One Last Time With The Fifth Doctor!

For the second time, we’ve had a Collection set announced in December, this time for Season 21! Season 21 was Fifth Doctor Peter Davison’s third and final season in the role, starring alongside his companions Tegan Jovanka (Janet Fielding) and Vislor Turlough (Mark Strickson), alongside the rarely-seen Kamelion (voiced by Gerald Flood). 

Season 21 also saw the Fifth Doctor regenerate into the Sixth, with Colin Baker stepping into the role with a new companion, Peri Brown (Nicola Bryant) at his side, having joined in the penultimate story of the Fifth Doctor’s run.

Season 21 was another long-rumoured release, though at this stage, with three colour seasons remaining, it’s not exactly going to be much of a surprise what seasons come next as they continue to ignore the 60s seasons. Designer Lee Binding gave us a tease of the colour palette being used for the cover a month or so ago, plus we got word of Peter Davison filming for a trailer, which we can see below:

Season 21 ran from 5th January to 30th March 1984, continuing to run twice weekly on Thursday and Friday timeslots (Resurrection of the Daleks was aired as two 45-minute episodes on Wednesday instead, owing to the Olympic broadcasts that year) and comprised the following stories:

  • Warriors from the Deep
  • The Awakening
  • Frontios 
  • Resurrection of the Daleks
  • Planet of Fire
  • The Caves of Androzani
  • The Twin Dilemma

Season 21, the final 1980s season to be released, saw a continuation of producer John-Nathan Turner and Script Editor Eric Saward bringing back older monsters with redesigns that brought varied results – notably the Silurians and Sea Devils and the Daleks and their creator Davros once again recast with Terry Molloy, who would remain in the role, both on an offscreen, to this day. 

We also saw Anthony Ainley’s Master return and legendary writer Robert Holmes pen the classic regeneration story The Caves of Androzani. The decision was also made to have the Sixth Doctor appear in an entire serial at the end of the season, with The Twin Dilemma, a decision which arguably backfired due to a weaker script and manic portrayal written within. 

This ten-disc(!) box set contains the following new special features: 

  • UPDATED SPECIAL EFFECTS: On The Awakening, Frontios, Resurrection Of The Daleks and The Caves Of Androzani.
  • WARRIORS OF THE DEEP – SPECIAL EDITION: An exciting four-part re-edit with updated special effects and immersive 5.1 surround sound mix.
  • IN CONVERSATION: Matthew Sweet chats to Janet Fielding (Tegan), Mark Strickson (Turlough) and Matthew Waterhouse (Adric)
  • NEW MAKING-OF DOCUMENTARIES: For Resurrection Of The Daleks and The Twin Dilemma.
  • LOOK WHO’S BOATING: Peter Davison, Janet Fielding and Sarah Sutton take to the River for an epic adventure.
  • 48 HOURS WITH FIELDING: Toby Hadoke crashes at Janet Fielding’s.
  • BEHIND THE SOFA: New episodes with Peter Davison (The Doctor), Janet Fielding (Tegan), Sarah Sutton (Nyssa), Matthew Waterhouse (Adric), Sophie Aldred (Ace), Wendy Padbury (Zoe), Bonnie Langford (Mel), Colin Baker (The Doctor), Nicola Bryant (Peri), Tara Ward (Preston), Keith Jayne (Will), Jeff Rawle (Plantagenet), Rula Lenska (Styles), director Graeme Harper, Paul Conrad (Romulus) and Andrew Conrad (Remus). 
  • THE DOCTOR WHO ESCAPE ROOM: Two new teams battle it out.
  • BRAND NEW AUDIO COMMENTARY: On The Awakening.
  • NEW SURROUND SOUND MIXES: On Warriors Of The Deep, The Awakening and The Caves Of Androzani.   
  • TALES OF THE TARDIS: A 2023 edit of Earthshock with new linking material from Peter Davison and Janet Fielding.
  • THE FIVE(ISH) DOCTORS REBOOT: With brand new audio commentary.
  • EXCLUSIVE ARCHIVE TREATS: Including never-before-released TV appearances and studio footage.
  • HD PHOTO GALLERIES   
  • INFO TEXT   
  • PDF ARCHIVE   
  • PLUS LOTS MORE!
  • This ten-disc box set also includes hours of special features previously released on DVD, including Documentaries, Featurettes, Audio Commentaries and more.   

As to be expected with an 80s boxset, this really packs in a lot of content, and aside from not having an In-Conversation with Eric Saward, I can’t think of any missed opportunities with the ground covered, and am glad Matthew Waterhouse got a dedicated one. I’m especially excited to see the new version of WotD, which hopefully will at least partially improve a story which has long been considered a missed opportunity in execution. 

Season 21 is due to release on 16th March 2026, stay tuned for a full review around then!

By HW Reynolds

Images provided by the BBC

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