Doctor Who

I finally sat down last night and watched the last two episodes of my favourite science fiction show, "Human Nature" and "The Family of Blood", both written by Paul Cornell.

I think I've just witnessed the greatest 90 minutes of Doctor Who ever, eclipsing everything that's ever gone before. Ever. To my eternal shame, I once panned a book co-written by Cornell for SFX back in 1995 (an unofficial episode guide for Star Trek: The Next Generation). I felt guilty at the time - not because I was being unfair (I stand by my criticism), but because I had a vague notion I'd met him, and having seen his photo I know I have. Geek moment: Paul was at Lancaster University around the same time I was, and turned up as a "guest" at one of the RPG Society meetings. He was a welcome addition to our game for that one week, and was both witty, funny and clever. Last night I got to see first-hand just how talented he is (which in a way is also unfair, because he penned the excellent "Father's Day" episode from season one).

The two aforementioned epsiodes were based on a Doctor Who book Paul wrote around 10 years ago - you can read it for free online here (or download a copy to your PC or PDA as I'm going to do). If you get a chance to see these two episodes, you won't regret it - Doctor Who at its finest, with a strong plot, excellent cast and enough references for the geeks and romantics alike (my favourite? His bowling skills saving the day, a direct reference to my favourite Doctor, Peter Davison).

Paul Cornell, Russell T Davies, Julie Gardner, the entire Doctor Who team: thank you from the bottom of my heart. Perfection - and sustained over two episodes too!