It is with deepest regret that DWO announces the passing of Classic Series Doctor Who VFX Desginer, Peter Wragg.

Peter was perhaps best known to Doctor Who fans for his work on the 5th Doctor adventures; The Visitation & Resurrection of the Daleks and the 6th Doctor adventure; Minwarp, which formed part of the Trial of a Time Lord season.

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

[Source: Steve Freestone]

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

Tony was perhaps best known to Doctor Who fans for his role as Mr Huckle in the 4th Doctor adventure; Terror of the Zygons. Sibbald also had roles in movies, such as Superman II and A View To A Kill.

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

[Source: Neil Marsh]

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

Richard was perhaps best known to Doctor Who fans for his role as a Mentor in the 6th Doctor adventure; Minwarp, which formed part of the Trial of a Time Lord season.

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

[Source: Neil Marsh]

It is with deepest regret that DWO announces the passing of Classic Doctor Who Actor, Philip Madoc.

Philip, who was born in 1934 in Wales played no less than five roles in Doctor Who:

The Krotons (as Eelek)

The War Games (as the War Lord)

The Brain of Morbius (as Mehendri Solon)

The Power of Kroll (as Fenner)

Madoc also appeared in the 1966 Doctor Who Movie; Dalek's Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D., as Brockley.

In 2010, DWO interviewed Philip Madoc at the Series 5 Launch Party in London, below is the video interview segement, taken from our VLOG from the event:

[youtube:pEA3Z41-5b0]

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

[Sources: DWO; TARDIS Index File]

DWO have received reports that missing Doctor Who material from the 1960's is being aired at todays 'Missing Believed Wiped' event at the BFI in London.

Christmas has come early for Doctor Who fans as two previously missing episodes of the show have been found, as announced at todays 'Missing Believed Wiped' event at the BFI in London.

Episode Three of Galaxy 4 (1965) which was previously missing all 4 episodes, has been confirmed as found.

Episode Two of The Underwater Menace (1967) which was previously missing episodes 1, 2 & 4 has also been confirmed as found.

DWO caught up with Doctor Who Restoration Team member, Paul Vanezis regarding the find:

It's been 7 years since the last missing episode was found, and fans had started to give up al hope, how did the latest find come about?

"This discovery was made by two people, Ralph Montagu and a film collector meeting and realising there was a bit of a connection. Ralph was working on the Dr. Who restorations in the past and Terry Burnett had some film, but didn't know what."

What kind of condition were the stories in when they were returned to you and how much work will there need to be applied to their full restoration?

"There's a lot of work to be done on both episodes. Air Lock is missing the last 27 seconds of action and the closing credits. There are many scratches and scuffs plus the usual issues we have with black and white film recordings such as off-locks, videotape dropout etc... Some of the damage will take a lot longer to repair than usual. Underwater Menace poses a different set of problems as well as the more usual. Firstly, it's the ABC's censored print, so the censor clips need to be re-instated. We've already had the clips re-scanned by the National Archives of Australia who have been very helpful. There are numerous film breaks, missing frames, deep scratches etc... and a two second section missing in the middle. That will be the most challenging repair."

Is there anything you feel the public can do to help in the search for missing serials, what are your hopes for future missing material, and do you believe there is a chance more may be found?

"There are 106 episodes missing from the BBC, but I don't think there are 106 episodes missing in the world. Now, I don't want to get peoples hopes up. I've been mis-quoted before, but I am certain there are episodes out there with private collectors. I know fans are excited by these finds and rightly so, but we're also looking for other lost programmes as well. Yesterday, the BFI screened the Dennis Potter 'Emergency Ward 9', found by a friend of mine Ian Beard. That is an incredible and far more important discovery in my view that the Doctor Whos, yet we're all talking about Hartnell and Troughton eps. I of course understand why, but I think more recoveries like this are more likely if people don't go round asking about lost DW, but black and white TV material in general. So, yes. More material will surface, but I don't know when."

+  Read DWO's full interview with Paul Vanezis in the Features section.

