FACTOID # 52: In Botswana, more than one in three adults aged 15-49 are infected with HIV/AIDS.
 
 Home   Encyclopedia   Statistics   Countries A-Z   Flags   Maps   Education   Forum   FAQ   About 
 
WHAT'S NEW
RECENT ARTICLES
More Recent Articles »
 

FACTS & STATISTICS    Simple view

  1. Select countries to view: (hold down Control key and click to select several)

     

     

    Compare:

     

     
  1. Select fact or statistic: (* = graphable)

     

     

     

  2. (OPTIONAL) Compare to statistic: (both need to be graphable)

     

     

     

  3. View result as:

     

       
(OR) SEARCH ALL encyclopedia, stats & forums:   

Encyclopedia > The Trial of a Time Lord
144 to 147 - The Trial of a Time Lord
Doctor Colin Baker (Sixth Doctor)
Writer Robert Holmes (episodes 1–4,13)
Philip Martin (episodes 5–8)
Pip and Jane Baker (episodes 9–12,14)
Director Nicholas Mallett (episodes 1–4)
Ron Jones (episodes 5–8)
Chris Clough (episodes 9–14)
Script Editor Eric Saward (episodes 1–12)
Producer John Nathan-Turner
Executive Producer(s) None
Production code 7A, 7B, 7C
Series Season 23
Length 14 episodes, 25 mins each
Originally broadcast September 6–December 6, 1986
Preceded by Revelation of the Daleks
Followed by Time and the Rani
IMDb profile

The Trial of a Time Lord is the on-screen title for all fourteen episodes comprising the 23rd season (1986) of the original Doctor Who series. Despite the single name and episode count, however, it may actually be taken as the linking narrative that holds together the separate serials that comprise the season. Though not titled separately, the serials are known (in production material and subsequent novelisations) as The Mysterious Planet (Trial episodes 1-4), Mindwarp (5-8), Terror of the Vervoids (9-12), and The Ultimate Foe (or alternatively Time Incorporated) (13 and 14). Colin Baker (born London, June 8, 1943) is an English actor who is best known for playing the sixth incarnation of the Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series Doctor Who, from 1984 to 1986. ... The Sixth Doctor is the name given to the sixth incarnation of the Doctor seen on screen in the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. ... This entry is about the television scriptwriter. ... Philip Martin (born 1938 in Liverpool) is an English television screenwriter. ... Pip and Jane Baker are British television writers best known for their contributions the long running science fiction series Doctor Who. ... Nicholas Mallett (sometimes known as Nick Mallett) was television director who worked on The Bill, Childrens Ward and several episodes of Doctor Who including The Mysterious Planet section of The Trial of a Time Lord, Paradise Towers and The Curse of Fenric. ... Ron Jones (6 August 1945-1995) was a British television director. ... Eric Saward (pronounced SAY-ward) was born in December 1944 and became a script writer and script editor for the BBC, resigning from the latter post on the TV programme Doctor Who in 1986. ... John Nathan-Turner. ... This is a list of Doctor Who television serials. ... September 6 is the 249th day of the year (250th in leap years). ... December 6 is the 340th day (341st on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Revelation of the Daleks is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in two weekly parts from March 23 to March 30, 1985. ... Time and the Rani is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from September 7 to September 28, 1987. ... Doctor Who is a long-running British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC, (and a 1996 television movie). ... This is a list of Doctor Who television serials. ... The Mysterious Planet is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from September 6 to September 27, 1986. ... For other uses, see Mindwarp (disambiguation). ... Terror of the Vervoids is the title commonly used for a 4 episode Doctor Who story. ... The Ultimate Foe is the generally accepted title for a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in two weekly parts from November 29 to December 6, 1986. ...


With this 14-part story – the series' longest ever (beating the 12 part The Daleks' Master Plan) – the series reverted to its original 25-minute-episode format after the previous season's experiment with 45-minute episodes. However, as only 14 episodes were commissioned for this 23rd season, this resulted in the actual amount of storytelling time for the programme being slashed by approximately half; the 14-episode season would remain the standard for the remainder of the original series' run (a further three seasons, starring Sylvester McCoy). The Daleks Master Plan is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which originally aired in twelve weekly parts from November 13, 1965 to January 29, 1966. ... Sylvester McCoy (born Percy James Patrick Kent-Smith August 20, 1943) is a Scottish actor. ...

Contents

Cast notes

Features guest appearances by Joan Sims, Tony Selby, Honor Blackman, Brian Blessed, Geoffrey Hughes and Christopher Ryan. See also Celebrity appearances in Doctor Who and the individual serials' articles for a full list of appearances. Irene Joan Marian Sims (May 9, 1930, Laindon, Essex - June 28, 2001) was a British actress. ... Tony Selby (born 26 February 1938 in Lambeth, London) is a British actor. ... Honor Blackman (born in London on 12 December 1927) is an English actress. ... Brian Blessed (pronounced //, or in the tradition of English poetry, Blessèd, born October 9, 1937) is an English actor, who came to fame as PC Fancy Smith in the BBC TV police drama series Z Cars. ... Geoffrey Hughes as his character Onslow in Keeping Up Appearances. ... Christopher Ryan is an English actor who trained at East 15 Acting School in London. ... Several celebrities have made guest appearances in Doctor Who. ...


