Doctor Who (season 2)

HOME

TheInfoList

Click Here for Items Related To - Doctor Who (season 2)

OR:

Doctor Who (season 2) on: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Amazon]

The second season of

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

science fiction television Science fiction first appeared in television programming in the late 1930s, during what is called the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary ...

series ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the ...

'' was originally broadcast on

BBC1 BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

between 1964 and 1965. The season began on 31 October 1964 with ''

Planet of Giants ''Planet of Giants'' is the first serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Louis Marks and directed by Mervyn Pinfield and Douglas Camfield, the serial was first broadcast on BBC1 i ...

'' and ended with ''

The Time Meddler ''The Time Meddler'' is the ninth and final serial of the second season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Dennis Spooner and directed by Douglas Camfield, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in four week ...

'' on 24 July 1965. Like the first season, production was overseen by the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

's first female producer

Verity Lambert Verity Ann Lambert (27 November 1935 – 22 November 2007) was an English television and film producer. Lambert began working in television in the 1950s. She began her career as a producer at the BBC by becoming the founding producer of ...

. Story editor David Whitaker continued to handle the scripts and stories during early production, handing over to

Dennis Spooner Dennis Spooner (1 December 1932 – 20 September 1986) was an English television writer and script editor, known primarily for his programmes about fictional spies and his work in children's television in the 1960s. He had long-lasting profess ...

as the season began to air; Spooner subsequently left his role by the season's end, and was replaced by Donald Tosh for its final serial. By the season's end, Lambert was the only remaining production member from the team responsible for creating the series. The season continued to star

William Hartnell William Henry Hartnell (8 January 1908 – 23 April 1975) was an English actor. He is best remembered for his portrayal of the first incarnation of the Doctor in ''Doctor Who'' from 1963 to 1966. In film, Hartnell notably appeared in '' Brig ...

as the first incarnation of the Doctor, an alien who travels through time and space in his

TARDIS The TARDIS (; acronym for "Time And Relative Dimension In Space") is a fictional hybrid of the time machine and spacecraft that appears in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and its various spin-offs. Its exterior a ...

, which appears to be a British

police box A police box is a public telephone kiosk or callbox for the use of members of the police, or for members of the public to contact the police. It was used in the United Kingdom throughout the 20th century from the early 1920s. Unlike an ordinar ...

on the outside.

Carole Ann Ford Carole Ann Lillian Ford ( Higgins; born 16 June 1940) is a British actress best known for her roles as Susan Foreman in the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', and as Bettina in the 1962 film adaptation of '' The Day of the ...

continued her role as the Doctor's granddaughter

Susan Foreman Susan Foreman (also known as Susan Campbell in spin-off media) is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. The granddaughter and original companion of the First Doctor, she was played by actress Car ...

, who acts as his companion alongside her schoolteachers

Ian Chesterton Ian Chesterton is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and a companion of the First Doctor. He was played in the series by William Russell, and was one of the members of the programme's first r ...

and Barbara Wright, portrayed by William Russell and Jacqueline Hill, respectively. Ford departed the series at the conclusion of the season's second serial, ''

The Dalek Invasion of Earth ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'' is the second Serial (radio and television), serial of the Doctor Who (season 2), second season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Terry Nation and directed by Richard Ma ...

'', replaced by Maureen O'Brien as

Vicki Vicky, Vicko, Vick, Vickie or Vicki is a feminine given name, often a hypocorism of Victoria. The feminine name Vicky in Greece comes from the name Vasiliki. Women * Family nickname of Victoria, Princess Royal (1840–1901), wife of German ...

in the following story, '' The Rescue''. Towards the end of the season, Russell and Hill also depart in the final episode of '' The Chase'', replaced by

Peter Purves Peter John Purves (; born 10 February 1939) is an English television presenter and actor. He played Steven Taylor in ''Doctor Who'' under the First Doctor, a role he continued to play in audio dramas for Big Finish Productions. He later became ...

as Steven Taylor. Hartnell remained as the only original cast member. The nine serials were written by six writers: Whitaker, Spooner,

Louis Marks Louis may refer to: * Louis (coin) * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also Derived or associated terms * Lewis (d ...

Terry Nation Terence Joseph Nation (8 August 19309 March 1997) was a British screenwriter and novelist. Especially known for his work in British television science fiction, he created the Daleks and Davros for ''Doctor Who'', as well as the series '' Surviv ...

Bill Strutton William Harold Strutton (23 February 1918 – 23 November 2003) was an Australian screenwriter and novelist. He worked on television shows such as ''Ivanhoe'', '' The Saint'', '' The Avengers'', ''Riptide'' and ''Doctor Who''. Early life ...

, and Glyn Jones. Lambert worked with the story editors to keep the show feeling fresh, attempting new avenues such as humorous and pseudo-historical content. The serials were mostly directed by returning directors

Mervyn Pinfield Mervyn Pinfield (28 February 1912 – 20 May 1966) was a British television producer and director who worked for the BBC during the 1950s and 1960s. By the time Pinfield joined the BBC to work in live drama at Alexandra Palace in the early ...

, Richard Martin,

Christopher Barry Christopher Chisholm Barry (20 September 1925 – 7 February 2014) was a British television director. He worked extensively in BBC television drama and became best known for his work on the science fiction series ''Doctor Who''. He also direct ...

; the exception is

Douglas Camfield Douglas Gaston Sydney Camfield (8 May 1931 – 27 January 1984) was a British television director, active from the 1960s to the 1980s. Early life Camfield studied at the York School of Art and aimed to work for The Walt Disney Company. He was ...

, who had worked as a production assistant to director

Waris Hussein Waris Hussein (''né'' Habibullah; born 9 December 1938) is a British-Indian television and film director. At the beginning of his career he was employed by the BBC as its youngest drama director. He directed early episodes of ''Doctor Who'', inc ...

during the first season. The first two serials were filmed from August to October 1964 within the same production block as the first season; the remainder of the season began filming in December 1964 and lasted for approximately seven months, with weekly recording take place mostly at

Riverside Studios Riverside Studios is an arts centre on the banks of the River Thames in Hammersmith, London, England. The venue plays host to contemporary performance, film, visual art exhibitions and television production. Having closed for redevelopment ...

or the

BBC Television Centre Television Centre (TVC) is a building complex in White City, West London, that was the headquarters of BBC Television between 1960 and 2013. After a refurbishment, the complex reopened in 2017 with three studios in use for TV production, opera ...

. The first episode was watched by 8.4 million viewers, considered a strong debut to the season. ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'' was watched by an additional four million viewers, and the show reached a series-high of 13.5 million viewers for the first episode of ''

The Web Planet ''The Web Planet'' is the fifth serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Bill Strutton and directed by Richard Martin, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in six weekly parts from 1 ...

