In 1973, Doctor Who celebrated its 10th anniversary with Bob Baker and Dave Martin’s The Three Doctors, a multi-Doctor adventure featuring the First (William Hartnell), Second (Patrick Troughton), and Third (Jon Pertwee) Doctors coming together to face an enemy from the depths of Gallifrey’s past. It was the first story of its kind, the first to establish the trend of celebrating Doctor Who’s big anniversaries with multi-Doctor extravaganzas. But, as it turns out, The Three Doctors Baker and Martin’s original idea for the special. No, the pair originally pitched a far stranger and more abstract story called Deathworld. And now, over fifty years later, Big Finish Productions and adapter John Dorney bring that original story to life. Doctor Who: Deathworld reimagines Doctor Who‘s first multi-Doctor adventure as an action-packed mythological romp unbound by the constraints of a 1973 television budget in the most spectacular of ways.
A Lost Anniversary Special Reborn
When an army of the undead led by the personification of Death (Joe Shire) attacks a UNIT base, the First (Stephen Noonan), Second (Michael Troughton), and Third (Tim Treloar) Doctors must team up to save the day. But as their battle takes them into the heart of Deathworld, a mysterious realm complete with wars, famines, plagues, and mythological creatures, the Doctors face an enemy unlike any other. Joined by Jamie (Frazer Hines), Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart (Jon Culshaw), and Jo Grant (Katy Manning), the Doctors find themselves pawns in an intergalactic chess game with Death itself. And the odds, you might say, just aren’t in their favor. John Dorney’s Doctor Who: Deathworld takes Bob Baker and Dave Martin’s original idea for Doctor Who’s Tenth Anniversary special and transforms it into an action-packed romp through the lands of mythology in a way 1970s Doctor Who never could have achieved.
What’s fun about Deathworld is looking at it as the “what if?” story that it is. You can easily see the bones of what later became The Three Doctors scattered throughout. You’ve got the first three Doctors teaming up to stop a universe-threatening menace from attacking Gallifrey. The story plants one foot in the grounded reality of the early years of the Third Doctor’s era while boldly stepping into an otherworldly realm. And, most of all, it feels like a real celebration of everything that’s come before. But it’s also an imagining of what could be – a world where Doctor Who could tackle the big, fantasy-fueled blockbusters of yesteryear. In a way, Deathworld feels less like James Bond and more like Sinbad in a way only a Doctor Who anniversary special could manage. The fact that Deathworld pulls off its blockbuster premise so brilliantly is icing on the cake.
A Love Letter to 1970s Doctor Who
As a story in its own right, Deathworld slots in perfectly alongside other stories from the early years of the Third Doctor’s era. The Time Lords have trapped the Doctor on Earth, forcing him to work alongside Brigadier Lethbridge Stewart and the rest of UNIT. Yet, at the same time, they keep dragging him into their affairs, forcing him to do their bidding. And that’s exactly what happens in Deathworld as the Doctor finds himself caught in the middle of an intergalactic chess match between the personification of Death and the President of the Time Lords (Dianne Pilkington). It’s a very 1970s kind of premise; as Deathworld itself suggests, it’s basically The Three Doctors, just a bit different. And it’s in that middle ground that Dorney perfectly captures the feeling of the Third Doctor’s era.
Deathworld isn’t just the bones that make The Three Doctors, it’s an enthralling story in its own right that feels ripped out of the Third Doctor’s third or fourth season. It’s got the exact same pacing, the same playfulness with the Doctor Who format, and the same longing for intergalactic joy as those episodes. This is 1970s Doctor Who completely released from any of 1973’s constraints. Did you more of the First Doctor than you got in The Three Doctors? Here you go. Want to see how big a Doctor Who story can get? Look no further as the three Doctors and their companions face a whole host of horrors – from zombies to mythological creatures to Death itself. Deathworld is a love letter to the Doctor Who of the 1970s, but it’s also a bold reimagining of what the show could have been in the best way possible.
Performers Old and New
Performance-wise, Tim Treloar, Michael Troughton, and Jon Culshaw steal the show here. Treloar delivers a pitch-perfect performance as the Third Doctor, brilliantly evoking Pertwee’s onscreen performance while giving the character a new breath of life. His dynamic with Manning’s Jo feels exactly the same as the characters’ TV relationship, and that goes a long way toward grounding the story. Troughton and Culshaw’s performances do much the same, evoking what their predecessors did back in the ’60s and ’70s while bringing something new to the table. In fact, Troughton’s interactions with Hines’ Jamie feel so pitch-perfect, you’d be forgiven for thinking you were listening to real recordings from the 1960s. Noonan’s performance, unfortunately, doesn’t quite nail that balance. He captures the essence of the First Doctor and delivers a respectable performance, but he never fully sells it the way that Treloar and Troughton’s performances do.
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, John Dorney brings Bob Baker and Dave Martin’s original idea for Doctor Who‘s Tenth Anniversary celebration to life in a deliciously exciting way. It offers everything you love about 1970s Doctor Who but amped up to an eleven. Featuring pitch-perfect performances from Tim Treloar, Michael Troughton, and Jon Culshaw and a cracking script that pays homage to Doctor Who‘s past while unleashing it from the constraints of a 1970s television budget, Deathworld offers a deliciously tempting look at an alternate version of Doctor Who‘s first multi-Doctor special. It can never replace the beauty of The Three Doctors – nor should it. But as a story in its own right and a look at what could have been, it makes for an experience any Doctor Who fan should seek out.
Doctor Who: Deathworld is available now from Big Finish Productions.
"Doctor Who: Deathworld" reimagines Doctor Who's first multi-Doctor adventure as an action-packed mythological romp fully unleashed from the constraints of a 1970s budget. Featuring pitch-perfect performances from Michael Troughton, Tim Treloar, and Jon Culshaw, Deathworld is a love letter to 1970s Doctor Who and a lovely look at what almost was Doctor Who's 10th anniversary special.
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