The Witchfinders: Difference between revisions
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"'''The Witchfinders'''" is the eighth episode of the [[Doctor Who (series 11)|eleventh series]] of the British [[science fiction]] television programme ''[[Doctor Who]]''. It was written by Joy Wilkinson and directed by Sallie Aprahamian, and was first broadcast on BBC One on 25 November 2018. |
"'''The Witchfinders'''" is the eighth episode of the [[Doctor Who (series 11)|eleventh series]] of the British [[science fiction]] television programme ''[[Doctor Who]]''. It was written by Joy Wilkinson and directed by Sallie Aprahamian, and was first broadcast on BBC One on 25 November 2018. It marked the second time a ''Doctor Who'' story on TV had been written and directed by women - the first was ''[[Enlightenment (Doctor Who)|Enlightenment]]'' in 1983.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Nolan|first1=Peter|title=Doctor Who: The Witchfinders - Who is Writer Joy Wilkinson?|url=https://www.blogtorwho.com/doctor-who-the-witchfinders-who-is-writer-joy-wilkinson/|website=Blogtor Who|date=24 November 2018|accessdate=30 November 2018}}</ref> |
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In the episode, the [[Thirteenth Doctor]] ([[Jodie Whittaker]]) travels to 17th century [[Lancashire]], alongside her companions [[Graham O'Brien]] ([[Bradley Walsh]]), [[Ryan Sinclair]] ([[Tosin Cole]]), and [[Yasmin Khan (Doctor Who)|Yasmin Khan]] ([[Mandip Gill]]), finding themselves in the middle of a [[witch hunt]] held by a local land owner. |
In the episode, the [[Thirteenth Doctor]] ([[Jodie Whittaker]]) travels to 17th century [[Lancashire]], alongside her companions [[Graham O'Brien]] ([[Bradley Walsh]]), [[Ryan Sinclair]] ([[Tosin Cole]]), and [[Yasmin Khan (Doctor Who)|Yasmin Khan]] ([[Mandip Gill]]), finding themselves in the middle of a [[witch hunt]] held by a local land owner. |
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| rev4score = {{rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite web|last1=Pearce|first1=Tilly|title=Doctor Who episode 8 review: The Witchfinders finally finds the show’s sci-fi and historical balance|url=https://metro.co.uk/2018/11/25/doctor-who-episode-8-review-the-witchfinders-finally-finds-the-shows-balance-between-sci-fi-and-historical-fact-8175991/|work=[[Metro (British newspaper)|Metro]]|date=25 November 2018|accessdate=25 November 2018}}</ref> |
| rev4score = {{rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite web|last1=Pearce|first1=Tilly|title=Doctor Who episode 8 review: The Witchfinders finally finds the show’s sci-fi and historical balance|url=https://metro.co.uk/2018/11/25/doctor-who-episode-8-review-the-witchfinders-finally-finds-the-shows-balance-between-sci-fi-and-historical-fact-8175991/|work=[[Metro (British newspaper)|Metro]]|date=25 November 2018|accessdate=25 November 2018}}</ref> |
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| rev5 = ''[[New York (magazine)|New York Magazine]]'' |
| rev5 = ''[[New York (magazine)|New York Magazine]]'' |
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| rev5score = {{rating|5|5}}<ref>{{cite web|last1=Ruediger|first1=Ross|title=Doctor Who Recap, Season 11, Episode 8: ‘The Witchfinders’|url=https://www.vulture.com/2018/11/doctor-who-recap-season-11-episode-8-the-witchfinders.html|work=[[Vulture.com]]|date=26 November 2018|accessdate=29 November 2018}}</ref> |
| rev5score = {{rating|5|5}}<ref name="vulture">{{cite web|last1=Ruediger|first1=Ross|title=Doctor Who Recap, Season 11, Episode 8: ‘The Witchfinders’|url=https://www.vulture.com/2018/11/doctor-who-recap-season-11-episode-8-the-witchfinders.html|work=[[Vulture.com]]|date=26 November 2018|accessdate=29 November 2018}}</ref> |
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Revision as of 23:25, 29 November 2018
| 284 – "The Witchfinders" | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Doctor Who episode | |||
| File:Doctor Who Series 11 Episode 8 The Witchfinders.jpg Promotional image for the episode, showing King James (Alan Cumming) | |||
| Cast | |||
Others
| |||
| Production | |||
| Directed by | Sallie Aprahamian | ||
| Written by | Joy Wilkinson | ||
| Script editor | Fiona McAllister | ||
| Produced by | Alex Mercer | ||
| Executive producer(s) |
| ||
| Music by | Segun Akinola | ||
| Series | Series 11 | ||
| Running time | 50 minutes | ||
| First broadcast | 25 November 2018 | ||
| Chronology | |||
| |||
"The Witchfinders" is the eighth episode of the eleventh series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who. It was written by Joy Wilkinson and directed by Sallie Aprahamian, and was first broadcast on BBC One on 25 November 2018. It marked the second time a Doctor Who story on TV had been written and directed by women - the first was Enlightenment in 1983.[1]
In the episode, the Thirteenth Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) travels to 17th century Lancashire, alongside her companions Graham O'Brien (Bradley Walsh), Ryan Sinclair (Tosin Cole), and Yasmin Khan (Mandip Gill), finding themselves in the middle of a witch hunt held by a local land owner.
The episode was watched by 5.66 million viewers overnight.
