Day Fifty-Nine: Desperate Measures (The Rescue, Episode Two)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Fifty-Nine: Desperate Measures (The Rescue, Episode Two)

Dear diary,

I wonder if I'd have seen the twist with Bennett coming if I didn't already know that he was Koquillion? I'm tempted to say that I probably wouldn't… because it kind of comes from nowhere.

The problem with a two-part story is that there's no time for this plot to be built up and resolved in time, while still aiming for the mid-way cliffhanger. While the last episode was fairly well done in terms of the pacing, this one feels almost as though they've realised that the rest of the story needs to be done and dusted pretty quick, so that they can ask Vicki to join them in the TARDIS and be on their way.

To be quite truthful, I'm not even 100% sure what happened at the end there. Were they ghosts of the Dido people? Had some survived? The Doctor seems to imply that they can now take their world back… where have they been hiding for the last year or so? So many questions, so little time!

All that said, though, there's still plenty to like in this episode. Chiefly among them, the Doctor's confrontation with Koquillion. We've never really had a scene quite like this before, where the Doctor stands face-to-face with the story's 'bad guy' and has a cool, calm discussion with him, during which he basically tells them to stop what they're doing. This is a scene in the same key as the Tenth Doctor's poolside chat with Mr Finch in School Reunion, or the Eleventh Doctor's face-off with Madame Kovarian during A Good Man Goes to War.

What's nice about it is that I've never known it was here! Buried away towards the end of s strange little two-parter from Season Two. Hartnell plays it with perfection. The way he turns to face Koquillion, having already revealed him as Bennett and remaining fairly dignified throughout is fantastic, as is their entire discussion, ending with a fight. It's just a shame that the fight is ended by the appearance of the ghosts. Or survivors. Or… well, whatever they are.

Also good fun is the amount of humour still in the series. It's been having a larger impact on the stories as we move along (and it'll somewhat explode everywhere in the next story), but here it's Ian and Barbara having most of the laughs. I love the way they react when Vicki announces that they must be about 550 - both reactions are priceless and entirely in character.

Less 'in character', though, is Barbara's reaction to seeing Sandy for the first time. Yes, yes, I'm willing to accept that she was looking out for Vicki's safety and trying to make sure that the creature didn't attack. Yes, I'm willing to admit that the creature could look rather terrifying from a distance (In the long-shots early on, even I was prepared to admit it looked quite good. In close up… not so much), but still, it's not the kind of thing I'd expect from Barbara to grab a (flare) gun and shoot the creature dead!

Perhaps the most obvious thing to say about this story is that it really feels like a fresh start. Susan has gone, so now we've got these two episodes to introduce the new companion and to set out the scope of the series once more. Ian and Barbara explain that they got 'mixed up' with the Doctor in 1963, and that they now travel anywhere in time and space - 'Anywhere and everywhere in that old box', as the Doctor puts it. We even get to see Vicki doing the whole 'Bigger on the inside' thing (though not with those exact words). In many ways, this really does feel like the programme brushing itself down after the big Dalek epic, and getting ready to move on again, refreshed and renewed.

And what better way to do that than with a great cliffhanger of the TARDIS falling off a cliff?!

Next Episode: The Slave Traders

Lost episodes of Second Doctor adventure The Ice Warriors are being animated for DVD release, doctorwho.tv has confirmed.

Animation studio Qurios have been commissioned to recreate the missing episodes two and three, which see Ice Warrior leader Varga revive, kidnap Victoria and defrost his glacier-bound army.

“We’ve been discussing the various ways Qurios could reconstruct these episodes for over three years” said Dan Hall, Managing Director of Pup Ltd Media Consultancy, producer of the DVD. “So it’s really, really satisfying to finally see them animated. Qurios have a great track record in excellent and innovative animations”.

When asked about using a different animation studio to previous releases, Hall replied:

“Doctor Who has had many different visual styles thanks to changing directors, designers and production methods. We wanted to mirror this in our choice of animation partners”.

Qurios Entertainment’s previous work includes visual effects for sci-fi sitcom Hyperdrive, puppet comedy Mongrels and titles for Doctor Who DVD extra series Who Peter. Veteran producer of the classic Who range, Chris Chapman has overseen the animation, Niel Bushnell is the producer for Qurios and the animation director is Chris Chatterton.

See an exclusive “work in progress” clip, below, where the Doctor tries to convince Leader Clent that temperamental humans - even the recently fired scientist Penley - are still far better than machines:

+  The Ice Warriors will be released on DVD on 26th August 2013, priced £20.42.

[Source: doctorwho.tv]

 Day Fifty-Eight: The Powerful Enemy (The Rescue, Episode One)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Fifty-Eight: The Powerful Enemy (The Rescue, Episode One)

Dear diary,

Oh, this feels strange and new and exciting! It's possible that it's because I've just come from six days of the decade-old Dalek Invasion of Earth DVD, and it's great to be back to a vidFIREd episode. Things look so crisp!

After the huge scale of the last story, this feels like things are swinging in the complete opposite direction. We're entirely studio-bound again, with a tiny cast and a minimal number of sets. That's not a criticism, though: it all works quite well for the most part, and in some ways it's nice to have a story like this again.

The biggest issue that I have with it is that I've been a Doctor Who fan for about ten years, now, so I know how this story ends. I know the secrets about Koquillion (which I'll come to tomorrow), so it's hard to watch this story without having that in mind. For now though, it's worth pointing out that the Koquillion design is actually really good.

I mean, yes, it's a bit bizarre, but that's the kind of thing that Doctor Who is very very good at. That first shot of him, in close-up outside the TARDIS is really very striking, and it's no wonder Barbara is scared away from him. I'm less keen on the jewelled spanner he's using as a weapon, though. That's a bit naff.

One of the things that's impressed me the most about the story so far, though, is the continuity with the end of the last serial. The departure of Susan is a big moment in the history of the show, and it's really nice to see it being talked about rather than just moving on. Barbara tells Ian that it's not the kind of thing that the Doctor will just move on from - which is exactly the way he deals with a fair few companion departures later in the show's run.

Something else that works well in this regard is that the Doctor has yet to meet Vicki. Barbara has encountered her, and that's allowed us into her world and to fill in her backstory, but for the Doctor, there's no one in sight to replace Susan. As the programme goes on, it almost feels like a revolving door, with one companion leaving in story A and the next arriving in story B. Here is feels real and continues to sell the idea of the show as a continuing serial.

Also, is this the first story since An Unearthly Child that doesn't feature a scene inside the TARDIS before we catch up with the TARDIS crew? The Dalek Invasion of Earth had the Roboman walking into the river, but I think we usually get a chat with the crew before we meet any actual guest cast, don't we?

