You know you're in good hands when you see that Tom Baker is reprising the role of the fourth Doctor: you need someone of Baker's calibre when you are up against the evil hornets, nasty creatures more than capable of ravaging the entire planet.

Fortunately the good doctor is on his mettle, miniaturising himself and his unwitting companions to take them into the very centre of the hornets' nest.

The danger is that these are such insidious enemies, capable of getting into your mind and changing your personality before destroying you all together.

That's precisely what seems to be happening to the redoubtable Mike Yates despite his boasts about having prepared himself to withstand any mind-bending that's thrown his way.

Fortunately, he really is made of stern stuff, pulling off a remarkable double bluff in the very heart of his enemy's lair. But as the Doctor soon points out, you need more than a gun when you're facing the Hornet Queen.

With sound effects, plenty of huffing and puffing and a good deal of hyperbole comically undercut by the laconic doctor, this is an adventure to savour. Totally mad, totally from another world, but all the better for that.

Phil Hewitt