The Invisible Enemy
(DVD)

Starring Tom Baker
4 Episodes
1977
plus
The Pilot Episode to K-9 & Company
1980
143 minutes (color)
Double Disc




 

 

Production Notes

Invisible Enemy U.K. Cover
Doctor Who
Tom Baker

Leela
Louise Jameson

Written by
Bob Baker
&
Dave Martin

Directed by
Derrick Goodwin

Produced by
Graham Williams

Original Airdate
Oct 1, 1977 - Oct 22, 1977

Region 1 DVD Release Date
September 2008

Warner Home Video
#3000017220
 

 

Sarah Jane Smith
Elisabeth Sladen

K9
John Leeson

Written by
Terence Dudley

Directed by
John Black

Video Produced by
John Nathan-Turner

Original Airdate
Dec 28, 1981

 		 Region 1 DVD Release Date
September 2008

Warner Home Video
#3000017220
 


K-9 & Co. U.K. Cover

 

 

 



Cover Blurb
THE INVISIBLE ENEMY  While answering a mayday from a refueling station on Saturn's largest moon, the TARDIS passes through a mysterious cloud that carries a space virus.  The Doctor is soon infected and fighting for control of his mind.  Leela's only hope lies on a nearby medical satellite, where she seeks help from eccentric scientist Professor Marius and his dog-shaped computer, K-9.  (Episodes 1-4, 93 mins)
 

K-9 AND COMPANY  Sarah is looking forward to spending a quiet Christmas with her Aunt Lavinia in the sleepy village of Morton Harewood.  But when she arrives, she finds her aunt missing, and a surprise present from an old friend waiting to be opened.  Sarah and her aunt's ward, Brendan, are soon caught up in the affairs of a mysterious cult who practice the black arts, and are preparing for a human sacrifice.  But Sarah has the Doctor's gift to help them - a robot dog who answers to the name of K-9. (50 mins)



 

 

 

DVD Features
 

Disc One
All 4 episodes of "The Invisible Enemy" as they were originally transmitted in 1977 plus these bonus features.

 
  • Dreams and Fantasy:
 A 20 minute long documentary that delves into the creation of the character K-9 and the story that introduced him.  Contributors include John Leeson (Voice of K-9), and Louise Jameson (Leela).  Other participants include Derrick Goodwin (director), Mat Irvine (visual effects designer), Tony Harding (visual effects designer), Bob Baker (co-writer), and Nigel Brackley (K-9 operator). 
 

 
  • Studio Sweepings:
 Twenty minutes of rare, behind the scenes studio footage taken during filming and sourced from old editing tapes (Shibaden videotape) used at the time.
 

 
  • CGI Effects:
 This option allows you to view the story with newly created special effects shots.  If this option is not enabled then the default version is the original.
 

 
  • Trails & Continuity:
 Over 3 minutes of original continuity announcements from 1977 are included.
 

 
  • Blue Peter:
 An excerpt from the children's program from 1977.  This 4 minute long clip highlights the introduction of K-9 to British audiences.
 

 
  • Visual Effect:
 Ian Scoones and Mat Irvine are interviewed on the effects work that they did during their time on Doctor Who.
 

 
  • Photo Gallery:
 Lots of rare and never before seen photos taken during the production of this story.  Very nice.
 

 
  • Information Text:
 An incredible amount of trivia and tidbits of Whovian detail are provided.  The text appears intermittently along the bottom of the screen and is written by members of the Doctor Who Restoration Team.
 

 
  • Radio Times:
 Accessible from any computer with a DVD drive, a PDF of some of the original Radio Times press clippings.
 

 
  • Audio Options:
 Commentary is provided by  Louise Jameson (Leela), John Leeson (Voice of K-9), Mat Irvine (visual effects designer), and Bob Baker (co-writer).
 

 
  • Easter Eggs:
 There is 1 Easter Egg included in this release.  Scroll further down to find more details.  For a full list of known Easter Eggs and screen grabs of them click HERE.

