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Tom Baker
The Invasion of Time
Fourth Doctor Logo


Synopsis


The Sontarans Invade the Citadel
The Sontarans Invade the Citadel
 The Doctor is behaving very oddly. After signing a treaty with enemy aliens, he returns to his home planet, Gallifrey, and demands the Presidency of the High Council of Time Lords. His first act of rule is to banish Leela to the wastelands on pain of death. His second is to sabotage the planet’s defence barriers, enabling full scale invasion.

 Why has The Doctor joined forces with the militaristic Vardans? Is he out for revenge against the Time Lords? Or does he have a hidden agenda? But his allies are also hiding a dark secret, for behind them is a familiar enemy waiting for the right moment to attack…

Source: BBC DVD


General Information

Season: Fifteen
Production Code: 4Z
Story Number: 97
Episode Numbers:474 - 479
Number of Episodes: 6
Percentage of Episodes Held:100%
Working Titles:"The Invaders of Time"
Production Dates: November - December 1977
Broadcast Started: 04 February 1978
Broadcast Finished: 11 March 1978
Colour Status: Colour
Studio: Bray Studios, Slough and BBC Television Centre (TC8)
Location: Beachfields Quarry and St Anne's Hospital (Redhill, Surrey) and British Oxygen (Blacks Road, Hammersmith, London).
Writer:David Agnew (Pseudonym for Graham Williams and Anthony Read)
Director:Gerald Blake
Producer:Graham Williams
Script Editor:Anthony Read
Editor:Chris Wimble
Production Assistant:Colin Dudley
Production Unit Manager:John Nathan-Turner
Assistant Floor Managers:Romey Allison and Terry Winders
Designer:Barbara Gosnold
Costume Designer:Dee Kelly
Make-Up Designer:Maureen Winslade
Cameramen:Ken Westbury, Alan Hayward (Outside Broadcast) and David Goutier (Outside Broadcast)
Lighting:Mike Jefferies
Visual Effects:Colin Mapson and Richard Conway
Incidental Music:Dudley Simpson
Special Sounds (SFX Editor):Dick Mills
Studio Sounds:Anthony Philpott
Title Sequence:Bernard Lodge
Title Music:Ron Grainer and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. Arranged by Delia Derbyshire
Number of Doctors: 1
The Doctor: Tom Baker (The Fourth Doctor)
Number of Companions: 2The Companions: Louise Jameson (Leela) (Departs) and John Leeson (voice only) (K9 Mk I) (Departs) Additional Cast: Christopher Tranchell (Andred), John Arnatt (Borusa), Milton Johns (Kelner), Reginald Jessup (Lord Savar), Hilary Ryan (Rodan), Charles Morgan (Gold Usher), Christopher Christou (Guard), Dennis Edwards (Lord Gomer), Ray Callaghan (Ablif), Michael Mundell (Jasko), Michael Harley (Bodyguard), Max Faulkner (Nesbin), Gai Smith (Presta), Eric Danot (Castellan Guard), Derek Deadman (Stor), Stan McGowan (Vardan), Tom Kelly (Vardan), Stuart Fell (Sontaran)Setting: Gallifrey Villains: Sontarans and Vardans

The Episodes

No. Episodes Broadcast
(UK)
Duration Viewers
(Millions)
In Archive
474Part 104 February 197825'00"11.2PAL 2" colour videotape
475Part 211 February 197825'00"11.4PAL 2" colour videotape
476Part 318 February 197825'00"9.5PAL 2" colour videotape
477Part 425 February 197823'31"10.9PAL 2" colour videotape
478Part 504 March 197825'00"10.3PAL 2" colour videotape
479Part 611 March 197825'44"9.8PAL 2" colour videotape

Total Duration 2 Hours 29 Minutes


Audience Appreciation

Average Viewers (Millions) 10.5
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (1998)65.14%  (Position = 99 out of 159)
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2009)60.73% Lower (Position = 155 out of 200)
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2014)61.47% Higher (Position = 188 out of 241)
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2023) Position = 36 out of 41


Archives


 All six episodes exist as PAL 2" colour videotapes.



