At the end of The Big Bang, when the Eleventh Doctor took a phone call alerting him to the presence of "an escaped Egyptian goddess on the Orient Express, in space" I doubt any of us expected to see that throwaway line followed up on in a full length episode 4 years later. I also doubt there was actually any demand for it either. But here we are.
The first Doctor Who story from Being Human's Jamie Mathieson comes in the form of Mummy On The Orient Express. It's a spectacular looking instalment, with a really well realised monster. The story is good, but unfortunately doesn't quite match some of the highs we've been spoiled with throughout Peter Capaldi's debut season.
The Mummy on board this space-faring Orient Express goes under the name of the Foretold, and although for us it's quite an impressive sight - it certainly wouldn't look out of place in a Hollywood movie - the passengers really don't want a glimpse of it, because once they do they only have 66 seconds left to live. The Doctor literally races against the clock to save the Foretold's latest victim. And I mean literally. The onscreen countdown clock, whilst initially novel, doesn't really quite work....that kinda sums up the episode.
The Twelfth Doctor's lack of emotion or concern over the deaths of the 'red shirts' is now nothing new, and the majority of the guest stars are completely forgettable. However, like anything there are exceptions to the rule, and who would've thought that the exception here would be Frank Skinner? His clear love for the show shines through in his portrayal of Chief Engineer Perkins. Like Peter Capaldi, he's waited a lifetime for this and doesn't waste a second.
All in all, Mummy on the Orient Express chugs along at an even pace and offers several good moments of tension and excitement, but in retrospect it kind of feels like a bit of a filler episode. That is to say, without wanting to spoiler anything, that the beginning and end of the story are there for a reason, what happens in the middle could've really been anything.
Mummy on the Orient Express premieres Saturday, October 11th at 8.35pm on BBC One.