The Doctor Who Years: The Sixties (documentary)

The Doctor Who Years: The Sixties
Subject:	Seasons 1-6
Release date:	24 March 2005 (initial release) 8 April 2005 (re-upload)
Runtime:	28'06"
The Doctor Who Years
Next →	The Doctor Who Years: The Seventies

The Doctor Who Years: The Sixties was the first episode of The Doctor Who Years, a three-part musical documentary series charting the history of the "Classic Series" of Doctor Who.

It was released on the Doctor Who website on 24 March 2005, in advance of the start of the "New Series".

The style and format of the documentary was based on the BBC television series The Rock 'n' Roll Years (1984-94). It featured clips and images from every Doctor Who story, in chronological order, as well as various promotional appearances, merchandise and newspaper clippings, accompanied with tongue-in-cheek captions and scored with pop music from the UK Singles Chart at the time.

After complaints that the captions were difficult to read, it was re-uploaded on 8 April 2005 with the captions in a different font and increased in size.

Initially it was only available to stream in RealPlayer (.ram) format, then on 6 July 2005 it was made avalable in a second format, Windows Media Video (.wmv), after a website visitor survey in which RealPlayer was heavily criticised.

Missing episodes

Stories that had no surviving episodes were illustrated using material from other sources, such as censor clips, 8mm footage, The Last Dalek, CGI animation from Loose Cannon Productions, Continuity announcements and photos.

Other material featured

Other clips featured were:

• VT countdowns from An Unearthly Child & Mission to the Unknown.
• Title sequence test footage from the 1963-67 & 1967-69 sequences.
• Late Night Line-Up, TX: 25 November 1967.
• Blue Peter, TX: 20 June 1966 & TX: 27 November 1967.
• Whicker's World: A Handful of Horrors - I Don't Like My Monsters to Have Oedipus Complexes, TX: 27 January 1968.
• BBC1 ident (1969).

Press clippings featured were:

• "New TV monsters will rival the Daleks", Daily Mail, 9 April 1964.
• "In the grip of a Voord!", Daily Mail, 11 April 1964.
• "Dr. Who stars to quit - helped by Daleks", c.2 April 1965.
• Radio Times covers:
  • 22-28 February 1964.
  • 13-19 February 1965.
  • 5-11 November 1966.
  • 20-26 January 1968.

Images of the following pieces of merchandise:

• The Dalek World.
• The Dalek Pocketbook and Space Travellers Guide.
• Doctor Who in an Exciting Adventure with the Daleks.
• Doctor Who Annual 1966 including the first page of "The Fishmen of Kandalinga".

Captions

• 23 November 1963
• As the world reels in shock from the assassination of John F. Kennedy...
• a brand new family drama premiers on the BBC Television Service
• An unworldly, futuristic title sequence introduces the first episode...
• although plans to incorporate faces are dropped as they are too scary!
• William Hartnell is cast as the anti-hero who whisks 2 schoolteachers and his granddaughter to the Earth of 100,000 BC
• The series' success is assured as the dreaded Daleks make "Exterminate", the word of the moment

1964

• Early budget constraints force two episodes to be set entirely in the TARDIS with only the regular cast.
• A trip to the roof of the world in the 14th century brings a meeting with Marco Polo...
• ...and a prestigious Radio Times cover!
• Hopes that the Voord will match the popularity of the Daleks are unrealised.
• There's no accounting for viewers' taste!
• They will reappear however, in a "Doctor Who" annual.
• Meanwhile, in the Mexico of the Aztecs, the travellers discover the perils of tampering with history...
• and the Doctor has one too many cups of cocoa and becomes engaged!
• Never trust a hairy man with a stripy face.
• A new race of aliens, the Sensorites appear quite scary.
• However, they are hampered by a tendency to suffer from flat feet.
• Ex "Crazy Gang" member and "Crackerjack", stalwart Peter Glaze plays one of the Sensorites.
• The first series ends with a trip to France in the Reign of Terror.
• The programme's mix of bug-eyed monsters and historical adventure has been a great success.
• The travellers are cut down to size... as is this story, which is trimmed from four episodes to three.
• The Daleks are back!
• ...and despite a new-found ability to swim, they are foiled in their attempt to turn the Earth into a hollow, giant spaceship.
• Carole Ann Ford leaves the series.
• Her character, Susan, falls in love and marries some bloke she's only just met.
• Her unbridled happiness is evident for all to see.

