Production Code: P
First Transmitted
The Lion - 27/03/1965 17:40
The Knight of Jaffa - 03/04/1965 17:40
The Wheel of Fortune - 10/04/1965 17:40
The Warlords - 17/04/1965 17:40
Plot
The TARDIS arrives in 12th Century Palestine where a holy war is in progress between the forces of King Richard the Lionheart and the Saracen ruler Saladin. Barbara is abducted in a Saracen ambush and the Doctor, Ian and Vicki make their way to King Richard's palace in the city of Jaffa. Ian is granted permission to ride in search of Barbara - the King knighting him Sir Ian of Jaffa to fit him for the role - while the Doctor and Vicki stay behind and try to avoid getting involved in court politics.
King Richard secretly plans to marry his sister Joanna to Saladin's brother Saphadin in order to bring the war to an end, but Joanna finds out about this and refuses. The Doctor and his young ward are forced to flee after making an enemy of the King's adviser, the Earl of Leicester.
Ian has meanwhile rescued Barbara from the clutches of the vicious Saracen emir El Akir. All four meet up in the wood where the TARDIS materialised and narrowly manage to escape the Earl of Leicester's men.
Episode Endings
King Richard refuses to help the travellers to rescue Barbara, telling them that she can rot in a Saracen prison before he will trade with Saladin.
Barbara is fleeing from El Akir's men down a dark alleyway when suddenly a hand appears from behind her and clamps across her mouth.
Barbara is brought before El Akir, who tells her that the only pleasure left for her is death - and that is very far away.
The TARDIS control room suddenly falls dark and silent. Only the console itself remains illuminated as the central column continues its steady rise and fall, the light reflecting on the faces of the now-motionless time travellers.
Roots
This is one of the more literate of Doctor Who stories, Ian quoting Shakespeare twice: 'A most poor man made tame to fortune's blows' (King Lear) and 'What judgement shall I fear, doing no wrong?' (The Merchant of Venice).
Barbara quotes Shelley's Epipsychidion ('One heaven, one hell, one immortality').
When she is held at Saladin's court and asked to provide amusement (an allusion to The Arabian Nights ), she plans to use Romeo and Juliet, Gulliver's Travels and Anderson's fairy tales.
Sir William des Preaux substituting himself for the King echoes Henry IV Part I.
Dialogue Triumphs
Joanna : [To the Doctor] "There is something new in you, yet something older than the sky itself. I sense that I can trust you."
Earl of Leicester : "I urge you, sire, abandon this pretence of peace!"
The Doctor : "Pretence, sir? Here is an opportunity to save the lives of many men... and you do nought but turn it down..."
Earl of Leicester : "Why are we here in this foreign land if not to fight? The Devil's Horde, Saracen and Turk, possess Jerusalem and we will not wrest it from them with honeyed words."
The Doctor : "With swords, I suppose?"
Earl of Leicester : "Aye, with swords and lances, or the axe!"
The Doctor : "You stupid butcher! Can you think of nothing else but killing, hm?"
Vicki : "Are we going back to the ship?"
The Doctor : "As fast as our legs can carry us, my dear."
Vicki : "Doctor? Will he really see Jerusalem?"
The Doctor : "Only from afar. He won't be able to capture it. Even now, his armies are marching on a campaign that he can never win."
Vicki : "That's terrible. Can't we tell him?"
The Doctor : "I'm afraid not, my dear. No. History must take its course." [The Doctor and Vicki depart. Richard's hands are on his crucifix, folded in prayer]
Richard the Lionheart : "Help me, Holy Sepulchre. Help me!"
Dialogue Disasters
Ian : "I need a good knight's sleep."
Continuity
The Doctor assures King Richard he will see Jerusalem. He later explains to Vicki that he is unable to tell Richard the whole story as 'time must be allowed to run its course'.
Location
Jaffa, Palestine, [October] 1191.
Links
Barbara tells Saladin about England in the future (The Dalek Invasion of Earth), the Zarbi (The Web Planet) and Nero (The Romans).
Trivia
There are debut Doctor Who appearances by Jean Marsh (Jon Pertwee's first wife) and Julian Glover - perhaps the most distinguished actor to have taken a guest role in the series up to that point - both of whom would go on to play further parts later in the series' history.
Bandits stake out Ian in the sand and smear honey on his arm to attract hungry ants in an attempt to force him to reveal the whereabouts of his money - in this scene, production assistant Viktors Ritelis's arm doubled for William Russell's.
William Russell's only appearance in the third episode is in a brief pre-filmed fight sequence as he was on holiday during the week when it was recorded.
Myth
This story was never sold overseas as it was felt that the content might be considered offensive in some countries. (It was sold widely overseas - although not to countries in the Middle East.)
Ian climbs up a tree and over a balcony to rescue Barbara from El Akir's harem. (The harem was on the ground floor; the tree and balcony were introduced by David Whitaker in his later novelisation of the story).
The Doctor and Vicki are forced to flee from the King's court because he thinks they revealed his secret marriage plan to Joanna. (They make their peace with King, who realises that they were not the ones who gave away his secret but nevertheless advises them to leave as they have made an enemy of the powerful Earl of Leicester; the myth again derives from Whitaker's novelisation.)
Cast & Crew
Cast
The Doctor - William Hartnell
Barbara Wright - Jacqueline Hill
Ian Chesterton - William Russell
Vicki - Maureen O'Brien
Ben Daheer - Reg Pritchard
Chamberlain - Robert Lankesheer
Earl of Leicester - John Bay
El Akir - Walter Randall
Fatima - Viviane Sorr
Hafsa - Diana McKenzie
Haroun - George Little
Ibrahim - Tutte Lemkow
Joanna - Jean Marsh
Luigi Ferrigo - Gabor Baraker
Maimuna - Sandra Hampton
Man-at-arms - Billy Cornelius
Reynier de Marun - David Anderson
Richard the Lionheart - Julian Glover
Safiya - Petra Markham
Saladin - Bernard Kay
Saphadin - Roger Avon
Saracen Warrior - Derek Ware
Saracen Warrior - Valentino Musetti
Saracen Warrior - Chris Konyils
Saracen Warrior - Ramond Novak
Saracen Warrior - Anthony Colby
Sheyrah - Zohra Segal
Thatcher - Tony Caunter
Turkish Bandit - David Brewster
William des Preaux - John Flint
William de Tornebu - Bruce Wightman
Crew
Director - Douglas Camfield
The Crusades