The Dæmons: Episode One

The entertaining Damaris Hayman brings something of the eccentric Margaret Rutherford to this enjoyable series as she claims to be an white witch ("Hawthorne") warning of great dangers should the pompous "Prof. Horner" (Robin Wentworth) go ahead with uncovering a tomb long since hidden near the menacingly named village of "Devil's End". If you ever doubted the "Doctor" could do time travel, then a quick glance at the television coverage of this event would prove that we could all watch BBC3 almost fifty years before it did actually start broadcasting! Anyway, the Time Lord (Jon Pertwee) and "Jo" (Katy Manning) hear her portents of doom and race to stop the dig. Meantime, the place has a new vicar in the form of "Magister". Yep, it's Roger Delgado using a Latin disguise. What's he doing at an ancient dig, though? Well that soon becomes apparent as the giant "Azal" emerges whom he hopes will endow him with power to rule humanity. With an heat shield surrounding the village ensuring that the increasingly frustrated "Brigadier" (Nicholas Courtney) is kept at arms length, it falls to our intrepid duo as well as the civvie-clad "Capt. Yates" (Richard Franklin) and "Sgt. Benson" (John Levene) to do some thwarting before their antagonist becomes all-powerful. This is one of Delgado's better efforts as his menace in a dog-collar works nicely with the eccentric Hayman, an helicopter, plenty of remote controlled Bessie, a bit of ESP lightbulb shattering, a flighty blue devil and there's even a floral dance (without an hint of Terry Wogan). Its darker than many with some Satanic menace and adequate visual effects to support a story rooted in folklore that plays to superstition. There is a solid cast of support and across a more tightly edited five-parts this brings the season to an entertaining conclusion.

I have a theory that every "Doctor Who" fan has his or her own Doctor, and mine is Jon Pertwee's Third. I am too young to recall the original broadcasts of the William Hartnell stories, and only have vague memories of Patrick Troughton, but Pertwee was the incumbent Doctor when I first started to take a real interest in the series, and much as I came to love Tom Baker and Peter Davison in the role I have never lost that inner conviction that Pertwee is the "real" Doctor. Another bonus was that, at least during his first two seasons, his adventures took place on Earth, in a contemporary Britain, which to my way of thinking made them more satisfactorily frightening than any story set on a distant planet or in the dim and distant past.

"The Dæmons", one of these modern, British-set serials, has a plot which could be taken straight from the works of Dennis Wheatley. An archaeological team is excavating a Bronze Age burial mound in the village of Devil's End (actually Aldbourne in Wiltshire). The dig is being covered by "BBC Three"- in 1971 a fictitious television network, although a real network with that name was created many years later. A local white witch, Olive Hawthorne, issues dire warnings that the dig will unleash demonic forces of great evil, but she is dismissed as a crank. She also suspects the local vicar, the Revd. Magister, of conducting Satanic ceremonies in the church crypt. She does, however, have one unexpected ally- the Doctor himself.

Now what is all this? I hear you ask. Surely the Doctor is a rational, scientific sort of chap, the last person you would expect to believe in Black Magic? And the answer is no, he doesn't. He explains that the Earth is indeed in danger from demonic forces, but that Daemons are beings from another planet and not (as Miss Hawthorne believes) supernatural entities. These extraterrestrial beings have been visiting Earth over the centuries but have been mistaken by humans for gods and devils; they have powers which seem supernatural to the uninitiated, but there is always a rational, scientific explanation for them. As for Magister, he is none other than the Doctor's old enemy, the Master, who has somehow managed to get himself ordained as a priest of the Church of England.

There is in fact another reason besides scientific rationalism why the Doctor could not be confronted by genuinely supernatural forces. During the sixties and seventies the BBC were very suspicious of anything to do with the occult and a programme dealing with genuine Satanism could certainly not have been broadcast at peak family viewing times.

Jon Pertwee's Third Doctor- kindly, knowledgeable, rational, and gentlemanly- seemed admirably suited to serials like this one. Of course, like any incarnation of the Doctor he had to have his little eccentricities. His dandyish dress-sense set him apart from his immediate predecessor Troughton and from most of his successors. (Colin Baker's Sixth Doctor looked as though he had just left a fancy-dress party and Sylvester McCoy's Seventh as though he did all his shopping in charity stores). He also drove a bright yellow veteran car called "Bessie", which features prominently in this story. (The Doctor's more traditional vehicle, the TARDIS, is never mentioned).

