I will be watching all of Classic, in order, for the first ever time!
And you can join in too!
This is for all of us who have wanted to get into the Classic era of Doctor Who, from 1963-1989!
Of course, I’ll be kicking things off with An Unearthly Child, a four part, black and white serial, which will introduce us to the Doctor (in his First incarnation, as portrayed by William Hartnell), our new TARDIS team, and… well, Doctor Who in general!
Sadly, this story is not available on BBC iPlayer, so I recommend searching out the DVD boxset “The Beginning”. It’s what I’ll be using. (It also has the following two stories, so that’s good.)
I’ll start next week, and remember, you can join in too!
The Adventure in Time and Space physical media (DVD/Blu-ray) also had a DVD of Unearthly Child. Also, check your local library, they might have a copy.
Cheking into this thread because I just started watching classic Who in order too!! I’ve reached Keys of Marinus and had some mixed reviews so far- not a fan of an Unearthly Child to put it in mild terms but I loved the Daleks after it!!!
I’m also doing an unofficial 'Doctor Who in order’ marathon, I guess! Not a proper one– I decided a while ago that I wanted to listen to all the soundtrack reconstructions, because they’re my favourite way to experience the missing episodes, so I started at the beginning with Marco Polo– and then thought I might as well fill in the gaps with the televised stories too!
So I’m on a long, slow journey through the First Doctor’s era, on of my favourite periods of Who. Of course, I’m also all over the place dipping into other eras, as I always am, but I’m hoping to go chronologically with the black-and white era!
An Unearthly Child I think is an underrated classic. You’ve got a lot to look forward to!!
Wooo! I’m excited to read your (and others’) thoughts on Classic Who stories and find out what you think about them! You’re in for quite a ride of imaginative sci-fi, some of it good and some less so, but all of it genuinely impressive considering the era and budget available.
I think I’m currently on my eighth or ninth time through it. I’ve lost count. It’s a fun time, hope you enjoy it. Main tip I have for you or anyone else embarking on the pilgrimage, is remember it’s a marathon, not a sprint. No need to try to rush through, or watch whole serials in one go (though, nothing says you can’t if you’re really enjoying it). Breaks are your friend.
I always say this to newcomers: remember that Classic was produced in a different era, a different TV landscape, and for a different TV audience. We are used to binge-watching TV shows for hours on end, but Classic Who was made to be watched one episode a week. This means that if you binge it all, you might often feel that the pacing is slow, but if you watch it as intended (one episode a week), it works better. This is why there’s filler in the episodes and why some aspects are repeated over and over in the episodes.
So don’t worry about spacing out the episodes and taking breaks, especially with the longer serials! The important thing is to enjoy the experience, not get through it in record time!
Hope you enjoy your journey through the classic series!
I do agree with @nyssaoftraken, An Unearthly Child is quite underrated in some regards.
In terms of things to recommend you: As some already pointed out, classic has a very different pace to it, it’s important to keep that in mind. There are some possibilities that you can go for:
Watch a serial in one sitting (not highly recommended): I’d say this mainly since it’s an Option, but I totally get if you don’t. For most of the classic serials I watched, I did this and had less trouble, then again with some serials I’d regret it, but overall for me, it was quite a good experience, then again i totally understand anybody who wouldn’t want watch all 12 Parts of DMP in one go, we all have some different sensibilities to it all
Space it out (highly recommended): As many already pointed out: Space it out! It’s okay to not want to watch it all in one go, the question remains mainly how there: You can either do one episode a week, or do one every second day. It’s for you to decide how you want to do it, perhaps even do two in one day, helpful for the 20x Min. Two-Parters for sure (which are rarely there). Either way, I am sure you’re going to pick a good decision with this.
Another Thing I want to point out: If you feel uncertain about the Hartnell Years, maybe tip your toes into other Doctor’s Serials. I do recommend that often to people who wanna start with classic, I’d love the 60s who era, but it’s definitely one of the harder ones to get people into due so many factors (especially the whole missing episode deal). So don’t be shy and try other eras out, IF you want that of course.
Either way, excited to hear your opinion on them!
Now I’ve finished NuWho (Yay!), this topic is going to become a lot more active as my journey is soon to begin…
But before I start, I have some questions!
So, after An Unearthly Child, comes The Daleks, a serial I’ve already watched.
I was thinking about giving The Daleks in Colour a try instead! But is it still on iPlayer, or will I have to get the DVD?
And my other question is, when I come to Marco Polo, I’ll have stumbled upon the first missing episodes. What is the best way to experience these lost episodes, particularly Marco Polo?
I personally went with the BBC audio soundtracks with linking narration for the missing episodes and watched the recovered episodes where available. The easiest and most complete versions are probably the animated episodes, the recons are available for the die-hard fan and then of course you have the novelizations which often have audiobook versions. Good luck with whichever one you choose.
If you dont mind much movement and are more somebody who can enjoy the few snippets that there are, then Recons is the way to go.
For Stories which are animated, go for those, some even improve slightly over what the original production may have looked like (although some go a bit over board with it).
If you are fine with Audios with linking Narration, the Missing Soundtracks will probably be the best for you.
You could also try a recon for that one and if you don’t get along, maybe go for the narration. The Recon/s are usually some of the best when telesnaps mostly exist, such as is the case here
Personally, I prefer the BBC soundtracks. I really enjoy the atmosphere they create, and you also get to enjoy the wonderful voices of William Russell, Peter Purves et al.
I’m so-so on the animations, to be honest, but it’s totally up to you how you go about it!