''. The season received generally positive reviews, with praise directed at the scripts and performances, particularly Hartnell and Hill, though some stories and special effects were criticised; the final scenes of Ford, Russell, and Hill received particular praise for their emotional impact. Several episodes were erased by the BBC between 1967 and 1969, though most were eventually discovered and recovered; of a total of 39 episodes, only two episodes of '' The Crusade'' remain

missing Missing or The Missing may refer to: Film * ''Missing'' (1918 film), an American silent drama directed by James Young * ''Missing'' (1982 film), an American historical drama directed by Costa-Gavras * ''Missing'' (2007 film) (''Vermist''), a Bel ...

. The serials received several VHS and DVD releases as well as tie-in novels, and a

Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of st ...

set for the season was released in 2022.

Serials

Episode is missing

Production

Development

...
Head of Drama and ''

'' co-creator

Sydney Newman Sydney Cecil Newman (April 1, 1917 – October 30, 1997) was a Canadian film and television producer, who played a pioneering role in British television drama from the late 1950s to the late 1960s. After his return to Canada in 1970, Newman w ...

sent a memo to Chief of Programmes

Donald Baverstock Donald Leighton Baverstock (18 January 1924 – 17 March 1995) was a British television producer and executive, born in Cardiff, Wales. He initially worked for BBC Television in their Talks Department, where he was the Editor of the topical mag ...

on 20 May 1964 proposing a six-week broadcast break after the conclusion of the show's seventh serial, ''

The Sensorites ''The Sensorites'' is the seventh serial in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Peter R. Newman and directed by Mervyn Pinfield and Frank Cox, the serial was first broadcast on BBC1 in six weekly parts fro ...

'' in August 1964; Baverstock subsequently approved a four-week break after the eighth serial, '' The Reign of Terror'' in September. This break meant that the final two serials of the show's first 52-week production block—''

'' and ''

''—were held back until the beginning of the second season. The four-week break subsequently became six weeks, with the premiere on 31 October 1964. In August 1964, producer

attempted to gain a final answer on whether the show would be renewed for a second production block. On 14 August, Baverstock agreed to 13 weeks, with the possibility of an additional 13; on 21 August, he agreed to a full 26 weeks, and in January 1965, he extended it to 35 weeks, with four more episodes added to the second season and the final five held back for the following season. During the production of ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth''—the end of the first production block—associate producer

departed the programme; he continued to be credited until the end of the season's fourth serial. Pinfield's role was not replaced, as Lambert had settled into her position and no longer required an assistant. By the season's end, Lambert was the only remaining production member from the team responsible for creating the series.

Casting and characters

On 12 March 1964, trade paper ''Television Today'' announced that

would depart from her role as

at the end of her contract—the end of the first production block, at the conclusion of ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth''—due to her dissatisfaction with the character's development. Story editor David Whitaker wanted a strong reason for Susan's departure. In June 1964, head of serials Donald Wilson considered continuing the show without the character of Barbara Wright, and with a younger actress for Susan. In August 1964, Lambert cast

Pamela Franklin Pamela Franklin (born 3 February 1950) is a British former actress. She is best known for her role in the film '' The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie'' (1969), for which she won a NBR Award and received a BAFTA Award nomination. Franklin made her a ...

as Jenny (originally known as Saida) in ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'' to replace Ford as Susan; some days later, the character was rewritten to become a more minor role, with the new companion to be introduced in the following serial. Franklin was no longer in the running for the role. Director Richard Martin had asked Ann Davies, who was eventually cast as Jenny, if she would be available as a regular cast member, but he could not offer the role. Lambert requested camera tests for Maureen O'Brien and Denise Upson to portray Vicki, the new companion; the two auditioned on 14 September 1964 at the

, and O'Brien was eventually cast. O'Brien had just come out of drama school when she was cast as Vicki; it was her first television acting job. On 14 August 1964, Baverstock asked Lambert to renew the contracts of

, William Russell, and Jacqueline Hill—for their roles as the Doctor,

, and Barbara Wright, respectively—for an additional 13 weeks. By 19 August, Lambert noted the responses: Hartnell turned down the offer, wanting 26 weeks and 250

guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from the Guinea region in West Africa, from where m ...

per episode (an increase of 25); Russell would accept upon his fee being raised to meet Hartnell's (a raise of approximately 75 guineas); and Hill would accept at a salary of 200 guineas (an increase of 95). Baverstock recommended that Lambert caution the three actors regarding their requests, but soon withdrew himself from the discussions, asking Lambert to consult with head of series Elwyn Jones instead. Lambert said that she would be willing to accept Hartnell's request if the show was renewed for 26 weeks instead of 13, but noted that Russell and Hill could only be offered a raise of between £10 and £25 per episode each. The season's penultimate serial, '' The Chase'', marks the final appearance of Russell and Hill as Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright, respectively. Their departure was announced on 1 April 1965; Russell explained that the creativity had gone and he wanted to reenter comedy and theatre performances, and Hill said that "It has been great fun, but you can't go on forever". They made their decisions independently, and gave extended notice to Lambert. Hartnell was greatly upset by their decision, becoming the sole original actor remaining on the series, and both he and Lambert tried to persuade them to stay. Lambert eventually decided that Ian and Barbara would depart simultaneously, in a mildly romantic manner.

was cast as new companion Steven Taylor, having impressed Hartnell and O'Brien in a different role earlier in the serial; Martin was hesitant to cast Purves in two roles within the same serial, but Lambert approved. Purves accepted the role within days. Though generally unfamiliar with science fiction, he recalled being impressed by the show's first serial, ''

An Unearthly Child ''An Unearthly Child'' (sometimes referred to as ''100,000 BC'') is the first serial of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was first broadcast on BBC TV in four weekly parts from 23 November to 14 December 1963 ...

'' (1963), and had enjoyed working with Hartnell and O'Brien; he had met Hartnell a few weeks prior while shooting ''

The World of Wooster ''The World of Wooster'' is a comedy television series, based on the Jeeves stories by author P. G. Wodehouse. The television series starred Ian Carmichael as English gentleman Bertie Wooster and Dennis Price as Bertie's valet Jeeves. The s ...

'' (1965–1967) at Ealing Studios. On 21 May 1965, Purves was contracted for three stories (13 episodes), with an option for a further 20 episodes by 10 September and another 26 by 4 February 1966. His role as a companion on the show was announced on 18 June 1965.

Writing

In April 1964, Whitaker suggested to Lambert that the show's second season should employ fewer writers for better character development. He set out a plan of ten serials between four and six episodes (52 in total), alternating between the three story types originally envisioned for the show: history of the past, technology in the future, and alternatives of the present. He suggested that the four historical stories focus on the

Spanish Armada The Spanish Armada (a.k.a. the Enterprise of England, es, Grande y Felicísima Armada, links=no, lit=Great and Most Fortunate Navy) was a Spanish fleet that sailed from Lisbon in late May 1588, commanded by the Duke of Medina Sidonia, an ar ...

