10 Classic Doctor Who Moments That Really Haven’t Aged Well
6. Kastria The Hand Of Fear (1977)
The Story Sarah Jane Smith is possessed by the fossilised hand of an alien that uses her to regenerate the rest of its body. The Moment The scenes on the planet Kastria in Part Four. Why It Hasnt Aged Well The Hand Of Fear is a strange beast in that its production values seem to fall as the story progresses. While the studio sets in the first three parts are nothing spectacular, these episodes are of a generally high standard for late 70s Who. They feature some great location footage, innovative special effects, and a costume design for Eldrad (the storys antagonist) that still looks pretty good thirty-seven years later. But its Part Four that really comes across as dated thanks to what feels like a sharp decrease in production values once the narrative leaves Earth and goes to Eldrads home planet of Kastria. The sets definitely feel cheaper once the Tardis arrives on Kastria which dates those scenes a fair bit. The costume switch for Eldrad after he regains his true form doesnt help either, with the well constructed and flexible body suit worn by Judith Paris being replaced by the stiff and very blocky costume shown above. Which makes the whole thing just that bit harder to take seriously, along with swapping out the slightly more subdued performance of Judith Paris for the scenery chewing of Stephen Thorne. Had the production values of Part Four been the same as previous parts, the whole thing might tie together a little better. But, as it stands, Part Four stands out from the rest of the story as looking very dated.
JG Moore is a writer and filmmaker from the south of England. He also works as an editor and VFX artist, and has a BA in Media Production from the University Of Winchester.
