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Peter Davison
Enlightenment
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Synopsis


Enlightenment
Enlightenment
 When The White Guardian appears uttering a cryptic warning of imminent danger - “The winner takes all”, The Doctor is puzzled. Then the TARDIS materialises on a pseudo-Edwardian sailing ship in the middle of a space race run by the mind-reading Eternals. The first prize? Enlightenment - ultimate wisdom to gain one’s heart’s desire. But as The Black Guardian’s evil mesh draws tight, it looks as though The Doctor might not live to cross the finishing line…

Source: BBC VHS Video


General Information

Season: Twenty
Production Code: 6H
Story Number: 127
Episode Numbers:596 - 599
Number of Episodes: 4
Percentage of Episodes Held:100%
Working Titles:"The Enlighteners"
Production Dates: November 1982 - February 1983
Broadcast Started: 01 March 1983
Broadcast Finished: 09 March 1983
Colour Status: Colour
Studio: BBC Television Centre (TC1)
Location: None
Writer:Barbara Clegg
Director:Fiona Cumming
Producer:John Nathan-Turner
Script Editor:Eric Saward
Editors:Ian McKendrick and Mitchell Boyd
Production Assistant:Patricia O'Leary
Production Associate:June Collins
Assistant Floor Managers:Ian Tootle and Val McCrimmon
Designer:Colin Green
Costume Designer:Dinah Collin
Make-Up Designers:Carolyn Perry and Jean Steward
Cameramen:John Walker and Paul Hellings-Wheeler
Lighting:Fred Wright
Visual Effects:Mike Kelt
Incidental Music:Malcolm Clarke
Special Sounds (SFX Editor):Dick Mills
Studio Sounds:Martin Ridout
Title Sequence:Sid Sutton
Title Music:Ron Grainer and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. Arranged by Peter Howell
Number of Doctors: 1
The Doctor: Peter Davison (The Fifth Doctor)
Number of Companions: 2The Companions: Janet Fielding (Tegan Jovanka) and Mark Strickson (Turlough) Guest Cast: Valentine Dyall (The Black Guardian) Additional Cast: Cyril Luckham (White Guardian), Keith Barron (Striker), Christopher Brown (Marriner), Tony Caunter (Jackson), Clive Kneller (Collier), James McClure (First Officer), Lynda Baron (Wrack), Leee John (Mansell)Setting: Eternal ships in the solar system, orbiting Venus Villains:Mansell, The Black Guardian and Wrack

The Episodes

No. Episodes Broadcast
(UK)
Duration Viewers
(Millions)
In Archive
596Part 101 March 198324'12"6.6PAL 2" colour videotape
597Part 202 March 198324'23"7.2PAL 2" colour videotape
598Part 308 March 198324'40"6.2PAL 2" colour videotape
599Part 409 March 198324'34"7.3PAL 2" colour videotape

Total Duration 1 Hour 38 Minutes


Audience Appreciation

Average Viewers (Millions) 6.8
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (1998)71.16%  (Position = 59 out of 159)
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2003)317 Points (Position = 48 out of 159)
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2009)73.22% Higher (Position = 72 out of 200)
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2014)75.67% Higher (Position = 75 out of 241)
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2023) Position = 5 out of 20


Archives


 All four episodes exist as PAL 2" colour videotapes.



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Notes


This story completes "The Black Guardian Trilogy" of stories and contains the return of The White Guardian as well as The Black Guardian.

"The Black Guardian Trilogy" is the third "trilogy" during John Nathan-Turner’s time as producer - the first two being the E-Space adventures in Season Eighteen and the Season Eighteen to Season Nineteen bridge of The Master stories.

As with every story, during Season Twenty, "Enlightenment" also featured an enemy from The Doctor’s past. For this trilogy (begun in, "Mawdryn Undead", and continued in the previous story, "Terminus"), the enemy was The Black Guardian, who last faced the Fourth Doctor at the conclusion of The Key to Time saga in the 1979 story "The Armageddon Factor".

