THIS WEEK IN DOCTOR WHO - Fri, 17 Sep 1999

By Benjamin F. Elliott

Well, now that Hurricane Floyd is out of the way, we can all relax and go back to the important things in life - like people traveling through Time and Space in Police Boxes!

Three notable pieces of news this week - 2 good, 1 mediocre:

Good - KTCA St. Paul, MN entered the digital age on Thursday the 16th. At 7:30PM CDT, KTCA began broadcasting on channel 16 with a digital signal. For the time being, they will simply simulcast what is airing on KTCA 2. Eventually, they plan to begin offering additional channels and information. The station is relatively low powered right now, so the signal will not reach as far as KTCA 2 does. The digital stations can only be viewed with the new HDTV televisions or if you have one of the promised decoders that will upgrade traditional televisions which were supposed to be available by now. As far as I know, KTCA-DT 16 will be the first digital station in the USA that has aired Doctor Who (BBC America is not a digital station, although most Cable systems offering it only have it on their digitaltiers).

(NOTE from Benjamin, submitted a short time after we received this: "It seems that KTCA is not simulcasting their lineup on their digital station yet after all. The station is up, but they are not simulcasting. My apologies.")

Good - The Radio Times in the UK has announced that BBC2 will have a Doctor Who night on Saturday, November 13, 1999, beginning at 9PM. 2 short documentaries, other specials, and classic episodes will air.

Mediocre - UKTV in Australia is scheduled to begin airing its top 10 Doctor Who stories on Thursday, September 23rd, as selected by Australian viewers. Unfortunately, the top 10 had not been announced as of publication time.

Additions and corrections welcome at bfelliott@jnpcs.com . And now, the schedules:

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The UK:

BBC1
http://www.bbc.co.uk/
Wed 7PM BST 'TV's Greatest Hits' final episode
Originally expected to air last week, this installment was going to have a feature on the Daleks, and might have K9 appear as a live guest.

UK Gold
http://www.sceneone.co.uk/s1/tv/listings
Sun 9:40 - 11:20AM BST The Leisure Hive movie
The Doctor's outfit is a more uniform red. The TARDIS has a somewhat refurbished shell. John Leeson is voicing K9. Yep, they've entered the JohnNathanTurner years on UK Gold. The 4thDoctor and Romana take an exotic vacation at the Leisure Hive, an oasis on a dead planet. The surviving residents of the planet have developed a new breed of science. A science that could be badly misused in the wrong hands.

UK Gold Classics
http://www.sceneone.co.uk/s1/tv/listings
Sun 6 - 7:50PM BST The Leisure Hive movie
Time shifted broadcast.

EUROPE/AFRICA:

BBC Prime
http://www.bbcprime.com/
Late Fri 1AM CET (Not Africa) The Armageddon Factor ep 2 of 6
Sat 9:30AM and 6PM CET/CAT The Armageddon Factor ep 3 of 6
Behind the scenes of the Atrios / Zeos war is the Shadow, a sinister lurking figure who has continued this war for the express purpose of waiting for the Doctor to show up. Now that the Doctor's here, things can be allowed to turn nasty.

AUSTRALIA:

UKTV
http://www.varos.com/drwho/uktv/ and http://www.uktv.com.au/
Sat 1PM, Sun 2 and 8AM AEST The Caves of Androzani all 4 eps
Sat 3PM, Sun 4 and 10AM AEST The Trial Of A Time Lord: The Ultimate Foe eps 13+14 of 14
Mon - Wed 11:30PM AEST Survival eps 1 - 3 of 3
Thu - Fri 11:30PM AEST '' eps 1 - 2 of (#10) (confirmed as The Robots of Death)
The Who-Files finally come to an end, at least for a while. Over the weekend, the 5th and 6thDoctors say their goodbyes to the Who universe. As the weekday episodes begin, the 7th Doctor takes Ace home to Perivale. Everyone she knows is disappearing. Shortly before each person disappears, a black cat hisses. Rumours that this is the same cat that stars on Sabrina, The Teenage Witch are unfounded. As the week ends, UKTV starts airing the 10 most popular Doctor Who stories, as determined by an online poll. First up, #10, (not announced at publication time).

