State of Decay

To people of a certain age, "State of Decay" begins with an odd sort of "Vsssshhheeeooowww!" sound and the TARDIS being "erratic". It's the only Doctor Who story to utilise the phrase "the TARDIS is on strings" and it's last line is the Doctor saying "the menace of the great vampire... was ended... forever..."

But enough of the talking book version, one of a number of stories in this gentle, serene season to be targeted by bizarre merchandise bids, together with the Full Circle Viewfinder. Looking back now, it seems absurd that it wasn't stories like "Pyramids of Mars" or "Talons" that were made available in 3D form, or read by Tom onto tape in the just-about-seventies. But perhaps it was all an early sign of the JNT boom that was to come; Suchard Easter Eggs were just around the corner.

Someone even once remarked that Tom's Diamond Logo was lucky in escaping having its reputation dog-eared by the mountain of cheapo goods that trailed on the glittery heels of arguably the most commercially minded producer of them all. More significant here is the absence of JNT's other hallmarks - if "State of Decay" had been made five years later it would have been filmed in Montreal with the Master returning to forge an alliance with the Great Vampire. Instead, it boasts a subtlety that would often take an early bath later on, the ghostly location work in the woods being a good example. Where was this filmed? Do we care? It's eerie and it works splendidly, that's all that matters.

What about famous names? There isn't anyone here I recognise, yet the casting is magnificent. I can't think of anyone really bad in it, and the Three Who Rule have a wonderful.. well, vampirish feel to their performances. As Zargo and Camilla turn in unison, there's something wrong about them. Whether aided by the ancient look to their costumes or their pale skin, they actually resemble the walking dead, with precise attention given to the way they move. And that's pretty frightening. I don't wish to rubbish the eighties too much, because it yielded just as many fine casting coupes as other decades, yet it's still refreshing that Kenneth Connor or someone doesn't turn up to play Aukon.

Interestingly, as the only Hinchcliffe era script resurrected by JNT, the fact that "State of Decay" was made when it was is never looked back on with regret. It's hard to see this being as good, let alone any better, with Sarah-Jane Smith in it. Perhaps because a vampire story lends itself in the wrong way to a screaming heroin; there would be a temptation to have Sarah tied up and sacrificed and it would all have seemed a little too Doctor Who. It doesn't add much having another Time Lady in the script alone, but Lalla Ward certainly brings a more serious tone to the scenes when she's about to be "converted" than Silly Sarah would have done; maybe because she's more of a lady than a girl, more the tragic, doomed woman and because she plays it deadly straight. It's the loss of innocence, the haunting lost eyes, that makes vampires scary, less the sense that they might chase and "get" you. It's who they are, not the threat they pose, that is most chilling.

And if there was one thing JNT should have strived towards more, it was being chilling. "Fenric" is, and we all love that; in fact that story has lots in common with this one - fine music, themes of the old and dead being resurrected, and an utter conviction towards taking its vampire subjects seriously. We should be glad that on the two occasions Doctor Who tackled the blood-sucking fiends, it did a cracking job of it. There is much to be learnt from watching "State of Decay", a great, memorable story, and it remains as glorious, dignified and exciting as ever. And with not a foreign location or glamorous guest star in sight either.