|
 |
It could
have turned out so very differently. In February 1963,
the BBC held a meeting to discuss the possibility of producing
a science fiction series. Staff writer CE Webber was given
the task of extrapolating a series outline from the ideas
that resulted from the meeting. He came up with 'The Troubleshooters'
a character based drama about a group of scientists which
would look at the moral and philosophical issues raised
by science and science fiction scenarios.
The idea was quickly rejected by Head of Serials Sydney
Newman and over the course of the next few months the
format of Doctor Who was hammered out. The only recognizable
traces left over from the original storyline idea were
the characters of Ian and Barbara who fit the 'handsome
well dressed heroine aged about 30' and 'handsome young
man hero' description of the potential characters from
the original outline.
In the format document for the show which outlined the
characters and the tone of the series, writer CE Webber
described the Doctor as:
"About 650, a frail old man lost in space and time.
They give him this name because they don't know who he
is. He seems not to remember where he comes from, but
flashed of garbled memory which indicated that he was
involved in a galactic war, and still fears pursuit by
some undefined enemy. He is suspicious of the other three
and capable of sudden malignance. They want to help him
find himself, but Cliff (Ian) never quite trusts him."
It is interesting to note that, 42 years later, the idea
of a galactic war being part of the Doctor's motivation
would resurface in the form of the Time War with the Daleks
under producer and writer Russell T Davies' resurrection
of the program.
Stories:
|
Nothing
at the End of the Lane (or The First Story) |
by CE Webber
4 Episodes
Companions: Ms McGovern, Cliff, Sue
Submitted for: Season 1
 |
| From
left to right: Miss McGovern, Sue and Cliff |
Story:
Sue, a 15 year old from earth in 1963 is walking home
one foggy evening when she meets an old man called the
Doctor. The Doctor takes her to a police box and upon
entering she finds that it is in fact a time/space ship
and is much larger on the inside than it's police box
exterior would suggest. She goes outside to make sure
it isn't an illusion and meets Miss McGovern and Cliff,
two of her teachers. She brings them inside whereupon
they are reduced to one sixteenth their normal size.
They attempt to get back to their normal size by using
the equipment in the school science lab.
Notes:
This story draft was present in the initial series draft,
and was reworked over several revisions into 'An Unearthly
Child' and 'The Giants'.
|
The
Giants |
by: Robert
Gould
Episodes:
4
|
| 'The
Giants' Would be reworked by Louis Marks
|
Submitted for:
Season 1
Story:
The TARDIS finally lands in 1963
only for the crew to find that they have been reduced
to one sixteenth their normal size. The crew deal with
the problems of finding food and water, walking through
a carpet which is now a forest, generally cunting around
and avoiding being killed by falling cigarette ash.
Notes: A story of miniaturization had
been planned almost from Doctor Who's very inception,
with the idea originally being that as well as traveling
in time and space, the TARDIS could reduced to 'the
size of a pin head' in order to view the microwold.
The story was eventually handed to Robert Gould but
was subsequently rejected when it became apparent that
it would be difficult t achieve the sets on the budget
allocated. As a potential replacement, the writer then
came up with a story where the roles of people and plants
were reversed, but he dismissed this within a few days.
Later that year, Gould claimed that the episode 'The
Screaming Jungle' from 'The keys of Marinus' plagerised
his idea.
Have you more information that would make this entry
more complete?
|
The
Living World |
by: Alan
Wakeman
Episodes:
4
Submitted for:
Season 1
Story:
The TARDIS crew land on a world
world where the rocks, trees etc are the dominant species.
They control the humans with 'silent sound'.
Notes: Only the first episode of this
story was completed before it was rejected by David
Whitaker. His successor, Dennis Spooner, reread the
submission but also dismissed it, noting that it would
be “difficult to pull off without laughter at
moving rocks.”
Have you more information that would make this entry
more complete?
|
The
Masters of Luxor |
by:
Anthony Coburn
Episodes:
6
Submitted for:
Season 1
Episode 1: The Cannibal Flower
Episode 2: The Mockery of a Man
Episode 3: A light on the Dead Planet
Episode 4: Tabon of Luxor
Episode 5: An Infinity of Darkness
Episode 6: The Flower Blooms
Story: The
TARDIS picks up a signal which leads them to the planet
Luxor, where they find a beautiful building made from
crystal. Hovering over the building, the roof opens and
the are dragged inside. The Doctor then realises that
they cannot leaves as the TARDIS is being drained of power.