CANADA/UNITED STATES:

SPACE: The Imagination Station
http://www.hwcn.org/~an933/spacedw.htm and
http://www.spacecast.com/
Sat - Wed 7:30AM EDT The Mind Robber eps 1 - 5 of 5
Thu - Fri 7:30AM EDT The Krotons eps 1 - 2 of 4
Most of the week goes to The Mind Robber, where the Doctor and company find themselves outside of reality. The episodes really are as short as they seem - they aren't cut. As the week ends, the TARDIS lands on the planet of the Gonds, a race of people educated by a machine that takes the two brightest students of every graduating class - and kills them.

MPBC Maine 10, 10, 12, 13, 26
http://www.mpbc.org/
Sat 11:30PM EDT (12:30AM ADT) The Talons of Weng-Chiang ep 1 of 6
The Doctor and Leela go to 19th Century London to explore theatre life. If only people would take a break from dying so our heroes could get to the show.

NHPTV New Hampshire 11, 49, 52
http://nhptv.org/
Sun 3PM EDT Frontier In Space eps 4+5 of 6
The Master and the Ogrons bring Earth and Draconia to the brink of war. And people still do not want to listen to the Doctor's opinions on the subject.

WQED / WQEX 13, 16 Pittsburgh, PA
http://www.wqed.org/
http://www.tvquest.com/ zip 15201
Sat 11:30PM EDT The Seeds of Doom ep 6 of 6
The Krynoid gets ready to launch a new generation of itself around the world. UNIT prepares to blow up the mansion - but the Doctor, Sarah, and Scorby are still inside.

WYBE 35 Philadelphia, PA
http://www.wybe.org/
Sat 11PM EDT The Deadly Assassin ep 4 of 4
Sat 11:30PM EDT The Face of Evil ep 1 of 4
The identity of the dead man who's been manipulating Gallifrey is revealed, as are that man's plans for revenge. Peter Pratt played the decaying figure, who looks remarkably like Darth Maul in the new Star Wars film. Later, the Doctor and his jelly babies land on a jungle planet where he is known as The Evil One (TM).
» next edition reported The Deadly Assassin: Part Four was replaced by an episode of The Masque of Mandragora instead!

MPT Maryland 22, 28, 31, 36, 62, 67
http://www.mpt.org/
Late Sat 12:30AM EDT Genesis of the Daleks movie
(22, 28, and 67 are close to Hurricane Floyd's flight path.)
The Doctor is intercepted en route back to Nerva by a Time Lord who drafts him to alter the history of the Daleks.

WUSF 16 Tampa, FL
http://www.wusftv.usf.edu/gateway.htm
Sat 11:30PM EDT Frontios ep 2 of 4
The Doctor's TARDIS has been destroyed, leaving just a hat rack. The earth continues to eat people.

WCET 48 Cincinnati, OH
http://www.wcet.org/
Sat 11:30PM EDT The Mutants eps 4+5 of 6
The Doctor uncovers the secret of the Solonian life cycle, and the reasons for the mutations. The Marshall resorts to drastic methods to alter the atmosphere of Solos. An investigator from Earth arrives.

WYIN 56 Gary, IN (Chicago, IL)
http://www.wyin.org/
Sat 10PM CDT Planet of Evil ep 2 of 4
The Doctor and Sarah are believed to be the killers. The planet refuses to let the ship leave while there is anti-matter on board.

KTCA St. Paul, MN
http://www.ktca.org/
analog - 2
digital - 16
Sat 11:30PM CDT Terror of the Zygons ep 2 of 4
First known digital Doctor Who broadcast on a US PBS station. Harry is rushed to the hospital, where he is too delirious to remember what happened to him. But his virtual incapacitation has not made him any safer. The Doctor continues his investigations into the missing oil rigs.

IPTV Iowa 11, 12, 21, 24, 27, 32, 32, 36
http://www.sffn.com/ and http://www.iptv.org/
Fri 11:05PM CDT Carnival Of Monsters ep 4 of 4
Fri 11:31PM CDT Frontier In Space ep 1 of 6
In Carnival, one of the blue faced people manipulates the Drashigs in the Scope in an attempt to seize control of the planet, with disastrous results. Later, the TARDIS collides with a space freighter that is due to be hijacked.

