The BBC’s ever growing collection of classic Doctor Who adventures continues to grow with three new releases that hit DVD in September. These stories span four discs altogether and feature Tom Baker and Peter Davison as the Doctor.
“The Creature from the Pit” (Story 106)
This adventure featuring fan favorite Tom Baker as the Doctor originally aired in 1979. Here he, along with companions Romana and K-9, become entangled in the politics and mysteries of Chloris, a verdant forest planet. In addition to the main story, the DVD packs in a bunch of extras, as is customary for this fantastic and collector-friendly line of DVDs. The extras on this one include:
- Audio commentary from Lalla Ward (Romana), Myra Frances (Adastra), Christopher Barry (director), and Mat Irvine (visual effects designer)
- Interview with director Christopher Barry
- On-set interview with Tom Baker
- A discussion with the visual effects crew about creating Erato
- Extended scene
“The King’s Demons” (Story 129)
A Peter Davison outing from 1983, “The King’s Demons” sends the Doctor and his companions back to 1215 England to encounter King John and his Champion, leading to deeper secrets and danger for the time travelers. Bonus features on this release include:
- Audio commentary from Peter Davison (the Doctor), Isla Blair (Isabella), Eric Saward (script editor), and Tony Virgo (director)
- Kamelion – Metal Man: A featurette providing a history of Kamelion, the Doctor’s robotic companion
- A historical featurette that gives actual background to the Doctor’s current adventure
“Planet of Fire” (Story 135)
The third classic Doctor Who release for September is a special one, providing both the original “Planet of Fire” story and a second special edition version of it with a new 66-minute edit and options for 5.1 sound. The double story and all the extra features span two discs in this set as Peter Davison’s Doctor travels to Earth to investigate a strange signal but soon finds himself flung to a tumultuous volcanic world. Bonus features on these two discs include:
- Audio commentary by Peter Davison (the Doctor), Nicola Bryant (Peri), Mark Strickson (Turlough), and Fiona Cumming (director)
- Return to the Planet of Fire – a featurette that brings the director and production designer back to revisit the original shooting locations
- 15 minutes worth of deleted and extended scenes
- An introduction to the “Planet of Fire” special edition by Fiona Cumming
- A behind the scenes featurette about the episodes
- A 12 minute retrospective about Anthony Ainley, the third actor to portray the Master