Upon leaving the TARDIS they accidentally activate the
robot race, the Masters of Luxor, and are interrogated
and imprisoned.
They escape only to find themselves trapped in a room
overlooking a lab, where a beautiful robot vapourises
a human victim. They find out that this is the Perfect
One, the leader of the Masters of Luxor, who is attempting
to find the secret of life by experimenting on unwilling
victims. Which the Tardis crew are about to become.
Susan and Barbara escape while being taken to the Laboratory
for experiments, damaging a power coil which causes the
city to lose power. Stuck in a lift Ian and the Doctor
are able to escape up the shaft where they find a flashing
signal outside the building. Following the light it leads
them to a mausoleum where the find Tabon, scientific master
of Luxor, sealed in a coffin.
Tabon confesses to starting the experiments on humans
for the benefit o the Perfect One, but was unable to stop
the Derivitrons completing the work once he had realised
what he was doing. Tabon helps the Doctor and Ian get
back into the city, which has now been sealed by the Perfect
One, using a secret entrance.
Barbara and Susan, having been recaptured, are subjected
to the tortures of the Perfect One, who decided that their
life force is strong enough to be passed into him and
give him true life.
Inside the building, Tabon the Doctor and Ian find that
the atomic magazines of the complex are linked to the
perfect one, and that he has set them to explode should
he be damaged.
Attempting once again to escape, barbara and Susan place
a wire across the door in order to trip the robots up.
The Perfect one arrives and trips up, damaging his head.
This in turn activates the self destruct mechanisms of
the atomic magazines, but he recovers and the self destruct
is cancelled. Barbara and susan then begin to confuse
the robots by singing hymns, which makes the Perfect One
believe that their life essence may not be as suitable
as he thought, but he realises their plan and continues
preparing for the transfer.
As Doctor and Tabon try to reverse the energy drain on
the TARDIS, Ian searches for the surveillance room in
order to turn the cameras off. Instead he finds Susan
an Barbara being prepared for the transfer. Ian tries
to save the women by telling the perfect one that Tabon
is alive. The perfect one refuses to believe him until
robots report to him telling him that they have captured
Tabon and the Doctor.
Tabon is brought before the Perfect One, but when he realises
that Tabon is horrified and shamed by his creation he
orders tabon to be destroyed. Tabon however countermands
the order which confuses the robots since they cannot
follow both orders and causes them to malfunction. The
TARDIS crew take their opportunity and run for the TARDIS.
The Perfect one is damaged by two rampaging robots, which
causes the self destruct mechanism to start again. Tabon
holds the Perfect one's injured head to give the doctor
and his companions enough time to get to the TARDIS and
leave. When the Perfect One dies, the atomic explosion
destroys the planet, taking Tabon with it.
Notes: This story was commissioned to
be the second serial of the first season, and originally
had the title of "The Robots" and was set in
13 century earth. The production team were unhappy with
the script and pushed it back for inclusion in the second
season and replaced it with 'The Daleks'. The setting
was moved from earth to an alien planet, but the story
was felt to be substandard and it was dropped . Unhappy
with the rejection of this story Anthony Coburn decided
never to work on Doctor Who again. The complete scripts
for 'The Masters of Luxor' were published in 1992 by Titan
books. |
The
Hidden Planet |
By:
Malcolm Hulke
Episodes:
6
Submitted for:
Season 1
Story:
The time travelers arrive on what appears to be contemporary
Earth, however on closer inspection it is revealed to
be a 'mirror' Earth, which rotates in a diametrically
opposed orbit to Earth and has thus never been detected
due to it being constantly obscured by the Sun.
They find that on this planet women are the dominant sex,
and that men are struggling for equality. The male rebels
kidnap the Doctor and his companions when they find that
Barbara is a doppelganger of the leader of the ruling
class. She is then forced to assume her identity, while
the rest of the crew are embroiled in the males fight
for equality.
Notes:
After delivery, the scripts for this story was deemed
unacceptable by David Whitaker who asked for them to be
completely rewritten. The story was pushed back for rewrites
until in September 1964 it was finally dropped. In a letter
to his agent, David Whitaker cited that the public seemed
to prefer more monster led stories and perhaps the script
lacked in science fiction elements . For April Fools in
1983 Richard Linden ran a story in DWM that reported that
filmed footage of this adventure had been found, and would
be used in a story for that season entitled 'The Phoenix
Rises'. Episode two had the title of 'Year of the
Lame Dog', which is a bit silly really.
|
The
Red Fort |
by:
Terry Nation
Episodes:
7
Submitted for:
Season 1
Story:
Set during the Indian Mutiny of Deli in 1857, a
long and bloody armed uprising by disaffected Indian-born
troops against the colonial officers of the British East
India Company.
