200th story, hence the 'Number 200' bus (Classic who stories were made up of multiple episodes, typically between four and seven parts. However, there's some debate over the numbering of stories, depending on how you count them). I still have an Aussie TV Guide with the Doctor and Lady Christina on the cover.
They really did do a good job of making this special feel big though, even if the 'Easter Special' description doesn't extend beyond the Doctor eating an Easter egg. The fact that they filmed on location in Dubai definitely added to the grandeur and this was heavily publicised in the lead up to the broadcast, especially in Doctor Who Magazine. I'm sure by now you've heard that the bus was really damaged in transit, but they were able to work it into the story.
Lady Christina is great fun and a perfect foil for Tennant. She's definitely set up as a possible companion, but at the time it had already been said that the Doctor would be solo for the specials, joined by "one-off companions" in each one. You might be interested to know though that Christina has gone on to have further adventures with her own audio drama spin-off series, The Adventures of Lady Christina, with the actress reprising her role.
Malcolm is also wonderful and it's nice to see a new scientific advisore for U.N.I.T - that's the job the Doctor had when he worked for them back in the day. By the way, when Malcolm says he's read all of the Doctor's files and he asks if he liked the 'giant robot', that's a reference to the Fourth Doctor's debut story, Robot. Fittingly, this year is the 50th anniversary of that story's broadcast.
"I think your song must end, Sir. It is returning through the dark. He will knock four times."
Hmmm... I'm sure that's nothing to worry about. You're spot on too Jules, Ood Sigma told the Doctor that his song would be ending soon, back in Planet of the Ood.
I'm looking forward to the next few weeks Jules, I can't wait to see what you think of the remaining specials.
See, I don't know all those little references! The 200th episode! The hype beforehand! That's very cool. The comments here seem mixed though, a lot of people don't like this episode. I thought it was great! Other than the bit of cheese with the bus at the end 🤣
TV Guide!!! I remember those! I don't buy magazines anymore, but back in the day I used to love quite a few of them. I vaguely remember Smash Hits was one. And of course Dolly and Girlfriend 😆
@@julesreacts I guess that's the the downside to watching it years later, you don't get to experience the context surrounding the episodes. In a way though, that's also good because you go into everything completely blind without prior knowledge like cast announcements, especially when it comes to Doctors leaving (it's always a big deal when a Doctor announces that they're leaving).
I'm old-fashioned so I still buy Doctor Who Magazine regularly and a few others on occasion too, like SFX. I'm also a big comic book collector.
i like a fun rowdy episode like this in between the more serious and dramatic ones.... im so excited to be on this journey with you
I thought she could've been a good companion. I was disappointed that it was a one time adventure.
I wish they had kept Lady Christina on for a bit longer as a companion. Other than that, a fun one!
So they filmed in Abu-Dhabi, the first time (I think) they flew to another country to film the show.
The bus was shipped out there on a boat for location shooting but got damaged in a storm, so they wrote it into the episode that the wormhole damaged it. The interior shots were filmed back in Wales but all the exterior scenes with the bus were on location.
David Tennant was working with the Royal Shakespeare company the year this was filmed so it was a year of specials as he wasn't available for long periods of time to shoot a full season.
The UNIT captain is the same character from Turn Left in Donna's alternate world where they help her to see the time beetle on her back, so technically a returning character.
Edited for spelling.
This is a really fun one! I always enjoyed the setting with the desert world, and I thought the alien metal stingray swarm was an intriguing threat, especially since they only really managed to escape it rather than eliminate it - that swarm can just go on to another planet later on. I also liked the helpful fly aliens - proof that you can't judge a book by its colour!
"Humans on buses, always blaming me!..." Yeah, to be fair, the last time we saw The Doctor on a bus was in Midnight, and that didn't go well for him!
Oh, and you've met Cpt. Orisa Magambo from U.N.I.T. before! Well, a parallel universe version of her, at least. She was working with Rose in Turn Left, you may recall!
The Lady Christina would have made a fun longer-term companion, but alas it wasn't to be.
I'm so psyched for next week though...
I love how Jules' innocence and lack of pre-conceived ideas for people like Lee Evans makes me revaluate characters.
I have heard (but don't know if it is true) Elizabeth II was a fan of Dr. Who. So I am sure she wouldn't mind him parking the TARDIS at Buckingham Palace.
That's awesome. I bet she loved it!
This was a great episode but yeah I totally agree with you about the ending it felt alittle cliched.
I thought David Tennant and Michelle Ryan had a really great chemistry and it's such ashame she didn't become a regular companion because I think a thieving companion would had add something new to the series and to have the same dynamic but different view points between the Doctor and Christina she'd be like the Emma Peel of Dr. Who.
