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The Guardian

Doctor Who: The Story and the Engine – season two episode five recap

Set in Lagos, The Story and the Engine attempted to weave elements of western African folklore with wider myths and legends, alongside the mythology of Doctor Who itself. Like a lot of recent episodes, it was eager to play with the idea that the viewer is aware they are watching a story. At the Q&A after the London premiere of The Robot Revolution, Ncuti Gatwa said that this was the episode he was most looking forward to people watching this year, and he seemed to have had an absolute hoot on set. He clearly relished showing his Doctor feeling alive and accepted within a Black African community on Earth, but as events unfolded, he also got to flex flashes of anger alongside all the joy. The wild oscillation between camaraderie and fear in the barber shop allowed Ariyon Bakare (the Barber) and Sule Rimi (Omo Esosa) to shine in their roles, with each of them getting to enjoy significant character beats against Gatwa. Omo's apparent betrayal of his Time Lord friend and the sudden outpouring of laughter after the Barber's big 'reveal' of his identity were highlights. Michelle Asante as Abena was scene-stealingly good, as a mostly silent but clearly powerful presence, who appeared to know exactly what was going on, and to be enjoying the Doctor's discomfort. Writer Inua Ellams has tackled the Black male haircut experience before, in his 2017 play Barber Shop Chronicles, and has described his Doctor Who episode as a call to artists to 'always give credit where it's due'. But in an episode so dominated by the stories of men, it was actually Belinda (Varada Sethu) who deserved the credit for pushing the resolution on. Her simple phrase – 'hurt people hurt people' – was the spur for Abena to abandon her bitter desire for revenge, and set up the Doctor's escape, using a method once employed by enslaved African people. What if Doctor Who did Desmond's, but on the back of a giant spider? At first Belinda seemed content to let the Doctor roam free and enjoy feeling at home in Nigeria while she kept the Tardis ticking over. Those crashing red alarms soon drew her into action, though, with the Time Lord's big blue box proving to be rather more helpful to this companion than it was during those episodes such as The Rings of Akhaten and Hide where she had clearly taken a dislike to Clara. Maybe fear isn't quite the right word, but at times the dialogue inside Omo's Palace crackled with menace. It was also another rare episode where everybody lived – as long as you don't count the giant spider. It was lovely to see Jo Martin's Fugitive Doctor make a brief appearance, making it the first multi-doctor story to feature the two Black people to have held the role in person, even if it did raise some baffling questions about how the 15th Doctor appeared to remember an off-screen adventure involving Abena that had happened to Martin's 'forgotten' incarnation. Doctor Who has seldom visited Africa on television, though the show filmed on the continent for Spyfall and Praxeus, partly set on Madagascar, during Jodie Whittaker's tenure. William Hartnell's Doctor spent one episode of 1965 story The Chase being pursued by Daleks, Dracula and Frankenstein's monster inside a haunted house that was later revealed to be at the Festival of Ghana in the year 1996. As well as a brief appearance during the market sequence by writer Ellams, the other notable cameo was the ghost girl who appeared to Belinda. That was Sienna-Robyn Mavanga-Phipps, once again playing Poppy, who we last saw when she was captaining the crew on Baby Station Beta during 2024's season opener Space Babies. Bakare's Barber was also a returning face, with the actor having played Leandro, Maisie Williams's ill-fated lionlike sidekick in 2015's The Woman Who Lived. The show's opening sequence appearing as a fourth wall break within the barber shop echoed when Maestro began playing the theme tune on their piano at the start of The Devil's Chord last year. Doctor Who has previously used animated storytelling clips. The origins of Zellin and Rakaya were explained via animation during Can You Hear Me? in 2020. The six-word story the Doctor was alluding to – 'For sale, baby shoes, never worn' – is often attributed to Ernest Hemingway, but it seems unlikely he was actually its author. The Doctor has watched the Marvel superhero movies, meaning they exist in the Whoniverse. We now have a canonical in-universe explanation of where Unit got