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During the long history of the British
science-fiction television Science fiction first appeared in television programming in the late 1930s, during what is called the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary ...
series ''
Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...
'', a number of stories were proposed but never fully produced. Below is a list of unmade serials submitted by recognized professionals. Although the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
intended to produce the serials, they were not made. Many have become subjects of features in ''
Doctor Who Magazine ''Doctor Who Magazine'' (abbreviated as ''DWM'') is a magazine devoted to the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Launched in 1979 as ''Doctor Who Weekly'', the magazine became a monthly publication the following year. In ...
'' or other
periodicals Periodical literature (singularly called a periodical publication or simply a periodical) consists of Publication, published works that appear in new releases on a regular schedule (''issues'' or ''numbers'', often numerically divided into annu ...
and books devoted to the television show. The unmade serials existed during the tenure of each of the previous thirteen
incarnations Incarnation literally means ''embodied in flesh'' or ''taking on flesh''. It is the conception and the embodiment of a deity or spirit in some earthly form or an anthropomorphic form of a god. It is used to mean a god, deity, or Divine Being i ...
of
the Doctor The Doctor, sometimes known as Doctor Who, is the protagonist of the long-running BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. An extraterrestrial Time Lord, the Doctor travels the universe in a time travelling spaceship called th ...
. Reasons include
strike action Strike action, also called labor strike, labour strike in British English, or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to Working class, work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Str ...
(which caused the partially-filmed ''Shada'' to be abandoned), actors leaving roles (''The Final Game'', cancelled after
Roger Delgado Roger Caesar Marius Bernard de Delgado Torres Castillo Roberto (1 March 1918 â€“ 18 June 1973) was an English actor. He played many roles on television, radio and in films, and had "a long history of playing minor villains" before becoming ...
's death), and the series' going on hiatus twice—in 1985 and 1989. The plots of the unmade serials varied. The theme of a
civilization A civilization (also spelled civilisation in British English) is any complex society characterized by the development of state (polity), the state, social stratification, urban area, urbanization, and symbolic systems of communication beyon ...
in which women are dominant was proposed twice, for ''The Hidden Planet'' and ''The Prison in Space''. In some cases, elements of an unmade series were adapted or moved from one project to another. ''Song of the Space Whale'' was intended to be the introduction of
Vislor Turlough Vislor Turlough is a fictional character played by Mark Strickson in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was a companion of the Fifth Doctor, being a regular in the programme from 1983 to 1984. Turloug ...
until it was repeatedly postponed, making ''
Mawdryn Undead ''Mawdryn Undead'' is the third serial of the 20th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was originally broadcast in four twice weekly parts on BBC1 from 1 to 9 February 1983. The serial is set in an English ...
'' Turlough's first appearance. Some unused stories have been adapted for other media. '' Shada'' was animated, and several unmade serials were compiled into an audio series released by Big Finish entitled ''
The Lost Stories ''The Lost Stories'' is the eleventh and penultimate book in the series '' Ranger's Apprentice'' by Australian author John Flanagan. It is a collection of "lost" tales that fill in the gaps between novels. The book was released in Australia ...
''.


First Doctor


Submitted for season 1


The Giants

The series' first serial, '' The Giants'', was to be written by
C. E. Webber Cecil Edwin Webber (sometimes known by the nickname "Bunny"; 9 April 1909 – 26 June 1969) was a British television writer and playwright. He is best remembered as one of the co-creators of the science-fiction series ''Doctor Who'' while worki ...
. In the first episode, "Nothing at the End of the Lane", the four main characters (then the Doctor, Cliff, Lola, and Biddy) are shrunk to a miniature size and attacked by giant animals. The serial established the Doctor's original backstory; the
Time Lord The Time Lords are a fictional ancient race of extraterrestrial life, extraterrestrial people in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Time Lords are so named for their command of time travel technology and their Nonli ...
escaped from "his own galaxy" in the year 5733, seeking a perfect society in the past. He was pursued by agents from his own time who sought to prevent him from stopping their society from originating. By May 1963, a storyline for all four parts had been established and the first two episodes scripted. The story was rejected on 10 June 1963 as too thin on
characterisation Characterization or characterisation is the representation of characters (persons, creatures, or other beings) in narrative and dramatic works. The term character development is sometimes used as a synonym. This representation may include dire ...
, and the giant monsters were considered clichéd and too expensive to produce. Some of the initial opening script was retained for ''
An Unearthly Child ''An Unearthly Child'' (sometimes referred to as ''100,000 BC'') is the first serial of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was first broadcast on BBC One, BBC TV in four weekly parts from 23 November to 14 Decem ...
'' when Anthony Coburn was commissioned to write a replacement on 14 June 1963, with details about the Doctor's home removed. Around early September 1963, the idea was given to Robert Gould to develop. Known as the "minuscule" storyline, it was expected to be the season's fourth serial. The story was dropped from this slot in January 1964, and Gould abandoned work on it altogether a month later. In March 1964, the story idea was offered to writer
Louis Marks Louis Frank Marks (23 March 1928 – 17 September 2010) was an English screenwriter and producer, mainly for BBC Television. His career began in the late 1950s and continued into the next century. Early life Marks was born in Golders Green in ...
and eventually became ''
Planet of Giants ''Planet of Giants'' is the first serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Louis Marks and directed by Mervyn Pinfield and Douglas Camfield, the serial was first broadcast on BBC ...
''.


The Masters of Luxor

''The Masters of Luxor'', originally entitled ''The Robots'', was a six-part story submitted by Anthony Coburn while he was part of the BBC Script Department. It was considered for the second serial of Season 1, in which the Doctor faces a
self-aware In philosophy, self-awareness is the awareness and reflection of one's own personality or individuality, including traits, feelings, and behaviors. It is not to be confused with consciousness in the sense of qualia. While consciousness is b ...
robot A robot is a machine—especially one Computer program, programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions Automation, automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the robot control, co ...
which is trying to gain a
soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...
. The story was rejected by the production team in mid-September 1963 in favour of
Terry Nation Terence Joseph Nation (8 August 19309 March 1997) was a Welsh screenwriter and novelist. Especially known for his work in British television science fiction, he created the Daleks and Davros for ''Doctor Who'', as well as the series '' Surviv ...
's first Dalek serial, but
Titan Books Titan Publishing Group is the publishing division of the British entertainment company Titan Entertainment, which was established as Titan Books in 1981. The books division has two main areas of publishing: film and television tie-ins and cine ...
published the unused scripts in August 1992. Edited by John McElroy, the text of Coburn's script was amended to fit accepted conventions – for example, consistent use of the name "Susan" rather than the "Suzanne" and "Sue" used by Coburn. It was
adapted In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the p ...
by
Nigel Robinson Nigel Robinson is an English author, known for such works as the ''First Contact'' series. Nigel was born in Preston, Lancashire and attended St Thomas More school. Robinson's first published book was ''The Tolkien Quiz Book'' in 1981, co-writte ...
for Big Finish's ''The Lost Stories'' in August 2012.


The Hidden Planet

Malcolm Hulke Malcolm Ainsworth Hulke (21 November 1924 – 6 July 1979) was a British television writer and author of the industry "bible" ''Writing for Television in the 70s''. He is remembered chiefly for his work on the science fiction series ''Doctor Wh ...
's ''The Hidden Planet'', commissioned in December 1963, was to be the fourth or fifth serial of Series 1 after the insertion of ''
The Edge of Destruction ''The Edge of Destruction'' (also referred to as ''Inside the Spaceship'') is the third serial of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was written by David Whitaker, and first broadcast on BBC TV in two weekly parts ...
'' into the production block. It was further postponed in January 1964 when it was realised that substantial rewriting would be needed. The story would have concerned a planet in an orbit opposite Earth's, with a society parallel but opposite to it; women were the dominant sex, and all clovers had four leaves. The original script was sent back for rewrites which, due to a pay dispute, were not made until after Susan had left the series; this necessitated further rewriting. A third submission was rejected because Ian and Barbara were due to leave, and the script was dropped. The story was the subject of a 1983 April Fool's Day prank, when issue 76 of ''Doctor Who Magazine'' reported that one episode had been filmed, rediscovered, and would be integrated into ''The Phoenix Rises'': a twentieth-anniversary special co-starring the
Fifth Doctor The Fifth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Peter Davison. Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord ...
.


Britain 408 AD

Also written by Hulke,. the story involved the departure of the Romans from Britain around the beginning of the fifth century amid clashes with the Celts and the Saxons; the time travellers brought the indigenous savages back to the safety of the TARDIS. ''Britain 408 AD'' was first submitted on 2 September 1963. Story editor David Whitaker asked Hulke to revise his original storyline because he felt that the plot, with its many opposing factions, was too complicated and its conclusion echoed that of ''An Unearthly Child''. It was hoped that an amended version of ''Britain 408 AD'' directed by Christopher Barry would fill the sixth slot of Season One (Serial F), but on 23 September it was decided that the production block did not need another historical story and Hulke's serial was abandoned. The spot in the schedule was ultimately occupied by '' The Aztecs'', and Hulke began work on ''The Hidden Planet''. After Whitaker's departure, Hulke resubmitted ''Britain 408 AD''. It was rejected on 2 April 1965 by Dennis Spooner, Whitaker's successor, because Romans had already appeared in his own story.Doctor Who – The Handbook: The First Doctor; Doctor Who Magazine Special Edition #7


The Red Fort

Terry Nation had intended his second seven-part serial, commissioned on 24 September 1963, to be set during the
British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...
in India (probably as the eighth serial). The story was abandoned; the
Daleks The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrials in fiction, extraterrestrial race of extremely xenophobic mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by writer Terry Na ...
were a success, and demand for further science-fiction adventures grew..


Farewell Great Macedon

''Farewell Great Macedon'' (also known as ''Alexander the Great'' in the script's early stages) was a six-part story for Season 1 written by
Moris Farhi Musa Moris Farhi Order of the British Empire, MBE, Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, FRSL (5 July 1935 – 5 March 2019) was a Turkish Jews, Turkish author who was vice-president of International PEN from 2001 until his death in 2019. ...
. The Doctor and his companions are framed for murder as part of a conspiracy to kill
Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon (; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), most commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip ...
and must endure several trials, including walking on hot coals, to gain the trust of their bodyguard
Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; , ; ; – 160s/170s AD) was a Greco-Roman mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were important to later Byzantine science, Byzant ...
.. The script was published by ''Nothing at the End of the Lane'' in October 2009.


The Fragile Yellow Arc of Fragrance

''The Fragile Yellow Arc of Fragrance'', the first script sent by Moris Farhi, was one episode long and was never seriously pitched for production. It was included in the 2009 publication of Farhi's script for ''Farewell Great Macedon''.


The Living World

''The Living World'' was written by
Alan Wakeman Alan Wakeman (born 13 October 1947) is an English saxophonist who was a member of Soft Machine during 1976, appearing on the album '' Softs''. He is a cousin of the keyboard player Rick Wakeman. Career Wakeman started on the clarinet at age 14 ...
, one of several writers contacted by David Whitaker in mid-1963. The story, commissioned on 31 July 1963, involved a planet ruled by sentient rocks and trees who could control humans with an inaudible sound. A four-part breakdown of the story featured in the third volume of the magazine, ''Nothing at the End of the Lane'', with the episode titles "Airfish", "What Eats What", "The Living Planet" and "Just in Time". Susan is referred to as Suzanne, and Barbara is referred to as Miss Canning.


Untitled storyline (Gould)

An idea suggested by Robert Gould when he abandoned work on the "minuscule" storyline in February 1964 involved a planet where plants treated people the way people treat plants. It was rejected by Verity Lambert, who felt that it was too close to the book ''
The Day of the Triffids ''The Day of the Triffids'' is a 1951 post-apocalyptic novel by the English science fiction author John Wyndham. After most people in the world are blinded by an apparent meteor shower, an aggressive species of plant starts killing people. A ...
''.


Submitted for season 2


The Dark Planet

Written by
Brian Hayles Brian Leonard Hayles (7 March 1931 – 30 October 1978) was an English television and film writer, most notably for the BBC science fiction series '' Doctor Who''. Doctor Who Hayles wrote six stories for '' Doctor Who'' and is best known for ...
, the story was Hayles' first submission to the series. It focuses on the Doctor, Ian, Barbara, and Vicki landing the TARDIS on the planet Numir, whose sun is extinguished, and encountering surface-dwelling "light people" and subterranean "shadow people". The story was rejected in favour of
Bill Strutton William Harold Strutton (23 February 1918 – 23 November 2003) was an Australian screenwriter and novelist. He worked on television shows such as ''Ivanhoe'', '' The Saint'', '' The Avengers'', '' Riptide'' and ''Doctor Who''. Early life ...
's ''
The Web Planet ''The Web Planet'' is the fifth serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Bill Strutton and directed by Richard Martin, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in six weekly parts from ...
'' by story editor Dennis Spooner on 8 February 1965 because of its similarity to Malcolm Hulke's ''The Hidden Planet''.


