What a strange week! You would think that nothing could overshadow Matt Smith’s final days of filming Doctor Who but you would be wrong. In fact the news story of the week is the one that has been rumored for months now, creating a maelstrom of rumors, hype, hope and anticipation: the official announcement that eleven episodes from Patrick Troughton’s era have been found and are now ready to be seen by fans.
Wow! it’s a lot to take in. For the entire duration of my time as a Doctor Who fan there has always been an unwritten sense that missing episodes from the program would never be seen again. There were hiccups of joy when Tomb Of The Cybermen was found intact, then there was the discovery of an episode of The Crusade and most recently the recovery of episodes from Galaxy Four and The Underwater Menace. But all of these are not as exciting as what we got this week!
Although the BBC’s announcement this week was expected, it still all seems so surreal. Ironically the timing of the discovery of this batch of missing episodes could not be better. It is a great birthday present for fans!
Getting back to Matt Smith, he is getting busy with his post TARDIS career as he revs up for a round of promotion for the upcoming anniversary special which is rapidly approaching.
MISSING EPISODES FOUND!
Months of speculation became fact this week when it was announced by the BBC that eleven of 106 missing episodes have been recovered by the BBC.
Frazer Hines and Debbie Watling were summoned for a press event on Thursday to help announce that episodes from Season Dive’s The Enemy of The World and The Web Of Fear had been recovered in Nigeria. Watling admitted in interviews that she thought it all may all be a hoax.
Since the story broke last weekend there has been lots of stuff out there about just what was in the hands of the BBC. Some accounts claimed 42 episodes were recovered and other claimed that nearly one hundred were found. There was even talk that William Hartnell’s Marco Polo was also discovered. Sadly this was not the case,
The story quickly spiraled out of control, becoming an internet sensation so large that it may have made the BBC force its hand about what they had retrieved. The chaos was so intense that the original announcement of the discovery led to a press embargo until midnight so that the BBC could firmly take the reins over what news was coming out.
Thursday’s press conference led to several leaked news stories which appeared online and in The Northern Echo and other publications. It was eventually deleted and an apology was issued. Here is the original article from The Northern Echo, which serves as a news source for Darlington, Durham, Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, Bishop Auckland and North Allerton.
FOUR decades ago, Dr Who’s encounter with the mythical Yeti left a generation of children terrified and enthralled. The six part serial Web of Fear became one of the best-loved serials of the Patrick Troughton era.
Sadly, in the 1970s the well-travelled time lord faced an enemy far deadlier than the Daleks – BBC bean counters.
In an effort to save money, tapes of classic shows were wiped and recorded over.
In a matter of months some of the Doctor’s greatest adventures were lost… seemingly forever, The Web of Fear is one of the most missed serials, along with another Troughton era adventure, The Power of the Daleks.
But now all six missing episodes have been found – in a dusty storeroom in Nigeria. The previously lost nine shows were among 11 traced to a television relay station and the find brings back to life an entire six-episode story, while another is almost complete.
The newly found programmes – which introduce the character of Alistair Lethbridge-Stewart, better known to audiences as The Brigadier – will be available on iTunes from today and will later come out on DVD.
Phillip Morris, the director of Television International Enterprises Archive, unearthed the programmes by looking up the records of overseas shipments of tapes made by the BBC.
The stories, The Enemy Of The World (1967) and The Web Of Fear (1968) and both starring Patrick Troughton as the second Doctor, have now been remastered by BBC Worldwide, the corporation’s commercial arm.
Mr Morris said: ‘‘I remember wiping the dust off the masking tape on the canisters and my heart missed a beat as I saw the words Doctor Who. When I read the story code, I realised I’d found something pretty special.’’ Only one episode of The Enemy Of The World – which featured Deborah Watling as companion Victoria and Frazer Hines, later to find fame in Emmerdale as Jamie – had remained in the archives, so the addition of programmes one, two, four, five and six have completed the story.
Fiona Eastwood, director of consumer products, BBC Worldwide, said: ‘‘We are thrilled with the recent discovery of The Web Of Fear and The Enemy Of The World and we’re very happy to be launching re-mastered versions of these treasured episodes to fans as we celebrate the 50th year of Doctor Who.’’ The BBC still had the first edition in the Web Of Fear story, and the new finds mean only number three is missing. The tale introduced Nicholas Courtney as Lethbridge-Stewart, who began with the rank of Colonel but later became Brigadier.
