As the newly regenerated Doctor arrives on Earth, so does the Nestene.As the newly regenerated Doctor arrives on Earth, so does the Nestene.As the newly regenerated Doctor arrives on Earth, so does the Nestene.
Roy Brent
- Auton Hospital Porter
- (uncredited)
Joy Burnett
- Extra
- (uncredited)
Victor Croxford
- Auton Hospital Porter
- (uncredited)
Antonio De Maggio
- UNIT Soldier
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- Robert Holmes
- Sydney Newman(uncredited)
- Donald Wilson(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaBecause of a BBC strike, this story was shot entirely on location with no studio scenes. This made it the first Doctor Who (1963) serial to be made entirely on location and the only serial that was ever made entirely on film. The serial came close to the brink of being canceled after the first week of filming, but producer Derrick Sherwin persuaded the BBC to complete it on location. As a result, this serial was shot in about six weeks between September and November 1969 rather like a low-budget movie. Director Derek Martinus said Sherwin was "a very energetic and determined bloke. He had a tremendous fight to get the go-ahead, but he did and for a while, we all had this wonderful fantasy of doing Doctor Who all on film and selling it to America."
- GoofsLiz Shaw states that most meteorites don't reach the Earth's surface. However, by definition, all "meteorites" reach the surface of the Earth.
- Quotes
Lethbridge-Stewart: In the last decade, we've been sending probes deeper and deeper into space. We've drawn attention to ourselves, Miss Shaw.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Chronic Rift: Beauty and the Beast (1991)
Featured review
A Yarn That Nightmares Are Made Of
(Note: This is a review of all four episodes of the story.)
January 1970 found the start of a new era of Doctor Who and the stage was set for a new beginning. Spearhead From Space, the first story of the 1970 season, proved to be just that and more. It was a story of many firsts from the first appearance of the third Doctor (played by Jon Pertwee), to the first episodes made in color to the first appearance of the Autons, Spearhead From Space set the standard for which the Pertwee era would be judged.
The story finds the Doctor exiled to late twentieth century Earth (it's hard to get much more specific but we fans do try) by his own race as punishment for interfering in the affairs of others (the final Patrick Troughton story The War Games) in the midst of a meteor shower. With the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce (UNIT) investigating, the newly regenerated Doctor comes back into contact with its leader Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart and the newly recruited scientist Liz Shaw. Together they investigate the meteors, the strange orbs they left behind, and their apparent connection to a factor making plastic mannequins. It all leads to an invasion by the collective mind of the Nestene.
Jon Pertwee slips in the role of the Doctor with so much ease that, like Tom Baker in 1974's Robot, it is sometimes hard to believe this is his first story. All the hallmarks of his Doctor are here from the classic combination of shirts and capes to gadgetry and classic cars. Backing him is the ever impressive Nicholas Courtney as the Brigadier for the third time (having played the role in the Troughton story's The Web Of Fear and The Invasion) and Caroline John as Liz Shaw. John plays Liz well and makes a very believable scientist and it's a shame she was only in the four stories of this season. The supporting cast of Hugh Burden and John Woodnut as the men who run the factory plus Hamilton Dyce as General Scobie and Neil Wilson as a trapper make for as fine a cast as the show ever had. Robert Holmes' script plus the direction of Derek Martinus and the music of Dudley Simpson helps to create a taught and suspenseful opening for the Pertwee era. The Autons are one of the series' best creations one of the worst nightmares come true: shop window mannequins that come not just to life but kill you as well. While their controller, the Nestene creature, looks very unconvincing, the Autons and the other elements of this story make it one of the very best stories of the series.
With strong performances from the cast backed by Robert Holmes' script, the direction of Derek Martinus and the music of Dudley Simpson, Spearhead From Space is more then just Jon Pertwee's debut story. It is a taught and suspenseful science fiction yarn that nightmares are made of.
January 1970 found the start of a new era of Doctor Who and the stage was set for a new beginning. Spearhead From Space, the first story of the 1970 season, proved to be just that and more. It was a story of many firsts from the first appearance of the third Doctor (played by Jon Pertwee), to the first episodes made in color to the first appearance of the Autons, Spearhead From Space set the standard for which the Pertwee era would be judged.
The story finds the Doctor exiled to late twentieth century Earth (it's hard to get much more specific but we fans do try) by his own race as punishment for interfering in the affairs of others (the final Patrick Troughton story The War Games) in the midst of a meteor shower. With the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce (UNIT) investigating, the newly regenerated Doctor comes back into contact with its leader Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart and the newly recruited scientist Liz Shaw. Together they investigate the meteors, the strange orbs they left behind, and their apparent connection to a factor making plastic mannequins. It all leads to an invasion by the collective mind of the Nestene.
Jon Pertwee slips in the role of the Doctor with so much ease that, like Tom Baker in 1974's Robot, it is sometimes hard to believe this is his first story. All the hallmarks of his Doctor are here from the classic combination of shirts and capes to gadgetry and classic cars. Backing him is the ever impressive Nicholas Courtney as the Brigadier for the third time (having played the role in the Troughton story's The Web Of Fear and The Invasion) and Caroline John as Liz Shaw. John plays Liz well and makes a very believable scientist and it's a shame she was only in the four stories of this season. The supporting cast of Hugh Burden and John Woodnut as the men who run the factory plus Hamilton Dyce as General Scobie and Neil Wilson as a trapper make for as fine a cast as the show ever had. Robert Holmes' script plus the direction of Derek Martinus and the music of Dudley Simpson helps to create a taught and suspenseful opening for the Pertwee era. The Autons are one of the series' best creations one of the worst nightmares come true: shop window mannequins that come not just to life but kill you as well. While their controller, the Nestene creature, looks very unconvincing, the Autons and the other elements of this story make it one of the very best stories of the series.
With strong performances from the cast backed by Robert Holmes' script, the direction of Derek Martinus and the music of Dudley Simpson, Spearhead From Space is more then just Jon Pertwee's debut story. It is a taught and suspenseful science fiction yarn that nightmares are made of.
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- timdalton007
- Nov 9, 2008
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