Doctor Who - The Visitation [DVD] [1963]

Doctor Who: The Visitation is a routine adventure from the show's 19th season, beginning with Peter Davison's Fifth Doctor trying to return air hostess Tegan (Janet Fielding) to Heathrow Airport but materialising the TARDIS just as the Plague is ravaging 17th-century England. Three stranded Terileptils (humanoid-reptilian-fish hybrids in laughable costumes) are planning to wipe out humanity, while the local population have accepted the invader's puzzlingly camp robot for the Grim Reaper incarnate. There's much running around, being imprisoned and escaping again, but little substance in the story bar a return to the original series concept of tying the plot to elements of real history. Trying to find something for all the companions to do stretches the material thin, with the best entertainment coming from Michael Robbins' memorable turn as Richard Mace, an out-of-work actor turned charmingly genial highwayman. The "surprise" ending is predictable, Matthew Waterhouse's Adric as earnestly tiresome as ever and Tegan still tediously grumpy. Sarah Sutton as Nyssa is left too long building a sonic weapon which can vibrate a robot to pieces but doesn't harm the TARDIS or herself, yet Davison goes a long way to redeeming the tale with a charismatic intensity the yarn just doesn't deserve.

On the DVD: Doctor Who: The Visitation is presented in the original 4:3 aspect ratio with a good if variable picture. There are numerous unavoidable light trails on the video-shot studio material and some visual distortion on a few scenes. The mono sound is good and extends to an optional isolated presentation of Paddy Kingsland's musical score, a feature complemented by a new 16-minute interview with the composer by fellow Who musician, Mark Ayres. Of greater general interest is a 26-minute reminiscence by director Peter Moffatt covering all the six Doctor Who adventures he helmed. There is a good feature on Eric Saward and on the writing of the show, five minutes of extraordinarily dull Film Trims, detailed Information Text and an automated photo gallery. There are subtitles for both the episodes and a commentary that finds Peter Davison, Janet Fielding, Peter Moffatt, Sarah Sutton and Matthew Waterhouse having great fun bantering their way through the four episodes, a feature that proves far more enjoyable than the serial itself. --Gary S Dalkin

England, 1666 – the darkest days of the Great Plague. When the Doctor and his companions step from the TARDIS into a land gripped by fear and mistrust, they soon discover that they are not the only new arrivals. Strange lights have been seen in the sky, the Grim Reaper stalks the local woods and evidence of advanced technology is all around …

• Commentary by Peter Davison, Janet Fielding, Sarah Sutton, Matthew Waterhouse and Peter Moffatt (stereo)
  
• Directing Who - Peter Moffatt – Director Peter Moffatt looks back at his time on Doctor Who
  
• Writing a Final Visitation – Author Eric Saward discusses the origins of this, his debut script for Doctor Who
  
• Scoring The Visitation – Paddy Kingsland discusses in detail his musical score
  
• Film Trims – additional shots and dialogue that were cut from the finished episodes before transmission
  
• Music-only option (mono) – allows the viewer to listen to Paddy Kingsland’s specially composed score on an isolated music track
  
• Photo Gallery

DVD Technical Information:

• Total Running Time: 95 minutes approx.
  
• Audio: Mono
  
• Subtitles: English SDH
  
• Region Code: 2, 4
  
• PAL
  
• Aspect Ratio: 4:3
  
• Disc Format: DVD-9
  
• Digitally remastered picture and sound quality