Production
| Episode | Broadcast date | Run time | Viewers |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Part One" | 27 October 1979 (1979-10-27) | 23:32 | 9.3 |
| "Part Two" | 3 November 1979 (1979-11-03) | 24:03 | 10.8 |
| "Part Three" | 10 November 1979 (1979-11-10) | 23:55 | 10.2 |
| "Part Four" | 17 November 1979 (1979-11-17) | 24:07 | 9.6 |
This was actually the first serial of the season to be filmed. As a result, Lalla Ward's performance and manner of dress as Romana is somewhat different than that seen in the previously broadcast serials, since she was still working out her character at the time. It was also the final story to be directed by Christopher Barry, one of Doctor Who's longest-serving contributors.
Although the Doctor's solution to the problem of the neutron star, weaving a shell of aluminium around it, has been criticised as silly, the idea was in fact proposed to David Fisher by members of the Cambridge University Institute of Astronomy. Director Christopher Barry and visual effects designer Mat Irvine were called on the carpet by the BBC management for the appearance of the creature Erato. The phallic appearance of the proboscis in the first episode resulted in uncontrolled laughter in the studio and prompted an overnight change to add a pair of pincers to the creature.
At the start of the story K9 is seen reading The Tale of Peter Rabbit to the Doctor.
Read more about this topic: The Creature From The Pit
Famous quotes containing the word production:
“Perestroika basically is creating material incentives for the individual. Some of the comrades deny that, but I can’t see it any other way. In that sense human nature kinda goes backwards. It’s a step backwards. You have to realize the people weren’t quite ready for a socialist production system.”
—Gus Hall (b. 1910)
“Just as modern mass production requires the standardization of commodities, so the social process requires standardization of man, and this standardization is called equality.”
—Erich Fromm (1900–1980)
“The heart of man ever finds a constant succession of passions, so that the destroying and pulling down of one proves generally to be nothing else but the production and the setting up of another.”
—François, Duc De La Rochefoucauld (1613–1680)