An Unearthly Child

An Unearthly Child (also referred to as 100,000 BC) is the first serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on BBC TV in four weekly parts from 23 November to 14 December 1963. Scripted by the Australian writer Anthony Coburn, it introduces William Hartnell as the First Doctor, Carole Ann Ford as Susan Foreman, Jacqueline Hill as Barbara Wright and William Russell as Ian Chesterton. The first episode deals with Ian and Barbara's discovery of the Doctor and his time-space ship TARDIS in a junkyard in contemporary London. The remaining episodes are set amid a power struggle between warring Stone Age factions who have lost the secret of making fire.

The first episode, now generally considered to be also called "An Unearthly Child", was originally filmed in September 1963. Following several technical and performance errors, producers Sydney Newman and Verity Lambert decided to refilm the episode, while making subtle revisions in the Doctor's characterisation. The second attempt was filmed in October 1963.

The launch of Doctor Who was overshadowed by the assassination of John F. Kennedy the previous day. The serial received favourable reviews, and the four episodes attracted an average of 6 million viewers. However, it became overshadowed by the subsequent story, The Daleks.