Notes:
Nation was commissioned to write a historical in September
1963. after completing he forgot all about it until 'The
Daleks' was televised in December. It was abandoned at
the request of the production team when they felt that
a futuristic story would be more appropriate. Unfortunately
it was subsequently replaced with 'The Keys of Marinus.'
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
The
Fragile Yellow Arc Of Fragrance |
By:
Moris
Farhi
Episodes:
Submitted for:
Season 1
Story:
Barbara is courted by a man called
Rhythm, but she rejects him. Little does she know that
that on this planet her rejection automatically sentences
him to death.
Notes:
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
The
Dark Planet |
By:
Brian Hayles
Episodes:
4
Submitted for:
Season 1
Story:
Set on a planet with a diametrically
opposed orbit to Earth, where the fall of night turns
the adults into savages, attacking any strangers, and
where only the children are immune to this effect. The
TARDIS crew meet a group of young warriors defending their
village from their parents.
Notes: This story was rejected by story
editor Dennis Spooner due to it's similarity to 'The
Hidden Planet', and on the grounds that it could influence
younger viewers in the wrong way.
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
The
Man in the Ice |
by:
Brian Hayles
Episodes:
4
Submitted for:
Season 1
Story:
A stone-age man is found in the
ice in the Antarctic, still alive. A business mogul wants
to use DNA for a strange transplant, as he believes the
caveman’s genes will give him immortality. The Doctor
rescues the cave man to take him back to his own time.
Notes: First rejected by story editor
David Whitaker in February 1964, it was re-read and again
rejected by Dennis Spooner, who noted that it was too
much like a sci-fi B-movie plot and would have been a
questionable story for younger viewers.
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
Untitled
(408AD) |
by: Malcolm
Hulke
Episodes:
6
Submitted for:
Season 1
Story:
Set in Britain around 408AD at the
end of the Roman occupation. The Romans leave behind a
small amount of people to continue the running of affairs,
but a group of people are working to return the country
to the the old ways, leaving it ripe for Saxon invasion.
The Doctor and his companions are involved in a power
struggle between the two peoples.
Notes:
This story was replaced by 'The Hidden Planet'
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
Robin
Hood’s Last Stand (or The Truth Of Sherwood
Forest/The Bandits Of The Woods) |
by: Dennis
Spooner
Episodes:
4
Submitted for:
Season 1
Story:
The TARDIS crew go back to Nottingham
during the time of the Crusades where they meet the legendary
Robin Hood. They are suprised to find that he was not
as history suggests, but terrorises the Sheriff of Nottingham
and Prince John, whom the Doctor helps to recover their
villainous reputation by making Robin Hood look like a
hero.
Notes: This idea was suggested by Spooner
at around the time of 'Reign Of Terror' but was never
used. Interestingly, in the 1970s script editor Anthony
Read thought of a similar storyline, but again it was
never used.
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
Farewell
Great Macedon! |
by:
Moris Farhi
Episodes:
6
Submitted for:
Season 2
Episode 1: The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
Episode 2: O Son, O Son!
Episode 3: A Man Must Die
Episode 4: The World Lies Dead at Your Feet
Episode 5: In the Arena
Episode 6: Farewell Great Macedon!
 Story:
Arriving in the Hanging gardens
of Babylon, the TARDIS crew meet Alexander
the Great, and are implicated in a plot to kill the king.
through a series of trials they gain the trust of Alexander's
bodyguard Ptolemy and find out that the plotters aim to
have their coconspirator, Seleucus ascend the throne once
the king was dispatched. Despite their best efforts they
are unable to change the course of history and Alexander
is murdered.
Notes: After submitting 'The Fragile Yellow
Arc Of Fragrance', Farhi was commisoned to write a historical.
