C16S03 The stones of blood

Synopsis

The search for the third segment of the Key to Time leads the Doctor, Romana and K9 to Boscombe Moor on Earth in the late 20th Century.  Here they encounter Professor Amelia Rumford and Vivien Fay, who are surveying an ancient stone circle call the Nine Travellers.  What is the link between an ancient Celtic goddess, and alien criminal and a transporter ship concealed in hyperspace?  And can the Doctor escape the Druidic sacrifice of blood to uncover the mystery of the moving stones?

Cover notes

Doctor Who reached a significant milestone with The Stones of Blood — it was the 100th televised story.  Appropriately, it is a tale combining two of the series' strongest and most successful elements: Earth-bound horror in the gothic tradition, and full-on science fiction, complete with a futuristic spaceship and silver aliens.

The Nine Travellers instantly evokes a powerful sense of ancient mysticism which requires scant exposition, and allow the small cast of characters to develop a genuine rapport, grounded with glimpses of the mundane.  Poking fun at a 15 year history of companions with twisted ankles, the Doctor finally deigns to offer Romana some wise words on her choice of footwear, and later it's back to the cottage for sausage sandwiches all round...  The cosy domestic routine contrasts sharply with the story's focus on the primal ancient rites of blood sacrifice.

Events take an unexpected and bewildering turn when the action moves into hyperspace for the denouement, opportuning a nod to the past with a Wirrn from The Ark in Space and Kraal from The Android Invasion making brief cameos.  After this, however, the retrieval of the third segement of the Key seems purely incidental, and ultimately it is the strong characterisation and the deftness of the direction that prove The Stones of Blood a fitting landmark to the Doctor's first century of adventures.

Cast

Crew

DVD Extras

Special Edition DVD Extras

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Loose Canon Extras

Commentary