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Notes


"The Invasion of Time" was written by Producer Graham Williams and Script Editor Anthony Read, using the Pseudonym ‘David Agnew’, as a replacement for a cancelled story called "The Killers of the Dark" by David Weir, which was considered too expensive and complex to shoot. The script for "The Invasion of Time" was written in just two weeks, with four days for rewrites, and was based on an outline by the two authors. Additionally, when asked about the unused script at a convention, Graham Williams, inadvertently referred to "The Killers of the Dark" as "The Killer Cats of Gin Sengh" resulting in the fan myth that this was the original title.

It was Robert Holmes who suggested to Graham Williams that this story be split into two segments, the first four episodes being based around the Vardans and the final two episodes being based around the Sontarans who come into the story at the end of the fourth episode.

This story features the final appearances of Louise Jameson as the companion Leela and K9 Mark I (played by John Leeson, who would appear again in the next season as K9 Mark II).

Leela remains on Gallifrey in the conclusion of this story - having fallen in love with Chancellery Guard Andred. Louise Jameson had been invited to continue her role but despite Louise Jameson’s assurances that she was not interested in returning for Season Sixteen, Graham Williams remained optimistic that he could change her mind – hence the rather contrived exit.

Louise Jameson, reportedly wished for Leela to be killed at the end of the season, and was disappointed that Leela instead opted to stay behind on Gallifrey with Andred, even though nothing in the script suggested a romance between the two characters. The producers had actually contemplated killing Leela off (a development also mooted for "The Sun Makers" earlier in the year) but had decided that killing off this character would be too traumatic for younger viewers and to do so in "The Invasion of Time" would be too much of a pessimistic way to end the season.

Despite The Doctor again referring to K9 as ‘my second best friend’ the K9 prop did not function well, and so it was agreed that K9 Mark I would be written out at the season’s end. For a brief time, consideration was given to parting ways with K9 altogether, but it was soon decided that his departure would actually provide an excuse to introduce an improved version of the prop, and the final scene of this story was written to reassure viewers that K9 Mark II would debut in Season Sixteen.

Though Leela and K9 Mark I left The Doctor in this story, their characters would return in the Virgin New Adventures novel "Lungbarrow" by Marc Platt, and encounter the Seventh Doctor. During the course of the book it is revealed that Leela is pregnant with the first child to be born on Gallifrey for millennia. Louise Jameson and John Leeson also returned to play Leela and K9 in the 2003 Eighth Doctor audio story "Zagreus" and in the Gallifrey series of audio plays by Big Finish Productions. In the story "Gallifrey: Insurgency", Leela gives a lecture about the Sontaran Invasion.

This therefore was Louise Jameson’s final ongoing onscreen appearance; she did however, reprise the role of Leela in the Thirtieth-Anniversary Children In Need special "Dimensions in Time", in 1993. Following her departure, Louise Jameson went on to a successful stage and television career including: The Omega Factor, Tenko, Bergerac and EastEnders.

In his next on-screen visit to his home planet, The Doctor is heard to ask after Leela: ‘Tell me, what of my former companion Leela?’ He is informed that she is ‘well and happy’.

Milton Johns (who plays Kelner) previously appeared as Theodore Benik in the 1967/68 Second Doctor story "The Enemy of the World" and as Guy Crayford in "The Android Invasion". This story marks Milton Johns’ final appearance in Doctor Who.

The character Borusa returned, now a Chancellor, although with a different actor. Angus Mackay, who had played Borusa in "The Deadly Assassin", was unavailable for the recording of this story and so the role now went to John Arnatt - beginning a tradition of Borusa never being played by the same actor twice.

As with "Underworld", "The Invasion of Time" was also allocated gallery-only days to finish the effects work and other post-production requirements. This would now become the norm for Doctor Who in future seasons.

An industrial strike, which was eventually resolved before production, forced the studio sets to be constructed within St Anne's Hospital, at Redhill in Surrey, as the BBC’s Christmas holiday specials were given priority in the regular studios.

As a result of the industrial strike, Graham Williams had been given the option of not producing the final six episodes of this season and have the money rollover into the next season. Graham Williams however, rejected this because of the additional problem of inflation that year and he didn’t want the budgeted money to depreciate even further.