, Ancient Egyptians,

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...

, and

Ancient Romans In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–50 ...

, while two of the five futuristic serials could include stories already written by

Malcolm Hulke Malcolm Ainsworth Hulke (21 November 1924 – 6 July 1979) was a British television writer and author of the industry "bible" ''Writing for Television in the 70s''. He is remembered chiefly for his work on the science fiction series ''Doctor Wh ...

and

Anthony Coburn James Anthony Coburn (10 December 1927 – 28 April 1977) was an Australian television writer and producer, who spent much of his professional career living and working in the United Kingdom. He is best remembered for writing the first ''Doctor ...

. He also recommended that

should be made senior writer, at least for the futuristic serials, alongside a senior writer for the historical stories. Some of the writers under consideration for the second season by late October 1964 included

Keith Dewhurst Keith Dewhurst (born 24 December 1931) is an English playwright and film and television scriptwriter. Life Born in Oldham, Keith Dewhurst was educated at Rydal School and Peterhouse, Cambridge, graduating with a B.A. in English in 1953. After wor ...

William Emms William Emms (29 January 1930 – 18 February 1993) was an Australian schoolteacher and occasional screenwriter for British television. Writing In 1965 he wrote the '' Doctor Who'' serial ''Galaxy 4'' and later adapted the script for a Targ ...

Brian Hayles Brian Leonard Hayles (7 March 1931 – 30 October 1978) was an English television and film writer, most notably for the BBC science fiction series ''Doctor Who''. Doctor Who Hayles wrote six stories for ''Doctor Who'' and is best known for his ...

John Lucarotti John Vincent Lucarotti (20 May 1926 – 20 November 1994) was a British-Canadian screenwriter and author who worked on '' The Avengers'', ''The Troubleshooters'' and '' Doctor Who'' in the 1960s. Early life Born into an Army family in Ald ...

, Alex Miller, and

Hugh Whitemore Hugh John Whitemore (16 June 1936 – 17 July 2018) was an English playwright and screenwriter. Biography Whitemore studied for the stage at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, where he was taught by Peter Barkworth, then on the staff at RADA ...

; Whitaker contacted

John Wyndham John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris (; 10 July 1903 – 11 March 1969) was an English science fiction writer best known for his works published under the pen name John Wyndham, although he also used other combinations of his names ...

to write for the show, but he declined due to his ongoing book work. By January 1965, the story order and writers had been mostly finalised, with only the final serial omitted. Lambert worked with the story editors to keep the show feeling fresh, attempting new avenues such as the overt humour of '' The Romans'' and ''The Chase'', the "downright weirdness" of ''

'', and the pseudo-historical content of ''

''. The concept for the second season's first serial ''Planet of Giants''—the Doctor and his companions shrinking in size—was initially proposed as the first story of the show's first season, written by C. E. Webber and entitled ''The Giants''. After some rewrites, the serial was rejected by show creator Newman in June 1963 due to its technical complexity and lack of character development. The concept of ''The Giants'' was given to writer Robert Gould in mid-1963 to develop as the four-part fourth serial of the first season, but it was dropped by January 1964 due to scripting difficulties. By February 1964, the serial was assigned to writer

. The main narrative was inspired by

Rachel Carson Rachel Louise Carson (May 27, 1907 – April 14, 1964) was an American marine biologist, writer, and conservationist whose influential book '' Silent Spring'' (1962) and other writings are credited with advancing the global environmental ...

's 1962 environmental science book ''

Silent Spring ''Silent Spring'' is an environmental science book by Rachel Carson. Published on September 27, 1962, the book documented the environmental harm caused by the indiscriminate use of pesticides. Carson accused the chemical industry of spreading d ...

'', the first major documentation on human impact on the environment. In March 1964, Whitaker formally commissioned Terry Nation to write the second serial following the success of the Daleks from the titular serial of the first season, as well as Nation's quick and effective work on ''

The Keys of Marinus ''The Keys of Marinus'' is the fifth serial in the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast on BBC TV/BBC1 in six weekly parts from 11 April to 16 May 1964. Written by Terry Nation and directed by Joh ...

''. Nation delivered the storyline for the serial in mid-April 1964 under the name ''The Return of the Daleks''. The serial was retitled ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'' by September. By late August 1964, Whitaker began looking for stories for ''Doctor Who''s second production block, set to begin with '' The Rescue''; by late September, he began officially commissioning scripts. He rejected at least two proposals: ''The Hidden Planet'' by Malcolm Hulke due to necessary rewrites after Susan's departure, and a lack of science-fiction monsters; and ''The Slide'' by

Victor Pemberton Victor Francis Pemberton (10 October 1931 – 13 August 2017) was a British writer and television producer. His scriptwriting work included BBC radio plays, and television scripts for the BBC and ITV, including ''Doctor Who'', ''The Slide'', ...

as he felt that it was a "stew pot" of the show's science fiction stories to date, and he disliked the dialogue. Whitaker departed his position as story editor on 31 October 1964, replaced by

, who had begun training with Whitaker on 6 August. The day after his contract expired, Whitaker was commissioned to write ''The Rescue'' and '' The Crusade'', the former as a two-part short vehicle to introduce Vicki as the new companion. ''The Rescue'' used the same production team as the following serial, ''The Romans'', and the two were formed to create a single six-episode production block. Spooner was commissioned to write ''The Romans'', envisioned as the first ''Doctor Who'' serial with a humorous tone, which Lambert had been interested in attempting; according to William Russell, Lambert recognised Spooner's sense of humour and asked him to incorporate it into the script. After watching ''Doctor Who'', Australian writer

instructed his agents to contact the production team to discuss a story idea. He recalled a memory as a toddler, watching two

bull ant ''Myrmecia'' is a genus of ants first established by Danish zoologist Johan Christian Fabricius in 1804. The genus is a member of the subfamily Myrmeciinae of the family Formicidae. ''Myrmecia'' is a large genus of ants, comprising at least ...

s fighting inside an empty

kerosene Kerosene, paraffin, or lamp oil is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid which is derived from petroleum. It is widely used as a fuel in aviation as well as households. Its name derives from el, κηρός (''keros'') meaning "wax", and was regi ...

can; he linked this memory with his two sons, aged six and four, fighting each other. He discussed the idea with Lambert, and Whitaker officially commissioned the story, ''The Web Planet'', on 28 September 1964. Strutton wrote the scripts while in the process of relocating homes; his wife Marguerite created the name of the Zarbi. Spooner made edits to the script towards the end of 1964; he found the narrative to be multilayered, with the Menoptra representing free enterprise and the Zarbi

communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...

