The Talons of Weng-Chiang
(DVD)

Starring Tom Baker
6 Episodes
1977
142 minutes (color)
Double Disc




 

 

Production Notes
Doctor Who
Tom Baker

Leela
Louise Jameson

Written by
Robert Holmes

Directed by
David Maloney
Produced by
Philip Hinchcliffe

Original Airdate
Feb 26, 1977 - Apr 2, 1977

US DVD Release Date
October 2003

Warner Home Video
#E1814

U.K. Cover


 

 



Cover Blurb
The Doctor brings Leela to Victorian London to meet her ancestors (though Agincourt might have been more her style). The TARDIS materializes in the darkest heart of the city, where life - and death - is anything but dull. A hapless cabbie is slain by agents of a secret Chinese cult. Young women are disappearing at an alarming rate, and Li H'sen Chang, the Palace Theatre's celebrated magician, may know more about that than he admits. Li H'sen's ventriloquist dummy, Mr. Sin, appears to have a life of its own, and the rat problem in the sewers is bigger than anyone can imagine.



 

 

 

DVD Features
 

Disc One
All 6 episodes as they were originally transmitted in 1977.

 
  • Commentary:
 This DVD  boasts an impressive group commentary by Louise Jameson (Leela), John Bennett (Li H'sen Chang), Christopher Benjamin (Henry Gordon Jago), David Maloney (director) and Philip Hinchcliffe (producer).
 

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

 
 

Disc Two
The remaining DVD bonus features.

 

  • Whose Doctor Who:

 This hefty and famous documentary, made in 1977 and presented on The Lively Arts, follows much of the rehearsals and production of this story as well as the history of Doctor Who and its impact on children.  The documentary runs for nearly an hour and is really the hallmark of the bonus features presented for this title.
 

 
  • Phillip Hinchcliffe Interview:
 An 11 minute interview of then outgoing producer Phillip Hinchcliffe on the show Pebble Mill At One.  An interesting interview that centers around the controversy of violence that surrounded the program at that time.
 

 
  • Behind the Scenes:
 Approximately 24 minutes of studio footage.  Unfortunately, the quality of the video is atrocious (blurry, black and white).  Really for the hard core fan, not the casual viewer.
 

 
  • Blue Peter Theatre:
 Apparently during the mid 1970's the childrens' show Blue Peter ran several segments (26 minutes worth) on creating your own "Doctor Who Theater" out of cardboard.  
 

 

  • 40th Anniversary Celebration:

 A specially created "music video" celebrating the first 40 years of the show's history.  The video uses quite a few clips spanning the entire history of the series.  A variation of the signature theme song (as performed by the group Orbital) is used in the video.  It runs for approximately 3 minutes.
 

 

  • Trails and Continuity:

 Continuity announcements usually involve the BBC globe rotating on screen while an announcer gives a very brief synopsis before the episode begins.  There are over 2 minutes worth of trailers and continuity announcements presented here.
 

 
  • TARDIS-Cam #6:
 Some time ago, BBCi started an online feature called the TARDIS-Cam which would show people browsing the Internet different locations that the Doctor has traveled to.  Most are simply photos taken from stories already made.  A handful were specially created.  One of these is included as an extra.  You will see the TARDIS flying through a group of "space whales."
 

 
  • Howard Da Silva Intros:
 A feature unique to the North American DVD releases.  This is very similar to the Da Silva Intros/Outros included on the "Robots of Death" DVD only this time for "The Talons of Weng-Chiang."  For those out there who don't know, Da Silva  narrated short segments used during the openings and closings of episodes used in the early 80's syndication package.  These intros/outros are included in this feature.  Anyone who was introduced to Who back then (as I was) will get a neat trip down a nostalgic path. 
 

 
  • Who's Who:
 A feature unique to the North American DVD releases.  It lists short biographical information on many of the actors involved in the story.
 

 
  • Photo Gallery:
 Once again we are treated to many rare production stills and quite a few behind the scenes ones as well.
 

 
  • Easter Eggs:
 There is 1 egg included in this release.  Highlight the blank area below to find out more information.  For a full list of known Easter Eggs and screen grabs of them click HERE.

 

#1. CLEAN OPENING TITLES  
(USED FROM SEASONS 12 - 17)

Go to Disc Two (Special Features)
Click on the hidden Doctor Who logo to the left of 'TARDIS Cam No. 6'

 

 



 

 

 

Additional Notes
  • This is becoming a bit clichéd, but "Talons of Weng-Chiang" is another example of classic Doctor Who.  However, the BBC did receive a number of complaints over the show's portrayal of the Chinese.
  • Christopher Benjamin (playing the memorable character of Henry Gordon Jago) had appeared once before on Doctor Who in the Pertwee classic "Inferno."
  • A spinoff series was briefly considered for the characters of Henry Gordon Jago and Professor Lightfoot.  Ultimately the idea was abandoned.
  • The VHS version of this story was originally released in an edited "movie" (or Omnibus) format.  This means that individual episodes have been cut and pasted together into one viewing.  The BBC released Doctor Who videos like this until the early 90's.  Since then they have gone back and issued "re-releases" of virtually all of their omnibus versions.   In the U.S. they have only done two re-releases "The Brain of Morbius" back in 1997 and "Terror of the Zygons" in 2000.  The DVD release of "The Talons of Weng-Chiang" marks the first time this story has been commercially available in its original episodic format.
  • This story was the last one to be filmed with Phillip Hinchcliffe as producer.  Long criticized for its violent content (for the times), things came to a head during the transmission of "The Deadly Assassin" some months earlier, and Hinchcliffe and, sadly, the BBC parted company at the end of that season.
  • Because of the number of episodes combined with the amount of extras included, this DVD release has been spread across 2 discs.  The first disc contains all 6 episodes and commentary while the second one has all of the other special features.