The Slide

Written by
Victor Pemberton Victor Francis Pemberton (10 October 1931 – 13 August 2017) was a British writer and television producer. His scriptwriting work included BBC radio plays, and television scripts for the BBC and ITV, including ''Doctor Who'', '' The Slide'', ...
, the story focuses on a sentient form of mud which tries to take over the minds of British townsfolk. Script editor David Whitaker rejected it as derivative of the
Quatermass Professor Bernard Quatermass is a fictional scientist originally created by writer Nigel Kneale for BBC Television. An intelligent and highly moral British scientist, Quatermass is a pioneer of the British space programme, heading the British E ...
serials of the 1950s, and Pemberton later submitted it to BBC Radio after removing the Doctor Who elements from it. '' The Slide'' was commissioned as a seven-part serial which premiered on the
BBC Light Programme The BBC Light Programme was a national radio station which broadcast chiefly mainstream light entertainment and light music from 1945 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 2. It opened on 29 July 1945, taking over the ...
on 13 February 1966. This inspired Pemberton to adapt it as the ''Doctor Who'' story ''
Fury from the Deep ''Fury from the Deep'' is the Doctor Who missing episodes, completely missing sixth serial of the Doctor Who (season 5), fifth season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which originally aired in six weekly parts from 1 ...
'', which aired in 1968..


Submitted for season 3


The New Armada

Written by David Whitaker as he planned to leave as story editor. He submitted ''The New Armada'' in late February 1964 for season 2, but was rejected in the wake of ''
The Dalek Invasion of Earth ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'' is the second serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Terry Nation and directed by Richard Martin, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in six week ...
''.
A brief history of Doctor Who stories- The Lost Stories (The First Doctor)- Patrick Sullivan, Shannon
'
Whitaker resubmitted it for season 3 in late 1965, but it was rejected by story editor Gerry Davis on 17 January 1966. The six-part story was set in sixteenth-century Spain.


The Space Trap

Robert Holmes' first story submission for the series was submitted to story editor
Donald Tosh Donald Tosh (16 March 1935 – 3 December 2019) was a British screenwriter who contributed to ''Doctor Who'' in 1965. He was the last surviving script editor and writer from the William Hartnell era. Career Before working on ''Doctor Who'' Tosh ...
on 25 April 1965. The four-part story idea involved the Doctor and his three companions arriving on an uninhabited planet to discover a spacecraft controlled by robots while its human occupants are in suspended animation waiting for additional crew members to again operate the crashed ship. The Doctor and his companions are taken captive and trained by the robots as replacement crew members. Only three additional crew members are required, so the least-useful member of the Doctor's party will be killed by the human crew. The serial was rejected primarily due to the robots' similarity to the Mechanoids in the previous season's '' The Chase''. Holmes resubmitted the story idea to producer
Peter Bryant Peter Bryant (27 October 1923 â€“ 19 May 2006) was an English television producer, script editor and former actor. He acted in '' The Grove Family'' as a regular cast member and later became the producer of '' Doctor Who'' from 1967 to 19 ...
on 20 May 1968, which led to the commissioning of what became ''
The Krotons ''The Krotons'' is the fourth serial of the sixth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 28 December 1968 to 18 January 1969. In the serial, the time travel ...
''.


Untitled storyline (Lucarotti)

John Lucarotti's storyline about
Leif Eriksson Leif Erikson, also known as Leif the Lucky (), was a Norse explorer who is thought to have been the first European to set foot on continental America, approximately half a millennium before Christopher Columbus. According to the sagas of Ice ...
was turned down by Donald Tosh because Vikings had already appeared in ''
The Time Meddler ''The Time Meddler'' is the ninth and final serial of the second season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Dennis Spooner and directed by Douglas Camfield, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in four wee ...
''. Lucarotti used the plot in "Who Discovered America?", a 1992 short story for issue 184 of ''
Doctor Who Magazine ''Doctor Who Magazine'' (abbreviated as ''DWM'') is a magazine devoted to the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Launched in 1979 as ''Doctor Who Weekly'', the magazine became a monthly publication the following year. In ...
''.


Submitted for season 4


The Hounds of Time

The Brian Hayles storyline was submitted in mid-1966, around the time Hayles completed ''
The Smugglers ''The Smugglers'' is the completely missing first serial of the fourth season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 10 September to 1 October 1966. In this serial, ...
'', and may have required the Second Doctor. A mad scientist kidnaps humans from points in Earth's history. The scientist works for an alien warlord who wants to study humanity to determine the best time to invade.


The Nazis

Brian Hayles was commissioned to write a storyline for ''The Nazis'' on 8 March 1966.. Hayles was hired to write ''The Smugglers'' shortly afterwards, which he was told had a higher priority. ''The Nazis'' was abandoned on 15 June of that year because its events were considered too recent.


The Ocean Liner

Written by David Ellis,. the storyline was submitted as a spy thriller in January 1966 and was rejected by Gerry Davis in April of that year.


The People Who Couldn't Remember

Written by David Ellis and Malcolm Hulke, the story was submitted to the production office in April 1966. Script editor Gerry Davis rejected it on 15 June of that year because he wanted to avoid comic serials after the poorly-received '' The Gunfighters''.


Second Doctor


Submitted for season 4


The Ants

Written by Roger Dixon, the story was submitted on 16 January 1967. The TARDIS brings the Doctor and his companions to the Nevada desert, where they discover that they have been shrunk to one-tenth of an inch. They learn that local ants have become super-intelligent from atomic-bomb tests and plan to take over Earth.


The Big Store

Written by David Ellis and Malcolm Hulke, the story was submitted on 15 November 1966 about faceless aliens infiltrating department stores as display mannequins. Ellis and Hulke reused the plot in ''
The Faceless Ones ''The Faceless Ones'' is the Doctor Who missing episodes, mostly missing eighth serial of the Doctor Who (season 4), fourth season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts fro ...
''.


The Imps

Written by William Emms and planned as the fourth serial of Series 4, ''The Imps'' was a four-part story about a spaceship overrun by
imp IMP or imp may refer to: * Imp, a fantasy creature Arts and entertainment Music * IMP (band) a Japanese boy band Fictional characters * Imp (She-Ra), a character in ''She-Ra: Princess of Power'' * Imp a character in '' Artemis Fowl: The L ...
-like aliens and aggressive alien vegetation. The script was commissioned on 17 October 1966 and had to be rewritten to accommodate a new companion,
Jamie Jamie is a unisex name. Traditionally a masculine name, it can be diminutive form of James or, more rarely, other names and is of Scottish English origin. It is also given as a name in its own right. Since the mid-20th century it has been used a ...
. Due to Emms' illness, further rewrites were needed to explain the loss of Ben and Polly. Its place in the schedule was taken by '' The Underwater Menace'', and on 4 January 1967 the story was dropped.


The Mutant

Written by
Barry Letts Barry Leopold Letts (26 March 1925 – 9 October 2009) was an English actor, television director, writer and producer, best known for being the producer of ''Doctor Who'' from 1969 to 1974. Born in Leicester, he worked as an actor in theatre, ...
, the story outline (submitted around November 1966 to story editor Gerry Davis)''Doctor Who Magazine'' #230 page 26 involved a race of beings undergoing a butterfly-like cycle of mutations which included a
chrysalis A pupa (; : pupae) is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their life cycle, the stages the ...
stage.


The New Machines

Written by Roger Dixon, the story was submitted in early 1967. A race of people is wiped out by powerful robots which they created. The robots become so advanced that they create a new race of people, and fear that the new humans will dominate them. When the Doctor arrives on their planet, they interpret it as proof of their fears.


The Return of the Neanderthal

In this Roger Dixon storyline, the
TARDIS The TARDIS (; acronym for "Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space") is a fictional hybrid of a time machine and spacecraft that appears in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and its various spin-offs. While a TARDI ...
is dragged under the sands of Terunda and encounters people descended from
Neanderthal Neanderthals ( ; ''Homo neanderthalensis'' or sometimes ''H. sapiens neanderthalensis'') are an extinction, extinct group of archaic humans who inhabited Europe and Western and Central Asia during the Middle Pleistocene, Middle to Late Plei ...
s who want to return to Earth in 2016.


The Sleepwalkers

This six-part Roger Dixon story, submitted on 16 January 1967, involves the TARDIS crew's arrival on a far-future Earth where a community of youths depends on unseen Elders who live in the mountains.


Twin World

This Roger Dixon story was submitted in early 1967.


Untitled storyline (Letts)

This Barry Letts story, submitted around November 1966, is about a sinister organisation operating on Earth as an amusement park.


Submitted for season 5


The King's Bedtime Story

In this Roger Dixon story, submitted on 16 January 1967, the Doctor and his companions must perpetually enact a king's favourite story without changing it.


Operation Werewolf

Written by
Douglas Camfield Douglas Gaston Sydney Camfield (8 May 1931 – 27 January 1984) was a British television director, active from the 1960s to the 1980s. Early life Camfield studied at the York School of Art and aimed to work for The Walt Disney Company. He was ...
and Robert Kitts, this six-part storyline was submitted to the production office on 18 September 1967. Camfield and BBC colleague Kitts had developed the outline in 1965 due to Camfield's dismay with another sub-standard script, and it would probably have been directed by Camfield. The Doctor arrives in
Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...
just before the
D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...
landings, and the story includes a plan to stop the
Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
s from using a form of matter teleportation. Only a draft script for episode one was written. It went through several rewrites until 1967, when it was abandoned after producer Innes Lloyd left and the writers had other commitments. The serial was given individual episode titles, although this practice had ended with '' The Savages'' in 1966. Episode titles were "The Secret Army", "Chateau of Death", "Lair of the Werewolf", "Friend Or Foe", "Village of the Swastika", and "Crossfire". Big Finish adapted the storyline into an audio drama scheduled for release in July 2024.


The Queen of Time

The four-part adventure serial was written by Brian Hayles. The Doctor encounters the evil Hecuba, a relative of the Celestial Toymaker.


Submitted for season 6


The Aliens in the Blood

This Robert Holmes story, submitted on 22 October 1968, is set in the 22nd century and deals with an outbreak of mutants with ESP which disrupt a spacelane.


The Dreamspinner

This four-part Paul Wheeler story was commissioned as a scene breakdown on 23 February 1968.


The Harvesters

Written by William Emms, the serial was redrafted in early 1970 as ''The Vampire Planet'' and considered for the season-7 finale before it was dropped.


The Impersonators

Written by Malcolm Hulke, the six-part story was commissioned on 5 July 1968 and cancelled on 30 December of that year. Its production budget was allocated to ''
The War Games ''The War Games'' is the seventh and final serial of the sixth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which originally aired in ten weekly parts from 19 April to 21 June 1969. In the serial, an unnamed alien r ...
'' (which Hulke co-wrote with Terrance Dicks), allowing that story to be expanded to 10 episodes.


The Laird of McCrimmon

Written by Mervyn Haisman and
Henry Lincoln Henry Soskin (12 February 1930 – 23 February 2022), better known as Henry Lincoln, was a British author, television presenter, scriptwriter, and actor. He co-wrote three ''Doctor Who'' multi-part serials in the 1960s, and — starting in th ...
, the storyline was considered in early 1968. It would be set in Scotland in Jamie's ancestral home, Castle McCrimmon, where the Doctor's old foe (the
Great Intelligence The List of longest-running British television programmes, long-running BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' has an extensive Fictional universe, universe inhabited by a continuously expanding gallery of creatures and Extraterres ...
) plans to use Jamie's body. At the end of the story, Jamie would remain behind as the new laird.


The Lords of the Red Planet

Written by Brian Hayles, the story would have been about the origins of the Ice Warriors after their debut story. It was dropped .


The Prison in Space

Dick Sharples Dick Sharples (7 June 1927 – 19 October 2015) was a British TV scriptwriter of British sitcoms. He has also written novels, plays and drama series (for both television and radio). Life and career Dick Sharples was born in Manchester. He beg ...
' ''The Prison in Space'', originally ''The Amazons'', had six other working titles during its development. Sharples returned to the idea of a female-dominated planet.. last attempted with ''The Hidden Planet''. The four-part story, commissioned on 4 June 1968, would feature Jamie in drag and
deprogramming Deprogramming is a controversial tactic that seeks to dissuade someone from "strongly held convictions" such as religious beliefs. Deprogramming purports to assist a person who holds a particular belief system—of a kind considered harmful by thos ...
Zoe by spanking her. The serial was rewritten to accommodate
Frazer Hines Frazer Simpson Frederick Hines (born 22 September 1944) is an English actor. He began his career as a child actor and appeared in ''A King in New York'' (1957) with Charlie Chaplin. He later played Jamie McCrimmon in ''Doctor Who'', appearing i ...
' desire to leave by introducing a new companion named Nik, and again when he decided to stay. Scripts for the first two episodes were delivered on 27 August 1968. The production team was unhappy with the serial, and when Sharples refused further rewrites it was replaced by ''
The Krotons ''The Krotons'' is the fourth serial of the sixth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 28 December 1968 to 18 January 1969. In the serial, the time travel ...
''.