. For ''The Crusade''—intended to balance the show's science fiction stories—Whitaker was inspired by the

Third Crusade The Third Crusade (1189–1192) was an attempt by three European monarchs of Western Christianity (Philip II of France, Richard I of England and Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor) to reconquer the Holy Land following the capture of Jerusalem by ...

; he found that some of the historical figures—namely King Richard and his sister Joan, whose affectionate relationship he considered "almost incestuous in its intensity"—were effective material for a character drama. Depictions of the sexual relationship between the siblings were cut from the script, partly as Hartnell found it unsuitable for the family show. The timing of some events were rearranged for dramatic purposes. Around early October 1964, Whitaker asked South African writer Glyn Jones to develop a story for ''Doctor Who''; after Whitaker left the role, Spooner asked Jones to develop a four-part serial, titled ''

The Space Museum ''The Space Museum'' is the seventh serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Glyn Jones and directed by Mervyn Pinfield, it was broadcast on BBC1 in four weekly parts from 24 A ...

''. Spooner edited out much of the humour from the original script, which Jones was unhappy with; Spooner felt that the serial was more intellectual. Following the success of ''The Daleks'' and its sequel ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'', Spooner quickly commissioned Nation to write a third serial. Nation's original story pitch was scrapped for unknown reasons, and he was instead commissioned to write a six-episode Dalek serial, ''The Chase''. Nation's scripts required little editing from Spooner, though he was too busy to undertake rewrites regardless. In March 1965, Lambert commissioned Spooner to write ''The Time Meddler'' to introduce new companion Steven Taylor; as story editors commissioning themselves was discouraged, Lambert justified his involvement to her superiors, citing the insufficient time required to brief an uninvolved writer, as none of the regular writers were available. Spooner wanted the show to move away from "pure" historical stories like ''The Reign of Terror'' and ''The Romans'', instead hoping to blend them with the show's more futuristic serials. By April 1965, Spooner had decided to leave his role as story editor; he was replaced by Donald Tosh, who edited little of Spooner's work on ''The Time Meddler''.

Filming

Early inserts for special effects were filmed for ''Planet of Giants'' in late 1964 using

35 mm film 35 mm may refer to: * 135 film, a type of still photography format commonly referred to as 35 mm film * 35 mm movie film 35 mm film is a film gauge used in filmmaking, and the film standard. In motion pictures that record on f ...

. The show's regular cast—Hartnell, Russell, Hill, and Ford—filmed the sequences in which they appeared alongside giant props; the effect was achieved by recording the actors through glass and reflecting the object onto a

half-silvered mirror A beam splitter or ''beamsplitter'' is an optical device that splits a beam of light into a transmitted and a reflected beam. It is a crucial part of many optical experimental and measurement systems, such as interferometers, also finding wide ...

. The footage was later deemed unsatisfactory, and the scenes were re-shot on 13 August. Weekly recording for the serial began on 21 August at the Television Centre, Studio 4. Due to director Mervyn Pinfield's other commitments, the fourth and final episode was directed by

, who had worked as a production assistant to

during the show's first season. The final episode was recorded on 11 September. On 19 October 1964, Wilson decided to reduce the four-part serial to three episodes, as it was felt to be an unsatisfactory opening to the show's second season; he preferred to open the season with ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'', but Susan's departure in the serial prevented the change. The two 24-minute episodes were edited together into a single 25-minute episode to form a faster-paced climax featuring the main characters. Camfield was credited for the final episode. ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'', directed by Richard Martin, was the first major location shoot for ''Doctor Who'', with 35 mm filming in central London at

Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, laid out in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. At its centre is a high column bearing a statue of Admiral Nelson comm ...

, the statue of the Duke of Cambridge in

Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea. It is the main thoroughfare running south from Trafalgar Square towards Parliament Sq ...

Westminster Bridge Westminster Bridge is a road-and-foot-traffic bridge over the River Thames in London, linking Westminster on the west side and Lambeth on the east side. The bridge is painted predominantly green, the same colour as the leather seats in the ...

, and the Royal Albert Hall in August 1964. The design team added Dalek markings on landmarks such as

Nelson's Column Nelson's Column is a monument in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, Central London, built to commemorate Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson's decisive victory at the Battle of Trafalgar over the combined French and Spanish navies, during whic ...

, which police requested they remove. Weekly studio recording for the serial began on 18 September in Studio 1 at

in Hammersmith, the show's new regular studio. During camera rehearsals for the third episode on 2 October, Hartnell injured his back when a prop ramp malfunctioned; when Martin apologised for the incident, Hartnell assured that he would be fine, but Lambert insisted that he take several days to rest. Following discussions between Hartnell's solicitors and the BBC's, the BBC denied liability and paid for an X-ray. Hartnell was given a week off to recover, and the fourth episode underwent minor rewrites;

Edmund Warwick Edmund Warwick (15 July 1907 – 21 December 1989) was a British actor who appeared in various television programmes. Some of his credits included ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'', ''Z-Cars'' and '' Doctor Who''. In the last of those Warwick ...

doubled for Hartnell as The Doctor in the episode. The final episode was recorded on 23 October, marking a year of production since the filming of the show's first serial. ''Planet of Giants'' and ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'' were recorded in the show's first production block alongside the first season, and held back to open the second season. The regular cast took a six-week break before the show's second production block, beginning with ''The Rescue''. Directed by

, it was recorded on 4 and 11 December 1964 at Riverside Studios; there was a happy atmosphere among the cast, including a picnic in Hartnell's dressing room on the first week. Forming a single production block with ''The Rescue'', ''The Romans'' was filmed across four weeks, from 18 December 1964 to 15 January 1965, also directed by Barry. Martin returned to direct ''The Web Planet'', recorded from 22 January to 26 February 1965. Martin wanted to use a greased

neutral-density filter In photography and optics, a neutral-density filter, or ND filter, is a filter that reduces or modifies the intensity of all wavelengths, or colors, of light equally, giving no changes in hue of color rendition. It can be a colorless (clear) or ...

on shots of Vortis to capture its thin atmosphere, but found that the optical glass was too expensive, opting for a cheaper alternative; two special lenses were fitted, both of which broke at some point during production. Several recording sessions overran, including the second by 16 minutes, the third by 37, and the fourth by 15; among the problems were broken costumes, actors walking through shots, scenery problems causing actors to forget their lines, and delays in sets and studio lighting. The third recording had finished so late that the dressing room lights were switched off by studio management, forcing the crew to exit in darkness. ''The Crusade'', directed by Camfield, was recorded from 5–26 March 1965. For the first episode, a trained hawk was supplied by John Holmes of the Formakin Animal Centre in Benson, Oxfordshire. During recording of the final episode, actor

Tutte Lemkow Tutte Lemkow (born Isak Samuel Lemkow; 28 August 1918 – 10 November 1991) was a Norwegian actor and dancer, who played mostly villainous roles in British television and films. His chief claims to mainstream familiarity were his roles as ...

injured himself with a knife, which went to a finger bone on his right hand; he was taken to hospital for a

tetanus shot Tetanus vaccine, also known as tetanus toxoid (TT), is a toxoid vaccine used to prevent tetanus. During childhood, five doses are recommended, with a sixth given during adolescence. After three doses, almost everyone is initially immune, but a ...