The different planet setting in the episode was filmed in Dubai the bus that was used in the episode originally wasn't suppose to be damaged at all it was meant to arrive in Dubai intact but it was damaged by a tow truck during the transport from London to Dubai the production crew started to panic but then came up with a very clever storyline that the bus was damaged due to going through the wormhole so all was sorted in the end.
Lee Evans who plays Malcolm was a well known comedian back in the 1990's and early 2000's I recommend checking out a film he was in called "Mousehunt" (1997) if you not seen it I highly recommend it it's very funny he was also in other movies such as "There's Something about Mary" (1998) and "The Fifth Element" (1997).
The giant robot that the Doctor mentions to Malcolm was a reference to the Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker's) first story "Robot" from Classic Who.
I liked Christina as well! A few people have mentioned what a great companion she'd make. It would really play on the good/bad side of the Doctor as well, with her penchant for taking trinkets!
"Humans on buses, always blaming me." "Midnight" callback.
Ah this was always a fun episode, as I recall this was an Easter Special in 2009 since after Series 4 it was a bunch of specials over the year, the previous episode was Christmas, this was Easter, I think the next episode isn’t a holiday time, was just in September or so and the episodes after that are Christmas and New Years, won’t say what happens but the next 3 are banger episodes.
David Tennant took a year off from filming Doctor Who so that he could get back to playing other roles and not get stuck in this one. To make up for it he did 3 or 4 specials to keep the audience going then the series got back to its normal schedule the next year again.
Fun Fact: Barclay is played by the guy who voices Hobie in Spider Verse
Malcolm, the one man to Rival that of Elton from Love & Monsters!
Some of Tennant's holiday guest companions were the best.
Yes ! it was an easter special
the rest of this season, was in fact a short season in itself, with some specials all over the year,
The desert scenes were filmed in Dubai.
Hmm. _Interview with the Vampire_ fanfic crossover?
Great reaction as always! I can’t wait for the next few weeks cause the 3 next episodes are some of my favorite ever!
I really hope you continue through at least till the end of the Capaldi era. I really love DW but ive rewatched it many a times so i dont want to do that again, this is a nice way to re-watch without re-watching. Especially with your reactions its like re-watching with a friend who has the same love for the series as me ❤
I will keep going until people lose interest or tell me to stop 😊😊 In that case, I'll just watch by myself!
She could've been a great companion
Fun Fact: The damage on the bus was unintentional and happened when it was being shipped to the filming location. Instead of delaying filming for another bus to get shipped over, they decided to use it's damage as part of the story.
You were right, they were in another country filming, they shipped the bus to Dubai for filming. The bus got damaged being unloaded in Dubai port, so they had to incorporate the damage into the story.
Oh Jules...I'm very much looking forward to your viewing of the next episode, and to be honest the two that follow it but this next one in particular is just one of my absolute favourite stories told in Doctor Who.
I hope you enjoy!!
To summarise the science briefly. You can map something without being able to read it. You map the dimensions by the absence of other things you would expect to find. So say there was an area where the elements that we know should be present but aren't and there is a projected dead spot, we would be able to map the dimensions of the dead spot. We might not necessarily know what the dead spot is but we could measure it. You could also say map any gravitational inconsistencies since we know that gravity is constant or the speed of light is constant except in areas where mass is concentrated, like black holes, which warp space time and slow time and light.
Also if she'd shot him, no one would have been able to close the wormhole in time and she'd have destroyed the human race. I think it is why the Doctor objects to firearms. They aren't a solution, they just cause a myriad of problems and unnecessary suffering.
"People on buses always blaming me!" Midnight reference. As will probably already have been stated, 'Bernard' is Bernard Quatermass, probably the BBC's first SciFi hero. There were three Hammer Quatermass films, good to watch as the TV serials are incomplete but if you can, watch the full BBC 'Quatermass and the Pit' which still exists, great! Michelle Ryan was primarily a soap star in the BBC's Eastenders but went to America to do one season as 'The Bionic Woman'.
If you're stuck on an alien planet miles from home, just remember two things - chops & gravy, and listen to the Doctor. And now I'm hungry.
I would happily remember both things!
Following David's third series (the fourth overall of the revival), they decided to do a series of four Specials the following year, rather than a full series. I think it _might_ have been partially a scheduling thing for David. I'm not positive on that; it was quite a while ago, but that seems vaguely familiar.
He wanted to do "Hamlet."
The reason they went from a Christmas special to an Easter special is because season four ended with Journey’s End, the remainder of “season 4” (as it’s usually lumped in on streaming services) were released throughout late 2008-late 2009 as specials rather than plain episodes
"This is too scientific for me"
Eureka! Archimedes said as he found he could find the volume (3d space) of the object (his body, gold, silver, whatever) by measuring the volume of water that overflowed from a full bathtub.
Similar thing by Malcolm. He used what was missing to calculate the object.
Yes, Malcolm was in "There's Something About Mary"...
"I fear your song is ending soon."