PPTV North Dakota 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, 13, 19
http://www.pptv.org/
Fri 10:30PM CDT (9:30PM MDT) The Seeds of Doom ep 5 of 6
Harrison Chase loses his last remnants of sanity and embraces the cycle of death that the Krynoid is bringing. Vegetation throughout the region turns deadly.

KBDI / K32EO 12, 32 Denver / Colorado Springs, CO
http://www.tvquest.com/ zip 80205
Fri 11PM MDT Terror of the Zygons eps 1+2 of 4
Sat 10PM MDT Terror of the Zygons eps 3+4 of 4
The Doctor visits Scotland, where oil rigs are mysterious sinking, people are being replaced by duplicates, and the deer heads look at you in a funny matter. Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, in his last appearance for many years, wears a kilt.

KNME 5 Albuquerque, NM
http://www.knmetv.org/
Sat 11PM MDT Image of the Fendahl movie
[Episodes are airing in production order. This story took place before The Sun Makers, which aired last week.] A foolish scientist has constructed a device which will destroy the Earth if it is allowed to operate for too long. The device is awakening an ancient evil that never existed, from a place that never was. I wish I could clarify that, but it would be a big spoiler.

KRWG 22 Las Cruces, NM (El Paso, TX)
http://www.nmsu/~krwgtv/
Sat 10:30PM MDT The Face of Evil movie
When Time Lord Met Savage. The Doctor lands on a planet where he is believed to be The Evil One. With Leela, a savage kicked out of her tribe, he must find out what he did to this planet in the past.

KSPS 7 Spokane, WA
http://www.ksps.org/
http://www.tvquest.com/ zip 99223
Sat 10:30PM PDT (11:30PM MDT) The Five Doctors original version
The 1st 5 incarnations of the Doctor are yanked from time and space and sent to the Death Zone. It seems that a Time Lord is trying to emulate the dark motives and methods of their disreputable ancestors. The 20th anniversary story, with many of the actors and actresses from the 1st 20 years making return visits.

KBTC / KCKA 28, 15 Tacoma / Centralia, WA
http://www.tvquest.com/ zip 98405
Sat 7PM PDT The Sea Devils eps 1+2 of 6
The Doctor and Jo visit the Master at his island prison. But is he the prisoner, or the warden? Meanwhile, oil rigs are sinking at sea.

KTEH 54 San Jose, CA
http://www.kteh.org/

KTEH's schedule is up in the air due to the fact that they don't know when their auction will end.

*Scenario A (auction ends at 10PM):
Sun 10PM PDT "Things To Come" non-Doctor Who related movie
Sun 11:30PM (Interview With A Doctor Who Person - Person To Be Determined)
Sun Midnight The Power of Kroll all 4 eps

*Scenario B (auction ends at 10:30PM):
Sun 10:30PM PDT "Things To Come"
Sun Midnight The Power of Kroll all 4 eps

*Scenario C (auction ends at 11PM):
Sun 11PM PDT (Interview With A Doctor Who Person)
Sun 11:30PM (Another Interview With A Doctor Who Person)
Sun Midnight The Power of Kroll all 4 eps

*Scenario D (auction ends at 11:30PM):
Sun 11:30PM PDT (Interview With A Doctor Who Person)
Sun Midnight The Power of Kroll all 4 eps

*Scenario E (auction ends at Midnight):
Sun Midnight The Power of Kroll all 4 eps
The one thing that is for sure - The Power of Kroll WILL air before the night is out!

BBC America
http://www.bbcamerica.com/
Sat 5PM, Sun 8AM EDT The Pyramids Of Mars movie, pt 2 of 2
Sutekh manipulates the Doctor to arrange his escape from his millenia-old prison on Mars. Sarah and Lawrence Scarman see what Earth will be like if Sutekh wins.

CENTRAL/SOUTH AMERICA:

HBO Plus
http://www.hbo-ole.com/plus.htm
Mon 11:44PM ADT (9:44PM CDT) DOCTOR WHO the 1996 movie
Year's Eve plans for Dr. Grace Holloway are interrupted when a patient of hers dies on the operating table. Things get more serious when the patient gets better and asks her for help. English with Spanish subtitles.

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That's it for this week. Until next week, take care.