The missing episode has been recreated using 37 still images which were available and the original audio which survived. Many programmes from the era, along with many classic shows, disappeared as a result of efforts to save space. There are still 27 Doctor Who stories which have not been recovered or for which episodes are missing.
The show celebrates its half-century on November 23.
This now deleted article was followed by an apology.
Link: http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/10732135.Dr_Who___an_apology/
At midnight Friday (London time), a proper and official BBC press statement was released regarding the missing episodes. BBC America followed suit, releasing their own press release about the episodes.
New York – October 10, 2013 – BBC Worldwide North America announces that a stash of BBC master tapes from the 1960s featuring missing episodes of Doctor Who has been recovered in Nigeria, Africa. The BBC has re-mastered the tapes, and is making two stories, The Enemy Of The World and The Web Of Fear are now available exclusively on iTunes.
Eleven Doctor Who episodes were discovered (nine of which have not been seen for 46 years) by Philip Morris, director of Television International Enterprises Archive, by tracking records of tape shipments made by the BBC to Africa for transmission. Morris says, “The tapes had been left gathering dust in a store room at a television relay station in Nigeria. I remember wiping the dust off the masking tape on the canisters and my heart missed a beat as I saw the words ‘Doctor Who’. When I read the story code I realized I’d found something pretty special.”
BBC Worldwide has re-mastered these episodes to restore them to the fantastic quality that audiences expect from Doctor Who. The titles are available exclusively on iTunes.
Also recovered is the 1968 six-episode story, The Web of Fear. Also starring Patrick Troughton alongside Frazer Hines and Deborah Watling. The story introduces Nicholas Courtney for the first time as Colonel Lethbridge-Stewart (who later returns as Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart). Episodes 2-6 were feared lost, but now episodes 2, 4, 5, and 6 have been recovered. With episode 3 still missing, the restoration team has reconstructed this part of the story using a selection of the 37 images that were still available from the episode along with the original audio, which has been restored.
Beth Clearfield, SVP, Digital Distribution & Business Development says, “For many, this will be their first chance to watch these long-lost Doctor Whostories. We’re thrilled to partner with iTunes in bringing these missing gems back to new and long-time fans after all these years.”
On November 23, 2013, Doctor Who celebrates 50 years since the very first episode, An Unearthly Child, aired on BBC television. A number of episodes from the first series of Doctor Who were lost as a result of BBC Archive space-saving measures and there are still 27 Doctor Who stories that are missing or have incomplete episodes.
Mark Gatiss was at the press event and introduced Episode Two of The Web of Fear.
As long as I’ve been a Doctor Who fan – and that’s a very long time – there’s been one story that I hoped, prayed, begged would one day turn up from the 106 episodes that are tragically missing from the archives.
Now, thanks to the astonishing endeavour of Phillip Morris and TIEA, hunting Indiana Jones-like through dusty archives around the world and risking his neck, I’m over the moon to announce that not only is the number of missing episodes down to 97 but also amongst them is The Web of Fear – I’m going to say that again: The Web of Fear! Yeti! On the London Underground! Patrick Troughton! This is perhaps the quintessential Doctor Who story. A fantastic monster, a claustrophobic, iconic setting and, best of all, one of the very greatest Doctors at the height of his powers.
Details of the DVD releases for these stories has also emerged. There also are designs for the artwork and layout as well as preliminary descriptions for each episode.
The Enemy Of The World will be out in the UK on November 22nd. A coming soon clip for the may be featured in the upcoming Terror Of The Zygons release.
Synopsis
Unseen in the UK for 45 years – marvellously restored and remastered and brought back to life for you to own on DVD.
Enemy of the World is the fourth tale of Series 5 which first aired on the BBC in December 1967. It stars the second actor to play the Time Lord, Patrick Troughton, who is both the Doctor and his antagonist Ramon Salamander, alongside Frazer Hines (Jamie) and Deborah Watling (Victoria). On Earth in the near future, the Doctor and his companions are enmeshed in a deadly web of intrigue thanks to his uncanny resemblance to would-be 21st century dictator Salamander. He is hailed as the ‘Shopkeeper of the World’ for his efforts to relieve global famine, but why do his rivals keep disappearing? How can he predict so many natural disasters? The Doctor must expose Salamander’s schemes before he takes over the World.
