Manufacturer: Big Finish Productions

Written By: John Dorney

RRP: £10.99 (CD) / £8.99 (Download)

Release Date: January 2014

Reviewed by: Matthew Davis for Doctor Who Online

Review Posted: 17th January 2014

Dowcra base. The third Elite Sontaran Assassination Squad closes in on its target. A dozen trained killers, but even they will be unable to bring down the invincible Strang…

Manipulated by the Time Lords, the TARDIS also arrives on Dowcra. And the Doctor is set to encounter the greatest Sontaran ever cloned...

* * *

As we begin a new Big Finish year, we start off with a brand new season of adventures for the Fourth Doctor and Leela. 

After the excellent second season in which we sadly got to hear the lovely Mary Tamm as Romana one last time, Louise Jameson returns as Leela. 

With an excellent script by John Dorney, The King of Sontar plunges us directly into a battle zone and does not slow down in a story full of action, humour and with a rather unexpected ending.

Since making their Big Finish debut in Heroes of Sontar, the Sontarans are quickly becoming a favourite monster in the company’s output. The casting of seasoned television Sontaran Dan Starkey as Strang is a brilliant move as his performance is a definite highlight of this release.  Similar in vocal patterns to Commander Strax, Strang possesses a more fanatical personality and he is certainly no one’s comic relief. He is a superb antagonist who works very well with Tom Baker’s Doctor. 

The supporting cast is headed up by the great David Collings who puts in a lovely performance as Rosato the scientist in a terrible moral dilemma which makes for some interesting exchanges with the Doctor. If The Pirate Planet taught us anything, it's that The Fourth Doctor knows how to put forward a case of moral outrage and this part of his personality comes out again throughout this story.

In fact morality is a running theme throughout The King of Sontar.

In the story there are characters that completely lack morality or have distorted and polarising views of what is right and wrong. The culmination of this occurs in the rather surprising final scene between the Doctor and Leela.

Big Finish have said that the theme of the first Fourth Doctor season was the Doctor educating Leela in an almost Pygmalion fashion. Rather than simply keeping the relationship the same as that of their television years, Big Finish have been keen to develop this relationship between the Doctor and companion and The King of Sontar is a great example of this. 

The Doctor and Leela come to a crossroads bringing out some excellent performances from both Baker and Jameson. It will be fascinating to see how this plays out in the rest of the season.

Strong and defining moments such as this do not usually occur until much later in a season’s run but the fact that Big Finish has pulled this out so early is another example of how much they have done to develop the characters.  It is a real standout moment from the tone of the previous Fourth Doctor releases and a great shift in direction for future stories.

The King of Sontar is a fantastic opening story for the new season which promises great developments to come.

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

Day 381: Invasion of the Dinosaurs, Episode Three

Dear diary,

It can’t have escaped your attention that – until now – I’ve made barely any mention of the key selling point in this story: the dinosaurs themselves. Invasion of the Dinosaurs received quite a late release on DVD, not appearing until early 2012. For years, therefore, people assumed that when it did finally see release, it would have some shiny new CGI dinosaurs to replace the effects created in the 1970s. It was a fair bet – several stories over the years had seen optional CGI enhancements, and in the later years of the range we were seeing more and more elaborate examples of this, with some stories seeing entire re-edits, and Kinda receiving a fantastic new CGI Mara.

When it was announced that the story wouldn’t be getting this kind of feature, some people almost took it as something of a personal slight against them. There were cries that they could have ‘simply’ used the CGI models from Primeval, or Walking With Dinosaurs, and the fact that it hadn’t been done was lazy. It was pointed out that for a number of reasons, it wouldn’t have been a simple task, and that they wouldn’t have been able to create a finished product that was good enough.

So, we’re left with the original dinosaurs. For as long as I can remember, fandom has considered them one of the worst special effects in the programme’s history, and it has to be said that they are a mixed bag. Early on in today’s episode, we get a shot face-on of the T-Rex, and it’s far from being the most effective image in the world. But then, barely a minute later, we get another shot of the creature shot from another angle and as – what appears to be – a different model. It’s suddenly far less plastic-looking, the eyes blink, and it’s not half bad.

Sadly, a minute or so after that, UNIT succeed in bringing down the creature, and we watch on as the model is simply left to drop to the floor. It almost works, but then it might just be me being charitable. We’re caught in this same situation for the rest of the episode – sometimes the dinosaur looks quite good (when it’s ‘sleeping’ in the warehouse, it moves slightly in the background of the shots giving the effect that it’s breathing), but then other times, such as when it’s forced to smash through a brick wall and wobble out of the hole, it’s far less effective, and actually takes away from the story.

I’ve never thought of the models as being that bad, so I’d obviously chosen to remember the more effective examples of the creatures. I can’t remember how much of an impact they make on the rest of the story (Indeed, the T-Rex in the warehouse was the only big dinosaur sequence that I could clearly recall from first viewing), but I don’t recall anything standing out as particularly awful.

I think what bothers me more in this episode is the dodgy use of CSO scattered throughout. When people head into the warehouse to interact with the dinosaur, you don’t have much of a chance to think about how the model looks, because you’re too busy focussing on the fact that this person is missing some of their face or body! The yellow fringing is also an issue when the warehouse is superimposed behind the windows of the Doctor’s make-shift lab, and sometimes is hugely distracting!

In some ways, this is probably one of the worst examples of CSO that we’ve seen in the programme, and it’s a shame, because it only emphasises some of the less impressive shots.

It is with deepest regret that DWO announces the passing of New Series Doctor Who Actor, Roger Lloyd Pack.

Roger was perhaps best known to Doctor Who fans for appearing in the New Series, 10th Doctor adventures; Rise Of The Cybemen & The Age Of Steel as John Lumic.

Roger's other career highlights include; The Vicar Of Dibley, Only Fools And Horses and Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire.

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

[Source: BBC News]

If you're a member of the many social networks available online, then you will be pleased to know that you can follow Doctor Who Online on two of the largest - Twitter and Facebook.

Our Twitter account was launched back in January 2009, and as of today, we are proud to have one of the largest Doctor Who followings with a whopping 90,000+ followers! Follow the DWO Twitter account for Spoiler-Free News and Reviews as they happen, as well as exclusive Doctor Who competitions, discussion, opinion and more.

+  Follow DWO on Twiiter at: twitter.com/DrWhoOnline.

Our Facebook account was launched in 2011, and currently has over 10,000+ Likes. As with the Twitter account, followers will be updated with the latest Spoiler-Free Doctor Who News and Reviews, as well as exclusive polls, competitions, discussion, opinion and more.

+  Like DWO on Facebook at: facebook.com/DoctorWhoOnline.

[Source: Doctor Who Online]

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

Day 380: Invasion of the Dinosaurs, Episode Two

Dear diary,

For all that I said yesterday about the episode really suiting the black-and-white look (the cliffhanger reprise today simply serves to prove my point - the shot of the Doctor and Sarah peering out from the back of their transport doesn’t look half as effective and moody in colour), I am glad to be back to colour now. The blue outfit that Pertwee wears in this story is my favourite of all his ‘colourful’ costumes, and I’m still holding out hope that one day we may see an action figure in this scheme.

There’s a lot more going on in this episode than I remembered. For a start, Sarah Jane is now well and truly cemented in as the new companion, and the Doctor even announces that she’s ‘currently acting as’ his assistant, to ensure that she won’t be evacuated from the city while he’s off building his dinosaur stun-gun. For me, the highlight is watching her speculate on where the dinosaurs come from. It’s great to see her character being given a mind of her own, and I love the way that the Doctor simply watches on as she debunks her own theories. He’s several paces ahead (though still no closer to the truth), but he’s enjoying watching her settle into this lifestyle as much as I am. I’m keen to see how they act together at the start of the next story - although he has an opportunity to get rid of her here, they’re still technically only together because she happened to stow away in the TARDIS. I want to see at what point the Doctor starts to treat her as a traditional ‘companion’.

You’ve also got Mike switching over to the dark side! Because it’s been so many years since I last saw this story, I’d completely forgotten just how early you discover that he’s working with the ‘bad guys’. I spent much of today’s episode making notes to the effect that ‘once you know Mike is working with them it seems so obvious’, but then I think it’s supposed to be! I’m glad to see that he references the events of The Green Death, and even states that he had to take some time off after them, during which he got himself caught up in all of this. It feels like a real evolution of the character to have him being affected by things that happened some time ago, and it’s helping to make this feel lilt the early Pertwee years, in which the stories all tied back to each other, if only very slightly.