This story is one of the few to contain an extended sequence inside the TARDIS (the most previously shown story being the 1964 First Doctor story "The Edge of Destruction"). The majority of the final two episodes comprising a chase inside the TARDIS, which appears to have extensive brick-walled areas rather than following the established white-and-roundel designs in place since 1963.

Among the TARDIS rooms glimpsed are a swimming pool (described by The Doctor as a bathroom), a changing room, an ancillary power station disguised as an art gallery, a sick bay, and various brick walled storage areas and corridors.

The traditional white-and-roundel design returned in subsequent stories. The next time viewers were given a major tour of the TARDIS would be in the 1982 Fifth Doctor story "Castrovalva".

The TARDIS pool would be seen again in the 1987 Seventh Doctor story "Paradise Towers". It was also referenced in the 2010 Eleventh Doctor stories "The Eleventh Hour" and "Amy's Choice".

The paintings seen in the art gallery include "The Fighting Temarere", Van Eyck's "Jan Arnolfini and His Wife" and Chagall's "Snail"' - The Doctor also has the "Venus de Milo".

There are many references to the 1976 story "The Deadly Assassin" including a number of Gallifreyan artefacts formerly belonging to Rassilon. These include: The Sash of Rassilon, The Rod of Rassilon, The Great Key of Rassilon and The Coronet of Rassilon. All (except for The Great Key of Rassilon) are Artefacts of Rassilon entrusted to the Gallifreyan President when they are elected. The Great Key of Rassilon is held in the Chancellor’s custody so that no President would have access to absolute power (it is also used to arm the De-Mat gun that The Doctor has Rodan build).

The President gains access to the Matrix (of which the APC net is only a small part: "The Deadly Assassin" implies it’s the other way round) via a coronet. He becomes part of the Matrix and it part of him – hence why The Doctor seems to be more knowledgeable afterwards than in his earlier incarnations.

From the design on the cover to the Eye of Harmony, rebuilt since "The Deadly Assassin", Gallifrey seems to be one of six planets circling a single sun. Gallifrey's sky is orange (see "The Sensorites"). Gallifrey has transduction barriers and a quantum force field to prevent attack. Dematerialising things is also forbidden (see "The War Games") and the Capitol is a section of the Citadel.

In "The Deadly Assassin" those who live outside the Citadel are known as ‘ Shabogans’. However, in this story Gallifreyans living outside are referred to as ‘The Outsiders’. Nesbin is heard to state that they are Time Lords who rejected the Capitol’s effete life.

Since "The Deadly Assassin" The Castellan has changed from being a senior ‘policeman’, with few dealings with Time Lords, into a minister of state.

Many fans have questioned why Leela was allowed to go to Gallifrey (and then stay there!) while Sarah Jane Smith wasn’t.

Rodan is the first female Gallifreyan to appear on screen since Susan - who travelled with her grandfather, the First Doctor, (from the 1963 story "An Unearthly Child" until the 1964 story "The Dalek Invasion of Earth").

The Vardans can travel along any broadcast wavelength and are telepathic. Their planet has the co-ordinates 3052 alpha 7, 14th span. The Doctor uses modulation rejection patterns to defeat them and plans to ‘jury rig’ a time loop for their planet (see "Image of the Fendahl").

The Vardans also appeared in the Virgin Books’ The New Adventures novel "No Future", by Paul Cornell, in which Bernice Summerfield refers to this story by dismissing them as ‘the only race in history to be outwitted by the intellectual might of the Sontarans’.

The Sontarans return in this story, making it their third appearance in the show. Their last (save flashbacks) until the 1985 Sixth Doctor story "The Two Doctors".

The Sontaran army ‘reckons its numbers in hundreds of millions’. The Doctor says they can multiply at a rate of a million every four minutes.

In this story The Sontarans have reverted to having three fingers on each hand rather than five as in "The Sontaran Experiment".

The Sontaran costumes were cumbersome and limited the field of vision of the actors wearing them, so much so that they are often seen tripping through and over props. One classic instance of this has a Sontaran (ironically played by actor Stuart Fell) nearly taking a fall after missing a short jump and landing on a pool chair. However, the Sontaran’s clumsiness is explained by them having originated on a planet of notably high gravity.

