009 –Planet of Giants | |||
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Doctor Who serial | |||
Cast | |||
Others
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Production | |||
Directed by |
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Written by | Louis Marks | ||
Script editor | David Whitaker | ||
Produced by | |||
Music by | Dudley Simpson | ||
Production code | J | ||
Series | Season 2 | ||
Running time | 3 episodes, 25 minutes each | ||
First broadcast | 31 October 1964 | ||
Last broadcast | 14 November 1964 | ||
Chronology | |||
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Planet of Giants is the first serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who . Written by Louis Marks and directed by Mervyn Pinfield and Douglas Camfield, the serial was first broadcast on BBC1 in three weekly parts from 31 October to 14 November 1964. In the serial, the First Doctor (William Hartnell), his granddaughter Susan Foreman (Carole Ann Ford), and her teachers Ian Chesterton (William Russell) and Barbara Wright (Jacqueline Hill) are shrunk to the size of an inch after the Doctor's time machine the TARDIS arrives in contemporary England.
The story's concept was first proposed as the first serial of the show's first season, but was rejected due to its technical complexity and lack of character development. When Marks was commissioned to write the script, he was inspired by Rachel Carson's 1962 environmental science book Silent Spring , the first major documentation on human impact on the environment. The story was originally written and filmed as a four-part serial, but later reduced to three parts; the third and fourth episodes were cut down to form a faster-paced climax. The serial premiered with 8.4 million viewers, maintaining audience figures throughout the three weeks. Retrospective response for the serial was mixed, with criticism directed at its story and characterisation despite praise for its ambition. It later received several print adaptations and home media releases.
Despite indications of a malfunction in the TARDIS, its fault locator shows nothing is wrong and that it is safe to go outside. The First Doctor (William Hartnell), Ian Chesterton (William Russell), Barbara Wright (Jacqueline Hill), and Susan Foreman (Carole Ann Ford) consequently explore the vicinity, finding the remains of giant earthworm and ant, which appear to have died instantaneously. The travellers realise they have returned to Earth but have shrunk to the height of an inch. Ian investigates the interior of a discarded matchbox when it is picked up by a government scientist called Farrow (Frank Crawshaw), who is visiting a callous industrialist named Forester (Alan Tilvern) to tell him that his application for a new insecticide called DN6 has been rejected as it is far too deadly to all forms of insect life. News of this appraisal prompts Forester to fatally shoot Farrow. The Doctor, Barbara, and Susan hear the gunshot and head for the house to find Ian unhurt near Farrow's corpse.
Forester's aide, Smithers (Reginald Barratt), arrives but does not report the murder for fear of undermining the DN6 project to which he has dedicated his life. Ian and Barbara hide inside Farrow's briefcase to avoid being stepped on by Forester and Smithers, and get separated from the Doctor and Susan after the briefcase is brought inside the house. The Doctor and Susan climb up a drain pipe to find them. Forester alters Farrow's report to give support to the DN6 licence application and, disguising his voice as Farrow’s, makes a supportive phone call to the ministry to the same effect. This is overheard by the local telephone operator Hilda Rowse (Rosemary Johnson) and her policeman husband Bert (Fred Ferris), who suspect something is wrong.
Within the house, Ian and Barbara encounter a giant fly, which is killed instantly when it contacts sample seeds that had been sprayed with DN6. Barbara had handled one of these seeds and begins to feel unwell. The Doctor, realising the toxic nature of DN6 and the probable contamination of Barbara, proposes they alert someone by hoisting up the giant telephone receiver, but they cannot make themselves heard. At the telephone exchange, the engaged signal makes Hilda and Bert increasingly concerned. Bert heads off to the house to investigate. The Doctor and his companions decide to attract attention by starting a fire, succeeding in manoeuvring an aerosol can into the flames of the Bunsen burner gas outlet. This coincides with Smithers discovering the true virulence of DN6 and demanding Forester cease his licence application. In the lab, the makeshift bomb explodes in Forester’s face as PC Rowse arrives. Back in the TARDIS, the Doctor succeeds in returning the craft and crew to normal size, a process which cures Barbara of her infection by DN6.