It’s also nice to see that you’ve got the full UNIT team back together again here. I worried that now Jo has left the programme, it could feel like UNIT wasn’t quite the same anymore. The early season with Liz, for example, was missing Mike. It’s only after Jo has joined that we get the so-called UNIT ‘family’, and now one of the key members is gone. Thankfully, though, the others are on top form, and they’re even being played more for comedy than usual. ‘That’s yer actual pterodactyl’ may well be my favourite Benton line ever, and there’s an amusing scene in which the Doctor keeps getting interrupted by various members of the team - much to his growing frustration.

What I’m trying to say is that it’s nice to see this format can still keep going strong, even with all the changes that are occurring around the programme at this time. I think there’s almost a loose link between these final few Pertwee UNIT tales - The Green Death, this one, and Planet of the Spiders, as the group is slowly broken up. Jo left in the last one, Mike will be leaving (technically) with this one, and the Doctor is off in the next. It’s almost as though they’re trying to dismantle the era piece-by-piece, so that it’s not too much of a shock in a season or two’s time, when UNIT simply aren’t there anymore.

BBC Digital have released the cover art and details for their forthcoming Doctor Who eBook, Tales Of Trenzalore.

As it had been foretold, the armies of the Universe gathered at Trenzalore. Only one thing stood between the planet and destruction – the Doctor. For nine hundred years, he defended the planet, and the tiny town of Christmas, against the forces that would destroy it. 

He never knew how long he could keep the peace. He never knew what creatures would emerge from the snowy night to threaten him next. He knew only that at the end he would die on Trenzalore.

Some of what happened during those terrible years is well documented. But most of it remains shrouded in mystery and darkness.

Until now. 

This is a glimpse of just some of the terrors the people faced, the monstrous threats the Doctor defeated. These are the tales of the monsters who found themselves afraid - and of the one man who was not. 

Tales of Trenzalore documents four of the Doctor’s adventures from different periods during the Siege of Trenzalore and the ensuing battle: 

Let it Snow – by Justin Richards
An Apple a Day – by George Mann
Strangers in the Outland – by Paul Finch
The Dreaming – by Mark Morris

+  Tales Of Trenzalore is released on 27th February 2014, priced £2.99.
+  Preorder via Amazon.co.uk for just £2.49. 

[Source: BBC Digital]

The Doctor Who MMO online role-playing game, Doctor Who: Worlds In Time is to cease operation on 28th Februay 2014, with full service shutdown on 3rd March 2014.

The announcement came in the form of an email to current players and newsletter subscribers, as well as a notice on the site which reads:

"We are sorry to report that Doctor Who: Worlds in Time will discontinue service on Monday, March 3rd, 2014 at noon PST.

As of today, January 14th, 2014, the game will no longer be accepting transactions from players. Existing players are welcome to use their earned in-game currency over the next two months. Customer support and game maintenance will be available through the shutdown date.

We want to thank the loyal players of Worlds in Time for supporting the game through its years of operation."

In the game, players were able to control the player and the TARDIS as they complete challenges set by The Doctor to save the universe from various enemies. Players were able to solve puzzles to complete some of the tasks. In most of the adventures, players were also paired up with other controllable players, or with other real-time players if you chose to join a team to complete the mission.

[Source: BBC Worldwide]

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

Day 379: Invasion of the Dinosaurs, Episode One

Dear diary,

And here I am – full circle. You see, Invasion of the Dinosaurs was my very first exposure to proper, telly, Doctor Who. I’d seen Daleks: Invasion Earth 2150AD once before when I was younger, and despite growing up (mostly) during the ‘Wilderness Years’, I had a vague idea of the programme - it’s a part of British cultural heritage. These days, I think you’re almost born with knowledge of what a TARDIS and a Dalek is, but back then it was a combination of older family members making jokes about the series, or episodes of Blue Peter produced by Richard Marson which made reference to it. Through general osmosis, I had a vague idea that it was about an alien who travelled through time and to alien planets fighting monsters.

So, let me set the scene. I’m in the local library, trying to choose a VHS to rent (remember those days?). I’m picky when it comes to watching things. I don’t really like films, you see. Unless it’s something that I’m really invested in, I just don’t have the patience for them. I much prefer a TV series, where you can watch the story unfold over a number of episodes, and see the evolution of the characters and the situation over time. I’d always choose series over film, and it’s telling that my collection of titles (on DVD and Blu-Ray, now, as opposed to tape) is somewhere around 85-90% television.

Anyway. Having spent an age trying to pick something, I finally noticed a Doctor Who tape in the ‘new releases’ section. Knowing vaguely that it was a TV show, and checking the number of episodes, I picked it up and took it home. Now, as many of my readers are likely to know, Episode One of this story only survives in the BBC’s archive as a black-and-white print. The other five are in full colour, but this first instalment is presented monochrome. The back cover to the tape even makes note of this: Episode One is in black and white. Due to the archive nature of this material, the sound and quality may vary occasionally..

That night, I took the tape next door to my grandparents to watch it with them. I was keen to see it in the company of someone who would remember the programme. Confidently, I told them that this was the very first Doctor Who story to be shot in colour – but that they’d only started with the second episode. I’m not sure how I’d managed to interpret that blurb text in this way, but for the next few years, I seriously believed that the series had been black and white until Invasion of the Dinosaurs, Episode Two.

I can’t actually remember when I realised that this wasn’t the case. It was probably sometime around the programme’s return to TV in 2005, when I started to take a greater interest in all things Doctor Who. I remember thinking that it was an odd decision. Why not just start a week earlier and do this whole story in colour? Still, I didn’t really care, because the episode looks great in black and white – it really suits the story. For the DVD release a couple of years back, they were able to partially recover colour for this episode, though it wasn’t presented as the default as there wasn’t the time nor resources available to recolour it in the same way as we’ve seen for The Mind of Evil or Planet of the Daleks.

I gave that version a watch when I first picked up the DVD and - while it’s not perfect - it’s watchable. It’s nice to see the episode presented in a format closer to the original transmission, but for me the black-and-white remains the default for these 23-and-a-half minutes. The episode just looks so good presented in this way. The best examples come during the pterodactyl attack in the warehouse, where a great use of shadow is really given depth by the lack of colour, and it’s almost as though you’re supposed to watch it this way.

This first episode aside, I’ve not actually seen this story again in full since that initial viewing, though I can recall enjoying it a lot at the time. It’s not hard to see why based on this beginning. Things hit the ground running, with some beautiful shots of a deserted London. It’s often noted that director Paddy Russell took out a small skeleton crew some weeks (or months) before shooting officially began, because she knew that this wads the only way to get the required shots. It’s completely worth it, though, because in the space of the opening 60-seconds, we’re brought right up to speed that all of London is deserted.

We move from shots of recognisable tourist spots - the Embankment and Trafalgar Square - to more suburban areas, where the shot of a lone dog scavenging for food could almost be direct from a zombie film. The shots are hugely evocative, and it’s the first time in a while that the Pertwee era has felt so real. When we’re running around with UNIT sometimes, it can still feel somewhat devoid of reality, because they’re investigating strange going-ons in a high tech scientific establishment, or a prison, or a fair ground. It’s good to get some link to very well known places to remind us that all of this is taking place against a back drop of the real world.

And from then, it doesn’t let up! As with The Tomb of the Cybermen being my favourite story, this episode being my first means that I’m probably being a little bit more lenient with it than I perhaps should be, but I really do love it. The Doctor and Sarah searching the empty streets is great. The comeuppance to the first looter we meet (and the shot of the ruined car!) is great. The Brigadier having to stand up to his superiors to make sure that UNIT can handle the situation the way he intends to is great. Basically, it’s all great.

The Doctor and Sarah Jane are up and running, now, too. I worried that this time around it would feel odd for them to simply continue on into another adventure, but I can’t actually imagine them being separated. They work too well together, and the scenes they share after being captured are great.

One thing I don’t really get, though, is the ‘surprise’ of the dinosaurs. They leave the latter half of the title off this episode (presumably to keep it a surprise), and the cliffhanger, in which the Doctor and Sarah peek out the back of the jeep to see a T-Rex towering over them is written and shot as if we’re supposed to be shocked to see a dinosaur… but we’ve already seen that same one smashing its way through a house earlier in the episode! Equally, the Brig and UNIT refer to ‘creatures’ and ‘incidents’, they all distinctly avoid saying the word ‘dinosaur’, but by that point we’ve seen the Doctor under attack from the pterodactyls! It’s an odd decision, and I’m not entirely sure what they were hoping to achieve…

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

Day 378: The Time Warrior, Episode Four

Dear diary,

Over the course of the last few series, I’ve spent a lot of time being impressed by the model shots in this era of Doctor Who. The ones that have been the most impressive are occasions when buildings blow up (and it always seems to fall in the final episode - The Dæmons, Day of the Daleks, The Green Death, Letts and Dicks like blowing the setting up when they’re done with it!). It seems fitting then that we end today’s episode with the castle blowing up. It’s been heralded for ages now, and the threat of the castle exploding when Lynx manages to fix his ship has been one of the key threats throughout the story, so it was clear based on past form that we’d be getting some fireworks in this episode.

