Doctor Who (season 16)
The sixteenth season of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, known collectively as The Key to Time, began on 2 September 1978 with The Ribos Operation, and ended with The Armageddon Factor. The arc was originally conceived by producer Graham Williams, who had proposed it as part of his application for the producer's job in 1976.[1] The name refers to the powerful artefact, the segments of which are what the Fourth Doctor and his companions, Romana and K9, search for during the season.
| Doctor Who | |
|---|---|
| Season 16 | |
 Cover of the 2008 Region 2 DVD release | |
| Starring | |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| No. of stories | 6 |
| No. of episodes | 26 |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC1 |
| Original release | 2 September 1978 – 24 February 1979 |
| Season chronology | |
Synopsis
A figure calling himself the White Guardian commissions the Doctor and K9, assisted by a new companion, the Time Lady Romana, to find the six segments of the Key to Time, a cosmic artifact resembling a perfect cube that maintains the equilibrium of the universe. Since it is too powerful for any single being to possess, it has been split into six different segments and scattered across space and time, disguised by the raw elemental power within them into any shape or size. However, since the forces balancing the universe are so upset, the White Guardian needs to recover the segments of the Key to stop the universe so that he can restore the balance. The White Guardian also warns the Doctor of the Black Guardian, who also wishes to obtain the Key to Time for his own purposes. In the final episode, the Black Guardian, disguised as the White Guardian, attempts to take the Key from the Doctor. However, the Doctor sees through the figure's charade and orders the segments of the Key to Time to once again become scattered across all of time and space, bar the sixth, which he reinstates as Princess Astra. Afterward, the Doctor decides to install a device called a randomiser into the TARDIS' navigation system for a period of time to make his following voyages unpredictable to evade the Black Guardian.
The six segments
- The first segment is disguised as a lump of Jethrik on the planet Ribos.
- The second is the planet Calufrax, shrunk to miniature size by the space-hopping pirate planet Zanak.
- The third is the Great Seal of Diplos, which has been stolen by a criminal of that planet.
- The fourth is part of a statue on the planet Tara.
- The fifth has been consumed by the squid Kroll, causing it to turn into a gigantic monster.
- The final segment is a female humanoid – Princess Astra.
Casting
Main cast
- Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor
- Mary Tamm as Romana
- John Leeson as Voice of K9
Guest Cast
- Valentine Dyall as the Black Guardian
Tom Baker continued his role as The Fourth Doctor, and saw the introduction of Romana played by Mary Tamm. This season was the only one to feature Tamm as the first incarnation of Romana, as the second incarnation, played by Lalla Ward, began her run in the first serial of the next season (Destiny of the Daleks).
Serials
Douglas Adams took over as script editor from Anthony Read for The Armageddon Factor. Season 16 consists of one long story arc encompassing six separate, linked stories.
| Story | Serial | Serial title | Episode titles | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | UK viewers (millions) [2] | AI [2] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 98 | 1 | The Ribos Operation | "Part One" | George Spenton-Foster | Robert Holmes | 2 September 1978 | 5A | 8.3 | 59 |
| "Part Two" | George Spenton-Foster | Robert Holmes | 9 September 1978 | 5A | 8.1 | — | |||
| "Part Three" | George Spenton-Foster | Robert Holmes | 16 September 1978 | 5A | 7.9 | — | |||
| "Part Four" | George Spenton-Foster | Robert Holmes | 23 September 1978 | 5A | 8.2 | 67 | |||
| 99 | 2 | The Pirate Planet | "Part One" | Pennant Roberts | Douglas Adams | 30 September 1978 | 5B | 9.1 | 61 |
| "Part Two" | Pennant Roberts | Douglas Adams | 7 October 1978 | 5B | 7.4 | — | |||
| "Part Three" | Pennant Roberts | Douglas Adams | 14 October 1978 | 5B | 8.2 | 64 | |||
| "Part Four" | Pennant Roberts | Douglas Adams | 21 October 1978 | 5B | 8.4 | 64 | |||
| 100 | 3 | The Stones of Blood | "Part One" | Darrol Blake | David Fisher | 28 October 1978 | 5C | 8.6 | — |
| "Part Two" | Darrol Blake | David Fisher | 4 November 1978 | 5C | 6.6 | — | |||
| "Part Three" | Darrol Blake | David Fisher | 11 November 1978 | 5C | 9.3 | — | |||
| "Part Four" | Darrol Blake | David Fisher | 18 November 1978 | 5C | 7.6 | 67 | |||
| 101 | 4 | The Androids of Tara | "Part One" | Michael Hayes | David Fisher | 25 November 1978 | 5D | 9.5 | — |
| "Part Two" | Michael Hayes | David Fisher | 2 December 1978 | 5D | 10.1 | 65 | |||
| "Part Three" | Michael Hayes | David Fisher | 9 December 1978 | 5D | 8.9 | — | |||
| "Part Four" | Michael Hayes | David Fisher | 16 December 1978 | 5D | 9.0 | 66 | |||
| 102 | 5 | The Power of Kroll | "Part One" | Norman Stewart | Robert Holmes | 23 December 1978 | 5E | 6.5 | — |
| "Part Two" | Norman Stewart | Robert Holmes | 30 December 1978 | 5E | 12.4 | — | |||
| "Part Three" | Norman Stewart | Robert Holmes | 6 January 1979 | 5E | 8.9 | — | |||
| "Part Four" | Norman Stewart | Robert Holmes | 13 January 1979 | 5E | 9.9 | 63 | |||
| 103 | 6 | The Armageddon Factor | "Part One" | Michael Hayes | Bob Baker and Dave Martin | 20 January 1979 | 5F | 7.5 | 65 |
| "Part Two" | Michael Hayes | Bob Baker and Dave Martin | 27 January 1979 | 5F | 8.8 | — | |||
| "Part Three" | Michael Hayes | Bob Baker and Dave Martin | 3 February 1979 | 5F | 7.8 | — | |||
| "Part Four" | Michael Hayes | Bob Baker and Dave Martin | 10 February 1979 | 5F | 8.6 | — | |||
| "Part Five" | Michael Hayes | Bob Baker and Dave Martin | 17 February 1979 | 5F | 8.6 | — | |||
| "Part Six" | Michael Hayes | Bob Baker and Dave Martin | 24 February 1979 | 5F | 9.6 | 66 | |||
Broadcast
The Key to Time was broadcast from 2 September 1978 to 24 February 1979.