The Rosemariners

Written by
Donald Tosh Donald Tosh (16 March 1935 – 3 December 2019) was a British screenwriter who contributed to ''Doctor Who'' in 1965. He was the last surviving script editor and writer from the William Hartnell era. Career Before working on ''Doctor Who'' Tosh ...
as ''The Rosacrutians''. after Tosh contacted the production staff in early 1968 to gauge their interest,. the story originally featured Jamie and
Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...
. By the time Tosh delivered the first materials for the story,
Patrick Troughton Patrick George Troughton (; 25 March 1920 – 28 March 1987) was an English actor. He became best known for his roles in television, most notably starring as the Second Doctor, second incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the lo ...
had decided to leave the series. When it was turned down by the production team, Tosh had finished a script for the first episode and notes for the next three episodes. He completed a full storyline for ''Doctor Who Magazine'' ''(DWM)'' in 1994. Set on an Earth space station, it deals with a conflict between the space-station staff and the Rosemariners (a group who plan to hold the staff hostage in return for Earth supplying them with sophisticated weapons).


Third Doctor


Submitted for season 7


The Circles of Power

Written by Brian Hayles. The story focuses on a faulty communications satellite which causes the release of robotic "sensorspheres", inducing amnesia in their victims.


The Mists of Madness

Written by Brian Wright,. the Doctor discovers a community of artificially-created humans. The storyline was submitted on 9 May 1969, and was commissioned by script editor Terrance Dicks. It was scheduled to be the season-7 finale, but Wright accepted an academic writing post in Bristol and was unable to write it.


The Shadow People

Written by Charlotte and Dennis Plimmer, the seven-part story was submitted to the production office on 10 November 1969. It was considered for the season-7 finale after ''The Mists of Madness'' was cancelled, but a pay dispute with the writers led to its replacement by '' Inferno''.


Submitted for season 9


The Brain-Dead

Written by Brian Hayles,. the story was submitted to the production office in the spring of 1971. An Ice Warrior plans to invade the Earth with a Z beam which reduces the temperature of what it strikes to
absolute zero Absolute zero is the lowest possible temperature, a state at which a system's internal energy, and in ideal cases entropy, reach their minimum values. The absolute zero is defined as 0 K on the Kelvin scale, equivalent to −273.15 Â° ...
, and turns humans into
zombie A zombie (Haitian French: ; ; Kikongo: ''zumbi'') is a mythological undead corporeal revenant created through the reanimation of a corpse. In modern popular culture, zombies appear in horror genre works. The term comes from Haitian folkl ...
-like slaves. Script editor Dicks rejected the storyline, but the inclusion of the Ice Warriors inspired the development of ''
The Curse of Peladon ''The Curse of Peladon'' is the second serial of the ninth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 29 January to 19 February 1972. The serial is set on ...
''.


The Daleks in London

''The Daleks in London'', commissioned on 25 May 1971 for Robert Sloman, was to be the season-9 finale in 1972 and re-introduced the
Dalek The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrial race of extremely xenophobic mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by writer Terry Nation and first appeared in th ...
s after a five-year absence. It would have been similar to ''
The Dalek Invasion of Earth ''The Dalek Invasion of Earth'' is the second serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Terry Nation and directed by Richard Martin, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in six week ...
'', although it was set in contemporary
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
..


The Mega

Written by
Bill Strutton William Harold Strutton (23 February 1918 – 23 November 2003) was an Australian screenwriter and novelist. He worked on television shows such as ''Ivanhoe'', '' The Saint'', '' The Avengers'', '' Riptide'' and ''Doctor Who''. Early life ...
, this four-part story was submitted to the production office on 25 September 1970 when Strutton regained interest in writing for the series after scripting ''
The Web Planet ''The Web Planet'' is the fifth serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Bill Strutton and directed by Richard Martin, the serial was broadcast on BBC1 in six weekly parts from ...
'' five years earlier. It was ultimately discarded, and was later adapted by Simon Guerrier as a six-part story for Big Finish's ''The Lost Stories'' in December 2013.


The Shape of Terror

Written by Brian Hayles, the story was submitted in spring 1971. An alien shape-shifting entity attacks a space station and attempts to merge with the Doctor, which unwittingly causes its own destruction. Hayles recycled elements, particularly its
Agatha Christie Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 â€“ 12 January 1976) was an English people, English author known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving ...
mystery style, in his script for ''
The Curse of Peladon ''The Curse of Peladon'' is the second serial of the ninth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 29 January to 19 February 1972. The serial is set on ...
''.


Submitted for season 10


Multiface

Written by Godfrey Harrison,. the four-part story was commissioned by Letts on 19 July 1971 and dropped on 25 February 1972.


Submitted for season 11


The Automata

Written by Robert Holmes,. the four-part story was commissioned on 16 January 1973 and was replaced by ''
The Time Warrior ''The Time Warrior'' is the first serial of the Doctor Who season 11, 11th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 15 December 1973 to 5 January 1974. The ...
''.


The Final Game

The Third Doctor's final story was to be ''The Final Game'' by Robert Sloman and Barry Letts as uncredited co-writer, which was commissioned on 15 February 1973. The story was to end with the revelation that the Master and the Doctor were brothers, or opposing aspects of the same being (the ego and the id), and the Master dying in a manner suggesting that he sacrificed himself to save the Doctor's life.
Roger Delgado Roger Caesar Marius Bernard de Delgado Torres Castillo Roberto (1 March 1918 â€“ 18 June 1973) was an English actor. He played many roles on television, radio and in films, and had "a long history of playing minor villains" before becoming ...
(who played the Master) was killed in a car accident in Turkey on 18 June 1973, and the story was scrapped and replaced by ''
Planet of the Spiders ''Planet of the Spiders'' is the fifth and final serial of the 11th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts on BBC1 from 4 May to 8 June 1974. It was Jon Pertwee's fina ...
''. Elements of its plot were used for the
Tenth Doctor The Tenth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is played by David Tennant in three series and nine specials. The character has also appeared in other ''Docto ...
special, " The End of Time".


Fourth Doctor


Submitted for season 12


Space Station

Written by Christopher Langley, this storyline for a four-part story was submitted to the production office on 30 December 1973. The Doctor and Sarah arrive at a space station in the distant future, when humanity no longer lives on Earth. Commissioned for scripts on 24 January 1974 and planned as the second story of Season 12, it was dropped on 17 June 1974 and replaced by Lucarotti's ''The Ark in Space''.


The Ark in Space (Lucarotti)

Written by
John Lucarotti John Vincent Lucarotti (20 May 1926 – 20 November 1994) was a British-Canadian screenwriter and author who worked on '' The Avengers'', '' The Troubleshooters'' and ''Doctor Who'' in the 1960s. Early life Born into an Army family in Ald ...
, this script came about after ''
Space Station A space station (or orbital station) is a spacecraft which remains orbital spaceflight, in orbit and human spaceflight, hosts humans for extended periods of time. It therefore is an artificial satellite featuring space habitat (facility), habitat ...
'' was rejected;. Lucarotti was suggested by
Terrance Dicks Terrance William Dicks (14 April 1935 – 29 August 2019) was an English author and television screenwriter, script editor and producer. In television, he had a long association with the BBC science-fiction series ''Doctor Who'', working as a ...
as a replacement writer on the strength of his ''
Moonbase 3 ''Moonbase 3'' is a British science fiction television series that ran for six episodes in 1973. It was a co-production between the BBC, 20th Century Fox and the American ABC network. Created by ''Doctor Who'' producer Barry Letts and scrip ...
'' script. The story would use the same setting as ''Space Station''. to save money by sharing sets with ''
Revenge of the Cybermen ''Revenge of the Cybermen'' is the fifth and final serial of the 12th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 19 April to 10 May 1975. It was the first ...
''. Commissioned in June 1974, Lucarotti devised the ark: a space station housing a plot of countryside the size of
Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
. The six-part story was about the ark's invasion by the Delc, a spore-like fungus with separate heads and bodies. The final episode would have the Doctor defeating the Delc leader by hitting it into space with a golf club. Lucarotti planned to give each episode a frivolous title, citing ''Puffball'' as the title of an early episode and ''Golfball'' as the final episode's title. When the draft scripts arrived from his home on
Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...
, Holmes and Hinchcliffe felt that they were too complicated to produce on the programme's budget. It was replaced by a different story with the same title by Robert Holmes, which shared the setting with the previous version.


Untitled Dalek storyline

Written by Terry Nation. It was rejected as too similar to his previous Dalek stories and replaced with ''
Genesis of the Daleks ''Genesis of the Daleks'' is the fourth serial of the twelfth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was written by Terry Nation and directed by David Maloney, and originally broadcast in six weekly parts fr ...
''. Big Finish Productions released an audio adaptation of the script from the first episode of this story with additional material for the rest of the story adapted into an audiobook by Simon Guerrier in May 2023 as ''Doctor Who: Daleks! Genesis of Terror''.


Submitted for season 13


The Angarath

Eric Pringle Eric Pringle (5 April 1935, Morpeth, Northumberland, England – 13 April 2017, Ledbury, Herefordshire) was a British writer for radio and television. He also wrote three novels for children. He was one of the writers of the 1972 television ...
was commissioned on 11 August 1975 by producer
Philip Hinchcliffe Philip Michael Hinchcliffe (born 1 October 1944) is a retired English television producer, screenwriter and script editor. After graduating from Cambridge University, he began his career as a writer and script editor at Associated Television be ...
to write the first two episodes of the four-part story.. Pringle submitted the final two episodes without commission on 10 March 1976,. but the story was cancelled on 23 June of that year.


The Eyes of Nemesis

Written by Brian Hayles, this story was submitted to the production office on 15 May 1975. It would involve the Doctor and Sarah in a chase between the hunter Torr and his quarry, Lakdem. Near the end, it is revealed that Torr works for the Celestial Toymaker.


The Haunting

Written by Terrance Dicks,. this six-part story. was submitted at the start of November 1974 and would have dealt with
vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...
s. The storyline was commissioned on 11 December 1974 and was abandoned on 13 May 1975.


The Menday Fault

Written by David Wiltshire, this was an unsolicited script. for a six-part story. The story revolves around a
nuclear submarine A nuclear submarine is a submarine powered by a nuclear reactor, but not necessarily nuclear-armed. Nuclear submarines have considerable performance advantages over "conventional" (typically diesel-electric) submarines. Nuclear propulsion ...
diving into the Fault of Menday and discovering a subterranean world.. The world's sun is dying and the underground dwellers, Suranians led by Zorr, are planning to invade the surface world. Wiltshire was never commissioned to develop the storyline further.


The Nightmare Planet

Written by Dennis Spooner, the story centers around a planet where drugs in the food and water are used to control the populace. Punishment would be meted out by temporary withdrawal from the drugs, which would cause people to see monsters around them. The storyline for the four-part story was commissioned on 31 January 1975.


The Prisoner of Time

Written by Barry Letts, the storyline for this four-part story was commissioned on 21 January 1975. It was based on an audition piece for the role of
Sarah Jane Smith Sarah Jane Smith is a fictional character played by Elisabeth Sladen in the long-running BBC Television science fiction series ''Doctor Who'' and two of its spin-offs. Sarah Jane is a dogged investigative journalist who first encounters alien ...
that Letts had written in 1973, and was initially known as ''Time Lord Story''.


Pyramids of Mars (Greifer)

Written by Lewis Greifer, this story was commissioned in July 1974 and would have involved museum keepers chased out of the
British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...
by a mummy.. A group was scaring people away to gain access to a sarcophagus containing
wild rice Wild rice, also called manoomin, mnomen, psíŋ, Canada rice, Indian rice, or water oats, is any of four species of grasses that form the genus ''Zizania'', and the grain that can be harvested from them. The grain was historically and is sti ...
from thousands of years ago. to seed
Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun. It is also known as the "Red Planet", because of its orange-red appearance. Mars is a desert-like rocky planet with a tenuous carbon dioxide () atmosphere. At the average surface level the atmosph ...
and make a fortune. It was replaced by Robert Holmes' ''
Pyramids of Mars ''Pyramids of Mars'' is the third serial of the 13th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Written by Robert Holmes and Lewis Greifer under the pseudonym of "Stephen Harris" and directed by Paddy Russell, t ...
'' (under the pen name Stephen Harris) when Griefer became ill; the scripts were late, and were not what the production team wanted.


Return to Sukannan

Written by Terry Nation, the story was commissioned for a storyline on 13 February 1975 and was replaced by ''
The Android Invasion ''The Android Invasion'' is the fourth serial of the thirteenth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 22 November to 13 December 1975. The serial is ...
''.


The Silent Scream

This unsolicited Chris Boucher story was sent to the production office in early 1975. Although only fifteen minutes of material was considered unsuitable for ''Doctor Who'', script editor Robert Holmes brought in Boucher to discuss ideas with himself and producer Philip Hinchcliffe. This led to unmade scripts for ''The Dreamers of Phados'' and ''The Mentor Conspiracy'' before being commissioned as ''The Face of Evil''.