The concept of the Doctor and his companions shrinking in size was initially proposed as the first story of the show's first season, written by C. E. Webber and entitled The Giants. [3] After some rewrites, the serial was rejected by show creator Sydney Newman in June 1963 due to its technical complexity and lack of character development. [4] The concept of The Giants was given to writer Robert Gould in mid-1963 to develop as the four-part fourth serial of the first season, but it was dropped by January 1964 due to scripting difficulties. [5] By February 1964, the serial was assigned to writer Louis Marks. [6] The main narrative was inspired by Rachel Carson's 1962 environmental science book Silent Spring , the first major documentation on human impact on the environment. [7] The fictional insecticide featured in the story, DN6, was inspired by incidents described by Carson regarding the impact of DDT on insects. [8] Writer Mark Wilson wrote in 2017 that the story aired during a time where environmental awareness was beginning to develop among the British public. [9] Whitaker commissioned Marks for the serial in May 1964, then titled The Planet of Giants. [10] Mervyn Pinfield was assigned to direct the serial. [11]
The special effect inserts of a cat were filmed on 30 July 1964 using silent 35mm film, with sound added later during a studio recording. [12] The show's regular cast—Hartnell, Russell, Hill, and Ford—filmed the sequences in which they appeared alongside giant props; the effect was achieved by recording the actors through glass and reflecting the object onto a half-silvered mirror. The footage was later deemed unsatisfactory, and the scenes were re-shot on 13 August. [13] Rehearsals for the first episode took place on 17 August at the London Transport Assembly Rooms, across the road from the BBC Television Centre. Weekly recording for the serial began on 21 August at the Television Centre, Studio 4. [14] Due to Pinfield's other commitments, the fourth and final episode was directed by Douglas Camfield, who had worked as a production assistant to Waris Hussein during the show's first season. The final episode was recorded on 11 September. [15]
Planet of Giants is the first Doctor Who serial to feature the work of incidental music composer Dudley Simpson, who first recorded on 14 August 1964. [13] On 19 October 1964, head of serials Donald Wilson decided to reduce the four-part serial to three episodes, as it was felt to be an unsatisfactory opening to the show's second season; he preferred to open the season with the following serial, The Dalek Invasion of Earth , but its depiction of Susan's departure prevented the change. The 24-minute third and fourth episodes were transferred to 35 mm film and edited together into a single 25-minute episode from 29 October to 2 November to form a faster-paced climax featuring the main characters. [16] [17] Camfield was credited for the final episode. [2]
Episode | Title | Run time | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) | Appreciation Index |
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1 | "Planet of Giants" | 23:15 | 31 October 1964 | 8.4 [1] | 57 |
2 | "Dangerous Journey" | 23:40 | 7 November 1964 | 8.4 [1] | 58 |
3 | "Crisis" | 26:35 | 14 November 1964 | 8.9 [1] | 59 |
Planet of Giants was considered a strong debut to the second season, [18] receiving 8.4 million viewers for the first two episodes and 8.9 million for the third. [1] An Audience Research Report on the first episode indicated that the show had gained 17% of the viewing audience. [18] The Appreciation Index increased slightly over the three episodes, from 57 to 59. [1] The BBC Film and Videotape Library did not select the serial for preservation, and the original tapes were wiped in the late 1960s. In 1977, 16mm film prints of the serial were discovered at BBC Enterprises. [1]
At the BBC Programme Review Board after the broadcast of the first episode in November 1964, the director-general Hugh Greene was unimpressed by the story's concept; following the second episode's broadcast, he noted his disappointment at the serial and eagerness for the Daleks' return. [18] An Audience Research Report on the first episode noted that the response had been positive, with praise directed at the props and special effects. [1]
