| THE UNICORN AND THE WASP by Gareth Roberts |
| Story 39 Synopsis: The TARDIS lands in 1926 in the grounds of Eddison Hall, where Lady Clemency Eddison is entertaining Agatha Christie. Almost immediately, a professor is murdered in the library. Eddison's housekeeper, Miss Chandrakala is then murdered outside. Donna is menaced by a giant wasp. During dinner, the wasp reappears briefly, before Eddison's jewelled necklace, the Firestone, is stolen by the mysterious thief, the Unicorn. After the Doctor survives an attempt at poisoning by cyanide, he gets Christie to work it out. She correctly deduces the identity of the Unicorn, revealing the presence of the Firestone. The Doctor then deduces that the giant wasp is connected to Eddison and the Firestone. Christie flits with the stone, drawing the wasp away after her. The Doctor and Donna follow. Christie drives to a lake, where Donna throws the Firestone into the water, where the wasp follows, dying, leaving Christie with amnesia, as history recorded. |
| Review:- It's a murder mystery! With yer actual Agatha Christie! Er, and a big wasp!? Following his smash-flop The Shakespeare Code, Gareth Roberts hits the celebrity historical trail again, with another writer! This time someone of less regard to the English language than Shakespeare or Dickens, but who cares when the production team can knock up some good sets and it means a parody of Christie's own genre?! In a vague attempt at aping detective novels, there is a small subplot about a jewel thief, the so-called Unicorn (why this soubriquet has been adopted is, naturally, irrelevant). But to make sure people remember it's a sci-fi show, there's a giant wasp buzzing around. Er..? So the matter of the murders becomes more clearly about the wasp, and less about the unicorn, which means Christie and the Doctor have to share the solving, which doesn't help either. Christie is also lumbered with Donna trying to give her ideas for her books (an idea which might have been funny once, but not after being repeated series after series). There's also time for a brief slapstick sequence in the kitchen, with Donna trying to save the Doctor from cyanide poisoning. Because slapstick is a major feature of Christie's plots, as I'm sure nobody would agree. It's just an excuse for someone to say 'Sparkling Cyanide', which is one of a great many Christie titles which get name-checked in dialogue, which says more about her abuse of cliches than anything positive. Though it's probably fun for kids to spot, it's not for anyone else. Ultimately, it is the jewel thief who triggers the final showdown, with Lady Eddison's mysterious Firestone proving the target of the wasp. Poor Felicity Kendal tries her best, but her character motivations would floor any actress. She does at least fare better than the poor vicar who plays it silly for the kids, though it must be the fault of the script. Thankfully, Christie takes the initiative and leads the wasp away, before Donna can solve the case with a dose of practicality, and cold-blooded logic. Quite what would become of Eddison or the Unicorn becomes irrelevant, because Christie's mystery is all the writer cares about. Throw in a coda where the Doctor tells Donna (and the audience) that Christie's works live forever and you imagine the production team felt they'd done their bit. But frankly, they probably ticked off a lot more viewers than they delighted, and one can only agree with David Bowie, who turned down the chance to be in it. If only the rest of the cast had agreed. Another ego-trip disaster for Roberts, and an insult to Christie. |
| Disclaimer: I have watched this story. |