Sadly, it’s nowhere near as good as the prior occasions that they’ve pulled the same trick. We see the Doctor, Sarah, and Hal dash away from the castle, giving us plenty of opportunity to enjoy the beautiful location, before we cut away to what appears to be an explosion in a quarry. It could almost work as a close up spliced in with footage of a model castle blowing up, but as the only representation of the explosion… it’s rubbish, frankly. And it’s a huge let down after the quality of everything else in the story.

Having finished the episode today, I decided to take a flick through the special features on the DVD (I try to avoid them until after watching the full story if I’ve never seen it before), and noticed that this is one of those stories to contain optional CGI enhancements. I didn’t bother to check out anywhere else that the effects might have been tweaked (on the whole, the story is fairly effects-light in ways that CGI could ‘improve’), but skipped right to the end of this episode again.

To begin with, I instantly thought ‘well that’s better’, as we cut from our location shots to a new image of the castle gates. It’s nicely framed, fits in well with the footage around it, and seems like a good starting point for an improved climax. Then the CGI flames turn up and… Ah. Well. You can’t win them all, I guess! I’m not sure I can say whether I preferred the original version or the CGI one – they’re both rubbish in different ways!

Elsewhere in this episode, the filmed segments have the effect of making me wish that all Doctor Who had been made this way. I’ve been saying that since as far back as the Hartnell years, but incidents like today’s ‘swinging on the chandelier’, where you cut from the set being shot on tape to the same set, actors, and action, all being mounted on film, really does highlight how much better the series could look. We’ve not had a cut this noticeable in a while, and I think that’s why it’s made me so keen to see an increase in film work again. Even the final shot, in which the Doctor and Sarah depart in the TARDIS looks great – the prop still looks quite tatty, but in an effective way!

Speaking of the pair, I’m really impressed by the way that the Doctor and Sarah have been handled in this story. It’s nice to see a more ‘traditional’ companion introduction (both Liz and Jo were forced on the Doctor, no matter how much he grew to enjoy their company), and I loved that she didn’t trust him completely right from the start. It adds a great dimension to the relationship, but by the end they’re completely smitten. The Doctor’s parting quip that he’s not a magician is nicely shot through by Sarah’s response, and they’re really clicking well. I know she’s around for a good while yet, and if it’s as lovely as this throughout, then I’m in for a real treat. Just as the arrival of the updated title sequence heralded the beginning of the end for the Third Doctor, the arrival of Sarah Jane Smith marks the start of what many fans call the ‘Golden Age’ of Doctor Who…

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

Day 377: The Time Warrior, Episode Three

Dear diary,

Mark today’s date in your own 50 Year Diary (surely you’ve all got one by now?), because today I realised… I quite like Jon Pertwee as the Doctor.

I know.

Let’s be honest, I’ve been vaguely suspecting as much since as far back as about Season Seven, when I was surprised at just how much fun I was getting from watching him in stories like Doctor Who and the Silurians or Inferno, but over the last few seasons I’ve been back and forth on my opinion like a bit of a yo-yo. If I were to draw a graph to represent my feelings towards this Doctor since Spearhead From Space it would generally bit a bit luke-warm, with sparks of love.

But there was a moment in today’s episode – I can pin-point it exactly, it’s when he’s throwing the ‘stink bombs’ over the castle battlements and has such a happy look on his face – where I just realised that actually, yeah, I do like him.

Now, that’s not to say that I’m suddenly revising my opinion of him as my least favourite Doctor, I’ll not really be able to analyse that until I’ve finished the marathon next year sometime. In actual fact, his current story average is sitting slightly above Hartnell’s, and yet I think I still prefer the First Doctor on the whole, in my heart.

Besides, Pertwee is probably taking something of a boost from the fact that today is the third episode of another very strong story for him. He’s being given a load of great dialogue, his spark with Sarah Jane is just right (At first, I was a bit disappointed that he’d managed to talk her round to his side so quickly, but actually it seems entirely fitting that he should do just this – he’s the Doctor! Of course he can bring her round!), and he even looks the part. I was never all that fond of his green jacket (like the purple one from last season’s Dalek story, it’s always felt a bit too bold), but it looks great against the medieval backdrop.

Speaking of the backdrop – how good does the time period look? It’s been a while since the production team have had to provide this kind of historical setting (I can’t think of any since at least Season Three), but it merely reinforces that old adage about how good the BBC are at the historical stories. The Time Warrior signals the start of several stories using locations like this – not necessarily historical tales, but ones set in a Middle Age society – over the next decade, so it’s good to see them mastering it so well.

And when Irongron goes to storm a neighbouring castle… we’ve sat through two and a half episodes of him boasting about the number of men currently in his employ, but now we actually get to see them! It’s quite small by some standards, but there’s still quite a lot of extras involved in the attack. The only downside is the one extra who seems to be having far too much fun as the explosions go off around him!

I’ve already touched on the Doctor’s brilliant dialogue in today’s episode, but it really does bear coming back to. It seems to be a running theme in Robert Holmes stories, and once again it’s becoming something that I can’t avoid drawing attention to. Today’s highlight is the Doctor explaining the Time Lords to Sarah, even if describing them as ‘galactic ticket inspectors’ does somewhat rob them of their mystery! This kind of stuffy bureaucrat image will go on to be typical of the way that Holmes sees them during his own time as Script Editor on the programme, and will characterise them for the rest of the ‘classic’ series.

This same scene also includes Sarah Jane growing to understand more about the Doctor’s character when she asks why he doesn’t simply just leave if he’s not behind all of this trouble, and he explains that he has to stay because he’s got ‘a job to do’. It’s the first time that this incarnation has towed the party line, as it were (it’s this statement which leads him into explaining how the Time Lords try to stamp out unlicensed time travel), and it’s a great way of looking at the Doctor.

He’s got the freedom to leave Earth whenever he pleases now, and Jo’s departure cuts another tie to the planet, but he continues to stick around with UNIT because he’s grown some affection for them. It’s quite sweet, in a way, and it’s the perfect end-point for the evolution his character was experiencing during Seasons Seven and Eight.

It also puts me in mind of a similar scene between the Doctor and Rose during Bad Wolf, in which they discuss how easy it would be just to hop in the TARDIS and leave the Gamestation to its fate. It’s the Doctor who makes the suggestion to Rose, telling her that it is another option, but she replies that he’s never do it. It’s not hard to see the correlation between that scene, and this one here. If you’re going to borrow from Doctor Who’s past, then borrow from the best!

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

Day 376: The Time Warrior, Episode Two

Dear diary,

I’m going to start today by saying ‘ooh, look, new titles sequence!’. Not because I have anything particularly interesting or profound to say about it, but simply because it debuted in yesterday’s episode, and the longer I go without mentioning it, the more it’ll look like I’ve simply not noticed. For many people, this is the dawning days of the Doctor Who title sequence, the blue vortex and the diamond logo. I’m going to have to be honest, though, and say that I don’t really care that much for it. Oh, there’s nothing wrong with it, but it’s never been my favourite (I prefer both of the 1960s versions, for example. Or the 2005 – 2010 one. I think I prefer the current one, too). Of course, it doesn’t reach its most iconic style until the start of the next series, with the inclusion of Tom Baker and a TARDIS, but you can clearly see the through-line from here to there – they just update it to reflect the new Doctor!

Anyway! To business! I was surprised today, watching the cliff hanger reprise, just how rubbish Sarah Jane comes across. She’s being dragged inside the castle, events totally out of her control, ready for the Doctor to swoop in an rescue her… I made a note about how disappointed I was by how much of typical ‘companion’ figure she was being portrayed as, when things suddenly turned right on their head.

Suddenly, she’s brought before Irongron – lord of this castle – and she’s on fire. She snaps, and shouts. She wanders around the room, devising various scenarios for where she might be before dismissing them for logical reasons. There’s a way of watching this scene which sees her cast almost in the role of the Doctor, and you can’t help but love her. She proves her worth completely in this scene, and I felt a bit silly for complaining how ineffectual she seemed in the opening moments. She even manages to work in some funny lines about the ‘realism’ of this castle taking things a bit too far and making it far too grotty!

