Doctor Who Episode Guide Catalogues:
Looking for a good Doctor Who
episode guide? Want to browse through
the entire DVD line at the same time?
Want to know who did the music and where
it is available? Our
"Episode Guide Catalogues"
are for you:
William Hartnell Era
1963-1966, BW
Patrick Troughton Era
1966-1969, BW
Jon Pertwee Era
1970-1974, Colour
Tom Baker Era
1975-1981, Colour
Peter Davison Era
1981-1984, Colour
Colin Baker Era
1984-1986, Colour
Sylvester McCoy Era
1987-1989, Colour
Christopher Eccleston Era
2005, Colour
David Tennant Era
2005-2009, Colour
Matt Smith Era
2010-2013, Colour
Peter Capaldi Era
2014..., Colour
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The Second Coming of Doctor Who DVD's
Many Doctor Who stories were released on DVD a second time,
usually with a "special edition" label, and sometimes as
part of a "Revisitations" box set.
Are these potential double-dips really worth it?
Generally speaking, if you never did get the earlier version,
you will prefer to buy the newer Special Edition which typically
has all the features of the old one, better restoration on the main story,
plus a new batch of bonus goodies.
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There are really only two stories where the older version has something
big and unique not to be found on the newer special edition.
The old "The Tomb of the Cybermen" has a very good "Tombwatch" documentary
featuring interaction between additional contributors, making it worthwhile
to own both DVD releases.
"The Three Doctors" also has a lengthy appearance by Jon Pertwee with friends
at a convention on the OLD version, which doesn't appear on the newer one.
Since appearances by Pertwee on these discs are rare, I think the older
version of this story actually had the better line-up of bonus features.
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In any case, here are complete listings for the multiple versions of each
story, in roughly the order in which they came out:
Story No. 130: The Five Doctors
Peter Davison, Jon Pertwee, Patrick Troughton
(with Richard Hurndall replacing William Hartnell, and clips of Tom Baker).
4 episode equivalent, 1983
As the original 1999 release was the first ever Doctor Who DVD,
and they hadn't finalized their concepts of menu layout,
or what extras would become staple, it was a very rough
early release.
The British version didn't even have the commentary.
The newer golden-brown 2008 edition is much better.
It features two different edits of the show,
both with isolated music & production note subtitles.
Plus we get three audio commentaries in total,
a good lengthy making-of documentary, and plenty of supplemental material.
Very good.
Yes! Recommended!
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| Older 1999 DVD release with 1995 edit only: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
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Story No. 152: Remembrance of the Daleks
Sylvester McCoy, 4 episodes, 1988
Apparently the original version for the U.K. had some serious
mastering glitches, not to mention a very depressing
cover design! The old North American one is a bit better,
but still on the bland side. Menus were still rough,
and none of the extras were really featurettes.
The story itself is a good one,
so the upgrade to the newer Special Edition is worth it.
Yes! Recommended!
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| Newer DVD release: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
Special Edition
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
Special Edition
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
Special Edition
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DVD Extras listing
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| Older DVD release: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
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Story Nos. 98-103 (season 16): The Key to Time Box Set
Tom Baker, 26 episodes, 1978
The "original" version in this case was something
hurriedly rushed to the North American market only.
Thank goodness the later, far superior version for the U.K.
also made its way to North America under a Special Edition
banner, sporting proper featurettes, improved picture quality,
and three additional commentaries. This one is well
worth the double-dip, and for many U.K. residents,
it's their first dip anyway.
There is a disappointment here though. "The Pirate Planet",
and probably "The Armageddon Factor" as well, deserves
a CGI make-over in terms of laser beams. They've come out
twice now without it. Even more frustrating is the fact that
the Restoration team went to the pains of recreating the old
retarded effects verbatim on top of clean passes of the
16mm film sequences. Don't know how they could stomach
doing that without offering an upgraded version. Arggh!
Anyway, the improvements here are still massive.
Yes! Recommended!
(A more detailed blow-by-blow comparison of special features
for each story of this season can be found on our
Key to Time DVD Comparison Chart.)
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| Older DVD release: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
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Story No. 51: Spearhead From Space
Jon Pertwee, 4 episodes, 1970
Again, a fairly bare bones original version makes the special edition DVD
worthwhile. The questionable move is bundling it in the U.K.
with a story seeing its first release ("Terror of the Autons"),
while that first release
comes out all by itself in North America.
To top it off, this story actually came out a third time on Blu-ray.
As the ONLY classic Doctor Who TV story to be shot all on film,
there was enough existing picture detail to make this level
of restoration worthwhile - something we should not expect
of the rest of the line. Bizarrely, NONE of the extras from the DVD
releases are to be found on the Blu-ray version, but it does have
a few other features of considerable length.
Although the standard DVD Special Edition can be said to have the
superior batch of special features, the Blu-ray is a decent
complementary set.
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| Older DVD release: |
| Original release: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
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Revisitations 1 Trio:
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Story No. 160: The Untitled 1996 Paul McGann TV Movie
Paul McGann, Sylvester McCoy, 86 minutes, 1996
Of course, this special edition release is VERY much worth it in North America,
since it isn't a double-dip here. It's the FIRST release
for us on either DVD or VHS video. Can't beat that. So yes,
we'll have the version with more extras. Two thumbs up!
