Dimensions in Time: Doctor Who in 'Albert Square'

by Nicholas Lemieux

Picture the image: It’s 1993 and it’s been four years since the last series of Doctor Who. Having been declining in the ratings for some time, no thanks to Coronation Street being directly scheduled in the opposite time slot, the show has been “placed on extended hiatus” as the BBC put it after seven doctors and 26 seasons. Now the show’s 30th Anniversary is rapidly on its way and fans are working themselves in a major frenzy: The old classic episodes are being rerun on BBC Two, a new licence of original books based on the show has just been announced, and above all, there are rumours of a new movie-length special to commemorate the Anniversary: The Dark Dimension, an adventure in which the Doctors face off against a villain played by Rik Mayall of Blackadder fame within a sinister alternate universe where Tom Baker’s Fourth Doctor never regenerated.

This never happened. Instead, we got Dimensions in Time. 

To all those fans who claim that the reputation and legacy of Doctor Who has been tarnished  forever by the casting of a woman in the title role: you apparently never had the privilege of experiencing Dimensions in Time. Airing in two less-than-10-minute parts, in conjunction with Children in Need and Noel’s House Party, the special had a relatively simple plot: recurring villainess the Rani plans to attack the Doctor’s timeline and abduct all of his incarnations. The first two Doctors (the actors having passed away) are only featured as creepy disembodied floating 3D heads, modelled with 1993’s finest yet most terrifying graphics. Already captured, Tom Baker’s iconic Fourth Doctor, now understandably more short-haired and pudgy, sends a warning to his fellow Doctors, advising them to defeat the Rani. In his own words, “The Rani hates me. She even hates children!”  Now the Doctor embarks on a very confusing adventure to stop the Rani, all whilst constantly shifting between his Third, Fifth, Sixth and Seventh incarnations alongside his companions, who are repeatedly and inexplicably shuffled, ranging from Ace to Sarah Jane Smith to Susan. This is all whilst bizarrely  travelling through various time periods, from 1993 to 1973 to 2013. Why are they constantly changing appearances and time periods? I haven’t the faintest idea and it just makes understanding the plot increasingly difficult. Also, there are monsters at one point which randomly appear then disappear (no Daleks though...). Furthermore, the entire episode takes place in Albert Square and features running commentary from the then main cast of EastEnders (no Dot Cotton. though...).

Why does the 30th Anniversary special randomly segue into a crossover with a soap opera it has literally nothing in common and doesn’t really share the same target audience with?  I have no idea. However, I guess somebody on the writing team really wanted to see the Third Doctor argue with Phil Mitchell over a Cyberman in the Queen Vic. I mean, the real question is, why is it that on Doctor Who they present EastEnders as being a fictional show whilst on EastEnders it’s the other way around (it’s questions like these that really keep me up at night)?. 

Anyway, after about 12 minutes of bizarre plot, the Doctor saves the day by doing something and leaves in his TARDIS. I think I should also probably mention that Part 2 of Dimensions in Time was rapidly edited down for timing at Noel Edmonds’ insistence, which really explains a lot about the story. Did I mention the low budget as well?

As mentioned earlier, with the initial plans for the special, Dimensions in Time could have been great. Among other things, there were also plans for arch enemy the Master to make a grand return, and even discussions for Sir Ian McKellen himself to portray a guest character. But then again, maybe Dimensions in Time is what Doctor Who is all about. Doctor Who is cheesiness incarnate and really that’s been part of the show’s charm since its premier in 1963. At the very least, Dimensions in Time is still worth a watch due to how hilariously bad it is. It also notably features Jon Pertwee’s final official performance as the Third Doctor before his death three years later. Even at the age of 74, whilst filming this, Pertwee still tries his best to make sense of what’s going on to the audience complete with his incarnation’s pompous charm.

At a time when Doctor Who was stranded in a seemingly eternal state of limbo, Dimensions in Time remains an intriguing experiment as the show’s 30th Anniversary, biding time until the show’s eventual return.  And, hey, at least we still got a spectacular 50th Anniversary Special 20 years later. Although, just imagine a world where Doctor Who was never revived and the Doctor’s final adventure involved him  running through a fruit market and yelling at Pat Butcher to run away from a Sea Devil. Truly, a prospect to send all fans hiding behind the sofa.