The tenth season of Doctor Who ran between 30 December 1972 and 23 June 1973. It starred Jon Pertwee as the Third Doctor. The tenth anniversary story The Three Doctors aired during this season.
- You may wish to consult
Series 10for other, similarly-named pages.
Overview
The season consisted of five serials and twenty-six episodes. William Hartnell returned in a cameo as the First Doctor and Patrick Troughton in a more substantial role as the Second Doctor in The Three Doctors. This story marked the end of the Doctor's exile on Earth, opening up the series to more off-world adventures and beginning a gradual reduction of UNIT-related stories. Jo Grant left this season, becoming the first companion to appear for three complete seasons. Roger Delgado made his final appearance in the role of the Master in Frontier in Space. Owing to the actor's accidental death, the Master never had a proper send-off and would not return as a semi-regular character until 1981.
Television stories
| # | Title | Writer | Episodes | Notes |
| 1 | The Three Doctors | Bob Baker Dave Martin |
4 | First appearance of the Second Doctor since 1969 and the First Doctor since 1966; final performance of William Hartnell as the Doctor (seen only as an image on video screens). The Doctor's exile lifted by the Time Lords. First appearance of Omega. |
| 2 | Carnival of Monsters | Robert Holmes | 4 | Ian Marter guest-stars in a role other than Harry Sullivan. |
| 3 | Frontier in Space | Malcolm Hulke | 6 | Final performance of Roger Delgado as the Master. First appearance of the refitted sonic screwdriver model which would be used by the Doctor until The Visitation. |
| 4 | Planet of the Daleks | Terry Nation | 6 | First Daleks script written by Terry Nation since 1965. |
| 5 | The Green Death | Robert Sloman Barry Letts (uncredited) |
6 | Final regular appearance of Jo Grant. First appearance of the planet Metebelis III and the Metebelis crystal. |
Cast
Recurring
- Dr. Who - Patrick Troughton
- Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart - Nicholas Courtney
- Sergeant Benton - John Levene
- Mike Yates - Richard Franklin
- The Master - Roger Delgado
- Dalek Voice - Roy Skelton, Michael Wisher
Guest
- Dr. Who - William Hartnell
- Omega - Stephen Thorne
- Dr Tyler - Rex Robinson
- Mr Ollis - Laurie Webb
- President of the Council - Roy Purcell
- Major Daly - Tenniel Evans
- John Andrews - Ian Marter
- Vorg - Leslie Dwyer
- Shirna - Cheryl Hall
- Pletrac - Peter Halliday
- Kalik - Michael Wisher
- President of Earth - Vera Fusek
- General Williams - Michael Hawkins
- Draconian prince - Peter Birrel
- Professor Dale - Harold Goldblatt
- Draconian Emperor - John Woodnutt
- Taron - Bernard Horsfall
- Vaber - Prentis Hancock
- Codal - Tim Preece
- Rebec - Jane How
- Latep - Alan Tucker
- Wester - Roy Skelton
- Stevens - Jerome Willis
- Clifford Jones - Stewart Bevan
- Elgin - Tony Adams
- Ted Hughes - John Scott Martin
- Dai Evans - Mostyn Evans
- Bert - Roy Evans
- Dave - Talfryn Thomas
- BOSS - John Dearth
Stories set during this season
- PROSE: The Wages of Sin (immediately after The Three Doctors)
- PROSE: The Suns of Caresh (after Carnival of Monsters)
- AUDIO: The Many Deaths of Jo Grant (Between Carnival of Monsters and Frontier in Space)
- PROSE: Catastrophea (immediately after Planet of the Daleks)
- PROSE: Dancing the Code (between Planet of the Daleks and The Green Death)
- PROSE: Speed of Flight (after Dancing the Code)
- PROSE: Last of the Gaderene (between Planet of the Daleks and The Green Death)
- AUDIO: The Prisoner of Peladon (between The Green Death and The Time Warrior)
- AUDIO: The Transcendence of Ephros (sometime after Planet of the Daleks)
Adaptations and merchandising
Home media
VHS
- The Three Doctors (1991/2002)
- Carnival of Monsters (1995)
- Frontier in Space (1995)
- Planet of the Daleks (1999) (episode 3 in B/W)
- The Green Death (1996)
- The Pertwee Years (1992) (Frontier in Space episode 6)
DVD
All serials of season 10 were released individually on DVD in between 2002 and 2009.
| Serial name | Number and duration of episodes |
R2 release date | R4 release date | R1 release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Three Doctors | 4 × 25 min. | 24 November 2003 | 12 November 2003 | 2 March 2004 |
| The Three Doctors – Special Edition Only available as part of the Revisitations 3 box set in Regions 2 and 4. Only available individually in Region 1. |
4 × 25 min. | 13 February 2012 | 1 March 2012 | 13 March 2012 |
| Carnival of Monsters | 4 × 25 min. | 15 July 2002 | 2 September 2002 | 1 July 2003 |
| Carnival of Monsters – Special Edition Only available as part of the Revisitations 2 box set in Regions 2 and 4. Only available individually in Region 1. |
4 × 25 min. | 28 March 2011 | 5 May 2011 | 10 April 2012 |
| Dalek War: Frontier in Space (6 episodes) Planet of the Daleks (6 episodes) |
12 × 25 min. | 5 October 2009 | 4 February 2010 | 2 March 2010 |
| The Green Death | 6 × 25 min. | 10 May 2004 | 5 August 2004 | 1 March 2005 |
Download/streaming availability
| Serial name | Amazon Video | BritBox | iTunes |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Three Doctors (4 episodes) |
UK, US | ✓ | ✓ |
| Carnival of Monsters (4 episodes) |
UK, US | ✓ | Except France, Germany |
| Frontier in Space (6 episodes) |
✓ | ||
| Planet of the Daleks | |||
| The Green Death (6 episodes) |
UK | ✓ | ✓ |
BritBox is available only in the US. iTunes stores carry Doctor Who serials in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the UK and US, unless stated otherwise.