Yes! Recommended!
In the U.K., slightly different story, especially since it's
bundled with two others you may not want to double-dip on.
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| Older DVD release: |
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
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Story No. 91: The Talons of Weng-Chiang
Tom Baker, 6 episodes, 1976/7
Now, the original version in this case was a fairly hefty,
well-endowed 2-disc creature. Okay, they didn't specially
make a making-of featurette with the now-common new interviews,
but let's face it; they practically had a contemporary
20 minute making-of featurette with more behind the scenes
footage than usual embedded within the 60-minute
"Whose Doctor Who" documentary TV special. Plus there
were extra interviews, and a whole bunch of other goodies.
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| Older DVD release: |
| Original release: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
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Story No. 136: The Caves of Androzani
Peter Davison, 4 episodes, 1984
This seems to have been a fairly decent release
the first time around. Extras weren't super-plentiful,
but weren't too shabby either.
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| Older DVD release: |
| Original release: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
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Revisitations 2 Trio:
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Story No. 134: Resurrection of the Daleks
Peter Davison, 4 episodes, 1983
Well, the original release was fairly decent.
"On Location" works well as a making-of documentary,
even if we only have writer, producer, and director
being interviewed. Additional interviews from
"Breakfast Time" are good, deleted scenes decent,
and an excellent commentary track rounds out
a good disc. Plus we get the superior, original
FOUR PART version of the story - the only way it should be.
If anything is missing it is definitely optional CGI effects
upgrades so the humanoids aren't left pointing flashlights
at each other. So, a re-release would be worthwhile.
However, I have to give this re-release a big thumbs down
precisely because they still haven't made any attempt to
do CGI upgrades for the lasers, and they DESPERATELY NEED IT!!!!
Instead, they take up a whole extra disc to give us the
two-part version of the story. Ick.
I'm sure the new featurettes are nice, and a Terry Molloy
presence on a new commentary track would be most appropriate.
But... it wasn't quite enough to entice me to double dip
and buy the upgrade...
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| Newer DVD release: |
| Special Edition: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
Special Edition
NEW for
June 12, 2012
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
Special Edition
NEW for
June 12, 2012
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
"Revisitations 2"
"Revisitations 2"
Box Set
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| Older DVD release: |
| Original release: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
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DVD Extras listing
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Story No. 48: The Seeds of Death
Patrick Troughton, 6 episodes, 1969
Oh dear. The troubled history of this beast begins
with the VHS version, featuring scratchy blurry
prints fused into a movie-length presentation
without the cliffhangers and rousing renditions
of the theme tune repeating themselves between the six episodes.
I witnessed that VHS version putting many excited fans to sleep
at a convention as they watched the story for the first time.
So naturally this one was rushed to DVD quickly,
because we so desperately needed something better.
It's not a bad first release either, with commentary
and a main documentary, and most importantly a cleaned
up, six-part version of the story. But
why did that necessitate two discs?
Many of the other "extras" on the second disc actually
belong better with other stories and other releases,
and got re-released as well.
(Can they not create a Troughton release without
"The Last Dalek"?) All this helps make the extras package
less unique and less desirable.
Sure that would be
one disc now, but compression rates have improved since
it was put out. The biggest problem with the original DVD
release was the price tag that came with the 2-disc presentation.
I never could justify forking over that much for a story
I didn't really like.
But I think a lot of us are wondering why this one came to DVD
a second time. I find it hard to believe anyone would
buy this story on DVD twice.
That said, the special edition better justifies a 2-disc release,
adding a few more goodies that are relevant to the story,
and leaving off some of the others that have since found better homes elsewhere.
For sure, either DVD version trumps the sleepy fuzzy VHS video
by an astronomical margin, with the newer Special Edition
representing better value for money.
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| Older DVD release: |
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The original release of the complete story:
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
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Story No. 66: Carnival of Monsters
Jon Pertwee, 4 episodes, 1973
The list of extras for the original release make it
look fairly hefty - until you realize that they're all
about 2 minutes long, if that, and there's not an interview,
much less a proper featurette, amongst them.
Okay, there's room for improvement there.
Did it warrant a whole new release?
Well, there is an extra commentary thrown in
as well. And it is a good story.
In this case, I think it was worth it.
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| Older DVD release: |
| Original release: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
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Revisitations 3 Trio:
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Story No. 90: The Robots of Death
Tom Baker, 4 episodes, 1976/7
An extra commentary featuring Tom Baker and some proper good featurettes
make this Special Edition a very worthwhile upgrade from the very early
bare-bones original.
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| Older DVD release: |
| Original release: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
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Story No. 37: The Tomb of the Cybermen
Patrick Troughton, 4 episodes, 1967
The original was a good disc,
and the unique "Tombwatch" documentary is quite excellent.
The Special Edition is notable too for some substantial improvements
in restoration, as well as a nice batch of additional features. However,
it is missing "Tombwatch", which continues to make the older DVD desirable
and worthwhile as a "companion edition".
