Posted in: BBC, Doctor Who, DVD/Blu-ray, Preview, Trailer, TV | Tagged: bbc, bleeding cool, bonnie langford, cable, christopher bidmead, colin baker, doctor who, eric saward, honor blackman, Mark Strickson, Nicola Bryant, philip martin, robert holmes, season 23, streaming, television, trial of a time lord, tv, Valeyard, vervoids, wally k daly

"Doctor Who": Colin Baker on Trial… Again?!? Relax – It's Only to Promote BBC's Season 23 Blu-Ray Boxset

BBC Worldwide released a goofy video featuring Colin Baker on trial to plug the upcoming release the Blu-Ray boxset of Doctor Who: The Collection Season 23 – The Trial of a Time Lord.

The whole video is an in-joke with more in-jokes within the in-joke as it invokes "The Trial of a Time Lord".

The Messiest Season of Doctor Who

Originally broadcast in 1986, Doctor Who season 23 marked the most troubled period of the show's run. BBC head at the time Michael Grade reportedly hated the show. Its future was in flux as ever. It was taken off the air for 18 months for retooling, which wrecked havoc with the production and scheduling. A season-long arc was introduced where the Doctor was put on trial for his life, accused of genocide and other crimes.

This ended up becoming Colin Baker's final season as the 6th Doctor. Nicola Bryant also ended her run as the Doctor's companion Peri, meeting a fate both tragic and really goofy.  It would also be the final season that long-running writer Robert Holmes worked on before he passed away in mid-1986. Holmes had written for the show since the 1960s and contributed many stories now considered classics in Doctor Who canon. His failing health and frequent disagreements on the script added to the season's troubles.

What the BBC Says…

Here's what the BBC provided about the boxset:

In 1985, Doctor Who was taken off the air for an 18 month hiatus. When it returned, it was with an ambitious fourteen-episode adventure, The Trial of a Time Lord. The epic story saw the Doctor on trial for his life, with the court examining his adventures with companion Peri (Nicola Bryant) and looking to his future escapades with new companion Melanie (Bonnie Langford). This season saw the return of popular villain Sil, along with the Master, the towering robot Drathro and the plant-based Vervoid monsters. With the Inquisitor (Lynda Bellingham) overseeing the proceedings, it was the Valeyard (Michael Jayston) who proved the greatest threat, hiding his own sinister motives for wanting the Doctor's downfall.

Doctor Who: The Collection – Season 23 (The Trial of a Time Lord) includes the following stories from 1986:

• The Mysterious Planet
• Mindwarp
• Terror of the Vervoids
• The Ultimate Foe

Joining Baker on the journey are Nicola Bryant, Bonnie Langford, Michael Jayston, and Lynda Bellingham – with guest appearances from Anthony Ainley, Nalbil Shaban, Joan Sims, Christopher Ryan, Michael Craig, Honor Blackman, Tony Selby, and Geoffrey Hughes.

Extras Galore!

The boxed set boasts episodes newly remastered from "best available sources," but that's not all: here's a look at the extras:

• Extended edits – of all fourteen episodes
• Terror of the Vervoids – four-part standalone edition with updated Fx
• Immersive 5.1 surround sound & isolated scores – on all 14 broadcast episodes
• Behind the Sofa – new episodes with Colin Baker, Nicola Bryant, Bonnie Langford, Mark Strickson, Frazer Hines and Matthew Waterhouse
• The Writers' Room – Eric Saward, Philip Martin, Christopher H Bidmead & Waly K Daly discuss the 'Lost' Season 23
• The Doctor Who Cookbook Revisited – brave cast members tackle their original recipes from the 1980s official cookbook
• The Doctor's Table – join Colin Baker and friends for dinner
• In Conversation – Matthew Sweet chats to companion Bonnie Langford
• Plus: unseen studio footage, rare archive treats, convention footage, Blu-ray trailer, HD photo galleries, scripts, costume designs & more in the PDF Archive.
• The six-disc box set also includes hours of extensive special features previously released on DVD."

Doctor Who: The Collection Season 23 – The Trial of a Time Lord will be released on September 23rd in the UK and US.

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