Doctor Who: The Renaissance Man

The Fourth Doctor Adventures #1.2

by Justin Richards

To continue Leela’s education, the Doctor promises to take her to the famous Morovanian Museum. But the TARDIS lands instead in a quiet English village, where they meet the enigmatic collector Harcourt and his family.

When people start to die, reality doesn’t appear quite what it was. There’s something sinister going on within the walls of Harcourt’s manor, and the stakes are higher than they can imagine.

The Doctor is about to discover that a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing.

Genres: Doctor Who, Science Fiction, Audiobook, Time Travel, Fiction, Fantasy, Adventure

Audio CD

First published February 29, 2012

About the author

Justin Richards is a British writer. He has written many spin off novels based on the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who, and he is Creative Director for the BBC Books range. He has also written for television, contributing to Five's soap opera Family Affairs. He is also the author of a series of crime novels for children about the Invisible Detective, and novels for older children. His Doctor Who novel The Burning was placed sixth in the Top 10 of SFX magazine's "Best SF/Fantasy novelisation or TV tie-in novel" category of 2000.

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

From BBC Radio 4:
To continue Leela's education, the Doctor promises to take her to the famous Morovanian Museum. But the TARDIS lands instead in a quiet English village, where they meet the enigmatic collector Harcourt and his family.

When people start to die, reality doesn't appear quite what it was. There's something sinister going on within the walls of Harcourt's manor, and the stakes are higher than they can imagine.

The Doctor is about to discover that a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing.

Tom Baker is the Fourth Doctor, with his ancient warrior companion, Leela, played by Louise Jameson.

Written by Justin Richards and directed by Ken Bentley for Big Finish.

[Jason Koivu · Rating 4 out of 5]

I will always take the opportunity to listen to Tom Baker whenever given the chance! This audio-short was a pleasure! I just wish it was longer.

[Nicholas Whyte · Rating 4 out of 5]

At last the new Fourth Doctor adventures have found their feet, with the prolific Justin Richards very much on form, delivering a brilliant weird tale for Toma Baker, Louise Jameson and Ian McNeice as the sinister Harcourt (which was also his character's name in Edge of Darkness back in 1985). The Doctor brings Leela to the famous Moravanian Museum for the sake of her education, but finds instead a peculiar manor house where nothing is as it seems. The setting is one that has been done in many Who stories, but rarely this well, and the particular twists here are inventive; also Baker is on top form as clown, magician and moral leader. If you just want to sample the new Fourth Doctor range, this is where to start.

[Bettie · Rating 3 out of 5]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b05wcly7

Description: 4 Extra Debut. Leela's education is interrupted when the Tardis materialises at sinister Harcourt Manor. Fourth Doctor adventure stars Tom Baker and Louise Jameson.

[Polly Batchelor · Rating 4 out of 5]

"How does it feel not being the cleverest man in the room?"
"I wouldn’t know! How does it feel?"

[Luke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now this adventure was far superior than the last one, for starter it was longer with tons more substance to digest! I loved the concept of the museum collecting/harvesting knowledge from all who visit it, and as doctor who does things are not as simple as you think and i loved the twists and turns. Also this is my second outting with leela and i really enjoy her as a character, I have always been a romarna fan as Tom bakers best companion, but Leela is so feisty and ready to learn and protect the doctor, definitely something new that i haven't experienced before within doctor who. Overall fantastic 👏

[Shawn Deal · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good production, very well written. It is just great to have the fourth doctor and Leela back together again. This episode has a great discussion of knowledge gained and knowledge learned. Wonderful.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the story, it was a little more unique then most. I think it’s weird how Leela sounds like River Song.

[Antonio Higgins · Rating 5 out of 5]

To continue Leela's education, the Doctor promises to take her to the famous Morovanian Museum. But the TARDIS lands instead in a quiet English village, where they meet the enigmatic collector Harcourt and his family. When people start to die, reality doesn't appear quite what it was. There's something sinister going on within the walls of Harcourt's manor, and the stakes are higher than they can imagine.

And were off to another adventure, and Leela has an itch to be taught more about the universe, and so the Doctor knows quite the place to start. Yet this brings the duo to quite the scary virtual universe created by a curator puffed up with knowledge with no heart or wisdom! As as people begin to die for the cost of knowledge, the Doctor and Leela begin to unravel the truth of the Morovanian Museum.