Submitted for season 14


The Gaslight Murders

Written by Basil Dawson, this four-part story involves murders in
Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. Dawson, a veteran screenwriter, was approached by script editor Robert Holmes to develop a story that would introduce a new companion to replace Sarah Jane Smith after her departure. The new character would be a Cockney girl whom the Doctor would take under his wing and educate like Eliza Doolittle in George Bernard Shaw's ''Pygmalion''. The story, planned as the fourth story of Season 14, was abandoned and replaced by ''
The Face of Evil ''The Face of Evil'' is the fourth serial of the 14th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 1 to 22 January 1977. This serial marked the debut of Louis ...
''.


The Foe from the Future

Robert Banks Stewart Robert Banks Stewart (16 July 1931 – 14 January 2016) was a Scottish screenwriter, television producer and former journalist. He was sometimes credited as Robert Stewart early in his career. Banks Stewart contributed extensively to drama for th ...
's six-part story. was commissioned in May 1976. It was replaced by ''
The Talons of Weng-Chiang ''The Talons of Weng-Chiang'' is the sixth and final serial of the 14th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts on BBC1 from 26 February to 2 April 1977. In the serial ...
'',. which used the same basic premise of a villain traveling back in time.. Stewart became the script editor of ''
Armchair Thriller ''Armchair Thriller'' is a British television drama series broadcast on ITV in 1978 and 1980 in two seasons. Taking the form of a sequence of unconnected serials, scripts for ''Armchair Thriller'' were adaptations of published novels and storie ...
'' and was unable to deliver the scripts, forcing Robert Holmes to rework the story.


The Dreamers of Phados

Written by Chris Boucher. and submitted after ''The Silent Scream'' was rejected in early 1975, it was based on a premise Hinchcliffe and Holmes wanted to use in which people and machines are controlled by a computer that malfunctions..


The Lost Legion

Douglas Camfield's four-part story. was commissioned on 22 January 1976, and involved the Doctor and Sarah arriving in
North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...
at an isolated French Legion outpost. The outpost has become the battleground for two alien races, the Skarkel and the Khoorians. The story was planned to write out the character of Sarah, who would be killed by one of the aliens. The first script was submitted on 9 February 1976, and was removed from the series schedule that April. Camfield continued to work on the scripts, delivering the final part on 24 September 1976.


The Mentor Conspiracy

Written by Chris Boucher, this story was (like ''The Dreamer of Phados'') based on an idea brief from Holmes and Hinchcliffe. Set on a spaceship that has been home to several generations of a civilization, the script was declined on 30 October 1975..


Submitted for season 15


Killers of the Dark

Script editor
Anthony Read Anthony Read (21 April 1935 – 21 November 2015) was an English television producer, screenwriter, script editor and author. He was principally active in British television from the 1960s to the mid-1980s, which included a period as a script ...
approached David Weir, with whom he had worked.. Weir's six-part script, planned as the season-15 finale, was commissioned on 18 July 1977. Weir's script had elements of
Asian culture The culture of Asia encompasses the collective and diverse customs and traditions of art, architecture, music, literature, lifestyle, philosophy, food, politics and religion that have been practiced and maintained by the numerous ethnic g ...
, and included a race of cat people with links to Gallifrey; scenes included a gladiatorial duel in a stadium filled with cat people. Read and director Gerald Blake determined that the story would be impossible to shoot on ''Doctor Who'' budget, and the story was abandoned in mid-August 1977.. With only two weeks before filming, Read and Williams quickly co-wrote ''
The Invasion of Time ''The Invasion of Time'' is the sixth and final serial of the Doctor Who (season 15), 15th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts on BBC One, BBC1 from 4 February to 11 ...
''.


The Divided

This four-part Moris Farhi story. was commissioned by producer Graham Williams on 8 November 1977. The lost script was not produced, and Farhi no longer remembers what it was about; whether it was considered for season 15 or season 16 is unknown.


The Krikkitmen

Written by Douglas Adams, this was one of several ideas Adams proposed to the production office around 1976; he submitted ''
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'' is a Science fiction comedy, comedy science fiction franchise created by Douglas Adams. Originally a The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (radio series), radio sitcom broadcast over two series on BBC ...
'' scripts to BBC Radio and ''Doctor Who'', and was hired by both. ''The Krikkitmen'' is believed to be the story on which he had spent the most time working before it was rejected by script editor Robert Holmes, who encouraged Adams to work on ''The Hitchhiker's Guide'' and continue submitting material for ''Doctor Who'' season 16; this led to his commission for '' The Pirate Planet''. Adams revised ''The Krikkitmen'' for Paramount Pictures in 1980 as a ''Doctor Who'' feature film, although nothing came of the project.. He included many ideas from ''The Krikkitmen'' in his novel, ''
Life, the Universe and Everything ''Life, the Universe and Everything'' (1982, ) is the third book in the six-volume '' Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'' science fiction "trilogy of six books" by British writer Douglas Adams. The title refers to the Answer to Life, the Unive ...
'', the second sequel of ''
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'' is a Science fiction comedy, comedy science fiction franchise created by Douglas Adams. Originally a The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (radio series), radio sitcom broadcast over two series on BBC ...
''.


Submitted for season 16


Shield of Zareg

Written by Ted Lewis. and also known as ''The Doppelgängers'',. the search for the fourth segment of the Key to Time takes the Doctor and Romana to
Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...
, where they meet
Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary noble outlaw, heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature, theatre, and cinema. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions o ...
and discover that he is actually a villain.. The scripts for the first two episodes of the season's four-part fourth serial were delivered to the production office on 28 April 1978. Although a third script arrived on 12 May 1978, Lewis was inebriated at a meeting with Graham Williams and
Anthony Read Anthony Read (21 April 1935 – 21 November 2015) was an English television producer, screenwriter, script editor and author. He was principally active in British television from the 1960s to the mid-1980s, which included a period as a script ...
and the unsuitability of the submitted material led to its replacement by David Fisher's ''
The Androids of Tara ''The Androids of Tara'' is the fourth serial of the 16th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 25 November to 16 December 1978. The serial is set on t ...
'' (in the same swashbuckling genre)..


Untitled storyline (Boucher)

Written by Chris Boucher, this idea was submitted shortly after Boucher completed ''
Image of the Fendahl ''Image of the Fendahl'' is the third serial of the 15th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 29 October to 19 November 1977. The serial was Chris Bo ...
''. The story involved a remote Earth outpost under attack.


Untitled storyline (Adams)

Proposed by Douglas Adams, the Time Lords mine a planet and use a machine that would sap the aggression from the natives to make them peaceful. One Time Lord would become trapped in the statue and absorb the aggression, driving him insane. He planned to make the machine dematerialise, re-form around Gallifrey and hollow out the planet. Elements of this story were re-used by Adams in his script, '' The Pirate Planet''.


Untitled storyline (Baker and Martin)

Proposed by Bob Baker and Dave Martin, it concerned two planets (Atrios and Zeos) at war over a catastrophic shift in their orbits. The war was encouraged by a mysterious force, and the Doctor was forced to fashion a Key to Time to temporarily freeze both planets' armies. The Shadow (the mysterious force provoking the war) was planning to use the Key to Time to pit the universe at war against everyone. The Doctor thwarted the Shadow's plan by unfreezing both planets' armies and giving each the co-ordinates of the Shadow's planet, which was between both planets. Elements of this story were recycled in ''
The Armageddon Factor ''The Armageddon Factor'' is the sixth and final serial of the The Key to Time, 16th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts on BBC One, BBC1 from 20 January to 24 Febr ...
''.


Submitted for season 17


Shada

''Shada'' was a six-part serial written by Douglas Adams that was scheduled to conclude Season 17 and air from 19 January to 23 February 1980.. Production was halted during studio recordings due to a strike. The remaining studio scenes were never recorded, and the serial never aired..


Child Prodigy

Written by
Alistair Beaton Alistair Beaton (born 1947) is a playwright and satirist, journalist, radio presenter, novelist and television writer. At one point in his career he was also a speechwriter for Gordon Brown. Born in Glasgow, Scotland, Beaton was educated at the ...
and
Sarah Dunant Sarah Dunant (born 8 August 1950) is a British novelist, journalist, broadcaster, and critic. She is married with two daughters, and lives in London and Florence. Early life Dunant was born in 1950 and raised in London. She is the daughter of D ...
, this four-part story. was commissioned on 12 December 1978. The scripts, delivered on 5 January 1979, were rejected four days later as unacceptable.


The Doomsday Contract

John Lloyd (a frequent collaborator with script editor Douglas Adams) adapted material from his unpublished science-fiction story ''GiGax''. and submitted ''Shylock'', a four-part serial written in Adams' light-hearted style. After providing a second draft of the storyline to modify parts of the script to avoid issues such as the rules involving child actors, Lloyd was forced to focus on his commitments as producer of ''
Not the Nine O'Clock News ''Not the Nine O'Clock News'' is a British television sketch comedy show that was broadcast on BBC2 from 16 October 1979 to 8 March 1982. Originally shown as a comedy alternative to the '' Nine O'Clock News'' on BBC1, the show features satirical ...
''.. Williams, still interested in the storyline, planned to involve
Allan Prior Allan Prior (13 January 1922, Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, – 1 June 2006) was an England, English television scriptwriter and novelist, who wrote over 300 television episodes from the 1950s onwards. He was founder-writer of influen ...
to work on the scripts. The storyline was commissioned on 7 February 1979,. and a script list dated 29 June 1979 links Prior and Lloyd to the project. Lloyd agreed to another writer taking on his story on 25 August 1979.. In the story, the Doctor is summonsed to appear in court when a corporation tries to buy Earth to obtain a matter-transmutation device..


Erinella

Written by
Pennant Roberts John Pennant Roberts (15 December 1940 – 22 June 2010) was a British director and producer known for his work in British television drama. Early life Roberts was born at Weston-super-Mare in Somerset to Welsh parents. He went to school i ...
, this four-part story was commissioned on 10 January 1979 as ''Dragons of Fear''. The adventure would involve the planet Erinella and two men fighting over a princess. The Doctor would become involved in his own timeline by arriving at the wrong time and being accused of poisoning.


The Secret of Cassius

Written by Andrew Smith, the story was rejected by Read in August 1978..


The Tearing of the Veil

Written by
Allen Drury Allen Stuart Drury (September 2, 1918 – September 2, 1998) was an American novelist. During World War II, he was a reporter in the Senate, closely observing Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman, among others. He would convert the ...
, scripts were commissioned on 2 April 1979 for this four-part story. It was set in the Victorian era, in and around a vicarage. The vicar has recently died, and fake
spiritualist Spiritualism may refer to: * Spiritual church movement, a group of Spiritualist churches and denominations historically based in the African-American community * Spiritualism (beliefs), a metaphysical belief that the world is made up of at least ...
s are exploiting his widow. The first episode would open with a seance, during which the TARDIS would arrive. On 19 September 1979,. the story was accepted subject to alterations.


Valley of the Lost

Written by Philip Hinchcliffe, this story involved the Doctor and Romana encountering an alien Luron named Godrin who crash-landed in a
South American South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...
jungle in 1870.. Adams wrote to Hinchcliffe on 3 January 1979 that the proposed script would be too costly to produce.


Untitled storyline (Adams)

Written by Douglas Adams, the story would involve the Doctor retiring and still being called on to solve problems. It was replaced by ''Shada''.


Untitled storyline (Mills and Wagner)

Written by
Pat Mills Patrick Eamon Mills (born 1949) is an English comics writer and editor who, along with John Wagner, revitalised British boys' comics in the 1970s, and has remained a leading light in British comics ever since. He has been called "the godfath ...
and
John Wagner John Wagner (born 1949) is an American-born British comics writer. Alongside Pat Mills, he helped revitalise British comics in the 1970s, and continues to be active in the British comics industry, occasionally also working in American comics. ...
,. the story was submitted around the beginning of 1979 and would involve a parallel universe in which the
Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...
never fell.


Submitted for season 18


The Dogs of Darkness

A scene breakdown for this four-part Jack Gardner story was commissioned on 29 March 1980,. and the scripts were commissioned on 11 August of that year. It was still under consideration in April 1981, when Gardner was asked to expand "The Dogs of Darkness" into full scripts with the Fifth Doctor for Season 19.


Farer Nohan

Written by Andrew Stephenson, a scene breakdown for this four-part story was commissioned on 18 March 1980..


Into the Comet

This
James Follett James Follett (27 July 1939 – 10 January 2021) was an English author and screenwriter. Follett became a full-time fiction writer in 1976, after resigning from contract work as a technical writer for the Ministry of Defence. He wrote over 20 ...
story involved monsters attacking a race of beings who live inside
Halley's Comet Halley's Comet is the only known List of periodic comets, short-period comet that is consistently visible to the naked eye from Earth, appearing every 72–80 years, though with the majority of recorded apparitions (25 of 30) occurring after ...
, unaware that there is anything beyond it. ''Into the Comet'' would have used the companions Romana and K9. Follett was a novelist who pitched the idea to script editor Douglas Adams around September 1979, when they met and discussed the forthcoming return of Halley's Comet. Adams rejected the storyline and Follett resubmitted ''Into the Comet'' to new script editor Christopher H. Bidmead around May 1980, but the storyline was not pursued.


