THIS WEEK IN DOCTOR WHO - 19 NOVEMBER 1999

by Benjamin F. Elliott

The Doctor Who Night last week in England inadvertently created a new special version of The Daleks episode 7, which could become almost as infamous as Dimensions In Time. The BBC realized 1 day before the broadcast that the Who Night was 5 minutes too short. To compensate, they edited in the last 4 minutes of episode 6 of The Daleks into the story. They then managed to drop 2 minutes of the story out of the middle by accident. It is unclear if any more accidental edits occurred during the body of the episode. The caption saying "Next Episode: The Edge Of Destruction" was cut out on purpose. On the plus side, it was a chance to see how much the story's picture had been cleaned up as the video release date approaches.

The overnight ratings for both BBC2's Doctor Who Night and the first night of the weekly BBC2 reruns have come out. M equals million viewers. % refers to what the percentage of people watching TV were watching the Doctor's exploits. These early numbers do not include VCR recordings and people watching the show in places like pubs. The final numbers should be higher.

13 November - Doctor Who Night (overnights):
8:45-9:00PM - 2.2M - 8.4%
9:00-9:15PM - 2.5M - 10.5%
9:15-9:30PM - 2.4M - 9.9%
9:30-9:45PM - 2.3M - 9.5%
9:45-10:00PM - 2.0M - 8.4%
10:00-10:15PM - 2.3M - 9.7%
10:15-10:30PM - 2.5M - 11.2%
10:30-10:45PM - 1.8M - 9.1%
10:45-11:00PM - 1.6M - 9.5%
11:00-11:15PM - 1.3M - 8.9%
11:15-11:30PM - 1.4M - 10.6%
11:30-11:45PM - 1.3M - 10.8%
11:45-Midnight - 1.2M - 10.6%
Mid-12:15AM - 1.2M - 12.0%
12:15-12:30AM - 1.2M - 13.2%

16 November - Spearhead From Space eps 1+2 (overnights):
6:00-6:15PM - 2.5M - 12.8%
6:15-6:30PM - 2.8M - 13.7%
6:30-6:45PM - 3.0M - 14.2%

TV shows on BBC2 that air between 6 and 7:30PM weekdays (the 'cult show' slot) typically get between 1 and 4 million viewers, with older / more repeated shows doing worse. Hopefully the ratings will stay the same or get better in future weeks.

The Who-Files, BCB Radio's monthly Doctor Who program that airs worldwide on the internet, will air its December installment on Tuesday, November 30, at its regular time (1:03PM GMT). Christmas programming in December is the reason for the switch. BCB's website and the link to the real audio feed are at http://www.bcb.yorks.com/ .

The Top 10 Doctor Who Stories In Australia:
10 - The Robots of Death
9 - City of Death
8 - Planet of the Spiders
7 - Earthshock
6 - The Talons of Weng-Chiang
5 - Remembrance of the Daleks
4 - Pyramids of Mars
3 - The Tomb of the Cybermen
2 - Genesis of the Daleks
1 - ???

KUED 7 in Salt Lake City is now running non-commercials noting that Doctor Who will begin airing on their station in December. The time and date is still not known.

Additions and corrections welcome at organon@logopolis.com . And now, the listings

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UK/IRELAND:

BBC2
http://www.bbc.co.uk/
Tue 6PM GMT Spearhead From Space ep 3 of 4
(Anniversary night! 43 minutes, 40 seconds after the 36th Anniversary of the launch of the TV series.) The Doctor tries to convince Liz to steal the TARDIS key for him. Mannequins prepare to come to life and kill.

This week's sporting event that threatens the start time of the broadcast - Snooker. The Victoria UK Championship in Liverpool. The section that could be trouble runs from 3:30 to 6PM. No sporting event next Tuesday.

UK Gold
http://www.sceneone.co.uk/s1/tv/listings
Late Fri 1-2:55AM GMT The Tomb of the Cybermen movie
The Friday night Black & White moves into Pat Troughton's era with the famous 'lost story'. This story has yet to air in its complete episodic form in the UK, even though it has been 8 years since its recovery. Only episode 4 has been rerun, and only on BBC Choice. The story has not aired in its original format in the UK since its original 1967 telecast.
Sun 8:20-10:10AM GMT The Visitation movie
The 5th Doctor gets Tegan to Heathrow Airport - a few centuries early. It seems that aliens have crash landed on the planet and are introducing some dangerous anachronisms. The aliens also plan to wipe out humanity, which isn't very nice either. In the Doctor's efforts to stop the aliens, a member of the TARDIS crew will suffer a fatal death.
Sun 10:10-11:10AM GMT Black Orchid movie
Nyssa meets her double when the TARDIS lands in 1925 England. The Doctor gets to show off his cricket skills. Meanwhile, a murderer lurks, wondering if Adric will ever get away from the food.

