Tom Baker Strikes Back!
Season 17 has been announced as the next to feature in The Collection series! This season stars Tom Baker as the fourth Doctor alongside Lalla Ward in her debut season as Romana II and K9 as voiced by David Brierley. The season was to be then-showrunner Graham William’s final outing in the position and also for Douglas Adams as the series’ script editor.
A new trailer for the boxset has been produced, featuring the return of Davros!
Season 17 aired from 1st September 1979 to 12th January 1980, and the final story for the Season, Shada, was never finished due to strikes, it is however included here to make up the six stories in this collection:
- Destiny of the Daleks
- City of Death
- The Creature from the Pit
- Nightmare of Eden
- The Horns of Nimon
- Shada
Once again Doctor Who fans are treated to a plethora of new extras which sit alongside the existing DVD special features such as commentaries and making-ofs. Some of these features include:
- Brand New Documentaries – Including a Making-Of documentary for Destiny of the Daleks and new featurette for The Creature from the Pit.
- Tom Talks – A candid interview with Tom Baker as he gives us his unique take on life, the universe and everything
- Douglas Adams Tribute – Friends and colleagues remember the Doctor Who writer/script editor and creator of The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy
- In Conversation – Matthew Sweet chats to Bob Baker, writer of Nightmare of Eden, co-creator of K9 and one of the creative forces behind Wallace & Gromit
- Behind The Sofa – New episodes with actors Colin Baker, Katy Manning, Matthew Waterhouse, Nicola Bryant, June Hudson, Graeme Harper & Mat Irvine
- Lalla Ward Interview – An extensive interview discussing her first year on the programme.
- Updated Special Effects – View Nightmare of Eden with optional new effects
- Shada – An updated version of the ‘lost’ story, completed with enhanced animation and presented in six episodes for the very first time, alongside the original 1992 VHS and 2017 versions
- Exclusive New Audio Commentaries – With Tom Baker on episodes of Destiny of the Daleks & City of Death, and Lalla Ward & Catherine Schell on City Of Death
- Extended Episodes – An early cut of The Creature from the Pit Episode Three
- Blu-ray Trailer – A familiar face returns in a brand new mini-episode of classic Doctor Who
- Immersive 5.1 Surround Sound – On Destiny of the Daleks and Shada.
- Rare Gems From the Archive – BBC archive material covering the promotion of this season
- Convention Footage – A triumphant 1997 appearance from Tom Baker
- HD Photo Galleries – Including many previously unseen images
- Production Subtitles
- Behind-the-scenes information and trivia on every episode
- Scripts, Costume Designs, Rare BBC Production Files and Other Rarities from our PDF Archive
- Plus Lots More!
Season 17 is another that isn’t exactly a personal favourite of mine, but I look forward to revisiting it to see if I can find some new appreciation for the stories within.
The set is due to release on 13th December 2021.
By HW Reynolds
Images Courtesy of BBC/Twitter
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