Classic Doctor Who story ‘The Enemy of the World’: Special Edition DVD announced

It’s recently been officially announced that ‘The Enemy of the World’, starring Patrick Troughton as the Second Doctor, is to receive a new DVD release next month, with brand new special features.

The Enemy of the World is quite a popular Doctor Who story. Not only is it something rather different from the Troughton era, featuring no monsters at all. It also features Patrick Troughton himself playing two roles. Along with his usual role of the Second Doctor, he also plays the main villain, Salamander.

For a long time, only the third episode existed in the BBC archives. The rest of the six-part serial, unfortunately, was missing. Thankfully, this changed when the rest of the episodes were finally found in 2013. Unsurprisingly, the story was given a DVD release the same year. However, in the rush to bring this out on DVD quickly, this initial release had few special features.

Next month, however, that’s going to change with the release of The Enemy of the World: Special Edition. Due to be released in the UK on March 19^th, 2018, the new release will feature brand new remastering and a number of new bonus features.

Bonus features

Here’s what we can expect from The Enemy of the World: Special Edition, which have been listed in the official announcement.

"Remastered EpisodesEven though all episodes were restored in 2013 for the previous DVD release, Peter Crocker from the Restoration Team is using advances in technology since then to go over each one with a fine tooth comb to ensure they are now presented in the best possible quality for this special edition.Treasures Lost and FoundWith so much information now available about every Doctor Who serial, it’s not easy to learn anything new, so Toby Hadoke embarks on an exciting treasure hunt to find out all he can about the production. Along the way he’ll interview some of the cast and crew including Frazer Hines, Barry Letts, Mary Peach and David Troughton – who made his first TV appearance in this serial as an extra. Produced by Ed Stradling.Recovering the Past – The Search for ‘The Enemy of the World’A brand new interview with the episode hunter Philip Morris, we hear how he tracked down the last surviving film copy of the serial to a dusty room in the African desert. Produced by Paul Vanezis.Remembering Deborah WatlingFamily, friends and colleagues pay tribute to Debbie Watling who played Victoria Waterfield, companion to Patrick Troughton’s Doctor. Produced by Cameron K McEwan.Audio commentariesAll six episodes, contributors include Frazer Hines (Jamie), Mary Peach (Astrid), Gordon Faith (Guard Capain), Milton Johns (Benik) and make-up artist Sylvia James; moderated by Simon Harries. Produced by John Kelly.Production subtitlesOn all six episodes written by Martin Wiggins.Photo galleryProduced by Derek Handley.PDF Scripts"

A new cover

It also looks set to look very nice on the shelf, particularly with this new cover:

BBC

I’m rather looking forward to seeing this new release. Honestly, I’m not surprised that they’re releasing a special edition. Like I said, the series of Classic Doctor Who DVDs always had a high level of quality. This was because each and every story received commentaries, documentaries and other special features.

It’s taken a few years for The Enemy of the World to get the treatment it deserves. But if it’s up to the usual high standard, I’m sure it’ll be worth the wait.

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