Doctor Who season 15
1977–78 season of British sci-fi TV series
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The fifteenth season of British science fiction television series Doctor Who began on 3 September 1977 with the serial Horror of Fang Rock, and ended with The Invasion of Time. The fourth series for the Fourth Doctor, new producer Graham Williams became producer for this series (and the two following), while Robert Holmes left script editing for Anthony Read midway through.
| Doctor Who | |
|---|---|
| Season 15 | |
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 | 3 September 1977 – 11 March 1978 |
| Season chronology | |
Casting
- Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor
- Louise Jameson as Leela
- John Leeson as Voice of K9
Tom Baker and Louise Jameson continue their roles as the Fourth Doctor and Leela. K9, played by John Leeson, makes his first appearance during the second serial The Invisible Enemy. Louise Jameson makes her final appearance as Leela in The Invasion of Time.
Serials
Graham Williams took over as producer from Philip Hinchcliffe. Robert Holmes was replaced as script editor by Anthony Read, during The Sun Makers. The season took a short transmission break of two weeks over the Christmas 1977 period, between the broadcasts of The Sun Makers and Underworld.
| No. story | No. in season | Serial title | Episode titles | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | Prod. code | UK viewers (millions) [1] | AI [1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 92 | 1 | Horror of Fang Rock | "Part One" | Paddy Russell | Terrance Dicks | 3 September 1977 | 4V | 6.8 | 58 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Two" | 10 September 1977 | 7.1 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Three" | 17 September 1977 | 9.8 | 60 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Four" | 24 September 1977 | 9.9 | 57 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The TARDIS lands on the island of Fang Rock, and the Doctor notices that the lighthouse isn't functioning properly, decides to investigate. Arriving at the lighthouse, the Doctor and Leela talk to the keepers Reuben and Vince, and discover the dead body of the third keeper, Ben. A luxury yacht crashes onto Fang Rock. The four survivors are brought to the lighthouse: the bosun Harker; Colonel James Skinsale MP; the owner, Lord Palmerdale; and his secretary Adelaide Lessage. Some time later, Reuben disappears for a time, reappearing a changed man, and Palmerdale and Harker are killed. The Doctor finds Harker's body and then Reuben's – the latter cold. The creature attempts to kills the others in the lighthouse, revealing itself to be a Rutan, whose ship crash-landed in the sea and who is trying to summon its mother ship, planning to turn the strategically-located Earth into a base in their war against the Sontarans. The Doctor and Skinsale retrieve diamonds from Palmerdale's body belt, but the Rutan kills Skinsale. The Doctor then modifies a flare mortar to destroy the alien, and uses the diamonds to focus the lighthouse beam into a high-energy laser, and destroys the Rutan mothership. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 93 | 2 | The Invisible Enemy | "Part One" | Derrick Goodwin | Bob Baker and Dave Martin | 1 October 1977 | 4T | 8.6 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Two" | 8 October 1977 | 7.3 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Three" | 15 October 1977 | 7.5 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Four" | 22 October 1977 | 8.3 | 60 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
A shuttle crew encounters a cloud in space that infects them with an intelligent virus. When the Doctor answers the distress call, he is infected as well. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 94 | 3 | Image of the Fendahl | "Part One" | George Spenton-Foster | Chris Boucher | 29 October 1977 | 4X | 6.7 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Two" | 5 November 1977 | 7.5 | 75 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Three" | 12 November 1977 | 7.9 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Four" | 19 November 1977 | 9.1 | 61 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Scientists investigating an ancient skull unwittingly start to revive the Fendahl, an ancient life-form feared even by the Time Lords. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 95 | 4 | The Sun Makers | "Part One" | Pennant Roberts | Robert Holmes | 26 November 1977 | 4W | 8.5 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Two" | 3 December 1977 | 9.5 | 62 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Three" | 10 December 1977 | 8.9 | 68 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Four" | 17 December 1977 | 8.4 | 59 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
In the far future, the planet Pluto is habitable, heated by several miniature suns. However, the heat is available only to the ruling classes. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 96 | 5 | Underworld | "Part One" | Norman Stewart | Bob Baker and Dave Martin | 7 January 1978 | 4Y | 8.9 | 65 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Two" | 14 January 1978 | 9.1 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Three" | 21 January 1978 | 8.9 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Four" | 28 January 1978 | 11.7 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The remnants of the Minyans have an old link to the Time Lords. The Doctor must help them to find the hidden race banks that will save their dying race. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 97 | 6 | The Invasion of Time | "Part One" | Gerald Blake | "David Agnew" (Graham Williams and Anthony Read) | 4 February 1978 | 4Z | 11.2 | 56 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Two" | 11 February 1978 | 11.4 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Three" | 18 February 1978 | 9.5 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Four" | 25 February 1978 | 10.9 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Five" | 4 March 1978 | 10.3 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Part Six" | 11 March 1978 | 9.8 | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The Doctor returns to Gallifrey, having claimed the Presidency. He orders Leela expelled from the Capitol Citadel. However, the Doctor is doing this to prevent a Vardan instigated disaster. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Production
Season fifteen proved to be a difficult transition period. Philip Hinchcliffe's departure coincided with the loss of a number of long-time contributors to the show as Graham Williams took over as Producer. Williams remarked, "I had to try and find some new ones, and that wasn't the least of the problems. Bob Holmes was stuck on Weng-Chiang for ages... all the scripts were coming in late...".[2]
Robert Holmes remained to work on the three stories he had commissioned, while his successor, Anthony Read, trailed him in preparation of taking over the position. Read, an experienced director and producer, had only agreed to the position of Script Editor because he was intrigued by the chance to work on Doctor Who. Holmes completed Horror of Fang Rock and The Invisible Enemy, before leaving due to creative exhaustion. Image of the Fendahl fell to Read, who had to hastily write K-9 into the story when Holmes made him a regular character.
