It seems that the rumours about missing BBC TV programmes
being found in various African countries may be true. BBC Worldwide are
announcing the return of some long lost Doctor Who episodes at midnight tonight (10th October).
Over a hundred episodes of Doctor Who are still missing,
despite a well-publicised campaign to recover them from TV stations around the
world. Fans of the Doctor may have their own hopes for the latest haul of black
and white gold. There are not many Patrick Troughton stories left in the BBC
archives, maybe his two Dalek adventures would be a welcome addition to the DVD
shelves. Others may want to see the other lost Dalek epic, which was broadcast
in 12 parts.
Other long lost favourites include Marco Polo, the only story from the first series not to be issued on DVD.
Other long lost favourites include Marco Polo, the only story from the first series not to be issued on DVD.
Personally, I would like to see the return of one of William
Hartnell’s final stories. No, not the final part of The Tenth Planet, which
introduced both Cybermen and the first Doctor Who regeneration, but the story
that preceded it.
The Smugglers was written Brian Hayles, an Archers
scriptwriter who went on to create the Ice Warriors. Loosely based on The
Moonstone by J. Meade Falkner, it was one of the last purely historical
adventures for the Doctor. The only science fiction element being that the
protagonists had gone back in time.
The reason for my
enthusiasm for this story is that it was the first Doctor Who story to be
filmed away from London and the South East. A substantial amount of location work was carried out
in West Cornwall. I discovered that the
cottage my wife and I owned for a number of years, was next door to one of the
main locations, the stone barns on our neighbours farm was used as an inn.
UPDATE.11th October
The Smugglers is still a missing story, but the announcement that 9 missing Patrick Troughton episodes were at a TV station in Nigeria suggests that a film copy of the lost classic may still be out there somewhere.
DOCTOR WHO LOCATION The Smugglers is still a missing story, but the announcement that 9 missing Patrick Troughton episodes were at a TV station in Nigeria suggests that a film copy of the lost classic may still be out there somewhere.
MISSING EPISODES
DOCTOR WHO BOOKSHELF
1 comment:
Heh... we're like kids on Christmas Eve aren't we?
Personally one of the stories hotly tipped to be in tomorrow's announcement is definitely be on my list - Web of Fear. yeti, underground, the Brigadier.... it's a corker.
But I am also excited over the possibility of Power of the Daleks finding it's way back. Sadly that is far far less likely as only 2 copies were ever made for overseas sale and the fate of one of those is documented to be destroyed (New Zealand).
For Hartnell, it would have to be The Mythmakers (because I love Donald Cotton's writing) or The Massacre (the forgotten classic).
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