Synopsis

See the constituent serials' articles for full plot details.


The Sixth Doctor is taken out of time, his TARDIS transported to a mysterious space station where it is revealed that his people, the Time Lords, are putting him on trial once again. He is accused of "conduct unbecoming a Time Lord" and transgressing the First Law of Time. The Ultimate Court of Appeal is composed of the High Council of Time Lords, including the Inquisitor (fulfilling the role of adjudicator), and the Valeyard who has raised the charges against the Doctor. Using the evidence presented from the Matrix, which collects data from the various time zones in which a TARDIS lands and records it, three segments of evidence are shown to prove the Doctor's guilt or otherwise: one from his past, one from his (near) present and one from his own future. Soon, the charges and stakes have escalated and the Doctor faces a death sentence. The Sixth Doctor is the name given to the sixth incarnation of the Doctor seen on screen in the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. ... The TARDIS The TARDIS[1] is a time machine and spacecraft in the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who. ... The International Space Station in 2006 A space station is an artificial structure designed for humans to live in outer space. ... Doctor Who. ... The Inquisitor is a fictional character in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. ... The Valeyard (pronounced Valley-ard) is a fictional character from the long-running British science fiction television series, Doctor Who. ... The Matrix, in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who, is a massive computer system on the planet Gallifrey that acts as the repository of the combined knowledge of the Time Lords. ...


During the events recounted in the trial, Peri is apparently killed, but is revealed later to have survived and married an alien warlord. The Doctor is also introduced to a companion from his future, Mel, though the exact circumstances of how she joined him are never revealed on screen. Due to the non-chronological nature of the various stories within the narrative, it is possible to separate Trial into four adventures for the Doctor: one on planet Ravalox, one on Thoros Beta, an immediately concurrent one as he is taken from there to the trial itself, this concluding with the programme's conclusion, and one future adventure, with a presumed additional 'adventure' (as featured at the conclusion of the novelisation) where the Doctor returns Mel to his future self and goes off expecting to soon meet her(!) and in due course encounter the Vervoids (issues raised by his foreknowledge of these events are left a matter for conjecture). Peri Brown, full name Perpugilliam Brown, is a fictional character played by Nicola Bryant in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. ... Melanie Bush, or simply Mel, is a fictional character played by Bonnie Langford in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. ... The Mysterious Planet is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from September 6 to September 27, 1986. ... For other uses, see Mindwarp (disambiguation). ... The Ultimate Foe is the generally accepted title for a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in two weekly parts from November 29 to December 6, 1986. ... Terror of the Vervoids is the title commonly used for a 4 episode Doctor Who story. ...

The TARDIS is summoned to a mysterious space station

Image File history File links Screenshot from the Doctor Who serial The Trial of a Time Lord This is a screenshot of a copyrighted movie or television program. ... Image File history File links Screenshot from the Doctor Who serial The Trial of a Time Lord This is a screenshot of a copyrighted movie or television program. ...

Production

  • Although each of the separate segments has been given a name by the fans, based upon working titles, the story is only ever credited on screen as The Trial of a Time Lord. This leads to the single story being 14 episodes long, making it the longest ever Doctor Who story. (Although technically The Key to Time story arc from Season 16 is longer, it is always presented on screen as six separate stories). See also Doctor Who story title controversy.
  • In February 1985, the BBC announced that the planned twenty-third season of Doctor Who had been cancelled. After vocal protests by the press and Doctor Who fans (including a charity single, Doctor in Distress), the BBC announced that the progamme was merely on "hiatus", and would return in September 1986. Several stories which had been planned or commissioned for the original Season 23 were abandoned in favour of an overarching "trial" theme, reflecting the fact that the programme itself was on trial at the BBC.[1] Producer John Nathan-Turner and script editor Eric Saward drew inspiration from Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol; in that the Doctor sees evidence from the past, present and future.[1]
  • The opening shot of the TARDIS arriving at the space station was the most expensive effects shot in the series' history at the time, costing more than £8,000 for a forty-five second model sequence using the most advanced motion-controlled camera available. A decade after the story first aired, that same effects shot was used in television promotions for the 1996 FOX Network Doctor Who television movie.
  • One of the most frequently parodied aspects of the serial is the fact that 11 of the 13 cliffhanger episode endings fade out on a close-up of Colin Baker's face. The two exceptions are episode 3, which has a character firing a crossbow in the Doctor's direction, and episode 9 which ends with the Vervoids emerging from their pods.
  • Dominic Glynn created a new arrangement of the Doctor Who Theme which was only ever used for this story arc. The visuals used for opening credits, however, remained unchanged from the previous season.