And then, as if that wasn’t interesting and fun enough, they turn her entire relationship with the Doctor on its head. I mused yesterday that they were clearly made for each other right from the word ‘go’ – though I countered this by saying how easy it was to think that with 40 year’s worth of hindsight. Today, they’re on opposite sides, and she’s actually suspecting the Doctor of being the man behind the kidnapped scientists, and plotting an attack to capture him. It feels like exactly the reaction that you’d expect someone to have, and you can easily see how she’s pieced all of this together;

Scientists go missing – They turn out to be trapped in the Middle Ages – The Doctor is there when one goes missing – He also happens to have a time machine in the same room – Also, he’s a bit odd.

Looking back, it’s almost the same kind of situation in which we’re first introduced to the Brigadier. There’s something odd going on, and the Doctor just happens to turn up at the right moment. Someone who will become hugely important to the Doctor in the future is initially very suspecting of him. It’s a brilliant dynamic to see again, and I had no idea that it was even here. It’s uncovering little gems like this that make the whole marathon worthwhile. And who can fail to love Sarah’s description of the Doctor: ‘He’s no magician! He’s just an eccentric scientist!’

The Time Warrior is another one of those pivotal stories in Doctor Who history. Yesterday saw the introduction of these new titles, Sarah Jane Smith, and the Sontarans. Today we get our first mention of the Sontaran-Rutan war, and the very first mention of the Doctor’s home-world, Gallifrey.

In the same way that I’m always surprised that the Sontarans don’t make their first appearance until the Eleventh Season, I’m really surprised that we don’t get a name for the planet until now. Heck, we’ve even been there more than once! It’s exciting, in a way, because all these little bits of the Doctor Who tapestry that we take for granted are starting to fall into place now. When the Doctor says it, it even in the style of the speeches David Tennant gives in the role: ‘I’m from Gallifrey. I’m a Time Lord’. It marks yet another milestone in the programme’s evolving story.

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

Day 375: The Time Warrior, Episode One

Dear diary,

It always surprised me that the Sontarans were considered to be such a major Doctor Who monster, considering that they only appear in four stories from the ‘classic’ era. They don’t even turn up until Season Eleven – almost half way through the series’ original run. Even recently, they didn’t join the Big Finish stable until very late into the audio’s run. And yet, they’re always grouped up there with Who’s ‘Second String’ monsters (not as popular as the Daleks or the Cybermen, but fondly remembered all the same, like the Ice Warriors).

It has to be said, though, that we get off to a great start here with Lynx. Kevin Lindsay turns in a great performance that manages to be captivating even when he’s hidden away under a helmet for almost the full running time of today’s episode – and when we do get a look at his face in the closing seconds, it’s filled with character. They’ve clearly been taking lessons from the Draconians last season.

People often sing the praises of Lynx the Sontaran – he’s one of the few characters that breaks out from the generic ‘monster’ role – and I’m starting to understand why. If he keeps up such a strong performance for the rest of the serial, then we’re in for a treat. It’s a great introduction to him, too. The first six-and-a-half minutes focus on the adventures of Irongron and this ‘Star Warrior’ before we even catch sight of the Doctor and the present day. It’s not even a brief introduction to the setting and the time period – at least a few days pass (though the implication seems to be longer) during which the two characters are forced into an unlikely alliance. We’ve the beginnings of a great Holmes double act here, and of particular highlight is both characters chiming in to say that if they didn’t need the other… It’s great fun.

A less unlikely alliance here is the Doctor and Sarah Jane. Oh, sure, forty year’s hindsight and all that, but they’re already made for each other the very first time they meet. They spark off each other, and they’re both as intrigued by the other. There’s a hint in the dialogue that you could read either way – is the Doctor annoyed by Sarah Jane, or is he simply teasing her? It’s clear from the direction Pertwee has taken it that he’s having a lot of fun with Sarah around, and even his musing about how she wound up in the middle ages is played with the same kind of interest the Eleventh Doctor takes in Clara.

That said… Sarah finding her way back in time raises two points for me. For a start, why does he find it odd that she should be there, when he’s just followed the trail of a disappearing professor to the same location? Secondly… just where does Sarah hide in the TARDIS so that the Doctor can’t see her? I know it’s supposed to be near infinite in there, but the Pertwee TARDIS has always seemed to be little more than the console room (it’s even where he keeps an emergency pop out bed just a few stories back), and she finds her way back out again pretty quickly, so she doesn’t seem to have gotten herself into a Tegan situation where she’s wandering the corridors for hours!

I love that the two of them are stuck back in time together – it’s a great way for them to bond. I know that Invasion of the Dinosaurs begins with them returning to their rightful time, so I’m assuming that they’ll be spending the rest of this story running around castles and courtyards!

Thankfully, we’ve got the Brigadier keeping an eye on things in the present, in a lovely surprise appearance from Nick Courtney. I didn’t know he was in this story, so seeing him come round the corner with the Doctor raised an instant smile from me. It helps to ease that transition from Jo leaving, because the rest of the team is clearly still carrying on. I wondered – briefly – if we’d get mention of Jo’s travels (the Brig does refer back to the Doctor’s jaunt to Metebilis III, after all), but I’m rather hoping now that we don’t. Now she’s arrived, I’d love the focus to be squarely on Sarah Jane – there’s a new girl in the Doctor’s life!

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

Day 374: The Green Death, Episode Six

Dear diary,

There’s a commentary on the DVD for this episode which features Katy Manning and Russell T Davies discussing the departure of Jo Grant from the series. During this, Russell describes The Green Death as featuring ‘the first great, sad, departure’, and I think he’s right. He goes on to clarify that when you’re eight years old, and you’re watching the series through, and the Doctor’s companion leaves, it always feels sad - but that this is the first time the series really lives up to that feeling.

It’s hard to disagree with him. I’ve made plenty of notes for today’s episode, ranging from the giant fly attack, to the use of the fungus, to the realisation that - really - the BOSS storyline and the maggot storyline barely overlap, and while I’ve been interested in both separately, they don’t really gel that well together for me… but after those final few minutes, all I can think about is Jo leaving the Doctor. It hits you quite hard, and it’s not always the case when someone gives up their place in the TARDIS.

If we go back to the middle of October and Jo’s introduction (and doesn’t it feel like longer than that?), I said:

’Making less of a great first impression on me is Jo, I'm sorry to say… I found that the Doctor and Liz worked well together, and everything just clicked for me. Suddenly, I was dreading Season Eight, and the introduction of a companion who - as the Brigadier puts it in this episode - is simply there to pass the Doctor test tubes and tell him how wonderful he is.’

Well, suffice to say that all this time on, my opinion of Jo has been completely over-turned. I’ve grown to really love having her as a part of the series. A large part of that has been thanks to Katy Manning, who turns in such a beautiful performance in the part. In hindsight, I can even appreciate all the things in her first episode that I wasn’t all that keen on to begin with - they’ve become a part of the character, and as Katy herself points out in the commentary, we’ve watched Jo grow up and change over the course of three years.

After everything that she’s been through, I’m genuinely sad to see her go. I’ll even confess that there was a bit of welling up during those final moments where she and the Doctor say their goodbyes, and then he turns to leave while he thinks she’s not looking.

Part of the charm comes from the fact that it’s just as clearly Jon Pertwee and Katy Manning saying their goodbyes, too. You can hear their voices starting to go, and it’s not just good acting - it’s true emotions bleeding through to the surface. I love that he gives her the Metebilis crystal as a wedding present - a nice parting gift and the real pay-off to the ongoing joke.

That said, the marriage proposal comes somewhat out of nowhere, doesn’t it? Cliff tells the Doctor that they’ll be leaving for the Amazon just as soon as they’ve picked up supplies and gotten married! Even Jo seems somewhat shocked by the suggestion! I’m almost a bit put out by the abrupt nature of this - it’s the only bit of their relationship that I’ve not truly believed - but everything around it is so perfectly crafted that it would be churlish to grumble.

And then the Doctor is gone. Slipping off into the night, with a final shot of him driving away as the theme music sting quietly fades up and into the closing credits, another thing that we’ll be saying goodbye to in this episode (and - for some reason - being played upside down. Well, it’s nice to go out in style, isn’t it?)

It’s a good job that Sarah Jane is coming up next - one of the most popular companions of all time. Jo, and indeed Katy, is a hard act to follow, and anything less than perfect would be something of a let down. Her departure also signals another shift in the programme’s style, as we move into the final run for Jon Pertwee, and it’s all change once again…

And with huge apologies for the delay, we've now amended The Web of Fear Episode Five (Revisited) to contain the right text. All is explained in the entry!

