Doctor Who - The Seasons

Doctor Who - The Stories

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Season 1

The Seasons

The Next Season

General
Information

Television
Stories

Audience
Appreciation

The Villains

Quote of
the Season

A Seasonal
Summary

Things to
Watch Out For

First and Last

General Information

Season Start:

23 November 1963

Season End:

12 September 1964

Season Length:

43 Weeks

Actual Weeks:

42 Weeks

Writers:

Anthony Coburn, CE Webber, David Whitaker, Dennis Spooner, John Lucarotti, Peter R Newman and Terry Nation

Directors:

Christopher Barry, Frank Cox, Henric Hirsch, John Crockett, John Gorrie, Mervyn Pinfield, Richard Martin and Waris Hussein

Producer:

Verity Lambert

Associate Producer:

Mervyn Pinfield

Story Editor:

David Whitaker

Visual Effects:

The Visual Effects Department of the BBC

Title Sequence:

Bernard Lodge

Title Music:

Ron Grainer and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. Arranged by Delia Derbyshire

Incarnation of the Doctor:

The First Doctor

Number of Companions:

The Companions:

Susan, Barbara Wright (Joins) and Ian Chesterton (Joins)

Number of Stories:

Number of Incomplete/Missing Stories:

Number of Episodes:

Number of Incomplete/Missing Episodes:

Percentages:

Full Stories Held	75%
Episodes Held	79%

Television Stories

No.	Title	Number of Episodes	Production Code	Status
1	An Unearthly Child	4	A	All Held
2	The Daleks	7	B	All Held
3	The Edge of Destruction	2	C	All Held
4	Marco Polo	7	D	None Held
5	The Keys of Marinus	6	E	All Held
6	The Aztecs	4	F	All Held
7	The Sensorites	6	G	All Held
8	The Reign of Terror	6	H	Incomplete

Audience Appreciation

Average Viewers (Millions)	8.1
The Best Story	The Edge of Destruction (10.2)
The Worst Story	An Unearthly Child (5.9)

Doctor Who Magazine Poll (1998)

Season:	67.74% (Position = 13 out of 27)
Best Story:	The Daleks (79.71%)
Worst Story:	The Sensorites (57.45%)

Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2009)

Season:	67.72% (Position = 15 out of 31)
Best Story:	The Daleks (80.51%)
Worst Story:	The Sensorites (54.06%)

Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2014)

Season:	68.76% (Position = 20 out of 36)
Best Story:	The Daleks (80.54%)
Worst Story:	The Sensorites (55.25%)

The Villains

Daleks

The Daleks

Others

Colbert (The Reign of Terror), Kal (An Unearthly Child), Tegana (Marco Polo), The Administrator (The Sensorites), The Voord (The Keys of Marinus), Tlotoxl (The Aztecs) and Yartek (The Keys of Marinus)

Quote of the Season

'It all started out as a mild curiosity in the junkyard and now it's turned out to be quite a great spirit of adventure.'

The Doctor
(The Sensorites)

A Seasonal Summary

The TARDIS Console Room

By the end of its first season, Doctor Who had proved itself a big success, due in no small part to the phenomenal impact made by the Daleks.

Despite adjustments made in the wake of the Daleks' unexpected popularity the stories of the first season had quite faithfully adhered to the format originally laid down for the series. There had been a few developments. The most notably of which was the character of The Doctor. He had mellowed considerably so that, by the end of the run, there was little doubt that he was a champion for good.

As a second season was definitely on it was decided that the last two stories made as part of the first production block were to be held back so that they could be used to launch Season Two which would be starting after only a gap of seven weeks.

Things to Watch Out For

Barbara meets a Dalek

When Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright first enter the TARDIS and find that they are not in an ordinary Police Telephone Box, but in a much larger room than is possible. Something which for Ian and Barbara was a complete shock. The same could be said for the viewers watching this first episode for the very first time in 1963 ("An Unearthly Child").

When Barbara meets a Dalek for the first time, while The Doctor and his companions are investigating an apparently deserted city. As they walk down the bare corridors eyestalks high up on the walls follow their every move. Later, separated from the others, and unknown to Barbara as she proceeds shutters are silently closing behind her. When she reaches a junction she turns only to realise that the path back to the exit is now blocked off. She panics and starts to run down the only remaining corridor. Eventually Barbara reaches a dead end and turns only to find that she is trapped by another shutter closing. As she fights for her breath and tries to calm herself a panel opens and a mechanical arm advances towards her ("The Daleks").

The Doctor and his friends fear for Susan's life when she is tempted by the Sensorites to join them in an airlock. As Susan tries to reassure her friends that she wants to go with them, so as to promote trust between them, The Doctor intervenes saying that the Sensorites must prove trust as well as demand it. The Doctor's words anger Susan and they have a fierce argument. She says she is tired of being treated like a child, but The Doctor commands her to leave the Sensorites and come to him. After a tense moment, she does so. ("The Sensorites").

