1st Doctor TV Soundtracks

Doctor Who: The TV Episodes Collection

Six classic Doctor Who TV soundtrack adventures starring William Hartnell as the First Doctor. 
 
 In 'The Sensorites' the Doctor and his friends visit an alien society with dark secrets. 
 
 In 'The Romans' Ian and Barbara are sold into slavery in First Century Rome, and the Doctor encounters Nero! 
 
 In 'The Space Museum' the travellers must work to avert a terrible potential future for themselves. 
 
 In 'The Ark' the Doctor, Steven and Dodo encounter the last humans to flee Earth with their alien servants, the Monoids. 
 
 In 'The Gunfighters' the TARDIS crewmembers try to avoid getting caught in crossfire at the OK Corral. 
 
 In 'The War Machines' the TARDIS lands in London, 1966, to find the brand new Post Office Tower being controlled by sinister supercomputer. 
 
 Each story has additional linking narration, and there are bonus interviews with William Russell, Maureen O'Brien, Peter Purves and Anneke Wills.

1st Doctor Novelisation

Doctor Who: The Ark

An unabridged reading of this exciting novelisation of a First Doctor television adventure.

BBC Audio's team gives these releases a hallmark of quality

Paul Erickson (1920 – 1991) was a British screenwriter. He contributed to a wide variety of British television shows, including The Saint, Out of the Unknown, The Inside Man, Paul Temple and Doctor Who.

An unabridged reading of this exciting novelisation of a First Doctor television adventure. 
 
It is ten million years in the future, and the Earth is about to plunge into the Sun. A gigantic Space Ark has been launched, to take the last of humanity to a new life on the planet Refusis II. Accompanying the humans on their journey are the Monoids, strange reptilian creatures from an alien world. 
 
When the TARDIS materialises on board, the Doctor and his friends are greeted with suspicion, which soon turns to open hostility when Dodo inadvertently infects the Ark's crew with a long-forgotten virus. It is an accident which will have a terrible effect on mankind, an effect which will last for seven hundred years...

Doctor Who Collection 6: The TV Episodes

Six Doctor Who adventures starring William Hartnell as the First Doctor - plus extra bonus material.

Overall the highlights here are the work of the original cast members in bridging the action with narration, which adds a depth to the television scripts that was often lacking... if you’re looking for an alternative take on familiar adventures, or simply want the flexibility that audios offer, then this box-set is your answer.

Peter R. Newman was a playwright whose most famous work was Yesterday’s Enemies, a Second World War story set in the Burmese jungle. It was was inspired by his experiences in the RAF and intelligence corps in the war, and was screened by BBC TV in October 1958 and subsequently remade by Hammer Films. Newman only wrote one serial for Doctor Who, The Sensorites, which was also his last television credit. Suffering from writer’s block, he became a porter at the Tate Gallery, where he worked until his death in 1975. 
 
Dennis Spooner was script editor of Doctor Who during the William Hartnell era, and wrote several stories for the show, including The Reign of Terror and The Romans. He also wrote for the Gerry Anderson series' Supercar, Fireball XL5, Stingray and Thunderbirds, and co-created five espionage series' including Man in a Suitcase, Department S and The Adventurer. Spooner also created the cult detective series Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased). He died in September 1986. 
 
Glyn Jones was an actor, playwright and author who was born in Durban, South Africa. He moved to England after leaving university, took a job with the Sunday Times and started writing plays. In 1964, he was commissioned by Doctor Who story editor David Whitaker to develop a four-part serial. This would become The Space Museum, Jones’ only story for Doctor Who (though he later appeared in the 1975 Doctor Who serial The Sontaran Experiment). Among his other TV credits are the children’s series The Magnificent Six and ½ and Here Come the Double Deckers! He also wrote over twenty plays, six novels featuring private eye Thornton King and an autobiography, No Official Umbrella. He died in Crete in April 2014. 
 
Paul Erickson wrote only one script for Doctor Who – The Ark. He was then married to Lesley Scott, and asked that she be given a writing credit for the script, despite not having written any of it. Erickson wrote scripts for many other TV programmes, including The Saint and Paul Temple, and several films including Find the Lady and Kill Her Gently. He also wrote the Target novelisation of The Ark. He died in 1991. 
 