There's little else to add for this one (though I'm tempted to highlight the Doctor's sense of humour in this episode. His exchange with Barbara - 'Doctor! The trembling's stopped!' / 'Oh, my dear, I'm so glad you're feeling better!' - as being a particular highlight!), save to say that it's an interesting introduction to Vicki as a character, and a good starting performance from Maureen O'Brien. I look forward to seeing more!

Next Episode: Desperate Measures

 Day Fifty-Seven: Flashpoint (The Dalek Invasion of Earth, Episode Six)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Fifty-Seven: Flashpoint (The Dalek Invasion of Earth, Episode Six)

Dear diary,

When I started on this experiment, I was looking forward to today. Susan had long been, in my mind, a bit of a useless companion, and not one that I really was relishing the thought of spending almost two months with as I worked my way through the series. Actually, though, I'm genuinely left a little sad now.

It's really nice to reach this point in the programme's run and realise that my opinion of Susan thus far has been coloured somewhat by a few extreme examples (Reign of Terror, I'm looking at you…). On the whole, she's been quite a fantastic character, and it certainly feels strange to see the TARDIS fading away with Susan left behind.

What's also nice, coming to it having spent every day since New Year's with Susan in tow, is just how affecting this final scene is. I'd argue that it's one of the most famous scenes in Doctor Who's long history (or, at least, Hartnell's speech is), but that's all it's ever been to me; a scene at the end of Susan's time on the show. It's never really been that full of emotion before, or anything all that special - it's just something that happened in Doctor Who way-back-when.

In many ways, then, today has proved to me that all my reasons for wanting to undertake this marathon, to shut myself away from other areas of Doctor Who and focus on watching it in order - in context - from the start at a set pace have been valid. The way I described it to another fan back in December, just before I started on the project was that companions - and Doctors - come and go, but they always feel sort of ephemeral. I can watch a Susan story on DVD one day, then a Tegan story the next, before skipping back to a Sarah Jane, then purchase a Big Finish audio with a brand new adventure starring the Seventh Doctor and Ace.

Watching in this way is akin to watching the show as it goes out now - you form a bond with the companion and with the Doctor, and it's genuinely moving when their time in the TARDIS comes to an end. The point of what I'm trying to say here is, yes, watching Susan leave was actually a bit emotional. Sure, she overplays it a bit when telling David that she can't stay behind on Earth with him, no matter how she feels, but it's all very real, and far more real than we often see in the show.

I'm also pleased to see Hartnell at his best here, too. The Doctor knows that this is the time he'll have to make a difficult decision, and he almost falls to tears when he takes Susan's shoe and realises that this is the end for the pair of them. Watching him let her go is simply wonderful, and I'm genuinely going to miss her.

I'm still desperate to hear a West Wing-styled series from Big Finish, though, featuring her and David as they try to start re-building the Earth!

Elsewhere in the episode, it's nice to see the defeat of the Daleks given the scale that it so sorely missed in their first story. The shot of the Robomen and the slaves turning on the Daleks and charging at them from out of the mine is fantastic, and it really does feel like a fitting finale. It's a shame that it's over with s quickly, but it's a definite improvement from the last time around.

I've little else to add, really, about The Dalek Invasion of Earth, except to say that it really has surprised me. For a long time, I've always just thought of it as just another story from the Hartnell era, which was ok but nothing special, but actually, I've loved it from start to finish. One of the best stories we've had so far.

It's a shame that the story is likely to be tainted to me somewhat by the sad association of Raymond Cusick's death, but I'm pleased that I've been so impressed by a story featuring his - frankly wonderful - designs.

I'll be rating this episode,

Next Episode: The Powerful Enemy

(NB; you may have noticed, from Planet of Giants onwards, I've not been rating the store has a whole at the end. I've found that I'm usually summing the story up in the last episode as I go, leaving little to say for a summary at the end. I'll be putting all the average scores together at the end of each Doctor's era for a bit of a retrospective, so I can summarise the eras as a whole).

Classic Series Doctor Who Makeup Designer, Lisa Westcott, has won an Oscar for her work on Les Miserables.

Lisa won the Oscar, together with colleague Julie Dartnell, in the 'Makeup and Hairstyling' category for their work on Les Miserables, beating off competition from The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and Hitchcock.

Lisa worked on the Classic Series, 5th Doctor adventure; 'Black Orchid'.

[Source: Neil Marsh]

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Doctor Who celebrates its 50th anniversary with plans of some specially commissioned dramas, one off episodes and a few other treats along the way, but what about the fans?

Doctor Who’s older enthusiasts that have risen through the ranks of the BBC have been bringing the show to life on television. Other fans have been looking after the production of Doctor Who Magazine, the Big Finish Productions and all sorts of other Doctor Who related things! Then there’s you – the fans who have been keeping the passion of the show alive by watching it, buying it and talking about it until your face literally turns a TARDIS shade of blue!

Independent production company FTS Media are getting involved in the celebrations, with their film ‘Doctor Who: Celebrating 50 Years Of Fandom’. They say on their website:

‘Doctor Who fans are like no other, devoted to the Time Lord and his companions, but vilified for their passion. We want to know why. Why so much enthusiasm, and why do people think it’s so different to any other hobby? Where other documentaries have lingered on the negative side of fandom, we want to celebrate the passion that lies within fans of Doctor Who, and how their passion managed to keep the’ show alive. We’ll explore how Doctor Who fans have incorporated their devotion into everyday life, from writing blogs and books, to those who make it their mission to collect every TARDIS Teapot, Dalek Duvet and Cyberman Clock!’

FTS Media will be speaking to Who fans from all over the world as well as well-known Doctor Who faces, such as Robert Shearman, and the most recently announced Louise Jameson who played Leela, companion to Tom Baker’s Fourth Doctor. They’re also planning on speaking to Adventures with the Wife in Space creator Neil Perryman and also ‘The Wife’ herself! 

They launched a funding campaign on Kickstarter, which has been a great success – but they are still looking for a little bit more! With just 4 days left at the time of writing this, they still have some fantastic rewards available in return for your support, ranging from key chains and pin badges to signed books and beautifully hand crafted items! They also have a range of specially commissioned art prints titled the ‘Doctor in the Dark’ series, and these are definitely worth getting your hands on!

If you want to find out more about the contributors, or to pledge your support to this fantastic project, just visit http://bit.ly/FTS-DW50.

+  Follow FTS Media on Twitter.
+  Like FTS Media on Facebook. 

[Source: FTS Media]

It is with deepest regret that DWO announces the passing of Designer of The Daleks, Ray Cusick.

