Doctor Who: The Lost TV Episodes Collection 5 (Dr Who) [Audiobook] [Audio CD]

Well what a fabulous line up of Pat's classics we have here, 5 more classic 1960's serials brand new and remastered with some updated linking narration from Anneke wills on The Macra Terror. I find it brilliant that the BBC are constantly updating their Doctor Who range of releases, we have had 4 volumes of these brand new box sets now and are only one volume away from completing out collection of every missing Doctor Who serial on remastered CD.

So here we have the serials included in this BBC CD boxed set;

The Macra Terror - {4 episodes} - {0 exist on video}
The Faceless Ones - {6 episodes} - {episodes 1 & 3 exist on video}
The Evil of the Daleks - {7 episodes} - {only episode 2 exists on video}
The Abominable Snowmen - {6 episodes} - {only episode 2 exists on video}
The Ice Warriors - {6 episodes} - {episodes 1,4,5,6 exist on video}

So, now we know whats missing and what survives {on the Lost in Time DVD boxed set BBCDVD1353}, lets review the individual serials;

The Macra Terror - When I first heard the Macra Terror, I loved it, and that was a battered old 2 cassette release from the early 90's. The audio quality was poor but I still very much enjoyed it. Anneke Wills brand new linking narration is great and a real help if you are listening to the action rather than watching it via the reconstructions widely available online. If I could sum up the whole serial in one word, it would have to be atmosphere, this story screams atmosphere, the incidental music by Dudley Simpson is electric, it really adds to the production and is fantastic. There should be a BBC CD release for Dudley's work on Doctor Who for us to enjoy, but currently no such release has emerged. Patrick Troughton, Frazer Hines, Michael Craze and Anneke Wills are the centre of attention here, each with their own part in the story to play. As ever, Pat is on top form here and you get the sense that he is loving every minute of working on the series he has helped to continue. The other quest cast are all very intriquing, the Pilot, Ola and more importantly the Controller are fascinating.

Synopsis: The Doctor and his 3 companions Jamie, Ben and Polly arrive on a distant world in the distant future, the planet has by now been colonised by humans and is being used as a gas refinery. The colony is run by the Pilot under command from the Controller, who although has the visual appearance of a human, is in fact a Macra, a group these alien insects who have infiltrated the colony and are brain-washing the humans in to mining vital gas for the creatures survival. The Doctor eventually finds all this out and gradually persuades the colonists that the colony is in the grip of these horrible monsters. In the end, the Macra are defeated by the Doctor and his companions. All is well until they touch down on an active runway in 1960's London.

The Macra Terror is completely lost barring a few brief clips, it is a shame that the Beeb junked these classics but lets be grateful that fans of the series recorded these episodes for us to enjoy today. The story suits audio, the Macra suit audio, the Doctor suits audio. This production is much better realised through the audio medium than if the visuals survived. The Macra in visual form were never going to be impressive, and as a person who has seen the Macra Terror in visual form, I can tell you that listeners are not missing out. I prefer the audio soundtrack to the visuals as the audio with narration really adds atmosphere and enjoyment.

As for the BBC CD release, its been lovingly remastered and not rush-released like it was in the 90's. The cover is very attractive and the narration from Anneke Wills is clear and easy on the ears, there is not too much talking from Anneke here and she never interups or talks over the actor speaking. All these factors make the Macra Terror a great addition to the Doctor Who missing adventures range on BBC audio.

The Faceless Ones - is a 6 part serial from one of the greatest seasons of Doctor Who ever, season 4. All 7 stories that were broadcast in this season are unique and special. The Faceless Ones, airing late in the season is a 6 part story featuring new alien badies the Chameleons who have come to earth to steal the identities of 50,000 young earthicans. Thusly, the plot revolves around our 4 heros saving the day. By this time, Second Doctor Patrick Troughton has settled in to the role and here asserts his natural leadership over his companions and the staff at Gatwick.

If The Faceless Ones suffers from one weakness, its its length. The story really could have been a more thrilling 4 part affair. The Highlanders, The Underwater Menace, The Moonbase and The Macra Terror are all classics in my eyes because they are short, to-the-point and exciting. I have always enjoyed Doctor Who's 4 parter's. The Faceless Ones does not drag as badly as some other 6 part stories I can think of, but still, it could have done with shaving a few minutes off its run time. That aside, what we have here is a classic story starring a stella cast. The highlight for me in this serial is Colin Gordon's Commandant. He bounces off Troughton's Doctor wonderfully, as does Bernard Kay's Crossland. Unusually, Ben and Polly are absent for the vast majority of the serial, only appearing right at the bitter-sweet end where they decide to stay behind in 1966 London. Their performances are emotionally moving, especially Polly's. I always liked Ben and Polly so for me its sad to see them leave.