In "Mawdryn Undead" The Black Guardian enlisted the help of stranded alien Vislor Turlough to wage vengeance on The Doctor for his earlier crime of sabotaging his plans to obtain The Key to Time. In "Terminus" The Black Guardian persuaded Turlough to sabotage the TARDIS forcing Nyssa to board a spaceship transporting sufferers of a deadly disease to "Terminus". This story concludes with The Doctor and Tegan Jovanka finally discovering that Turlough has been working for The Black Guardian.

This story was written by Barbara Clegg - a veteran scriptwriter for BBC Radio. Her television experience was limited when she was originally invited to submit ideas for Doctor Who back in 1981.

Script Editor Eric Saward subsequently decided to use Barbara Clegg’s adventure (which had the working title "The Enlighteners") as the concluding part of "The Black Guardian Trilogy", which saw the return of The Black Guardian and the introduction of new companion Turlough. This meant that Eric Saward had to carry out a number of revisions to Barbara Clegg’s original scripts, including the insertion of The Black Guardian and The White Guardian in place of her Enlighteners. Eric Saward also wrapped up the ongoing Turlough subplot. Originally it had been thought that the character might not continue beyond this story. However, it was decided that he should be retained as a regular companion. Due to these changes and now that there were no longer any Enlighteners as such, Eric Saward decided to rename this story to "Enlightenment".

The director assigned to this story was Fiona Cumming, who had just completed work on "Snakedance".

This is the only televised Doctor Who story to date to have been both written and directed by women, Barbara Clegg and Fiona Cumming respectively.

Production got under way with the recording of film inserts during November 1982. However the studio sessions which had been booked for the end of November and the beginning of December had to be cancelled due to an electricians’ strike.

This strike had already resulted in the loss of a full studio day for the preceding story, "Terminus". With the BBC more concerned with getting their Christmas programming ready for the holidays, the following story "Enlightenment" lost all of its booked studio sessions.

It appeared for some time that the whole second half of Season Twenty - "Enlightenment", "The King's Demons", and Eric Saward’s own Dalek adventure (variously called "The Return" or "Warhead") - would also have to be shelved. However, with the resolution of the strike, during the middle of December, it finally became possible to place "Enlightenment" back on the recording schedule. Ultimately, it was decided to start recording this story in January, in the slots originally intended for Eric Saward’s story, which would now be held back until Season Twenty One.

This delay meant that cast members Keith Barron and Leee John replaced originally-cast actors Peter Sallis and David Rhule, respectively, due to them being unavailable for the alternative recording sessions.

Valentine Dyall made his final appearance as The Black Guardian, and was joined by Cyril Luckham as The White Guardian, the role he originated in the 1979 Fourth Doctor story "The Ribos Operation". This story marked the final Doctor Who appearance for both actors, although Valentine Dyall did play Slarn in the BBC Radio 4 story "Slipback", made shortly before his death in 1985. Cyril Luckham passed away in February 1989.

Dolore Whiteman (who had played Tegan’s Aunt Vanessa in the 1981 Fourth Doctor story "Logopolis") did a special photocall to provide the photograph seen in Tegan’s cabin.

Guest star Lynda Baron, who played Captain Wrack, first appeared in Doctor Who in the 1966 First Doctor story "The Gunfighters", for which she recorded the song "The Ballad of the Last Chance Saloon".

Tony Caunter, who played Jackson, previously played the part of Thatcher in the 1965 First Doctor story "The Crusade" and Morgan in the 1971 Third Doctor story "Colony in Space".

The incidental music used for Captain Wrack’s party was originally written by Malcolm Clarke for closing theme from BBC Radio 3’s Borges at 80 and can be found on the Radiophonic Workshop’s Soundhouse LP. The track is called "The Milonga".

Striker’s ship was unnamed in the original scripts, but a name had to be created for use on the crew’s jerseys, uniforms and life belts.

It is revealed that the Eternals look and behave like whatever their human subjects want them to. Enlightenment, which the Guardians have promised them, is the knowledge of everything in the universe, and thus ultimate power.