Ray designed the iconic look of The Daleks - brainchild of creator, Terry Nation. The design of The Daleks has changed very little since the 1960's and at the time of designing, Cusick was on a standard BBC salary, so did not collect any royalties from his designs.

The Daleks have since gone on to earn huge revenues for Terry Nation's estate - a fact which many fans feel Cusick should have received more recognition (and royalties) for.

During his life, Cusick always stated he never asked for money, only to be recognised as a designer.

DWO would like to extend our sympathies to Raymond's family and friends.

[Source: BBC News]

 Day Fifty-Four: Day of Reckoning (The Dalek Invasion of Earth, Episode Three)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Fifty-Four: Day of Reckoning (The Dalek Invasion of Earth, Episode Three)

Dear diary,

It's fitting that I've started on this story this week, since SUnday morning just gone saw Mark Gatiss and the team behind An Adventure in Space and Time take to the streets of London to record a version of the shots from this episode (mainly, the Daleks on Westminster Bridge) to use in their drama.

I've always like the idea of the 'Yeti on the loo in Tooting Bec' aspect of the series, but never more so than during the 1960s stories. There's something just a little bit magical about seeing the Daleks gliding around the streets of London (or, later on in the series, the Cybermen at St Pauls, or the Yeti in Covent Garden, the TARDIS parked outside the Post Office Tower…). The one thing that lets this example down a little though is… well… the shots of the Daleks in the capitol aren't all that great.

Shush, now. Calm down. Stop throwing fruit, too, taa. Don't get me wrong, the shots are perfectly adequate, and they look good enough, but they don't work as well as I'd like. When we're watching Barbara, Jenny, and Dortmun running down deserted streets, or dashing round corners to escape the Daleks, it looks great. Really, truly, fantastic. Those shots have such pace and energy, and they add to that feeling I had during Episode One of this tale; Doctor Who has never looked quite this good, or been on quite this scale.

But then these action shots are intercut with the footage of the Daleks just milling about. One trundles up to some stamps on the Embankment, looks around a bit with tunnel vision, then heads off again. Some more meet up at the base of Nelson's Column, appear to have a bit of a natter (it looks like the equivalent of when you run into friends-you-don't-really-like in the middle of Ikea, and make awkward small talk), then go their separate ways.

There's no sense of urgency to the shots of the Daleks, that's what I'm trying to get at. Barbara and her new comrades are trying with all the effort they can muster to get away from the Daleks, who just don't seem all that bothered by them. It'd be interesting to see a version of this scene cut together with a bit more thought - it could be a fantastic scene, as iconic as some of the others I'd listed above.

Where the action does work for this episode, though, is in the fight with the Daleks early on. It carries on from the one we saw in yesterday's episode, albeit on a much grander scale. There's plenty of smoke effects, and flashes of bombs. People - and Daleks - dart back and forth across the screen, and Ian and Babs even get a brief moment to see each other through the chaos, and assure the other that they're all right.

What's great is that this is the battle against the Daleks that we should have seen at the end of The Daleks (The serial, not yesterday's episode…). There we got a few chaps in ripped trousers pushing the pepper-pots over. here, we actually get the impression that they're a force to be reckoned with. It's nice to see them given more status.

Mind you, I can't take them seriously with those bumpers. They look like they've been placed on little pedestals!

It's also nice to see Susan being set up for her departure. She muses early on that she's never really felt like she belongs anywhere in time or space, and David gently tells her that one day, she'll be forced to stop travelling (Next Tuesday). Later on, the Doctor notices as she starts to break away from him and move toward David. It's nice to see it being set up early on in the story. A lot of future departures won't be given this much thought…

Now, crank yourself closer to the screen in a jerky motion - like the bizarre, but great camerawork on the cliffhanger - as you read the score…

Next Episode: The End of Tomorrow

 Day Fifty-Three: The Daleks (The Dalek Invasion of Earth, Episode Two)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Fifty-Three: The Daleks (The Dalek Invasion of Earth, Episode Two)

Dear diary,

The image of the Dalek rising from the river is justifiably iconic in the history of Doctor Who. It's created well, but it never quite lives up the the way I see it in my mind. It's a stunning moment, but one which isn't given much room to breathe at the end of Episode One. Ian and the Doctor turn around, and stop in their tracks, but we've cut back to the real star of the show, the Dalek, before we can see their reactions properly. This gets resolved here, with plenty of time spent dwelling on it, but it's still a shame.

Perhaps the bigger shame, though, is the way the shot of the Dalek plays out here. There's no incidental music, which rather leaves it looking like the Doctor and Ian are just casually watching as the Dalek gently strolls out of the waves and onto the bank. It fells a little bit too flat for me, I'm afraid.

Perhaps a bigger shame, though, is that it's almost impossible as a viewer in 1964 to not know the Daleks were coming back. Before the last episode, I watched the trailer for the story which is included on the DVD - it's hugely focussed around the return of the Daleks, since they were so popular the year before. Even the Radio Times ran it as a cover image. The cliffhanger would have such an impact coming out of the blue, so I'm sorry to know that didn't happen.

As it is, I think I'd be rather miffed, after all the build up, to know I'd not got a Dalek until the last thirty seconds or so! Give me my pepper pots! We get paid back in spades here, though, and there's Daleks a-plenty. There's a wonderful shot toward the end of the episode, while the battle against the Daleks is going on, where we've got five of them moving about, plus a few more cardboard cut-out versions (which here, as in The Daleks - the serial, not this episode! - almost work, but not quite. It'd help if they didn't keep shining the spotlight directly at them…)

Something that I have found interesting throughout this episode is the Doctor's reaction to encountering the Daleks again. He doesn't panic, or fear them, he simply responds to their bold assertion that they're the masters of Earth with a glib comment ('Not for long!') and comments to Ian that they need to put their wits together and defeat the creatures.

Throughout the stories of the first series, I often spoke of the Doctor growing more and more into the character we know from later in the series. I think this surely has to be the crowning moment of that transformation. The Doctor discovers that an old foe is behind the events they've encountered, and decides that it's up to him to stop it. It's fitting that the Daleks should be the creatures to make him see this, considering that they're the first monster to return to the series after their initial debut. No wonder they became his arch nemesis!

It's also good to see some throwbacks with the Doctor's character, too, though. While locked up in a cell on the Dalek ship, he's very friendly with Ian, discussing space-age science with him and wondering if they'd taught it at Coal Hill, while being thoroughly dismissive of Craddock. He's not quite as harsh with the man as he was with Ian and Barbara when they first encountered him, but there's flashes of the Doctor's more guarded persona that we don't see often any more.