UK Gold Classics
http://www.sceneone.co.uk/s1/tv/listings
Sun 6-7:50PM GMT Earthshock? movie
While I believe that UK Gold Classics will actually air The Visitation and Black Orchid, it should be noted that Sceneone's online listings believe that this story will air instead. There is no extra time allotted to fit in Black Orchid, unless the entire online schedule is wrong.

TG4/TnaG
http://www.tnag.ie/
http://www.sceneone.co.uk/s1/tv/listings
Fri 6:31PM GMT 'Doctor Who and the Silurians' ep 5 of 7 (actually Ambassadors 4+5)
Next Fri 6:31PM GMT 'Doctor Who and the Silurians' ep 6 of 7
Just because many TG4 viewers can now see the restored 3rd Doctor reruns on BBC 2 doesn't mean that these broadcasts should be ignored. For instance, this story works in either colour or the Black & White prints that this station is using, but the look is very different. And since the BBC does not plan to air The Ambassadors of Death or The Mind of Evil in its current run of stories due to the lack of colour prints to use, this station is Ireland's only hope to see those stories on TV anytime soon, so the ratings need to stay high enough to keep the show on the air.

EUROPE/AFRICA:

BBC Prime
http://www.bbcprime.com/
Late Fri 1AM CET (Not Africa) City of Death ep 1 of 4
Sat 5PM, Sun 11:30AM, Mon 11:35AM CET/CAT City of Death ep 2 of 4
The 4th Doctor and Romana find their vacation in Paris cut short by a charming pair of thieves and an American private detective. It seems that the Mona Lisa and the world are both in trouble at the same time.

AUSTRALIA:

UKTV
http://www.varos.com/drwho/uktv/
http://www.uktv.com.au/
Sat 1PM, Sun 2+8AM AEDT Genesis of the Daleks (#2 story) all 6 eps
A Time Lord convinces the Doctor to go back into Skaro's past to alter the history of the Daleks. Either the nature of the Daleks must be changed, a weakness must be found, or the Daleks must never be allowed to exist. Can the Doctor really change history? Or is he actually creating the reality that he has been told to unmake.
Mon-Thu 11:30PM AEDT '' (#1 story) eps 1 - 4 of 4 (confirmed as The Five Doctors)
The wait is over Monday. Which story most interested Canadian viewers? Episode 2 will air on 23 November, the anniversary day for the series. Well, it was 24 November Australian Time, but that's okay. Doctor Who should return to weekdays in either late January or early February. (end of weekday episodes)

CANADA/USA:

SPACE: The Imagination Station
http://www.hwcn.org/~an933/spacedw.htm
http://www.spacecast.com/
Sat 7:30AM EST The Keys of Marinus ep 6 of 6
Ian has been sentenced to death by a court of law, and Susan has been fated to die by desperate kidnappers who fear she can identify them. The Doctor locates the final key.
Sun-Wed 7:30 EST The Aztecs eps 1 - 4 of 4 (The Temple Of Evil, The Warriors Of Death, The Bride Of Sacrifice, The Day Of Darkness)
In the land that will be Mexico, the Aztec civilization lives on, the good intermingling with the evil. Now, one of their revered priests has returned from the dead as a woman. She is preaching new ideas, making both friends and enemies. Will she be the future for the Aztecs, or will she be sent back to the land of the dead that she came from? (Episode 3 airs on November 23, the anniversary day.)
Thu-Fri 7:30 EST The Sensorites eps 1 - 2 of 6 (Strangers In Space, The Unwilling Warriors)
The TARDIS lock is stolen, trapping the Doctor and company onboard a ship that perpetually orbits a forgotten planet. 2 of the ship's crew are in almost constant comas. The other one is insane.

NHPTV New Hampshire 11, 49, 52
http://nhptv.org/
Sun 3PM EST The Time Warrior ep 4 of 4
Only 1 episode apparently. The Doctor and Sarah try to stop the Sontaran from returning to his battle fleet. They also have to get all the scientists home.

