Doctor Who review: The Creeping Death balances history with horror and drama
By James Aggas
In 1952, the Doctor and Donna arrive during one of London’s worst disasters in Doctor Who: The Creeping Death. But there’s another threat hiding in the fog…
Following the present-day spooky shenanigans of No Place and the alien city featured in One Mile Down, The Creeping Death – the third story from last year’s Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor Adventures Volume 3 – fittingly features a historical setting. However, unlike many other historical stories, the period featured is considerably closer to home than usual, particularly for Donna.
Set in 1952, the TARDIS arrives during the Great Smog of London. Despite being her home city, it’s an event that Donna knows hardly anything about, allowing the Doctor to explain to both her and the audience how horrific the event was. Across only a few days, thousands died, making the Great Smog the worst air-pollution event in the history of the UK.
Telling a Doctor Who story during such a large-scale tragedy – especially a relatively recent one, at least as far as the huge scale of history is concerned – can be a risky move. But writer Roy Gill has handled the tone just right. There’s a lot of acknowledgment of how serious the situation is, but at the same time, he’s made sure to tell a good Doctor Who story too.
We get another great story for David Tennant and Catherine Tate as the Tenth Doctor and Donna with The Creeping Death.
Image Courtesy Tony Whitmore, Big Finish Productions
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Strange monsters and colorful characters
One thing that helps is how effective the monster is for The Creeping Death. Without going into too much detail, it’s one that’s specifically designed to complement the situation rather than clash with it. As a result, the threat is not only increased but still allows for plenty of focus on the danger of the smog itself.
There are quite a few distinctive characters in this one, too. There’s a lot of focus on the following trio: Richard Cooper (Kieran Bew), Ivy Clark (Lauren Cornelius) and Terry Hopkins (Theo Stevenson). Roy Gill provides these characters with just the right amount of emotion and character drama, particularly in the relationships shared between all three, while avoiding the trap of distracting too much from telling a good Doctor Who story.
I also need to point out how great the other characters are, too. Both Stephen Critchlow and Helen Goldwyn are gloriously old-fashioned as Malcolm Wishart and Alice Aiken, respectively. The latter is particularly great, as Aiken is someone who thinks far too much of herself. Not someone you’d ever want to meet in real life, but great to listen to on audio, at least. Goldwyn also puts in a decent performance as the monster of the story, too.
Overall, there’s a lot to enjoy about The Creeping Death. It makes great use of its historical setting. It features characters that feel real and fleshed out. And of course, it tells an enjoyable Doctor Who adventure. A strong story that fits the style of Series 4 perfectly.
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Have you listened to The Creeping Death? What are your thoughts on it? What major historical event do you think should be explored in Doctor Who at some point? Let us know in the comments below.