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

Day 373: The Green Death, Episode Five

Dear diary,

Let me start by saying that - once again - I’ve really enjoyed this episode. There’s loads in here that’s really great, and I’ll come to all of that in a few minutes. Sadly, though, I’ve had to actively knock off a point for some dodgy CSO. I don’t think I’ve ever been moved to actively mark an episode down because the Colour Separation Overlay has actually offended me, but when I’m enjoying a story as much as this and the return to it keeps jolting me right out of things… It can’t be easily forgiven.

If you’ve seen The Green Death, I’m sure you’ll know what I mean. We’ve got plenty of nice filmed footage of UNIT out on location in Wales. Look! There’s Sergeant Benton chatting to Professor Jones out on location! And look! There’s Jo, scrambling her way off up the slag heap out on location! Over there, look! It’s a helicopter coming along to bomb the maggots (if there was one thing missing from Jo’s final story being a proper return to the UNIT of old, it was a helicopter) out on location. Notice the trend?

And here’s a shot of the Brigadier and Benton watching the helicopter’s approach, out on… oh. No. Sorry. That’s not ‘out on location’ at all. It’s Nick Courtney and John Levene stood with a couple of extras on a CSO background. Hm. Odd. Ok, not to worry, it’s not the worst CSO we’ve ever seen the series attempt, but I can let it slide for now. Yeah, yeah, I know what you’re thinking. It really isn’t the worst we’ve seen from the series, but equally it’s far from the very best (which is on display elsewhere in this story when it’s employed to help move the maggots around).

No, what really bothers me comes later in the episode, in which the Doctor drives up and has a bit of a chat with Benton. They’re back out on location by now, and it’s back to looking lovely. We cut away to another shot, and when we return, the Doctor and Benton are still having a conversation… only now they’ve moved to CSO, and it really doesn’t work. We then proceed to cut between shots of Bessie being driven around on location interspersed with shots done back in the studio some time later. The whole effect was so distracting that I really couldn’t pay much attention to what was going on.

I figured - in the usual way - that they’d simply run out of time to film everything they needed on location, so had to improvise when they got back to London. A quick check of the DVD Information Subtitles after the episode had finished confirmed that this wasn’t the case, and that they’d always intended to shoot it in this way. I can’t for the life of me figure out why, because it looks awful. Such a shame, when the location work in this tale has been so strong up until now.

Still, it’s not the end of the world, and there’s so much going on elsewhere in today’s episode that losing a point from the score due to bad CSO doesn’t harm it all that much.

John Dearth turns in a great performance as the voice of BOSS - he’s been brilliant all along, but today is the first opportunity we’ve had to hear lots from him, and it’s definitely a highlight of the episode. A shame that I’m less fond of the ‘sound wave’ effect when it’s being transplanted onto the big red disc than I was of it on the smaller TV screen in the earlier episodes, it seems somehow less creepy when it’s made into something this large, and taken away from the more ordinary device.

The maggots continue to look fantastic, and it really is no wonder that so many people recall them so fondly when thinking about Doctor Who monsters. The close-ups of them hissing really are quite scary - they look incredibly real. I’ve only ever encountered maggots properly the once. When I lived in Norwich, I had a cat (called ‘Wolsey’. I’d named him after Bernice Summerfield’s cat, but if anyone else asked, I’d say he was named for Henry the Eighth’s cardinal). For a while, I thought that the cat food was depleting rather quickly, but I couldn’t figure out how. I thought of the obvious - that he was somehow working his way into the stash and eating it when I wasn’t around, but I couldn’t see any evidence of this.

It was only a few weeks later, when I found that he’d - rather cleverly - admittedly - dragged the full pouches to the back of the kitchen, behind the fridge, before ripping into them and eating what he could, when I found a scene from this story waiting for me. It was the smell that I’d noticed first, and followed it to the point where I stuck my head round the back of the appliance. It really could have been a scene from this story. A pile of half-open cat food pouches, crawling with maggots. The worst bit was trying to get the place clean again. Not nice.

Perhaps my favourite thing about this episode, though, is that the blue crystal comes in as vital to saving the day. I’d been assuming that the Doctor’s trip to Metebilis III was simply there to illustrate that Jo was moving on from him (both in choosing not to go with him to the planet, and her lack of interest in the Doctor’s souvenir once he’d returned), and a pay-off to a running joke from Carnival of Monsters. Seeing that there’s actually a point to it makes the scene all the more richer, and it means that when the planet comes back to haunt the Doctor next season, it feels all the more important.

We also get the start of what I’d call out next loose ‘story-arc’, in Captain Yates being brainwashed. I’m not watching these stories in a vacuum - I know that Yates will be turning traitor in a few stories time - but here we’ve got the first hints of it. Sure, he;s acting under orders from the BOSS, but seeing him spring up, point a gun at the Doctor, and declare that he ‘has’ to die is quite striking all the same.

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

Day 372: The Green Death, Episode Four

Dear diary,

Now this feels like Jo’s proper send off! The Brig’s back in his UNIT attire, Benton’s arrived to help contain the situation, and there’s a group of soldiers running around an industrial location in film footage. It’s like being back in the early UNIT era, and I’m surprised just how excited I am by this. As if that weren’t enough, the Doctor gets himself backed into a corner, about to fight his way against a man from the government… when it turns out to be Yates working undercover! The Brigadier seems quite pleased with himself for having organised all of this, and quite right too – it comes as a brilliant reveal, and it’s another one of those moments when the series causes me to actually laugh out loud.

As if to really rub in the nostalgia-fest for UNIT, we get to see the Doctor fighting against the Bring (and the rest of UNIT, plus Global Chemicals) in an attempt to stop him from blowing up an underground hideout for this story’s ‘monster’. It really is just like old times. I love that blowing the mine up (in another impressive model shot; if there’s one thing this era does very well, it’s blowing places up!) has some very real consequences, in that it forces the maggots to the surface. Until now, the threat hasn’t seemed all the great because people had to actively go to the maggots (or, at the very least, to the slime) to get infected – now that threat is above ground, and seemingly unstoppable! I also need to draw attention to the Brigadier’s fab line today ‘I never thought I’d fire in anger at a dratted caterpillar…’, to me it should be much more famous than the much-quoted ‘five rounds rapid’.

Considering that I didn’t know they’d used any real maggots in the production of this story, they turn up en masse here today. And don’t they look really effective? Even the moment where one falls at some speed down the side of a muddy bank can’t stop the scene from being effective.

Of course I’m going to need to discuss the Doctor’s series of disguises today. His intention is clear from the second he sees the milk-truck, but I didn’t anticipate just how funny it would turn out to be. His turn as the milkman’s father recalls many of his radio performances, and then when he gets inside and switches into the guise of a (female) cleaner…!

As soon as I saw the cleaner earlier in the episode, I remembered that he’d be stealing the outfit at some point. I’ve never seen this story before, but it’s another one of those moments that you just know about simply by being a Doctor Who fan. It’s absolutely fantastic – hilarious! – and Yates’ reaction is priceless.

THE DOCTOR

You say one word…

YATES

(indicating the Doctor’s bucket) I like your handbag.

Though now, for any complaints I made the other day about knowing about this story taking away some of the effect… I don’t have a clue where we’re going from here. I’m becoming more and more convinced that the computer on the top floor could be WOTAN (don’t get me wrong, I’m not expecting them to actually say that it is, but in my head if there’s nothing to contradict it, then I’m taking it as fact), especially as it expects the Doctor to know him (it?). Aside from the fact that they will presumably get rid of the maggot problem and disable the computer, I really have no idea what’s still to come, and I really rather like that.

The new Doctor, Peter Capaldi, stepped on set today for his first full day of filming as production begins on series eight of the hit BBC show.

Arriving on set in Cardiff to begin filming, Peter Capaldi, said:

“New job, first day, slightly nervous. Just like the Doctor, I'm emerging from the TARDIS into a whole other world.”

Steven Moffat, Lead Writer and Executive Producer, added:

“First the eyebrows! Then, at Christmas, the face! Coming soon, the whole Doctor. In the Cardiff studios, the Capaldi era begins.”

Accompanying The Doctor on his adventures will be companion Clara Oswald, played by Jenna Coleman.

The first episode of series eight has been written by Steven Moffat, with the second episode penned by Phil Ford. These are the first episodes that Peter will shoot and they are directed by Ben Wheatley.

