Doctor Who (season 21)
| Doctor Who (season 21) | |
|---|---|
| Starring | |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| No. of stories | 7 |
| No. of episodes | 24 |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC One |
| Original release | 5 January – 30 March 1984 |
The twenty-first season of British science fiction television series Doctor Who began on 5 January 1984 with the 5th Doctor (Peter Davison) serial Warriors of the Deep, and ended with Colin Baker's first serial The Twin Dilemma. For only the second time (the first being during season 4), the entire TARDIS crew changed over the course of a single season.
Casting
Main cast
- Peter Davison as the Fifth Doctor
- Janet Fielding as Tegan Jovanka
- Mark Strickson as Vislor Turlough
- Gerald Flood as Voice of Kamelion
- Nicola Bryant as Peri Brown
- Colin Baker as the Sixth Doctor
The Doctor
Peter Davison makes his final appearance as the Doctor in the The Caves of Androzani. Colin Baker makes his first full appearance as the Doctor in the final serial The Twin Dilemma.
Companions
Janet Fielding (Tegan Jovanka) and Mark Strickson (Vislor Turlough) continue their roles as the Fifth Doctor's companions for their final season, Janet Fielding leaves in Resurrection of the Daleks and Mark Strickson departs in Planet of Fire. New companion Peri Brown played by Nicola Bryant makes her first appearance in Planet of Fire.
The Shape-shifting Android Companion Kamelion, played by Gerald Flood, makes his second and final appearance in Planet of Fire, though the character itself - along with other Fifth Doctor companions who left by this story (Tegan, Nyssa, Adric, and Turlough) - all make illusionary cameos as the Doctor regenerates at the climax of The Caves of Androzani.
Recurring stars
Anthony Ainley returns yet again in Planet of Fire as the Master, which was intended to be his final appearance. Ainley, like other departed fifth Doctor companions make illusionary cameos as the Doctor regenerates.
Guest stars
Davros makes his first appearance since Destiny of the Daleks this time played by Terry Molloy.
Serials
Episodes were broadcast twice weekly on Thursday and Friday evenings, with Resurrection of the Daleks broadcast on two consecutive Wednesday nights.
Resurrection of the Daleks was planned as a standard four-parter. However, the BBC's coverage of the 1984 Winter Olympics meant that Doctor Who's normal timeslot was unavailable. Rather than delay broadcasting the story, the decision was taken to produce it as a pair of double length episodes and broadcast it in the unfamiliar Wednesday timeslot.
The Caves of Androzani was the first time since Season 4's The Tenth Planet that the introduction of a new Doctor had taken place before the final serial of the season.
| Story | Serial | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | UK viewers (million)[1] | AI[1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 130 | 1 | Warriors of the Deep | Pennant Roberts | Johnny Byrne | 5 January 1984 6 January 1984 12 January 1984 13 January 1984 | 6L | 7.6 7.5 7.3 6.6 | 65 64 62 65 |
| Two rival power blocs are locked in a cold war. Under the sea, old adversaries of the Doctor's awaken, ready to take advantage of the tension and reclaim the planet Earth | ||||||||
| 131 | 2 | The Awakening | Michael Owen Morris | Eric Pringle | 19 January 1984 20 January 1984 | 6M | 7.9 6.6 | 65 63 |
| The Doctor must also face the villagers of Little Hodcombe, who have been influenced by the Malus, and save Tegan before she is burned as the ill-fated Queen of the May. | ||||||||
| 132 | 3 | Frontios | Ron Jones | Christopher H. Bidmead | 26 January 1984 27 January 1984 2 February 1984 3 February 1984 | 6N | 8.0 5.8 7.8 5.6 | 66 69 65 65 |
| Its inhabitants having fled a dying Earth, the planet Frontios is mankind’s last colony and the location of hidden dangers | ||||||||
| 133 | 4 | Resurrection of the Daleks | Matthew Robinson | Eric Saward | 8 February 1984 15 February 1984 | 6P | 7.3 8.0 | 69 65 |
| Caught in a time corridor, the TARDIS gets dragged to Earth. At the other end of the corridor, a strike force plans the prison break of the man who created the ultimate evil. | ||||||||
| 134 | 5 | Planet of Fire | Fiona Cumming | Peter Grimwade | 23 February 1984 24 February 1984 1 March 1984 2 March 1984 | 6Q | 7.4 6.1 7.4 7.0 | — |
| The Fifth Doctor and Turlough are drawn to the planet Sarn by Kamelion, where they encounter the Master in one of his diabolical plans to tap the power of the Numismaton gas. | ||||||||
| 135 | 6 | The Caves of Androzani | Graeme Harper | Robert Holmes | 8 March 1984 9 March 1984 15 March 1984 16 March 1984 | 6R | 6.9 6.6 7.8 7.8 | 65 — 65 68 |
| On the planet of Androzani Minor, the Fifth Doctor and Peri get caught in the politics and dangers of mining spectrox, the most valuable substance in the universe. | ||||||||
| 136 | 7 | The Twin Dilemma | Peter Moffatt | Anthony Steven | 22 March 1984 23 March 1984 29 March 1984 30 March 1984 | 6S | 7.6 7.4 7.0 6.3 | 61 66 59 67 |
| In a post-regenerative crisis, the Sixth Doctor takes Peri to the desolate asteroid Titan 3 planning to stay there as a hermit for 1000 years. | ||||||||
Production
During this season, the title card was slightly modified for the final serial The Twin Dilemma, and continued during Colin Baker's reign as the Sixth Doctor until the end of the season 23 14 episode epic The Trial of a Time Lord.
