Simon Callow

Roars to life in its least intimate passages...If not for his blind spot for his "angel in hell" Phantom, Schumacher would do Webber's popular entertainment justice.

A witty and highly imaginative historical fiction, well adapted by screenwriter Peter Shaffer from his own hit play.

Not everything works out neatly for everyone, but life seems a little better by the end of two hours' struggle, for the characters and for the audience.

The Doctor dead? Not on your life.

Thundered back onto the BBC in a manner that honored the series' canon while also injecting new energy and reestablishing a show previously aimed primarily at children as one sophisticated enough that adult geeks could love it unabashedly.