Celebrate the 20th Anniversary Season, forty years on!

After a long stretch since the announcement of the previous Collection release, Season 9, we finally have confirmation that Season 20 is making its way to our shelves later this year!

Season 20 has a rather long history in the range, as work on the set began back around 2020, but factors such as the COVID pandemic and Mark Strickson (Turlough) being unable to leave his residence of New Zealand are likely reasons we’ve had such a wait for another Fifth Doctor (Peter Davison) season. Based on this announcement though, it all seems very much worth it! 

The boxset sports stunning new artwork by Lee Binding, and is accompanied by a special newly-filmed short has been produced to coincide with the announcement, penned by Pete McTighe and starring Janet Fielding and Sarah Sutton, reprising their roles as Tegan Jovanka and Nyssa:

Season 20 ran from 3rd January 1983 to 16th March 1983 twice a week, whilst The Five Doctors, a special feature-length episode which acted as the 20th Anniversary special, broadcast on 23rd November 1983. This boxset comprises of seven stories spread across 20 episodes alongside The Five Doctors, which are as follows:

  1. Arc of Infinity
  2. Snakedance
  3. Mawdryn Undead
  4. Terminus
  5. Enlightenment
  6. The King’s Demons

This season marked 20 years of Doctor Who, and showrunner John-Nathan Turner wanted to celebrate, and as such each story this season saw a villain return from previous storylines. These returns included Omega (Ian Collier), The Mara, The Black Guardian (Valentine Dyall) – whose presence dominated a trilogy of stories, and The Master (Anthony Ainley).

The Five Doctors, meanwhile, also saw a Dalek, Yeti, and Cybermen making appearances alongside reappearances from classic companions like Sarah Jane Smith (Elizabeth Sladen), Susan (Carole Ann Ford), and Brigadier Alistair Lethbridge-Stewart (Nicholas Courtney), doubling up from a last-minute appearance in the main season. It also saw former Doctors Patrick Troughton and Jon Pertwee making returns as their respective incarnations, whilst Tom Baker appears in unused archive footage from Shada, and the First Doctor portrayed by a new actor in Richard Hurndall (William Hartnell makes a cameo at the start of the story thanks to an archival clip).

The Collection: Season 20 Blu-ray box set also includes an extensive catalogue of special features including:

  • The Five Doctors – 40th Anniversary Edition: A brand new version of the 90-minute anniversary special, with updated special effects, Dolby Atmos & surround sound, plus an exclusive new commentary with Peter Davison, Janet Fielding and Mark Strickson
  • Updated Special Effects for Snakedance and Enlightenment, exclusive to this boxset. 
  • Seven new episodes of Behind the Sofa, featuring Peter Davison, Colin Baker (The Doctor), Sylvester McCoy (The Doctor), Sarah Sutton, Janet Fielding, Mark Strickson, Katy Maning (Jo) and Sophie Aldred (Ace)
  • The aforementioned new trailer for the set, plus a making-of. 
  • A new instalment of the In Conversation series, this time with Matthew Sweet interviewing both Janet Fielding and Sarah Sutton together. 
  • New documentaries, including Let’s Go Dutch!, which sees the TARDIS crew travel to Amsterdam to revisit locations and reminisce about Season 20 and their time on the programme, and Look Who’s Driving, wherein Peter Davison, Janet Fielding and Sarah Sutton embark on an hilarious European Road Trip.
  • When Janet met Martin: Janet Fielding chats to Martin Clunes, 40 years on from his appearance in Snakedance.
  • Making The King’s Demons: The regular cast return to the castle location and reminisce.
  • Longleat Celebration Footage: A previously-unreleased look at the iconic 1983 convention, plus panels featuring Peter Davison, Tom Baker, Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee and many more.
  • Studio Footage: Hours of material going behind-the-scenes on production of Arc of Infinity, Snakedance, and The Five Doctors.
  • Location Film Rushes from The Five Doctors. 
  • Rare Convention Footage: Including Australian interviews with Peter Davison and Janet Fielding shot during production of this season.
  • Once Upon a Time Lord: A rare US documentary from the 1980s.
  • New 5.1 Surround Mixes: On Snakedance and The Five Doctors, plus Dolby Atmos mixes for the latter by Mark Ayres.
  • HD Photo Galleries: Including many previously unseen images.
  • Archive Treats: Hours of rare and previously unreleased material from the BBC Archives.
  • Info Text: Behind-the-scenes information and trivia on every episode.
  • PDF Archive Including scripts, exclusive unseen BBC production files, the Radio Times 20th Anniversary Special and other rarities courtesy of Richard Bignell. 
  • Hours of special features previously released on DVD including Documentaries, Featurettes, Audio Commentaries, The Five Doctors 1995 Special Edition and more.

This is being touted as the biggest boxset yet, and looking at all the VAM (Value-added material) we’re certainly in for a comprehensive package. As of writing, BBC Studios haven’t confirmed a release, but hopefully there’s room for a third set later this year as the 60th Anniversary celebrations get underway.

Stay tuned for an in-depth review and unboxing of the boxset once it’s released!

By HW Reynolds

Images provided by the BBC

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