. Camfield arranged for a cow carcass to be present during recording in order to achieve particular shots through the rotting rib cage; the carcass attracted flies and emitted an odour beneath the studio lights. Pinfield returned to direct ''The Space Museum'', recorded from 2–23 April 1965 at the BBC Television Centre; this was a temporary move from Riverside Studios. Martin was chosen to direct the six-part serial ''The Chase''; he was reluctant to agree, but Lambert convinced him as he had become known as the "Dalek director", having directed both ''The Daleks'' and ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth''. Lambert asked Martin to keep expenses to a minimum, but, recalling the overspend on ''The Web Planet'', allocated a larger budget than normal; as a result, the preceding and following serials were produced with a minimal budget and little pre-filming. ''The Chase'' was recorded from 30 April to 4 June 1965. On 6 May, Russell and Hill were released in the afternoon of rehearsals for the second episode to pose for about 20 photographs used to illustrate their return home in the final episode; the shoot was directed by Camfield as part of the pre-filming work for ''The Time Meddler''. Recording on ''The Time Meddler'' was due to take place at Riverside Studios until late May, when it was decided to switch back to Television Centre. ''The Time Meddler'' was recorded from 11 June to 2 July 1965. By this time, incoming producer

John Wiles John Wiles (20 September 1925 – 5 April 1999) was a South African novelist, television writer and producer. He was the second producer of the science fiction series ''Doctor Who'', succeeding Verity Lambert, and credited on four serials between ...

—set to replace Lambert in the coming months—joined the production. Hartnell found the change unsettling and threw fake tantrums to scare the production team to obey him; he later admitted to other cast members that he was only joking.

Release

Promotion

In September 1964, the BBC announced that ''Doctor Who'' would return for its second season in October, emphasising that it was one of its core pieces of content alongside coverage of the general election. '' Radio Times'' promoted the series with an article recapping the first season, and the '' Daily Sketch'' promoted its opening episode in the days before broadcast with a photograph of Ian and Susan. 20-second trailers for ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'' began airing on 14 November 1964, immediately after the conclusion of ''Planet of Giants''. The '' Daily Mail'' and ''

Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print c ...

'' both ran stories about the return of the Daleks, and ''Radio Times'' featured the Daleks on its cover on 19 November, alongside a half-page article previewing the serial. On 24 December,

trade paper A trade magazine, also called a trade journal or trade paper (colloquially or disparagingly a trade rag), is a magazine or newspaper whose target audience is people who work in a particular trade or industry. The collective term for this ...

''Television Today'' ran a story about O'Brien's debut as Vicki in ''The Return''; ''Radio Times'' and the ''Daily Mirror'' published similar stories on 31 December 1964 and 2 January 1965, respectively, with the latter featuring an image from the set of ''The Romans''. Promotion for ''The Romans'' included a preview in ''Radio Times'' on 14 January, and syndicated stories in local papers on 16 January. A special trailer for ''The Web Planet'', filmed on 4 February 1965, features the Zarbi arriving at the BBC Television Centre before being shown to their dressing rooms. The trailer, screened on

on 6 February 1965, upset Martin, who felt that it undersold his work and made him feel "like a conjurer about to do an elaborate two and a half hour trick when all the audience know the secrets already"; Lambert responded that the comedic trailer was intentional to take "the curse out of the Zarbi" for younger viewers. ''The Web Planet'' was featured on the cover of ''Radio Times'' on 11 February alongside a half-page feature, and was promoted in ''

The Children's Newspaper ''The Children's Newspaper'' was a long-running newspaper published by the Amalgamated Press (later Fleetway Publications) aimed at pre-teenage children founded by Arthur Mee in 1919. It ran for 2,397 weekly issues before being merged with ''Lo ...

'' with an image of a Zarbi waiting at a bus stop on 13 February. On 25 March, ''Radio Times'' promoted ''The Crusades'' in a piece discussing guest stars

Julian Glover Julian Wyatt Glover (born 27 March 1935) is an English classical actor with many stage, television, and film roles since commencing his career in the 1950s. He is a recipient of the Laurence Olivier Award and has performed many times for the ...

and

Bernard Kay Bernard Frederic Bemrose Kay (23 February 1928 – 25 December 2014) was an English actor with an extensive theatre, television, and film repertoire. Career Kay began his working life as a reporter for the ''Bolton Evening News'', and a str ...

; later that week, a comic strip in ''Radio Times'' featured the Doctor with a Dalek and a Zarbi. Several papers, including the '' Daily Express'' and '' Daily Telegraph'', discussed the forthcoming departure of Russell and Hill on 2 April; Russell appeared on ''

Junior Points of View ''Points of View'' is a long-running British television series broadcast on BBC One. It started in 1961 and features the letters of viewers offering praise, criticism and observations on BBC television programmes of recent weeks. History ''Poin ...

'' the same day, while a photograph of Hill was published in the ''Daily Sketch'' the following day. ''The Space Museum'' was promoted in ''Radio Times'' on 22 April. A photocall took place in early April 1965 with the Daleks and Mechonoids to promote ''The Chase'', prompting several newspaper stories on 15 April; Lambert spoke to '' The Sun'' in response to the robots. The serial received a one-page preview in ''Radio Times'', confirming the reports of Russell and Hill's departure in the final episode. The later episodes of ''The Chase'' aired in the buildup to the release of the feature film ''

Dr. Who and the Daleks ''Dr. Who and the Daleks'' is a 1965 British science fiction film directed by Gordon Flemyng and written by Milton Subotsky, and the first of two films based on the British science-fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It stars Peter Cushi ...

'' (1965), resulting in several pieces of cross promotion; a clip from the film was played on ''The Roy Castle Show''—hosted by

Roy Castle Roy Castle (31 August 1932 – 2 September 1994) was an English dancer, singer, comedian, actor, television presenter and musician. In addition to being an accomplished jazz trumpet player, he could play many other instruments. Following a vers ...