High and Low Points

Threatening Daleks

The highest point must be when the first ever monster appeared in the second story. Despite the decree that there was to be no 'bug eyed monsters' the Daleks changed the future of Doctor Who forever. They proved to be so popular that they not only returned for another 4 stories with the first Doctor but throughout every other incarnation of The Doctor. It is also reported that if it was not for the success of the Daleks then the show would not have continued beyond the initial 13 episodes that were planned.

The lowest point has to be the last three episodes of the very first story. After such a terrific start and introduction to the main characters and the main theme in the first episode the first trip in the TARDIS takes the viewer in the world of the prehistoric cave man with not even a dinosaur in sight. With only the animal grunts and instincts of the tribe and the time spent trying to escape from their incarceration in a dreary cave it seemed that the show had lost its way before it had even started. Thankfully the very next story changed all that.

First and Last

The Firsts:

The very first Doctor Who story. The first episode was broadcast on 23rd November 1963. (An Unearthly Child)

The first words spoken in the show were by Barbara (to an oov Susan) "Wait in here please, Susan. I won't be long". (An Unearthly Child)

The first appearance of the Daleks. (The Daleks)

The first Doctor Who story to be written by Terry Nation. (The Daleks)

The first (and only) story to contain just the regular cast. (The Edge of Destruction)

The first Doctor Who story to be watched by more than 10 million viewers. (The Edge of Destruction)

The first truly historic Doctor Who story. (Marco Polo)

The first Doctor Who story to be completely missing from the BBC archives. (Marco Polo)

The first Doctor Who story where a companion attempts to change history. (The Aztecs)

The first time that The Doctor’s home planet of Gallifrey is mentioned (though not by name). (The Sensorites)

The first story that is only partially held. It is complete except for episodes four and five. (The Reign of Terror)

In Print

Doctor Who CMS Magazine (An Adventure in Space and Time)	Season 1 Special Release
Doctor Who Magazine - Article	Issue 113 - (Released: June 1986)
Doctor Who Magazine - Episode Guide	Issue 138 - (Released: July 1988)
Doctor Who Magazine - Countdown to 50	Issue 430 - (Released: February 2011)

Additional Stories

Title	Release Date (UK)	Format	Source	Companions
Doctor Who and the Daleks	1965	Film (Based on the TV story "The Daleks")	Aaru Production	The Doctor (Peter Cushing), Susan (Roberta Tovay), Barbara (Jennie Linden) and Ian (Roy Castle)
The Masters of Luxor	August 1992	Script	Titan Script Book	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
The Sorcerer's Apprentice	July 1995	Novel	The Missing Adventures	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
The Witch Hunters	March 1998	Novel	The Past Doctors Stories	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
The Last Days	March 1998	Short Story	Short Trips	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
City at World's End	September 1999	Novel	The Past Doctors Stories	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
Nothing at the End of the Lane	March 2000	Short Story	Short Trips and Side Steps	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
Mire and Clay	June 2003	Short Story	The Big Finish Short Trips 3: A Universe of Terrors	Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
The Thief of Sherwood	April 2004	Short Story	The Big Finish Short Trips 6: Past Tense	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
Sloth: The Duke’s Folly	March 2005	Short Story	The Big Finish Short Trips 12: Seven Deadly Sins	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
The Mother Road	March 2006	Short Story	The Big Finish Short Trips 16: Farewells	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
The Ruins of Time	September 2006	Short Story	The Big Finish Short Trips 18: Time Signature	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
Room for Improvement	June 2007	Short Story	The Big Finish Short Trips 20: Destination Prague	Ian Chesterton
Tell Me You Love Me	December 2007	Short Story	The Big Finish Short Trips 22: The Ghosts of Christmas	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
Here There be Monsters	July 2008	Audio	The Big Finish Audio Stories (Companion Chronicles)	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
Transit of Venus	January 2009	Audio	The Big Finish Audio Stories (Companion Chronicles)	Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
Farewell Great Macedon	November 2010	Audio	The Big Finish Audio Stories (The Lost Stories)	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
Fragile Yellow Arc of Fragrance	November 2010	Audio	The Big Finish Audio Stories (The Lost Stories)	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton
The Masters of Luxor	August 2012	Audio	The Big Finish Audio Stories (The Lost Stories)	Susan, Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton

Photo Gallery

The Doctor and Companions

The First Doctor

Susan

Barbara Wright

Ian Chesterton

Magazines

Doctor Who CMS Magazine (An Adventure in Space and Time): Season 1 Special Release

Doctor Who Magazine - Article: Issue 113

Doctor Who Magazine - Episode Guide: Issue 138

Doctor Who Magazine - Countdown to 50: Issue 430

Who's Who

Who Me

Episodes of the
First Doctor

The Seasons

References

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