This story includes one of the few times in the show that The Doctor directly kills anyone. He uses the De-mat Gun to disintegrate the Sontaran warriors. This is unusual given that the Fourth Doctor has a particular and stated aversion to firearms.

In the TARDIS bathroom, Borusa shows The Doctor a newspaper with a headline about the sinking of RMS Titanic, with which The Doctor denies having had anything to do with. The climax of the Virgin Books’ The New Adventures novel "The Left-Handed Hummingbird", featuring the Seventh Doctor, takes place during the sinking. In the 2005 Ninth Doctor story "Rose," it is implied that The Doctor prevented a family from boarding the RMS Titanic at Southampton, and the 2007 story "Voyage of the Damned" has the Tenth Doctor arriving on a spaceship replica of this famous ship.

In the Virgin Books’ The New Adventures novel, "Timewyrm: Genesys", it is revealed that during the events of the story The Doctor uses the Matrix to send a message to his future self about the Timewyrm, a recurring villain from the novels.

The Doctor signs his treaty with the Vardans with a red biro.

Whilst in the TARDIS The Doctor offers K9 his jelly baby bag asking ‘ball bearing?’.

This story includes two rare moments where Tom Baker directly addresses the camera. The Doctor breaks the fourth wall at the end of this story, by looking directly at the camera and smiling to the audience. He also breaks it earlier in the story, when trying to open the secret door in Borusa’s office, saying ‘Even the sonic screwdriver won't get me out of this one!’ to the audience. He had previously broken the fourth wall in "Underworld" in much the same manner.

Other than K9 Mark II, The Doctor is without companions at the end of the story, making the period between this story and the next ("The Ribos Operation"), one of the few plausible spots during the show’s run which allows for placement of any number of additional Doctor Who stories in literature, audio, or comics.

The character Lord Savar is mentioned in the BBC Books’ The Eighth Doctor Stories novel "Seeing I" and is seen in BBC Books’ Past Doctor Stories novel "The Infinity Doctors.

The Doctor assuming the Presidency is a direct consequence of putting himself up for the position as a ploy in "The Deadly Assassin". The Doctor is again offered the position of President (and accepts, though reluctantly and evasively) in the 1983 Twentieth Anniversary special "The Five Doctors".

Gallifrey is invaded again in the Big Finish Productions Sixth Doctor audio story "The Apocalypse Element" that was released in August 2000.

Following transmission of this story it was felt that it had contained too high a level of humour, resulting in a lack of credibility in Stor and a lack of dramatic tension. It was therefore agreed that in future any humour in the programme should counterpoint and strengthen the story rather than undermine and weaken it. Despite this the humorous trend continued until Graham Williams’ tenure as Producer came to an end in 1979.



First and Last

The Firsts:

 The first Doctor Who story to be written under the pseudonym of David Agnew.


The Lasts (Subject to Future Stories):

 The last story of Season Fifteen.

 Louise Jameson's last story as companion Leela.

 The last story for K9 Mark I.


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Story Images

Show Text
Welcoming Guards
Welcoming Guards
Leela Helps The Doctor
Leela Helps The Doctor
Borusa and The Doctor
Borusa and The Doctor
Rodan
Rodan
 
The Vardans Arrive
The Vardans Arrive
The Vardans Revealed
The Vardans Revealed
Leela in the Wastelands
Leela in the Wastelands
Castellan Kelner
Castellan Kelner
 
Stor
Stor
K9 Wearing the Sash of Rassilon
K9 Wearing the Sash of Rassilon
Andred
Andred
“I’ll miss you too savage”
“I’ll miss you too savage”




Quote of the Story


 'If we cannot control the power of the Time Lords then we shall destroy it.'