Next Episode: Day of Reckoning

 Day Fifty-Two: World's End (The Dalek Invasion of Earth, Episode One)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Fifty-Two: World's End (The Dalek Invasion of Earth, Episode One)

Dear diary,

When I'm watching an episode of Doctor Who for this blog, I tend to make notes. Not lots of them, just things that I might want to mention while I'm writing up my thoughts for the day's entry. Some days, there's very little (glancing at my sheet, I've written absolutely nothing for Dangerous Journey, and only a single line of Hartnell's dialogue for Crisis…), and other times, I write quite a lot.

Today is an example of a day that I've written quite a lot, and it's probably quite a good thing that I've used the word 'great' three times. Once in full caps.

I've never really paid all that much attention to The Dalek Invasion of Earth. It's just one of those stories that's just sort of… there. It's another that I picked up on DVD quite early on, watched once, maybe twice, then just left to sit on the shelf. It's got a pivotal place in Doctor Who history for a number of reasons, but it's just not all that special to me.

That is, until watching through the series in order. Because, blimey, this is a massive leap from the stuff we've had so far, isn't it? I mused the other day that I'd pictured the audio-only Farewell Great Macedon as being entirely studio-bound, because that's what I'd been used to. A brief stroll sown a country lane aside, Doctor Who just hadn't done location work.

All of that gets blasted right out of the water here, though. The episode is full to bursting with location footage - and it really helps to sell the story as being part of something epic. The silly thing is that the moment that's perhaps most effective for me from a location standpoint is a simple scene in which the Doctor and Ian climb a set of stairs… and they just go up and up! There's a scale to this that you just don't have in any of the stories we've seen before.

It's also some great stuff when we watch Barbara running through decaying industrial structures, with collapsing buildings that stretch off into the distance and a world completely over-grown. It doesn't look anything like Doctor Who, but it looks better than Doctor Who. This looks like a real drama, with a gritty sense of reality.

But it's not only the locations that work really well. The initial shots of the TARDIS arriving on the banks of the river and the crew exploring their surroundings is fantastic, and a selection of high shots and low shots really help to sell the sheer size of the setting. This really is the most ambitious episode we've had to date, and I'm simply floored by it.

I'm also surprised to find, as we start our tenth 'regular' story, that they're still using the idea of a first episode focussed mostly around the regular team exploring. We're slowly drip-fed new characters throughout the twenty-five minutes, but it's not until the end that we have several other faces on screen - this is mostly about the TARDIS crew and their reactions.

Staring at my notes, there's so much more I could talk about, but I'll save it. There's sure to be an opportunity during the later episodes of the story. Suffice to say, I'm impressed.

Next Episode: The Daleks

DWO have recently learned of an online scam offering missing Doctor Who episodes in exchange for credit card access to an online porn site.

The site, which is hosted by 'RogueCyberman' an online blogger and Twitter user, claims to have missing episodes such as 'The Faceless Ones' and 'The Macra Terror', and offers them as 'bonus content' when you sign up to Time Girl Katie's porn site.

The blogger, who remains anonymous, claimed the following:

"All of the missing episodes recently recovered from an anonymous collector in Kent have been successfully digitised and are now available to download as bonus content in Time Girl Katie's free private members area."

We would like to extend our thanks to Robert Lenko who obtained screengrabs and access to the site in question, with proof (pictured-right), which has since been pulled from RogueCyberman's blog. We have also learned that when similar screengrabs showed up on a Tumblr page (owned by someone trying to expose the scam), RogueCyberman issued a DMCA takedown notice...

This news item has also come about as a result of DWO receiving a number of emails from Doctor Who fans claiming that their children (looking for missing Doctor Who episodes) stumbled across RogueCyberman's blog and were subjected to the adult imagery from Time Girl Katie's site, from which his blog directly links to in promise of the episodes.

DWO would like to assure fans that there is no Doctor Who content at all on the website, and should be warned not to give any credit card details to the site.

Our friends over at SFX Magazine posted a similar article warning fans back in 2012, read what they had to say here:
http://www.sfx.co.uk/2012/03/12/beware-naked-doctor-who-fangirls/

The BBC have been informed and we will report further when we have more news.

UPDATE - Friday 22nd February 2013 @ 8:30am

In a typical display of fan unity, fellow Doctor Who sites; Blogtor Who, Kasterborous, Outpost Skaro & Companions Of The Doctor, have all shown their support in exposing RogueCyberman. We encourage you to click on the links to view their take on the story.

There has also been an immense show of vigilance from fans via Twitter, with hundreds unfollowing RogueCyberman within a matter of hours.

DWO and other sites have taken the extra steps to report both his Twitter and Wordpress sites, and we will of course keep you posted as to further developments.

UPDATE - Saturday 23rd February 2013 @ 5:30pm

DWO are pleased to report that both RogueCyberman's Twitter account and blog have now been taken offline. It is worth noting that he did this for a couple of months last year when things got heated, but with the extra measures all the fan sites have taken, were hoping that this time he will be gone for good.

We would like to thank all of the fans who helped with Retweets and reposting, this was truly a joint effort!

[Sources: DWO; Robert Lenko]

Following a critically acclaimed run at Salford’s The Lowry Theatre in May 2012, Kill The Beast Theatre’s The Boy Who Kicks Pigs is making its London debut at London’s Jacksons Lane Theatre from 5th March 2013 for 2 WEEKS ONLY.

You may know Tom Baker as the fourth incarnation of The Doctor in Doctor Who, as well as the voice of Little Britain, but he’s also responsible for a blackly comic novel entitled The Boy Who Kicked Pigs – a story that has now leapt off the page to splash bloodily onto the London stage.

The Boy Who Kicked Pigs is a macabre, cult children’s classic about an evil thirteen year old named Robert Caligari; a boy who wants to take over the world, cause deadly mayhem and, for reasons of his own, kick pigs. This March, you’ll have the chance to see the tragedy unfold gloriously in front of your eyes. 

If you know the book, you’ll know the challenges in adapting this maniacal tale - as Tom himself said in his recent newsletter: 

“I wondered how a small theatre company could stage my story - which has a cast of hundreds, and includes a motorway pile-up with coachloads of people. I also wondered how they would manage to make my tale of evil horror funny, as I intended it to be” – if you want to find out, you’ll have to come and see for yourself!

Tickets are available from the Jacksons Lane website. Murderous teens, shark mutilation, a nasty incident with weed-killer cornflakes and a potential apocalypse – dare you come along for the ride?

View the trailer for the production, below:

[youtube:CX3rNxjjiJ8]

Reviews:

“Possibly the most well-delivered moment of black humour I have ever seen on stage” - The Public Reviews  *****

“Many deliciously funny moments … Almost constantly, there is laughter throughout.” - What’s On Stage *****

“Distinctive, fully-realised comic characters and a style that carries right through flawlessly from the construction and delivery of the dialogue to the pace of the scene to the whole look of everything: costume, make-up, scenery, projections and physicality.” - The British Theatre Guide 

+  For further information call the Jacksons Lane Theatre Box Office on 020 8341 4421.