The Key to Time is the umbrella title for a story arc that links all six serials of Season 16 of Doctor Who. ... The Doctor Who story title controversy is a debate amongst fans of the BBC television series Doctor Who as to what certain stories should be called. ... Doctor in Distress can refer to: Doctor in Distress, a 1963 movie starring Dirk Bogarde. ... During the long run of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who, a number of stories were proposed but, for a variety of reasons, never fully produced. ... John Nathan-Turner. ... Eric Saward (pronounced SAY-ward) was born in December 1944 and became a script writer and script editor for the BBC, resigning from the latter post on the TV programme Doctor Who in 1986. ... Dickens redirects here. ... A Christmas Carol in Prose, Being a Ghost Story of Christmas (commonly known as A Christmas Carol ) is what Charles Dickens described as his little Christmas Book and was first published on December 19, 1843 with illustrations by John Leech. ... The past is the portion of the timeline that has already occurred; it is the opposite of the future. ... The present is the time that is perceived directly, not as a recollection or a speculation. ... Look up Future in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... The Fox Broadcasting Company is a television network in the United States. ... Doctor Who is a television movie based on the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. ... Colin Baker (born London, June 8, 1943) is an English actor who is best known for playing the sixth incarnation of the Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series Doctor Who, from 1984 to 1986. ... This is a list of monsters and aliens from the television series Doctor Who. ... Dominic Glynn is a British composer, known for his new arrangement of the Doctor Who theme music which served as the series theme for Season 23 of the programme. ...

Outside references

  • Many fans have drawn an analogy between the Doctor's trial and the programme itself which, at the time, was under threat of cancellation (although the BBC had on many occasions denied that this was the case).
  • A frequently used in-joke throughout this serial is that, during the showing of the evidence, the Doctor interjects with protests about the overly violent nature of the scenes. The previous season, Season 22, was frequently criticised for being too violent.

The British Broadcasting Corporation, usually known as the BBC, is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world in terms of audience numbers, employing 26,000 staff in the United Kingdom alone and with a budget of more than GB£4 billion (US$7. ... An in joke is a joke whose humour is clear only to those people who are in a group that has some prior knowledge (not known by the whole population) that makes the joke humorous. ...

Broadcast and VHS release

  • This entire series was released on VHS as part of a three tape set in October of 1993.

Bottom view of VHS cassette with magnetic tape exposed Top view of VHS cassette with front casing removed The Video Home System, better known by its abbreviation VHS is a recording and playing standard for analog video cassette recorders (VCRs), developed by Victor Company of Japan, Limited (JVC) and launched...

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b Howe, David J (1998). Doctor Who: The Television Companion, 1st ed., London: BBC Books, pp. 485–487. ISBN 0-563-40588-0. 

David J. Howe is a British novelist, writer, journalist, publisher, and media historian. ... BBC Books is the book publishing division of BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation. ...

External links

Outpost Gallifrey is a fan website for the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. ...

Reviews

 v • d • e Gallifrey television stories
Second Doctor: The War Games
Third Doctor: The Three Doctors
Fourth Doctor: The Deadly Assassin • The Invasion of Time
Fifth Doctor: Arc of Infinity • The Five Doctors
Sixth Doctor: The Trial of a Time Lord: The Mysterious Planet • Mindwarp • Terror of the Vervoids • The Ultimate Foe
See also: Time Lord • Eye of Harmony • Gallifrey (audio series)

  Results from FactBites:
 
Time Lord - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (4575 words)
The unauthorised extraction of a Time Lord's bio-data is tantamount to treason (Arc of Infinity).
Time Lord society is full of pomp and ceremony, with artefacts given weighty names like the Hand of Omega, the Eye of Harmony or the Key of Rassilon.
One exception to the Time Lords' defensive weaponry is the demat gun (or dematerialisation gun), a weapon of mass destruction that removes its target from spacetime altogether (The Invasion of Time).
The Trial of a Time Lord - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (622 words)
The Trial of a Time Lord is the name used on screen for all fourteen episodes comprising the 23rd season (1986) of the original Doctor Who series.
Using the evidence presented from the Matrix, which collects data from the various time zones in which a TARDIS lands and records it, three segments of evidence are shown to prove the Doctor's guilt or otherwise: one from his past, one from his (near) present and one from his own future.
Many fans have attempted to draw an analogy between the Doctor's trial and the programme itself which, at the time, was under threat of cancellation (although the BBC has on many occasions denied that this was the case).
  More results at FactBites »


 

COMMENTARY     


Share your thoughts, questions and commentary here
Your name
Your comments
Please enter the 5-letter protection code

Want to know more?
Search encyclopedia, statistics and forums:
 


Lesson Plans | Student Area | Student FAQ | Reviews | Press Releases |  Feeds | Contact
The Wikipedia article included on this page is licensed under the GFDL.
Images may be subject to relevant owners' copyright.
All other elements are (c) copyright NationMaster.com 2003-5. All Rights Reserved.
Usage implies agreement with terms.