"Blimey, it's an Eclispse!"

"Blimey, it's an Eclispse!"

The Complete And Utter History Of Dr WHO? (Part Seven)

Spring 1964 saw the UK's children in the grip of what came to be called 'Polomania'. The popularity of Jim Hai-Karate's first story for 'dR whO' took the BeebBC very much by surprise, but a canny merchandisist by the name of Walton Tuckswell saw the way the winds was blowing off and singed a deal to make 'Mark O'Polo' goods and services. Soon, there was 'Mark O'Polo' slip-ons, inflatable 'Mark O'Polo' water gourds and for those with a sweet tooth, you could suck on a Teagarner's friend...

The above was interesting in that it came with a series of cards that could be assembled into a map that featured an excitable story in which Mark O'Polo fought the so-called 'The Tegana Master Plan Q' starring Spike Milligan and John Bluthal extolling childerens to "eat more fruit!"...

Some of the actors from 'Marko Polis' also branched out into the Buying and Selling areas, as it happens.

Hai-Karate was keen to keep up the momentums and suggested the TARDIST should find itself in the land of the ancient Axtecs who done things in the past. With the show having proved its worth, the Dramatics Department significantly upped the budget by at least three shillings and truppence, so the production team boarded a charabanc which in turn boarded a ferry and set sails for the sundry shores of Mexico.

All was fine and dandy until the charabanc was unloaded by a crane which dropped it from an dizzy height. Sadly, William Hartley-Hare's dentures flew out with the impact and nipped  Settings Designer Barty Newbarty on the back of the neck. This required filling in a BBCeeb Acccidental Report Form, which took up most of the two days what were allocated to the filming processes. Thus they could not film the Total Solar Eclispse that they went there to do and they had to recreate the shot with a light bulb and the back of a bald man's head. That that was the end of that, really, and the show was not allowed to film abroad until 'The Seaside Devil' in 1972 which was done on The Island Of Wights.

Another fine cast was assembled for this story including Jonny Ringway who done The High Priestess of Butchery known only as Thicksotottle and another man who done the Knowledgeable High Priestess Offlock.

'The Axtecs' was shown for four weaks then it stopped. But the next story was to start up the very next weak and would see the TARDIST heading out into Space wherein it would be meeting the telepathetic Sensorions and their amazing feet and beard!

Next Episode:

"No, on the left..."

(By Andrew Trowbridge)