Mark Gatiss was always a little hit and miss when it came to his Doctor Who scripts, I found, and I'm afraid that, despite some interesting moments, "The Idiot's Lantern" is one that can be considered a bit of a damp squib.
Heading to the early 50's in a bid to see The King, instead they land in London preparing for a new Queen. Television sets are becoming popular in people's homes as they want to watch the Coronation - but several North London households are hiding a secret, faceless family members, caused by their suspiciously low-priced televisions from Magpie Electrics.
To be clear, I don't think that "The Idiots Lantern" is a bad episode, just that it's a bit underwhelming. Mostly I think this stems from the villain. Ron Cook's Mr Magpie is OK, but the reluctant accomplice comes rather soon after Colin Spaull's Mr. Crane in the Cybermen double bill. Magpie is more tortured, but still the similarities are present. Then we have the real bad guy, Maureen Lipman's The Wire. (Sadly short on references to McNulty or Stringer Bell). Whereas the idea of a character on a TV talking back to you has the potential to be a bit creepy, the actual performance is played for knowing laughs a little too much and the "Hungry... Hungry" refrain is too bizarre and too little unsettling. Add into that the Connolly family, and boorish patriarch Eddie, played by television staple Jamie Foreman, who again are nicely played - if not particularly memorable characters and you're left with an episode that doesn't add up to very much.
The Doctor and Rose do have some nice interactions though, particularly a funny gag about Rose's mum and sailors and you get to see his anger (again) when Rose falls foul of the Wire's power. It's odd, but once you know it was written with Ecclestone's Doctor in mind, it does start to feel a little more understandable.
Again, it's not a "bad" episode - it's just an underwhelming one.