The 10th Anniversary Serial has three incarnations of the Doctor meeting up to face the evil Omega in a universe of antimatter.The 10th Anniversary Serial has three incarnations of the Doctor meeting up to face the evil Omega in a universe of antimatter.The 10th Anniversary Serial has three incarnations of the Doctor meeting up to face the evil Omega in a universe of antimatter.
Leslie Bates
- UNIT Soldier
- (uncredited)
David Billa
- UNIT Soldier
- (uncredited)
Pat Gorman
- UNIT Soldier
- (uncredited)
Anthony Lang
- Time Lord
- (uncredited)
John Scott Martin
- Gell Guard
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe story sets up a mildly antagonistic relationship between the various incarnations of the Doctor, for humorous effect. The Second and Third Doctors bicker, compete, and try to put each other down. Even the First Doctor dismisses the others by saying, "So you're my replacements - a dandy and a clown!" This kind of relationship between the Doctor's selves was seen again in subsequent multi-Doctor stories. Patrick Troughton and Jon Pertwee in particular enjoyed the banter so much that they carried on the mock competition whenever they appeared together at science fiction conventions.
- GoofsThough the Second Doctor is supposed to appear out of thin air, he can be seen reflected in the rotor of the TARDIS console prior to his appearance.
- Quotes
The First Doctor: Oh, so you're my replacements - a dandy and a clown. Have you done anything?
The Second Doctor: Well, we've assessed the situation...
The First Doctor: Just as I thought - nothing.
- ConnectionsEdited into Doctor Who: Tales of the TARDIS: The Three Doctors (2023)
Featured review
The Dandy and the Clown
"The Three Doctors", the first serial in the tenth season of Doctor Who, celebrated the programme's tenth anniversary by uniting all three actors to have played the Doctor as of that date, William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton and Jon Pertwee. Ill-health, however, prevented Hartnell from playing a full role in the serial, and his participation is limited to a pre-recorded cameo viewed on a monitor screen. (This was to be his last acting role before his death in 1975).
We are informed that there is a "First Law of Time" which prevents two or more incarnations of a Time Lord from meeting one another. This, however, appears to be a "law" in the sense of "piece of legislation" rather than a "law of nature", because we are also informed that it can be broken in extreme circumstances. (Strangely, no mention of this law was made when Troughton's Second Doctor appeared alongside Colin Baker's Sixth in "The Two Doctors" from the eighties). So what circumstance so extreme has occurred to require the Time Lords to breach this fundamental law?
The answer is that their home planet Gallifrey is facing a catastrophic situation, with all their power being sucked into a black hole, a state of affairs which threatens not only Gallifrey itself but the entire universe. The problem is so serious that the Time Lords fear that it cannot be solved by one Doctor alone, and that the combined efforts of all three Doctors will be needed. So the Second and Third Doctors are summoned, although the First finds himself trapped in a "time eddy", a plot device invented to explain Hartnell's limited participation.
Imagine the shock to modern America if it were to be discovered that George Washington did not die in 1799 but is still alive and is actively plotting to destroy the country that he helped to found. A shock of similar magnitude awaits the Doctors. For eons the Time Lords have revered a Founding Father named Omega, the solar engineer whose work created the power source that gives them mastery over time. Omega is believed to have died in a supernova explosion, but in fact he was propelled into an "antimatter universe" where he exists on a world created by his will alone. Believing that the Time Lords left him to die, he is now seeking revenge.
I won't set out the plot any further as it gets very complicated, and indeed frequently absurd. The plot isn't the only absurd thing about this serial; there are also those jelly-like monsters who look like Mr Blobby suffering from an unpleasant skin disease. Omega is a potentially tragic figure, but not enough is made of this aspect of his character; for most of the time he just comes across as a bombastic, posturing pantomime villain. We discover towards the end that he does not really exist except as a manifestation of his own will- a bizarre concept. Troughton, however, makes a welcome return to the show; his Second Doctor finds it impossible to get on with Pertwee's Third because of their very different personalities, the Second being more mischievous and irreverent, the Third more urbane and serious. (The sharp exchanges between Troughton and Pertwee are the story's most amusing feature). Hartnell's First Doctor has to try and reconcile them, but even he cannot resist joining in the mutual recriminations, dismissing his successors as "the dandy and the clown". The idea of reuniting the three incarnations of the Doctor was a good one; it is just a pity that a better story could not have been found for them to star in.
We are informed that there is a "First Law of Time" which prevents two or more incarnations of a Time Lord from meeting one another. This, however, appears to be a "law" in the sense of "piece of legislation" rather than a "law of nature", because we are also informed that it can be broken in extreme circumstances. (Strangely, no mention of this law was made when Troughton's Second Doctor appeared alongside Colin Baker's Sixth in "The Two Doctors" from the eighties). So what circumstance so extreme has occurred to require the Time Lords to breach this fundamental law?
The answer is that their home planet Gallifrey is facing a catastrophic situation, with all their power being sucked into a black hole, a state of affairs which threatens not only Gallifrey itself but the entire universe. The problem is so serious that the Time Lords fear that it cannot be solved by one Doctor alone, and that the combined efforts of all three Doctors will be needed. So the Second and Third Doctors are summoned, although the First finds himself trapped in a "time eddy", a plot device invented to explain Hartnell's limited participation.
Imagine the shock to modern America if it were to be discovered that George Washington did not die in 1799 but is still alive and is actively plotting to destroy the country that he helped to found. A shock of similar magnitude awaits the Doctors. For eons the Time Lords have revered a Founding Father named Omega, the solar engineer whose work created the power source that gives them mastery over time. Omega is believed to have died in a supernova explosion, but in fact he was propelled into an "antimatter universe" where he exists on a world created by his will alone. Believing that the Time Lords left him to die, he is now seeking revenge.
I won't set out the plot any further as it gets very complicated, and indeed frequently absurd. The plot isn't the only absurd thing about this serial; there are also those jelly-like monsters who look like Mr Blobby suffering from an unpleasant skin disease. Omega is a potentially tragic figure, but not enough is made of this aspect of his character; for most of the time he just comes across as a bombastic, posturing pantomime villain. We discover towards the end that he does not really exist except as a manifestation of his own will- a bizarre concept. Troughton, however, makes a welcome return to the show; his Second Doctor finds it impossible to get on with Pertwee's Third because of their very different personalities, the Second being more mischievous and irreverent, the Third more urbane and serious. (The sharp exchanges between Troughton and Pertwee are the story's most amusing feature). Hartnell's First Doctor has to try and reconcile them, but even he cannot resist joining in the mutual recriminations, dismissing his successors as "the dandy and the clown". The idea of reuniting the three incarnations of the Doctor was a good one; it is just a pity that a better story could not have been found for them to star in.
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- JamesHitchcock
- May 5, 2022
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