Episode 35: Kidnap

Synopsis:

Alone in the darkness of the aqueduct, the Doctor hears the savage growls of an unseen creature...

His light goes out as the unseen creature attacks, but it is scared off by the arrival of Ian and Susan. The Doctor discovers that his coat has been ripped to shreds.

In the disintegrator weapon room the Second Elder is forced to use his telepathic communicator to contact the Senior Warrior, ordering him to bring the key to the weapon. Once it has been handed over to the disguised Administrator the Second Elder attempts to stop the weapon being used. He wrecks the key, dying in the struggle.

Determined to capitalise on this incident, the Administrator informs the First Elder of the death of his deputy. He brings a witness - his ally the Engineer - to claim that it was the Doctor who committed the crime. He was seen pulling a weapon from his coat pocket and striking the Elder down with it. 

Ian quickly demolishes his claims as the Doctor has just been given a cloak by the First Elder, to replace his ruined coat. The Engineer then claims that the weapon was removed from a cloak, but his lies are now apparent. He is arrested.

Unaware of his true nature, the Doctor, Ian and Susan propose that the Administrator be elevated to the vacant Second Elder role, hoping to make an ally of him.

They then go and visit the now recovered John, who warns them of the Sensorite who was plotting against them. On hearing of a distinctive collar, Susan identifies him as the City Administrator - whom they have just helped to increase his power and influence.

The Doctor has unfinished business in the aqueduct, and Ian insists on accompanying him this time. They ask for Barbara to be allowed to join them from the spaceship, to be with Susan while they are away, and the First Elder agrees. He gives them torches and weapons along with a map before they set off. 

The new Second Elder intercepts these. He has succeeded in freeing the Engineer, hiding him in the disintegrator room, and tasks him with altering the map and sabotaging the weapons. The Doctor and Ian only discover this once they are lost in the tunnels.

Unaware of their whereabouts, Carol tells Susan that she will go and find them. As she crosses the palace courtyard she is seized by a Sensorite and dragged away...

Next episode: A Desperate Venture

Data:

Written by: Peter R Newman

Recorded: Friday 26th June 1964 - Lime Grove Studio G

First broadcast: 5:15pm, Saturday 25th July 1964

Ratings: 6.9 million / AI 57

Designer: Raymond P Cusick

Director: Frank Cox

Critique:

From this instalment Frank Cox takes over as director. He had previously directed the second episode of The Edge of Destruction, by way of trying him out. Mervyn Pinfield, who had helmed the first four instalments, resumed his role as Associate Producer and was credited as such.

Cox had to contend with a move to a new studio for the programme - Lime Grove G. This was even worse than the inadequate Studio D, in that it had the additional problem of being long and narrow. This posed problems for set design and layout.

The aqueduct tunnels were mostly composed of black drapes in low lighting. This hid the fact that Hartnell was wearing a pre-ripped version of his coat in the opening cliff-hanger reprise scene, which he then discarded for the rest of the episode.

Round about 5:37pm on Saturday 25th June, 1964, viewers were probably wondering why this episode was titled Kidnap, as no-one had been abducted and the end credits were soon to roll.

Yes, it is odd that the whole episode gets its name from an incident which only takes place in the closing seconds. What is more interesting is who gets kidnapped. It is not one of the regulars, but astronaut Carol. This is the first time that a guest character has been the featured person in a cliff-hanger situation.

Cliff-hangers are still with us, though not as numerous as they once were, so are generally reserved for the Doctor and /or companion. In the revived series the pre-credit sequence has gone some way to replace the cliff-hanger, and this does allow for others to be seen in danger.

The scene where Carol is abducted was an unscheduled second take - a rare thing at this time, as it meant an expensive edit. The programme was being recorded onto videotape. Editing of this was crude - quite literally taking a razor blade and some sticky tape and making a physical slice and splice. This damaged the tape, making it unusable if done too many times on the same tape. Directors were given a maximum number of cuts permitted before each session, which was generally only two or three at the very most. Ideally there should be none at all, which is why so many fluffs and other mistakes are evident in these older stories. As well as their maximum number of permitted edits, directors were also asked to have at least one fade to black, so that foreign TV stations could insert an advert break. For these foreign sales, the videotape was filmed by a 16mm camera, and it was this that was sent abroad. It is often these 16mm film recordings which have allowed so much 1960's material to survive for the archives, as the foreign TV stations returned them after they no longer needed or them or - more importantly - failed to return them, and so avoided them being destroyed.

Another unseen adventure is mentioned as the Doctor tells his companions how Beau Brummell always thought that he looked good in a cloak. Socialite George Bryan Brummell (1778 - 1840) was nicknamed "Beau" due to his obsession with fashion. Initially a great friend of the future George IV, his advice on style matters was much sought after by society men. One thing he popularised was the long trouser. The fashion of the day was for knee-breeches and stockings.

He was a member of the Tenth Royal Hussars - the Prince's regiment - but resigned when the company was relocated to Manchester as it wasn't fashionable enough. His final fall out with George occurred at a ball in 1813 when he felt slighted by the Prince Regent, prompting him to loudly ask an acquaintance "Who's your fat friend?".

Ostracised by society he fled to France to avoid debtors prison. He ended his days in Caen, penniless and insane due to syphilis, at the age of 61. Presumably the Doctor got his fashion advice whilst Brummell was still the famed Regency dandy.

Trivia:

• This episode saw a 1.5 million increase in viewership from the previous week, though the appreciation index figure dropped from 60 to 57.
• In describing the attack on him in the aqueduct the Doctor mentions a blow struck beneath the heart. That's heart, singular. It doesn't necessarily follow that he only has one at this point - he might simply be saying that the blow was struck beneath one particular heart.
• Something which will become a bit of a cliché in the series over the years is heard for the first time this week: a character describes him as "the one they call the Doctor". 
• This week Joe Greig played the Senior Warrior, whilst Gerry Martin and Anthony Rogers featured as a messenger and a palace servant. Ken Tyllsen was the Scientist.
• Radio Times featured a small photograph of Susan from The Aztecs alongside the programme listing. This was because Carole Ann Ford was also appearing in Juke Box Jury that evening, immediately after Kidnap had broadcast. On the panel with her was Beatle George Harrison.