The Web of Fear is tentatively slated for a release date of February 24, 2014 in the UK. As of now, linking telesnaps will be used to fill in for Episode Three. It will be interesting to see if the final DVD will include an animated Episode Three instead of these telesnaps.
Synopsis
Unseen in the UK for 45 years – marvellously restored and remastered and brought back to life for you to own on DVD.
The TARDIS narrowly avoids becoming engulfed in a cobwebby substance in space. It arrives in the London Underground railway system, the tunnels of which are being overrun by the web and by the Great Intelligence’s robot Yeti. The Intelligence’s goal is to drain the Doctor’s mind; can the Doctor sabotage the device before the Intelligence’s plan comes to fruition?
Both stories are now available on iTunes
https://itunes.apple.com/us/tv-season/doctor-who-enemy-world/id704921951
https://itunes.apple.com/us/tv-season/doctor-who-the-web-of-fear/id704945256
The Mirror caught up with Deborah Watling and Frazer Hines for exclusive interviews. See them here: http://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/doctor-who-video-lost-episodes-2359223
Here’s a piece from The Independent: http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/lost-doctor-who-episodes-the-enemy-of-the-world-and-the-web-of-fear-recovered-after-45-years-8872220.html
The Telegraph has reviewed the first episode: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/doctor-who/10370949/Doctor-Who-missing-episodes-The-Enemy-of-the-World-part-1-review.html
Toby Hadoke hosted an interview on BBC One with Philip Morris and Frazer Hines about the newly discovered episodes. Link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01jlyyk
The Radio Times thinks the episodes should be free!
Link: http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2013-10-11/doctor-who-missing-episodes-should-be-free-to-watch
THAT’S A WRAP
Filming on the 2013 Christmas Special was complete. Matt Smith filmed his final scenes and said goodbye to the cast and crew. His moth, Lynne was photographed on set with him.
Producer Marcus Wilson posted the news to Twitter.
So it’s goodnight from me, and it’s goodnight from him. That’s a wrap. Christmas 2013. Thank you all
SMITH IN AMERICAN PSYCHO
Now that he has put away his bow tie Matt Smith will return to the London stage in a musical adaptation of Brett Easton Ellis’ American Psycho.
Smith, who is began rehearsals this week, will play Patrick Bateman in the new production which runs from December 3rd to January 25th at the Almeida Theatre in London. Rupert Goold is directing.
Link: http://www.almeida.co.uk/event/americanpsycho
50TH ANNIVERSARY UPDATE (SPOILERS)
Although it is not official BBC America has posted their November schedule online. Based on that information it appears that Day Of The Doctor will air on November 23rd at 2:45pm Eastern time. This is all subject to change.
Amongst the interesting nuggets making the rumor rounds this week is the possible return of Catherine Tate as Donna Noble for the upcoming Anniversary Special.
The frenzy started when OK! Magazine ‘accidentally’ posted an article claiming that Tate is in the special.
The magazine then wrote about Tate’s involvement.
The countdown is on for Doctor Who fans as the iconic show prepares to celebrate its 50th birthday with a bang. A 75-minute anniversary episode has secretly been filmed to mark the occasion, which will see favourites including David Tennant, Catherine Tate and Billie Piper returning to our screens alongside the most recent Doctor, Matt Smith.
After producers teased the nation with incredibly brief snippet trailers of the one-off episode, entitled The Day Of The Doctor, OK! caught up with David and Catherine to see if we could get them to spill the beans on what the scriptwriters have in store for us. ‘Ask me anything, I don’t work for the BBC any more so don’t care,’ David quipped before an executive decided to step in!
Tate recently appeared with Tennant at the BFI Tenth Doctor screenings for Doctor Who At 50.
It also appears that the regeneration issue may be settled in the anniversary special. If Steven Moffat ever had an opportunity to fix this it would be here. That notion gets more interesting because former Doctor Peter Davison has dropped some hints.
KAREN GILLAN ON 50TH ANNIVERSARY
Karen Gillan has been making the rounds ahead of this week’s release of her new movie, Not Another Happy Ending.
While promoting the film she spoke with The Radio Times and confirmed that she is not in the Fiftieth Anniversary Special, I’m not in it, just to put that out there.
Gillan also discussed a new project she is working on.
I’m writing something at the moment that I don’t really want to talk about, because I don’t feel like it’s time yet. But I’m in the middle of something right now….It’s a film.
Gillan also talked about being naked on film with The Belfast Telegraph.
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