+  Follow @Kill_Beast on Twitter.

+  Follow @DrWhoOnline on Twitter.

[Source: Kill The Beast Theatre]

A new image posted by professional photographer Phoebe Arnstein, shows a reconstructed scene featuring the Classic Series TARDIS Set in Mark Gatiss' upcoming Doctor Who biodrama 'An Adventure In Space And Time'.

The image (pictured-right) features the Classic Series TARDIS control room, with The Doctor (David Bradley), Ian (Jamie Glover), Barbara (Jemma Powell) and Susan (Claudia Grant).

UPDATE - Thursday 21st February @ 11:00am

Another picture has been posted (pictured-right) which appears to be Totters Lane Junkyard.

The confirmed cast list for An Adventure In Space And Time is as follows:

David Bradley as William Hartnell (The first Doctor)
Brian Cox as Sydney Newman (BBC head of drama)
Jessica Raine as Verity Lambert (Doctor Who’s first producer)
Sacha Dhawan as Waris Hussein (Doctor Who’s first director)
Lesley Manville as Heather Hartnell (William’s wife)
Reece Shearsmith as Patrick Troughton (The second Doctor)
Jeff Rawle as Mervyn Pinfield (Doctor Who’s associate producer)
Andrew Woodall as Rex Tucker (BBC producer)
Ian Hallard as Richard Martin (Doctor Who director)
Jamie Glover as William Russell (companion Ian)
Jemma Powell as Jacqueline Hill (companion Barbara)
Claudia Grant as Carole Ann Ford (the Doctor’s granddaughter Susan)
Sarah Winter as Delia Derbyshire (musician at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop)
William Russell (the original Ian Chesterton) as Harry
Reece Pockney as Alan

+  An Adventure In Space And Time is due to be broadcast on BBC One later in the year.

[Source: Instagram (pap_d); Ian O' Brien]

BBC Children's TV presenters, Dick & Dom, have been in touch with DWO to let us know about a Doctor Who related episode of their 'Absolute Genius' series, which features Composer, Delia Derbyshire.

Dick and Dom reveal the genius of Delia Derbyshire, a pioneer of modern-day music who helped create the Doctor Who theme tune. Inspired by Derbyshire, they come up with their own genius idea when they record their own version of the Doctor Who theme tune with a twist.

Watch the episode on BBC iPlayer below (UK Only):

+  Follow @DickNDom on Twitter.

+  Follow @DrWhoOnline on Twitter.

[Source: Dick & Dom]

Doctor Who DVD Producer, Ed Stradling recently conducted a video interview with Steven Moffat for last weekend's Gallifrey One convention in Los Angeles.

The 13-minute interview offers a few insights into the new series, and the 50th Anniversary special, with Steven stating at one point:

"Doctor Who, the 50th is approaching - various different things - a lot of different things. Don't believe the nonsense about one 60-minute film, that is complete nonsense."

You can watch the full interview with Steven Moffat below:

[youtube:h7VQrnMzjrU]

+  Follow @EdStradling on Twitter.

+  Follow @DrWhoOnline on Twitter.

[Source: Gallifrey One]

 Day Fifty-One: Crisis (Planet of Giants, Episode Three)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Fifty-One: Crisis (Planet of Giants, Episode Three)

Dear diary,

I've made no secret in the last six weeks that I tend to think the six-parters in Doctor Who run on a bit. They all seem to start strong, sag badly, then return to form at the end. The same can be said, on some occasions, for the four-part stories, too. All things considered, when it comes to twentieth century Doctor Who, I tend to think of three-episode stories being just about right.

Which is why this story seems to end at just the right time. There's just enough incident in this final episode to wrap up the story nicely. It doesn't feel like the story has been drawn out any longer than it should have been, and equally it doesn't seem at all rushed. So it's always fascinated me that when it was first made, this story was four episodes long!

The DVD version of Planet of Giants contains a recon of the original episodes three and four, with William Russell and Carole Ann Ford coming in with some impersonators to re-record lines for the missing parts of the tale. This is then put together with some clever use of other footage to restore it to full-length.

I'm sad to say that I tried watching the recon when the DVD first came out, but it just wasn't to my taste. I got most of the way through episode three, but the thought of having to sit through any more of it was too much. Watching the story over the last three days though, I can't help but feel that, actually, I don't want to experience this one as a four-parter - it's just right here and now!

I seem to have been on a constant loop of praising the effects in this story over the last few entries, so I won't dwell on them too much here. Suffice to say that they finish up looking as good as they have all along, and I love the idea of the Doctor taking the seed back to the TARDIS with them to see if they've returned to normal size once more.

I also like that the story wraps itself up quite neatly in the end, even though the Doctor, Ian, Barbara, and Susan don't actually get involved. The only real impact they have on the plot is the unhook the phone and the blow up the can - but Hilda and the policeman were already suspicious enough as it is, so things would likely have reached the same conclusion.

In some ways it comes back to what I was saying yesterday about the story feeling so indistinct that it could fit anywhere, not just into Doctor Who. It's been an interesting, three-episode interlude, but it's just felt like a bizarre (and not entirely successful) experiment.

Still, we've got Daleks coming up tomorrow, and there's not many things more 'Doctor Who' than a Dalek…

Next Episode: World's End

BBC Consumer Products have sent DWO the cover and details for the Doctor Who DVD release of Inferno: Special Edition.

Inferno: Special Edition
Featuring: The 3rd Doctor

An experiment gone awry sends the Doctor (Jon Pertwee) to a parallel universe where his friends and companions are members of a fascist regime in this thrilling and popular episode from the long-running science fiction series Doctor Who.

Inferno is the name of a project designed to drill into the Earth's core and release a powerful energy source called Stahlman's Gas; what's yielded instead is an insidious substance that transforms men into monsters.

The resulting chaos interrupts the Doctor's travel in the TARDIS and knocks him into an alternate Earth run by a military dictatorship, and where Project Inferno's progress threatens to bring about an apocalypse.

Special Features:

To be updated later today...

+  Inferno: Special Edition is released on 27th May 2013, priced £20.42.

+  Compare Prices for this product on CompareTheDalek.com.

+  Check Out the DWO Release Guide entry for this product.

[Source: BBC Consumer Products]

BBC Consumer Products have sent DWO the cover and details for the Doctor Who DVD release of The Visitation: Special Edition.

