THIS WEEK IN DOCTOR WHO - Fri, 9 Apr 1999

By Benjamin F. Elliott

A little more information on Doctor Who's surprise UK digital broadcasts has come out. Thanks again to David Brunt for looking this up.

BBC Choice has four variants, all of which can be received with UK digital systems. Generally, all the stations air the same shows until about 10PM, and then they air local variations. BBC Choice Scotland opted to air Terror of the Zygons in three parts from November 23rd to 25th at 10:30PM as an add-on to the Doctor Who anniversary week on BBC Choice. A repeat of the first night of the Doctor Who week aired December 24th in the evening. And, as mentioned last week, Terror of the Zygons was repeated on BBC Choice Scotland from March 29th through 31st. At last word, no other BBC Digital airing had occurred.

Just after the April 2nd column went out, it turned out that UK Gold Classics (aka UK Gold 2), a weekend channel currently only on Sky Digital, has started rerunning UK Gold's Sunday Doctor Who broadcasts at a more convenient time (6PM). This broadcast began April 4th with The Seeds of Doom. They are airing the same Sunday installment on both stations.

For what it's worth, I don't know of any digital versions of the SPACE channel, BBC Prime, FOXTEL, or the PBS stations actually airing Doctor Who right now. For now, at least, digital Doctor Who seems confined to the British Isles. But I'm sure we'll see more of the Doctor on digital stations someday ...

Additions, corrections, and suggestions are always welcome. My e-mail address is bfelliott@jnpcs.com . And so, on to the listings:

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Europe:

UK Gold
Late Friday from 12:40 to 2:15AM The War Machines movie version
Sunday from 8:55 to 10:50AM The Masque of Mandragora movie version
This weekend UK Gold offers two good Doctor Who stories that have nearly nothing in common. Friday night insomniacs can see the final surviving William Hartnell story. The Doctor gets Dodo back to 1966 London, just in time to witness the completion of WOTAN, the ultimate computer. In a transparent attempt to link the Peter Cushing movies into the regular series, WOTAN wants to consult with Dr. Who. Only the Doctor's available, so he'll have to make do. This story introduced Ben Jackson (the recently deceased Michael Craze) and Polly (Anneke Wills). The last time UK Gold aired this story, they used the restored prints from the video release. Sunday morning sees the introduction of the famous wooden TARDIS console. The 4th Doctor and Sarah inadvertently bring a cruel fireball to the 15th Century, where it plots to take over the planet. Oops.

UK Gold CLASSICS
Sunday from 6 to 7:55PM The Masque of Mandragora movie version
Encore of the Sunday morning UK Gold broadcast. Very handy for Church goers with Sky Digital.

BBC Prime
http://www.bbcprime.com/
Late Friday at 1AM CET The Invasion of Time episode 5 of 6
Saturday at 9:40AM and 6PM CET The Invasion of Time ep 6 of 6
The 4th Doctor has just outwitted the Vardans and expelled them from Gallifrey. However, it seems that while the Doctor and the Vardans thought they were playing a twisted power game of chess, the Sontarans were playing galactic solitaire. And now they've taken over the Doctor's home planet. Keep an eye out for the TARDIS interior scenes.

Australia:

FOXTEL's UK-TV
http://www.foxtel.com.au/
Saturday at 1PM, Sunday at 2 and 8AM Planet of the Spiders all 6 episodes
Monday through Thursday at 11:30PM The Ark In Space episodes 1 through 4 of 4
Friday at 11:30PM The Aztecs: The Temple of Evil ep 1 of 4
The Who-Files just keep on rolling and rolling. Over the weekend, relive Jon Pertwee's swan song as the 3rd Doctor. A monastery inadvertently brings giant spiders to Earth - spiders who are willing to kill to retrieve something the Doctor took from their world. Most of the weeknight episodes go to 'The Ark In Space', an early 4th Doctor story, where the Wirrn insects have decided to feast on the last survivors of humanity. On Friday, flip back to the very first season of the series. The TARDIS lands inside an Aztec tomb, and Barbara is mistaken for a god.

