Doctor Who season 14
1976–77 season of British sci-fi TV series
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The fourteenth season of British science fiction television series Doctor Who began on 4 September 1976 with The Masque of Mandragora, and ended with The Talons of Weng-Chiang. The third Fourth Doctor series, it was the final series of Philip Hinchcliffe's production, whilst Robert Holmes stayed till The Sun Makers in the next series.
| Doctor Who | |
|---|---|
| Season 14 | |
Cover art of the Blu-ray release for the complete season | |
| Starring | |
| No. of stories | 6 |
| No. of episodes | 26 |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC1 |
| Original release | 4 September 1976 – 2 April 1977 |
| Season chronology | |
Casting
Main cast
Tom Baker continues his role as the Fourth Doctor. Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) departs in The Hand of Fear, before the Doctor is joined by Leela (Louise Jameson) in The Face of Evil. Uniquely in the 'classic' era of Doctor Who, no companion appears in The Deadly Assassin.
Guest stars
The Master reappears in The Deadly Assassin as the main antagonist, his first appearance since Frontier in Space (1973), this time played by Peter Pratt. The character would not make a further appearance until five years later in 1981.
Serials
The Masque of Mandragora saw the debut of the new wood-panelled "Secondary Console Room" set, which was to be used as the main TARDIS console room throughout the season. The season took a five-week transmission break between the broadcasts of The Deadly Assassin and The Face of Evil in order to extend the season further into 1977, allowing Robert Holmes time to work on the final serial The Talons of Weng-Chiang.
| No. story | No. in season | Serial title | Episode titles | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | Prod. code | UK viewers (millions) [1] | AI [1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 86 | 1 | The Masque of Mandragora | "Part One" | Rodney Bennett | Louis Marks | 4 September 1976 | 4M | 8.3 | 58 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Two" | 11 September 1976 | 9.8 | 56 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Three" | 18 September 1976 | 9.2 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Four" | 25 September 1976 | 10.6 | 56 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 87 | 2 | The Hand of Fear | "Part One" | Lennie Mayne | Bob Baker and Dave Martin | 2 October 1976 | 4N | 10.5 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Two" | 9 October 1976 | 10.2 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Three" | 16 October 1976 | 11.1 | 62 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Four" | 23 October 1976 | 12.0 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The Fourth Doctor and Sarah Jane are caught in a mining explosion. Sarah Jane is found clutching what appears to be a fossilised hand, buried in a 150-million-year-old stratum. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 88 | 3 | The Deadly Assassin | "Part One" | David Maloney | Robert Holmes | 30 October 1976 | 4P | 11.8 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Two" | 6 November 1976 | 12.1 | 59 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Three" | 13 November 1976 | 13.0 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Four" | 20 November 1976 | 11.8 | 61 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The Doctor goes to Gallifrey to prevent a precognitive vision; and fights his way to a conspicuous sniper rifle, but the assassin shoots the President dead from the crowd. He realises that it was the Master who had sent him the vision through the Matrix; he enters the Matrix, confronts an assassin who reveals himself as Chancellor Goth; the Master tries to trap the Doctor, but he escapes. He arrives in their chamber, and find the Master pulse-less and Goth fatally burnt and dying. The Doctor finds that the President has access to the Sash and Great Key of Rassilon, and the Doctor realises that the Eye of Harmony is actually a black hole's nucleus, and the Sash and Key its control devices. He also realises that the Master used a neural inhibitor that mimics a deathlike state. The Master makes his way to the Eye, and the two fight, until the Master loses his footing and falls into a chasm. As the Doctor's TARDIS dematerialises, the Master sneaks into his own TARDIS and escapes. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 89 | 4 | The Face of Evil | "Part One" | Pennant Roberts | Chris Boucher | 1 January 1977 | 4Q | 10.7 | 61 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Two" | 8 January 1977 | 11.1 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Three" | 15 January 1977 | 11.3 | 59 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Four" | 22 January 1977 | 11.7 | 60 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The Doctor arrives on a planet where two tribes are at war and discovers that their god of evil is him. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 90 | 5 | The Robots of Death | "Part One" | Michael E. Briant | Chris Boucher | 29 January 1977 | 4R | 12.8 | 62 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Two" | 5 February 1977 | 12.4 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Three" | 12 February 1977 | 13.1 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Four" | 19 February 1977 | 12.6 | 57 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
A vessel is commanded by a crew of indolent or avaricious human staff. It is a happy partnership until the human crew start being murdered one by one. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 91 | 6 | The Talons of Weng-Chiang | "Part One" | David Maloney | Robert Holmes | 26 February 1977 | 4S | 11.3 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Two" | 5 March 1977 | 9.8 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Three" | 12 March 1977 | 10.2 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Four" | 19 March 1977 | 11.4 | 60 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Five" | 26 March 1977 | 10.1 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Six" | 2 April 1977 | 9.3 | 58 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Production
Scrapped stories
Multiple stories were scrapped during production of this season. Douglas Camfield's The Lost Legion would have seen the Doctor and Sarah in North Africa at an isolated French Legion outpost while caught between an alien conflict, and was planned to write out Sarah Jane. It was later removed from production.[2][3]The Gaslight Murders was written by Basil Dawson and would have introduced a Cockney girl to replace to Sarah Jane Smith as a companion that the Doctor would have taken under his wing and educated. Ultimately, it was replaced by The Face of Evil.[4] The Dreamers of Phados and The Mentor Conspiracy were two script proposals from Chris Boucher, though both ultimately got scrapped after being commissioned to write The Face of Evil.[5][6] The Foe from the Future was planned to be written by Robert Banks Stewart, but ultimately was scrapped and replaced by The Talons of Weng-Chiang due to Stewart becoming the script editor of Armchair Thriller and being unable to deliver the scripts.[7][8]
Broadcast
The entire season was broadcast from 4 September 1976 to 2 April 1977, but with a six week break mid-season between the third and fourth serials from 20 November 1976 to 1 January 1977.