Plot
The Doctor and her companions end up in 1612 Lancashire near Pendle Hill. They reach a nearby village to find an old woman accused of witchcraft being dunked, and the Doctor tries to save her but fails. She attempts to prevent further trials by claiming herself as a Witchfinder General to the local landlord Becka Savage, only for the sudden appearance of King James I to complicate matters as he deems her as Graham's assistant. Meanwhile, Yasmin finds the old woman being buried by her granddaughter Willa Twiston and saves her from a tendril made of mud. Upon hearing of this, and that Savage is Willa's cousin, the Doctor realizes the cause of the witch hunt is of alien origin as the recent victims are being reanimated by the alien entity.
While her companions follow the reanimated corpses, the Doctor ends up being accused of witchcraft while confronting Savage over her hiding something. The Doctor attempts to reason with James before she is dunked, escaping her bonds at the last second while noting how Savage could not bear touching a tree used to dunk her. Once more confronted by the Doctor as the corpses arrive, Savage reveals that she was infected by the alien entity while chopping down the tree on the Hill. Savage assumed it to be deviltry and sought to cure it through the witch trials, accusing Old Mother Twiston as she knew of the infliction. The alien entity soon takes over Savage's body, revealing herself as queen of the war criminal race known as the Morax.
The Doctor discovers that Savage inadvertently damaged an alien prison system disguised as a tree, and designed to imprison the Morax within. Learning the Morax intend to have their king possess James before conquering Earth, the Doctor uses parts of the tree to save James and reactivate the jail. While the other Morax are forced out of their host bodies, the queen refuses to leave Savage's body as James kills them both. The following day, James declares to the Doctor that all records of the events will be erased before he and Willa watch in surprise as the group leave in the TARDIS.
Broadcast and reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Rotten Tomatoes (Average Score) | 7.83[2] |
| Rotten Tomatoes (Tomatometer) | 95%[2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[3] |
| Daily Mirror |   [4] |
| Metro | [5] |
| New York Magazine | [6] |
| Radio Times | [7] |
| The A.V. Club | B+[8] |
| The Telegraph | [9] |
| The Independent | [10] |
| TV Fanatic | [11] |
Early release
The episode was released to Amazon Prime subscribers three days before its BBC One broadcast, when the streaming service accidentally uploaded "The Witchfinders" to the slot for the seventh episode, "Kerblam!", instead of the seventh episode itself.[12]
Ratings
"The Witchfinders" was watched by 5.66 million viewers overnight, a share of 27.9% of the total United Kingdom TV audience, making it the fourth-highest overnight viewership for the night and the nineteenth-highest overnight viewership for the week on overnights across all UK channels.[13]
Critical reception
The episode was met with positive reviews, and Cumming's performance received widespread acclaim.[7][4][14] It holds an approval rating of 95% based on 22 reviews, and an average score of 7.83/10 on Rotten Tomatoes. The website's critical consensus reads, "'The Witchfinders' sparks excitement by highlighting familiar themes of Doctor Who's current season — and ignites that spark with a dramatic shift in focus."[2]
See also
- Lancashire Witches Walk
- Daemonologie, written by King James I
- Pendle witches
References
- ^ Nolan, Peter (24 November 2018). "Doctor Who: The Witchfinders - Who is Writer Joy Wilkinson?". Blogtor Who. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
- ^ a b c "Doctor Who – Season 11, Episode 8". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
- ^ Coggan, Devan (25 November 2018). "'Doctor Who' recap: Which witch?". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
- ^ a b Jackson, Daniel (25 November 2018). "Doctor Who The Witchfinders review: Alan Cumming saves this week's episode from being too dark". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
- ^ Pearce, Tilly (25 November 2018). "Doctor Who episode 8 review: The Witchfinders finally finds the show's sci-fi and historical balance". Metro. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
- ^ Ruediger, Ross (26 November 2018). "Doctor Who Recap, Season 11, Episode 8: 'The Witchfinders'". Vulture.com. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
- ^ a b Mulkern, Patrick (25 November 2018). "Doctor Who The Witchfinders review: Siobhan Finneran and Alan Cumming shine – but this Jacobean witch-hunt lacks the magic ingredient". Radio Times. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
- ^ Siede, Caroline (26 November 2018). "Alan Cumming hunts witches as Doctor Who criticizes religious hypocrisy". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 26 November 2018.
- ^ Hogan, Michael (25 November 2018). "Doctor Who episode 8, The Witchfinders recap: a creepy folk-horror delight - until the monster arrived". The Telegraph. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
- ^ Power, Ed (25 November 2018). "Doctor Who, episode 8, review: 'The Witchfinders' is Jodie Whittaker's scariest outing yet". The Independent. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
- ^ "Doctor Who Season 11 Episode 8 Review: The Witchfinders". TV Fanatic. 26 November 2018. Retrieved 26 November 2018.
- ^ Fullerton, Huw (22 November 2018). "Someone accidentally uploaded the next episode of Doctor Who on Amazon". Radio Times. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
- ^ Marcus (26 November 2018). "The Witchfinders – Overnight Viewing Figures". Doctor Who News. Retrieved 26 November 2018.
- ^ Edwards, Chris (25 November 2018). "Doctor Who fans are absolutely loving Alan Cumming as King James I". Digital Spy. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
External links
- "The Witchfinders" at the BBC Doctor Who homepage
- "The Witchfinders" on Tardis Wiki, the Doctor Who Wiki
- Template:Brief
- "The Witchfinders" at IMDb