Clips from both episodes have been added below:

Galaxy 4: Episode 3 - Clip

The Underwater Menace: Episode 2 - Clip

Doctor Who DVD content Producer / Director, Ed Stradling has put together the following short item regarding the finding:

[youtube:U6dZci_hddo]

Radio Times have provided further information on how the episodes came to light:

So how did they come to light?

“Through me,” says Ralph Montagu, Radio Times’s head of heritage and a lifelong Doctor Who fan. “I occasionally meet up with a group of film collectors and retired TV engineers at a café in Hampshire. 

“A few months ago I spoke to Terry Burnett, who used to be an engineer at TVS [the former ITV franchise based in Southampton]. Somehow Doctor Who was mentioned in passing, and Terry said, ‘Oh, actually I think I’ve got an old episode.’

“I thought it was bound to be something we’ve got already,” says Ralph. “I tried not to get too excited, but he came back the next day and brought this spool with him. It had no label, so I had a look at the film leader and it said ‘Air Lock’. I thought, ‘What’s that?’ I checked online and saw that Air Lock was an episode of Galaxy 4 - a missing Hartnell serial. So then I got very excited.” 

Ralph met Terry again a couple of weeks later, “And he said, ‘Guess what I’ve got.’ It was another episode of Doctor Who! Again not labelled on the can, but it turned out to be The Underwater Menace part two.” 

What other episodes of Doctor Who are missing?:

The First Doctor

Marco Polo - All 7 episodes

The Reign of Terror - Episodes 4–5 (of 6 total)

The Crusade - Episodes 2, 4 (of 4 total)

Galaxy 4 - Episodes 1, 2 & 4 (of 4 total)

Mission to the Unknown - Entire episode

The Myth Makers - All 4 episodes

The Daleks' Master Plan - Episodes 1, 3–4, 6–9, 11–12 (of 12 total)

The Massacre of St Bartholomew's Eve - All 4 episodes

The Celestial Toymaker - Episodes 1–3 (of 4 total)

The Savages - All 4 episodes

The Smugglers - All 4 episodes

The Tenth Planet - Episode 4 (of 4 total)

The Second Doctor

The Power of the Daleks - All 6 episodes

The Highlanders - All 4 episodes

The Underwater Menace - Episodes 1 & 4 (of 4 total)

The Moonbase - Episodes 1, 3 (of 4 total)

The Macra Terror - All 4 episodes

The Faceless Ones - Episodes 2, 4–6 (of 6 total)

The Evil of the Daleks - Episodes 1, 3–7 (of 7 total)

The Abominable Snowmen - Episodes 1, 3–6 (of 6 total)

The Ice Warriors - Episodes 2–3 (of 6 total)

The Enemy of the World - Episodes 1–2, 4–6 (of 6 total)

The Web of Fear - Episodes 2–6 (of 6 total)

Fury from the Deep - All 6 episodes

The Wheel in Space - Episodes 1–2, 4–5 (of 6 total)

The Invasion - Episodes 1, 4 (of 8 total)

The Space Pirates - Episodes 1, 3–6 (of 6 total)

+  If you have any information regarding any of the lost episodes, E-mail Us!

[Source: Doctor Who Online]

BBC Books have been in touch with DWO to let us know about an exciting new Classic Series Book title for 2013, titled Harvest of Time.

BBC Books is delighted to announce that Alastair Reynolds, the bestselling author of the Revelation Space series, will be writing a novel for the Doctor Who list, entitled Harvest of Time.

Harvest of Time will feature the Third Doctor as played by Jon Pertwee and will be the first all-new adventure for a Past Doctor that BBC Books has published since the show’s return in 2005. A novel set on both 20th century Earth and far into the future, it will have the Doctor battling his arch-nemesis, The Master, to save the universe – and facing the ultimate moral crisis. 

BBC Books editorial director Albert DePetrillo commented, ‘We’ve been carefully planning our venture into Doctor Who’s past for a while now, first with our reissues of six of the Target novelisations, then our novelisation of Shada in 2012. The next step is all-original adventures with past Doctors, and we knew we needed to publish those in a special way. I’m absolutely delighted that Alastair can be part of that plan. He is simply one of the best science fiction writers around, and we’re thrilled to have him contributing to the Doctor Who list.’