I quite liked the pacing in this story-- it felt very proper "New Who"-ish, something you might see in the Matt Smith era. The speech that the Doctor gave to the curator concerning the link between knowledge and emotion, and the vapidity pure knowledge can have fits well into a Steven Moffat episode. Yet I can also draw the parallel to the First Doctor's speech in The Tenth Planet , with its all too famous line, "Love, hate, pride, fear! Have you no emotions, sir?" As Louise Jameson pointed out in the interview, this is the undergirding moral behind this story. And of course, the ending where the scientists remark, "This is all a metaphor" for the never-ending toil of learning. As a Christian, I see the parallel to the end of Ecclesiastes 12, "Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness to the flesh." You can always draw elements to take away from a good plot.

I think this story could really only work in the audio space, as some of the story ideas might be too big of a budget for the show. But the show has surprised us before (e. g. Hell Bent). I don't know if it is a must-listen serial, but I think that if you do, you'll enjoy it. If the series had started with this serial rather than Destination: Nerva, I think it might have been a bit more cohesive of an opening. It's tighter-- because it introduces less concepts and plot points, yet expands a produces character arcs for every single secondary character it introduces-- even if they might be short. I debate weather this is a 4 or 5 star... maybe it's just a 4.5!

And I might mention again that we have another actor pre-Third Doctor Adventures appearing in this serial. Daisy Ashford (who plays her mother's character of Liz in the 3DA) plays an unrelated Edwardian character called Lizzie in this story. Too bad she won't meet the Lord Jack Corrigan (played by Tim Treloar, actor of the Third Doctor) from the previous story. Oh, the silliness.


Onwards to the next story! A proper historical for a Doctor who never received one, it seems!

[MindProbe · Rating 4 out of 5]

suffers from the inherently dubious, problematic nature of the whole notion of Leela as a "primitive" who the Doctor takes it upon himself to "educate", and a tendency to overexplain its central ideas and plot developments at the expense of subtlety, but is otherwise a witty and enjoyable little romp that taps into a very classic, archetypal, nostalgic sort of Doctor Who Adventure feeling and hits those buttons rather satisfyingly, without just aping what's come before or having that reheated leftovers quality that's quite prevalent in the more backwards-looking strands of Doctor Who media. lots of funny lines, an effective villain performance by Ian McNeice, some fun genre-hopping variety with the different areas of the museum - not a revelation, but just an all-around good time that zips along and doesn't outstay its welcome.

[Xander Toner · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was so close to being something that I could really enjoy, but for some unknown reason it really didn’t gel with me. The initial mystery of the village, established by the eccentric beekeeper, quite intrigued me and I was interested to see where all the plot threads lead to. Turns out, it wasn’t really to anywhere interesting. The twist around who Harcourt actually is was incredibly underwhelming, and I think I only really liked the character because I’m a fan of the actor Ian McNeice. For some reason I think Tom Baker felt a little off here, as if his performance wasn’t as clean and polished as was in Destination: Nerva, either way he was very enjoyable to listen to regardless, and I really enjoyed the relationship between him and Leela here.

[John Parungao · Rating 4 out of 5]

What's the difference between knowledge and wisdom? The Doctor matches wits with someone obsessed with collecting knowledge. Tom Baker's Fourth Doctor plays trickster outwitting a villain who can absorb knowledge directly from experts and who forces his victims to collect knowledge for him.
There are some great scenes as the villain warps reality trying to capture the Doctor's knowledge. The best part however is the Doctor tainting the data with total nonsense in an effort to beat the villain at his own game.

[Emma L.B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was really interesting! I really enjoyed the idea of just collecting information without any really thought behind it. I also like the difference between “information” and “data”. There is a difference after all. I haven’t thought about it in that way before.

I also really enjoyed the humour in this one. Laughed out loud a couple of times.

As I said; Interesting story! I might re-listen to it one day.

[Luke Sims-Jenkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was really good! So good that I wish the Renaissance Man was the first of the Fourth Doctor Adventures (4DA's) rather than Destination Nerva. Tom Baker and Louise Jameson are in fine form here and you don't need to listen to the extras at the end of this story to realize they were having a ball with it.

In this one the Doctor and Leela arrive at a museum where knowledge is taken from peoples minds and added to the exhibits. This one even has the added bonus of Ian McNiece. Recommended.

[Craig Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Only a small cast this time, playing a lot of characters. All the same. With many location changes. This is not for the casual listener. If you have audiobooks on only in the background this one may not be for you. Definitely worth paying attention to though. The ending left me a little cold, but the journey was worth it.

