Turn Left
“Things can only get better”
There was a Doctor Who Prom at the Royal Albert Hall this year. The first for over a decade. It was presented by Catherine Tate and watching her from my family’s seats up in the gods last week, glammed up, giggly, generous and oozing charisma, it was hard not to be struck by the distance between this stage persona and Donna Noble. Hard not to appreciate anew just what an extraordinary performance Donna is.
This is why, a couple of days later, and for the first time in some years, I found myself returning to Turn Left, perhaps the best showcase in Doctor Who for Ms Tate’s skills as a dramatic actor.
Turn Left is 2008’s “Dr Lite” story, an episode where, as I’m sure you know, the Doctor makes a limited appearance due to production factors. Earlier “Dr Lite” episodes had had “one off” leads, such as Marc Warren in then showrunner Russell T Davies’ own Love & Monsters (2006) and future film star Carey Mulligan in Blink (2007).
The first draft is dated 20 August and it began shooting on 2 October, Lehman Brothers fell on 15 September. ↩
And if that seems off to you, consider the final exchange between the Doctor and Mr Copper at the end of Voyage of the Damned. ↩
As to why she can’t find another Doctor alive in another universe, perhaps Davies avers to the suggestion in the New Adventures Writers’ Guidelines (something which Davies, the author of a book in that series, would necessarily have read) that what makes the main Doctor Who universe special is that it’s the only one with Time Lords, thus the only one with a Doctor. ↩
The voiceover “orders from Mr Saxon” is even removed from a reused shot from The Runaway Bride to underline the point. ↩
It’s just one of a score of amazing moments from Cribbins in what may also be his best performance in Doctor Who. They range from the whistle-like way he says “Merry Christmas” to his barked, appalled invective at a soldier who threatens his grandchild: “Call yourself a soldier? Pointing guns at innocent women?” ↩