"Meaning?"
"All songs must end."
That's where her line about his song ending came from. As for "He will knock four times," well, you'll just have to wait...
The next special aired in the middle of November and the two following aired on Christmas Day and New Year's Day
The term "your sing is ending" is from the Planet Of The Ood episode, you are right!
I think Lady Christina is my second favourite "in episode" character. As in not a doctor or companion with a many episode arc. The first being Madame du Pompadour.
He released her😂🤣Awesome! Respect points given✅
Great episode thanks so much Juliette🥰
Texman 💜 this one was pretty cool, right?! I love the location!!
Malcome is a very famous British comedian Lee Evans
I thought this episode was fun! I also thought that it was intended to be a crossover pilot for a series featuring Lady Christina, and I kept an eye out for it as well! But alas, it became available as a podcast in 2018! It was called Lady Christina, and was on through 2021! She even had.... well, spoilers.... so we can leave it at that! The actor portraying Christina, Michelle Ryan, really enjoyed the character and was a fan of the show already! So she reprised her role as Christina a few times before finally making a podcast! But can you imagine a series based on her? Might be pretty good!!
Lovely to hang out with you for our weekly catch up. The end reminded me of flying high the movie. See you next week. 👋🏼🇦🇺
Thank you!! It's a pleasure to have you here 💜
Honestly, one of those that I don't rewatch much and instead tend to skip.
...Possibly way too much than actually necessary though, it ain't bad one, just bit boring'ISH.
That said, Malcolm is definitely a reason TO watch this one instead of skipping, even if one wouldn't be that much a fan of this one imo. I dunno how much fun Lee Evans had PER-SE while playing Malcolm, nor have I any idea how much of a fan of the show he is, but the impression I get from his performance is that he loved absolutely every minute on the set. :D
Damaged bus - Was damaged by vandalism.
"Knock 4 Times" - Will keep you watching rest of series 4 (all specials).
Next: See Torchwood Series 3 & Sarah Jane Adventures Series 3 for connecting plots and events.
RTD era coming to an end as well. So lots of threads will be tied up.
Malcolm is fantastic in this episode. Gotta love Malcolm 😂
“I’ll just step inside this police box and arrest myself.” Don’t know why but I always found that line extremely funny when I was a kid. I was 9 when this came out.
I've just been reminded of how fun this episode was. And relatively upbeat, with very little casualties, save for the bus driver, but he brought it on himself 😄 And the two insectoid aliens, but we didn't see much of them, so hard to really feel sorry.
And yes, Malcolm is a real gem 😄
Next episode, oh-hoh, it's gonna be a doozy...probably one of my absolute favorite episodes of the whole series 😉 Ready the kleenex and a blanket... 😝
Fun fact the damage to the bus is damage that happened on transit to India where the desert part of the episode is filmed
Rejecting Christina was in line with the traits the Doctor values most whenever he chooses his companions. Notice how all his companions showed selflessness, compassion, kindness and they value life above all else. Therefore he considered that Christina has that dash of selfishness that could one day be fatal to them. I love how human values is one of the things promoted by this series, but not directly most of the times, instead they are hidden beautifully between the lines by screenwriting. As for what's to come, you need to remember that one thing: "He will knock 4 times"
But there's a bad massage here. how the Doctor turns his companions into completely different people than what they were before starting to travel with him.
Christina was different and could've been a healthy lesson to the Doctor as well, as he could see that he's not always responsible for the way people around him behave. they always have this cliche of "the Doctor's companions keep him human" while forgetting that humanity doesn't always translate in being good exactly and history has proved it over and over. why the Doctor couldn't learn the same lesson?
I think she has picked up on the knock thing, as she states it is important at around 29 minutes into this video.
Hello, Jules!💜
A great special (extra long episode) which is not all that loved by the fan horde. Many disliked Christina, and the story itself. I have always liked this one. Sort of a The Doctor meets Lady Lara Croft.
It has many humorous moments - and a lot of them involving the character Malcolm, Lee Evans - whom I first saw in the science fiction adventure film, really more of a comedy/romance - The Fifth Element - one of my favorite cult films, but that is not Doctor Who and the Easter Special... 🤭
Great moments here, which you note - as the Doctor puts everyone at ease, on the bus. I do love when he cracks on UNIT people, and here was a good one - "... did you just salute..." 😅
Which was a callback to a previous saluting incident. Other, random callbacks as well, from Christina, "No stranger than you, Spaceman." and the minor one, which, to my mind, makes her a fun, adventuresome character - "I hate you!" which takes me back to the Forest of the Dead episode, when where River says "I hate you sometimes!". And, again, great recall on the back reference to the Ood quote, "I think your song must end soon... Every song must end." - from Planet of the Ood. Well done, yet again, Jules!🥰
Initially you were confused, but you came back on fire very soon, and started predicting the course of action, as at 13:08, when you guess Christina will use her rope contraption to get the piece, and you went on a roll from there!
