The Doctor Who Thread

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

The possessed Toby from 2006's The Satan Pit.

[Susan Foreman]

Chicago, 26-27 November 1983: A truly impressive guest line-up for the 'Ultimate Celebration' convention.

BACK ROW: Ian Marter, Tom Baker, John Nathan-Turner, Patrick Troughton, Peter Davison, Jon Pertwee, Fiona Cumming, Peter Moffatt.

FRONT ROW: Janet Fielding, Elisabeth Sladen, Carole Ann Ford, Mark Strickson, Sarah Sutton, Louise Jameson, Mary Tamm, Nicola Bryant.

[Susan Foreman]

May 11th: Today in WHO-story

Births
1919 - Maurice Browning (Karlton in The Daleks' Master Plan)
1944 - Nigel Lambert (Hardin in The Leisure Hive; Big Finish Productions actor - Michael Faraday & Maran in The Four Doctors, Domitian & Diode in The Cannibalists, Glarva & Adjudicator in Thin Ice, Auga in The Guardians of Prophecy and Synesius in the Bernice Summerfield story Road Trip)

1948 - Pam Ferris (Big Finish actress - Lizzie Corrington in The Eternal Summer and Amanda Steele in Night of the Vastra Nerada)
1978 - Warren Brown (Big Finish actor - Stephen Gibson in Industrial Evolution, Rufus Stone & To'Koth in Signs and Wonders, Johnny Skipton in the Jago & Litefoot story Dead Men's Tales and Lieutenant Sam Bishop in the Doctor Who spin-off UNIT: The New Series)

Deaths
1978 - Philip Ray (Professor Eldred in The Seeds of Death) aged 79
2001 - Douglas Adams (Script Editor [1979-1980]; writer of The Pirate Planet, City of Death [under the pseudonym David Agnew], Shada and the unmade TV story-turned-novel The Krikitmen) aged 49

Episodes
1968 - The Wheel in Space, Episode Three: 7.5 million viewers
1974 - Planet of the Spiders, Part Two: 8.9 million viewers
2007 - The Infinite Quest, Episode Six
2013 - Nightmare in Silver: 6.64 million viewers
2013 - She Said, He Said (mini-episode)

Documentaries
2006 - Totally Doctor Who: Series One: Episode Five
2007 - Totally Doctor Who: Series Two: Episode Six

Releases
1989 - Issue 149 of Doctor Who Magazine (Marvel)

1992 - The Tomb of the Cybermen, The Claws of Axos and The Twin Dilemma (VHS)
1995 - Issue 225 of Doctor Who Magazine (Marvel)

Behind-the-Scenes
2003 - Recording of the Big Finish audio The Natural History of Fear took place
2005 - Recording of the Big Finish audio Terror Firma took place
2012 - Doctor Who was recorded at Upper Boat Studios for the last time; recording of the Big Finish audio Mastermind took place
2014 - Recording of the Big Finish audio The Worlds of Big Finish took place
2017 - Recording of the Big Finish audio The Behemoth took place

[Susan Foreman]

Rumour has it...author James Goss is writing an official Target novelisation of the unmade Fourth Doctor feature film 'Doctor Who Meets Scratchman'

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Susan Foreman

Rumour has it...author James Goss is writing an official Target novelisation of the unmade Fourth Doctor feature film 'Doctor Who Meets Scratchman'

It's not a rumour. It's out in January next year. Amazon have had it listed a few days.

It's not a Target novel though, it's a hardback.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

The Silents from The Wedding of River Song (2011)

[Demoncrat]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

It's not a rumour. It's out in January next year. Amazon have had it listed a few days.

It's not a Target novel though, it's a hardback.

Wow. Just passed that in the Sladen book. Lawdy. Do recommend it .... it's an interesting read. From the front line if you like

[Gothmogxx]

I'm ill right now but Jon Pertwee has saved it from being a depressing experience.

Yep I'm FINALLY at the first Golden Age of Doctor Who. I've had a couple weeks break but I felt the time was right to start it again yesterday: I'm already at The Ambassadors of Death Episode 2! It feels consistently good now. The 60's was good but (ignoring the fact that some don't exsit) I do feel there are times where I had to sit through a few weaker stories in a row to get to either or good one, great one or outright masterpiece (yeah the first three Hartnell's aren't very good bar both episode 1's from An Unearthly Child and The Daleks. As for The Edge of Destruction. Ugh 2 episodes in two sittings and it honestly felt easier binge watching all 10 episodes from The War Games from much later on. Marco Polo is completely missing and its still light years ahead of all three of its predecessors).

But on Pertwee.

Spearhead From Space. I'll get it out the way: its a straight 10/10 already. (as is The Silurians. Again I binge watched all 7 of them today. Its easy with this team under creative control of the program) I considered a 9 but... There's no problems with it.

I mean what's to improve? The Autons are amazing here, very creepy but also an actual threat. No lumbering around here, all sprinting or just strolling. That high street attack is easily one of the most startling in the series. Bystanders getting struck down is very unsettling (and, although I haven't seen Rose in years, I did watch it a lot back in the day and I don't remember the similar scene being anywhere near as good). Channing is fantastic and you really don't know what to make of him. Great introduction to a new Doctor: It's amazing to think that Pertwee is pretty much his Doctor by the end, he nails it very quickly, making it his own. Hartnell and Troughton, great as they are, took more time.

Spearhead is the proof that change is the shows greatest asset. After all, this could have been a complete disaster -- where The Power of the Daleks keeps things more safe with Ben and Polly and the Daleks, established companions and the top villain, Spearhead throws the viewer off the deep end and jumps after it. Its a mystery.