Home media
VHS releases
| Season | Story no. | Serial name | Number and duration of episodes |
R2 release date | R4 release date | R1 release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | 098 | The Ribos Operation | 4 x 25 min | April 1995 | June 1995 | September 1996 |
| 099 | The Pirate Planet | 4 x 25 min | April 1995 | June 1995 | September 1996 | |
| 100 | The Stones of Blood | 4 x 25 min | May 1995 | July 1995 | March 1996 | |
| 101 | The Androids of Tara | 4 x 25 min | May 1995 | July 1995 | March 1996 | |
| 102 | The Power of Kroll | 4 x 25 min | June 1995 | August 1995 | September 1996 | |
| 104 | The Armageddon Factor | 6 x 25 min | June 1995 | August 1995 | September 1996 |
DVD and Blu-ray releases
| Season | Story no. | Serial name | Number and duration of episodes |
R2 release date | R4 release date | R1 release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | 098–103 | The Key to Time[lower-alpha 1] | 26 × 25 min. | N/A | N/A | 1 October 2002[3] |
| The Key to Time:
The Ribos Operation |
26 × 25 min.[lower-alpha 2] | 24 September 2007[lower-alpha 3][4] 16 November 2009[lower-alpha 4][5] |
7 November 2007[6] | 3 March 2009[7] |
- Stories available in Region 1 only, with minimal restoration and extras (individually or as a box set).
- Special edition. Known collectively as The Key to Time. Only available as a box set in Regions 2 and 4. Stories available individually or as a box set in Region 1. All serials contain four episodes each, apart from The Armageddon Factor, which has six episodes.
- Limited release.
- Re-release.
In print
| Serial name | Novelisation title | Author | First published |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Ribos Operation | Doctor Who and the Ribos Operation | Ian Marter | 11 December 1979 |
| The Pirate Planet | The Pirate Planet | James Goss | 5 January 2017[8][9][10] |
| The Stones of Blood | Doctor Who and the Stones of Blood | Terrance Dicks | 20 March 1980 |
| The Androids of Tara | Doctor Who and the Androids of Tara | Terrance Dicks | 24 April 1980 |
| The Power of Kroll | Doctor Who and the Power of Kroll | Terrance Dicks | 26 May 1980 |
| The Armageddon Factor | Doctor Who and the Armageddon Factor | Terrance Dicks | 26 June 1980 |
References
- "Season 16". Doctor Who Classic Episode Guide. BBC. Retrieved 10 August 2007.
- "Ratings Guide". Doctor Who News. Retrieved 27 December 2014.
- "Doctor Who - The Key to Time Collection". 1 October 2002. Retrieved 16 November 2017 – via Amazon.
- "Doctor Who: Key to Time". Retrieved 16 November 2017 – via Amazon.
- "Doctor Who - The Key to Time Box Set". 16 November 2009. Retrieved 16 November 2017 – via Amazon.
- "Doctor Who The Key To Time Box Set by BBC - Shop Online for Movies, DVDs in Australia". Fishpond. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
- "Doctor Who: The Key to Time". 3 March 2009. Retrieved 16 November 2017 – via Amazon.
- Adams, Douglas; Goss, James (5 January 2017). "Doctor Who: The Pirate Planet". BBC Digital. Retrieved 25 August 2016 – via Amazon.
- "Gallifrey Guardian". Doctor Who Magazine. Tunbridge Wells: Panini UK Ltd (486): 7. April 2015.
- Dave Golder (30 April 2015). "Doctor Who Pirate Planet Novelisation Announced". GamesRadar+.