Until now I had never heard of A Traveller In Time, not the novel nor the 5 part BBC series adapted from it.
So unfortunately I can't compare the series with the book, however I can tell you how wondrous the show is.
It starts off quite slow with the first episode to be honest. Young Penelope (Sophie Thompson) goes to live with her Aunt and Uncle in an old farmhouse in Derbyshire which a family named The Babington built.
For a while it's dialogue heavy with talks about the past, characters catching up with one another, and how Penelope had Pneumonia which is why she is off school and moving to her Aunt's place.
She expresses how she would love to own the house and says she would live there forever and ever.
Once she says that, an eerie mans voice echoes the same words.
Then seemingly out of nowhere she begins to see into the past. A lady in her room, women baking in the kitchen. Maids getting bedrooms ready and a boy sitting on a windowsill who all seem to ignore her.
Penelope mentions she's seeing these strange people to her Aunt, and her Aunt explains how it's the house showing her them and that her own mother used to see them also.
Episode 2 is where things really begin. As Penelope leaves her room she's asked by her Aunt if she could help out, but as she re-enters her room, she trips and finds herself in the year 1584.
She introduces herself to all the new (or old depending on how you see it) characters from the Elizabethan era and is quickly mocked for looking like a boy.
She does find a friend in Tabitha however, a young maid working at the house who shows Penelope the ropes and teaches her how to act around people. She doesn't know that Penelope is from the future, but does realise rather quickly she isn't from Derbyshire.
Then Francis (Simon Gipps-Kent) introduces himself and demands to know the truth of who Penelope is, which strangely enough she very quickly explains that she's from the future...
As the episodes progress, Penelope finds herself in and out of the present where she has a peaceful life and helps out at the farmhouse, whereas in the past she randomly decides that she needs to stop Mary the Queen of Scots being executed.
And no more spoilers now. What I've mentioned is only in the first couple of episodes so don't worry, I haven't spoiled anything. But I'm sure you know the past already.... Unless you've come from the past and are fascinated at seeing a plastic book which can do many things?
In that case, I apologise.
But, and that's a big BUT. You can tell this was a BBC program originally aimed at children. They may not have fully understood what was going on, nor some of the words spoken, but the story is so random and gives no explanation to anything, it's easy for children to just think "Yeah".
Whereas adults may watch it and think like I did: "Why?"
I wasn't even bothered about the whole time travel thing, it was the main conclusion near the end of episode 2 which really confused me, when Penelope decides she's been put in the past to change it.
It just confused me. She did have a little speech about free will but she seems an intelligent enough character to know that messing with the past will screw up the future.
She also makes some other annoying choices, but then we wouldn't have our entertaining predicaments then if she didn't, would we?
So all I say is this, go into the show being open minded and accept everything you hear. Don't question it.
I think if I didn't start questioning everything, I would have enjoyed it even more.
Unfortunately the DVD doesn't have any special features, but does have subtitles for the deaf or hearing impaired.
And if you've read any of my reviews before, I always mention subtitles as I believe they're extremely important.
In all, I will happily give the series:
8/10
The series is set for release on November 9th. You can preorder the dvd here.