1965

• Terrifying monster Koquillion actually turns out to be a man in a mask.
• Whoever would have guessed?
• Actress Maureen O'Brien joins the TARDIS crew as Vicki from the planet Dido...
• ...where the bland music comes from.
• Ecce! In picture puella est. Puella Barbara est.
• The truth about Caesar Nero's Rome is revealed, and a thousand classics teachers sigh.
• The production team blows the budget on the faultless creation of an alien world, inhabited by terrifying insect creatures.
• "Doctor Who" turns high brow, with an uncommonly literate script telling the story of King Richard's crusade.
• Jon Pertwee's then wife, Jean Marsh, plays Joanna, sister to Julian Glover's king.
• Finding themselves caught by the Moroks in a space museum, the travellers spend four episodes helping the revolting Xerons.
• They're back... and it's about time!
• The Daleks pursue the Doctor and his companions in an epic chase.
• The Beatles make a surprise guest appearance. (They're the ones in the box)
• New companion Steven Taylor, an astronaut with a cuddly panda, is played by Peter Purves.
• Ian and Barbara, played by William Russell and Jacqueline Hill, return to England in 1965.
• A meddling monk (Peter Butterworth) turns out to be one of the Doctor's own race, with his own TARDIS.
• After he is stranded in 1066, viewers have a few weeks break.
• The third series starts with the message not to trust domineering blonde women, even if they do have nice Chumblies.
• Christmas is on the horizon as Britain heaves under the weight of Dalek and "Doctor Who" merchandise.
• The first annual features stories of undeniable complexity and depth, written by first script editor David Whitaker.
• The perilous pepper pots make a brief, teasing appearance...
• ...before the crew visit ancient Troy, Steven is wounded in battle, the Doctor picks up a handmaiden called Katarina...
• ...and Vicki leaves, having fallen in love with some bloke she's only just met.
• The Daleks return for a mammoth, 12 part battle with the Doctor...
• ...who is aided by Bret Vyon (future Brigadier, Nicholas Courtney) and Sara Kingdom (Jean Marsh again).

1966

• After another trip to Paris, the Doctor picks up Dodo, a new companion, on Wimbledon common.
• This isn't her.
• This is.
• Monoids have only one eye, but great hair.
• Michael Gough is the Celestial Toymaker - an adversary so powerful that he can make the Doctor invisible...
• ...at exactly the same time that William Hartnell has to take a week off.
• Never accept sweets from strange men.
• Fortunately, most American frontier towns have a dentist.
• "The Gunfighters" is notable for its authentic and popular ballad accompaniment.
• "The Savages" is the first story to have an overall on-screen title.
• Steven leaves, apparently to rule the Elders and Savages, but really eventually to join "Blue Peter".
• Speaking of which...
• The Doctor fights WOTAN, a super computer which plans to dominate the world...
• ...by creating a network with every other computer on the planet.
• How far-fetched!
• Dodo, played by Jackie Lane, disappears off to the country.
• Luckily, gorgeous Polly and hunky Ben gatecrash the TARDIS to prevent the Doctor from becoming lonely.
• "The Smugglers" is the first ever "Doctor Who" pirate video.
• William Hartnell has been struggling with ill-health and decides to leave the series.
• 20 years in the future, "The Tenth Planet" introduces Kit Pedler's answer to the Daleks - the fearsome Cybermen!
• Viewers are stunned as the Doctor collapses and transforms into the features of Patrick Troughton.
• The new Doctor is ushered in with a re-match with the Daleks, who are planning to over-run a human colony on the planet Vulcan.
• They don't live long, and don't prosper.
• Scotland, 1745. The Doctor survives Culloden and gains another companion - Jamie, played by Frazier Hines.

1967

• Landing in Atlantis, Polly (Anneke Wills) narrowly avoids being turned into a fish.
• Mad genius, Professor Zaroff, is a master of understatement.
• Not even his pet octopus can save him.
• The Cybermen are up to no good on the moon.
• The Doctor turns the gravity of the situation against them.
• "There are no such things as Macra".
• Nevertheless, the travellers suffer from crabs in the colony's mines.
• Back on Earth, the faceless Chameleons are kidnapping humans on package tours. The perils of cheap flights!
• Ben and Polly remain on Earth when they discover it's the very same day they joined the Doctor.
• The Daleks steal the TARDIS and during his battle to defeat them, the Doctor is joined by Victoria (Deborah Watling).
• This was intended to be the very last appearance of the Daleks.
• Season 5 opens inside the Tomb of the Cybermen. Many children have nightmares.
• Big, furry and NOT friendly. The robot Yeti, servants of the Great Intelligence, trouble the monks of Det-Sen.
• Jack Watling, Deborah's father, guests as Professor Travers.
• Blue Peter's "Design a Monster" competition results in some classic creations...
• ...providing inspiration for scores of cheap sci-fi shows for years to come. But not "Doctor Who", oh no...
• The Monster season continues with the first encounter with the reptilian Ice Warriors from Mars.
• Their leader, Varga, is played by "Carry On" stalwart, Bernard Bresslaw.

