The Reign of Terror

Saturday, 24 December 2005 - Reported by Shaun Lyon

Tenth Planet have sent us the cover illustration for the final BBC Audio Doctor Who soundtrack release, The Reign of Terror, due out next year. "The Reign of Terror," the final story of the series' first season back in 1964, is missing two episodes and was released on VHS only two years ago; this soundtrack recording is narrated by series star Carole Ann Ford. Click on the thumbnail for a larger version.

FILTER: - Audio - Classic Series

Invasion, Tenth Planet Audio Press Release

Tuesday, 20 December 2005 - Reported by Shaun Lyon

The BBC Press Office today posted a press release officially announcing the audio releases of the classic Doctor Who stories "The Invasion" and "The Tenth Planet", which we previously reported as being in release in January 2006. The press release also mentions the February release of "The Reign of Terror," what it says is "the last of the lost television soundtracks restored for release on BBC Audiobooks." The press release is below. (Thanks to Steve Tribe)

Patrick Troughton and William Hartnell star in these soundtrack adventures from BBC Audiobooks

Doctor Who: The Invasion: Patrick Troughton's Doctor encounters the Cybermen in London in this classic soundtrack adventure, narrated by Frazer Hines.

Arriving on Earth in 1975, the Doctor, Jamie and Zoe discover that the component manufacturers International Electromagnetics has a vice-like grip on the world's technology. When he encounters the firm's company director, the Doctor realises that there is something very odd about Tobias Vaughan...

Vaughan is in fact in alliance with the Cybermen, and together they are masterminding an aggressive invasion of Earth. If the Doctor and his friends are to defeat them, they must risk life and limb in an adventure of epic proportions.

In an exclusive bonus interview, Frazer Hines - who also narrates the soundtrack adventure - recalls his experiences of playing Jamie in Doctor Who.

Doctor Who: The Tenth Planet: The Cybermen make their first ever appearance whilst William Hartnell's Doctor nears the end of his first incarnation, in this classic soundtrack adventure with linking narration by Anneke Wills.

The year is 1986, and at the South Pole the crew of the Snowcap Base have detected a new planet on their radar. The arrival of the Doctor, Ben and Polly at the Base coincides with another landing - that of a spaceship whose humaoid passengers have used cybernetics to replace their limbs and vital organs.

Battling alongside the humans to save their planet, the Doctor appears to weaken and age before the eyes of his companions. An ultimate collapse appears to signal his death - but then..

In an exclusive bonus interview, Anneke Wills - who also narrates the story's soundtrack - recalls her memories of making The Tenth Planet.

FILTER: - Audio - William Hartnell - Classic Series

Aus/NZ (and UK) DVD Update

Friday, 16 December 2005 - Reported by Shaun Lyon

According to Data Extract, the news magazine of the Doctor Who Club of Australia, Genesis of the Daleks will be released there on DVD by Roadshow Home Video in April 2006, with Inferno following in June. This meshes with Outpost Gallifrey's previous reports that both DVDs will be part of BBC Video's 2006 DVD release schedule in the UK, although neither DVD have been officially announced yet; we believe "Genesis" will be out in March 2006 in the UK, but as always, it isn't official until it's formally announced.

FILTER: - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD - Australia

Robert Sloman

Tuesday, 6 December 2005 - Reported by Shaun Lyon

Robert Sloman, who wrote four classic Doctor Who episodes during the Jon Pertwee era of the series -- "The Green Death," "The Time Monster," Pertwee's final story "Planet of the Spiders" and, under the pseudonym Guy Leopold (together with Barry Letts), "The Daemons" -- has died, according to an obituary in today's Guardian written by Letts. Born in Oldham, he became an actor and playwright as well as an employee of the Sunday Times before writing for television. As Letts states in his obit, "As producer, I asked Bob, a friend, to join me in developing an idea I'd had. His exuberant imagination made our story sessions a delight. The resulting serial, The Daemons (under the nom de plume of Guy Leopold), was for several years voted the best ever Dr Who story. ... Bob left the Sunday Times in 1974 and took over as wholesale distributor of all the Sunday papers, based in Burgess Hill, Sussex. Sailing now became a major part of his life, and when he retired, a second home in Spain meant a share in a boat in summer. His wife and children survive him."

FILTER: - Obituary - Classic Series

The Beginning Box Cover

Tuesday, 29 November 2005 - Reported by Shaun Lyon

Tenth Planet has sent us the cover illustration for the exterior packaging of the forthcoming UK DVD release of The Beginning, due out in January. As previously reported, this boxed set will contain "An Unearthly Child," "The Daleks" and "The Edge of Destruction". Click on the thumbnail for a larger version of the cover. (Thanks to Paul at Tenth Planet)

FILTER: - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD

North America DVD Update

Wednesday, 23 November 2005 - Reported by Shaun Lyon

Warner Home Video has announced The Beginning Boxed Set for North America for release on March 28, according to TV Shows on DVD. The DVD set contains the first three stories of the classic series -- "An Unearthly Child," "The Daleks" and "The Edge of Destruction" -- in two separate DVD cases (as opposed to the three in the UK set) along with an outer box packaging, containing the same extras as in the original release. The first will contain "An Unearthly Child", while the second is a double-disc set with "The Daleks" and "The Edge of Destruction". At the moment there are no plans to issue these DVDs separately; they'll only be available in the one box. At right is a thumbnail image of the cover from the website; we'll have a larger version of the cover soon.