At the end of this story, The Doctor is seen swapping the stick of celery, he wears on his lapel, from the one he obtained in "Castrovalva" - he selects a new piece from the buffet at the party on Captain Wrack’s ship. Rather curiously, both celery stalks come from buffets which are essentially figments of other people's imagination (Castrovalva and the Shadow both being 'unreal') - although this may explain why the celery never goes off and why it doesn’t revive Peri in "The Caves of Androzani". Although The Doctor explains the latter point by saying that it is a feeble restorative for humans, rather than a powerful one as it is for Gallifreyans.

This story contains a number of errors. Namely: In the first episode when the ship experiences turbulence, the liquid in the glasses doesn’t; In some scenes in the third episode Turlough is wearing a wedding ring, which is absent for most of the story; As the First Mate, Marriner should have three stripes, not two.

Although the dialogue in which he gives the information is inaudible, the script (or lip-reading his initial message) makes it clear that The White Guardian’s mission is for The Doctor to stop Captain Wrack winning the race, which would have devastating consequences for the whole universe.

Strangely the cliffhangers and reprises between episodes Two and Three and Three and Four do not match: Episode two ends with Turlough climbing onto the railing and jumping off, with The Doctor shouting ‘NO!’. The next episode, however, begins with Turlough climbing onto the railing with The Doctor shouting ‘Don't be an idiot! Before Turlough jumps off. Then when Captain Wrack freezes Tegan at the end of episode three, her eyes are wide open, yet when she is unfrozen again at the beginning of episode four, her eyes are shut.

The story was found to be running short during rehearsals, so an additional one and a half minutes was written for the first episode and an additional two minutes for episode two.

An article by Russell T Davies in The Doctor Who Annual 2006 refers to the Eternals in connection with the Time War mentioned in Season Tewnty Seven (New Series 1). The article states that the Eternals were involved in a previous Time War with the Halldons, a powerful race first mentioned in "We are the Daleks", an article by Terry Nation from the Radio Times 10th Anniversary Special in 1973. Russell T Davies’ article also states that the Eternals watched the Great (and final) Time War between the Time Lords and the Daleks, and ‘despaired of this reality, and fled their hallowed halls, never to be seen again’.

The Eternals are briefly mentioned in the Tenth Doctor stories "Army of Ghosts/Doomsday" (2006) and "The Shakespeare Code" (2007), where they are said to have been the ones to banish the Carrionites from the universe at the dawn of time. They occasionally feature in the Virgin Books’ The New Adventures and the BBC Books’ The Past Doctors Stories novels, which also delve into their origins, particularly in "The Quantum Archangel" by Craig Hinton. They also appear in the Big Finish Productions Bernice Summerfield audio adventure "The Heart’s Desire" and the Doctor Who Magazine comic strip "Uninvited Guest". Both Guardians also appear in the Big Finish Productions Fifth Doctor audio stories "The Destroyer of Delights" and "The Chaos Pool".

A novelisation of this story, written by Barbara Clegg, was published by Target Books in May 1984. It was the first novelisation of the Target Doctor Who range to be written by a woman.

This story was released on DVD in August 2009 as part of "The Black Guardian Trilogy" Box Set. This particular story was released as a two disc set. The second DVD was a Special Edition movie-length feature, with an introduction by director Fiona Cummings, new CGI, a 5.1 remix and 16:9 widescreen.



First and Last

The Firsts:

 The first Doctor Who story to be written by Barbara Clegg.

 The first Doctor Who story that has been both written and directed by women.


The Lasts (Subject to Future Stories):

 The last story of the "The Black Guardian Trilogy" mini-series


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Story Images

Show Text
Inside the TARDIS
Inside the TARDIS
The Doctor
The Doctor
Turlough
Turlough
Aboard the Shadow
Aboard the Shadow
 
Captain Striker
Captain Striker
The Doctor Meets Captain Wrack
The Doctor Meets Captain Wrack
Tegan and Captain Wrack
Tegan and Captain Wrack
Turlough Inside the Ion Chamber
Turlough Inside the Ion Chamber
 
Turlough In Trouble
Turlough In Trouble
An Angry Black Guardian
An Angry Black Guardian
Black and White
Black and White
The End of the Black Guardian
The End of the Black Guardian




Quote of the Story


 'The wisdom which knows all things and which will enable me to achieve what I desire most. Do not ask what it is; I will not tell you.'

