Scarecrow-88 Review of An Adventure in Space and Time

An Adventure in Space and Time (2013 TV Movie)

An Adventure in Time and Space

[8/10 · 22 November 2013]

The rather remarkable story of the origins of Doctor Who, a BBC television iconic show that almost didn't make it. It follows primarily William Hartnell (the First Doctor), on the last legs of his career, at his most disgruntled, jaded, and frustrated, as his twilight glimmers for a few bright years (during this grueling schedule (or shedule) he battled memorizing difficult scientific jargon about space and time, as well as, dealing with younger cast members whose ways were a bit bothersome to him). He learned how to adapt to the nature of a science fiction show, and took the part seriously, particularly the set of the TARDIS (how it is supposed to function and how his character operates the controls). Also an important figure in Doctor Who's success is the female producer, Verity Lambert (Jessica Raine), for how she fought tooth and nail with the men in the BBC studios world and its presentation of a different kind of sci-fi show. Brian Cox, as Sydney Newman, Verity's boss (the man who hired her despite obvious tensions for a woman in a man's world at that time in television) is an absolute hoot, getting it from both sides as Doctor Who goes through budget/production problems, wondering if he made the right decision with his hire while the cost to fund this show has the studio bosses ill at ease. Verity's partner, Waris (Sacha Dhawan), is also a major part of the show's initial success, helping her guide the show through some rough patches (the studio actually loses power and rain splashes into the TARDIS set!!!). David Bradley looks exactly like Hartnell! It's uncanny! He brings an anguish and melancholy to this man, and when Sydney tells Hartnell his time as the Doctor Who is over, it is positively gutwrenching. Good work at establishing time and place during the 60s. The love and affection for this show is alive and well as you watch An Adventure in Space and Time. Particularly thrilling is seeing the formation of the beginnings of the Daleks. I also loved seeing how the TARDIS' creation was kind of half-assed when an art director was tired of Verity hounding him on giving her a design. Just seeing the BBC studio behind the scenes—those inner workings—was cool. If you are a Doctor Who fan, don't miss this. It will probably break your heart—seeing an older actor losing his ability to recite his lines and perform when he longs to continue and is besought by his aging and burgeoning illness can be difficult. Hartnell's mixture of acceptance in how his character and show are becoming a phenomenon, along with his granddaughter's joy of her "sampa" being such a star, and the demands of how Doctor Who wears him out, are emphasized.