The Visitation: Special Edition
Featuring: The 5th Doctor

It’s 1666, and medieval England is in the grip of the Great Plague. But when the Doctor and his companions arrive, they discover an even greater threat: the entire planet is in danger.

As the Grim Reaper stalks the countryside, the Doctor uncovers an alien menace intent on wiping out humanity and claiming our planet for themselves.

The Terileptils have arrived – and only the Doctor can stop them…

Special Features:

Disc One: 

•  Commentary with Peter Davison (the Fifth Doctor), Janet Fielding (Tegan), Sarah Sutton (Nyssa), Matthew Waterhouse (Adric) and director Peter Moffatt.
•  Grim Tales - Brand-new 45-minute documentary. Former companion Mark Strickson takes Peter Davison, Janet Fielding and Sarah Sutton back to the original filming locations while other cast and crew discuss their memories of the story.
•  The Television Centre of the Universe: Part One - Peter Davison, Mark Strickson and Janet Fielding return to BBC Television Centre and meet up with old friends and colleagues to reminisce on their time in the iconic building.
•  Doctor Forever: The Apocalypse Element - Examining the world of Doctor Who on audio. Including interviews with Colin Baker, Russell T Davies, Mark Gatiss and many others.
•  Film Trims Shots and sequences cut from the finished programme.
•  Directing Who: Peter Moffatt.
•  Writing A Final Visitation.
•  Scoring The Visitation - Interview with composer Paddy Kingsland.
•  Subtitle Production Notes.
•  Radio Times listings and BBC Sales Sheet.
•  Photo Gallery.
•  Coming soon trailer.
•  Isolated Music Score.
•  Easter Egg.
•  Digitally remastered picture and sound quality

+  The Visitstion: Special Edition is released on 6th May 2013, priced £20.42.

+  Compare Prices for this product on CompareTheDalek.com.

+  Check Out the DWO Release Guide entry for this product.

[Source: BBC Consumer Products]

 Day Fifty: Dangerous Journey (Planet of Giants, Episode Two)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Fifty: Dangerous Journey (Planet of Giants, Episode Two)

Dear diary,

I can't quite make up my mind with this one. On the one hand, as I'm watching, I'm thinking about discussing how the story is quite dull. On the other hand, though… it's keeping me interested. I've not found myself getting distracted at all while I watch, and indeed I'm quite enjoying it. I don't know what it is, but there's something just not right about this one.

I did wonder if it might just be that the Doctor and friends are so disjointed from the story going on in the rest of the episode - they've only interacted with the guest cast when a briefcase has been moved and a tap has been turned on (again, another cliffhanger you could only get in Doctor Who!), but then at the same time, I'm enjoying the story that's going on in the background.

It feels almost as though it could be placed in any number of 1960s television - I can picture an Adam Adamant Lives! adventure that involves the DN6 scandal, and the same is true for The Avengers. Or for Danger Man. Or The Saint, or…

Actually, maybe that's it? This doesn't feel like proper Doctor Who because it isn't Doctor Who. The idea of the TARDIS crew being shrunk to an inch high is a fun one, but it's not especially what I expect from the series, and it's not a type of story that we often get in the following 49 years, either. Cliffhangers aside, this could just be A. N. Other programme.

Something that I do find interesting is that this was originally intended to be the very first episode of Doctor Who, or at least a version of it. Initially, the story was to have followed the first episode of An Unearthly Child by shrinking the TARDIS and its new occupants down, and dumping them down in the Coal Hill School science lab.

I wonder if that would have helped the story to feel less generic than it does here? The only reason, I think, that I'm struggling to connect with the DN6 plot line is because it's so unlike anything else we ever get in the programme; a story about insecticide and government permission not being given. Even the presence of a murder feels a bit mundane for Doctor Who.

There's a part of me that feels like I'd have rather seen it as a two-episode story following on from that very first one, with the Doctor and his friends exploring the lab. There's elements here that could still fit in there (Ian's musing on the litmus paper, for example), and you could still have Barbara's poison scare, by having her handle some dangerous chemicals.

I guess it's one of those strange little parts of Doctor Who history; a side-alley never taken…

The effects are still the best thing this story has, though. Frankly, they're brilliant. The way the camera pulls back to show a (moving!) fly menacing Barbara is fantastic, and a great example of aha the show could achieve in the early days when it really set its mind to it. It's certainly one of the better effects we've had so far. I'm also impressed with the way the large scale sets match the regular sized ones. You really do get the impression that you're watching the Doctor and co running around, tiny, in this world.

So, so far, it's good, but it's just not Doctor Who…

Next Episode: Crisis

It is with deepest regret that DWO announces the passing of Classic Series Doctor Who Actress, Elspet Gray.

Elspet was perhaps best known to Doctor Who fans for appearing in the Classic Series, 5th Doctor adventure; Arc Of Infinity as Thalia. She also appeared in the Big Finish Doctor Who audio adventure Immortal Beloved, in which she played Hera.

Elspet's other career highlights include; Catweazle, The Black Adder, Tenko and Dinnerladies.

DWO would like to extend our sympathies to Elspet's family and friends.

[Source: Neil Marsh]

 Day Forty-Nine: Planet of Giants (Planet of Giants, Episode One)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Forty-Nine: Planet of Giants (Planet of Giants, Episode One)

Dear diary,

You have no idea how lovely it is to get back to an actual, real, episode. Much as I've enjoyed my side-step into the world of 'what-if?' this last week, it's great to actually see the story as well as to listen to it. The episode has simply flown by, and it helps that there's a lot to look at.

It's been said many times over the years, but the design of the 'props' (if you can call them that) in this story is top-notch. The effect of the packet of Night Scented Stock is striking, as is that of the matchbox. The model ant is rather impressive, too, though the earthworm is a bit plain for my liking.

The most interesting aspect of the visuals, though, comes from the direction. there's a lovely shot when the travelers have deduced that they're now only around an inch high, when the camera pulls back from the model of the TARDIS to show the path it's sat in, and the house beyond. It's a great image, and one which deserves to be better remembered than it is.

We've also got Ian (and later the rest of the crew) being super-imposed onto a shot of the dead man's face. Though watching a freshly-VidFIREd copy of the story shows up one or two spots of overlapping in the images, it's still one of the most impressive shots that we've had in the series, and mush have looked great on a 1960s television set.

The downside to the story? Well… it's a bit… slow, isn't it? Planet of Giants wasn't originally intended to become the second season opener for Doctor Who, instead being just 'one of the run'. Moving it to this position, though, as the triumphant return of the series after a few weeks away from screens is a slightly odd decision, though.

