Doctor Who "Dimensions in Time" EARLY Early Access!
Added 2025-12-26 19:16:15 +0000 UTC
Comments
I think there indeed may be some truth to it being heavily cut down. Unless I'm conflating stuff, I believe it started life as a piece called The Dark Dimension, which was meant to be a much more serious effort and a full length Classic Who adventure.
James Fish
2025-12-30 10:20:53 +0000 UTCThank you for this! I haven't watched this since it went out. At the time I felt very mixed feelings - So much Who talent, which was delightful and at the time it felt very unserious and a bit of a waste, which was frustrating. Time has been kind to it and I should watch it again for what it was. This is much better than I remember it. I had forgotten how many companions popped back up and how much everyone, apart from Tom who seems to be being a bit odd at the beginning, was just their old selves for the show. I wasn't sure what you would make of it but this has beena joy watching you react to so many old faces pop back unexpectendly. Allegedly, I think Jon Pertwee said it, but Noel Edmunds wasn't happy about this at all, and it was cut down a lot at his request so it lost a lot of coherence. I think Jon thought that as Edmunds's show occupied a similar Saturday slot to Doctor Who did during its classic heyday that it might give people ideas about bringing it back and in the same slot. That was a long time ago and the memory fades though. You're bang on the money about Eastenders - Yes, it's the BBC's long running flagship soap, and by having a crossover it was hoped that it would get soap fans watching as much as Doctor Who ones. I've never been into it but Eastenders is so much of the UK zeitgeist that even (UK) non-viewers like me would get the little asides and in-jokes of that show which get mentioned. It's apt that Kate O'Mara returned for this as her TV career had been in soaps and family drama as well as things like Doctor Who. Also, everyone who worked on this did it free of charge as it was a charity event. Funny how I'm commenting properly for the first time on "Dimensions in Time". I meant to do so for the last few seasons but it's been so busy, so have only had time to watch the reactions. I am now going to do a River Song, or maybe Morgane would be more apt, and comment sdrawkcab ni emit... I agree that "A Box of Delights" - That is the BBC 1980s one because of... Not going to say any more... would be a great short set of reactions, as well as Campion, which I really must see the remaining stories of some day, would be great. Comforting TV, but with just a hint of weirdness and enough menace to keep you alert. Oh, and there is still "The Abominable Snowmen", which has been animated and I don't think you have watched that yet, Jen (At the time you did it as a summary to open "The Ice Warriors")? If you haven't, may I suggest you do something like save it for Easter and release it as an Easter Special for us? There is also some very positive talk that some missing episodes may be on their way back in 2026. Probably won't complete any stories as they sound like one or two here and there but some might tip the episode balance of one or two classic stories over into being viable for animation. Thank you! This has been such good fun.
Edward Bloomfield
2025-12-29 23:17:13 +0000 UTCThe Box of Delights would absolutely be worth a reaction plus the bbc adaptation of the Chronicles of Narnia. It’s a shame Campion isn’t widely known that felt very Doctor like too.
Darren
2025-12-27 16:29:27 +0000 UTCI get the feeling, Jess, that you would like both The Box Of Delights and the 60s adventure series, The Prisoner with Patrick McGoohan. Both have a limited span, but both are absolutely brilliant. Trust me on this. Trust me on this . . .
Josef Schiltz
2025-12-27 15:44:48 +0000 UTCAh poor old Wendy Richard, Big Ron and so many other Walford greats… - some fans take it far too seriously when ultimately it was a bit of fun for charity.
Darren
2025-12-27 08:31:18 +0000 UTCOh no.
Dave Sanders
2025-12-26 23:32:06 +0000 UTCJess I hope you could still have a nice Christmas even after watching this. No one is ever the same after you've seen it.
Faction Paradox
2025-12-26 23:24:22 +0000 UTCPoor Sophie couldn't see where she was going with all that jumble of equipment being piled up in her arms!
Josef Schiltz
2025-12-26 21:59:59 +0000 UTCYes, Jess. It's a cross-pollination with Eastenders. The mere sound of the theme tune used to make me switch off - as fast as humanly possible. The beardy one at the beginning, with Jon, is Noel Edmunds and this was a segment within a show called Noel's House Party which occupied the early evening on Saturday slot. Noel covered many different roles in television and radio, from a DJ to game show host - Telly Addicts and Deal Or No Deal - and also occasioned to host Top Of The Pops. This was, however, enjoyable compressed silliness, but it was wonderful to see all these people again. Did we miss Fraser? I could have sworn that he was in this. Although, I believe he was still in the Emmerdale Farm soap opera at the time? He was Joe Sugden for many years in that, until around the mid-90s, so it depends when this was shot. Key sequences shot at iconic Greenwich locations like the Old Royal Naval College and near the Cutty Sark where Sylvester and Sophie landed the TARDIS. Cutty Sark is a Scottish term for a "short shirt" or "short nightdress," taken from the witch Nannie in Robert Burns' poem Tam o' Shanter, and it's one of the last tea clippers built for the China tea trade, It is a floating museum that I've been lucky enough to visit as my much younger self. I knew that Mike Yates - Richard Franklin - turning up in Bessie would get that reaction and wonderful Lis Sladen and the brief appearances of K9 and Louise Jameson and Debbie Watling and Carole Ann Ford, Nicola Bryant, Sarah Sutton and Caroline John and Nicholas Courtney.
Josef Schiltz
2025-12-26 21:17:36 +0000 UTCYES! Yes! Yesss! Canon. Yes, I am drunk. "Chaotic cacophony of nostalgia" sums this up perfectly. Messy Kweznuz to all of you at home.
Glen McCulla
2025-12-26 20:57:16 +0000 UTCHey Jess, I loved how much you loved that! Yes, it's utter chaos and you were right about the Eastenders crossover, but if you watch it in the way that you did, just as a fun love letter to classic who, it has its own charm. Seeing 3 and Liz back together and seeing 6 and the Brig on screen together were a couple of mine. Can't wait to see the Tales of the TARDIS reactions.
Terry Morriss
2025-12-26 20:55:33 +0000 UTCI had to share this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNBDnAz77Hw - The amount of time it took to get that final scene exactly right... poor things. "Don't worry Sophie, I mean Ace. Oh dear. Oh god." 😆
Brodie Vickers
2025-12-26 20:50:39 +0000 UTCGod bless you for reacting to this Jess & for, as always a wonderful reaction! Really glad you enjoyed it. It's only been a week & I was suffering from withdrawal symptoms from your Classic Who reactions! You are 100% spot on, it was a cross over with the popular BBC soap Eastenders and the lingerinhg characters you saw represented a good section of the makeup of the soap as it was in 1993. A show which started in 1985 and is still going today. Very weirdly, the woman on the fruit & Veg stall, when in '2013' mentioned that she wished her husband was still alive, which he was in 1993. Three years after that, they completely unexpectedly killed him off prompting a lot of fans of both shows saying 'how the hell did they know?!' That's Dr Who for you! It's a wonderful homage to Dr Who, particularly Classic Who & I feel makes for a kind of epilogue, even if the plot made less sense to me than Ghostlight & that's saying something! It was really all about the nostalgia on what was strictly it's 30th Anniversary. I've never watched it in it's intended 3D! See you next time!
James Fish
2025-12-26 20:03:31 +0000 UTC