In other news, the Restoration Team has posted an article about the release of "The Beginning" on their website, including details of the extras and the cleanup process.

FILTER: - USA - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD

More on The Beginning DVD

Thursday, 10 November 2005 - Reported by Shaun Lyon

The latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine has further details of January'sThe Beginning UK DVD boxed set, in addition to the information already reported on Outpost Gallifrey. The pilot episode will appear in 25-minute form, as well as the complete and unedited 36 minutes of footage, retakes and all. There will be a feature ('The Theme Music Video') allowing viewers to experience the original theme arrangement in mono, stereo and 5.1 surround sound. There are commentaries by Verity Lambert, Carole Ann Ford and William Russell on 'An Unearthly Child' (episode 1) and by Waris Hussein, Carole Ann Ford and William Russell on 'The Firemaker' (An Unearthly Child episode 4). Christopher Barry and Verity Lambert do the commentary on 'The Survivors' (The Daleks 2), Barry, Russell and Ford on 'The Ambush' (The Daleks 4), and Russell, Ford and Richard Martin on 'The Rescue' (The Daleks 7). All five commentaries are moderated by Gary Russell. The 'Marco Polo' feature listed at the BBFC is a 30-minute reconstruction using soundtrack and telesnaps. There will also be PDFs of Radio Times listings and an Arabic soundtrack option for 'The Brink of Disaster' (The Edge of Destruction 2).

FILTER: - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD - Radio Times

The Beginning Box Art

Thursday, 10 November 2005 - Reported by Shaun Lyon

At right is a thumbnail image of the box art for The Beginning, due out in January, as posted on the ChoicesDirect DVD retailer website. While this might not be a final version, it is indicative of the way the box will contain individual packages for each of the first three Doctor Who stories being released in this set, "An Unearthly Child," "The Daleks" and "The Edge of Destruction".

FILTER: - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD

Netherlands DVD

Wednesday, 9 November 2005 - Reported by Shaun Lyon

Doctor Who on DVD has reached the Netherlands, as a boxed set featuring four Tom Baker stories has been released: "Horror of Fang Rock," "The Ark in Space," "Pyramids of Mars" and "The Robots of Death". Each were released in separate cases inside the box and consist of the same material as in the UK releases, but are subtitled in Dutch, along with the information booklet released alongside each story. The boxed set was published by Memphis Belle International B.V in cooperation with 2Entertain. There is currently no word on whether this will continue or is simply a one-shot release. (Thanks to Bas Pierik)

FILTER: - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD

The Beginning DVD Set

Sunday, 6 November 2005 - Reported by Shaun Lyon

The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has issued details of the DVD extras for January's DVD boxset, The Beginning. In addition to the three Doctor Who stories "An Unearthly Child," "The Daleks" and "The Edge of Destruction," the following materials are included:

n/a DOCTOR WHO THE BEGINNING DVD EXTRAS TAPE1
00:02:35:01 DOCTOR WHO
00:03:49:00 THE WEB OF CAVES
00:03:40:14 THE PITCH OF FEAR
00:05:52:20 THE CORRIDOR SKETCH
00:00:17:11 DOCTOR WHO THE BEGINNING AN UNEARTHLY CHILD
00:00:17:17 DOCTOR WHO THE BEGINNING THE DALEKS
00:00:17:12 DOCTOR WHO THE BEGINNING THE EDGE OF DESTRUCTION
00:29:21:07 OVER THE EDGE THE STORY OF THE EDGE OF DESTRUCTION
00:53:48:11 DOCTOR WHO: ORIGINS
00:17:09:24 CREATION OF THE DALEKS

n/a DOCTOR WHO THE BEGINNING DVD EXTRAS TAPE 2
00:06:01:13 AN UNEARTHLY CHILD PHOTO GALLERY
00:05:30:21 THE DALEKS PHOTO GALLERY
00:05:05:11 THE EDGE OF DESTRUCTION PHOTO GALLERY
00:10:13:04 INSIDE THE SPACESHIP THE STORY OF TARDIS
00:31:22:24 DOCTOR WHO MARCO POLO
00:12:19:15 MASTERS OF SOUND

FILTER: - Classic Series - Blu-ray/DVD

Previous 10 Stories

The Reign of Terror

Invasion, Tenth Planet Audio Press Release

Aus/NZ (and UK) DVD Update

Robert Sloman

The Beginning Box Cover

North America DVD Update

More on The Beginning DVD

The Beginning Box Art

Netherlands DVD

The Beginning DVD Set

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