Broadcast
The entire season was broadcast from 5 January to 30 March 1984.
DVD Release
All season 21 serials had individual DVD release between 2002 and 2011.
| Serial name | Number and duration of episodes |
R2 release date | R4 release date | R1 release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Warriors of the Deep Only available as part of the Beneath the Surface box set in Regions 2 and 4. Available individually or in the box set in Region 1. | 4 × 25 min. | 14 January 2008 | 5 March 2008 | 3 June 2008 |
| The Awakening Only available as part of the Earthstory box set in Regions 2 and 4. Only available individually in Region 1. | 2 × 25 min. | 20 June 2011 | 4 August 2011 | 12 July 2011 |
| Frontios | 4 × 25 min. | 30 May 2011 | 7 July 2011 | 14 June 2011 |
| Resurrection of the Daleks Available individually or in The Complete Davros Collection box set in Regions 2 and 4. Only available individually in Region 1. | 4 × 25 min. (original version)[notes 1] | 18 November 2002 | 3 February 2003 | 1 July 2003 |
| Resurrection of the Daleks – Special Edition Only available as part of the Revisitations 2 box set in Regions 2 and 4. | 4 × 25 min. (original version) 2 × 46 min. (broadcast version) | 28 March 2011 | 5 May 2011 | 12 June 2012[2][3] |
| Planet of Fire Only available as part of the Kamelion Tales box set in Regions 2 and 4. Only available individually in Region 1. | 4 × 25 min. (broadcast version) 1 × 66 min. (special edition) | 14 June 2010 | 5 August 2010 | 7 September 2010 |
| The Caves of Androzani | 4 × 25 min. | 18 June 2001 | 7 January 2002 | 2 April 2002 |
| The Caves of Androzani – Special Edition Only available as part of the Revisitations 1 box set in Regions 2 and 4. | 4 × 25 min. | 4 October 2010 | 2 December 2010 | 14 February 2012[4] |
| The Twin Dilemma | 4 × 25 min. | 7 September 2009 | 3 December 2009 | 5 January 2010 |
- ↑ Resurrection of the Daleks was originally made in 4 25-minute episodes, but broadcast as 2 46-minute episodes due to the BBC's coverage of the 1984 Winter Olympics. The DVD contains the story in its intended 4-part format.
In print
| Serial name | Novelisation title | Author | First published |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warriors of the Deep | Warriors of the Deep | Terrance Dicks | 1984 |
| The Awakening | The Awakening | Eric Pringle | 1985 |
| Frontios | Frontios | Christopher H. Bidmead | 1984 |
| Resurrection of the Daleks | Never novelised^1 | ||
| Planet of Fire | Planet of Fire | Peter Grimwade | 1985 |
| The Caves of Androzani | The Caves of Androzani | Terrance Dicks | 1985 |
| The Twin Dilemma | The Twin Dilemma | Eric Saward | 1986 |
:^1 As of May 2015, Resurrection of the Daleks is one of two serials by Eric Saward never to have been novelised.
References
- 1 2 "Ratings Guide". Doctor Who News. Retrieved 27 December 2014.
- ↑ "Doctor Who: Resurrection of the Daleks – Special Edition – DVD". Bbc americashop.com. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
- ↑ "Doctor Who: Story 134 - Resurrection Of The Daleks (Special Edition): Peter Davison, Janet Fielding, Mark Strickson, Terry Molloy, Maurice Colbourne, Matthew Robinson, Eric Saward: Movies & TV". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2012-07-19.
- ↑ "Doctor Who - 1st Doctor Story 'The Sensorites' Among 5 Classic DVDs Slated for February and March". tvshowsondvd. 5 October 2011. Retrieved 6 October 2011.