Premise: As the Doctor shows Romana around Paris they become aware of a time distortion and a mysterious woman, the Countess Scarlioni, who is showing a great deal of interest in the Mona Lisa...
Notes: This was another story was written under the pseudonym David Agnew, with the outline being presented by David Fisher and then heavily changed by script editor Douglas Adams with some input from producer Graham Williams. Featuring the first location footage on the series to be filmed overseas, this story featured iconic Paris landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre. Well known comedic actors John Cleese and Eleanor Bron featured in a scene in part four after being persuaded by Douglas Adams after he found out they would be in the BBC Television Centre on the day it was to be filmed. Thanks to a strike at ITV, this story received the highest ratings in the shows history with the fourth part gaining 16.1 million viewers.
Verdict: While heavily criticised at the time for it's comedic tone, it is this factor which makes it one of the highlights of the entire series. It is great fun to watch with all the cast on top form and the Paris backdrop only adds to it. But while the resolution works well from a comedic stand point, it's a bit of an anti-climax from a dramatic stand point 9/10
No comments:
Post a Comment