, one of the film's stars—about an hour after the broadcast of ''The Chase''s fourth episode. Several Dalek props were used in public appearances for promotion. A photograph of the Doctor with Dracula and

Frankenstein's monster Frankenstein's monster or Frankenstein's creature, often referred to as simply "Frankenstein", is a fictional character who first appeared in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus''. Shelley's title thus compares ...

was featured on the cover of ''Television Today'' on 10 June. ''The Time Meddler'' was previewed in ''Radio Times'' on 1 July, with a photograph of the new lead cast. The show received extensive publicity during the broadcast of ''The Time Meddler'' due to the release of ''Dr. Who and the Daleks''; on 28 July, Lambert was interviewed by

Denis Tuohy Denis Tuohy (born 2 April 1937, Belfast, Northern Ireland) is a television broadcaster, newsreader and journalist and actor. Tuohy attended Queen's University, Belfast, where he learned to debate and acquired an interest in acting. In 1960, he a ...

on '' Late Night Line-Up'', and the ''Daily Mirror'' published a story about Hartnell's life and career.

Broadcast

''Planet of Giants'' was transmitted on BBC1 in three weekly parts from 31 October to 14 November 1964, at 5:15p.m. The BBC Film and Videotape Library did not select the serial for preservation, and the original tapes were

wiped Lost television broadcasts are mostly those early television programs which cannot be accounted for in studio archives (or in personal archives) usually because of deliberate destruction or neglect. Common reasons for loss A significant prop ...

in the late 1960s. In 1977,

16mm 16 mm film is a historically popular and economical gauge of film. 16 mm refers to the width of the film (about inch); other common film gauges include 8 and 35 mm. It is generally used for non-theatrical (e.g., industrial, ed ...

film prints of the serial were discovered at

BBC Enterprises #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

. The broadcast time moved back to 5:40p.m. for ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'', which aired in six weekly parts from 21 November to 26 December 1964; the final episode aired at 5:55p.m. The serial was shown at the Longleat 20th Anniversary Celebration on 3 April 1983, and the first episode was screened at the

National Film Theatre BFI Southbank (from 1951 to 2007, known as the National Film Theatre) is the leading repertory cinema in the UK, specialising in seasons of classic, independent and non-English language films. It is operated by the British Film Institute. His ...

on 29 October 1983. All six episodes were screened at the theatre on 5 January 1999. ''The Rescue'' was broadcast in two weekly parts on 2 and 9 January 1965. Both parts of ''The Rescue'' were wiped in the late 1960s; BBC Enterprises had retained

telerecordings Kinescope , shortened to kine , also known as telerecording in Britain, is a recording of a television program on motion picture film, directly through a lens focused on the screen of a video monitor. The process was pioneered during the 1940 ...

of both episodes and returned them to the BBC in 1978. ''The Romans'' was transmitted in four weekly parts from 16 January to 6 February 1965.

UK Gold Gold is a British pay television channel from the UKTV network that was launched in late 1992 as UK Gold before it was rebranded UKTV Gold in 2004. In 2008, it was split into current flagship channel Gold and miscellaneous channel, W, with clas ...

broadcast the serial in episodic form from November 1992; it was originally scheduled earlier, but was replaced by ''

The Aztecs The Aztecs () were a Mesoamerican culture that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl ...

''. ''The Web Planet'' was broadcast in six weekly parts from 13 February to 20 March 1965; the final episode aired later, at 5:55p.m. The serial was believed to have been wiped in the early 1970s and presumed missing until negative film prints of all six episodes were recovered from BBC Enterprises in the late 1970s. Unedited prints were also discovered in Nigeria in 1984. The fourth episode was shown on 29 October 1983 at the National Film Theatre, and at regional events like the

Bradford Playhouse The Bradford Playhouse is a 266-seat proscenium arch theatre with circle and stall seating based in Little Germany, in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. Formerly known as The Priestley, the theatre also has a studio space that has f ...

and Film Theatre on 8 June 1984.

British Satellite Broadcasting British Satellite Broadcasting (BSB) was a television company, headquartered in London, that provided direct broadcast satellite television services to the United Kingdom. They started broadcasting on 25 March 1990. The company was merged with ...

screened the serial between July and September 1990, and it was broadcast in episodic form on UK Gold in December 1992 alongside a compilation version. ''The Crusade'' was transmitted in four weekly parts from 27 March to 17 April 1965. The original tapes were wiped in the late 1960s, and the overseas film prints were destroyed around 1972 by BBC Enterprises. A 16mm film print of the third episode was retained by the

BBC Film and Videotape Library BBC Archives are collections documenting the BBC's broadcasting history, including copies of television and radio broadcasts, internal documents, photographs, online content, sheet music, commercially available music, BBC products (including ...

. A film copy of the first episode was discovered in the ownership of film collector

Bruce Grenville Bruce Ronald Henderson, also known as Bruce Grenville and Martin Renwick (born 1950), is a New Zealand anarchist, hoaxer and producer of artistamps. He is particularly known for the creation of the fictional Sultanate of Occussi-Ambeno. Early life ...

in New Zealand in January 1999, and returned to the BBC; it was sourced from the

New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation The New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation (NZBC) was a publicly owned company of the New Zealand Government founded in 1962. The Broadcasting Act 1976 then reformed NZBC as the Broadcasting Corporation of New Zealand (BCNZ). The corporation was ...

. The second and fourth episodes remain missing, existing only through

tele-snaps Tele-snaps (often known as telesnaps) were off-screen photographs of British television broadcasts, taken and sold commercially by John Cura (born Alberto Giovanni Cura in Clapham, South London, England; 9 April 1902 – 21 April 1969). From 1947 ...

and off-air recordings. ''The Space Museum'' was transmitted in four weekly parts from 24 April to 15 May 1965. The second episode was scheduled 10 minutes later than usual due to the

1965 FA Cup Final The 1965 FA Cup Final was an association football match between Liverpool and Leeds United on 1 May 1965 at Wembley Stadium, London. It was the final match of the 1964–65 FA Cup, the 93rd season of England's primary cup competition, the Footb ...

, while the third episode was broadcast 20 minutes later due to coverage of the 20th anniversary of

VE Day Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945, marking the official end of World War II in Europe in the Easter ...

