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:
“The production of too many useful things results in too many useless people.”
—Karl Marx (1818–1883)
“[T]he asphaltum contains an exactly requisite amount of sulphides for production of rubber tires. This brown material also contains “ichthyol,” a medicinal preparation used externally, in Webster’s clarifying phrase, “as an alterant and discutient.””
—State of Utah, U.S. public relief program (1935-1943)
“The growing of food and the growing of children are both vital to the family’s survival.... Who would dare make the judgment that holding your youngest baby on your lap is less important than weeding a few more yards in the maize field? Yet this is the judgment our society makes constantly. Production of autos, canned soup, advertising copy is important. Housework—cleaning, feeding, and caring—is unimportant.”
—Debbie Taylor (20th century)