Show 7: The Stone Tape

Show 7 has been released today. In this, we cover Nigel Kneale’s (of Quatermass fame) The Stone Tape, a play first broadcast in 1972 on Christmas Day on BBC2. We have a sneaking suspicion that the DVD has been deleted, but we are sure that if you look hard enough online you will be able to find it somewhere for a reasonable price.

If you wish to download Show 7 direct, click here.

Next month, we once again have two shows for you: we look at the second Doctor Who story The Daleks which introduced the most famous adversary to the series. We also look at the very first story of The Tomorrow People which is called The Slaves of Jedikiah. These will be released on the 14th and 28th of next month. Also just a reminder that the show has a Facebook Group, which can be accessed by clicking here. Please do join as it is a very easy way to leave us feedback, and we get to know who and where our listeners are.

See you all next month.

The HitchHikers Guide to Doctor Who

Well, here is the, frankly disappointing, cover to November 26th’s DVD release of Destiny of the Daleks. You can’t really tell from this image but the artwork just isn’t quite right. Lee Binding has done the cover this time, instead of Clayton Hickman, and I don’t think its one of his best. However, much the same could be said about the story…

Disappointing is the word to use for Destiny really. All the elements are in place, Daleks, Davros, Movellans (who I still think look great, even with the silly wigs), profoundly deaf actor Tim Barlow (most recently seen in Hot Fuzz) as the extremely likeable Tyssan, some good direction from newcomer Ken Grieve, (setting the trend for future directors by shooting the Daleks from low angles) and it introduces Lalla Ward as Romana’s second (?) incarnation.

On the down side, David Gooderson is a poor replacement for Michael Wisher as Davros, the Daleks look very tatty (and this is where they begin to play second fiddle to Davros and appear to have no characters of their own – another trend set for future stories – and not a good one) and it’s one of the first stories to receive a heavy Douglas Adams makeover, not always for the better, complete with Hitchhiker in-jokes.

Nevertheless, despite all its faults, I’ve always quite liked this story. It was this adventure that marked the first Target novelisation I ever bought and, as a child who’s imagination was blown open by Doctor Who, I spent many happy hours as a child, recreating the opening scene where the TARDIS gets covered in rocks by getting my little TARDIS moneybox and tipping Lego bricks all over it. (Look, we had to make our own entertainment in 1977. No Playstations or Wii then you know…)

Here are the details:

The single-disc contains all four episodes plus the following extras:

• Commentary – With actors Lalla Ward and David Gooderson, director Ken Grieve.
• Terror Nation – documentary about writer Terry Nation, creator of the Daleks, and his work on Doctor Who. With contributions from producers Barry Letts and Philip Hinchcliffe, script editor Terrance Dicks, director Richard Martin and Dalek voice artiste Nicholas Briggs.
• Directing Who – director Ken Grieve recalls his time on this story.
• CGI Effects – providing the option to watch the story with seventeen of the original video effects sequences replaced by CGI versions.
• Trails and Continuity – BBC One trails and continuity announcements from the story’s transmission, including the specially shot trailer heralding the return of the Daleks.
• Photo Gallery – production, design and publicity photos.
• Prime Computer Adverts – Australian TV adverts for Prime Computers, starring the Doctor and Romana.
• Coming Soon – trail for forthcoming DVD boxset release of Doctor Who and the Silurians, The Sea Devils and Warriors of the Deep.
• Easter Egg

Show 6 now out!

Show six we look at The Tribe of Gum, which is the latter three episodes of the opening Doctor Who story. The story is available on DVD as part of “The Beginnings” boxed set, for some places to buy this click here.

The episode can be manually downloaded by clicking here.

In two weeks show seven will be available, which is about Nigel Kneales “The Stone Tape.”

Please keep your feedback coming, from show nine we will be hoping to include your thoughts on the show we are covering. So, to that end, we would welcome some email comments (or even voicemails, see to the right for information on either) on the following two shows:

The Box of Delights
Doctor Who: The Edge of Destruction.

We welcome your reviews and comments – please keep voicemails to about one minute, and email comments need to be able to be read in a minute. Thanks in advance!

October on Cadmium 2…

There are two shows out this month:

Show 6 comes out on the 10th, and is covering the remainder of the very first Doctor Who story, by some known as The Tribe of Gum and by others as An Unearthly Child parts 2-4. Whatever you wish to call it, we let you know all about it and what we thought of it.

Show 7 is all about the 1972 BBC TV Movie The Stone Tape by Nigel Kneale, which was released on DVD in 2001 by the British Film Institute. The show is out on the 24th.

See you on the 10th…