September 30, 2019
54 years after its original BBC television broadcast, BBC Studios will premiere a new production of Mission to the Unknown, a missing Doctor Who episode that has been faithfully recreated by a team of students, graduates and staff of the University of Central Lancashire in the UK.
Mission to the Unknown will premiere on the Doctor Who YouTube channel at exactly 5.50pm BST on the 9th October to mark the anniversary of the original broadcast of the episode, first aired on BBC One in 1965.
The broadcast will be followed by a making-of documentary short created by YouTuber Josh Snares featuring the cast and crew of Mission to the Unknown along with the voice of the Daleks, Nicholas Briggs, original cast member Edward de Souza and actor Peter Purves, who played the First Doctor companion Steven Taylor in the 1960s.
The project was masterminded by Andrew Ireland, Pro-Vice Chancellor of Digital and Creative Industries at the UCLAN, and brought together a dedicated group of students from a wide range of disciplines including film and television, acting, fashion, music, design and dance to recreate the episode from the original script as authentically as possible, carefully researching and reproducing 1960s production techniques to achieve the classic look of the series.
Andrew Ireland, Pro-Vice Chancellor of Digital and Creative Industries at the University of Central Lancashire, said:
“This project presented us with an exciting opportunity to address that, to explore a new way of bringing these missing slices of TV history to life, and in the process, help students learn their craft by comparing contemporary production methods with historical approaches. The project gave so many people great experiences, and it is wonderful to see the Daleks menacing a black and white jungle once more.”
Luke Spillane, Digital Publishing Manager for Doctor Who at BBC Studios, said:
“I’m delighted that we will be bringing the story of Space Security agent Marc Cory to our 1.3 million subscribers on the Doctor Who YouTube channel as it is such a fantastic recreation, made lovingly with real craft and expertise by everyone at the University of Central Lancashire. I hope audiences around the world can imagine that it’s tea time on the 9th October 1965 as they rather excitingly watch a black and white episode of Doctor Who premiere on their television sets, mobile phones and tablets.”
The recreation has been championed by several Doctor Who luminaries including Nicholas Briggs, who provided the Dalek voices for the recreated episode, and stars like Peter Purves, who played 1960s companion Steven Taylor, and Edward de Souza, who played Marc Cory in the original episode, who have visited the new set to lend their support.
Mission to the Unknown will premiere on 9th October at 17:50 (UK) on the Doctor Who YouTube channel.