I mean, yes, there's plenty to look at. Yes, there's a bit of a mystery to be had. Yes, it serves as another of those early episodes that is hung mostly around our regular cast… but it's all just a bit 'bog-standard-Doctor-Who. Knowing what's to come in a few days time, it feels almost as though this is the main course that you need to sit through to reach dessert.

Still, 'bog-standard-Doctor-Who is still better than several things in the world; where else do you find a cliffhanger based around your four main characters seeing a cat!? I'm just happy to be back where I can see everything on a screen again - I really have missed these four!

Next Episode: Dangerous Journey

It is with deepest regret that DWO announces the passing of Classic Series Doctor Who Actor, Richard Briers.

Richard was perhaps best known to Doctor Who fans for appearing in the Classic Series, 7th Doctor adventure; Paradise Towers as Chief Caretaker. He also appeared in the Torchwood episode A Day In The Death as Parker.

Richard's other career highlights include; The Good Life, Ever Decreasing Circles, Down To Earth, Monarch Of The Glen, Love's Labour's Lost and Cockney's Versus Zombies.

DWO would like to extend our sympathies to Richard's family and friends.

[Source: BBC News]

Reece Shearsmith has been confirmed as playing Patrick Troughton in Mark Gatiss' Doctor Who biodrama 'An Adventure In Space And Time'.

The confirmation, comes from Radio Times, with Mark Gatiss explaining the casting:

“I first asked Reece about 12 years ago when I started thinking about this project. We were in the midst of League of Gentlemen and I just remember thinking, if anyone plays Patrick Troughton, it should be Reece. Like the second Doctor, he’s small, saturnine and a comic genius. The complete package. He thought it was a fantastic idea and I’ve kind of nurtured it all this time.

Reece has a funny relationship with Doctor Who – mostly to do with impressions of the Borad from Timelash! He and a friend were obsessed with Season 22 [Colin Baker’s Doctor, 1985]. One of my earliest memories of Reece is him going, ‘I am the Borad!’ He’ll do the whole of Timelash at the drop of a hat. Which is a strange qualification. He’s not steeped in Doctor Who like I am, but has been lightly dipped over the years. I know he’s delighted to be a part of An Adventure in Space and Time.”

Reece Shearsmith, speaking to DWO via Twitter, said:

"Very excited to be part of it."

At 43, Shearsmith is only three years younger than Patrick Troughton was when he took on the role as The Doctor. Shearsmith is known for his ability to portray a wide range of contrasting characters - as anyone who watched The League of Gentlemen or Psychoville can attest to.

The confirmed cast list for An Adventure In Space And Time is as follows:

David Bradley as William Hartnell (The first Doctor)
Brian Cox as Sydney Newman (BBC head of drama)
Jessica Raine as Verity Lambert (Doctor Who’s first producer)
Sacha Dhawan as Waris Hussein (Doctor Who’s first director)
Lesley Manville as Heather Hartnell (William’s wife)
Reece Shearsmith as Patrick Troughton (The second Doctor)
Jeff Rawle as Mervyn Pinfield (Doctor Who’s associate producer)
Andrew Woodall as Rex Tucker (BBC producer)
Ian Hallard as Richard Martin (Doctor Who director)
Jamie Glover as William Russell (companion Ian)
Jemma Powell as Jacqueline Hill (companion Barbara)
Claudia Grant as Carole Ann Ford (the Doctor’s granddaughter Susan)
Sarah Winter as Delia Derbyshire (musician at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop)
William Russell (the original Ian Chesterton) as Harry
Reece Pockney as Alan

+  An Adventure In Space And Time is due to be broadcast on BBC One later in the year.

+  Follow Reece Shearsmith on Twitter!

[Source: Radio Times]

 Day Forty-Eight: Farewell, Great Macedon! (Farewell Great Macedon, Episode Six)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Forty-Eight: Farewell, Great Macedon! (Farewell Great Macedon, Episode Six)

Dear diary,

There's a moment in this episode, just after Alexander's death, where his eyes are closed, and it is declared that he now 'belongs to history'. Actually, that's a very good description of Farewell Great Macedon as a whole.

The story has focussed very much - especially in its earlier segments and this last one - on the idea of not changing history, picking up on things that have been present elsewhere in Doctor Who's first series and running with them as a real focus to the story. Sure, you've got all the evil scheming and plots to take control of the throne, but that's just there as a background to the real story.

In many ways, I'm glad that I've opted to listen to this story during the gap between the first two seasons of the show, because it forms part of a natural through-line in the Doctor's historical adventures, from The Aztecs, where he states with absolute certainty that they can't change history ('not one line!'), via The Reign of Terror, in which we get Ian and Barbara musing on the futility of their actions, as they know they're on the losing side, and then we end up here.

This takes the most interesting aspects of those two stories and combines them together. The Doctor is very well aware that he can't alter history, and he's more than well informed enough that Alexander will die here on this day. Still, he's determined to help the man because he is a Doctor, after all, and therefore he has a moral oath to at least try to spare his life.

Dovetailing with the discussion in the TARDIS at the end of the last story, about what would happen if they tried to change history, here we get to see it in action; the Doctor has devised a potential survival plan for Alexander and Ian has built it, but the Grecian himself refuses it because the Doctor's knowledge of the future gives him nothing to live for.

To be honest, I'm a little pleased with the way that things turned out. Early on in the story, when we're first told that the king will die during his stay in Babylon, I mused that it changed the story to being about when and how he would die. But, truth be told, I've worried all along that they wouldn't actually show it. I'd feared that they'd have shied away at the last minute and cut away before it could happen.

To see it coming about in this way, with so much emphasis on the ideas of changing history? Wonderful. It helps that Alexander's - and then the Doctor's - speeches here are so good; they really help to sell the moment.

It's not all sunshine and roses, though. This final episode clocks in at a whopping 44 minutes - almost twice the length of the episodes that I've been watching for the last six weeks. I'm not going to lie; it was a bit of a struggle to keep up my attention to the end here. Indeed, that's been true of the story all along. It's been very good, but it's just been too long.

Still, I wanted to listen to it here and now, because I wanted to see how it would feel integrated into the stories that were intended to be it's stablemates. I'm pleased to say that it really does work. As I've said, it forms a perfect continuation of the narrative building up over the historical stories, which gives the feeling of almost a story arc forming. Definitely a detour worth making on a marathon from the start.

That said, I'll not be making too many of these on the way along. I can't tell you how excited I am to be getting back to moving pictures tomorrow!

And an overall story rating of;

Next Episode: Planet of Giants

The Daleks invaded London earlier this morning and resistance was useless – insofar as it was impossible to resist the striking sight of The Doctor’s iconic enemies swarming through the capital!

