10.17: The Shakespeare Code
In which we learn that people in the past were just like us!
Broadcast: April 2007
Watched: August 2021
“Brave new world.” In Gareth Roberts’ first TV episode, the villain is a girl with two mothers. Subtext, text. Chritina Cole is very well cast, though: that kind of pretty where you can imagine she’s actually a psychopath on the quiet. She’d make a good Becky Sharp.
One of the best looking episodes to date: it’s a huge, historical set, not just a fancy house dressed up, they’ve actually gone and built Elizabethan London. All the “Look how like modern London it is!” stuff – like the interesting thing about the past is the similarity to now, not the difference – is literally a John Finnemore sketch.
I’m not sure it’s really thought through. Shakespeare is a genius by authorial fiat – it’s not obvious how he might see through the psychic paper, or work out who the Doctor and Martha are, he just does because we’re meant to know he’s clever. And the ending makes no sense whatsoever. But it’s episode 2 and it’s fun and well made and that’s enough for this slot.
Martha is clearly cleverer/more educated than Rose, she asks a lot of questions about the mechanics of time travel and history. The Doctor pretending he doesn’t know she fancies him is grating already. I like the way the witches use the Doctor’s ego against him, though: he assumes one of them’s flirting, when she’s actually just trying to get some hair for her voodoo doll thing.
Loved Dean Lennox Kelly because of Shameless. He’s fine. I do like the decision to play Shakespeare as a rock star shagger, not a fop, though.
Other things:
The recurring “Ooh, that’s quite good” joke is really annoying.
The Carrionites have the same goal as the Racnoss, and share the fate of the Family of Blood. The show is repeating itself already.
The Harry Potter bit: “Wait til you read book 7 – oooh, I cried!” So did I.It was "I open at the close".
Casting Super Hans in a role that requires you to take someone seriously is the inverse of what the show will soon do with John Simm.
One aerial shot makes it look like the Globe is nowhere near the river? Cock up I assume.
I’m not sure Shakespeare *was* seen as a genius at the time, was he? He was commercially successful, highly regarded, but nothing more special than that I thought?