[Charles Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Again I'll admit that I am completely biased by my adoration of Tom Baker, so these reviews won't be useful in any way.
That being said, another excellent adventure for the 4th Doctor (Baker) and Leela (Louise Jameson). Full of haunted house atmospheric horror and filled with excellent dialog, Big Finish succeeds again.

[Tabitha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is much more the 4th Doctor that I remember! While the last "episode" struggled, this one is much more solid and the acting is better. The ending felt a little rushed, but they finally seem to be ironing out the wrinkles.

[Twainy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story. A “library” that removes your memories to add to their collection. It was fun how it only starts from there and evolves.

I love the new Baker/Jameson stories! It brings me back to their time in the TARDIS. They didn’t skip a beat.

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed listening to this.

[Philip · Rating 3 out of 5]

The usual cleverness and mayhem with Tom Baker ,
Violence and philosophy from Leela

[Julie Ditton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This second audio play in the Big Finish Productions Fourth Doctor Adventures series is a delight. The Dr and Leila stumble into a home where people seem to be collecting everything, but the people keep changing and forgetting who they are. This is an intriguing story sure to please any Classic Dr Who fan.

[morgan · Rating 2 out of 5]

couldn't really follow what was happening after awhile.

[Viviana · Rating 2 out of 5]

[audiobook]

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable short story. I thought the premise was intriguing and kept my interest.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

If only the same fate could befall every stupid incipient “knowledge engine”!

[Zach · Rating 3 out of 5]

Big Finish has better variations of this story like "Holy Terror" and "Memory Lane" just not written as well. The first half doesn't set up the plot as well as the prior two mentioned.

[John Keegan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second tale in the first season of the "Fourth Doctor Adventures", this story begins where the previous left off, with the Doctor rededicating himself to Leela's education. To that end, he takes her to the Morovanian Museum, where the largest collection of Earth artifacts can be found. As one would anticipate, matters take a very different turn than the Doctor had envisioned.

Where the previous audiodrama seemed to struggle with the format, thanks to the inclusion of a number of confusing action scenes, this story is a bit more cerebral. There is a bit of action, here and there, but it's more about solving the riddle of the mysterious identity crises taking place at the museum. Overall, the mystery itself is intriguing.

It also tries very hard to draw a parallel between the goal of accumulating all possible knowledge of the universe and the idea of the "Renaissance Man". It's a belabored metaphor, especially at the very end. The final 10-15 minutes all but beat you about the head to get the point across, and it's really unnecessary. Also, the very beginning of the story is a bit rushed, especially when the Doctor walks into a small group of strangers and promptly acts as if he belongs there. Within a minute, everyone is talking to him as if they know him intimately. This is partially redeemed by the plot, since one can work out a reasonable explanation for it after the fact, but it does make the beginning a bit off-putting.

For the most part, though, the production is strong, especially the voice cast. Besides the talents of Tom Baker and Louise Jameson, both of whom seem to be settling into their roles a bit more at this point, there is the presence of Ian McNeice as Harcourt. Whovians will recognize McNeice as Winston Churchill from Series 5 of the Nu Who era, and it's great to hear his distinctive voice with some Classic Who icons.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Doctor and Leela head to a museum to continue her education, but once there they discover new sections just appearing out of thin air. They are then shocked when a woman they've just met commits suicide.

This story's strangeness perfectly meshes with the Fourth Doctor's own brand of bizarre allowing Tom Baker to really shine in his role. Leela remains incredibly feisty, but capable and ads her own humor to the piece. I just finished watching the Fourth Doctor, so both Tom and Louise do sound a bit older, but I stopped really noticing after about ten minutes. The supporting case was great with the villain being truly wily and the other players matching their parts beautifully.

This story can easily slide into just about anywhere in season 14 or 15, so if you like those seasons I;d recommend this.

[Kim (BritishLass929) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short audio book from Hoopla/the library.

Loved this idea and really enjoyed it. This is my favorite Doctor. Just hearing his voice makes me so happy. His goofiness, the joy in his voice at the outcome. It is so soothing. Plus the idea of being able to capture all knowledge in one place sounds exactly like something elementary school me would have tried to do. And there is a great line about learning that I should keep in my Quote Book. Great writing. Just made me happy.

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Doctor endeavours to educate Leela by taking her to the greatest collection of Earth artefacts in the universe, The Morovanian Museum on Morovania Minor. But instead, they find themselves in a strange English village, inhabited by a variety of academics, and presided over by a curious collector called Harcourt.