Alastair Reynolds commented, ‘Doctor Who has been a big part of my life for forty years. To put things into perspective, when I was little I did not want to go round to another boy's house because he had Dalek wallpaper, a concept I found unspeakably terrifying. I am delighted and honored to have the chance to write a novel featuring not only one of my favorite Doctors, but the single greatest villain ever imagined:  The Master.’

Alastair Reynolds is an award-winning author of science fiction, including the novels Revelation Space (shortlisted for the British Science Fiction and Arthur C Clarke awards), Chasm City (winner of the British Science Fiction Award for Best Novel), and House of Suns. He received a PhD in Astronomy from St Andrews in Scotland and worked as a scientist for the European Space Agency for twelve years before devoting himself to writing full time. He lives in Wales.

+  Harvest of Time will be published in 2013 as hardback, priced £16.99.

[Source: BBC Books]

It is with deepest regret that DWO announces the passing of Classic Doctor Who Actor, Derek Crewe.

Derek was perhaps best known to Doctor Who fans for his role as Synge in the 4th Doctor adventure; The Sun Makers.

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

[Source: Neil Marsh]

It is with deepest regret that DWO announces the passing of Classic Doctor Who Actor, Roy Skelton.

Roy is best known to Doctor Who fans for providing the voices of The Daleks in the Classic Series, as well as supporting roles:

The Ark (Monoid voices), The Tenth Planet (Cybermen voices), The Evil of the Daleks (Dalek voices), The Ice Warriors (Computer voice), The Wheel in Space (Cybermen voices), The Krotons (Kroton voices), Colony in Space (as Norton), Planet of the Daleks (Dalek voices and as Wester), The Green Death (as James), Genesis of the Daleks (Dalek voices), The Android Invasion (as Chedaki), The Hand of Fear (as King Rokon), Destiny of the Daleks (Dalek voices), The Five Doctors (Dalek voice), Revelation of the Daleks (Dalek voices), Remembrance of the Daleks (Dalek voices), The Curse of Fatal Death (Dalek voices).

Roy died after suffering a stroke and was 79 years of age.

DWO would like to extend our wishes to Roy's family and friends.

[Source: BBC News; TARDIS Wiki]

It is with deepest regret that DWO announces the passing of Classic Doctor Who Actress, Yolande Palfrey.

Yolande was perhaps best known to Doctor Who fans for her role as Janet in The Sixth Doctor Trial of A Time Lord adventure; Terror of the Vervoids.

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

[Source: Neil Marsh]

BBC4 will be paying tribute to Elisabeth Sladen by airing the Classic Series story; The Hand of Fear.

The adventure, which features Sladen's last regular appearance as Sarah Jane Smith in Doctor Who, will air in two parts on Monday 9th May and Tuesday 10th May 2011.

+  The Hand of Fear was originally broadcast between 2nd-23rd October 1976.

[Source: Radio Times]

Michael Gough, the actor best known to Doctor Who fans as The Celestial Toymaker, has died. As well as his fondly remembered portrayal of the Toymaker, opposite the first Doctor William Hartnell in 1965, Gough also appeared as the Doctor’s old friend Hedin, in the 1982 story ‘Arc of Infinity’.

Gough was born in Kuala Lumpa in either 1916 or 1915 – he never knew which. Despite the uncertainty about his year of birth, he holds the honour of being the longest-lived actor to have appeared in Doctor Who. His career was extraordinary. Between 1947 and 2000, he recorded at least one film per year, often more, in addition to a busy TV and stage career, which included tours with the Royal Shakespeare Company. 

Michael Gough’s unstoppable film career began in the forties, with ‘Androcles and the Lion’, but it was his role as Nicholai in ‘Anna Karenina’ that set in motion a prolific and distinguished movie career. By the early sixties he was well-known to TV viewers through such series as ‘The Adventures of Robin Hood’, ‘The Count of Monte Christo’, ‘The Saint’, ITV’s ‘Play of the Week’ and many more.