Retrospective reviews of the serial were mixed. In The Discontinuity Guide (1995), Paul Cornell, Martin Day, and Keith Topping described the serial as "a strange mix of ecological [science fiction] and 'cops and gangsters'", finding it "good fun, if a little unrepresentative of the series". [19] In The Television Companion (1998), David J. Howe and Stephen James Walker found difficulty in understanding why the serial was considered so important by the production team, and found the plot to be "one of the weakest" in the series so far; they praised Hill's performance, and enjoyed Hartnell and Russell, though noted that Ford was "rather less impressive". [20] In 2008, Patrick Mulkern of Radio Times wrote that the story had ambition and impressive set design, but felt that "the drama itself is less than enthralling"; Mulkern noted that Barbara "[came] across as uncharacteristically wet" and described Simpson's score as "annoyingly childish". [2] In 2012, DVD Talk 's John Sinnott felt that the serial was a "solid installment", but considered it strange that the main characters do not interact with the criminals. [21] Dave Golder of SFX described the serial as "undeniably slow, talky and lacking in excitement", particularly criticising Barbara's characterisation. [22] Christopher Bahn of The A.V. Club appreciated the ambition of the serial but felt that it "never quite gels together" and the condensed final episodes hindered the overall story. [23]
Author | Terrance Dicks |
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Cover artist | Alister Pearson |
Series | Doctor Who book: Target novelisations |
Release number | 145 |
Publisher | Target Books |
Publication date | 18 January 1990 |
ISBN | 0-426-20345-3 |
A novelisation of Planet of Giants, written by Terrance Dicks, was published by Target Books in January 1990. It was the final First Doctor serial to be novelised. Dicks used the original rehearsal script for the first episode and a camera script for the scrapped final episode to restore the missing sequences. [24]
The serial was released on VHS by BBC Video in January 2002; [24] it was the first commercially released story to receive the VidFIRE process. [25] 2 Entertain released the serial on DVD on 20 August 2012, alongside audio commentaries, documentaries, and a recreation of the original third and fourth episodes; the recreation, based on the original scripts, used animation and newly recorded dialogue by Ford and Russell, with John Guilor and Katherine Hadoke as the Doctor and Barbara. [26] [27] The serial was released on Blu-ray on 5 December 2022, alongside the rest of the second season as part of The Collection. [28] [29]
An Unearthly Child is the first serial of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on BBC TV in four weekly parts from 23 November to 14 December 1963. Scripted by Australian writer Anthony Coburn, the serial introduces William Hartnell as the First Doctor and his original companions: Carole Ann Ford as the Doctor's granddaughter, Susan Foreman, with Jacqueline Hill and William Russell as school teachers Barbara Wright and Ian Chesterton. The first episode deals with Ian and Barbara's discovery of the Doctor and his time-space ship, the TARDIS, in a junkyard in contemporary London, and the remaining episodes are set amid a power struggle between warring Stone Age factions who have lost the secret of making fire.
The Edge of Destruction is the third serial of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by David Whitaker, and first broadcast on BBC TV in two weekly parts on 8 February and 15 February 1964. The first episode was directed by Richard Martin, while Frank Cox directed the second. In the story, the Doctor, his granddaughter Susan, and her teachers Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright are in the Doctor's time and space machine the TARDIS when it appears to be taken over by an outside force. The travellers begin acting strangely and turn against each other.
The Keys of Marinus is the fifth serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on BBC TV/BBC1 in six weekly parts from 11 April to 16 May 1964. Written by Terry Nation and directed by John Gorrie, the serial takes on a "mini-adventures" format, in which the First Doctor, his granddaughter Susan Foreman, and her teachers Ian Chesterton, and Barbara Wright search for four keys to restore the Conscience of Marinus, a computer which maintains law and order. The group travel to two cities, a jungle, and an icy wasteland in search of the keys.