WQED/WQEX 13, 16 Pittsburgh, PA
http://www.wqed.org/
No episode this week. WQED produced Doctor Who special airs next week.

WYBE 35 Philadelphia, PA
http://www.wybe.org/
Sat 11PM EST The Invisible Enemy eps 3+4 of 4
The battle for the future of the cosmos takes place inside the Doctor's mind.

MPT Maryland 22, 28, 31, 36, 62, 67
http://www.mpt.org/
Late Sat 12:30AM EST The Hand Of Fear movie
The TARDIS lands in a quarry which the Doctor mistakes for an alien planet.

WUSF 16 Tampa, FL
http://www.wusftv.usf.edu/gateway.htm
Sat 11:30PM EST Planet of Fire ep 3 of 4
Turlough's heritage is revealed when Malkon lies near death.

WCET 48 Cincinnati, OH
http://www.wcet.org/
Sat 11:30PM EST The Green Death eps 2+3 of 6
Jo falls in love. The Doctor finds frustration as he investigates Global Chemicals.

WYIN 56 Gary, IN (Chicago, IL)
http://208.137.2.91/
Sat 10PM CST The Android Invasion ep 3 of 4
Sarah has been duplicated by the Kraals, and the Doctor may be next on their agenda.

KTCA 2 St. Paul, MN
http://www.ktca.org/
Sat 11:30PM CST Pyramids of Mars ep 3 of 4
What will the future be like if Sutekh wins?

IPTV Iowa 11, 12, 21, 24, 27, 32, 32, 36
http://www.sffn.com/
http://www.iptv.org/
Fri 11:05PM CST Invasion of the Dinosaurs eps 2+3 of 6
The 3rd Doctor and Sarah join UNIT's investigation of the Dinosaurs that are infesting Central London. One of UNIT's agents may be a traitor.

PPTV North Dakota 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, 13, 19
http://www.pptv.org/
Fri 10:30PM CST (9:30PM MST) The Hand Of Fear ep 4 of 4
Eldrad learns what happened to the Kastrian people after Eldrad's shuttle was destroyed all those millions of years ago.

KBDI/K32EO 12, 32 Denver/Colorado Springs, CO
http://www.kbdi.org/
http://www.tvquest.com/ zip 80205
(No episodes next week.)
Late Fri 12:30AM MST The Android Invasion eps 3+4 of 4
The Doctor and Sarah must get to Earth before the Androids to warn about the invasion. Final appearances of Benton and Harry Sullivan.
Sat 10PM MST The Brain of Morbius all 4 eps
The Doctor lands on a forgotten planet not too far from Gallifrey, where a mad scientist dreams of building a body for a brain, and an unfriendly sisterhood kills any strangers who visit.

KNME 5 Albuquerque, NM
http://www.knmetv.org/
Sat 10:30PM MST Robot movie
KNME flips back to the start of the 4th Doctor era. The Doctor investigates a series of burglaries of top secret military equipment. The equipment precisely matches the needs of someone who wants to build a disintegrator gun.

KRWG 22 Las Cruces, NM (El Paso, TX)
http://www.nmsu.edu/~krwgtv/
Sat 10:30PM MST The Ribos Operation movie
The Doctor is forced by the White Guardian to begin a quest for the 6 segments of the Key To Time. Worse, the Guardian forces another Time Lord upon him to complicate his life. Enter Romanadvoratrelundar.

KSPS 7 Spokane, WA
http://www.ksps.org/
http://www.tvquest.com/ zip 99223
Sat 10:30PM PST (11:30PM MST) Vengeance on Varos movie
The TARDIS runs out of Zyton-7 ore. The only supply nearby is on Varos, a planet on the edge of barbarism.

KBTC/KCKA 28, 15 Tacoma/Centralia, WA
http://www.kbtc.org/
Sat 7PM+~1AM PST The Three Doctors eps 1+2 of 4
A force residing inside a black hole incapacitates the Doctor's home planet and tries to capture the Doctor. To save the Doctor, and hence themselves, they may need to violate the cardinal law of time, and bring the Doctor into contact with his past.

KTEH 54 San Jose, CA
http://www.kteh.org/
Sun 11PM PST Full Circle all 4 eps (restored)
The TARDIS is sent off course into a pocket universe.

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