False Gods

Main Range #115

Released: November 2008

Listened: 12/24/20

The next four entries are short stories that were released in November 2008 under the title “Forty-Five,” to celebrate the show’s 45th anniversary. Each of the stories features the number 45 in some manner. In this case, the number of relics buried in a tomb that Howard Carter is excavating with the help of two students, one of whom isn’t what they seem. For a change, this story actually feels like it should have been longer; there’s more plot going on here than can easily fit in a half-hour episode, and I’d like to know more about these characters. You’ll want to listen to the extras, because a pre-Sherlock Benedict Cumberbatch plays Howard Carter, and spends most of the interview talking about his mother (Wanda Ventham) and her roles in the classic series, but also his admiration for Steven Moffat’s writing.