Barbara Wright is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and a companion of the First Doctor. She was one of the programme's first regulars and appeared in the bulk of its first two seasons from 1963 to 1965, played by Jacqueline Hill. Prior to Hill being cast the part had originally been offered to actress Penelope Lee, who turned the role down. Barbara appeared in 16 stories. In the film version of one of the serials, Dr. Who and the Daleks (1965), Barbara was played by actress Jennie Linden, but with a very different personality and backstory, which includes her being a granddaughter of "Dr Who".
The Dalek Invasion of Earth is the second serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by Terry Nation and directed by Richard Martin, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in six weekly parts from 21 November to 26 December 1964. In the serial, the First Doctor, his granddaughter Susan Foreman, and teachers Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright discover that the Earth in the 22nd century has been occupied by Daleks. They work with a human resistance group to stop the Daleks from mining out the Earth's core as part of their plan to pilot the planet through space.
The Daleks' Master Plan is the fourth serial of the third season of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by Terry Nation and Dennis Spooner and directed by Douglas Camfield, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in twelve weekly parts from 13 November 1965 to 29 January 1966. It was the show's longest serial until 1986 and remains the longest with a single director. In the serial, the First Doctor and his travelling companions Steven Taylor and Katarina become embroiled in the Daleks' scheme to design the ultimate weapon. They are joined by Bret Vyon and Sara Kingdom.
The Sensorites is the seventh serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by Peter R. Newman and directed by Mervyn Pinfield and Frank Cox, the serial was first broadcast on BBC1 in six weekly parts from 20 June to 1 August 1964. In the serial, the First Doctor, his granddaughter Susan Foreman, and her teachers Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright visit a planet known as the Sense-Sphere to find the cure to a disease afflicting the alien race the Sensorites.
The Reign of Terror is the eighth serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on BBC1 in six weekly parts from 8 August to 12 September 1964. It was written by Dennis Spooner and directed by Henric Hirsch. In the serial, the First Doctor, his granddaughter Susan, and teachers Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright arrive in France during the period of the French Revolution known as the Reign of Terror, where they become involved with prisoners and English spies.
The Rescue is the third serial of the second season of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by outgoing story editor David Whitaker and directed by Christopher Barry, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in two weekly parts on 2 January and 9 January 1965. In the serial, the time travellers the First Doctor, Ian Chesterton, and Barbara Wright befriend Vicki, an orphan girl marooned on the planet Dido who is being threatened by an apparent native of Dido called Koquillion while awaiting rescue.
The Romans is the fourth serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by Dennis Spooner and directed by Christopher Barry, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in four weekly parts from 16 January to 6 February 1965. In the serial, the First Doctor and his new companion Vicki investigate intrigue surrounding the death of a lyre player en route to perform at the palace of Nero in Rome, while companions Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright are captured by slave traders and sold respectively as a galley slave and as a body slave to Nero's wife Poppaea.
The Crusade is the sixth serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by David Whitaker and directed by Douglas Camfield, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in four weekly parts from 27 March to 17 April 1965. In this serial, the First Doctor and his travelling companions Ian Chesterton, Barbara Wright, and Vicki arrive in 12th century Palestine during the Third Crusade, and find themselves entangled in the conflict between King Richard the Lionheart and Saladin. They also meet King Richard's sister Lady Joanna and Saladin's brother Saphadin.
The Space Museum is the seventh serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by Glyn Jones and directed by Mervyn Pinfield, it was broadcast on BBC1 in four weekly parts from 24 April to 15 May 1965. In the serial, the First Doctor and his travelling companions Ian Chesterton, Barbara Wright, and Vicki arrive in a Space Museum on the planet Xeros, where they seek to change their fate after seeing themselves turned into museum exhibits in the future. They also become entangled in a conflict between the militaristic Moroks who run the museum, and the servile indigenous Xerons who work for them.