But their presence was not part of a plan to enslave Earth – or at least that’s what the production team is saying! The cast and crew of An Adventure in Space and Time were there to recreate some of the most memorable moments from Doctor Who’s early years – the scenes from The Dalek Invasion of Earth where the metal monsters imperiously glided through London, gloriously framed against the backdrop of famous sites like the Palace of Westminster.

Back in 1964 the photos of the ‘invasion’ became instant classics and over the years the imagery of those episodes has been referenced and updated on several occasions. But this is the first time that a production team has attempted to faithfully replicate the 1964 shoot using Daleks that were unique to that single adventure. The results look set to be stunning, as you can find out for yourselves when An Adventure in Space and Time - a one-off drama exploring the genesis of Doctor Who - debuts later this year.

A promotional image (pictured-right) was posted by the BBC Doctor Who website this morning.

Writer, Mark Gatiss, recorded a short video diary to make the event, which you can view below:

[youtube:NOoO6zdP87M]

[Source: BBC Doctor Who website]

 Day Forty-Seven: In the Arena (Farewell Great Macedon, Episode Five)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Forty-Seven: In the Arena (Farewell Great Macedon, Episode Five)

Dear diary,

I've become too ingrained in the Doctor Who of 1964. As part of the process of immersing myself fully into the marathon, I'm only watching the episodes as they come up, day-by-day. The only exemption I'll be making to this is when the new episodes begin to air in the spring. There's no way I'll manage to avoid watching them!

This means, though, that the only exposure I've had to Doctor Who for the last six weeks is via the early Hartnell episodes, and… it's started to have an effect on me. Here I am, listening to this episode as I do the washing up (what? I have to do it *sometime*…), with some great incidental music, and the sound of a vast crowd cheering Ian on as he partakes in the wrestling, in what's sure to be an enormous arena, with several gladiators, and a blazing hot sky overhead…

And it all looks - in my mind's eye - as though it's been shot on film at Ealing. In my head, as Ian left his companions to join the championship, the look of what I was imagining shifted to film. And actually, thinking back on it (though I may be attaching more to it now that I've noticed) the whole thing in my mind has been rather small-scale in terms of the setting, when there's the opportunity for it to look grand and vast on a scale I've not been seeing yet with the series.

That's probably a testament to how in-keeping with everything else in the series to date this story has been. I'm glad that it seems Big Finish have stuck closely to what was written in the 60s, as this truly does feel like a 'lost' episode of Doctor Who.

I've spent a bit of time this week competing this story to Marco Polo, but actually, in this episode, things shift slightly so that it's more in keeping with The Aztecs. You've got the aforementioned situation in which Ian has to prove himself through a contest of strength (and it's those scenes with Ixta on the temple which have formed much of my vision during the final five minutes or so here), while his friends watch on.

Elsewhere, you've got the Doctor using his knowledge of science to produce what could almost be called magic - there he gives poison to help win in a fight, and here he makes his feet perspire so that he can walk back and forth across the coals. The only downside, really, is that William Russell doesn't attempt to mimic Hartnell's laugh, but merely narrates that the Doctor does so…

I must admit, one of the things I'm enjoying the most is the idea of the TARDIS team being used to cover up the murderous plot line. During the first episode, when 'evil' characters all sat around spouting stuff about killing four people to become king I thought it was going to be blatantly obvious what was going on, even if they were going to frame our regulars.

Actually, though, through the use of the bad omens being prophesied, and the way that the blame has been pinned to the good guys rather late on in the story, it's managed to avoid feeling too much like an obvious ploy. It's hanging together quite nicely for the baddies at the moment… if only they wouldn't whisper so obviously about poisoning the king about three feet away from him!

Next Episode: Farewell, Great Macedon!

The First Doctor’s final adventure The Tenth Planet is to have its lost fourth episode animated for DVD release, the BBC's official doctorwho.tv site has confirmed.

Teased yesterday at the Gallifrey One convention by Dan Hall, commissioning editor of the classic Doctor Who DVD range, The Tenth Planet sees both the introduction of the menacing, dead-eyed Cybermen, and the departure of The First Doctor, William Hartnell. The final episode has been missing from the BBC Archives since the mid-1970s, and will be reconstructed using the same Thetamation process used to recreate The Reign of Terror episodes 4 and 5.

Dan Hall said:

"It’s a real thrill to be bringing such an iconic Doctor Who episode back to life. Without the events established in The Tenth Planet episode 4, there would be no Doctor Who as we know it!"

The release date is currently scheduled for Late 2013.

View a clip of Episode One, below:

[Source: doctorwho.tv]

 Day Forty-Six: The World Lies Dead at Your Feet (Farewell Great Macedon, Episode Four)

Will Brooks’ 50 Year Diary - watching Doctor Who one episode a day from the very start...

Day Forty-Six: The World Lies Dead at Your Feet (Farewell Great Macedon, Episode Four)

Dear diary,

There's some elaborate titles in this story, aren't there? I've been working from a list proposed by Moris Farhi, but you have to wonder if these would be the titles had the episodes actually made it to screen. An alternative to the title for Episode Two was The Wrath of the Greatest Grecian of Them All!, which seems very elaborate by the standards I've gotten used to throughout Season One!

The further into this story we get, the more it reminds me of Marco Polo - which isn't such a bad thing! Alexander is a rather complex character, a kind we've not really seen much of outside the scripts by Lucarotti so far. There's a scene early on where he orders the Doctor and his friends to be put under guard, but advises that they shouldn't be harmed. This is exactly the kind of relationship that they had with Polo.

Equally, he turns on them in the blink of an eye when the evil member of his party suggests that they're behind some foul deed. Perhaps it's because I'm familiar with the way that Doctor Who works, or perhaps it's because I've been watching through in this way, so that the similarities to earlier stories are apparent, but it seemed clear to me the second Hephaeston left his torture that our regulars would be accused of involvement in his pain (and subsequent death).

The pacing of the story bears similarities with Marco Polo, too, with the Doctor and co getting back to the TARDIS a good few episodes before the end of the story, only to have their freedom snatched away from them during the cliffhanger. I've said it before, but I'd really love to see someone undertaking this 'episode-a-day' marathon who doesn't know the format of these early stories. I'd love to see if this could really hold up as a potential 'end of the story', or if it's clear to everyone that there's more to come.

On the whole, this episode has seen something of an improvement from the last. It's still conforming to the same format - one of Alexander's friends is killed, Barbara complains about the fate of history etc - but it seems to add in a decent amount of other action. Something I am enjoying is how easy it is to picture all of this in the style of a 1964 episode. There's a moment when Barbara turns way from the group with a pained expression - and I can visualise the shots perfectly. The audio is doing a really good job of capturing just the right feel…

Next Episode: In the Arena