 
 

 

Disc Two
The pilot episode of "K-9 and Company" as it was originally transmitted in 1981 plus these bonus features.
 
  • The K-9 Files:
 The standard documentary detailing the making of this spin off pilot episode.  Interviews include John Leeson (Voice of K-9),  Elisabeth Sladen (Sarah Jane Smith), Terrance Dicks (script editor), John Black (director), Dave Martin (co-creator and writer), and Mat Irvine (visual effects designer).
 

 
  • K-9 - A Dog's Tale:
 A short, three minute featurette where K-9 answers questions about himself.  Hmmm...
 

 
  • Pebble Mill at One:
 An excerpt from the program taken in 1981 where K-9 makes an appearance.
 

 
  • Trails & Continuity:
 Original continuity announcements from 1981 are included.
 

 
  • K-9 Stories:
 Four books written for children are included as PDF files.  These books include: "K-9 and the Beasts of Vega", "K-9 and the Missing Planet", "K-9 and the Time Trap", and "K-9 and the Zeta Rescue".  Also included is the 1981 K-9 Annual.
 

 
  • Photo Gallery:
 Lots of rare and never before seen photos taken during the production of this story.
 

 
  • Information Text:
 An incredible amount of trivia and tidbits of Whovian detail are provided.  The text appears intermittently along the bottom of the screen and is written by members of the Doctor Who Restoration Team.
 

 
  • Radio Times:
 Accessible from any computer with a DVD drive, a PDF of some of the original Radio Times press clippings.
 

 
  • Audio Options:
 Commentary is provided by  Elisabeth Sladen (Sarah Jane Smith), John Leeson (Voice of K-9), Linda Polan (Juno Baker), and Eric Saward (script editor).
 

 
  • Easter Eggs:
 No eggs on disc 2.  For a full list of known Easter Eggs and screen grabs of them click HERE.

 


 

 

 

 

Easter Egg
#1. K-9's GUEST APPEARANCE
 

 

Go to the 'Special Features' menu on Disc One.
Click on the hidden Doctor Who logo to the left of 'Studio Sweepings.'
 

 

 

 

 

 

Additional Notes
  • Long time contributing guest star Michael Sheard returns (this time as Lowe).
  • This story introduces one of the most popular companions from Doctor Who, K-9.  The early model of K-9 proved to be very troublesome.  When it got close to a camera the picture would be distorted and the radio controlled K-9 would no longer follow commands from the control panel.  It would be some time before these problems could be overcome.  As a result, K-9 was used sporadically during the rest of the season.
  • John Leeson provides the voice of K-9 as well as the voice of the swarm leader.
  • Another actor returning for a guest role is Frederick Jaeger as Professor Marius.  Jaeger also appeared two years earlier as Dr. Sorenson in "Planet of Evil" and as Jano in the Hartnell story "The Savages."
  • "The Invisible Enemy" was an ambitious story from a production design viewpoint as the story concept borrows heavily from the sci-fi classic "Fantastic Voyage."
  • Playing Lowe is none other than Michael Sheard.  Sheard's first role in Doctor Who was in the 1966 Hartnell story "The Ark" as Rhos.  5 years later Sheard would return as Dr. Summers in the Pertwee story "The Mind of Evil."  Sheard would again appear in Doctor Who, this time as Lawrence Scarman in the classic Tom Baker story "Pyramids of Mars."  After his appearance in "The Invisible Enemy" he took a 4 year break from Doctor Who until his next appearance as Mergrage in "Castrovalva."  One final appearance occurred in the 1988 Sylvester McCoy story "Remembrance of the Daleks."  He's a busy man...
     
  • The Invisible Enemy DVD release is being packaged along with a failed pilot episode of the spinoff series called "K-9 & Company".
     

  • The one (and only) Doctor Who spinoff attempt from the classic series.  This pilot episode failed to springboard into a series of its own.
     

  • With the revival of the new series of Doctor Who, several spinoffs have been successful including Torchwood, and The Sarah Jane Smith Adventures.  The latter is very much in the same vein as K-9 and Company.