ORIGINAL BROADCAST: 11/03/1978
Thirty-two years ago today, the Sontarans appeared in their third television adventure, starring Tom Baker as the Doctor. Robert Holmes suggested to the new producer Graham Williams that this story should be split into two segments, resulting in the first four episodes being based around the Vardans, and the final two episodes being based around the Sontarans, who did not first appear until the very end of Episode Four.
This story had numerous problems in production, which could explain the somewhat rushed look of the final piece. The script is credited to David Agnew, a pseudonym often used by the BBC for work produced by contracted production team members. It was written as a replacement in just two weeks, as the originally planned story, ‘The Killers of the Dark’, was considered too expensive and complex to shoot. An industrial strike also affected the filming, and Graham Williams was given the option of abandoning this six-part story.
The Sontaran costumes were also made in a hurry, meaning that they did not fit the actors wearing them. At one point, a Sontaran nearly falls over after missing a short jump and landing on a pool chair. Louise Jameson, who had already announced her departure from the show, reportedly wished that her character had been killed when saving the Doctor’s life. Instead, she decides to stay behind on Gallifrey with Andred, even though they did not show any romance in the story.
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