Invasion of the Veridians

Written by
Nabil Shaban Nabil Shaban (born 12 February 1953) is a Jordanian-British actor and writer. He co-founded Graeae—a theatre group which promotes disabled performers. He's best known as the recurring villain Sil in ''Doctor Who''. Early years and career ...
(better known as Sil from the Colin Baker ''Doctor Who'' stories ''
Vengeance on Varos ''Vengeance on Varos'' is the second serial of the 22nd season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in two weekly parts on 19 and 26 January 1985. The serial is set on the planet Varos, wher ...
'' and ''
The Trial of a Time Lord The twenty-third season of British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', known collectively as ''The Trial of a Time Lord'', aired in weekly episodes from 6 September to 6 December 1986. It contained four adventures: '' The Mysterio ...
''), a longtime fan who had suggested himself to replace Roger Delgado as the Master after Delgado's death. Offering this script to the production office in 1980, Shaban also put himself forward as a potential successor to Tom Baker as the Doctor. Nothing came of the story.


Mark of Lumos

Written by
Keith Miles Keith Miles (born 1940) is a Welsh writer of historical fiction and mystery novels. He has also written children's books, radio and television dramas and stage plays. He is best known under the pseudonym Edward Marston, and has also written as M ...
, an outline of this four-part story was commissioned on 14 March 1980.


Mouth of Grath

Written by Malcolm Edwards and Leroy Kettle, a scene breakdown for this four-part story was commissioned on 18 March 1980.


The Psychonauts

This David Fisher story was discussed with script editor Douglas Adams in late 1979, shortly before Adams left ''Doctor Who''. New producer Nathan-Turner was not interested, and ''The Leisure Hive'' was developed as the season opener.


Romanoids

Written by Geoff Lowe, an outline arrived at the production office in the summer of 1980 and was passed along to Nathan-Turner on 9 December of that year..


Sealed Orders

A scene breakdown for this four-part Christopher Priest story was commissioned on 27 February 1980, and full scripts were commissioned on 24 March 1981.. The story (set on Gallifrey) involved hopping back and forth in time; this resulted in several variants of the TARDIS and a spare Doctor, one of whom was killed.


Soldar and the Plastoids

Written by John Bennett, a scene breakdown for this four-part story was commissioned on 10 April 1980.


Song of the Space Whale

''Space-Whale''. was originally pitched by Pat Mills and his writing partner, John Wagner, in 1980 as a Fourth Doctor adventure.. When the production office showed interest, Wagner left the project; the script was commissioned as a four-part
Fifth Doctor The Fifth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Peter Davison. Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord ...
story for a scene breakdown on 7 September 1981, and full scripts on 2 December of that year. The new drafts reduced the humor, and the renamed ''Song of the Space Whale'' was now planned as the third serial of season 20 to introduce companion
Vislor Turlough Vislor Turlough is a fictional character played by Mark Strickson in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was a companion of the Fifth Doctor, being a regular in the programme from 1983 to 1984. Turloug ...
. The story concerned a group of people living in the belly of a whale in space,. as the Doctor attempts to protect the creature from being slaughtered by a rusting
factory ship A factory ship, also known as a fish processing vessel, is a large ocean-going vessel with extensive on-board facilities for processing and freezing caught fish or whales. Modern factory ships are automated and enlarged versions of the earlier ...
. The castaways in the whale and the ship's captain would be
working-class The working class is a subset of employees who are compensated with wage or salary-based contracts, whose exact membership varies from definition to definition. Members of the working class rely primarily upon earnings from wage labour. Most c ...
characters, with the castaways' dialogue based on that of a working-class Northern Irish family Mills knew. He and script editor Eric Saward "fundamentally disagreed" on the character of the captain (Saward wanted a more ''
Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the Star Trek: The Original Series, series of the same name and became a worldwide Popular culture, pop-culture Cultural influence of ...
''-type figure) and the dialogue for the castaways. According to Mills, "there was a ''
Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...
'' quality to it that Eric felt didn't work in space. He thought the future would be classless, and I didn't."Interview with Mills in Deathray #12 Mills' disagreements with Saward led to the script being delayed until it was too late to be Turlough's introductory story,. and it was considered for seasons 21 and 22. The script, revised as two 45-minute episodes, was still listed in July 1985 as an ongoing script; by November 1985, Nathan-Turner confirmed at a convention that it had been dropped.


Fifth Doctor


Submitted for season 19


The Enemy Within

The opportunity to write this four-part story. was offered to Christopher Priest after his previous script, ''Sealed Orders'', was cancelled. The scene breakdown was commissioned on 5 December 1980,. and the scripts on 6 February 1981. Priest's story dealt with the "secret" of what powered the
TARDIS The TARDIS (; acronym for "Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space") is a fictional hybrid of a time machine and spacecraft that appears in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and its various spin-offs. While a TARDI ...
in this case, fear. Hidden inside the TARDIS was the one being the Doctor feared above all others, and the psychic tension between them produced the energy to move through space and time. The story involved the Doctor having to confront and ultimately defeat this fear, and was designed to write out the character of
Adric Adric is a fictional character played by Matthew Waterhouse in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was a young native of the planet Alzarius, which exists in the parallel universe of E-Space. A compan ...
. After hearing nothing from the production office about his completed scripts (or his payment), Priest contacted
John Nathan-Turner John Turner (12 August 1947 – 1 May 2002), known professionally as John Nathan-Turner, was an English television producer. He was the ninth producer of the long-running BBC science fiction series ''Doctor Who'' and the final producer of the ...
and was told that the scripts were unusable and he would not be paid.. After a bitter dispute, Priest was paid and Nathan-Turner and Eric Saward were compelled to write a letter of apology.


Genesis of the Cybermen

Written by Gerry Davis, this four-part story was submitted
on spec ''On Spec'' is a digest-sized, perfect-bound, Canadian quarterly magazine publishing stories and poetry in science fiction, fantasy, and allied genres broadly grouped under the "speculative fiction" umbrella. History and profile Based in Edmo ...
to the production office around February 1982.. In it, the Doctor and his companion Felicity arrive on
Mondas The Cybermen are a fictional race of cyborgs principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. The Cybermen are a species of space-faring cyborgs who often forcefully and painfully convert human beings ...
(Earth's twin, orbiting on the opposite side of the Sun) when the
Cybermen The Cybermen are a fictional race of cyborgs principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. The Cybermen are a species of space-faring cyborgs who often forcefully and painfully convert human beings ...
are being created. While the Doctor works on the TARDIS, Felicity encounters the gentle Prince Sylvan. Sylvan accidentally activates the TARDIS, sending him, the Doctor and Felicity fifty years into the future. Sylvan's brother Dega is now king, and has used the Doctor's device to begin turning his people into Cybermen. He has constructed a space fleet with which he intends to invade the mineral-rich Earth, and plans to kill any unconverted Mondans with cyanide gas. Felicity appeals to Dega's partly-Cybernised wife, Queen Meta, who shoots her husband dead and is killed by Krail, Dega's chief of staff. Sylvan and a band of Mondan rebels flee to Earth in the spaceships, and the concussion of take-off knocks Mondas out of its orbit into deep space. Former script editor Davis submitted this idea around early 1981, intending it as a prequel to ''
The Tenth Planet ''The Tenth Planet'' is the partly missing second serial of the fourth season in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 8 to 29 October 1966. It was William Hartnell' ...
'' (his and Kit Pedler's original Cyberman serial, which also included Cyberman Krail). It borrowed elements of '' The Ark'' and '' The Savages'', two stories on which Davis had been story editor. Producer John Nathan-Turner and script editor Antony Root were not interested in ''Genesis of the Cybermen''. Davis wrote his storyline with only the Doctor and one female companion in mind, calling the companion "Felicity" rather than writing with a particular companion in mind.


Hebos

Written by Rod Beacham, a scene breakdown for this four-part story was commissioned on 5 December 1980.


Project Zeta Sigma

The Fifth Doctor's first story was originally intended to be the four-part ''Project Zeta Sigma'', written by John Flanagan and Andrew McCulloch, (who had scripted '' Meglos''). The story, concerning
nuclear disarmament Nuclear disarmament is the act of reducing or eliminating nuclear weapons. Its end state can also be a nuclear-weapons-free world, in which nuclear weapons are completely eliminated. The term ''denuclearization'' is also used to describe the pro ...
, was not intended to directly follow the events of ''
Logopolis ''Logopolis'' is the seventh and final serial of the 18th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 28 February to 21 March 1981. The serial is set on th ...
''; instead, the Doctor and his companions would have already left Earth. Commissioned as ''Project "4G"'' on 7 October 1980, the script was unworkable and producer John Nathan-Turner dropped the story on 19 February 1981..


The Psychrons

Written by Terence Greer, a scene breakdown for this four-part story was commissioned on 13 June 1980.


The Torson Triumvirate

Written by Andrew Smith, a scene breakdown for this four-part story set on present-day Earth was commissioned on 25 November 1980.


Submitted for season 20


Parasites

Written by Bill Lyons and also known as ''The Parasites'', a scene breakdown was commissioned on 22 September 1981. Scripts were commissioned on 16 February and 23 April 1982, when it was considered for Season 21..


Way Down Yonder

Written by Lesley Elizabeth Thomas, a scene breakdown for this four-part story was commissioned on 23 April 1981.


Untitled storyline (Lee)

Written by
Tanith Lee Tanith Lee (19 September 1947 – 24 May 2015) was a British science fiction and fantasy writer. She wrote more than 90 novels and 300 short stories, and was the winner of multiple World Fantasy Society Derleth Awards, the World Fantasy Lifetime ...
, scripts for this four-part story were commissioned on 6 February 1981.


Submitted for the 20th-anniversary special


The Six Doctors

This 90-minute Robert Holmes story. was commissioned on 2 August 1982. The Doctors and their companions are drawn to the planet Maladoom and trapped by the Master, who is working for the Cybermen. The Cybermen want to isolate and incorporate the genetic material that permits Time Lords to time-travel freely.


Submitted for season 21


Children of Seth

After completing '' Snakedance'', Saward asked Christopher Bailey to write another story. The initial outline for ''May Time'' was commissioned on 24 August 1982,. in which the Doctor and his companions arrive at the court of Byzantium. Full scripts were commissioned on 16 September 1982 with the title ''Man-watch'', but were dropped from production. A second attempt at the story entitled ''Children of Seth'' was attempted as a Sixth Doctor story, and scripts were commissioned on 14 July 1983. This failed because Bailey did not devise a structure for ''Doctor Who'' new 45-minute-episode format or create a tangible villain for the Doctor to face. It was adapted as ''The Children of Seth'' by Marc Platt for Big Finish's ''The Lost Stories'' in December 2011..


Circus of Destiny

Written by Ben Steed, this two-part story was delivered in January 1983 but not taken forward..


The Darkness

Eric Pringle submitted this storyline for a four-part story to the production office in August 1981 with ''
The Awakening The Awakening may refer to: Religion * Awakening (Finnish religious movement), a Lutheran movement in Finland * Great Awakening, several periods of Anglo-American Christian revival Film and television Film * ''The Awakening'', a 1913 film starring ...
'', but only the latter was developed further. This story may have involved the Daleks.


The Elite

This
Barbara Clegg Barbara Diana Clegg (1 March 1926 – 7 January 2025) was a British actress and scriptwriter for television and radio. She was the first woman to write a Doctor Who script. Life and career Clegg was born in Manchester, England on 1 March 1926. ...
story, submitted in late 1982, dealt with a race of intelligent youths controlled by a lone Dalek.


Ghost Planet

Written by Robin Squire, this four-part story had a scene breakdown commissioned on 5 January 1983 and scripts on 20 May 1983. The story may have been considered to incorporate the Sixth Doctor.


Hex

Written by Peter Ling and Hazel Adair, the story developed from plans by producer Nathan-Turner to create a sequel of the 1960s soap opera ''
Compact Compact as used in politics may refer broadly to a pact or treaty; in more specific cases it may refer to: * Interstate compact, a type of agreement used by U.S. states * Blood compact, an ancient ritual of the Philippines * Compact government, a t ...
'' entitled ''Impact''.. After drafting three or four scripts for the proposed ''Impact'', Nathan-Turner told Ling and Adair that plans for the soap had been cancelled and offered them the opportunity to write for ''Doctor Who'' as compensation. A scene breakdown (reduced from six parts to four). was commissioned on 12 July 1983,. but after three months of script development (in which the story was restructured into two 45-minute episodes) it was rejected. The plot involves the disappearance of a number of people on Earth,. which leads the Doctor and Peri to the planet Hexagora. The Doctor becomes romantically involved with Queen Zafia,. who is trying to save Hexagora's insect race from destruction with a plan to infiltrate and take over Earth.


The House That Ur-Cjak Built

Written by Andrew (Michael) Stephenson, a scene breakdown was commissioned on 10 June 1982.