1968

• Salamander is a world dictator who, completely coincidently, looks just like the Doctor.
• Patrick Troughton exercises his Mexican accent as future producer, Barry Letts, directs the first story...
• ...made on the new 625 line high definition TV standard.
• Forty years after Det-Sen, the Yeti invade the London Underground with their new web guns.
• A new character called Colonel Lethbridge-Stewart makes his first appearance.
• Despite no character actually dying in "Fury From The Deep", fear and suspense make for an unsettling, memorable tale.
• Victoria leaves to live with the Harris family, whom she had only just met.
• Cybermen attack the Wheel in Space in another attempt to invade the Earth.
• Zoë (Wendy Padbury) is keen to join the Doctor and Jamie.
• The Doctor tries to dissuade her, giving the BBC an excuse to repeat "The Evil of the Daleks" – the first complete repeat.
• TV traveller Alan Whicker meets Dalek creator, Terry Nation.
• Season 6 opens with "The Dominators". The BBC has high hopes for the robot Quarks, which are sadly unrealised.
• Future "Crossroads" actor Ronald Allen plays Dominator Rago.
• Escaping the volcanic eruption on Dulkis, the Doctor takes the TARDIS out of reality and into a land of fiction.
• Frazier Hines develops chicken pox and temporally is replaced by Hamish Wilson.
• The Cybermen invade Earth. For a change.
• The Doctor, helped by Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart and his new UNIT force, defeat them. For a change.

1969

• "The Krotons" is the first adventure from prolific writer Robert Holmes.
• Sadly, the monsters lacked direction...
• ...unlike the Ice Warriors, who try to invade the Earth from the moon.
• With man's first moon landing mere weeks away, interest in space travel is at an all-time high.
• "The Space Pirates" rides the band-wagon for all its worth. Yee-haw!
• Patrick Troughton's final story takes him with Jamie and Zoë into a 10 week battle with the War Lord.
• In the end, things are so serious that he has to call on his on people, the Time Lords, for help.
• He is put on trial for interfering with the universe and sentenced to exile on Earth in the 20th century, with a new appearance...

Music list

• "I'm Telling You Now" by Freddie & The Dreamers
• "She Loves You" by The Beatles
• "You Were Made for Me" by Freddie & The Dreamers
• "Needle & Pins" by The Searchers
• "Just One Look" by The Hollies
• "Hold Me" by P. J. Proby
• "Shout" by Lulu & The Luvvers
• "A Hard Day's Night" by The Beatles
• "Walk Tall" by Val Doonican
• "Go Now" by The Moody Blues
• "I'll Never Find Another You" by The Seekers
• "I Can't Explain" by The Who
• "Yeh Yeh" by Georgie Fame & The Blue Flames
• "Funny How Love Can Be" by The Ivy League
• "Goodbye My Love" by The Searchers
• "The Times They Are a-Changin'" by Bob Dylan
• "Ticket to Ride" by The Beatles
• "Help" by The Beatles
• "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" by The Rolling Stones
• "If You Gotta Go, Go Now" by Manfred Mann
• "Eve of Destruction" by Barry McGuire
• "Here It Comes Again" by The Fortunes
• "Sha-La-La-La-Lee" by The Small Faces
• "Substitute" by The Who
• "Paint It, Black" by The Rolling Stones
• "Wild Thing" by The Troggs
• "Out of Time" by Chris Farlowe
• "All or Nothing" by The Small Faces
• "Good Vibrations" by The Beach Boys
• "Bend It" by Dave, Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich
• "My Mind's Eye" by The Small Faces
• "I've Been a Bad, Bad Boy" by Paul Jones
• "There's a Kind of Hush (All over the World)" by Herman's Hermits
• "Mellow Yellow" by Donovan
• "Puppet on a String" by Sandie Shaw
• "Silence Is Golden" by The Tremeloes
• "Itchycoo Park" by The Small Faces
• "Flowers in the Rain" by The Move
• "Autumn Almanac" by The Kinks
• "I Can See for Miles" by The Who
• "Pictures of Matchstick Men" by Status Quo
• "Bend Me, Shape Me" by Amen Corner
• "What a Wonderful World" by Louis Armstrong
• "This Wheel's on Fire" by Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger & The Trinity
• "Tin Soldier" by The Small Faces
• "Fire" by The Crazy World of Arthur Brown
• "Jesamine" by The Casuals
• "Little Arrows" by Leapy Lee
• "Build Me Up, Buttercup" by The Foundations
• "I'm the Urban Spaceman" by The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band
• "Blackberry Way" by The Move
• "Ice in the Sun" by Status Quo
• "(If Paradise Is) Half as Nice" by Amen Corner
• "My Sentimental Friend" by Herman's Hermits
• "Dizzy" by Tommy Roe
• "Man of the World" by Fleetwood Mac
• "Nevertheless" by Eclection

External links

• The Doctor Who Years: The Sixties (archived)