THIS WEEK IN DOCTOR WHO - October 13, 2000

by Benjamin F. Elliott
Email: bfelliott@gallifreyone.com

Let The Parties Begin!

Welcome to the weekly guide to the known Doctor Who broadcasts all over the world. This is the first of several big weeks for Doctor Who fandom in the USA. As most of you read this, a cruise ship is sailing down the west coast of North America, with Carole Ann Ford (Susan), Sylvester McCoy (7th Doctor), and several hundred fans. On Wednesday, they will enter the San Francisco Bay area, enabling Carole and Syl to take part in a Live Doctor Who Night on KTEH 54 in San Jose from 8PM to 11:15PM. That special is airing in the San Jose area. After that, the cruise continues for a few days, and then Sylvester McCoy heads off to Pittsburgh for the National Doctor Who Night on October 21st, which will air on at least 6 PBS stations during the rest of this year. While Syl's in Pittsburgh, WYBE 35 in Philadelphia, PA will do their own Doctor Who marathon, presumably without a studio guest. To sum up - Carole, Syl, and fans invading various ports of call on the west coast; Carole and Syl on KTEH; Syl doing a special for America; and WYBE throwing a party by themselves. Any questions? Good. So, details in chronological order:

Wednesday, October 18, 8PM PDT (11PM EDT, Thursday 4AM BST, Thursday 2PM AEDT) - The Ends Of Time, KTEH 54 in San Jose's live Doctor Who night. KTEH will be off the air most of that day upgrading their transmitter, so this should be one of the first broadcasts with a new, clearer picture reaching more people. 3 hours, 15 minutes. 2 episodes apiece from Carole Ann Ford's years as Susan and Sylvester McCoy's years as the 7th Doctor. People who pledge can give questions for the actors and vote on the 5th episode to air in the special, which will be a Sylvester McCoy episode. Among the pledge benefits available are 25 memberships to the Gallifrey 2001 convention in Los Angeles in February!

If you are subscribed to one or more Egroups, you can sign up for the KTEH chat group at http://www.egroups.com/chat/kteh-sci-fi/ and discuss the special online as it airs. No confirmation about whether anyone from KTEH will be able to join in the chat as it occurs. If you wish to call to give support and give questions even if you are outside the KTEH viewing area, there are 2 phone numbers available - 1-800-225-5454 and 1-408-795-5454. Only call during the special, starting at 8PM Pacific Time.

Saturday, October 21, 8PM EDT - WYBE 35 Philadelphia's 6 episode Doctor Who marathon. 4 hours. The second half of Castrovalva and all of Four To Doomsday air. Probably a 5th Doctor theme.

Saturday, October 21, 10PM EDT - "Whovians Across America: A Doctor Who Night", live on WQED/WQEX 13,16 Pittsburgh, PA. 3 hours. One complete story from Sylvester McCoy's era, to be voted on by the general public by sending their choice of story and format (episodic vs. movie) to TJLubins@wqed.org .

Pledge benefits still being worked out, though at least one is so obvious that I'm amazed I've never seen it offered in previous pledge drives over here. I will have the phone number for people who want to pledge live included in next week's column.

The 6 stations who have purchased the Nationwide Doctor Who Night (as of 10/12/2000):
WQED/WQEX Pittsburgh, PA - live Oct 21 10PM-1AM EDT
NHPTV New Hampshire - date unknown
MPT Maryland - date unknown
WCET Cincinnati, OH - late November/early December
IPTV Iowa - date unknown
KBDI/K32EO Denver/Colorado Springs, CO - date unknown

All 14 PBS stations currently airing Doctor Who have the rights to purchase and air the National special, but only the 6 above have done so as of publication time.

USA - Oops. WQED began airing Underworld last week, not Image of the Fendahl. My mistake this time.

USA - What exactly did MPT think it was doing last week? They forgot to put their regular padding after Red Green, resulting in Red Dwarf starting 7 minutes early, resulting in Doctor Who starting 7 minutes early. No warning, no notice. Not my mistake.

NEW ZEALAND - Good news for Prime TV viewers. After they were sent the Black & White version of "Silurians" when they were expecting colour, Prime asked the BBC which versions of later stories they would get. Terror of the Autons will be in colour, the first colour TV broadcast of that story in New Zealand. No word yet on The Daemons, though one assumes that would also be in colour. Meanwhile, the colour episode of The Ambassadors of Death, episode 5 aired while the other 6 episodes were in black & white.