North America:

SPACE: The Imagination Station
http://www.spacecast.com/ and
http://www.hwcn.org/~an933/spacedw.htm
< 3:30AM Monday broadcasts have been discontinued. >
Monday through Thursday at 7:30AM EDT The Ambassadors of Death episodes 4 through 7 of 7
Friday at 7:30AM EDT The Sontaran Experiment episode 1 of 2
Most of the week deals with the 3rd Doctor, as he tries to locate aliens disguised as astronauts before they are used to start an interstellar war. At the end of the week, jump into a 4th Doctor story. The Doctor, Sarah, and Harry land on an Earth purified by flame, completely abandoned. Well, it was *supposed* to be abandoned, anyway.

(Some US stations also have low power transmitters and other repeater signals. Known full power signals are listed.)

MPBC Maine 10, 10, 12, 13, 26
http://www.mpbc.org/
Saturday at 9PM EDT The Seeds of Doom episodes 1 and 2 of 6
Tonight's episodes form their own little mini-story within the story. Unusual plant pods are discovered in Antarctica. UNIT sends in John Steed and Miss Peel (er, the Doctor and Sarah) to examine the pods. The Doctor fears that the pods may be dangerous. But one person is willing to pay any price for the pods, even if it's the end of humanity.

NHPTV New Hampshire 11, 49, 52
http://nhptv.org/
Sunday at 3PM EDT Colony In Space episodes 5 and 6 of 6
The 3rd Doctor, Jo, and the Master wind up in a forbidden city, where they learn the strange truth behind the planet they are on. Meanwhile, the IMC escalates its efforts to rid themselves of the colonists. The Master loses something very important to him.

WQED / WQEX 13, 16 Pittsburgh, PA
http://www.wqed.org/
Saturday at 11PM EDT The Pyramids Of Mars episode 3 of 4
Immediately afterwards - The Keys of Marinus: The Screaming Jungle episode 3 of 6
The 4th Doctor develops a brilliant plan to defeat Sutekh, but it goes horribly wrong. Then, flip back to 1964, and a 1st Doctor episode *without the 1st Doctor in it*! Ian and Barbara search for the second key, which is hidden in a maze of death traps.

WYBE 35 Philadelphia, PA
http://www.wybe.org/
Saturday at 11PM EDT Revenge of the Cybermen eps 3 and 4 of 4
The Cybermen wage war on Voga, unaware that Voga is planning to wage war on them. The 4thDoctor, Sarah, Harry, and the survivors of Nerva Beacon get caught in the middle. And events count down to "the biggest bang in history".

MPT Maryland 22, 28, 31, 36, 62, 67
http://www.mpt.org/
Late Friday at 12:30AM, Saturday at Midnight EDT Terror of the Autons movie version
Note later start time on Friday. The very first Master story, where our favorite villain makes a deal with a force the Doctor and UNIT has faced before. I don't know if this will be the Black & White version or the Color-Restored one. MPT aired both during their last run through Pertwee.

WUFT 5 Gainesville, FL
http://www.wuft.org/
Saturday at 5PM EDT Paradise Towers movie version
The 7th Doctor and Ace go to Paradise Towers in search of a holiday. Whoever developed that travel brochure should be fed to an oddly malevolent cleaning robot, driven through the hallways, taken to the basement, and given to an overly aggressive pair of eyes.

WUSF 16 Tampa, FL
http://wusftv.usf.edu/
Saturday at 11:35PM EDT Mawdryn Undead episode 3 of 4
Events in 1977 and 1983 begin to converge on board Mawdryn's spaceship. And it could spell doom for Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, who heads to the ship in both time zones, unwittingly toying with the lethal Blinovitch Limitation Effect.

WCET 48 Cincinnati, OH
http://www.wcet.org/
Saturday at 11:30PM EDT The Claws of Axos eps 2 and 3 of 4
When last we left the scene, Bill Filer finally meets his quarry, the Master. And they're both prisoners of Axos. How could the Master be stupid enough to let Axos catch him? What are the real goals of the people of Axos? And what sound does a nuclear power plant make when it explodes?

WYIN 56 Gary, IN (Chicago, IL)
http://www.wyin.org/
Saturday at 10PM CDT Robot episode 4 of 4
The Robot goes insane. The Robot gets the codes to set off a bunch of nuclear bombs and eliminate humanity. The Robot decides to play King Kong, with Sarah as Fay Wray. Humanity's only hope is that Professor Kettlewell, the man who designed the Robot, can calm the beast down before he kills someone.

