Sunday 8 January 2012

412 Pyramids of Mars Part Three

EPISODE: Pyramids of Mars Part Three
OVERALL EPISODE NUMBER: 412
STORY NUMBER: 082
TRANSMITTED: 08 November 1975
WRITER: Stephen Harris (pseudonym for Robert Holmes and Lewis Griefer)
DIRECTOR: Paddy Russell
SCRIPT EDITOR: Robert Holmes
PRODUCER: Philip Hinchcliffe
FORMAT: DVD: Doctor Who - Pyramids Of Mars

Sarah immobilises the mummy with the control ring they took from Namin. The Doctor & Sarah find the missile that the Mummies are building. Lawrence suggests the use the poacher's store of blasting gelignite to destroy the missile. The Doctor deactivates one of the generator loops to allow them to get to the poacher's hut. Sutekh detects their interference. Lawrence finishes stripping one of the mummy robots for the Doctor when he is found and killed by his brother. The Doctor & Sarah return and discover his body. The Doctor disguises himself as a mummy to get close to the missile to place the explosives which he intends Sarah to shoot with Lawrence's rifle. Sutekh sends Scarman the coordinates for the missile which he installs in the missile. Sarah detonates the explosives but Sutekh contains the explosion. The Doctor goes to confront Sutekh to distract him so that the explosives power is unleashed and is transported through the vortex to Sutekh's tomb, where the distraction allows the explosion to occur but the Doctor is captured by Sutekh.

Hmmm, this has started to plod a bit. And, with the exception of a few witty one liners, it's just dark and nasty.

Pyramids of Mars was filmed as Star Grove Manor, which at the time was owned by Mick Jagger who used it as a recording venue for The Rolling Stones. It also appears in The Image of the Fendahl two years later. The Pyramids Of Mars DVD has a "now & then" feature on the location.

Directing this story is Paddy Russell, the first female Director to work on Doctor Who when she directed 1966's The Massacre. She had returned to Doctor Who for Invasion of the Dinosaurs and would later helm the recording of Horror of Fang Rock.

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