Jo Grant was not the most memorable "Doctor Who Girl", but this was perhaps because the Earth-bound nature of his adventures during this period meant that he did not really need a travelling companion of the sort who had accompanied the First and Second Doctors. During this period, however, the series featured two splendid recurring characters. The first was Roger Delgado's Master, brought in because someone obviously thought that the series needed a regular villain, Moriarty to the Doctor's Holmes. Delgado played the role with great relish, and his early death in a car crash was a terrible loss to the series. The second was the Doctor's ally, Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart of the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce (UNIT). "The Daemons" also has a brilliant minor character in Damaris Hayman's Miss Hawthorne, a genteelly eccentric middle-class witch.

"Doctor Who" was notorious for its cheap special effects, but in this serial they are actually quite convincing. A scene in which the church is destroyed in an explosion was convincing enough to provoke protests from viewers who believed that the BBC were actually guilty of the monstrous sacrilege of blowing up Aldbourne Church in the name of light entertainment. (Needless to say, a model was used in this sequence). The script is both intelligent and entertaining, and even manages to combine an ostensibly serious subject with a good deal of humour. The ending of "The Daemons" is rather weak, but otherwise this is an excellent adventure.

Review of all 5 episodes:

This story begins with an absolutely fantastic episode which is Doctor Who at its very best. The atmospheric, eerie goings on and brilliantly believable characterisations exude sheer class. The acting and writing are of the highest standard and the production values are good for the day. This excellence continues as the story continues into a great 2nd episode. The middle and end part of the story is slightly more variable in a way with moments that are not perfectly executed and parts that are less well thought through (such as the Master's manipulation of villagers, satanic rituals and morris dancing) than the magnificent best aspects of the story but there is enough really great stuff going on all the way through to keep every episode at a minimum of 9/10. The Doctor and the UNIT team are at their absolute peak with engaging and funny performances all round.

The story involves magic versus science with The Master using black magic incantations to summon an ancient and ultra-powerful being to try to conquer the Earth. There is a sleepy English village, a mysterious barrow, a stone gargoyle coming to life to attack, an enormous cloven-hooved being, a wonderful white witch, an impressively exploding church and some great guest performances. For example there is a terrific cameo by Robert Wentworth as the cynically gritty but amusing archaeologist Professor Horner and a funny but realistic TV crew led by David Simeon as Alastair Fergus. One such nice cameo is from UNIT technical expert Sgt. Osgood who Steven Moffatt much later intended to be the father of the character Osgood in 21st Century Doctor Who. He apparently decided against officially naming him as her father because he worried it would have annoyed fans by contradicting Osgood's life as portrayed in extended universe material although fear of upsetting fans seems out of character.

The final episode is basically all brilliant fun except for a very slight anticlimax with how the Daemon Azal suddenly overreacts to Jo's willingness to sacrifice her life for the Doctor. It is a small complaint though as the Doctor's performance makes up for it with the moral and environmental themes raised very well indeed. Jon Pertwee is exceptional throughout this story with fine support from Nicholas Courtney. There is great action with John Levene and Richard Franklin particularly active in punch ups, helicopter/motorcycle chases and shootouts. Roger Delgado exudes class and charisma as the Master and the dialogue all the way through is excellent.

Magic is in the air in more ways than one and that magic touch and charm shines through this story overcoming any production limitations or small issues.

My ratings: Episodes 1 & 2 - 10/10, Episode 3 - 9.5/10, Episode 4 - 9/10, Episode 5 - 9.5/10. Overall - 9.6/10.

Season 8 Overall Review:

Season 8 was a great season introducing the iconic villain The Master and maintaining high standards of script and fun ideas.

Season 8 average rating: 8.66/10.

The opening episode of The Dæmons is just terrific, almost every element enjoy is here, it's dark, gothic, loaded with characters, and of course has the small village setting.

Although Philip Hinchcliffe is credited as the bringer of horror to the show, it's worth remembering that the hammer horror vibe had previously been used, her for example, with huge success.

Talk of The Devil, must have shocked certain viewers at the time, references to a horned figure, point only one way. It is full of dark moments too, the moment where the Policeman tries to bash Miss Hawthorne with a rock, The Master donned up in satanic robes leading a ceremony.

First part, terrific. 10/10