The Hartnell Years

"We are not of this race. We are not of this Earth. We are wanderers in the fourth dimension of space and time."

On November 23rd, 1963 Gallifrey's most famous time traveler, the Doctor, began his wanderings in his first incarnation -- William Hartnell -- the anti-hero with a heart of gold. So began the Hartnell years --1963-1966.

28 years later, the Doctor's seventh incarnation, Sylvester McCoy, takes us back through time, through previously untransmitted or rare episodes. For the first time . . .

An Unearthly Child:
Filmed on September 27th, 1963, the original untransmitted pilot episode. How it all really began . . .

Plus : 'The Wheel of Fortune' (Episode 3 of The Crusade) and 'The Final Test' (Episode 4 of The Celestial Toymaker). Originally transmitted in 1965 and 1966, these rare episodes are all that remain of two classic adventures.

• This video contains 3 rare episodes from incomplete Hartnell stories.   The first is the unaired pilot episode "An Unearthly Child."  It was rejected by BBC executives and a second pilot was ordered.  This first pilot shows a much more unsympathetic characterization of the Doctor, an alternate history and background for the Doctor and Susan, a multitude of fluffed lines, and props refusing to work.
   

• Episode 3 of "The Crusade" was included on this video years before the recent discovery of episode 1.  With the newly discovered episode a double pack of "The Crusade" and "The Space Museum" was released in 2000.  The videotape release also included the audio recordings of episodes 2 and 4 on CD much the same as "The Ice Warriors" box set.  William Russell (who played Ian Chesterton)  provided linking narration for the missing episodes along with audio clips and photographs.
   

• A restored version of the unaired pilot episode of "An Unearthly Child" was released on the "Edge of Destruction" tape.  It also included two different recording takes of the TARDIS interior scenes not included on "The Hartnell Years."
   

• This video also includes the last (and only remaining) episode of the classic Hartnell story "The Celestial Toymaker." 
   

• All of the episodes on this VHS release (minus the pilot episode) have since been cleaned up and restored for a DVD release called the Lost in Time collection.