Terror of the Autons

] [cite web
url= http://www.drwhoguide.com/who_3e.htm
title= PAGENAME
publisher = Doctor Who Reference Guide
author =
date =
accessdate = 2008-08-31] [cite web
url= http://www.shannonsullivan.com/drwho/serials/eee.html
title= PAGENAME
publisher = A Brief History of Time Travel
last = Sullivan
first = Shannon
date = 2008-05-08
accessdate = 2008-08-31] Working titles for this story included "The Spray of Death".

This story is the second time in the programme that a quarry stood in for an actual quarry (as compared with an alien planet or other environment). Quarries would also serve as actual quarries in "The Dalek Invasion of Earth", "Terror of the Zygons" and "The Hand of Fear".

The dramatic scene at the start of Episode Three, where an Auton is hit with a car and tumbles off a cliff, was quite real. The car that Richard Franklin was driving bumped into stuntman Terry Walsh harder than was intended, and Walsh fell clear off the edge while the cameras were rolling. No one was harmed.

Casting

*Harry Towb, who plays the unfortunate McDermott, had previously appeared in the Second Doctor serial "The Seeds of Death", in which he also came to a sticky end.
*Michael Wisher, the young Farrel, had also done uncredited voice work for "Seeds", and had previously appeared in the Third Doctor serial "The Ambassadors of Death" and, later, "Carnival of Monsters". He would go on to do various Dalek voices and become well known as the first actor to play the evil genius Davros in the Fourth Doctor serial "Genesis of the Daleks".
*Strong Man Roy Stewart previously appeared as another strong man in the Second Doctor serial "Tomb of the Cybermen".
*Although credited on-screen, Bill McGuirk (Policeman) does not actually appear; his entire contribution having been edited out prior to transmission.

Broadcast and reception

Certain scenes in the serial, particularly the killer doll and the Auton policemen, caused controversy in the press as being too frightening for children. In an unconnected House of Lords debate about the effect of mass media on the public, the serial was cited as an example of a programme that might be too 'scary' for younger children. (Common Doctor Who fan knowledge has it that the serial provoked questions or a debate in the House, but this is not the case.)

Although the BBC wiped the serial's original 625-line videotapes for reuse, they kept 16mm monochrome telerecording film prints. In 1993, these prints were combined with the color signal from an off-air 525-line NTSC domestic videotape recording, resulting in relatively high-quality color masters for a pending VHS release.

In 1999, an improved restoration was prepared for a planned repeat on BBC Two. In the event, however, the run was abandoned before the serial was shown.

A short clip from Episode One, depicting the Doctor's first meeting with Jo Grant, still survives in its original original 625-line format, on a clip reel prepared for a 1973 edition of the news show "Nationwide". Doctorwhobook
title=Doctor Who and the Terror of the Autons
series=Target novelisations
number=63
featuring=


writer=Terrance Dicks
publisher=Target Books
coverartist=Peter Brookes
isbn=ISBN 0 426 10639 3
set_between=
pages=
date=15 May 1975
preceding=Doctor Who and the Giant Robot
following=Doctor Who and the Green Death|

Commercial releases

In 1993, the surviving black-and-white film prints were combined with an off-air color signal from a 1970s US broadcast, to produce a reasonably high-quality color master; this version of the serial was released to VHS in April of that year.

In 2001, Katy Manning, Barry Letts, and Nicholas Courtney recorded a commentary for this story; however, no DVD has yet been released.

That said, the short Nationwide clip (see "Broadcast and reception", above) is presented on the DVD of "The Aztecs", in a featurette discussing the VidFIRE restoration process.

As of August 5, 2008, this serial has been included for sale on iTunes.

In print

A novelisation of this serial, written by Terrance Dicks, was published by Target Books in May 1975. The cover art depicts a fully-developed Nestene, almost identical to the monster from the film "The Trollenberg Terror".

References

External links

*BBCCDW | id=terrorautons | title=Terror of the Autons
*Brief |id=eee | title=Terror of the Autons
*Doctor Who RG | id=who_3e | title=Terror of the Autons

Reviews

*OG review | id=3e | title=Terror of the Autons
*DWRG | id=terra | title=Terror of the Autons

Target novelisation

*DWRG | id=terranov | title=Doctor Who and the Terror of the Autons
* [http://www.personal.leeds.ac.uk/~ecl6nb/OnTarget/1975/terror/75terror.htm On Target — "Doctor Who and the Terror of the Autons"]