Ben Stephenson, Controller of Drama Commissioning, said:

"Excitement and anticipation fills the air as Peter Capaldi’s Doctor takes control of the TARDIS for the very first time today. It’s going to be one hell of a ride and I can't wait for the journey to start."

Charlotte Moore, Controller BBC One, commented:

"A new year, a new face, a new Doctor! 2014 has arrived and it's Peter Capaldi's time so let the adventures begin!"

Filming is taking place in Cardiff until August 2014. Doctor Who is executive produced by Steven Moffat and Brian Minchin, and produced by Nikki Wilson and Peter Bennett. It is a BBC Cymru Wales production for BBC One.

Just before Christmas DWO and Blogtor Who met Peter Capaldi who had the following to say on his new role and the upcoming series:

"I met with Matt last night, who gave me some advice about dealing with the attention. He's a lovely guy!

I've just been working this week on the new series and we did the read through yesterday. I've never seen so many people at a read through!

I hope you like the Christmas episode and to see what were going to do with the show."

Watch Peter Capaldi's DWO video greeting:

[youtube:YdKFnh-fzKI]
More news as we get it...

+  Series 8 of Doctor Who will air in August / Early September 2014.

[Sources: BBC; Tim Vine]

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

Day 371: The Green Death, Episode Three

Dear diary,

I used to work in a shop in Norwich, where Doctor Who products formed a large portion of the stock. The five of us who worked there at the time were all big fans of the series, so we were always excited to have signings in store with members of the cast. Over the years we had numerous guests (a personal highlight was answering the phone to John Leeson and acting as his remote sat-nav as I guided him to the store - any time he followed a direction, he would reply ‘affirmative’ to me), and exactly five years ago this month, Katy Manning was in store, doing a signing with Richard Franklin.

The shop was busy (it always was on signing days), but about lunch time a man strode through the crowd and right up to the desk. I greeted him and he responded quite simply: ‘I’m here to see my wife.’

I didn’t get much time to process the slightly odd statement before Katy jumped to her feet and exclaimed loudly across the crowd of people there to see her ‘Stuart!’ You’ve probably all pieced this story together by this point - yes, the man in question was Professor Jones himself Stewart Bevan - but as I’d not seen The Green Death before, and some 40 years had passed since recording, I couldn’t have told you that I was watching the reunion of Jo Grant and her one-time husband.

He didn’t stay long - only passing through when he happened to spot Katy’s name on a poster up in the window - but it was lovely to see the pair of them together, and the fans there for a signing enjoyed chatting to the two for a few minutes.

Even though I’ve never seen the story before, I’ve always known how Jo departed the series. Just like Susan being left behind on a Dalek-torn future Earth, or Sarah Jane being left behind when the Doctor was called home, it’s one of those departures that’s famous, and it seems to be justly so. I’ve already mentioned that the ‘falling in love’ of the pair may be a bit flat after the bubbling feelings between Jo and Latep in the last story, but it’s striking just how real this relationship feels.

If I was impressed by the way the pair met in Episode One with almost an identical sequence to her first scene in the programme three years earlier, then today pushes that to a whole new level. At first, I thought cutting from a scene in which a character commits suicide to one in which the Doctor, Jo, the Brigadier, and the Professor laugh and drink and smoke was ill judged and somewhat upset the pace of the story… but then you realise that it’s actually vital to the plot, and it gives a chance to stop and take stock of the situation. It’s all laughing and joking until the Doctor returns from a phone call to tell us that another character - and a particularly likeable one at that - has died, at which point the scene and the tone of the episode shift again.

Suddenly, that scene has become a chance to see Jo and Cliff happy together, before seeing the way in which he comforts her. A close up of their hands as he takes hers and gives it a little comforting squeeze says more about their evolving feelings than any line of dialogue does, and I spent much of the next scene in which he consoles her longing for them to actually kiss… before it’s interrupted by the Doctor. It puts me in mind once more of Susan’s departure where I was sure we’d not see a kiss or any true emotions until the end, but then they start creeping in early just to surprise you.

It’s terribly exciting, if I’m honest, I’m only now half-way through the story, and yet already we’ve seen the seeds sown for Jo’s departure at the end. The idea of travelling up the Amazon has already started to take hold, and the beautiful moment where to Doctor tries to excite her about Metebilis III by showing her the crystal he’s managed to obtain - only for her to brush him off and return to a book about the adventure she could be having is magical. The Doctor knows that she’s leaving soon, and I can’t wait to watch how he reacts over the next few episodes as the end draws ever closer.

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

Day 370: The Green Death    The One with the Maggots, Episode Two

Dear diary,

‘The One with the Maggots’ is often brought up when I speak to people about Doctor Who. You know the type of situation - as Who fans, we’ve all been there. You’re introduced to someone new and whoever is making the introduction makes a point of saying ‘Will’s something of an expert about Doctor Who. The conversation from here goes in one of three ways;

1) They instantly make a point of telling you that they don’t like Doctor Who, and change the subject (or, in one case, when I was being introduced to a member of the crew, the person introducing me told them I was ‘something of an expert’ before adding that they didn’t like the show, and thought it was rubbish).

2) They mention how they really liked David Tennant, but don’t really care much for ‘the new chap’. Smith seems to have remained ‘the new chap’ to people I’ve met over the last three years who aren’t what you’d call fans.

3) They tell me how they remember watching Doctor Who when they were younger. You know, the original Doctor Who with Peter Troughton and the Daleks made of tin foil. If the conversation takes this direction, ‘The One with the Maggots’ seems to crop up more often than not.

Which is odd, in some ways, because this particular story achieved the lowest average ratings for the entire Tenth Series (no fault of the story, really. The last story in three of the five Pertwee seasons was always the weakest, ratings-wise). This was one of the stories to get an omnibus repeat later in the year, though, during which it scored almost 3 million more in the ratings, so perhaps that’s where the fond memories come from?

Because there’s no doubting that you would remember this story if you’d seen it as an impressionable eight-year-old. The first shot, with the live maggots crawling around is genuinely quite a shock (partly because I didn’t realise they’d used live maggots at all in the story), and even some dodgy CSO cutting around Pertwee doesn’t let it down. Then in the closing moments when the models of the giant creatures start to show up… well they’re bloody well done, aren’t they?

And yet, the story having this big selling point often used to describe it - it’s got giant maggots in! - robs it of some tension. Had I not known they were going to be in there as the monster, and had The Green Death been one of my ‘blackspots’ from this era of the programme, I’d have been trying really pretty hard to work out what’s going on here. For the first time since perhaps as far back as Fury From the Deep, there’s lots of things that make me think a previous foe could be making a reappearance.

The look of the tunnels couples with the overalls and hardhats recall similar scenes in Doctor Who and the Silurians. The idea of pollution being so central makes me think of the Autons. There’s a mysterious green slime, similar to (well… identical to) that from Inferno. We’ve got a mysterious computer controlling things from behind the scenes and brainwashing innocent people into working for it, just like in The War Machines. I’d love to come to this story after all the previous ones, but with no knowledge of what’s coming up in these six episodes - I’d love to see the reaction.

Our friends over at The Film Cell have just uploaded some fantastic new Doctor Who gifts and fancy dress ideas ideal for all those cosplay readers. They have a great range of official BBC Dr Who scarves and knitwear made to look just like the ones wore in the 1970’s & 80’s. Are you looking to dress up as your favourite Doctor? Then they also have some great Doctor Who Fancy Dress ideas which will help make your party or event extra special. 

If you are a fan of Sylvester McCoy they have 2 items that are going to blow you away. Firstly there is one of the most famous jumpers/tank tops of all time, the question mark top as worn by the 7th Doctor, McCoy. This is now available in a number of different sizes from small to extra large, a must-have item for fans of the McCoy era. 

To finish off the McCoy look they also have the 7th Doctor Who scarf which is both highly collectable as well as wearable. This authentic silk scarf comes presented in a collectors box, so makes a great presents for birthdays or Doctor Who gift for fans of the original series, Whovian’s or yourself this winter.

Not a McCoy fan? Then check out their iconic Doctor Who scarf as wore by Tom Baker which is an amazing 13 foot in length, that’s almost 4 meters long. This is one of the most iconic items of clothing from the original Doctor Who series especially while Tom Baker was playing the time lord between 1974 & 1981.

Their range of Doctor Who Fancy Dress are also now available, these were very popular at Christmas parties and continued their success on New Year’s Eve parties. If you are looking for a complete costume and haven’t got the time to make up the look yourself with the accessories above then these are a much easier option. These complete outfits are also a great idea for sci-fi events around the UK with the 50th Anniversary being such a big hit.