Captain Striker



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Release Information

FormatTitleRelease Date (UK)Code NumberCover ArtRemarks
Audio
LP
Doctor Who: The Music II1985REC 552Music score
Audio
Tape
Doctor Who: The Music II1985Music score
Audio
CD
Doctor Who - The Five Doctors - Classic Music From The BBC Radiophonic Workshop Volume 21992FLMCD 710Alister PearsonMusic score
Video
VHS
EnlightenmentFebruary 1993BBCV 4891Andrew Skilleter
Video
DVD
EnlightenmentAugust 2009BBCDVD 2596Photo-montagePart of "The Black Guardian Trilogy" Box Set Released along with "Mawdryn Undead" and "Terminus"
Video
Blu-Ray
Doctor Who: The Collection - Season 20 (Limited Edition)September 2023BBCBD 0515Photo-montageBlu-Ray Limited Edition boxed set containing 7 specially restored stories


In Print

FormatTitleRelease Date (UK)PublisherAuthorCover ArtRemarks
Novel
Novel
EnlightenmentMay 1984Target No. 85Barbara CleggAndrew SkilleterISBN: 0-426-19537-X
Novel
Novel
Enlightenment1984Target No. 85Barbara CleggBook: Andrew Skilleter
Box: Photo
Re-released as part of The Sixth Doctor Who Gift Set
ISBN: 0-426-19609-0
Doctor Who CMS Magazine (In Vision)Issue 67 (Released: September 1996)
Doctor Who Monthly - ReviewIssue 81 (Released: October 1983)
Doctor Who Magazine - ArchiveIssue 121 (Released: February 1987)
Doctor Who Magazine - ArchiveIssue 186 (Released: May 1992)
Doctor Who Magazine - Time TeamIssue 381 (Released: May 2007)
Doctor Who Magazine - The Fact of FictionIssue 458 (Released: April 2013)
Doctor Who DVD FilesVolume 57 (Released: March 2011)

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Photo Gallery


The Doctor and Companions

 
Peter Davison
The Fifth Doctor

   

Janet Fielding
Tegan Jovanka
 
Mark Strickson
Turlough
   




On Release

Audio LP - Doctor Who: The Music II
Audio LP - Doctor Who: The Music II

BBC
AUDIO
Audio Tape - Doctor Who: The Music II
Audio Tape - Doctor Who: The Music II

BBC
AUDIO
Doctor Who - The Five Doctors CD Cover
Doctor Who - The Five Doctors CD Cover

Silva Screen
AUDIO
   
VHS Video Cover
VHS Video Cover

BBC
VIDEO
DVD Cover
DVD Cover

BBC
VIDEO
The Collection Season 20 Limited Edition Blu-Ray Cover
The Collection Season 20 Limited Edition Blu-Ray Cover

BBC
VIDEO
   


In Print

Target Book Cover
Target Book Cover

Target
NOVEL
 
The Sixth Doctor Who Gift Set
The Sixth Doctor Who Gift Set

Target
NOVEL
   


Magazines

Doctor Who CMS Magazine (In Vision): Issue 67
Doctor Who CMS Magazine (In Vision): Issue 67

CMS
Doctor Who Monthly - Review: Issue 81
Doctor Who Monthly - Review: Issue 81

Marvel Comics
Doctor Who Magazine - Archive: Issue 121
Doctor Who Magazine - Archive: Issue 121

Marvel Comics
Doctor Who Magazine - Archive: Issue 186
Doctor Who Magazine - Archive: Issue 186

Marvel Comics
   
Doctor Who Magazine - Time Team: Issue 381
Doctor Who Magazine - Time Team: Issue 381

Marvel Comics
Doctor Who Magazine - The Fact of Fiction: Issue 458
Doctor Who Magazine - The Fact of Fiction: Issue 458

Marvel Comics
Doctor Who DVD Files: Volume 57
Doctor Who DVD Files: Volume 57

GE Fabbri


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