IS WEEK IN DOCTOR WHO - January 5, 2001

By Benjamin F. Elliott
Vol 4, No 1
Doctor Who is a BBC Trademark. Copyright 2001.

Welcome to the weekly column covering all known Doctor Who TV and radio broadcasts worldwide. It's a new year and a new Millennium, so let's get started.

USA - NHPTV New Hampshire. It is still unknown exactly why this station downgraded Doctor Who. It moved from 3PM Sunday to 12:30AM Late Thursday effective January 4. There had been no indications that Doctor Who was in trouble on that station, and National Who Night had aired there last month. Hopefully there will finally be an explanation for next week.

USA - MPT Maryland has announced that they made $15,000 with their broadcast of National Doctor Who Night on December 2nd, and they are very pleased. They're considering trying to get a guest for a local Doctor Who pledge broadcast in March. (OK, my source said who they were trying to get, but it's not definite yet, so no point in announcing a name.) MPT is a semi-local station for me, and unless I'm much mistaken this would be the first time they've had a locally produced pledge night for Doctor Who since August 1998.

USA - KBTC/KCKA Tacoma/Centralia, WA managed to outdo MPT in the money department. Their December drive (main feature - National Doctor Who Night) earned $21,600, the most money that station has ever gotten for Doctor Who in a pledge drive, according to the Emerald City Androgums fan club. I have to think that the stations with Doctor Who that chose not to buy the Who Night special to air at some point are kicking themselves right now.

USA - WYIN Gary, IN (Chicago) has updated their listings partially. Not surprisingly, Doctor Who, Blake's 7, and Red Dwarf were not canceled after all. Now, of course, WYIN is not bothering to list which episodes of Doctor Who they are airing. The listings were usually wrong before, but it was nice to see an effort being made.

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

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RADIO:

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WPBR AM 1340 West Palm Beach, FL
Sun 11:05PM EST Interstellar Transmissions ep 5
Joey Reynolds' radio show covering sci-fi news of the week, back from Christmas vacation. Normally there will be a short update on Doctor Who news during the show. To hear the show online and/or tune into previous installments, search for live.365.com and search in that site for "Interstellar Transmissions".

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TV:

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UK:

UK Gold http://www.sceneone.co.uk/s1/tv/listings
Sun 8:10-10:55AM GMT Invasion of the Dinosaurs movie
Episode 1 is in Black & White and is titled "Invasion. The 3rd Doctor and Sarah return to find London abandoned, and dinosaurs roaming around causing trouble.

UK Gold 2 http://www.sceneone.co.uk/s1/tv/listings
Pre-empted this week.

EUROPE/AFRICA/ASIA:

BBC Prime http://www.bbcprime.com/
Late Fri 1AM*, Sat 3:30PM, Sun 11:30AM CET The Visitation ep 4 of 4
*Not seen in all regions. The Terrileptils prepare to wipe out the human race with Black Death.  The Doctor races to London to stop them.
Late Thu 12:40AM CET Black Orchid ep 1 of 2
(To the tune of Xena.) In 1925, a cricket game in trouble cried out for a wicked good bowler. He was The Doctor. A mighty Cricketer, forged in the funless world of Gallifrey. His efforts would inspire a rout.

AUSTRALIA/NEW ZEALAND:

UKTV http://www.varos.com/drwho/uktv/
Sun 7AM, Late Sun 1AM AEDT The Ark In Space all 4 eps
The Doctor, Sarah, and Harry come across the survivors of humanity hibernating on a space wheel. Also on board, a race of parasitic insects known as the Wirrn.
Sun 9AM, Late Sun 3AM AEDT The Sontaran Experiment both eps
The Doctor, Sarah, and Harry beam down to Earth to evaluate how ready it is for humanity to return to their home planet. Newsflash - someone's already gotten there.
Mon-Wed 11:30PM AEDT Revenge of the Cybermen eps 2 - 4 of 4
The Cybermen, long believed dead, arrive on Nerva Beacon preparing to carry out one of their deadly revenge things on the Vogans. The Vogans, long believed dead, emerge from the depths of Voga preparing to carry out one of their deadly revenge things on the Cybermen.  Meanwhile, the TARDIS crew and the crew of Nerva Beacon are caught in the crossfire.
Thu-Fri 11:30PM AEDT Terror of the Zygons eps 1 - 2 of 4
A time-telegraph message from Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart brings the Doctor back to Earth, where oil rigs are sinking near Loch Ness and villagers are disappearing, reappearing, and acting alien.

Prime TV New Zealand http://www.tetrap.com/drwho/nzdwfc/
http://www.primetv.co.nz/
Sun-Thu 6:30PM Planet of the Daleks eps 2 - 6 of 6
Only previous airing in 1986. Epsode 3 only exists in Black & White. The apparent death of Jo Grant sends the Doctor into depression, followed by a deadly sense of purpose. Meanwhile, the Daleks have learned how to be invisible, and discovered the value of having a large army.
Fri 6:30PM The Green Death ep 1 of 6
Last rerun in NZ in 1986. Protests and deaths at Global Chemicals draws the interest of U*N*I*T, but the Doctor is more interested in the secrets of the planet called Metebelis III.

USA:

BBC America http://www.bbcamerica.com/
Mon-Thu 8AM EST (5AM PST); reruns next day 5AM EST (2AM PST) - 2 episodes per day
Mon/Tue The Seeds of Doom eps 5+6 of 6
Thanks to the efforts of the twisted Harrison Chase, the Krynoid is alive, well, and threatening to take mental control of all the plants on Earth. This is a bad day for Vegetarians.
Tue-Wed/Wed-Thu The Face of Evil eps 1 - 4 of 4
The 4th Doctor discovers a world where various aspects of him are worshiped as a god while other parts are feared as a demon. Seems he did something very stupid in the past.
Thu/Fri The Sontaran Experiment both eps
See UKTV Australia for story details.