They have 3 options available currently, if you are a fan of the original series you can dress up as the 4th Doctor, Tom Baker. With the iconic scarf and wide-brimmed hat the costume is complete with all in one top.

If you’ve only just started to get into Doctor Who over the past few years then the next two options will probably be more to your taste, David Tennant at Matt Smith. The 10th Doctor costume comes complete with long sleeved jacket & mock waistcoat and shirt with tie all in one. Where as the 11th Doctor comes complete with long sleeved jacket & mock shirt with iconic bow tie.

Ideal if you are looking to dress up as a group why not all dress up as a different Doctor? There is also the weeping angel costume ideal for the ladies who want to join in and don’t want to choose one of the many assistants our favourite time lord has had over the years.  

They also have some of these products on SALE in their January sale so make sure you check out www.thefilmcell.com for all you movie and TV needs. All you will need now is a time machine and Sonic screwdriver which you can also get from The Film Cell. Unfortunately they don’t sell time machines!!

+  For all these and more, check out The Film Cell.

[Sources: The Film Cell]

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

Day 369: The Green Death, Episode One

Dear diary,

Something odd happened when I settled down to watch yesterday's episode. I'd spent the day bubbling with anticipation, and was excited to finally sit down and start Jo Grant's final story… until I remembered that I'd not yet finished Planet of the Daleks, and would have to wait until today to reach this one. I've spoken a lot recently of my growing sense of nostalgia towards the series, and I've suddenly found myself somewhat nostalgic for the early Pertwee years! It's funny - by the time the Doctor started to venture out into space more and leave UNIT behind, I was ready to get him away from Earth. Now I couldn't wait to get back there - I was with Jo, there was only one planet that I wanted to see.

This is one of the longest stretches without a UNIT story since Pertwee took over the part of the Doctor (and - although the future Brig turns up in one of them - adding almost a fortnight's worth of recovered 1960s episodes into the mix last month means it's even longer since I last saw the team), and I was really ready to get back to them. I was somewhat disappointed that we didn't get to see Jo and the Doctor returning home, though. After all the nice setting up during the last story that she was beginning to get a bit homesick, I was hoping that we'd see them arrive and follow that line of thought a little further.

Instead, we pick up some time later (and it really is left vague. It could be days, weeks, or even months since the events on Spiridon), and Jo has taken on a sudden passion for preserving the planet. In some ways, it feels perfectly natural that Jo should have such an interest in stopping pollution and saving the planet, but that she should feel this strongly about it all of a sudden… it feels a bit like it's come out of nowhere. We even reach a point where she tells the Brig that she'll resign from UNIT if that's the only way she can head to South Wales and support Professor Jones - where did she strike up such a fire from?

Still, it gives a great excuse for comedy when the Brig informs her that he's trying to send her to exactly that location, and that he'll give her a lift down if she cares that strongly about it! It's nice to see the two of them paired off like this, and it highlights just how far the Brig has come since his early days in UNIT - can you imagine the Season Seven Brigadier tolerating Jo's 'a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do… sir!'?

Once we've arrived at the Nut-hutch, the set up for Jo's departure is in full swing. I'd worried that after a romantic interest in the last story, any that would come in here may feel a bit too forced, or as though it's treading over old ground (though it is, at least, a reason to assume a large gap between the two stories), but it actually feels completely natural. Early on, Jo admits that the Professor reminds her of a younger Doctor, and then their first meeting (in which she bumbles around, destroying an experiment by leaving the door open and then clattering into things) is wonderfully reminiscent of her first meeting with the Doctor right back at the start of Season Eight. It's too neat to simply be a coincidence, so it's another little benefit for those of us watching through the programme in order.

We've also got the seeds of the Doctor's departure a year from now being seeded in, too. I'd completely forgotten that he takes a trip to Metebilis III in this story (When it was first mentioned in Carnival of Monsters, I was surprised because I thought this was the first we heard of the planet… and then promptly forgot all about this little excursion!), but it's great fun to see. In many ways it's simply obvious filler material, so bringing it back as the cause of the Doctor's 'death' suddenly gives it a weight that it wouldn't have had at the time. I've never seen Planet of the Spiders, but from what few clips I have seen, I don't think it looks anything like this planet, but I look forward to comparing the two when the time comes.

The only real disappointment… no Benton or Yates? Do they turn up later on in the story? it's lovely to have the Brig back, and it's great to be down on Earth again in the 'traditional' Pertwee format (and don't those opening scenes at the mine just feel so much like a Pertwee story?), but I was rather hoping for a proper UNIT reunion for Jo's big send off…

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

Day 368: Planet of the Daleks, Episode Six

Dear diary,

Crikey, this episode has been something of a roller coaster for the Daleks. For a start, they look brilliant. Certainly better than I can remember them looking for a very long time. There's some shots early on where they chase the Doctor and his Thal friends through the corridors of the city and they move so smoothly. They swing round corners and glide down the corridors - they look genuinely quite menacing during these moments!

But then we get to see repeated shots of them trying to break their way through the barricade by bumping in to it. Over and over again. They're not even backing up enough to take a good run (glide?) up to it, they're just moving back and forth a few inches as they nudge the barrier forward a bit, in the hope that they'll break through at some stage. Why don't they shoot their way through? Surely their fund can do some damage to the assorted junk in their path?

Oh, but the shots of the Dalek army in the cavern being flooded by the onslaught of molten ice! It looks fab as the waves crash through and knock the little Dalek models all over the place. Oh, sure, the dimensions of the models aren't quite right, and the way they're positioned means that the army doesn't look as impressive as it could, but who can fail to love the shot of the Dalek domes poking out from the setting ice? It looks great, and when we get nice long shots of them starting to come to life just a few minutes earlier, that looks pretty good, too!

Except they had to go and ruin it. The models are passable in a nice long shot, but then we get a close up of them as they work their way down a miniature corridor, and the wall is blasted out by the ice. This shot gives us a good clear look at all the wrong dimensions of the models and completely ruins the effect for me. It doesn't help that it moves mere moments after we've seen some full-size Dalek props reduced to smouldering husks, so the fact that a big chunk of wall smacking into one leaves it completely un-marked really irritates me.

There's a couple of instances where Daleks are shot by their own kind in this episode, and on both occasions we get to see smoke billowing from under the victim's dome. It looks great (I can' help myself, I love a good smoke effect), and I was glad when it happened for the second time that we could get a better close up for it.

Yet when the Dalek Supreme arrives on the planet all black and gold and taking control, the dome wobbles about horribly if it tries to turn around. Or move forward. Or speak. Basically, the dome on that particular prop looks a bit rubbish any time it's on screen, really.

So yes. Plenty of ups and downs for the pepper pots today, but that's ok, because I'm more interested today in our two regulars. I'm really finding myself softening to Pertwee as we move further and further through his era, and his speech at the end of todays episode where he asks the Thals to make sure they don't glorify war when they return to Sakro is perhaps my favourite moment yet. It's beautifully played in every line, and credit where credit is due, it's one of the best things that Terry Nation has ever written for the series.

And then there's Jo. Dear, dear, Jo. I said yesterday that they seemed to be setting her up for a departure with Latep in today's episode (and speculated that he would die. Well, a 50% success rate isn't that bad…), and we get what can only be described as a 'classic' companion departure scene, in which she's asked to stay behind (or, in this case, head to Skaro) with one of the story's guest cast.

But there's still another six weeks on Katy Manning's contract, so we get to watch a rather moving scene in which she politely says that she won't be leaving with this other character, but will instead be heading back to the TARDIS with the Doctor. Things aren't all about whizzing off into time and space some more, though. She tells Latep that she's got a world and a life of her own, and then tells the Doctor that Earth is the only planet she has any interest in visiting right now. Jo's getting home-sick, and she doesn't have all that long to wait before she's back there…

In late 2013, DWO caught up with Doctor Who Actor, Tom Baker, to discuss his recent role in the 50th Anniversary Special; 'The Day Of The Doctor', Christmas and his future plans.

Millions of Doctor who fans worldwide were given a very special treat when we all saw you return in the ‘The Day Of The Doctor’. How long ago did you find out you would be in it, and what was it like coming back to the main TV series after 32 years?

I was invited to be in the Special about 7 months before transmission. I was reluctant at first but a very persuasive Miss Skinner convinced me that it was a good idea and that the fans would be happy to see me again. The second part of that argument convinced me: I never wanted to do more than please the fans. By the time the shooting date drew near Miss Skinner had disappeared though her argument remained, so I stood by my promise.