. The original tapes were wiped in the late 1960s, but the entire serial was discovered at BBC Enterprises in 1977. It was screened by British Satellite Broadcasting on 22 September 1990, and by UK Gold in December 1992. The

BFI National Archive The BFI National Archive is a department of the British Film Institute, and one of the largest film archives in the world. It was founded as the National Film Library in 1935; its first curator was Ernest Lindgren. In 1955, its name became the N ...

holds a copy of the serial. ''The Chase'' was broadcast in six weekly parts from 22 May to 26 June 1965. The original tapes were erased in 1967 and 1969, but 16mm telerecordings created for overseas markets were discovered at BBC Enterprises in 1978. The serial was screened on 4 December 1988 at the National Film Theatre as part of a celebration of ''Doctor Who''. ''The Time Meddler'' was transmitted in four weekly parts from 3 to 24 July 1965. The first episode was broadcast at 6:55p.m. due to an extended edition of the preceding program '' Grandstand'' covering the

Henley Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It differs from the three ...

and

Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, since 1877 and is pla ...

final. The tapes were cleared for wiping in 1967, and BBC Enterprises wiped the international version due to diminished sales by 1977. All four episodes (with some missing scenes) were discovered in Nigeria in 1984 and returned to the BBC by 1985; they were discovered to have been cut, with some missing scenes. The serial was repeated in a weekly broadcast on BBC2 from 3 to 24 January 1992.

Home media

VHS releases

DVD and Blu-ray releases

Books

Reception

Ratings

''Planet of Giants'' was considered a strong debut to the second season, receiving 8.4 million viewers for the first two episodes and 8.9 million for the third. An Audience Research Report on the first episode indicated that the show had gained 17% of the viewing audience. ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'' was successful among viewers, with an additional four million viewers over ''Planet of Giants''; the first episode was the highest-rated BBC programme for northern England, and the third episode was the highest-rated for Wales and western England. The fifth episode was ranked 18th in the national ratings for the week, tied with

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

's '' Thank Your Lucky Stars''. The high ratings continued for ''The Rescue'', with 12 million viewers for the first episode. It was the eleventh most-watched programme of the week, and the top-rated BBC1 show in London and northern England. The second episode had higher ratings, with 13 million viewers, ranking it eighth for the week and the most-watched episode of the show to date. ''The Romans'' also maintained high viewership: 13 million viewers for the first episode, tying as the most-watched of the show to date. The second episode dropped to 11.5 million viewers, and was ranked 20th by TAM with an estimated viewership of 5.3 million homes. The third episode received a smaller audience of 10 million viewers, attributed to its broadcast in the wake of the televised funeral of Winston Churchill. The fourth episode reached 12 million viewers. Viewership increased for ''The Web Planet'', reaching a series-high of 13.5 million viewers for the first episode. The ratings dropped for the following episodes, with the final two hitting 12 million, but they were still considered successful, ranking among the top 20 programmes for each week; the first episode ranked joint 18th in the national charts, with an estimated viewership of 5.45 million households. Viewership continued to fall in ''The Crusade'', dropping to 10.5 million views for the first episode, and 8.5 million for the second, dropping out of the top 20 for the week. The third and fourth episodes received 9 and 9.5 million viewers respectively, which were still considered acceptable. ''The Space Museum'' received similar viewership numbers, dropping from 10.5 million to 8.5 million viewers across the four weeks. Viewership numbers for ''The Chase'' were considered extremely positive, though the early summer months meant that it failed to gain the high audience figures for serials like ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'' and ''The Web Planet''. It gained generally a million viewers over ''The Space Museum'', with the first episode receiving ten million viewers, and made its way into the top 20 most-viewed programmes for the night; the fourth and sixth episodes entered the top 10. The summer season and lack of Daleks led to smaller audience numbers for ''The Time Meddler'', with 8.9 and 8.8 million viewers for the first two episodes and a drop to 7.7 and 8.3 million for the final two. The second episode was the highest-rated BBC show of the week

South West The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each se ...

region; the third episode dropped out of the top 20 programmes of the week, but garnered a larger audience share than ITV. The

Appreciation Index The Audience Appreciation Index (AI) is an indicator measured from 0 to 100 of the public's appreciation for a television or radio programme, or broadcast service, in the United Kingdom. Until 2002, the AI of a programme was calculated by the B ...

for the second season averaged 54; it ranged from 57 to 63 for the first three serials, while ''The Romans'' dropped from 53 for the first episode to 51 for the second, the lowest in the show's history to date, surpassed by 50 for the third and fourth episodes. ''The Web Planet''s Appreciation Index began well but fell rapidly, dropping below 50 for the first time; the final episode set a new record low of 42. ''The Crusade'' recovered briefly, moving from 51 to 48 across the four weeks, and while ''The Space Museum'' began strong—51, 53, and 56, for the first three weeks—it fell sharply, with the final episode at 49. The final two stories generally recovered, ranging from 54 to 57 with ''The Chase'', and 49 to 57 for ''The Time Meddler''.

Critical response

''Doctor Who''s second season received generally positive responses.

Hugh Greene Sir Hugh Carleton Greene (15 November 1910 – 19 February 1987) was a British television executive and journalist. He was director-general of the BBC from 1960 to 1969. After working for newspapers in the 1930s, Greene spent most of his later ...

, the

Director-General of the BBC The director-general of the British Broadcasting Corporation is chief executive and (from 1994) editor-in-chief of the BBC. The position was formerly appointed by the Board of Governors of the BBC (for the period of 1927 to 2007) and then t ...

, was unimpressed by the concept of ''Planet of Giants'', expressing his eagerness for the return of the Daleks. After the first episode of ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'', director of television Kenneth Adam called it "interesting"; the BBC Programme Review Board described the third episode as "outstanding", and the following week, executives felt that the show's quality was consistently high, with Greene eager to see the Daleks return in future stories.

T. C. Worsley Thomas Cuthbert Worsley (1907–1977) was a British teacher, writer, editor, and theatre and television critic. He is best remembered for his autobiographical ''Flannelled Fool, Flannelled Fool: A Slice of a Life in the Thirties''. Biography Cut ...

of the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Ni ...

'' praised the serial for creating a universal image for the Daleks. For ''The Rescue'', Worsley felt that the Koquillion was lacking compared to the Daleks, but appreciated its name. Following the broadcast of the first episode of ''The Romans'', ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

''s Mary Crozier wrote that "the action was patchy and the dialogue uneven in quality"; at the Review Board, Adam praised Jacqueline Hill's performance in the second episode. ''The Web Planet'' received mixed reviews; the first episode was criticised by Peter Black of the ''Daily Mail'', who described the main characters as "the dullest quartet in fiction".

Patrick Skene Catling Patrick Skene Catling (born 14 February 1925) is a British journalist, author and book reviewer best known for writing '' The Chocolate Touch'' in 1952. He has written 12 novels, 3 works of non fiction and 9 books for children. Background Catli ...

of ''

Punch Punch commonly refers to: * Punch (combat), a strike made using the hand closed into a fist * Punch (drink), a wide assortment of drinks, non-alcoholic or alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice Punch may also refer to: Places * Pun ...

'' wrote that the serial was guilty of "ludicrous

bathos Bathos ( ;''Oxford English Dictionary'', 1st ed. "bathos, ''n.'' Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1885. grc-gre, , "depth") is a literary term, first used in this sense in Alexander Pope's 1727 essay " Peri Bathous", to describe an ...

