chris-lowdon

Jodie Whittaker: brilliant, compelling, and above all, remarkably believable as The Doctor, even though she's playing an alien who flies around in a magic box.... Bradley Walsh: a far better actor than I gave him credit for. Mandip Gill: not seen her before (I don't watch stuff like Hollyoaks) but a solid, convincing, promising performance. Tosin Cole: not quite as impressive because the alleged dyspraxia was not realistic, but otherwise a good start in what should be his breakout role. No, what let this down...

What let it down was the appalling own goal by the costume dept with their "New Look". Reminiscent of the worst of the wardrobe disasters from Colin Baker's and Sylvester McCoy's incumbencies, somebody needs to fire the costume designer before the series is ruined and The Doctor disappears from our screens again for a generation. I fear for the future.

Yes, I understand that the misogynists will hate it. Yes, I understand that the die-hard Whovians will uncritically adore it. But the truth is, this was lacklustre. Predicable to the extent that even the plot holes were predictable, but offset with fair - although not outstanding - character development of and acting by the four main players. The cinematography and editing were both uneven - sometimes very good although not superb, sometimes weak, although never appalling.

But like any show, the writing makes or breaks it. And in the absence of evidence to the contrary, the writing was mediocre, too. There was none of the philosophical blockbusters that both Davis and Moffatt could produce in their series defining works, and it's even way off the pace of Chibnalls best to date, the tautly written episode "42".

Perhaps this will turn out to be the episode that laid the foundations for something special, that seeds were sown here which will yield a sumptuous harvest in later episodes. We can but hope.