I was driven through the night to record the scene in Cardiff on a very cold and dreary morning. No glamour on a film lot, caravans scattered everywhere and tea was simply a dream of long ago when I was in lovely Sussex: long ago? well five hours but this was BBC Cardiff at 5 am! Never mind. At last 8 am crawled into view and make-up, costume and weak tea too! And then the scene.

Matt Smith came to find me with such affectionate enthusiasm that my anxieties were allayed. The film set was packed with people, scores of them, full of curiosity to see the old Doctor with the reigning one. Whatever I offered, Matt responded with terrific jollity: he was just so generous and I was grateful. As you know the scene was very brief, very, very brief; and in 4 and a quarter hours it was complete and I fled.

Your Big Finish range continues to do very well indeed. Now that you’re coming up to 2 years with them, how have you found working with your past companions and what can we expect to look forward to in the upcoming series?

I don't know exactly how long or how many adventures I have recorded for Big Finish but I am full of enthusiasm for whatever they offer me this year. I have told David Richardson more than once that I have never been happier than I am doing their scripts.

I have not discussed happiness with the other actors, except Louise, and she tells me she is delighted to be part of the group. I think that means she is very happy. But I can tell from the atmosphere in the Green Room and from the waves of laughter I hear that Big Enthusiasm is the house style at Big Finish. I have mostly had a happy time with other actors; not always but mostly. Generally actors are nice people to be with.

With the Christmas season upon us, do you have any traditions you like to keep each year? 

I don't have any particular rituals at Christmas. Nearly all the planning and organising is done by my wife. I try to help out by doing my share of shopping and by being sociable at mealtimes. Christmas is no longer a novelty at my age; nor is New Year.

Do you have a particular favourite Christmas Movie, Song or Book?

I used to like the Alistair Sim Christmas Carol for many years but now I would prefer to watch Frank Capra's film "It's a Wonderful Life."

Last year I recorded the complete Dickens' script, “A Christmas Carol”, not a word missed out. One person told me she liked it, so I got something right. I think one can justifiably make some cuts to the text as there are some obscurities here and there. But James Stewart was such a wonderful actor in “It’s a Wonderful Life”, so warm and sincere and so funny; and that slightly cracked voice and his hesitant quacking just makes me yelp with joy. And the title of the film is great, eh? 

Your autobiography has recently been released on Kindle, but you’ve had some more adventures since its original release in 1997, and with the recent success of ‘The Boy Who Kicked Pigs’ as a stage play, do you have any plans to write any more books?

My autobiography and “The Boy who Kicked Pigs” remain in print and that pleases me. The pig book is published in 5 languages including Chinese, Dutch and German. But I'm not a writer and those two efforts were little attacks of inspiration, so I don't feel another book coming on.

I still enjoy going to conventions and interacting with the fans who have supported me for so long. Some of them I know quite well and some I even know their grandchildren!  

I wish you all a heartfelt Happy New Year and many thanks for all your encouragement over so many years. 

From old Tom Baker

Watch Tom Baker's DWO video greeting:

[youtube:tlDY49cfHQ0]
+ Buy Tom Baker's Autobiography for Kindle on Amazon for just £4.94!

[Source: DWO]

2013 was quite a year for The Doctor. As well as celebrating his 50th Anniversary and regenerating at Christmas, The Doctor was also the subject of a special stamp issue from Royal Mail.

The eleven stamps, launched in March and all at 1st Class value, feature eleven of the actors who have played the role of the Time Lord over the last 50 years, from William Hartnell right through to Matt Smith. The Doctors are also joined by stamps of some of their fiercest adversaries, such as the Daleks and Cybermen, who have enthralled generations of fans.

And it’s not too late to get your hands on the Doctor Who stamps and collectibles. From the presentation pack to the framed set of the Doctor Who stamps, the Royal Mail collection offers Doctor Who fans the perfect memento of one of the biggest years in our hero’s history.

+  Explore the collection now at Doctor Who Stamps at Royal Mail Shop.

[Source: Royal Mail]

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

Day 367: Planet of the Daleks, Episode Five

Dear diary,

Something that’s been troubling me a little throughout this story (‘Troubling’ is probably too strong, but you know what I mean) is how the jungle set can look so good… but not quite be perfect. It’s highlighted in today’s episode when the Doctor lures a pair of Daleks down into the molten ice. The whole scene (shot on location) is filled with smoke. It adds a real atmosphere to the image, and makes the location look that bit more alien. Smoke effects is what I’ve felt the jungle is lacking for some time now – when the Daleks fire on the ship in Episode Two, the smoke lingers for a minute and makes the set look that bit more real.

It’s not really a complaint, though, because on the whole I’m rather liking the design on display in this story. The jungle – lack of atmosphere aside – is nicely done, and while you never forget that it’s a set, you do get a real impression of size. I’m sure they’re just using a few small areas of the studio shot creatively from a number of different angles (maybe they move the odd plant from time to time), but I’m not spotting a lot of re-use. It really feels like they’re in a large jungle.

The downside to this is that when we arrive at Plain of Stones, it feels like the jungle ends and is replaced by a vast expanse of… well… nothing. We suddenly hit a barren rocky wilderness. It still looks quite nice, especially when we head out onto location (which – by rights – it shouldn’t. We’re in a quarry. It’s wet. It’s muddy. I wince every time we see a shot of Jon Pertwee’s shoes caked in mud and have flashbacks to the days of Cross Country at school in Decembers gone by…), but I’m not sure that I understand the geography of this planet. A tropical jungle… surrounding an ice volcano. Which could erupt at any time, but doesn’t seem to impact on the jungle. Not that it matters, because eventually, the jungle just stops, and then there’s nothing but mud for miles and miles around (seriously, I used to hate Cross Country. At one point, you had to make your way through a pig farm. By the time you’d hobbled back up the lane to the school for double French, you absolutely stunk…)

The design in the rest of the story looks pretty good, too. I’ve never been all that fond of the Doctor’s purple get-up for this tale. It’s always seemed that bit too garish for me, and I’ve never been able to understand quite why people were always clamouring for a Third Doctor action figure in this outfit. Seeing it in action, though, it looks really good, and I’ve fallen for it completely. It even matched the Spiridon’s furry purple coats! Speaking of which, it’s a lovely touch when Wester dies, that he loses his invisibility. It adds something extra to the culture, and it’s good to actually see this mysterious figure in an episode where he’s been back and forth in my mind – unable to decide whether he’s working for the Daleks, or against the Daleks, or a bit of both.

I’m also starting to think that if I didn’t know Jo was leaving us in the next story, I might be expecting her to nip off at the end of this one. She’s been growing closer and closer to Latep for a while now, and the moment she declares that she’s going with him today because he can’t go alone really feels like they’re setting them up to depart together. I can only assume he’ll be dead by the end of tomorrow’s episode.

 Day 366: Planet of the Daleks, Episode Four

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

Day 366: Planet of the Daleks, Episode Four

Dear diary,

I think the problem I’m having with this story is that because of the way Terry Nation writes (he’s very much writing this as an ‘adventure serial’), we’ve got episodes injected with false action and excitement. Today, for example, the Daleks get hold of the Thal’s map and discover where they’ve hidden a stash of explosives. Being sensible little pepperpots, they decide to venture into the jungle and dispose of the explosives. ‘It’s fine,’ says Dalek One (well, words to that effect, anyway), ‘we can just prime the detonators and leave them to explode here…’

Leaving aside the sheer irresponsibility of this move (have they checked with the Daleks still inside the city to make sure they’re not going to accidentally blow up a tunnel of molten ice?), the Daleks then trundle back off into the foliage to get a safe distance from the explosives. Enter Jo Grant - Dr Who’s plucky young assistant - who turns off the detonator on two of the three bombs… before she’s hit on the head by a falling rock and left unconscious as the timer counts down to an explosion!

We then cut away to catch up with the Doctor and his escape attempt up the ventilation shaft, before returning to find Jo waking up… just in time to move the timer and let it blow up some Daleks instead of her. It could be quite a good moment, but the whole thing just smacked of false terror - there’s no way that they’re going to blow Jo up, and at least if it came as a cliffhanger then we’d be able to suspend our belief a bit more. As it is, the whole thing comes across as pointless filler.

Still, it’s a minor complaint really, as I'm rather enjoying the story. Yes it's a bit of a naff runaround. Yet it's filled with as many clichéd Terry Nation ideas as it's possible to squeeze into one story. Yes it's seemingly forgotten any links to Frontier in Space (Even this far into the story, I was hoping for some kind of resolution - or at least a mention! - of the Daleks plans involving Earth and Draconia), but it's all a lot of fun.

And if worst comes to worst, at least the Daleks are preparing to unleash a deadly bacteria across the planet!