While Tom Baker enjoyed working with John Leeson (the voice of K-9) in rehearsals, he disliked the prop. Holmes recalled, "it used to drive Tom spare, and more often than not, he'd kick it out of frustration."[2] Holmes agreed to write The Sun Makers, and while the story was meant to follow K-9's introduction and establish him as a regular character, scheduling problems—resulting in the shelving of scripts that Fang Rock had to replace—required the story order to change, with Fendahl preceding it.[2]
Baker had found it difficult to accept the violent Leela character since her introduction, contributing to growing tensions between himself and Louise Jameson. According to Jameson, the tension came to a head during the recording of Fang Rock, when she finally confronted Baker over multiple takes of a scene caused by him entering early and cutting her off.[3] Tensions between the two eased over the course of the season.
Read commissioned Bob Baker and Dave Martin to write Underworld, the penultimate story of the season. Right away, the production was hit hard by record inflation, resulting in the design staff working day and night and inventing new techniques and processes to complete the story on time.[4] The final story, The Invasion of Time, proved even more chaotic: with a reduced budget, a complete last-minute re-write by Read and Williams, and a BBC industrial-dispute between the props department and the electricians.
Scrapped stories
Read approached David Weir, an old co-worker of his, to write the planned finale to the season, Killers of the Dark. This would have had elements of Asian culture, and included a race of cat people with links to Gallifrey;[5] it was determined impossible to shoot within the show's budget,[6] and scrapped two weeks before filming, resulting in The Invasion of Time being hastily produced to serve as the season's finale.[7] Douglas Adams' The Krikkitmen was a proposal submitted to the production office around the time he was working on The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy radio series. Holmes rejected the script and encouraged Adams to work on The Hitchhiker's Guide and future proposals for Doctor Who, leading to his commission for The Pirate Planet. Adams would later revise the script as part of a pitch in 1980 for a Doctor Who feature film, though plans failed to develop. Ideas from The Krikkitmen were later incorporated into his book Life, the Universe and Everything, the second sequel of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.[8] Another story by Moris Farhi titled The Divided was left unproduced and scrapped, with Farhi later stating he didn't remember what the story was about.[9]
Broadcast
The entire season was broadcast from 3 September 1977 to 11 March 1978, but with a three week break between the fourth and fifth serials from 17 December 1977 to 7 January 1978.
Home media
VHS releases
| Season | Story no. | Serial name | Duration | Release date | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | Australia | USA / Canada | ||||
| 15 | 92 | Horror of Fang Rock | 4 x 25min. | July 1998 | November 1998 | March 1999 |
| 93 | The Invisible Enemy | 4 x 25 min. | September 2002 | November 2002 | October 2003 | |
| 94 | Image of the Fendahl | 4 x 25 min. | March 1993 | July 1993 | June 1996 | |
| 95 | The Sun Makers | 4 x 25 min. | July 2001 | September 2001 | February 2002 | |
| 96 | Underworld | 4 x 25 min. | March 2002 | May 2002 | May 2003 | |
| 97 | The Invasion of Time | 6 x 25 min. | March 2000 2 x VHS |
August 2000 | August 2000 2 x VHS | |
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 | ||||
| 15 | 92 | Horror of Fang Rock | 4 × 25 min. | 17 January 2005[10] | 7 April 2005[11] | 6 September 2005[12] |
| 93 | The Invisible Enemy[a] | 4 × 25 min. | 16 June 2008[13] | 4 September 2008[14] | 2 September 2008[15] | |
| 94 | Image of the Fendahl | 4 × 25 min. | 20 April 2009[16] | 4 June 2009[17] | 1 September 2009[18] | |
| 95 | The Sun Makers | 4 × 25 min. | 1 August 2011[19] | 1 September 2011[20] | 9 August 2011[21] | |
| 96 | Underworld[b] | 4 × 25 min. | 29 March 2010[22] | 3 June 2010[23][24][25] | 6 July 2010[21] | |
| 97 | The Invasion of Time[c] | 6 × 25 min. | 5 May 2008[26] | 3 July 2008[27] | 2 September 2008[28] | |
| 92–97 | Complete Season 15[d] | 26 × 25 min. | 18 March 2024 (B) [29] | 19 June 2024 (B) [30] | 9 July 2024 (B) [31] | |
- Only available as part of the K9 Tales box set with the Doctor Who spin-off K-9 and Company in all regions
- Only available as part of the Myths and Legends box set in Regions 2 and 4. Only available individually in Region 1.
- Available individually or in the Bred for War box set in Regions 2 and 4. Only available individually in Region 1.
- Released as Doctor Who: The Collection – Season 15 in Region B. Released as Doctor Who – Tom Baker: Complete Season Four 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 | |||||||
| 15 | 092 | 32 | Doctor Who and the Horror of Fang Rock | Terrance Dicks | 30 March 1978 | 2 February 2017 | Louise Jameson | |
| 093 | 36 | Doctor Who and the Invisible Enemy | 29 March 1979 | 2 August 2018 | John Leeson | |||
| 094 | 34 | Doctor Who and the Image of the Fendahl | 26 July 1979 | 6 February 2020 | Louise Jameson | |||
| 095 | 60 | Doctor Who and the Sunmakers | 18 November 1982 | 7 February 2019 | Louise Jameson [e] | |||
| 096 | 67 | Doctor Who and the Underworld | 24 January 1980 | 6 May 2021 | ||||
| 097 | 35 | Doctor Who and the Invasion of Time | 21 February 1980 | 1 September 2016 | John Leeson | |||
- 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
- K9 voice performed by John Leeson