DVD review (region 2)
Directed by David Maloney, Graeme Harper, Geoffrey Sax
Starring Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Sylvester McCoy, Paul McGann, Louise Jameson, Nicola Bryant, Daphne Ashbrook
Release date 4 October 2010

Three Doctor Who adventures: two stone-cold classics (The Talons of Weng-Chiang, The Caves of Androzani) and the 1996 TV movie — all with brand new extras…

This welcome box-set of Doctor Who DVD re-issues is all about the extras. The three stories on offer here have been released on DVD previously (although they do benefit from brand new transfers), but they came out early in the run and lacked the copious in-depth extras that have since become common.

The two classics included (The Talons of Weng-Chiang, The Caves of Androzani — voted the best story of all-time by fans) are both written by Robert Holmes and both feature leather-masked villains with an unhealthy interest in the Doctor’s female companion. The third is the largely-unloved 1996 Paul McGann TV movie (with a guest appearance from Sylvester McCoy), which actually benefits from the best extras in the set.

The complicated story of the road to the TV movie following the classic series’ cancellation in 1989 is told in a clear, entertaining and informative manner in the hour-long The Seven Year Hitch. Also very good is The Wilderness Years documentary, an account of how Doctor Who was maintained while not on TV by increasingly professional fan products, leading eventually to the return of the show to TV in the hands of fan-producers.

The other two stories get comprehensive half-hour ‘making of’ documentaries, while Talons gets a history of music hall and Androzani has a focus on director Graeme Harper’s Doctor Who career, among other features. New commentaries, other short video pieces and all the material from the original releases complete this worthwhile repackaged box set. Mark James

VERDICT: 9/10
A worthwhile repackaging of two Who classics and an underrated one-off, with all-new comprehensive ‘making of’ extras.