After appearing in the title role of the 1965 Doctor Who story  ‘The Celestial Toymaker’, Gough started to achieve a cult status among horror film fans, appearing in several notable productions from Hammer and Amicus, while continuing to be a regular face on British TV, with roles in ‘The Avengers’, ‘Orlando’, ‘The Champions’ and ‘Theatre 625’, to name just a few. Throughout the seventies, he continued making several movies and TV series each year. Among the many classic series he appeared in during that decade are ‘Colditz’, ‘The Protectors’, ‘Crown Court’ and ‘Blake’s 7’. His career continued into the eighties with ‘Brideshead Revisited’, ‘Smiley’s People’ and a second appearance in Doctor Who – this time with the fifth Doctor, Peter Davison.

After a further decade of TV and film appearances, Gough found new adoration among a new generation of film-goers as Batman’s butler, Alfred, in the new films in that franchise which began in 1989. His relentless work-rate continued during the 90s and into the 2000s, and he established a long friendship with director Tim Burton, appearing in ‘Sleepy Hollow’, ‘Corpse Bride’ and, in 2010, ‘Alice in Wonderland’. Even this however, was not his final appearance. Released in February 2011, ‘All Star Superman’ features one last outing for his legendary and unique voice. 

Gough was married three times – his third wife being Doctor Who actor Anneke Wills. Wills had encountered him at various times during her life – firstly during a theatre trip with her mother in 1952 – but they first met formally, on the set of ‘Candidate for Murder’ and the attraction was instant. Gough adopted Anneke’s daughter Polly, and in 1965, their son Jasper was born. 

Anneke says, “As his body was deteriorating this week, he said that he wanted to hang on for St Patrick’s Day. And he did, just. In the end... there is only love.” 

Michael Gough leaves his wife Henrietta, his daughter Emma and sons Simon and Jasper (Yogi).

[Source: Tim Hirst]

It is with deepest regret that DWO announces the passing of Classic Doctor Who Actor, T.P. McKenna.

T.P. was perhaps best known to Doctor Who fans for his role as Captain Cook in The Seventh Doctor adventure; The Greatest Show in the Galaxy.

DWO would like to extend our sympathies to T.P.'s family and friends.

[Source: Neil Marsh]

There’s no doubt that the appearance of Doctor Who on LOVEFiLM’s catalogue has gotten us excited – the chance to enjoy our favourites whenever we like (within reason) seems a good enough reason as any to get in a good mood.

And while the presence of Matt Smith’s recent outing is good enough for now, one thing that has caught our eye is the wealth of old episodes that LOVEFiLM has to offer.

We all know that the Doctor has been on fire since 2005 and we need little excuse to revisit any one of hundreds of moments from the run. However, it’s reassuring to know that if we need to recap an episode, catch up with one that we’ve missed or simply relive the excitement all over again, LOVEFiLM has it covered.

To have classics such as Jon Pertwee’s Inferno, Tom Baker’s City of Death, and Sylvester McCoy’s The Curse of Fenric available as well as other movies online whenever you want them, thanks to the LOVEFiLM Player, is a treat that we’re really looking forward to – even if it doesn’t come to fruition.

For now, of course we’re happy with whatever we’re given, and LOVEFiLM are allowing us to get our hands on copies of Doctor Who for a fraction of what it would cost to buy the box set, or even to rent it in the conventional way.

So, in truth, there’s no excuse for going without a Doctor Who fix thanks to LOVEFiLM, providing a fantastic TV back catalogue at a great price!

[Sources: Doctor Who Online; LOVEFILM]

It is with deepest regret that DWO announces the passing of Classic Doctor Who Actress, Ingrid Pitt.

Ingrid was perhaps best known to Doctor Who fans for her roles as Galleia in The Third Doctor adventure; The Time Monster, and as Solow in The Fifth Doctor adventure; Warriors of the Deep. Recently, Ingrid co-authored Doctor Who audio adventure; The Macros, for Big Finish's 'Lost Stories' range.

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

[Source: BBC News]