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| Newer DVD release: |
| The complete story - Special Edition: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
Special Edition
NEW for
Mar. 13, 2012
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
Special Edition
NEW for
Mar. 13, 2012
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
"Revisitations 3"
"Revisitations 3"
Box Set
NEW for
Feb. 13, 2012
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Story No. 65: The Three Doctors
Jon Pertwee, Patrick Troughton, William Hartnell, 4 episodes, 1973
The older disc has some bonus features that the newer one does not,
and for those of us that like to see Jon Pertwee himself participate
in the bonus features, the older package may just satisfy us more....
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| Newer DVD release: |
| Special Edition: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
Special Edition
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
Special Edition
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
"Revisitations 3"
"Revisitations 3"
Box Set
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More Special Edition / Original Edition comparisons:
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Story No. 139: Vengeance on Varos
Colin Baker, 4 episodes @ 25 min., or 2 episodes @ 45 min., 1984
Only the Special Edition has isolated music tracks, making a purchase
of the older edition unthinkable. The new version rules.
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| Older DVD release: |
| Original release: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
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Story No. 57: The Claws of Axos
Jon Pertwee, 4 episodes, 1971
The original DVD release was a good one,
and fairly generous with extra features.
The new Special Edition does appear to top it,
but only marginally.
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| Newer DVD release: |
| Special Edition: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
NEW for
Nov. 13, 2012.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
NEW for
Nov. 13, 2012.
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
NEW for
Oct. 22, 2012.
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Story No. 76: The Ark in Space
Tom Baker, 4 episodes, 1975
Noting that the original DVD release already had CGI upgrades,
the only really compelling new feature on the Special Edition
is its proper making-of featurette.
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| Newer DVD release: |
| Special Edition: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
Special Edition
NEW for
Mar. 12, 2013
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
Special Edition
NEW for
Mar. 12, 2013
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
Special Edition
NEW for
Feb. 18, 2013
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Story No. 6: The Aztecs (now with Galaxy Four)
William Hartnell, 4 episodes, 1964
A double-dip for the Special Edition probably isn't worth it for
"The Aztecs" alone...
BUT with the new Special Edition
you also get a recently rediscovered, rare episode of "Galaxy Four"
surrounded by a substantial, abridged, satisfying recreation of the
rest of that story, and it's a good story.
Oh yes! The Special Edition definitely rules here.
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| Newer DVD release: |
| The complete story - Special Edition: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
Special Edition
NEW for
Mar. 12, 2013
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
Special Edition
NEW for
Mar. 12, 2013
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
Special Edition
NEW for
Mar. 11, 2013
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Story No. 120: The Visitation
Peter Davison, 4 episodes, 1981
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| Newer DVD release: |
| Special Edition: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
Special Edition
NEW for
May 14, 2013
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
Special Edition
NEW for
May 14, 2013
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
Special Edition
NEW for
May 6, 2013
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Story No. 54: Inferno
Jon Pertwee, 7 episodes, 1970
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| Newer DVD release: |
| Special Edition: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
Special Edition
NEW for
June 11, 2013.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
Special Edition
NEW for
June 11, 2013.
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
Special Edition
NEW for
May 27, 2013
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Story No. 69: The Green Death
Jon Pertwee, 6 episodes, 1973
Double dipping on this one is a tricky decision.
The thing is, the old disc is good! It's easy to be happy with it.
Sure it's bizarre that the cast reassembled for Gatiss's fun mockumentary
and DIDN'T also do a proper making-of at the time, but apart from that addition,
the new material on the Special Edition doesn't really grab me.
The old material was already pretty good.
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| Newer DVD release: |
| Special Edition: |
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 U.S.
Special Edition
NEW for
Aug. 13, 2013.
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DVD NTSC
Region 1 Canada
Special Edition
NEW for
Aug. 13, 2013.
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DVD PAL
Region 2 U.K.
Special Edition
NEW for
Aug. 5, 2013.
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Story No. 109: Shada
Tom Baker, 6 episodes, 1979 / 2017
The Doctor is IN! Tom Baker reprises his iconic role in 2017
to do voice recordings with the rest of the original cast
and finally complete the story of "Shada" in satisfactory fashion.
Originally abandoned due to BBC strikes in 1979, the half-finished
existing footage had been resurrected several times already,
with different forms of apologies for all those scenes still missing.
The original Legacy Collection DVD from 2013 was basically a
regurgitation of a 1992 edit that first appeared on VHS video cassette,
now restored and with a package of good extras. But it still
didn't really feature a finished version of the full story.
Then in 2017, all the stops were pulled out to get enough of the
missing scenes together to finally offer a full version of the story,
with voice recordings by the original cast synced up to some good
quality animation. 2017 is my preferred version for sure,
allowing the story to achieve a much higher ranking with
the 1979 season. However, one or two elements were not quite
as good as before, meaning that the 2013 DVD may indeed continue
to hold significant value in itself.
For more detail, please read our
"Shada" in-depth analysis review
(may contain significant spoilers), or
to avoid significant spoilers, our
"Shada" Buyers' Guide review.
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