Nightmare Country

Written by
Stephen Gallagher Stephen Gallagher (born 13 October 1954) is an English screenwriter and novelist. Gallagher was born in Salford, Greater Manchester and attended Eccles Grammar School, then graduated from the University of Hull with Joint Honours in Drama and En ...
,. the script was submitted in late 1982 but rejected by Saward because of cost. The four-part story would involve the Doctor,
Tegan Tegan is a given name of Welsh origin. It is a diminutive of the Welsh word ''teg'' ('fair') and means 'darling', 'loved one', or 'favourite', and is the normal Welsh word for 'toy'. People with the name Notable people with the first name Tegan ...
and Turlough testing a reality simulator which projects a graveyard world overrun by the Vodyani, who find a way out of virtual reality and into the real world.
Big Finish Productions Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and radio drama, audio plays (released straight to compact disc and for download in MP3 and m4b format) based, primarily, on science fiction properties. These include ''Doctor Who'' ...
produced an audio adaptation of the story which was released on 14 November 2019.


The Place Where All Times Meet

Written by
Colin Davis Sir Colin Rex Davis (25 September 1927 – 14 April 2013) was an English conductor, known for his association with the London Symphony Orchestra, having first conducted it in 1959. His repertoire was broad, but among the composers with whom ...
, a scene breakdown was commissioned on 10 June 1982.


Poison

Written by Rod Beacham, a screen breakdown was commissioned on 27 April 1982 and scripts on 27 May of that year.


The Rogue TARDIS

Written by Barbara Clegg, the story was submitted in late 1982 and dealt with the Doctor searching for a missing Time Lord who has regenerated to merge with his TARDIS.


The SCI

Written by William Emms, this four-part storyline was discussed (but not commissioned) in 1983.


The Underworld

Written by Barbara Clegg, this story was submitted in late 1982 and saw the Doctor travel down the river
Styx In Greek mythology, Styx (; ; lit. "Shuddering"), also called the River Styx, is a goddess and one of the rivers of the Greek Underworld. Her parents were the Titans Oceanus and Tethys, and she was the wife of the Titan Pallas and the moth ...
in
ancient Greece Ancient Greece () was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity (), that comprised a loose collection of culturally and linguistically r ...
.


Warmongers

Written by Marc Platt and Charles M. Stevens (a pseudonym for J. Jeremy Bentham), this story was submitted on spec in 1983 and was discussed with Saward but not commissioned. It dealt with
Sontaran The Sontarans ( ) are a fictional race of extraterrestrial life, extraterrestrial humanoids principally portrayed in the British science fiction on television, science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'' and its spin-off series ''The Sa ...
s and Rutans in England during
the Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...
.


The Zeldan

Written by William Emms, this four-part storyline was discussed but not commissioned when Emms approached the production office in 1983.


Sixth Doctor


Submitted for season 22


Cat's Cradle

Written by Marc Platt,. the story was submitted to Saward in 1984 and rejected as too ambitious and complex for ''Doctor Who'' budget.


The First Sontarans

Written by Andrew Smith, a scene breakdown was commissioned on 10 January 1984. Initially conceived as four 25-minute episodes, the two 45-minute episodes would have been set in 1872, involve the ''
Mary Celeste ''Mary Celeste'' (; often erroneously referred to as ''Marie Celeste'') was a Canadian-built, American-registered merchant brigantine that was discovered adrift and deserted in the Atlantic Ocean off the Azores on December 4, 1872. The Canadi ...
'' in some way and elaborate on the origins of the Sontaran-Rutan war. ''The First Sontarans'' was turned down because the Sontarans were to appear in the season-22 serial ''
The Two Doctors ''The Two Doctors'' is the fourth serial of the Doctor Who (season 22), 22nd season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in three weekly parts on BBC One, BBC1 from 16 February to 2 March 198 ...
''..


The Guardians of Prophecy

Written by Johnny Byrne, a plot outline for this story (also known as ''The Place of Serenity'') was submitted to the production office by Byrne in July 1983.


Leviathan

Written by
Brian Finch Brian Finch (25 July 1936 – 27 June 2007) was a British television scriptwriter and dramatist. His longest relationship was with the ITV1 soap opera, ''Coronation Street'', for which he wrote 150 scripts between 1970 and 1989. He also helped t ...
, the scripts for the two-part story. were commissioned as ''Livanthian'' on 14 August 1983 and later became ''Leviathan''.


The Macros

Written by
Ingrid Pitt Ingrid Pitt (born Ingoushka Petrov; 21 November 193723 November 2010) was a Polish-British actress and writer, best known for her work in British horror cinema of the 1970s. Early life Ingoushka Petrov was born in Warsaw, Poland, one of two ...
and Tony Rudlin, it was conceived as a four-part Fifth Doctor story during season 21 before being revised as a two-part Sixth Doctor tale. Only the first episode was commissioned as ''The Macro Men'' on 19 January 1984.


Volvok

This was written by
Ian Marter Ian Don Marter (28 October 194428 October 1986) was an English actor and writer known for his role as Harry Sullivan in the BBC science-fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' from December 1974 to September 1975, with a non-regular, one-ser ...
, who had played Harry Sullivan in the series. The script for episode one only was commissioned as ''Strange Encounter'' on 2 February 1984. The two-part story is thought to have dealt with hospital overcrowding.


Original season 23


The Nightmare Fair

Written by Graham Williams, this two-part story. was commissioned on 25 September 1984 as ''Arcade'' and was planned to begin the original 23rd season.. Nathan-Turner hoped to have Matthew Robinson direct the story, which would have included the return of the Celestial Toymaker..


The Ultimate Evil

Written by
Wally K. Daly Wally K. Daly (13 November 1940 – 30 April 2020) was an English writer for television and radio and one-time chairman of the Writers' Guild of Great Britain. He was born in Grangetown, Middlesbrough. Television As well as some minor acti ...
, this two-part story was planned as the second story of the original 23rd season. Nathan-Turner hoped to have Fiona Cumming direct. Daly wrote a novelization of the script which was published by Target Books in August 1989. It was later
adapted In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the p ...
by Daly for Big Finish as part of their ''Lost Stories'' series in November 2019.


Mission to Magnus

Written by Philip Martin, this two-part story was planned to be the fourth story recorded and third story broadcast in the original season 23. It would have featured the Ice Warriors teaming up with Sil to ice the planet Magnus as a new home for them, but the Doctor and Peri realise that this plan would ruin life for both of them.. Nathan-Turner hoped to have Ron Jones direct the story.


Yellow Fever and How to Cure It

''Yellow Fever and How to Cure It'' was a three-part story by Robert Holmes that was scheduled to be recorded third and broadcast fourth in the original season 23. It would have taken place in
Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
and featured the
Auton The List of longest-running British television programmes, long-running BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' has an extensive Fictional universe, universe inhabited by a continuously expanding gallery of creatures and Extraterres ...
s as monsters, with
The Rani The Rani is a fictional character in the British BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. She is a renegade Time Lord, and a nemesis of the series' title character, a Time Lord known as the Doctor. The Rani is an amoral biochemist ...
or the Master appearing.
Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, generally referred to simply as the Brigadier, is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', created by writers Mervyn Haisman and Henry Lincoln and played by Ni ...
would have returned. The first episode was commissioned on 26 October 1984 before being put on hold, and the entire story was commissioned on 6 February 1985. Nathan-Turner hoped to have
Graeme Harper Graeme Richard Harper (born 11 March 1945) is a British television director. He is best known for his work on the science-fiction series ''Doctor Who'', for which he is the only person to have directed episodes of both the original run (1963†...
direct. After the news of the hiatus, Holmes was asked by the production team to continue with the story in six 25-minute episodes without the Master.. He reportedly only completed a story outline before season 23 was cancelled..


The Hollows of Time

This was commissioned as a two-part story by Christopher H. Bidmead on 21 November 1984. Nathan-Turner hoped to have Matthew Robinson direct the adventure, which would have been Robinson's second season-23 story. After the news of the hiatus, Bidmead was asked by the production team to continue with the story as four 25-minute episodes.


The Children of January

Written by
Michael Feeney Callan Michael Feeney Callan is an Irish novelist and poet. An award winner for his short fiction and also for non-fiction, he joined BBC television drama as a story editor, and wrote screenplays for '' The Professionals'', and for American television ...
, this story was commissioned on 5 February 1985.. After the news of the hiatus, Callan was asked by the production team to continue with the story as four 25-minute episodes and was backed up for the original two-part 45-minute episodes. Nathan-Turner hoped to have Bob Gabriel direct; Gabriel directed early ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...
'' episodes in 1985. It had been planned that an adaptation of this story would appear as part of Big Finish's ''The Lost Stories'', but that fell through due to the author's other commitments and it was replaced by ''The Macros''.


Doomwraiths

Written by Philip Martin, this story was submitted on 28 December 1983 and dealt with an alien race returning to Earth to discover that their "humanity" experiment has failed. The TARDIS alerts the Doctor to the fact that a regeneration is in progress nearby, suggesting the presence of a fellow Time Lord. The Doctor instead finds the elite of the Doomwraiths emerging, reconstituted, as shimmering metal columns with moving strips and a deadly purpose. The Wraiths find that human evolution has failed and mankind has not taken on their form; they will release a plague to destroy humanity, relocate the missing section of genetic code and repopulate Earth themselves. The Doctor and Peri discover that the Doomwraiths have a genetic flaw that gives them the impulse to destroy. He destroys the discovered code block, but says that the Doomwraiths may have left their legacy on other worlds.


Flipback

Written by David Banks..


Gallifrey

''Gallifrey'' was a Pip and Jane Baker script for four 25-minute episodes. that was commissioned on 11 March 1985 in the wake of the hiatus announcement, which reportedly would have dealt with the destruction of the Doctor's home planet.


League of the Tancreds

Written by
Peter Grimwade Peter Grimwade (8 June 1942 – 15 May 1990) was a British television director and screenwriter, known for his work as a director and writer of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' in the 1980s. Career After joining t ...
, this two-part story was commissioned on 13 August 1984 and abandoned due to budgetary concerns on 8 November 1984 after the completion of a scene breakdown.


Meltdown

Written by Gary Hopkins, this story reunites the Doctor with former companion Victoria Waterfield (who is now crusading against
nuclear waste Radioactive waste is a type of hazardous waste that contains radioactive material. It is a result of many activities, including nuclear medicine, nuclear research, nuclear power generation, nuclear decommissioning, rare-earth mining, and nuclear ...
).


Point of Entry

Written by Barbara Clegg, this storyline involves the Doctor and Peri in
Elizabethan The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The Roman symbol of Britannia (a female per ...
London as an alien race, the Omnim, returns via an
Aztec The Aztecs ( ) were a Mesoamerican civilization that flourished in central Mexico in the Post-Classic stage, post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different Indigenous peoples of Mexico, ethnic groups of central ...
knife. It was also to feature
Christopher Marlowe Christopher Marlowe ( ; Baptism, baptised 26 February 156430 May 1593), also known as Kit Marlowe, was an English playwright, poet, and translator of the Elizabethan era. Marlowe is among the most famous of the English Renaissance theatre, Eli ...
.


Space Sargasso

Written by Philip Martin, this story was submitted on 28 December 1983 and had the TARDIS pulled to a spaceship graveyard controlled by the Master.


Valley of Shadows

Written by Philip Martin, this story was submitted on 28 December 1983 and had the Doctor travel into the
Egyptian ''Egyptian'' describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of year ...
underworld to save Peri.


''The Trial of a Time Lord'' candidates


Attack from the Mind

Writer David Halliwell. was approached by Eric Saward in early July 1985 as a prospective writer for the "new" Season 23.. Halliwell submitted his untitled first draft of the untitled two-part story for episodes nine and 10. to the production office in late July 1985. The story deals with a conflict between the ugly-looking Freds and the beautiful Penelopeans. Work on a second draft began on 14 August 1985 and was completed by 22 August, with a third draft submitted on 11 September of that year. Saward spent much time with Halliwell on further drafts, changing the name of the Freds to Trikes. The fourth revision was delivered on 26 September 1985,. and 7 October 1985 saw a fifth draft arrive at the production office. Halliwell received a letter from Saward on 18 October 1985 advising him that ''Attack from the Mind'' had been cancelled.


The Second Coming

This was written by Jack Trevor Story,. who was invited to the same series briefing as David Halliwell. The two-part story (episodes 11 and 12) was intended to share sets with ''Attack from the Mind'' and a narrative link.


Pinacotheca

Written by Christopher H. Bidmead, the story was commissioned on 29 October 1985 as ''The Last Adventure''. This replaced the scripts by David Halliwell and Jack Trevor Story (episodes 9–12). with second-draft scripts of all four episodes delivered by 9 January 1986. The story was rejected on 7 February 1986 by Eric Saward.


Paradise Five

Written by P.J. Hammond, the story was commissioned as ''End of Term'' on 10 February 1986 as a replacement for ''Pinacotheca'' for episodes 9–12. It involved the Doctor investigating the resort of Paradise Five, while Mel goes undercover as a hostess..


Time Inc.

