I really, really enjoyed this. A lot of people describe this as the epitome of a ‘mid’ episode but for me it was always one I fondly remembered and, after this rewatch, it’s definitely increased its standing in my mind.

The 1950s period detail and atmosphere is excellent. The living room of the Connellys, the street party, Magpie’s shop, the transmitter station, the cage where the faceless people are watched. It all feels so atmospheric. The dutch angles are maybe an odd choice but I really feel like they work in this story.

Another highlight is the opening scene with the Doctor and Rose. I know the smugness grates across this season for many – myself included – but when an episode is watched in isolation it actually isn’t too bad and this first scene with the Doctor emerging from the TARDIS on a moped and Rose in period costume is great fun. Not sure why it takes the Doctor so long to realise he’s not in New York but it’s still quite a fun gag.

The Wire is such a fun villain and impeccably played by Maureen Lipman who, bearing in mind she never goes beyond a head and shoulders on a screen, embues the character with proper menace. Yes, ‘Hungry!!’ doesn’t always work, especially as it continues but it works well enough at the start and the visual of people’s faces being sucked into the TV is pretty scary. As an example of Doctor Who making the ordinary scary it’s a good one and using an object that children would literally be watching the adventure on is a stroke of genius.

The visual of the faceless people is properly unsettling and the hand-clasping a simple yet scary image. I don't think the faces on the TV screens work quite as well and, if anything, I don't actually think it's needed; the faceless people are more than enough iconography.

Ron Cook is great as Magpie too. A man trapped by his own inadequacies and desperate for a way out. His disheveled appearance and performance are excellent. His character is mirrored, somewhat, in Eddie Connolly – another man who, despite looking more composed on the service than Magpie, is trapped by his inadequacies and therefore traps those around him to hide it. His betrayal of the families in the street, and then his own mother-in-law is his way of protecting his tiny kingdom. He is a man with no sense of self, only defined by his role as the head of the family.

And that final scene which upsets so many. I think it is played right. Eddie is a monster but he is weak. You can see how easily he is shouted down by the Doctor, how easily he kowtows to Rose’s authority about the flag. Even Rita is able to stand up to him. I know people read him as an abusive father and that is definitely there, especially in how Tommy reacts to him, but both are able to stand up to him, even before the end of the story comes round. I think it is more written as a dominant father who wields his power through a lot of shouting and aggressiveness. He isn’t presented as irredeemable though. He is presented as someone who can, pretty easily, be shouted down and be told to sod off. Tommy going after him just adds to the fact that he can be given a second chance and that, after those events, he may be able to see the error of his ways and get a second chance. In a show where the Doctor even tries to give Davros and the Master, second chances, why would he not wish for a fallible human to be given a second chance. The power has shifted to Tommy – he now has the ability to choose how their family functions and relates. I think that’s actually a pretty important message.

Historically, we are finally emerging from the shadow of World War 2. We are seeing technology entering homes and a nation coming together for the shared experience of Queen Elizabeth’s coronation. This is still a society that dresses up for a special occasion, even if that special occasion is on a tiny, black and white screen in the corner of their living room. There is a joy permeating under the fear and tension of the faceless people which is released as soon as the Wire is defeated. This is also seen in Tommy and Rita’s sense of power and accomplishment when they break free of Eddie’s grip. They are indicative of a nation emerging finally from a period of fear into one of joy and looking forward.

This is a story which, to my mind, deserves an element of reappraisal.