", and Bill Edmund of ''

The Stage and Television Today ''The Stage'' is a British weekly newspaper and website covering the entertainment industry and particularly theatre. It was founded in 1880. It contains news, reviews, opinion, features, and recruitment advertising, mainly directed at those wh ...

'' described the lighting effects as "pointless and annoying". ''

The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until August 2004. Its pare ...

''s Peggie Phillips considered the serial to be a flop. ''The Crusade'' was well-received; Bill Edmund of ''Television Today'' directed praise at Glover's performance and Whitaker's writing, declaring "the dialogue and the story ... one of the best we have had in this series". Conversely, ''Television Mail'' wrote that "the appallingly flat dialogue of ''Dr Who'' could hardly be heard ... above the creaking of the plot", noting that the show should only be viewed "by people who have a profound contempt for children". ''The Space Museum'' received a mixed response; the ''

Times Educational Supplement ''Tes'', formerly known as the ''Times Educational Supplement'', is a weekly UK publication aimed at education professionals. It was first published in 1910 as a pull-out supplement in ''The Times'' newspaper. Such was its popularity that in 19 ...

'' described the serial as "enormously contrived", adding that the series "has run out of imagination". An audience report prepared following the first episode was generally positive, though a second report after the final episode was more critical. ''The Chase'' received generally positive responses. ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the ...

''s

Maurice Richardson Maurice Richardson (1907–1978) was an English journalist and short story writer. Life and career Richardson was born to a wealthy family."Odd Man Out", Mary Manning,''Irish Times'', 4 August 1978 (p.11) Review of ''Fits and Starts''. As a ch ...

praised Hartnell's performance and noted that the television show overrode his interest in watching the film ''Dr. Who and the Daleks''. Marjorie Norris of '' Television Today'' described the final episode as "far and away the most dramatically successful" in the show's history, praising the battle between the Daleks and Mechonoids, the music and design, and the performances of Hartnell and Purves. Conversely, Philip Purser of the '' Sunday Telegraph'' described the show as "a ramshackle old serial these days" and noted that the Daleks were "fast losing their ancient menace". ''The Time Meddler'' was also well-received. ''Television Today'' Bill Edmund enjoyed the character of the Monk, but was disappointed by the lack of monsters in the serial. J. C. Trewin of '' The Listener'' enjoyed the serial, "partly because no mechanical monsters arrived and partly because the logical consequences of time-meddling were faced". William Hartnell, 1946

Retrospective reviews of the season were positive. In ''The Television Companion'' (1998), David J. Howe and Stephen James Walker found the plot of ''Planet of Giants'' to be "one of the weakest" in the series so far; they praised Hill's performance, and enjoyed Hartnell and Russell, though noted that Ford was "rather less impressive". Dave Golder of '' SFX'' (2012) described the serial as "undeniably slow, talky and lacking in excitement", particularly criticising Barbara's characterisation. Howe and Walker described ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'' as "one of the series' all-time greats", praising the "poignant and moving" final scene and impressive location filming despite some clumsy direction; in ''A Critical History of Doctor Who'' (1999),

John Kenneth Muir John Kenneth Muir (born December 3, 1969) is an American literary critic. As of 2022, he has written thirty reference books in the fields of film and television, with a particular focus on the horror and science fiction genres. Biography Bo ...

found the serial to be one of ''Doctor Who'' darkest, and praised the location shooting and the characterisation of Susan, though noted some sexism in the Doctor's final remarks and criticised the special effects. Howe and Walker described ''The Rescue'' as "one of the best examples of character-driven drama from this period of the series' history", praising the character of Vicki, though noting that some parts of the plot remained unexplained; Cliff Chapman of ''

Den of Geek ''Den of Geek'' is a US and UK-based website covering entertainment with a focus on pop culture. The website also issues a bi-annual magazine. History ''Den of Geek'' was founded in 2007 by Simon Brew in London. In 2012, DoG Tech LLC licensed ...

'' (2009) found the serial "charming" and praised the performances, writing that the serial was only let down by its resolution. In ''

The Discontinuity Guide ''The Discontinuity Guide'' is a 1995 guidebook to the serials of the original run (1963–1989) of the BBC science fiction series ''Doctor Who''. The book was written by Paul Cornell, Martin Day and Keith Topping and was first published as ''Do ...

'' (1995),

Paul Cornell Paul Douglas Cornell (born 18 July 1967) is a British writer best known for his work in television drama as well as ''Doctor Who'' fiction, and as the creator of one of the Doctor's spin-off companions, Bernice Summerfield. As well as ''Docto ...

, Martin Day, and

Keith Topping Keith Andrew Topping (born 26 October 1963 in Walker, Tyneside) is an author, journalist and broadcaster. He is most well known for his work relating to the BBC Television series ''Doctor Who'' and for writing numerous official and unofficial g ...

wrote that, in ''The Romans'', "Hartnell shows the talent that got him the part", and praised the serial's atmosphere and comedy; Chapman found that the serial "does comedy well" with "witty dialogue, character moments, slapstick, and drama". Cornell, Day, and Topping praised ''The Web Planet''s imagination and ambition, but noted that it was "slow and silly looking" by modern standards; Muir described the serial as "a noble experiment" despite its mixed execution; he praised the costumes for the Zarbi, but criticised the Menoptra suits, alien voices, blurred lens, and Strutton's unoriginal scripts. Howe and Walker called ''The Crusade'' a "magnificent story", praising Hartnell's performance in the third episode as "one of his best and most intense performances as the Doctor", and applauding the set design and incidental music; Patrick Mulkern of ''Radio Times'' (2008) said that ''The Crusade'' was "arguably the first story where every aspect of the production works to perfection". Several reviewers felt that the first episode of ''The Space Museum'' was promising, but that its quality diminished over subsequent episodes; Muir compared it favourably to ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, sup ...

'', though he felt that it was diminished by the trope of planetary revolution as previously told in ''The Daleks'' and ''The Web Planet''. Some reviewers found ''The Chase''s final episode to be its strongest, largely due to the battle between the Daleks and the Mechonoids and departure of Ian and Barbara; Cornell, Day, and Topping described the serial as "one of the most bizarre", consisting of "unconnected set pieces with only the barest remnant of a plot".

Peter Butterworth Peter William Shorrocks Butterworth (4 February 1915''Prisoner of War Co ...

's performance in ''The Time Meddler'' was lauded by critics, particularly his scenes alongside Hartnell; Mulkern of ''Radio Times'' called the serial "an utter delight" and "the ''Doctor Who'' equivalent of comfort food".

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Doctor Who (season 02) 1964 British television seasons 1965 British television seasons Black-and-white British television shows Season 02 Season 02 2