After some complaints from schools it was decided that
historical stories would not be set during important historical
events. The production team then asked for a rewrite of
the script, which Farhi refused to do and the script was
abandoned. The full script for 'Farewell Great Macedon'
is to be reprinted along with 'The Fragile Yellow Arc
Of Fragrance' as a special edition of fanzine 'Nothing
At The End of The Lane'
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
The
White Witch |
by:
Brian Hayles
Episodes:
4
Submitted for:
Season 2
Story:
Notes:
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
Untitled
(Historical) |
by:
Margot Bennett
Submitted for:
Season 2
Story:
Notes: By February 1964, the Miniscules
story which had already been attempted by both CE Webber
and Robert Gould was pencilled in as Serial I. There were
doubts whether it would actually work, and so story editor
David Whitaker commissioned a standby storyline from BBC
writer Margot Bennett. It was to have been a historical,
which would either replace the Miniscules story or be
held over to the next season. As it transpired, Planet
Of Giants was made, and Margot Bennett moved on to pastures
new.
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
Untitled
(Livingston) |
by:
David Whitaker
Episodes:
4
Submitted for:
Season 3
Story:
The Doctor uses the TARDIS to move
around Africa to ensure that Stanley and Livingstone meet
safely. One episode he would help Stanley, the next Livingstone,
then back to Stanley. As soon as he leaves them, they
end up in trouble and he would have to get them out of
it the week after next. It would have ended with the two
parties meeting up, with the Doctor and his companions
watching from the side as the famous words “Dr Livingstone,
I presume” were said. They would then leave, knowing
that their work was done.
Notes:
This idea was one suggested by David
Whitaker (probably after The Crusade) but was not taken
up because the direction of the show changed towards more
science-fiction stories.
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
The
Hands of Aten |
by:
Brian Hayles
Episodes:
4
Submitted for:
Season 3
|
| Akhenaten
anf Nefertiti worship Aten
|
Story:
Unknown
Notes: While there is no information available
on the actual script,
the title relates to the egyptian sun-deity Aten who's
rays were depicted as hands. It is therefore reasonable
to assume that this adventure might very well have taken
place in ancient egypt.
Aten was instated as the one true God by the pharaoh Akhenaten
and replaced the multitude of Gods that preceded him.
The reign of Akhenaten and his queen Nefertiti was a turbulent
time in egyptian history, with temples of the old gods
bring destroyed and the building of a new capitol city,
Akhetaten. Akhenaten and Nefertiti both died in mysterious
circumstances and their religion and city were destroyed
and the old religions reinstated. Perhaps the time travelers
are implicated in the death of the King or Queen?
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
The
Nazis |
by: Brian
Hayles
Episodes:
4
Submitted for:
Season 2
Story:
Notes: Rejected because it was at the
time considered to be to sensitive and would still be
too close to home for some viewers.
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
The
Greatest Gamble |
by: Oliver
Skene
Episodes:
4
Submitted for:
Season 2
Story:
On a Mississippi showboat, the
Doctor has taken his companions to show them what they
were like. The TARDIS is taken hostage by a pair of gamblers
believing it to be a treasure chest. The Doctor has to
gamble the lives of his companions in a poker session
to win them back.
Notes: Rejected by story editor Dennis
Spooner on the grounds that the morality of the story
was at odds with it's ethics, though he was interested
in the idea of using the Mississippi as a location.
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
The
New Armada |
by: David
Whitaker
Episodes:
4
Submitted for:
Season 3
Story:
Notes: This script was rejected because
at the time Gerry Davis was trying to tell 'Good simple
stories' and it was thought to be to complex.
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
The
Face of God |
by: John
Wiles
Episodes:
4
Submitted for:
Season 3
Story:
The TARDIS is stopped in mid-air
by an enormous face which claims to be that of God. Towards
the end it is proved that not is all that it seemed.
Notes: Keen to develop a more thought-provoking
and adult type of storytelling, producer John Wiles proposed
this idea for a story. He was persuaded to abandon the
idea on the grounds that it might offend the series’
more religiously-minded viewers.
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
The
Clock |
by:
David Ellis
Episodes:
4
Submitted for:
Season 3
Story:
Notes: David Ellis submitted this storyline
in April 1966. It was rejected by Gerry Davis on the grounds
that it was ‘too sketchy’ and did not fit
the ‘specialized type of material’ that Doctor
Who needed.
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
The
Ocean Liner |
by:
David Ellis
Submitted for:
Season 3
Story:
Notes: David Ellis submitted this storyline
in April 1966 as a spy thriller. It was rejected on the
grounds that it was too ‘far out’ for the
programme.
Have you more information that would make this entry more
complete?
|
|