Louisiana Public Broadcasting 13, 18, 24, 24, 25, 27
http://www.lpb.org/
Saturday at 10PM CDT Death to the Daleks episode 4 of 4
Saturday at 10:24?PM CDT The Monster of Peladon episode 1 of 6
The 3rd Doctor is faced with destroying one of the 700 wonders of the universe to get out of it alive. Sarah must keep the Daleks from escaping the planet with the cure to a space plague. When that's all sorted out, the 3rd Doctor and Sarah visit Peladon, a planet the Doctor has visited before. Once again, they have arrived just as dangerous events are occuring on that planet.

IPTV Iowa 11, 12, 27, 32
http://www.iptv.org/ and http://www.mach3ww.com/sffn/
Friday at 11:05PM CDT Doctor Who And The Silurians episodes 3 and 4 of 7
Color-restored episodes. The 3rd Doctor makes 2nd contact with the Silurians. Also, a woman has been paralysed with fire. She may have seen something.

PPTV North Dakota 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, 13, 19
http://www.prairiepublic.org/
Friday at 10:30PM CDT Terror of the Zygons episode 4 of 4
Attention, fellow Zygons! This is Broton. I'm off to create havoc in London. Follow along in the spaceship shortly. The clever idiot with the scarf has been eliminated, so there should be no trouble now.

KBDI 12 Denver, CO
http://www.kbdi.org/
Friday at 11:05PM MDT Death to the Daleks eps 3 and 4 of 4
Saturday at 10PM MDT The Monster of Peladon eps 1 and 2 of 6
Friday's episodes show comparatively intelligent Daleks. They betray the humans, trick the natives, and even figure out the tricks to surviving the killer city. But have they ever had to tangle with Sarah Jane Smith? ;-) On Saturday the 3rd Doctor returns to Peladon to find a planet in even more trouble than the last time he showed up. Last time, failure would result in misery for one planet. This time, failure could rock the core of the entire Galactic Federation.

KSPS 7 Spokane, WA
http://www.ksps.org/
Saturday at 10:30PM PDT The Horns of Nimon movie version
The 4th Doctor arrives in an interstellar remake of a famous Greek myth. The dying Skonnan Empire delivers children and hymetusite from another planet to appease the Nimon, a being that has promised to make their race powerful again. The actors in this story have been unfairly accused of overacting, but if they are, it helps the plot. A wild ride with something for everyone - even cricket fans. The Nimon be praised!

KBTC / KCKA 28, 15 Tacoma, WA (Seattle, WA)
Saturday at 7PM and 2:30AM PDT, Monday at 7:30PM and 12:30AM PDT
Doctor Who And The Silurians episodes 5 and 6 of 7
[New later rerun time on Saturdays.]
With apologies to JMS. In episode 5 the friendship between the Old Silurian leader and the 3rdDoctor offered Earth's last, best hope for peace with the Silurians. It failed. (Scenes of spreading plague appear on screen.) Now, that bond of friendship could result in something far more crucial - Earth's last, best hope for victory. (Cue theme music.)

KTEH 54 San Jose, CA
http://www.kteh.org/
Sunday at 11PM PDT Terror of the Zygons all 4 episodes
It's Scotland. The Brigadier's in a kilt. The Doctor's in altered garb himself. Sarah's dressed warmly, but could be anywhere. And Harry's sporting a very fetching bandage on his head. Together, they face bagpipe music, sunken oil rigs, an alien invasion, the Loch Ness Monster, and the eye of a moose. Okay, they don't actually *face* the eye of a moose. It's just an attempt to make this synopsis of a good story more exciting.

BBC America
http://www.bbcamerica.com/
Saturday at 11AM and 5PM EDT, Sunday at 8AM EDT Genesis of the Daleks movie version, part 3 of 3
Dear Diary. Things to do today: Torture that fellow in a scarf. Feed the fish. Redesign machines to make them more effective. Cluck like a chicken. Massacre more Thals. Watch Larry King Live. Deal with that Kaled insurrection. Secondary note: Must remember to exterminate the folks at BBC America if they edit the two episodes together, cut scenes for more commercials, and air them in a 1 hour slot like they normally do.