Episode #243 : Hide

"In the seventeenth century, a local clergyman saw her. He wrote that her presence was accompanied by a dreadful knocking, as if the Devil himself demanded entry. During the war, American airmen stationed here left offerings of tinned Spam. The tins were found in 1965, bricked up in the servants' pantry, along with a number of handwritten notes. Appeals to the Ghast. For the love of God, stop screaming."

Episode #243:      Hide.
Companions:        The 11th Doctor and Clara Oswald.
Air Date:              20th April 2013.

Clara and the Eleventh Doctor arrive at the haunted Caliburn House, set alone on a desolate moor. Within its walls, a ghost-hunting professor and a gifted empathic psychic are searching for the Witch of the Well. Her apparition appears throughout the history of the building, but is she really a ghost? And what is chasing her?

Hide is one of my favourite episodes of the new show. We have some classic tropes expertly written and put together in a 40 minute slot. To start with we have a classic haunted house story that looks the part perfectly and reminds me a lot of the classic British ghost stories of the 1970's television. Add on to that time travel, a a multi-level love plot and some great thought provoking exposition from Clara.

I think what makes it work for me is the nostalgia element. As I mentioned above the haunted house elements remind a lot of the old television supernatural dramas of my childhood. That and the fact that I love a good ghost story. All the elements are there to give the story a suitably creepy feeling even before we get to see the "crooked man" Everything there to make this haunting work. fabulous work by the Doctor Who crew.

But Hide isn't just about a haunting. It's also a love story. That's the undercurrent of the whole thing. Whether we are talking about the two ghost hunters in the house or the "crooked people" separated in different worlds but longing to reunite. As a secondary story element it binds the whole story together and thankfully doesn't feel too contrived.

Clara's observations are also very well written and very much in keeping with the tone of the piece. Her view that we are all ghosts to the Doctor is quite apt. To him we haven't been born, are living and are already dead. We are ghosts. It is another great insight into the character of our hero. Such insights are rare-ish in the show now but when they come up I do tend to get goosebumps and that conversation certainly brings them up.

Lastly we get another take on there being something wrong about Clara as the TARDIS won't let her in without the Doctor. The TARDIS either doesn't trust her or senses that there is something wrong with her.

We get a reference back to the days of the 3rd Doctor with a crystal from Metabelis III although Matt Smith fails to pronounce it correctly ("Me-TEB-eh-lis" instead of "Met-a-BEE-lis").

I am giving this a rare 5 star rating. Hide lives up to the expectations and if there are any flaws in it - and I'm sure there are if you really want to go looking - they aren't immediately obvious. Hide is atmospheric and fun. Perfect Doctor Who viewing.