Stor



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Release Information

FormatTitleRelease Date (UK)Code NumberCover ArtRemarks
Audio
LP
Science-Fiction Sound Effects No. 191978BBC-22316Sound Effects
Audio
Tape
Science-Fiction Sound Effects No. 191978ZCM 316Sound Effects
Video
VHS
The Tom Baker YearsSeptember 1992BBCV 4839PhotoClip only Introduced and commented on by Tom Baker Double cassette release
Audio
CD
30 Years at the Radiophonic Workshop1993BBC CD 871Photo-montageSound effects
Video
VHS
The Invasion of TimeMarch 2000BBCV 6876Photo-montageDouble cassette release
Video
DVD
The Invasion of TimeMay 2008BBCDVD 2586Photo-montage
Video
DVD
The Invasion of TimeMay 2008BBCDVD 2586Photo-montagePart of the "Bred for War" box set (BBCDVD 2617) along with "The Time Warrior", "The Sontaran Experiment" and "The Two Doctors"
Audio
CD
The 50th Anniversary CollectionDecember 2013Photo-montageOriginal Television Soundtracks
Video
Blu-Ray
Doctor Who: The Collection - Season 15 (Limited Edition)Due: March 2024Photo-montageBlu-Ray Limited Edition boxed set containing 6 specially restored stories


In Print

FormatTitleRelease Date (UK)PublisherAuthorCover ArtRemarks
Novel
Novel
Doctor Who and the Invasion of TimeFebruary 1980Target No. 35Terrance DicksAndrew SkilleterISBN: 0-426-20093-4
CD
CD
The Invasion of TimeSeptember 2016Target No. 35Terrance DicksAndrew SkilleterAudio version of the Target Novel read by John Leeson (K9).
Doctor Who CMS Magazine (In Vision)Issue 29 (Released: January 1991)
Doctor Who Monthly - Article/FeatureIssue 44 (Released: September 1980)
Doctor Who Magazine - Time TeamIssue 358 (Released: July 2005)
Doctor Who Magazine - Time TeamIssue 360 (Released: September 2005)
Doctor Who Magazine - The Fact of FictionIssue 581 (Released: September 2022)
Doctor Who Magazine - The Fact of FictionIssue 582 (Released: October 2022)
Doctor Who Magazine Special - Archive1992 Winter Special (Released: 1992)
Doctor Who DVD FilesVolume 118 (Released: July 2013)

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Photo Gallery


The Doctor and Companions

 
Tom Baker
The Fourth Doctor

   

Louise Jameson
Leela
 
John Leeson (voice only)
K9 Mk I
   




On Release

Audio LP - Sound Effects No. 19
Audio LP - Sound Effects No. 19

BBC
AUDIO
Audio Tape - Sound Effects No. 19
Audio Tape - Sound Effects No. 19

BBC
AUDIO
Tom Baker Years VHS Video Cover
Tom Baker Years VHS Video Cover

BBC
VIDEO
   
Sound Effects CD Cover
Sound Effects CD Cover

BBC
AUDIO
VHS Video Cover
VHS Video Cover

BBC
VIDEO
DVD Cover
DVD Cover

BBC
VIDEO
   
DVD Box Set
DVD Box Set

BBC
VIDEO
The 50th Anniversary Collection Cover
The 50th Anniversary Collection Cover

BBC
AUDIO
The Collection Season 15 Limited Edition Blu-Ray Cover
The Collection Season 15 Limited Edition Blu-Ray Cover

BBC
VIDEO
   


In Print

Target Book Cover
Target Book Cover

Target
NOVEL
 
Target Audio CD Cover
Target Audio CD Cover

BBC
CD
   


Magazines

Doctor Who CMS Magazine (In Vision): Issue 29
Doctor Who CMS Magazine (In Vision): Issue 29

CMS
Doctor Who Monthly - Article/Feature: Issue 44
Doctor Who Monthly - Article/Feature: Issue 44

Marvel Comics
Doctor Who Magazine - Time Team: Issue 358
Doctor Who Magazine - Time Team: Issue 358

Marvel Comics
Doctor Who Magazine - Time Team: Issue 360
Doctor Who Magazine - Time Team: Issue 360

Marvel Comics
   
Doctor Who Magazine - The Fact of Fiction: Issue 581
Doctor Who Magazine - The Fact of Fiction: Issue 581

Marvel Comics
Doctor Who Magazine - The Fact of Fiction: Issue 582
Doctor Who Magazine - The Fact of Fiction: Issue 582

Marvel Comics
Doctor Who Magazine Special - Archive: 1992 Winter Special
Doctor Who Magazine Special - Archive: 1992 Winter Special

Marvel Comics
Doctor Who DVD Files: Volume 118
Doctor Who DVD Files: Volume 118

GE Fabbri
   


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