It's also a break with the norm. For six years the formula was as follows: the TARDIS crew turn up some exposition is laid out, and the story begins. The Web of Fear out of all of them was the only exception, which mainly side lines the TARDIS crew for Episode 1 -- drawing instead on other familiar characters and villains we have already seen, such as Professor Travers and the Yeti. That idea is replicated here but done better, with the Brigadier in the role of Travers. It's an important tool to build a show that is more than just the Doctor. The Doctor is merely the observer, going from planet to planet or defending the Earth. The show needs other advantages and cards to play to make it work. This is a role UNIT will continue to fulfill until Terror of the Zygons in 1975 as proper UNIT and not until 1989 again (yeah it needs the Brig, at least in the classic series. Seeds of Doom didn't really need him or UNIT so it isn't an issue but Android Invasion did. I admit I could be misjudging it having not seen in in 6 years but it didn't leave a good impression. Its the only Season 13 story I haven't re-watched. But i'll get there in the months ahead).

So... Yeah its a perfect start. It had to be. Cancellation was still an issue at the time but it proved it had a lot of power left and then some. An easy 10/10.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Another excellent post, Gothmogxx.

Look forward to your thoughts when you rewatch The Mind of Evil which is a personal fave of mine from the Pertwee era.

I noticed you mentioned Marco Polo again as the standout of the early Hartnell episodes. It really is, i consider it a 9/10. I've listened to the BBC soundtrack cds dozens of times and have my own idea of what would be happening on the screen.So much as i'd love to watch the actual story i do worry that it might not live up to my imagination due to it's television budget. Superb performances by Mark Eden as Marco and Derren Nesbitt as the warlord Tegana. It always comes across as a very realistic and believable story.

[Gothmogxx]

The Silurians

... Oh okay Doctor Who And The Silurians

Title sucks, I just call it The Silurians. That's my only problem with this one though. The Dinosaur isn't very good either but its only shown in a blink and you'll miss it kind of way so I don't have a problem with it (give it until The Invasion of the Dinosaurs) but Pertwee continues to excel.

I should have mentioned the new Title sequence in my last post. Its gorgeous. Also I should say: Liz Shaw is a good companion. In the female companion category she's not (quite) as good as Barbara or Zoe but better than Susan, Vicki, Katarina (technically she counts), Sarah Kingdom, Dodo, Polly and Victoria. She's also better than Steven and Ben, but not Ian and Jamie. Overall though she's good, beating the majority of her predecessors (I am judging her performance in Inferno too. marathon-wise I'm not there yet but I've seen it around a dozen times already and she's great as her alternative self).

Its an interesting idea. How do you exactly solve the two way Earth problem? By that I mean when he's stuck on Earth with UNIT you have two main and easier options on the surface of things: go for a mad scientist plot or the Alien invader of the week. Well the Silurians, living here amongst us already undetected, are the solution.

Again its new ground for the show. I like this idea of a tense situation between two races and this Doctor is the one to try and mediate between the two. If it was William Hartnell in his earlier stages he'd probably just try and get back to the TARDIS or take what he needs from the Silurians and UNIT before leaving (The Daleks anyone?). Here he bumps into one in a cottage and immediately extends the hand of friendship... And that is the Doctor. I love that, it sums up his character perfectly. The Brig probably would have shot it on the spot.

Speaking of the cast the regulars are on fine form. The guest cast are good too. Peter Miles (Nyder!) as Dr Lawrence is a highlight.

I think you can kind of agree with all the characters though in some way. The Doctor/Liz/Old Silurian want peace, whereas Major Baker/Miss Dawson/Young Silurian want to instigate war. There are arguments for both sides. In Ice Warriors, good as it is, both sides are firmly against each other when the Warriors awake. Here, its a constant battle over who's right. Meanwhile you have self interest intermixed with it with Laurence/Dr Quinn. Masters meanwhile just can't comprehend whats going on and the Brig is right in the middle of it. He is trigger happy but you wonder just what side he's going to take by the end... And by the end none of it ever dragged. Its damn good drama all the way through. Particular praise has to go to the way the tension is built in the later episodes when the Doctor and Liz are trying to find a cure. no cheap montage, it's not in any way rushed... you get a real sense of time passing. The mass outbreak in London looks good too. I'm not sure a lot of the public knew they were in Doctor Who though. It'd be difficult to pull off something like that these days.

Direction wise its done well. The scenes in the caves are nice and the shot of the Silurian emerging from the ground with the sun in the background is brilliant.

It has an adult tone as well. Kids can watch it (I did a lot when I got it 10 years ago when I was 11) but this is certainly not a kid exclusive show. Just look at the make-up on the characters when they get infected with the disease. Its the second nastiest looking disease in all of Doctor Who (the poison gas in Resurrection of the Daleks takes the top spot).

And that ending... Bleak, depressing and powerful. Even Liz seems genuinely quite horrified with the Brig and the Government blowing up the Silurians. Its not a story with real heroes or villains, as mentioned above both sides make good cases. Its a tragedy what happens to the Silurians (even watching the new leader, as much as he wanted the war, get crushed by the rocks was sad to watch).

Another 10/10. Overall it does what The War Games did and gradually introduces new parts of the Story as it progresses (the mystery of the cave, whatever unknown creature/alien is on the moor, the reveal of the Silurians, the underground base, the plague, the reactor, the ending...). The show is on a roll.

Ambassadors of Death is okay so far... I've seen it as a whole twice before and thought it was okay so fingers crossed.