Additions and corrections are welcome at bfelliott@earthlink.net, bfelliott@gallifreyone.com , or bfelliott3 on AOL IM. And now, the listings:

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UK:

UK Gold
http://www.sceneone.co.uk/s1/tv/listings
Sun 8:50-11:10AM BST The Dæmons movie
The Master sets himself up as a vicar to summon the amoral Daemon Azal in yet another attempt to take control of Earth. Note: UK Gold last tried to air this story in the fall of 1998, when this column was young. After advertising the colour-restored version, they began airing the Black & White version. Around the beginning of episode 5, they suddenly went to colour. Hopefully UK Gold will be more diligent this time, particularly as episode 4 is the only episode to exist in its original, higher quality colour, while episode 5 was one of the episodes that were recoloured with an American recording, with good, but not as good, colour.

UK Gold 2
http://www.sceneone.co.uk/s1/tv/listings
Sun 6-8:15PM BST The Dæmons movie
Same day replay of UK Gold's broadcast.

EUROPE/AFRICA/ASIA:

BBC Prime
http://www.bbcprime.com/
Late Fri 1:05AM*, Sat 3:30PM CET Castrovalva ep 4 of 4
*Not seen in all regions. It looks like the secret of Castrovalva is really a question of math. A chance for Adric to show his skills. But where is Adric?
Sun 11:30AM, Late Thu 12:30AM CET Four To Doomsday ep 1 of 4
The TARDIS misses Heathrow Airport, landing instead on a space ship run by frogs.

AUSTRALIA/NEW ZEALAND:

UKTV Australia
http://www.varos.com/drwho/uktv/
Sun 7AM, Late Sun 1AM AEDT Carnival Of Monsters all 4 eps
"If they could see me now, out on a fun ship cruise. I'm eating fancy food and doing what I choose. I wish my friends back home, could ... hey, who let the sea monster into this cruise!"
Mon-Wed 11:30PM AEDT Frontier In Space eps 4 - 6 of 6
Roger Delgado's final appearance as the Master, and he goes out with a grand flourish. Not content to have the Doctor and Jo locked away under Earth authority while his plan goes forth, the Master insists on collecting them. More sporting that way.
Thu-Fri 11:30PM AEDT Planet of the Daleks eps 1 - 2 of 6
A continuation of the surprise cliffhanger at the end of Frontier In Space. The TARDIS is piloted by the Time Lords to a jungle planet, while the Doctor collapses into a deep coma. Jo goes in search of help, and discovers a Thal battle fleet.

Prime TV New Zealand
http://www.tetrap.com/drwho/nzdwfc/
http://www.primetv.co.nz/
Sun-Fri 6:30PM Inferno eps 2 - 7 of 7
Last rerun in 1991/1992. The Doctor's continued efforts to get power running through the TARDIS console jettison him into a parallel world, where the true results of Professor Stahlman's efforts to break through the Earth's crust are revealed. And it may be too late for the Doctor to save the day.

USA:
(Stations who purchased the National Doctor Who special denoted with a *)

BBC America
http://www.bbcamerica.com/
Mon-Thu 8AM EDT (5AM PDT), reruns Tue-Fri 5AM EDT (2AM PDT)
Mon/Tue Terror of the Zygons eps 3+4 of 4
The Zygons intend to take over the Earth, in an altruistic plan to develop a new home for their people. Altruistic for the Zygons, anyway. Not so altruistic for the human race.
Tue-Wed/Wed-Thu Planet of Evil eps 1 - 4 of 4
Fear, guilt, pain, death. The Doctor and Sarah find themselves caught in the crossfire between an effort to find the survivors of a scientific expedition and a planet that eats people. You don't have to be evil to do evil, and the worst consequences can spring from the noblest intentions.
Thu/Fri Pyramids of Mars eps 1+2 of 4
An Egyptologist accidentally releases the power of an ancient evil thought bottled up forever. And yes, that is a bland explanation. Week in, week out, trying to make it interesting, especially when this station airs the same stories again and again. Trying to get the info on big Who developments to keep everyone happy. And what's the result? Just this darn robotic mummy looking on at me all the time, staring.

*NHPTV New Hampshire 11,49,52
http://nhptv.org/
Sun 3PM EDT The Face of Evil eps 3+4 of 4
The Doctor faces the mistakes of his past as he tries to stop Xoanon the computer from having the Sevateem and the Tesh slaughter each other.

*WQED/WQEX 13,16 Pittsburgh, PA
http://www.wqed.org/
Sat 11:30PM EDT Underworld eps 2+3 of 4
The Doctor, Leela, and K9 have no choice but to aid Captain Jackson in the quest for the P7E, and the racebanks of the Minyans contained therein.

Don't look for the conclusion next week - National Doctor Who Night will pre-empt the regular rotation.

WYBE 35 Philadelphia, PA
http://www.wybe.org/
Sat 11PM EDT Castrovalva eps 1+2 of 4
The 5th Doctor's era begins airing for the first time on WYBE. A regeneration goes awry, a companion goes missing, an enemy goes overboard in efforts to kill, and Tegan goes for the reference material on how to fly a TARDIS. In the struggle to recover, a scarf's life may be in jeopardy. Conclusion airs in prime time next week as the first part of a marathon.

