Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
Cast: Colin Baker, Miranda Raison, Siobhan Redmond, James Joyce, Olivia Poulet, Dominic Thorburn, Tim Bentinck, Chris Porter.
There are characters so underused within the whole of the Doctor Who world that when they come along in a story that is just right for them, the heart feels the pressure of sadness that they have been ignored for so long. The Rani, one of the great members of The Doctor’s own celestial race, is one such character and whilst she has appeared on television, portrayed by the wonderful and much missed Kate O’ Mara, the link between the screen and Big Finish audio has perhaps been short, even if it has been sweet.
The Rani, an enigma who has not been explored arguably enough since her first appearance opposite Sylvester McCoy, certainly nowhere near as delved into as even The Monk and The Master, finally really gets a story to which her latest incarnation, portrayed by Siobhan Redmond, can get her scientific mind and craven soul into.
Planet of the Rani doesn’t just see the idea of megalomania being used to its fullest extent, the notion that as a leader of a group of people you can be lived without and usurped, it also sees the repercussions of actions undertaken by the Doctor in his long and fruitful life, actions of inexperience, of dogmatic persuasion, that come home finally too roost.
It is this roosting that the foundation of Marc Platt’s story hangs upon, the echoing that exists between The Doctor and one of his old nemeses, albeit one that is reflected as opposite as left and right seen in a mirror, is easily witnessed as being a fault that runs through those to whom Time is played in as far as being a consequence of life and not to be seen as a fleeting companion. The repercussions for such a life might be a long time in the asking but eventually they catch up with anyone who isn’t respectful to the part they have played.
Marc Platt’s script is dark, brooding, even one that complicates Time as an entity and with Miranda Raison as Constance Clarke offering a different proposition to any of the sixth Doctor’s incarnation previous companions, one of unflappable persuasion, Planet of the Rani is a story that asks questions of the audience that might be seen and felt as uncomfortable, that just how do you define the line between good and evil when it all comes down to perspective.
A very entertaining story, one steeped in a viewpoint that is as tumultuous as the relationship between The Doctor and The Rani.
Doctor Who: Planet of the Rani is available to purchase from Worlds Apart on Lime Street, Liverpool.
Ian D. Hall