The Chase is the eighth serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by Terry Nation and directed by Richard Martin, the serial was broadcast on BBC in six weekly parts from 22 May to 26 June 1965. Set in multiple time periods on several different planets, including Aridius, Earth, and Mechanus, the serial features the Dalek race travelling through time while pursuing the TARDIS and its occupants—the First Doctor and his companions Ian Chesterton, Barbara Wright, and Vicki —to kill them and seize the TARDIS for themselves. The Doctor and companions encounter several characters, including monsters Dracula and Frankenstein's monster, human astronaut Steven Taylor, and an android replica of the Doctor.
The Time Meddler is the ninth and final serial of the second season of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by Dennis Spooner and directed by Douglas Camfield, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in four weekly parts from 3 to 24 July 1965. Set in Northumbria in 1066, before the Battle of Stamford Bridge, the serial features the time traveller the First Doctor and his companions Vicki and Steven Taylor as they attempt to outwit the time traveller the Monk, who is plotting to change the course of European history by wiping out King Harald Hardrada's Viking invasion fleet, leaving Harold Godwinson and the Saxon soldiers fresh to defeat William of Normandy and the Norman soldiers at the Battle of Hastings.
Galaxy 4 is the first serial of the third season of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by William Emms and directed by Derek Martinus, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in four weekly parts from 11 September to 2 October 1965. In the serial, the First Doctor and his travelling companions Vicki and Steven arrive on an arid planet, where they encounter the beautiful but dangerous Drahvins and the hideous but friendly Rills, two crash-landed species in conflict with one another. Both species wish to escape as the planet is set to explode in two dawns, but the Drahvin leader Maaga wants only her people to make it out alive.
The First Doctor is the original incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by actor William Hartnell in the first three series from 1963 to 1966 and the tenth anniversary story The Three Doctors from 1972 to 1973. The character would occasionally appear in the series after Hartnell's death, most prominently as portrayed by Richard Hurndall in the 1983 multi-doctor special "The Five Doctors", and as portrayed by David Bradley in the 2017 Twelfth Doctor episodes "The Doctor Falls" and "Twice Upon a Time" and in the 2022 Thirteenth Doctor episode "The Power of the Doctor", the latter previously having portrayed Hartnell himself in the 2013 biopic An Adventure in Space and Time.
Vicki is a fictional character played by Maureen O'Brien in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. An orphan from the 25th century, she was a companion of the First Doctor and a regular in the programme in Seasons 2 and 3 in 1965. Her last name was never revealed during the series. Vicki appeared in 9 stories.
The second season of British science fiction television series Doctor Who was originally broadcast on BBC1 between 1964 and 1965. The season began on 31 October 1964 with Planet of Giants and ended with The Time Meddler on 24 July 1965. Like the first season, production was overseen by the BBC's first female producer Verity Lambert. Story editor David Whitaker continued to handle the scripts and stories during early production, handing over to Dennis Spooner as the season began to air; Spooner subsequently left his role by the season's end, and was replaced by Donald Tosh for its final serial. By the season's end, Lambert was the only remaining production member from the team responsible for creating the series.
The first season of British science fiction television programme Doctor Who was originally broadcast on BBC TV between 1963 and 1964. The series began on 23 November 1963 with An Unearthly Child and ended with The Reign of Terror on 12 September 1964. The show was created by BBC Television head of drama Sydney Newman to fill the Saturday evening timeslot and appeal to both the younger and older audiences of the neighbouring programmes. Formatting of the programme was handled by Newman, head of serials Donald Wilson, writer C. E. Webber, and producer Rex Tucker. Production was overseen by the BBC's first female producer Verity Lambert and story editor David Whitaker, both of whom handled the scripts and stories.
An Adventure in Space and Time is a 2013 British biographical television film, starring David Bradley, Brian Cox, Jessica Raine and Sacha Dhawan. Directed by Terry McDonough, and written by regular Doctor Who writer Mark Gatiss, it premiered on BBC Two on 21 November 2013, to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the science fiction television series. Further, international broadcasts of the television film were made after its premiere on British television.