*MPT Maryland 22,28,31,36,62,67
http://www.mpt.org/
Late Sat Mid EDT Planet of Fire movie (confirmed as actually shown episodically)
Moves to approx. 11:30PM next week. The secrets of Turlough's past hold the key to solving a mystery involving the planet Trion, its "Chosen One", the Master, Kamelion, blue fire, and an 18 year old American in search of a break from her normal life.

WUSF 16 Tampa, FL
http://www.wusftv.usf.edu/gateway.htm
Sat 11:30PM EDT The Trial Of A Time Lord ep 11 of 14 (Terror Of The Vervoids ep 3 of 4)
The 6th Doctor and Commodore Travers face a triple threat on Hyperion III (hmm) - a killer scientist, a hijack plot, and lush, aggressive vegetation. In the trial room, the 6th Doctor merely faces two menaces - the Valeyard and trial footage that does not match his memories.

*WCET 48 Cincinnati, OH
http://www.wcet.org/
Sat 11:30PM EDT The Deadly Assassin eps 2+3 of 4
The Doctor is tried for the murder of the President of the Time Lords. To escape death, the Doctor calls on an unusual legal technicality.

WYIN 56 Gary, IN (Chicago, IL)
http://www.wyin.org/
Sat 10PM CDT The Sun Makers ep 1 of 4 (it was Image of the Fendahl: Part Four)
Shh! Be careful who you tell that WYIN is airing this story. It implies that taxes can be too high. It suggests that people who are being extorted should fight back. If word gets through to the folks running Chicago, who knows how much longer WYIN will exist?

TPT 2 St. Paul, MN
http://www.tpt.org/
Sat 11:30PM, Sun 5:30AM CDT The Invisible Enemy ep 3 of 4
Doctor-clone and Leela-clone hunt through the Doctor's mind for the parasite. Meanwhile, the parasites minyans slowly take over the hospital planet.

*IPTV Iowa 11,12,21,24,27,32,32,36
http://www.sffn.com/
http://www.iptv.org/
Fri 11:05PM CDT The Stones of Blood eps 3+4 of 4
Cessair of Diplos transports Romana to a ship in Hyperspace, a logical absurdity that shouldn't exist.

PPTV North Dakota 2,3,4,6,9,13,19
http://www.pptv.org/
Fri 10:30PM CDT (9:30PM MDT) The Invasion of Time ep 4 of 6
The battle to take back Gallifrey from the Vardans has begun. Just don't let the Vardans know that, or they will never reveal what they really look like.

*KBDI/K32EO 12,32 Denver/Colorado Springs, CO
http://www.kbdi.org/
Late Fri 12:30AM MDT The Stones of Blood eps 3+4 of 4
See IPTV for details.
Sat 10PM MDT The Androids of Tara eps 1+2 of 4
On a feudal world, Romana has the misfortune to be an exact lookalike for a princess (Mary Tamm) who's impending marriage will affect the balance of power.

KUED 7 Salt Lake City, UT
http://www.kued.org/
Sat 11PM, Late Sat 12:30AM MDT The Seeds of Doom ep 1 of 6
The 4th Doctor and Sarah are dispatched to Australia to take charge of an extraterrestrial seed pod discovered in the ice.

KBTC/KCKA/K65BU Tacoma/Centralia/Gray's River, WA
http://www.kbtc.org/
Sat 7PM, Late Sat 12:30AM PDT The Masque of Mandragora eps 1+2 of 4 (actually The Seeds of Doom 5+6)
The TARDIS is violated by the Mandragora Helix, which uses it as a host to get to Earth in 1492.

KTEH 54 San Jose, CA
http://www.kteh.org/
Sun 11PM PDT Time and the Rani all 4 eps
The Rani forces the Doctor's regeneration into his 7th Doctor, hoping to use his knowledge to troubleshoot some problems with her latest technological terror. But how to win his trust? Impersonate Mel, perhaps.
Wed 8 to 11:15PM PDT The Ends Of Time - LIVE
Carole Ann Ford (Susan) and Sylvester McCoy (7th Doctor) take time off from a cruise to host a live special in the bay area. 5 selected episodes from Susan's and the 7th Doctor's eras will air in this order:
An Unearthly Child - An Unearthly Child (episode 1)
Remembrance of the Daleks - episode 2
The Dalek Invasion Of Earth - Flashpoint (episode 6)
Survival - episode 3
(5th episode to be a Sylvester McCoy episode voted on by those who pledge)
To pledge/vote on 5th episode/ask questions: 1-800-225-5454 or 1-408-795-5454 (call only during the broadcast)
To chat: http://www.egroups.com/chat/kteh-sci-fi/
» the episode was reported as Battlefield: Part Three

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Thanks for reading. Until next week, take care.