The Three Doctors

"So you're my replacements - a dandy and a clown."

Writers: Bob Barker & Dave Martin 

Format: TV 

Broadcast: 30th December 1972 - 20th November 1973

Season: 10.01

Featuring: Third Doctor, Jo, Second Doctor, First Doctor

Synopsis 

UNIT HQ comes under attack by an alien force, and the Doctor has no other option but to call on his own people, the Time Lords, for help. Breaking the first Law of Time, the first two Doctors are lifted out of their time-streams and sent to help the third. But in a universe of anti-matter, an all-powerful figure from Time Lord history is waiting, and even three Doctors may not be enough to stop him...

Verdict 

The Three Doctors is just a joyous story and one that deserves celebrating. Doctor Who had reached its tenth season, which in the 1960s and going into the 70s was quite a remarkable achievement. What better way to celebrate than to reunite all three Doctors for one epic story! This was the first time I've done a Jon Pertwee TV story in probably over two and a half years and it was great to see the Third Doctor in action once again. Not only that but we had the triumphant return of Patrick Troughton's Second Doctor! This incarnation really was marvellous but it's just a damned shame that William Hartnell was too ill to perform in an active role. His scenes in the chair trapped in the time eddy were heartbreaking at times. Despite this, Hartnell did his best and he still managed to bring his First Doctor feel across. He truly is the Doctor. Now, you can't just have three Doctors together and expect a good story to just happen. So credit to the writers for introducing Omega, a character who is absolutely cemented in Doctor Who history. He was the solar engineer that gave the Time Lords the power of time travel but in doing so he found himself exiled and imprisoned in a universe of anti-matter. The concept of that universe was intriguing and I liked how Omega's will was the sole reason it had been created. That gave us quite an indication of what this Time Lord was capable of. The Doctor's reaction, both of them, to seeing that they were face to face with Omega would have been enough anyway but that just added something extra. The appearance of the infamous Time Lord was superb and he really did look all mighty and powerful. I thought the Brigadier was superb in this story and he just couldn't believe that there were three different Doctors! He was convinced the Doctor had reverted back to his appearance when they first met but when they were both together he really was shocked. His and Benton's reaction to going inside the TARDIS for the first time were wonderful. I just loved that the Second Doctor criticised the redecoration. I also loved how there seemed a method to this Doctor's madness when rambling on about the recorder to see how much self control Omega had. Jo was lovely as usual and I really like how committed she is to the Doctor. Dr Tyler was a fantastic character also and I loved how he was fascinated by the events that had brought him through a black hole. The Gell Guards were decent minions of Omega and I'll let their somewhat questionable costume design slide given that it was 1973. The references to The Invasion, The Web of Fear and Spearhead from Space were magnificent and filled with good humour on times. The conference call as Jo dubbed it between the Doctors was a useful way of quickly gaining information. The way they fooled Omega with the luck of the recorder was magnificent. Omega was keeping the anti-universe alive but the moment he stopped controlling it he couldn't leave. He was trapped. The trick from the Doctors was simple but just genius! They quickly escaped in the TARDIS and returned to normality. Everyone was safe and Omega was trapped. The Time Lords had their power back and as a reward, the Doctor's exile was over. He was free to travel in time and space once more. Overall, just a wonderful anniversary celebration! 

Rating: 10/10