'Sutton Park' 293-294

'Sutton Park' 293-294

There's apparently little movement on the 'Doctor Who' missing episodes front, but any such news would of course be overshadowed by the excellent progress being made with 'Sutton Park'.

Where we left things the other day, one of the recoveries was a chunk of material from Episodes 290 - 293 that, due to the tape giving out, left us on an unintended cliffhanger as Paul and Nick have jumped back in time two years to 1992.

They explore outside on the balcony, speculating on whether 1992 will look very different to 1994 - surprise, surprise it doesn't! Nick ponders whether any of the shops in the Maltings area of Salisbury might have changed, which is a line that resonates with hindsight.

Sadly, the trip back in time has done nothing to solve the problem of the rings our heroes are wearing. There is also mention of people who have disappeared, though I'm a bit fuzzy on the details of this subplot. Mind you, even Paul admits that he does not understand it...

Apparently, the evil influence of actor Bakov is involved, though Nick accidentally calls him Bacchus at first, possibly indicating that his mind is on other things. YouTube is well and truly  flummoxed here and the best it can come up with is 'Backpackers', which make me smile.

Through all this, Nick has still got his helmet on, showing how seriously we took safety when making the show.

Inside the house, the 1992 version of Paul spots Nick out of the window, and is concerned at this intruder. It's never quite clear why Paul doesn't recognise Nick, as he hasn't changed that much in 2 years, but maybe the sight of his unfamiliar helmet has temporarily confused Paul.

It's a nice touch that 1992-Paul has a higher voice than 1994 Paul, showing how much more manly he has become after fighting the evil of 'Sutton Park' for so long.

Nick tells 1994-Paul that he has seen someone inside the house and they realise that it's the earlier version of Paul. They run back into the Bathroom Time Machine and set the controls in the Medicine Cabinet before 1992-Paul can catch them.

1992 (represented by a shot of a Whiskas calendar) warps back to 1994 (a diary) and now they are back safe and sound, Nick can finally remove his helmet.

Falling back on their original plan (visiting Southampton or a church - I'm not exactly sure how these are equivalent). YouTube insists that the discussion is about The Power Of Goodness against the Peruvians (which seems a harsh judgement when it comes to Paddington, for one), but the second half of the line definitely concerns The Power Of Evil.

Prompted by Nick, Paul recalls how in 1992 there was some concern about a possible burglar, so they've just created a bit of their own history.

Nick heads for home until tomorrow, when they will meet up again and Paul relates how Elaine and George (the inflatable Santa Claus) are back together, which is good news, even if the rings are still proving tricky to deal with...

(End Of Episode 293)

Episode 294 sees Paul heading for bed, but before he can get a good night's sleep, there is a strange phone call from a faint but theatrically OTT voice, claiming to be none other than Bakov himself.

YouTube can't get a handle on much of his rantings, simply describing it with the loose term [Music], but that can't be helped.

Bakov promises to stay a dark shadow that stalketh Paul's every move or something, and hangs up.

Paul refuses to rise to the bait and does one of those mirror shots where you can get an idea of how bulky camcorders were in 1994. Possibly in a few days, Paul will go to Crystal Palace (Bakov's old stamping ground) and see how events transpire.

Anyone popping round to Nick's place will find a note informing them that he has gone to Romsey (near Southampton) and the viewers join him with Paul at Salisbury Railway station. Again YouTube mangles the words, rendering Romsey as the exotic-sounding 'Rongzi', wherever that may be.

One quick train trip later, we've arrived in Romsey - you can tell as there's a big sign at the station - and Paul follows Nick onto the not-so-mean streets of Hampshire.

Heading for the Abbey, Paul is concerned that the evil of Sutton Park will follow them, so takes the long way round, diverting to the area around Squab Wood, at least according to a handy footpath sign.

Mindful of the possibility of a sudden attack, Nick dons a hat as a disguise, though how much good this actually does is debatable.

Although nothing has happened yet, Paul is convinced that their luck must run out soon. The tension increases and Paul is proved correct, as Nick spots a dreadful sight.

Ahead of them is the horrifying figure of a Claw Monster, its pink plastic from bearing down on them!

What can our heroes do now???

(End of Episode 294)

 The material from 'Sutton Park' Episodes 293-294 can be seen here.

As always, it's even weirder if you put the subtitles on...

(Written by Andrew Trowbridge)