Raiders of the Lost Archives: Will Doctor Who’s missing episodes be found?

In mid-October, it was reported that several private film collections have been confirmed to hold missing episodes of Doctor Who, potentially bringing the current count down from 97. For many fans, this news will spark minor speculation as to what episodes may return soon. Perhaps it will be parts of a fully missing story like ‘Marco Polo’ or ‘The Massacre’, or something significant to the show’s history like the first Doctor’s regeneration or the second Doctor’s opening episode. Personally, I’m hoping for the final part of ‘The Dalek’s Masterplan’, due to the horrifying effect of a character being aged to death.

Doctor Who and other BBC television shows are now considered ‘missing’ since becoming victims of a cost-saving measure between 1967 and 1978, where original videotapes were wiped for re-use soon after broadcast. For almost five decades, most episodes were recovered via copies sent overseas; for example, the most recent acquisition occurred at a TV Relay Station in Nigeria in 2013.

They are out to preserve film history

However, at an event in May hosted by the charity Film is Fabulous, Sue Malden, former head of BBC Broadcast Archives initially confirmed the potential for fruition from private collections, and that “when the time is right, we really do hope that it will be Film is Fabulous that manages to return at least one or two, I don’t know, missing episodes of Doctor Who.”

Further corroborating Malden’s story is film collector John Franklin’s statement to the Radio Times:

“We are aware of several collectors – plural – with several episodes of Doctor Who that are missing from the archive – plural – that are in private collections… We are aware of those and we are actively discussing their whole collections. We’re not going to just take the Doctor Who, or the other rare bits they have, we’re talking about the whole collections, coming in, being catalogued, and being managed in the way that we manage everything.”

The success of Film is Fabulous is imperative to the recovery of lost media

Significantly, Franklin’s statement reflects Film is Fabulous’ coordinated response to the loss of cultural heritage if vulnerable film collections are not catalogued. Due to these circumstances, Film is Fabulous’ pillars are the following:

1. Support remaining collectors with advice, guidance, and assistance.
2. Promote cataloguing of collections and fulfil the wishes of collectors or their estates.
3. Identify missing, rare, or culturally significant films and preserve them.
4. Ensure recovered films are screened widely, with the blessing of copyright holders.
5. Advance and encourage further interest and education in the medium of film, especially its use in British culture.

Therefore, while Doctor Who fans can and should have some excitement about the future, it is important to realise that Film is Fabulous’ priorities are not solely in treasure hunting Doctor Who; they are out to preserve film history. It will take time for Doctor Who to return – nothing will be gained from further harassment of their staff regarding the missing episodes, or flooding email inboxes and asking impossible questions. The best thing both Whovians and non-Whovians can do is leave the work to the professionals, be patient, and, if so inclined, donate to the charity. The success of Film is Fabulous, without avoidable interference from fanatical Whovians, is imperative not just to the recovery of Doctor Who, but to all lost media.