NHPTV New Hampshire 11,49,52 http://www.nhptv.org/
Late Thu 12:30AM EST Image of the Fendahl eps 3+4 of 4
Thea Ransome is used as a pawn in the efforts to revive the Fendahl, unwittingly setting the stage for the destruction of Earth.

WQED/WQEX 13,16 Pittsburgh, PA http://www.wqed.org/
Sat 11:30PM EST The Pirate Planet eps 3+4 of 4
The Doctor and Romana learn that Callufrax, and many worlds like it, have been crushed as a means by the operators of the hollow world to gain wealth and power.

WYBE 35 Philadelphia, PA http://www.wybe.org/
Sat 11PM EST Arc of Infinity eps 3+4 of 4
The traitor who sold out the Time Lords is an old friend of the Doctor's. And the anti-matter figure is well-known too. Extensive scenes in Amsterdam in episode 4.

MPT Maryland 22,28,31,36,62,67 http://www.mpt.org/
Sat 11:30PM EST The Trial Of A Time Lord movie version, pt 3 of 4 (Terror Of The Vervoids)
Still in shock after recent events, the 6th Doctor begins his defense. He opts to present an adventure that he will stumble into in the future. The cruise liner Hyperion III faces hidden dangers which only the Doctor can save them from. But when the evidence begins to contradict what it looked like when the Doctor prepared it, the Doctor is stuck with a case that may favor the prosecution instead.

WUSF 16 Tampa, FL http://www.wusftv.usf.edu/
Sat 11:30PM EST Paradise Towers ep 3 of 4
Yellow Pool Monster's Personal Log: "It has been 15 years since any human rubbish has visited me in the swimming pool. The cleaners in the lower levels get all the fun. Maybe if that red- headed alien and the Pex-coward can ever get the Lift working properly. I could do with a meal. Or at least a nice oiling."

WCET 48 Cincinnati, OH http://www.wcet.org/
Sat 11:30PM EST Horror of Fang Rock eps 2+3 of 4
The people inside the lighthouse are being murdered one by one. Leela must unite them to work as a team if people are to survive. Alas, unity is not her best skill.

WYIN 56 Gary, IN http://www.wyin.org/
Sat 10PM CST The Invasion of Time ep 2 of 6
Is this the episode they're airing? If it is, the Doctor's tenure as President begins in chaos when the Matrix tries to reject him, and gets stranger when he reappraises Leela's position as his companion.
» reported as actually The Invisible Enemy: Part One

WILL 12 Urbana, IL http://www.will.uiuc.edu/
Sat 11:20PM CST The Ark In Space ep 3 of 4
See UKTV Australia for details.

TPT 2 St. Paul, MN http://www.tpt.org/
Sat 11:30PM, Sun 5:30AM CST Underworld ep 4 of 4
Jackson and his crew plan to leave with the Minyan race banks and nothing else. But the P7E has different ideas. So does the Doctor.

IPTV Iowa 11,12,21,24,27,32,32,36 http://www.sffn.com/ http://www.iptv.org/
Fri 11:05PM CST City of Death eps 3+4 of 4
See KBDI for story details.

PPTV North Dakota 2,3,4,6,9,13,19 http://www.pptv.org/
Fri 10:30PM CST (9:30PM MST) The Pirate Planet ep 4 of 4
As the Doctor and the Mentiads plan an attack to overthrow Queen Xanxia, the Pirate Captain prepares the planet for its next jump. This time, the plan is to swallow a blue-green planet in the Sol solar system, and crush it to bits.

KBDI/K32EO 12,32 Denver/Colorado Springs, CO http://www.kbdi.org/
Late Fri 12:30AM MST Destiny of the Daleks eps 3+4 of 4
The Doctor begins to suspect that the Movellans are as dangerous to organic life as the Daleks. The Daleks want control of Davros to tip the balance of the war in their favor.
Sat 10PM MST City of Death all 4 eps
The first Doctor Who story ever recorded overseas. The Doctor and Romana vacation in Paris, seeing the sights. But time begins to malfunction in the city, leading the Doctor to investigate the enigmatic Count Scarlioni.

KUED 7 Salt Lake City, UT http://www.kued.org/
Sat 11PM, Late Sat 12:30AM MST The Masque of Mandragora ep 4 of 4
"You are cordially invited to a costume ball at the castle. Please bring a nice costume and money for a tribute. No need to worry about keeping your servants to take you home later - everyone's being sacrificed when Mandragora swallows the Moon."

KBTC/KCKA/K65BU 28,15,65 Tacoma/Centralia/Gray's River, WA
http://www.kbtc.org/
Sat 7PM, Late Sat 12:30AM PST The Talons of Weng-Chiang eps 3+4 of 6
Trapped in Weng-Chiang's lair, Leela discovers the secret behind his power. The Doctor smells a rat.

KTEH 54 San Jose, CA http://www.kteh.org/
Sun 11PM PST An Unearthly Child movie (An Unearthly Child, The Cave Of Skulls, The Forest Of Fear, The Firemaker)
In the very first story, two school teachers, concerned about a troubled pupil of theirs, wander into the universe of a man who can travel through Time and Space. Beginning with this story, KTEH is airing Doctor Who in movie format (if KTEH's website still think it is showing episode format, it is mistaken). KTEH hopes to switch back to episode format within the next few months.

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Thanks for reading. Until next week, take care.