Donald Cotton contributed two scripts to Doctor Who: The Myth Makers and The Gunfighters. After helping to develop the BBC series Adam Adamant Lives!, he decided to concentrate on theatre, and was a successful playwright and actor throughout the Sixties and Seventies. He retired from acting in 1981, but continued his writing career into the Eighties. He novelised his Doctor Who scripts for Target books, as well as Dennis Spooner’s The Romans. Donald Cotton died in January 2000. 
 
Ian Stuart Black was an author and screenwriter, best known for his creation of the TV series Danger Man, starring Patrick McGoohan. Black wrote three serials for Doctor Who – The Savages, The War Machines (from an idea by Kit Pedler) and The Macra Terror – and novelised the stories for Target Books. He also wrote several non-genre novels, one of which, The High Bright Sun, was made into a film starring Dirk Bogarde. Ian Stuart Black died in 1997.

These classic soundtrack adventures, with additional linking narration, have all been remastered and include bonus interviews with William Russell, Maureen O'Brien, Peter Purves and Anneke Wills. The Sensorites: the Doctor and friends meet the alien Sensorites... The Romans: in first-century Rome, Ian and Barbara are sold into slavery and the Doctor encounters Nero... The Space Museum: the Doctor and his companions see a terrible potential future... The Ark: the Doctor, Steven and Dodo come face-to-face with the last humans and their servants, the Monoids... The Gunfighters: 1881, Tombstone. The TARDIS crew are in trouble, as they try to avoid getting caught in the crossfire at the OK Corral... The War Machines: The TARDIS lands in London in 1966 - only to find that the brand new Post Office Tower is home to a monstrous supercomputer. This box set also contains bonus PDF files of the original TV scripts. 
 
13 CDs. 12 hrs 30 mins.

Doctor Who: The Ark (TV Soundtrack)

William Hartnell’s Doctor faces the Monoids in this original television soundtrack adventure, written by Paul Erickson and with linking narration by Peter Purves.

'Everything aboard this spaceship is suddenly endangered!'   The TARDIS materialises in a tropical forest, and the Doctor, Steven and Dodo are surprised to find that it’s situated inside a vast spaceship. This is the distant future, and the last survivors from Earth are on a 700 year voyage to the planet Refusis II. Accompanying them are their mute, one-eyed servants: the Monoids.   When Dodo unwittingly spreads her cold amongst the Monoids it proves deadly to them, and the travellers are accused of sabotage. Then the TARDIS jumps forward in time to the Ark’s future, where the Doctor and his friends make a horrifying discovery. The balance of power has shifted, and humanity is now enslaved by the vengeful Monoid race, who plan to make Refusis II their own...   In an additional bonus interview, Peter Purves, who also provides linking narration for the story, recalls the making of the original 1966 television serial.

William Emms

Paul Erickson

Terrance Dicks

Steven Moffatt

Maureen O'Brien

Peter Purves

John Leeson

Nicholas Briggs

1st, 4th, 10th and 11th Doctor Novelisation

Whole civilisations are threatened in these four classic TV novelisations featuring the First, Fourth, Tenth and Eleventh Doctors. 
 
In Galaxy Four, by William Emms, the First Doctor, Steven and Vicki find the Drahvins and the Rills engaged in battle on a desolate planet - one that will explode in two days' time. 
In The Ark, by Paul Erickson, the Earth is about to plunge into the Sun and humanity is heading for a new planet, but the Doctor's arrival has a terrible impact on mankind. 
 
In The Armageddon Factor, by Terrance Dicks, the TARDIS lands in the middle of an atomic war. The Doctor, Romana and K9 meet the Marshal of Atrios, whose actions look set to bring about the end of everything. 
 
In The Day of the Doctor, by Steven Moffat, three different versions of the Doctor unite to save Earth, the Universe...and their own soul. 
 
Maureen O'Brien, Peter Purves, John Leeson and Nicholas Briggs read these exciting and action-packed adaptations from the BBC TV series. 
 
Readings produced by Neil Gardner. Sound design by Simon Power. Executive Producer for BBC Studios: Michael Stevens 
 
? 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd © 2024 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

Paul Erickson

Books by Paul Erickson

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