Home media
VHS releases
| Season | Story no. | Serial name | Duration | Release date | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | Australia | USA / Canada | ||||
| 14 | 86 | The Masque of Mandragora | 4 x 25 min. | August 1991 | October 1992 | February 1994 |
| 87 | The Hand of Fear | 4 x 25 min. | February 1996 | May 1997 | February 1997 | |
| 88 | The Deadly Assassin | 4 x 25 min. | October 1991 | March 1992 | N/a | |
| 1 x 100 min. | N/a | N/a | March 1989 | |||
| 89 | The Face of Evil | 4 x 25 min | May 1999 | June 1999 | March 2000 | |
| 90 | The Robots of Death | 1 x 100 min | February 1988 | March 1988 | July 1987 | |
| 4 x 25 min | February 1995 | N/a | N/a | |||
| 91 | The Talons of Weng-Chiang | 1 x 150 min. | November 1988 | April 1987 | February 1988 | |
Betamax releases
| Season | Story no. | Serial name | Duration | Release date | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | Australia | USA / Canada | ||||
| 14 | 90 | The Robots of Death | 1 x 100 min |
April 1986 | N/a | N/a |
DVD and Blu-ray releases
All releases are for DVD unless otherwise indicated:
- (B) indicates a Blu-ray release
| Season | Story no. | Serial name | Duration | Release date | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R2 | R4 | R1 | ||||
| 14 | 86 | The Masque of Mandragora | 4 × 25 min. | 8 February 2010[9] | 5 May 2010[10] | 4 May 2010[11] |
| 87 | The Hand of Fear | 4 × 25 min. | 24 July 2006[12] | 7 September 2006[13] | 7 November 2006[14] | |
| 88 | The Deadly Assassin | 4 × 25 min. | 11 May 2009[15] | 2 July 2009[16] | 1 September 2009[17] | |
| 89 | The Face of Evil | 4 × 25 min. | 5 March 2012[18] | 5 April 2012[19] | 13 March 2012[20] | |
| 90 | The Robots of Death | 4 × 25 min. | 13 November 2000[21] | 2 July 2001[22] | 6 September 2001[23] | |
| The Robots of Death (Special Edition)[a] | 4 × 25 min. | 13 February 2012[24] [25][26] | 1 March 2012[27][28] | 13 March 2012[29] | ||
| 91 | The Talons of Weng-Chiang | 6 × 25 min. | 28 April 2003[30] | 30 June 2003[31] | 7 October 2003[32] | |
| The Talons of Weng-Chiang (Special Edition)[b] | 6 × 25 min. | 4 October 2010[33] | 2 December 2010[34] | 11 October 2011[35] | ||
| 86–91 | Complete Season 14[c] | 26 × 25 min. | 4 May 2020 (B) [36] | 15 July 2020 (B) [37] | 4 August 2020 (B) [38] | |
- Only available as part of the Revisitations 3 box set in Regions 2 and 4. Only available individually in Region 1.
- Only available as part of the Revisitations 1 box set in Regions 2 and 4. Only available individually in Region 1.
- Released as Doctor Who: The Collection – Season 14 in Region B. Released as Doctor Who – Tom Baker: Complete Season Three in Region A.
In print
Season |
Story no. | Library no.[a] | Novelisation title | Author | Hardcover release date[b] |
Paperback release date[c] |
Audiobook | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Release date[d] | Narrator | |||||||
| 14 | 086 | 42 | Doctor Who and the Masque of Mandragora | Philip Hinchcliffe | 19 January 1978 | 8 December 1977 | 9 April 2009 | Tim Pigott-Smith |
| 087 | 30 | Doctor Who and the Hand of Fear | Terrance Dicks | 18 January 1979 | 7 January 2021 | Pamela Salem | ||
| 088 | 19 | Doctor Who and the Deadly Assassin | 20 October 1977 | 19 March 2015 | Geoffrey Beevers | |||
| 089 | 25 | Doctor Who and the Face of Evil | 19 January 1978 | 19 January 2011[e] 7 April 2022 | Louise Jameson (2011 & 2022) | |||
| 090 | 53 | Doctor Who and the Robots of Death | 24 May 1979 | 1 February 2018 | Louise Jameson | |||
| 091 | 61 | Doctor Who and the Talons of Weng-Chiang | 17 November 1977 | 1 January 2013 | Christopher Benjamin | |||
- Published by Target's parent companies (Allen Wingate, W. H. Allen, BBC Books) unless otherwise indicated
- Published by Target Books (or by BBC Books under the Target Collection umbrella) unless otherwise indicated
- Unabridged from BBC Audio / AudioGo unless otherwise indicated
- Published by the Royal National Institute of the Blind