I highly recommend that you grab a copy of The Faceless Ones, I'm certainly glad I did. A very enjoyable romp with Pat and the crew in 1966's modern day Gatwick airport. Special final note has to go to Mark Ayres brilliant restoration of this classic. The audio is as clear as anything on T.V. today, so you should have no problem getting right in to the events of this lost classic.

The Evil of the Daleks - is my all-time favouite Dalek Who serial. Broadcast between 20th May and 1 July 1967 this story closed season 4 of Doctor Who, one of the greatest seasons during the shows run. The first time I saw Evil was via the unbelievable Loose Cannon Reconstruction, I fell in love with it and have never looked back. The only problem with the reconstruction was that they used the unnarrated soundtrack, and although crystal clear, lacked Frazer Hines brilliant narration. The BBC double CD release solves this minor problem. The audio has been lovingly restored by Mark Ayres of the Doctor Who Restoration Team. His groundbreaking work on missing Doctor Who audio soundtracks has aided in keeping these missing classics from becoming forgotten classics.

On to the story itself. The Doctor and Jamie have just seen the TARDIS stolen, they begin to investigate who is involved when they are kidnapped by a man named Waterfield and transported back in time 100 years to 1866. Once there they become embroiled in an attempt by the Daleks to discover the Human factor, the natural ability of Humans to defeat the Daleks and survive for millenia. As the experiment progresses, the Doctor and co. are then taken to the Daleks homeworld Skaro, where the Dalek Emperor has been using the Doctor all along to find the Dalek factor. The humanised Daleks begin a rebellion in the city on Skaro and in the end the Daleks, The Emperor and even the Human Daleks are all destroyed and the Doctor stands on the edge of oblivion and states..."the final end"...

What makes the Evil of the Daleks special is that it is set in 3 different time zones, 1966, 1866 and future Skaro. This works really well as it keeps the story fresh and alive, the 1866 episodes are my personal favouries as they are realised very well by the designers. Such great actors like Marius Goring, John Bailey, Sonny Caldinez and of course Patrick Troughton really add realism to the serial and that for me creates an absolute classic.

I really could not recommend this Pat Troughton classic any more, so please go and buy the CD release or grab hold of a Loose Cannon Productions reconstruction if needed as you will not be disappointed with The Evil of the Daleks.

The Abominable Snowmen - I have always been reluctant to watch this story, I find that it is over hyped by fandom and personally, I feel it drags too much and would have been an excellent 4 part affair. I much prefer the sequel to this serial, The Web of Fear, a much more atmospheric story and featuring a much improved cast. Although I will admit that even The Web of Fear drags somewhat, its a much better serial overall than Abominable. The plot is simple enough really, the Great inteligence has invaded a tibetan monastery and is using robotic Yeti's to wreak havoc on the local Buddist community, we never really learn too much about this Great Inteligence, all we know is that it is a malevolent force that is conducting experiments. As ever, the Inteligence's plans are ruined when the Doctor and his companions arrive and start to meddle in its affairs. At the conclusion to the story, the Inteligence is defeated and the monastary nearly destroyed as is usual in these types of serials.

Casting Wolfe Morris as Padmasambhava was a great choice from director Gerald Blake, his over the top creepy performance is inspiring. Wolfe plays Padmasambhava with great care, chopping and changing between a fragile 300 year-old man and the fearsome Inteligence. I must commend his acting ability here as the control displayed from Padmasambhava is fantastic. Other great casting choices were Jack Watling as a young professor Travers, in real life Jack is Deborah Watling's father, she plays the Doctor's companion Victoria Waterfield in this story. As well as Jack we have Norman Jones as Khrisong, the warrior Monk, and Charles Morgan as Songsten, the high priest. Read more ›

I have to say, without a doubt, that these stories are the best CDs I've ever owned!

Having bought all of the Doctor Who The Lost TV Episodes Collections chronologically, I have been able to fill otherwise gaping holes in my ever expanding Doctor Who DVD collection. The quality is fabulous and each story is presented in it own case with booklet and track listing. If you divide the price by how many episodes there are in each collection you will find that they are being sold at very reasonable prices per episode, meaning a good bargain for any who fan.

I am very pleased with these lost who classics both in their presentation and in their restoration, and I would recommend them all. (Doctor Who: The Lost TV Episodes: Collections 1,2,3,4,5,6)

On 12 CD's. Presented in chronological order of transmission, the stories in this collection are 'The Macra Terror' (remastered with a brand new linking narration by Anneke Wills), 'The Faceless Ones', 'Evil of the Daleks', 'The Abominable Snowmen' and 'The Ice Warriors', all starring Patrick Troughton as the second Doctor.