I had a bit of a revelation (even though that one's not being shown, as it's got non-Nation Daleks in it) when rewatching 'The Twin Dilemma' on Twitch.
That green jacket with the gold braid at the back of the TARDIS wardrobe room has always bugged me. Not because it's any more tasteless than much of the other clobber on display, but because I always got the feeling that I'd seen it somewhere before, but just could put my finger on it.
Now we're familiar with the odd prop or bit of set from 'Doctor Who' popping up in other shows, just take a look at 'Adam Adamant Lives! : D For Destruction', for example, which has a whole host of bits and pieces from 60s stories.
And 'Here Come The Double Deckers! : Happy Haunting' (by Harry Booth and Glyn Jones - yes, that one!) seems to have a guest appearance from the Iron Maiden used in 'The King's Demons' (and 'The Black Adder'), which puts in a more serious performance than either Clive Dunn or dear old Pat Coombs.
And there are simple and obvious reasons for all this - it's cheaper to hire stuff from companies that have a central store of sets and props. And the same applies to costumes, with 'Blue Peter' giving us a look behind the scenes at Bermans & Nathans, with a clip from 'Black Orchid' into the bargain.
But the BBC also had an inhouse store and 'Doctor Who' and 'Blake's 7' inevitably end up sharing bits of set and old costumes, even down to the Sea Devil who turns up in 'Rescue' looking a bit chilly minus his string vest.
Now when it comes to 'The Twin Dilemma', it's perfectly normal for fans to play Spot The Costume and the Tardis Wikia page notes a number of costumes from 'The Five Doctors', even if a reference to the Second Doctor's 'suspenders' might cause UK fans to think their copies of the story are missing some potentially interesting scenes.
But at 'Round The Archives' we've always been interested in more than just 'Doctor Who' and I always like to join up fictional universes wherever possible. So it was with no little joy that I finally clocked that this elusive green jacket seems to originate from the forgotten 1980 sitcom 'Oh Happy Band'. created by Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft.
Harry Worth stars as the leader of the band and the band members are bulked out by the Aldershot Brass Ensemble, who can also be seen in 'The Two Ronnies'. Dee Robson ('Moonbase 3' , 'Blake's 7', 'The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy') is credited for Costumes and has to kit them out in something distinctive - she clearly succeeds as the penny dropped for me that the Doctor must have had an unseen adventure with the band, being given a uniform as a souvenir at the end of Part Four...
I leave it to Big Finish to fill in the blanks, but I do like the idea of Harry Worth doing his arm & leg thing in the doorway of the TARDIS, much to the Doctor's annoyance.
Possibly, even Tony Sympson and his magnificent beard could have been revealed as a renegade Time Lord, intent on conquering the Earth with the aid of some Evil Hypnotic Cymbals or something...
On second thoughts, maybe that's why this imaginary story never made it to script stage, but if you want to enjoy the end titles from 'Oh Happy Band!' and think of what might have been, they can be seen here.
(By Andrew Trowbridge)
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