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The Stones

of Venice

MARCH 2001

(4 EPISODES)

What is it with Paul Magrs? With most Doctor Who writers, by the time that I’ve

got a couple of their stories under my belt, I’m able to gauge whether or not I like their style. Paul Magrs’ work, however, constantly confounds me. Some of it I find utterly enchanting; so much so that I’m left wondering why he’s writing Doctor Who and not topping international bestseller charts. The rest of it, though, I find completely impenetrable, which is really quite bizarre when one considers that his work is so infamously distinctive; inimitable, even. And whilst I can’t adequately articulate why some of Magrs’ stories prove to be such resounding hits with me whereas others don’t, I am at least able to say that The Stones of Venice really doesn’t work for me. Not at all.

Magrs’ premise is certainly one that fires the imagination - a futuristic Venice sinking into

the water, an evil curse, a revolution – but for some reason the plot never quite drew me in. Perhaps this is because The Stones of Venice so patently pays homage to literary classics such as Wuthering Heights, A Room with a View, and even Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night - texts with which I’m not familiar and, ultimately, not all that interested in.

Matters aren’t helped by the play’s

heightened feel. The events and the

characters portrayed are so embroi-

dered that the play feels as much like

a nursery rhyme as it does a Doctor

Who adventure. As one would expect,

The League of Gentlemen’s Mark Gatiss revels in the richness of the material; as does series stalwart Michael Sheard (Remembrance

of the Daleks, et al), who puts in a wonderful turn as the moribund, disconsolate wreck that is Count Orsino; and Elaine Ives-Cameron, who plays his execrable flame Estella. Paul McGann and India Fisher, however, each feel a little lost, fervently tearing through a world where they don’t quite fit. Who knows? Perhaps that’s the point I’m missing.

Indeed, unlike most stories that I don’t get on well with, I can at least see that The Stones of Venice is sure to really arouse a niche audience. Distinctive and baroque, and dripping with Magrs’ typically delectable dialogue, those that like this one are sure to love it.

Copyright © E.G. Wolverson 2006

E.G. Wolverson has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

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