''Time Inc.'' was the title for the concluding two-part story arc originally written by Robert Holmes for episodes 13 and 14 when it was commissioned on 4 February 1986.. Holmes died on 24 May 1986, however, and was unable to work on the script past the first part. Script editor Eric Saward was tasked with completing the story; his version of the script ended with the Doctor and the Valeyard locked in battle in the time vortex, with no clear victor. This ending was disapproved of by series producer John Nathan-Turner as too down-beat and ending the show at an inconclusive moment if the BBC decided to cancel the series; Saward was annoyed by what he saw as Nathan-Turner's reneging on what Saward and Holmes had long agreed on for the series ending. John Nathan-Turner commissioned Pip and Jane Baker to write the final episode after Saward withdrew permission for his version of episode 14 due to rejection of his proposed ending. The broadcast versions of episodes 13 and 14 were renamed "The Ultimate Foe" on the final scripts, an early title used for Pip and Jane Baker's broadcast episodes 9-12 serial that became ''Terror of the Vervoids''.


Submitted for Season 24


Mel introduction story

According to his book, ''Doctor Who: The Companions'' (published around the time ''The Trial of a Time Lord'' was broadcast), producer John Nathan-Turner intended to chronicle the Doctor's first meeting with Melanie Bush in a later episode.


Strange Matter

Written by Pip and Jane Baker, ''Time and the Rani'' (originally ''Strange Matter'') was planned to be Colin Baker's final story. When it became clear that Baker did not want to return, it was rewritten as the Seventh Doctor's opening story with his regeneration occurring before the titles.


Seventh Doctor


Submitted for season 25


Knight Fall

Written by Ben Aaronovitch, this story concerned privatisation. It was submitted in May 1987; script editor Andrew Cartmel liked some of the concepts, but felt that it was generally inappropriate for Doctor Who and had too many supporting characters. Cartmel encouraged Aaronovitch to pitch more stories, which led to ''Transit''.


Transit

Written by Aaronovitch, it was replaced by ''Remembrance of the Daleks''.


Submitted for season 26


Alixion

Written by Robin Mukherjee (writer), Robin Mukherjee, this three-part story was considered for season 26 as the "spare" script. if another planned was no longer suitable. It was to take place on a monastic planet inhabited by humans and large beetles. The humans were monks who produced a special elixir that enhanced intelligence from beetles who fed on intelligent beings. The abbot wants to feed the Doctor to the beetles to produce a more potent elixir for himself. The script was not completed beyond a partial storyline; Mukherjee was unsure how events would have been resolved beyond a contest of wills between the Doctor and the abbot. Mukherjee would have been the first Person of color, person of colour to write for the programme, had it been commissioned; eventually, Malorie Blackman would achieve this, 29 years later, with ''Rosa (Doctor Who), Rosa'' for Series 11. Mukherjee would later adapt this story for Big Finish's ''Lost Stories'' range.


Avatar

Written by David A. McIntee, this was a four-part. Lovecraftian horror story set in Arkham, New England in 1927 (although McIntee later began a rewrite changing the setting to Cornwall). The story involved alien body-snatchers who could only inhabit the bodies of the dead. The villain would discover the remains of a Silurian (Doctor Who), Silurian god and try to clone a new body from the fossilized body to inhabit.


Illegal Alien

Written by Mike Tucker (special effects artist), Mike Tucker and Robert Perry (writer), Robert Perry, this was a three-part
Cybermen The Cybermen are a fictional race of cyborgs principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. The Cybermen are a species of space-faring cyborgs who often forcefully and painfully convert human beings ...
story set in war-torn 1940s London. Tucker and Perry had completed the first two episodes in script form and the final episode as a storyline which they were planning to submit at the start of season-26 production. Ben Aaronovitch intercepted the script, suggesting that submitting ''Illegal Alien'' to script editor Andrew Cartmel when he was editing something similar (''The Curse of Fenric'') was a mistake and to submit it for the following series. Tucker and Perry would later turn the story into a 1997 novel for the ''Past Doctor Adventures'' range from BBC Books.


Lungbarrow

This Marc Platt story was to feature the Doctor and Ace, who arrives at the Doctor's ancestral home on Gallifrey and meets his relatives. Platt and Andrew Cartmel agreed that the storyline did not work for TV and it was replaced by Platt's ''Ghost Light (Doctor Who), Ghost Light'', which contained more of Ace's backstory and less about the Doctor's origins.


Shrine

In 1988,. writer Marc Platt discussed with script editor Andrew Cartmel an idea (inspired by Leo Tolstoy's ''War and Peace'') about stone-headed aliens looking for their god-king in 19th-century Tsarist Russia.


Under consideration for season 27

Before the original ''Doctor Who'' series ended, tentative plans had been made for a 27th season with the assumption that it would maintain the pattern of two four-part and two three-part stories. Big Finish Productions produced audio adaptations of several scripts as part of their ''The Lost Stories'' releases. The safe-cracking companion introduced in ''Crime of the Century'' (never named during planning) is List of companions in Doctor Who spin-offs#Raine Creevy, Raine Creevy, played by Beth Chalmers..


Bad Destination

The opening three-part, studio-bound story. was to be written by Ben Aaronovitch: a space opera with a race of samurai insect-like aliens called the Metatraxi.. ''Bad Destination'' was to open with Ace (Doctor Who), Ace in the captain's chair of a starship, and the story would concern the politics of humanitarian aid. The Metatraxi were originally conceived as part of a stage play entitled ''War World''. ''Bad Destination'' was later Doctor Who: The Lost Stories#Series 2 (2010–11), adapted by Aaronovitch and Cartmel for Big Finish's ''The Lost Stories'' in July 2011 as ''Earth Aid'' (a title invented by Dave Owen for his "27 up" article in ''DWM'')..


Thin Ice

This four-part second story of the proposed season was to have been written by Marc Platt and contain Ice Warriors in 1968 London.. Ace (Doctor Who), Ace would have left for the Prydonian Academy to become a
Time Lord The Time Lords are a fictional ancient race of extraterrestrial life, extraterrestrial people in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Time Lords are so named for their command of time travel technology and their Nonli ...
.. The story was to introduce a character with underworld connections, intended to become a recurring character like Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, the Brigadier. The character would have a daughter born at the end of the story who would be named by the Doctor. An Ice Warrior's armour would have been in the London Dungeon and two reincarnated Warriors continue a long rivalry. Platt planned to have bikers controlled by the Ice Warriors (wearing similar helmets), scenes on an Earthlike, pastoral Mars, a more mystical bent to the aliens and a deepening of their history.. He said that the name ''Ice Time'' was "only ever invented for an article in ''Doctor Who Magazine''" (Dave Owen's "27 up" article).


Action At a Distance

This story was to have been written by Andrew Cartmel and would have introduced a cat burglar or safecracker as the next companion. The character with underworld connections from ''Thin Ice'' would be older and the father of the new companion.


Blood and Iron

Cartmel had wanted to write a story of his own, and planned this to include the Seventh Doctor's regeneration.


Hostage

Written by Neil Penswick, this was a three-part. futuristic thriller in which a group of soldiers are hunting Butler and Swarfe, two shape-shifting criminals. In the part-one cliffhanger Swarfe changes into a monster who goes on the hunt in part two.


Night Thoughts

In this Edward Young horror story, set in an isolated house, a group of university staff (one of whom is disabled) are trapped in the house during winter. One of the characters is a murderer.


A School for Glory

Written by Tony Etchells and another writer, this was to be set during World War I, the Great War. The narrative was planned to alternate between the trenches and a British country house which doubles as an army academy.


Submitted for the 30th-anniversary special


Lost in the Dark Dimension

The idea of a video-only anniversary special was first mentioned in a memo from Nathan-Turner to head of video production Penny Mills on 18 February 1992. With Tom Baker not unwilling to appear, an original production was considered and there was a meeting in June 1992 to discuss the special; by 21 July 1992, writer Adrian Rigelsford (later joined by Joanna McCaul) had completed an initial outline for ''Timeflyers''. Shortly afterwards, the project was given the cover name ''The Environment Roadshow''. A production office opened in the first week of September 1992, with shooting planned for January–February 1993. The script was sent to Peter Cregeen on 22 March 1993, indicating that
Graeme Harper Graeme Richard Harper (born 11 March 1945) is a British television director. He is best known for his work on the science-fiction series ''Doctor Who'', for which he is the only person to have directed episodes of both the original run (1963†...
was being considered as a director for the special. Budget issues plagued the production, however; shooting was postponed to November–December 1993, with a final delivery date of 14 March 1994. Around mid-May, Cregeen indicated that he wanted to see the special broadcast on the BBC in November 1993. By the end of May 1993, the project was known as ''The Dark Dimension'' before a working title of ''Lost in the Dark Dimension'' was chosen. Harper was hired to direct the special in June 1993 and wanted Rik Mayall to play the villain, Hawkspur. What was hoped to be the final shooting script was completed on 21 June 1993 and, with the production now aimed for broadcast instead of direct-to-video, Alan Yentob greenlit the special with the completed project planned for delivery by 27 November 1993. Budget issues continued to plague the production by early July 1993, and on 9 July 1993 the project was cancelled. ''Doctor Who'' thirtieth anniversary was celebrated with the light-hearted Children in Need charity special ''Dimensions in Time'' and the documentary ''30 Years in the TARDIS''. According to a BBC press release,


Eighth Doctor


1990s US reboot – Leekley bible

Early in the process that led to the Doctor Who (1996 film), 1996 ''Doctor Who'' film, Universal Television had Amblin Entertainment produce a bible (writing), writers' bible detailing John Leekley's proposed pilot and episodes of a new series. Although the series would have reboot (fiction), established a new continuity rather than following the original series, the bible reused many elements of the original series. It is unclear if clearance could have been obtained for all the episodes. The pilot was to have the half-human Doctor seeking his father, Ulysses, through a number of time periods: contemporary Gallifrey (where Borusa dies and is merged with the TARDIS, and the Master becomes leader of the Time Lords), England during the Blitz, ancient Egypt, and Skaro (where the Genesis of the Daleks, Daleks are being created). Other proposed episodes included ''The Pirates'', in which the Doctor teams up with Blackbeard, and several remakes of stories from the original series: * ''
The Talons of Weng-Chiang ''The Talons of Weng-Chiang'' is the sixth and final serial of the 14th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts on BBC1 from 26 February to 2 April 1977. In the serial ...
'', set in New York City * ''Earthshock'', featuring the "Cybs" (Leekley's more-piratical version of the Cybermen) * ''Horror of Fang Rock'' * ''The Celestial Toymaker'', under the control of the Master * ''Don't Shoot, I'm the Doctor'', a more historically-accurate remake of '' The Gunfighters'' * ''Tomb of the Cybs'', a remake of ''The Tomb of the Cybermen'' in which the Cybs are awakened by the Master * ''The Yeti'', a remake of ''The Abominable Snowmen'' with the Dalai Lama and Edmund Hillary * ''The Ark in Space'' Earlier versions of the bible included: * ''The Cybs'', a story set on Mars in which the Doctor escapes capture by hiding in a gold mine * A remake of ''The Sea Devils'', set in a Louisiana Oil platform, oil rig * ''The Outcasts'', in which the Cybs would attack The Invasion of Time, Gallifreyan outcasts * ''The Land of Fear'', a conflation of ''The Reign of Terror (Doctor Who), The Reign of Terror'' and ''The Claws of Axos'' * A remake of ''The Dæmons'', set in Salem, Massachusetts * A completed version of ''Shada'', which would have introduced Romana (Doctor Who), Romana and Professor Chronotis as Romana's uncle Leekley's scripts were not well-received, and in September 1994 he was removed from the project.


Ninth Doctor


Pompeii

Written by Russell T Davies, the episode was intended for the episode 11 slot of Doctor Who series 1, Series 1. The Doctor, Rose and Jack would land in Pompeii on the day that Mount Vesuvius erupted. The story evolved into "The Fires of Pompeii".


Untitled storyline (Abbott)

Written by Paul Abbott, this episode was intended for the episode-11 slot of series 1. In the story, the Doctor manipulates Rose's life to determine the perfect companion. The episode was dropped due to Abbott's commitment to ''Shameless (British TV series), Shameless'' and other projects.


Tenth Doctor


Doctor Who and the Green Knight

Written by Stephen Fry, the episode was to be set in the 1920s and would have been about the Arthurian legend of the Green Knight. Drafts were written for the eleventh episode of Doctor Who series 2, series 2 in 2006, with Fry attending the first series-2 cast read-through. Due to budgetary constraints, the episode was to be moved to series 3. Fry, with no time to rewrite due to commitments to ''Kingdom (British TV series), Kingdom'', allowed the team to withdraw the episode from series 3.


The Suicide Exhibition

This Mark Gatiss episode would have had a Nazi task force assault London's Natural History Museum, which had been overrun by monsters; a secret chamber would have been discovered beneath the museum. Originally written for series 3 with Martha Jones as the companion, it became the third episode of series 4 and was rewritten with Penny Carter and Donna Noble. The episode was removed from the schedules when Russell T. Davies wanted to pursue "The Fires of Pompeii" instead. Gatiss used the World War II setting for his next story, "Victory of the Daleks", and the museum elements were used in Steven Moffat's "The Big Bang (Doctor Who), The Big Bang".


