Marco Polo


Starring William Hartnell
Episodes 1-7
1964
175 minutes
3 CD's


 






 

Production Notes
Doctor Who
William Hartnell 

Barbara Wright
Jacqueline Hill

Ian Chesterton
William Russell

Susan
Carole Ann Ford
Written by
John Lucorotti

Directed by
Waris Hussein & John Crockett

Produced by
Verity Lambert
Original Airdate
Feb 22, 1964 - April 4, 1964

UK Release Date
November  2003

BBC Radio Collection
ISBN 0563535083




Cover Blurb

First Doctor William Hartnell  joins the legendary Venetian explorer in this 'lost' BBC TV adventure, with linking narration by William Russell.

"A caravan that flies!  Do you realize what that will mean to the Khan?"

When the TARDIS breaks down on the Roof of the World, Central Asia in 1289, its occupants are met by the explorer Marco Polo.  His mammoth undertaking is to cross the desert to Peking, and before long he has set his mind on presenting the TARDIS to the emperor Kublai Khan as a gift on his arrival.  Unless they can persuade Polo otherwise, the Doctor and his companions will lose their only means to escape this moment in history.

However, Polo isn't the only one with designs on the TARDIS.  The warlord Tegana will go to any lengths to steal the magical blue box - lengths which endanger the lives of the whole traveling party as they are beset by drought, bandits, and the merciless desert.  And when the Doctor finally meets Kublai Khan himself, the precious ship is his only collateral in a high-stakes round of backgammon - and the Khan is a master of the game.

William Russell, who plays Ian in the story, narrates the soundtrack to this classic adventure which, long missing from the television archives, has itself gained legendary status as an example of Doctor Who at its finest.  Hailing from the program's first season (1963-4), it also stars Jacqueline Hill, Carole Ann Ford, and Mark Eden as Marco Polo.

An exclusive ful-color map, showing the route taken by Polo and company, is also included.

 


 

Additional Notes
  • "Marco Polo" is widely regarded as one of the best historical Who stories ever done from both a writing as well as production standpoint.  Sadly, none of the episodes exist today, only the audio recordings.
     
  • Besides "Marco Polo" author John Lucorotti has penned two other classic Hartnell historicals: "The Aztecs" and "The Massacre".
     
  • In an unusual break from tradition, this story is narrated by the character Marco Polo throughout many of the episodes as he writes in his journal.
     
  • "Marco Polo" is the earliest Doctor Who story to be released on audio.  It was only the 4th story produced.
     
  • Due to the age  of the recordings, the audio quality does vary from time to time (most notably in episode 5).
     
  • In a thoughtful act of fanwank, this disc also includes a map showing the route taken by Polo and his caravan during the course of the story.
     
  • The first disc also contains a bonus.  The entire 7 episodes are included in mp3 format (though without narration).
     
  • The audio recording of this story was done separately by David Holman and Richard Landen using home audio equipment.
     
  • Mark Ayres, of the Doctor Who Restoration Team, did extensive work on this audio release by digitally remastering these recordings.