My favorite Doctor line in this one, was also one you noted - "You look Time Lord." 🥰
I too was happy the Doctor aided and abetted Christina with her escape, it fits with the overall tenor of this one - more of a lark than a serious episode, but I always wonder about the technology she got away with - it could advance human science years ahead of time, to the point that it could one day be part of an X-Files investigation - I can hear Scully scolding Mulder now - "It hasn't been properly tested Mulder. I don't think you should push that....". 🤣
A great episode, well edited. I know you enjoy the extra scenes in the specials, but I also know they require extra care, and time in order to make the react videos. I think you for your diligence and patience.
Have a wonderful day, Jules💜🤗💜 Enjoy the time, knowing that once you are finished doing what you do this day, you will have a grand sleep, and awaken on the front step of another Weekend! Thank you, and Be Well.😊
Tom 😊💜 Thank you for your very kind words and wonderful review! It was a delightful episode! Very reminiscent of Midnight with the bus and a group of strangers, but with a MUCH bigger set and budget, to boot! I wasn't sure if it was a set or they were really in a desert, and to my surprise I learned that it was actually in Dubai. I think it may be their first time they've filmed overseas that I know of? I just think that's impressive!
I would LOVE to have seen an X Files/Doctor Who crossover!! Mulder would be beside himself, he'd have a field day with the Doctor! My goodness. Talk about a missed opportunity 😅
YES! Tomorrow is indeed Friday, I'm not feeling too bad so I should be all good tomorrow. No, I have not taken time off 😆 It hasn't really been that bad. Try not to scold me too much 😜
Enjoy your dip into the weekend, Dear Tom! I am so looking forward to some relaxation 💜
The museum section was filmed in the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff
They had great chemistry, she would have been a great love interest for the Doctor. Malcolm was a great character.
I liked this one too ! Oh my gosh I did not think of the Midnight reference eeeppp ! Again a nice light hearted episode. I cannot wait for next week
Doctor Who is probably the best show on this channel! Followed by: Buffy on Friday afternoons! Shows must go on!!!
This was the first ever episode of New Doctor Who I ever watched and the second Doctor Who episode I ever saw! At the time, I thought there were only two Doctors, the grumpy old grandfather in greyscale and the reboot doctor with the pointy hair XD Had no idea until years after that the show had been ongoing since the 60s!
Regarding the whole "You look human, "You look Time Lord," thing - I once heard that the leader of the Time Lords, named Rassilon, one of his regenerations anyway, previously travelled the galaxy before the Time Lords kind of stepped back, and somehow Rassilon was directly responsible for so many species on different planets turning out to look like Time Lords, including both humans and the species the Daleks mutated from. True story. Well, fictional, and I can't remember who even told me all this, but you know, comment over. :P
They did actually take a bus to a desert to film this. Dubai I think.
The city of WHAT-NOW? Did I hear Sanghelios?
The bus driver wouldn't pull over unless someone rang the bell.
And maybe not even then.
Michelle Ryan was very famous from her role in EastEnders so this was quite a thing. One of those companions who never happened, like Sally Sparrow, Astrid Peth, Lynda With A Y, Jenny. I always thought Michelle was going to be a huge star - beautiful, talented - but it never really happened.
I believe there are some Big Finish audio stories that continue the adventures of Lady Christina.
This is why Doctor Who fans take a deep breath when they realise they've accidentally knocked four times . . .
Sorry, got to go, someone at the door . . . 😨
Will have to limit my door knocking to only 3 in the future!!
When The Doctor says, "always people on buses blaming me!" That's a clear reference to the Midnight episode. I love it!!
❤️❤️🟦⏱️🛸
Yes!! Love the bus episodes haha
This is an all around good episode. I know a lot of people aren't too fond of Christina but I LOVE the scene where the Doctor reassures he will get them home - Russell always emphasises the humanity so well. I can't wait to see your reaction to the next episode!
People didn't like Christina?
Who are people, about 6 million people watch this you only have a sample of a handful. All you can say is a few people didn't like her.
3:50 "Humans on busses always blaming me" flashbacks to Midnight
Best episode next lets goooooo
The Doctor always seems to find someone to 'Adventure' with...=))
HE WILL KNOCK FOUR TIMES............ FIND OUT SOON
These special episodes are fun, and we have a couple more of them.
It was filmed just outside of Dubai.
People like to complain about this one, but I like. It's fun and it feels just like a crazy adventure, which is Doctor Who needs everyone and then.
As I've said before, I think people just don't like fun. Everything has to be dark, scary and utterly heartwrenching for some reason...
Great to see and hear Jules laughing throughout this great episode of New Who!
Makes a change! :)
It DOES! Need more laughing, less crying... PLEASE 😅