Things I've Learnt from Watching My Favourite Doctor Who Stories: Part 18 - The Talons of Weng Chiang

 18. The Talons of Weng Chiang 

You can't change the past but you can learn from it! (Part 2)

This will disappoint some to see this story high up on my list or on the list at all. There is the elephant in the room with this six parter and it's the casting of Caucasian actor John Bennett as the villainous Li H'Sen Chang. This is problematic and for many people unforgivable. Now the serial's inclusion in this list should in no way be seen as condoning this casting but as always, a little context is required.

As a kid growing up, one of my favourite Disney movies was One of Our Dinosaurs is Missing, a sort of Disney /Carry On mash-up thanks to the casting of Joan Sims and Bernard, plus Jon Pertwee in a cameo as a mad old major! But again, this film would not be found on terrestrial tv these days thanks to casting Bernard along with Peter Ustinov and Clive Revill as Chinese villains. Same goes for Murder by Death, the Neil Simon classic Whodunnit parody that features Peter Sellers as Sidney Wang, a pastiche of Chinese investigator Charlie Chan. 

Talons is not the only tv or film production to make this mistake. It's not even the only Doctor Who story to do it unfortunately, but it doesn't mean those who were involved in the production of Talons or Marco Polo or the Abominable Snowmen are horrible racists. It happened frequently on TV and film and we can't change that fact. We can however learn from that mistake and move on, knowing it should never happen in the industry again.

It doesn't help that I'm writing this Victorian potboiler, Robert Holmes borrows from sources such as Sax Roehmer, writer of the Fu Manchu novels which were notoriously racist in terms of the depiction of Asian characters. As Disney Plus puts it "These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now!"

Right, that's sorted that out - let's enjoy what is a sumptuous delight of a Doctor Who story, one that I always associate with Christmas as the VHS release in 1988 was top of my Christmas list. (My twin sister had asked for a TV for her room and my younger sister wanted a bike! I always was a cheap date!) I remember watching it on Boxing Day all the way through all 2 and a bit hours, and absolutely loving it. In fact, watching the DVD in episodic format even to this day feels strange. 

Thanks to the early VHS schedule that favoured Tom Baker, I had rediscovered my love for the fourth Doctor, as well as Leela. Their working relationship was a bit strained as we know bit you would never guess that here, they're marvellous together. Their Pygmalion-style relationship is replicated with Leela's interaction with Professor Litefoot, particularly in the charming scene in part two where they have a meal together.

Litefoot also is part of a famous and much loved double act alongside theatre owner Henry Gordon Jago, despite only meeting in the penultimate episode. The two actors are absolutely wonderful together with some sparkling dialogue courtesy of Holmes. It's no wonder they became the stars of one of Big Finish's longest running spin-offs! 

Elsewhere, the rest of the cast are uniformly excellent. If you look past the racial aspects of his casting, John Bennett actually gives a fine performance as the misguided Chang. Michael Spice as Greel hidden behind a mask uses his voice to effectively convey Greel as evil and amoral, while Deep Roy plays Mr Sin with a despicable glee that's genuinely unsettling. 

The production values are very strong white video cameras used for the interiors of the real theatre, in comparison to the London streets on film that glow with a fog-enhanced eerieness. Yes the rat doesn't quite work and should have been streaked with grease to stop it looking fluffy. But it works well enough for the cliffhanger to part three where its gnawing Leela's leg, but it's helped by Dudley Simpson's music and Louise Jameson giving an uncharacteristic scream! 

This production goes all out to provide a suitably exciting finale to one of the strongest seasons of classic Who. Yes, we have to understand and acknowledge the racial implications that would "make an 'orse sick!" but we can also enjoy what is one of Doctor Who's most accomplished and acclaimed productions.

Next Time : If you see a mummy on a train - Run!