Century House

''Century House'' was written by Tom MacRae for series 3. The Doctor was to appear on a live broadcast of ''Most Haunted'', investigating a house haunted by the "Red Widow"; Martha Jones watches at home in a frame story. The episode did not fit into the production schedule, and was pushed back to Doctor Who series 4, series 4 with the show watched by Donna Noble and her mother, Sylvia. Due to dissatisfaction with the premise and to avoid two comic episodes in the same series, it was replaced with Davies' "Midnight (Doctor Who), Midnight". This premise was expanded in the Doctor Who audio drama, ''No Place''. An audio drama of "Century House" by VocaLAB Productions was released in 2022 with Tenth Doctor impersonator Elliott Crossley.


Eleventh Doctor


Untitled storyline (Graham)

Written by Matthew Graham and planned for the 2010 series, the story was to be about an old people's home and a lighthouse that was a spaceship. Trips to the US and Graham's work on ''Ashes to Ashes (British TV series), Ashes to Ashes'' precluded him from developing the storyline to the script stage.


Untitled storyline (Shearman)

In an interview, Robert Shearman said that he was asked to write an episode for series 5 by Steven Moffat. Shearman attended the read-through, but left after feeling that he could "never get the story right".


Death to the Doctor

This episode was written by Gareth Roberts (writer), Gareth Roberts. Before settling on the storyline that would become "The Lodger (Doctor Who), The Lodger", Roberts developed a storyline for the 2010 series which would have featured a disgraced Sontaran named Strom. The idea reached the draft stage before it was abandoned.


Untitled storyline (Davies)

Steven Moffat asked former showrunner Russell T Davies to return to the programme after his initial departure and write an episode for the Eleventh Doctor and Amy Pond. Davies ultimately pitched an episode to Moffat in April 2010 for the Doctor Who series 6, sixth series, but it was scrapped due to the budget constraints that the heavy visual effects would have required. When Davies reassumed his old position as showrunner in 2023, he adapted this idea into the episode "Dot and Bubble" with the Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson).


Twelfth Doctor


Untitled storyline (Mathieson)

This Jamie Mathieson episode would have had the Doctor mistaken for Matthew Hopkins, the Witchfinder General. Moffat found the story too dark, and Mathieson wrote "Oxygen" instead.


"Sleep No More" sequel

After "Sleep No More (Doctor Who), Sleep No More" aired, Mark Gatiss developed a sequel set thousands of years before Gagan Rassmussen's Morpheus process experiments at Le Verrier where the Doctor discovers the same process experimented with on Earth. The script was changed when Gatiss learned that showrunner Steven Moffat was leaving and the story he was doing would be his last for the show; he pitched "Empress of Mars" instead.


Thirteenth Doctor


Safari

This story was based on an early idea Ed Hime had in the first writer's room for series 11. The storyline was set in a former military compound which had been turned into a safari lodge on a war-devastated planet that was home to the Blox (Damaje). The rare life form was a tourist attraction, and a draft of the script was set on the planet Kryll. The story was shelved for series 11 in early 2017 because Hime decided to write "It Takes You Away" before transforming the idea into "Orphan 55" in 2018..


Ptings

Written by Chris Chibnall, this story would have been a sequel to The Tsuranga Conundrum.


Alternate series 13

The original series 13 was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, requiring production alterations. Ed Hime and Pete McTighe were commissioned to write untitled episodes for the original series. A pirate-themed story was planned for an episode of ''Flux'', but ultimately didn't happen. This element was reworked into "Legend of the Sea Devils" for the Doctor Who specials (2022), 2022 specials.


Alternate 2022 New Year's special

Whilst planning the 2022 specials, Chris Chibnall had planned for the 2022 New Year's special to be set aboard a bullet train moving through space. When it was realised that he would not have enough time to allow the production team to build the set in time for production, he wrote ''Eve of the Daleks'' as a replacement. A version of the original idea appeared as the opening of the 2022 BBC centenary special, ''The Power of the Doctor''.


Fifteenth Doctor


Alternate 2024 Christmas Special (Davies)

Whilst writing for Series 15 in late 2022, Russell announced that he was taking on the 2024 Christmas special, which he was still writing by the time he had got to the Christmas period of that year, however due to a lack of time as he needed to move onto Series 15, he texted Steven Moffat in January 2023 to write the Christmas special for 2024, leaving his original unfinished episode behind to be replaced by "Joy to the World (Doctor Who), Joy to the World"


Unmade television spin-offs

Proposals for Doctor Who spin-offs, ''Doctor Who'' spin-offs included one featuring the Doctor's friends Professor George Litefoot and Henry Gordon Jago from "The Talons of Weng Chiang"..


''The Daleks''

Dalek The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrial race of extremely xenophobic mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by writer Terry Nation and first appeared in th ...
creator
Terry Nation Terence Joseph Nation (8 August 19309 March 1997) was a Welsh screenwriter and novelist. Especially known for his work in British television science fiction, he created the Daleks and Davros for ''Doctor Who'', as well as the series '' Surviv ...
pitched ''The Daleks'' to the BBC on 1 November 1966, writing a thirty-minute teleplay ("The Destroyers") as a possible television pilot, pilot episode for an American co-production. Lead characters included agents Captain Jack Corey, David Kingdom, his sister Sara Kingdom (from "The Daleks' Master Plan", in which Kingdom died) and Mark Seven, an Android (robot), android. On 22 November 1966, the BBC told Nation that they were no longer interested in the project.


Nelvana cartoon series

In 1990, after the cancellation of the live-action series, the BBC approached the Canadian animation company Nelvana and proposed an animated continuation of the show. The cartoon series would feature an unspecified new Doctor, incorporating elements of various BBC-series Doctors. It was intended as a continuation of the cancelled series to save money (rather than appealing to a younger audience), with design elements promoting merchandise sales. According to Nelvana's Charles E. Bastien, Ted Bastien, "We went through a lot of development on it, then we were scripting and storyboarding it and about four scripts had been written. It happened really fast". Concept art depicted several possible versions of the Doctor, based on actors such as Peter O'Toole, Jeff Goldblum and Christopher Lloyd, with wardrobe elements of previous Doctors. Production sketches had new versions of allies such as K9 (Doctor Who), K9, and enemies such as the Daleks and Cybermen. The Master would be a "half-man, half-robot with a cybernetic bird accessory and a face modeled after Sean Connery". The show would include female companions from Earth and space battles which the BBC would not have been able to afford for a live-action series. The series would have been Nelvana's biggest to date. According to Bastien, "it was pulled out from under us" after a British animation studio told the BBC that it could do what Nelvana intended for a much lower price. The project did not proceed further, and no pilot was produced.


''K-9 and Company''

Elisabeth Sladen was approached to return to ''Doctor Who'' as
Sarah Jane Smith Sarah Jane Smith is a fictional character played by Elisabeth Sladen in the long-running BBC Television science fiction series ''Doctor Who'' and two of its spin-offs. Sarah Jane is a dogged investigative journalist who first encounters alien ...
to aid the transition between Tom Baker and Peter Davison, but declined the offer. After an outcry when K-9 was removed from the show, producer John Nathan-Turner proposed a spin-off with the character.


''Rose Tyler: Earth Defence''

When it was decided that Billie Piper would leave ''Doctor Who'' at the end of series 2, executive producer and head writer Russell T. Davies considered giving her character Rose Tyler a 90-minute spin-off production (''Rose Tyler: Earth Defence'') in the hope that such a special would become an annual bank holiday event. The special would have picked up from Rose's departure in "Doomsday (Doctor Who), Doomsday", when Rose joins the Torchwood Institute of a parallel Earth. The special was commissioned by BBC One controller Peter Fincham and assigned a production budget. Davies changed his mind while filming Piper's final scenes for series 2 of ''Doctor Who''. He later called ''Earth Defence'' "a spin-off too far", and decided that the audience being able to see Rose when the Doctor could not would spoil the ending of "Doomsday". The production was cancelled. Davies said that Piper had been told about the idea, but the project ended before she was formally approached about appearing in it. The plot element of Rose working with an alternative Earth's Torchwood was revisited in "The Stolen Earth" and "Journey's End (Doctor Who), Journey's End".


Proposed films


''Marco Polo'' adaptation

Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Productions had expressed interest in a remake of the ''Doctor Who'' serial ''Marco Polo (Doctor Who), Marco Polo'' as an historical adventure film, without the Doctor and his companions.


Third Dalek film

Plans to adapt the Dalek serial '' The Chase'' were shelved after the poor box office reception of ''Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 A.D.''.


''Doctor Who Meets Scratchman''

During spare time in filming, Tom Baker (the Fourth Doctor) and
Ian Marter Ian Don Marter (28 October 194428 October 1986) was an English actor and writer known for his role as Harry Sullivan in the BBC science-fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' from December 1974 to September 1975, with a non-regular, one-ser ...
( Harry Sullivan, who novelised several ''Doctor Who'' scripts for Target Books) wrote a script for a ''Doctor Who'' film entitled ''Doctor Who Meets Scratchman'' (alternatively, ''Doctor Who and the Big Game''). The Doctor encounters the Devil (who calls himself Harry Scratch or Scratchman), the Daleks, robots known as Cybors, scarecrows made from bones and, briefly, the Greek god Pan (god), Pan. Vincent Price and Twiggy were associated with the production; Price would have played Harry Scratch and Twiggy a replacement female companion after Elisabeth Sladen left the TV series.. The finale of the film would have taken place on a giant pinball table, with the Doctor, Harry and Sarah dodging balls and battling Daleks. Until the late 1970s, Baker repeatedly tried to obtain funding for the film. In a 1975 interview, he referred to flaws in the two 1960s Peter Cushing Dalek films: "There have been two ''Doctor Who'' films in the past, both rather poor ... There are many dangers in transporting a television series onto the big screen ... a lot of things that you could get away with on the small screen wouldn't wash in the cinema." Baker received donations from fans for the film, but returned them in accordance with legal advice. Plans were dropped after the release of ''Star Wars (film), Star Wars''. In late January 2019, BBC Books published a novelization of Baker's screenplay co-authored by James Goss (producer), James Goss.


''Dr Who's Greatest Adventure''

In 1984, after failing to finance ''King Crab'' (a horror film based on Guy N. Smith's ''Night of the Crabs''), Milton Subtosky (who produced the 1960s Dalek films) adapted the screenplay into a ''Doctor Who'' film with two Doctors. Subtosky envisioned Jon Pertwee or Tom Baker as the older Doctor, and a new actor as the younger one. The film's working title was ''The Lossiemouth Affair'', and it became ''Dr Who's Greatest Adventure''. Subotsky pursued production of the film until his death in 1991.


Lacuna film proposals (1987–1994)

As the original ''Doctor Who'' series neared its end and during the first interregnum (1989–1996), a number of attempts were made to adapt the series to film for the first time since the two 1960s Peter Cushing films. Jean-Marc Lofficier profiles a number of film proposals in his book, ''The Nth Doctor'', some of which came close to being produced. The only film version of ''Doctor Who'' produced other than the Cushing films was the Doctor Who (1996 film), 1996 made-for-TV film, which was developed as a continuation of the TV series rather than a re-imagining of the concept.. The film had the working title of ''Doctor Who: The Last of the Time Lords''. Among script proposals profiled by Lofficier are several submissions by ''Doctor Who'' and ''Space: 1999'' alumnus Johnny Byrne and others by Robert DeLaurentis, Adrian Rigelsford, John Leekley, Mark Ezra and Denny Martin Flinn.


Related works


Radio series

During the late 1960s, a radio series starring Peter Cushing (who played a human version of the Doctor in two films featuring the Daleks) was planned for production. A collaboration between Stanmark Productions and Watermill Productions, a pilot was recorded and a further 52 episodes were to be produced. In the pilot, "Journey into Time", the Doctor and his granddaughter travel back to the American Revolution. The script was written by future ''Doctor Who'' television-series writer
Malcolm Hulke Malcolm Ainsworth Hulke (21 November 1924 – 6 July 1979) was a British television writer and author of the industry "bible" ''Writing for Television in the 70s''. He is remembered chiefly for his work on the science fiction series ''Doctor Wh ...
, but the recording is lost.


''Doctor Who'' webcast

In 2003, the BBC announced the return of ''Doctor Who'' as a series of webcasts on BBC.com; Richard E. Grant was announced as the Ninth Doctor. A webcast by Paul Cornell entitled "Scream of the Shalka" was completed and released on bbc.com; this was followed by an online text short story entitled "The Feast of the Stone". Work was well underway on another webcast story, "Blood of the Robots", to be written by Simon Clark (novelist), Simon Clark. Before production began it was announced that ''Doctor Who'' would return to television with Russell T. Davies as showrunner, and webcast production was halted. Its synopsis was, "A blend of adventure, drama and humour. The Doctor arrives to find a world full of intelligent, sensitive robots that have been abandoned by their human owners, who are too squeamish to 'kill' them when they're obsolete. Now ruthless salvage squads are hunting the robots in order to make room for human settlers forced to migrate from their dangerously over-crowded home planet."


See also

* ''Doctor Who: The Lost Stories''


References


Bibliography

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