the design for their Avengers-style tower in London. Ellams has written a prequel story, detailing how Omo first met the Doctor. Rylan! Graham Norton! The Eurovision song contest … but in space! On the night of the Eurovision song contest! Provided the FA Cup final doesn't selfishly overrun and crash through the BBC One evening schedule like a wrecking ball! See you then! Season 2 Episode 1: The Robot Revolution Episode 2: Lux Episode 3: The Well Episode 4: Lucky Day Episode 5: The Story and The Engine Episode 6: The Interstellar Song Contest Episode 7: Wish World Episode 8: The Reality War Season 1 Episodes 1 & 2: Space Babies / The Devil's Chord Episode 3: Boom Episode 4: 73 Yards Episode 5: Dot and Bubble Episode 6: Rogue Episode 7: The Legend of Ruby Sunday Episode 8: Empire of Death Christmas special: Joy to the World 60th anniversary specials Special 1: The Star BeastSpecial 2: Wild Blue YonderSpecial 3: The GiggleChristmas special: The Church on Ruby Road Flux / Series 13 Chapter one: The Halloween ApocalypseChapter two: War of the SontaransChapter three: Once, Upon TimeChapter four: Village of the AngelsChapter five: Survivors of the FluxChapter six: The VanquishersNew Year's Special: Eve of the DaleksSpring special: Legend of the Sea DevilsBBC centenary special: The Power of the Doctor Series 12 Episode 1: Spyfall part oneEpisode 2: Spyfall part twoEpisode 3: Orphan 55Episode 4: Nikola Tesla's Night of TerrorEpisode 5: Fugitive of the JudoonEpisode 6: PraxeusEpisode 7: Can You Hear Me?Episode 8: The Haunting of Villa DiodatiEpisode 9: Ascension of the CybermenEpisode 10: The Timeless ChildrenNew Year's special: Revolution of the Daleks Series 11 Episode 1: The Woman Who Fell to EarthEpisode 2: The Ghost MonumentEpisode 3: RosaEpisode 4: Arachnids in the UKEpisode 5: The Tsuangra CondundrumEpisode 6: Demons of the PunjabEpisode 7: Kerblam!Episode 8: The WitchfindersEpisode 9: It Takes You AwayEpisode 10: The Battle of Ranskoor Av KolosNew Year's special: Resolution Series 10 Episode 1: The PilotEpisode 2: SmileEpisode 3: Thin IceEpisode 4: Knock KnockEpisode 5: OxygenEpisode 6: ExtremisEpisode 7: The Pyramid at the End of the WorldEpisode 8: The Lie of the LandEpisode 9: Empress of MarsEpisode 10: The Eaters of LightEpisode 11: World Enough and TimeEpisode 12: The Doctor Falls2017 Christmas special: Twice Upon A Time Series 9 Episode 1: The Magician's ApprenticeEpisode 2: The Witch's FamiliarEpisode 3: Under The LakeEpisode 4: Before The FloodEpisode 5: The Girl Who DiedEpisode 6: The Woman Who LivedEpisode 7: The Zygon InvasionEpisode 8: The Zygon InversionEpisode 9: Sleep No MoreEpisode 10: Face The RavenEpisode 11: Heaven SentEpisode 12: Hell Bent2015 Christmas special: The Husbands of River Song2016 Christmas special: The Return of Doctor Mysterio Series 8 Episode 1: Deep BreathEpisode 2: Into The DalekEpisode 3: Robot of SherwoodEpisode 4: ListenEpisode 5: Time HeistEpisode 6: The CaretakerEpisode 7: Kill The MoonEpisode 8: Mummy on the Orient ExpressEpisode 9: FlatlineEpisode 10: In the Forest of the NightEpisode 11: Dark WaterEpisode 12: Death In Heaven2014 Christmas special: Last Christmas Series 7 Episode 1: Asylum of the DaleksEpisode 2: Dinosaurs on a SpaceshipEpisode 3: A Town Called MercyEpisode 4: The Power of ThreeEpisode 5: The Angels Take Manhatten2012 Christmas special: The SnowmenEpisode 6: The Bells of Saint JohnEpisode 7: The Rings of AkhatenEpisode 8: Cold WarEpisode 9: HideEpisode 10: Journey to the Centre of the TardisEpisode 11: The Crimson HorrorEpisode 12: Nightmare in SilverEpisode 13: The Name of the Doctor50th Anniversary special: The Day of the Doctor2013 Christmas special: The Time of the Doctor Series 6 Episode 1: The Impossible AstronautEpisode 2: Day of the MoonEpisode 3: The Curse of the Black SpotEpisode 4: The Doctor's WifeEpisode 5: The Rebel FleshEpisode 6: The Almost PeopleEpisode 7: A Good Man Goes To WarEpisode 8: Let's Kill HitlerEpisode 9: Night TerrorsEpisode 10: The Girl Who WaitedEpisode 11: The God ComplexEpisode 12: Closing TimeEpisode 13: The Wedding of River Song2011 Christmas special: The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe Series 5 Episode 1: The Eleventh HourEpisode 2: The Beast BelowEpisode 3: Victory of the DaleksEpisode 4: The Time of AngelsEpisode 5: Flesh and StoneEpisode 6: The Vampires of VeniceEpisode 7: Amy's ChoiceEpisode 8: The Hungry EarthEpisode 9: Cold BloodEpisode 10: Vincent and the DoctorEpisode 11: The LodgerEpisode 12: The Pandorica OpensEpisode 13: The Big Bang2010 Christmas special: A Christmas Carol