It's one of The Doctor’s most celebrated adventures and yet no complete film recordings of The Power of the Daleks are known to have survived. The master negatives were destroyed in an archive purge in 1974.
BBC Worldwide has announced that a brand new black and white animation based on audio recordings of the programme using the original cast, surviving photographs and film clips will be released 50 years to the minute after its only UK broadcast on BBC One.
The six half hour episodes feature the regeneration, or as it was then called ‘renewal’, of First Doctor William Hartnell into Second Doctor Patrick Troughton, as the Time Lord and his companions Polly (Anneke Wills) and Ben (Michael Craze) do battle with the Daleks on the planet Vulcan.
Doctor Who: The Power of the Daleks is being produced by the team behind the highly successful animation of lost Dad’s Army episode A Stripe For Frazer, first released on BBC Store in February this year. The producer and director is Charles Norton, with character designs from acclaimed comic book artists Martin Geraghty and Adrian Salmon.
Charles Norton says:
“The Power of the Daleks animation is the most ambitious Doctor Who archive restoration ever attempted and we’re all very honoured to be a part of such a an exciting project. Intelligent, suspenseful and magnificently staged, Power of the Daleks is one of the great lost classics of 1960s television and a superb example of the black and white era at its finest.”
Paul Hembury, Executive Producer, BBC Worldwide says:
“Charles and his team are remarkably talented and passionate about Doctor Who and we are thrilled that fans will soon be able to enjoy this rather sinister but wonderful, classic story.”
Doctor Who: The Power Of The Daleks will be released on BBC Store on Saturday 5th November followed by the DVD on Monday 21st November.
+ Register your interest in the BBC Store download!
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On Saturday 5th November there will be a special screening of episodes 1-3 of Doctor Who: The Power of the Daleks at BFI Southbank, London which will also include a Q&A with Anneke Wills, Charles Norton and Frazer Hines. Further information will be available from bfi.org.uk from Monday 19th September.
Watch the glorious trailer in the player, below:
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DWO ChatBack:
Are you looking forward to this release? Is there a missing episode of Doctor Who that you'd like to be animated in this way? Let us know in the comments box, below!
[Sources: BBC Worldwide]
