Classic Who "Battlefield" Parts 3&4 Full Reaction!

"Hang on, Ace. I'm coming!", The Doctor, "Battlefield" In the resolution of the cliffhanger you can see the broken prop from the tank stunt going wrong. "Thou rememberest how, in those old days, one summer noon, an arm rose up from out the bosom of the lake clothed in white samite, mystic, wonderful, holding the sword.", Warmsly, "Battlefield" The quotation is from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's "Morte d'Arthur". Apparently, the actor ad-lib'd from the poem a lot - there was some in the previous parts and now here - to give his character something more to say. "What are you doing in the lake?", "Drowning. Here, you can be King of England.", Brigadier Bambera and Ace, "Battlefield" The water wasn't really deep enough here for the effect of the sword and Ace emerging out of the water. Several takes were required as the sword kept not coming out vertical. And afterwards, Sophie had to be given antibiotics because of the water quality in the reservoir. "I am the Brigadier.", "So am I.", Brigadier Bambera and the our Brigadier, "Battlefield" It has been so much fun to see the Brig again! Aside: I'm a fan of the YouTube channel "RobWords" about English etymology. A few years ago Rob created a video about the origin of the words used for military ranks - for example: where did the unpronounced "l" in "Colonel" came from? Anyway, just recently, Rob posted a followup link to another person's article on the same subject: https://bsky.app/profile/robwords.bsky.social/post/3m43twwxstc2t So what image do you think that other author used on his page as an example of army personnel? Have a look! "UNIT's been very busy, Doctor. We've also got high-explosive rounds for Yeti's and very efficient armour-piercing rounds for robots. And we've even got gold-tipped bullets for you know what.", The Brigadier, "Battlefield" Nice story callbacks - we remember the stories. "Have you got a helicopter available?", "Oh, better than that, Doctor.", The Doctor and the Brigadier, "Battlefield" It's Bessie!! With a change of plate - "WHO 7". "Does it run on petrol or steam?", Ace, "Battlefield" Rude. "Sorry, Doctor, but I think I'm rather more expendable than you are.", The Brigadier, "Battlefield" This will shock you ... "Can this world do no better than you as their champion?", "Probably. I just do the best I can.", The Destroyer and the Brigadier, "Battlefield" ... but it would have shocked you even more if it had been filmed. "You're supposed to be dead.", The Doctor, "Battlefield" Originally, the Brigadier WAS SUPPOSED TO DIE facing off against the Destroyer. Nicholas Courtney was asked about it and agreed the Brig could die heroically. The script editor and JNT also approved it. But the story writer finally couldn't bring himself to do it. "I'm getting too old for this sort of thing. He's all yours from now on. I'm going home to Doris.", The Brigadier, "Battlefield" Nicholas Courtney had been in Doctor Who for a long time. His first role was as Bret Vyon in "The Daleks' Master Plan" (with William Hartnell). In "The Web of Fear" he started his role as our Colonel Lethbridge-Stewart (with Patrick Troughton) and then had had a promotion in "The Invasion". Then his run playing the Brig from "Spearhead from Space" (Jon Pertwee) to "Terror of the Zygons" (Tom Baker). And later playing against Peter Davison in "Mawdryn Undead" and in "The Five Doctors" (mainly with Pat). And now he has a story with Sylvester McCoy. It's a shame he never had an on-screen story with Colin Baker - that would have completed a nice set. But he did do a Big Finish audio story with Colin - and another one with Paul McGann - so he did get a complete set in a way. "That, Brigadier, was the beginning of the end of the world.", "Same as ever, eh, Doctor?", The Doctor and the Brigadier, "Battlefield"

Andrew Vignaux