Production Code: H
First Transmitted
A Land of Fear - 08/08/1964 17:15
Guests of Madame Guillotine - 15/08/1964 17:15
A Change of Identity - 22/08/1964 17:30
The Tyrant of France - 29/08/1964 17:15
A Bargain of Necessity - 05/09/1964 17:30
Prisoners of Conciergerie - 12/09/1964 17:30
Plot
The TARDIS materialises not far from Paris in 1794 - one of the bloodiest years following the French Revolution of 1789. The travellers become involved with an escape chain rescuing prisoners from the guillotine and get caught up in the machinations of an English undercover spy, James Stirling - alias Lemaitre, governor of the Conciergerie Prison.
The Doctor - posing as a Regional Officer of the Provinces - is twice brought before the great tyrant, Robespierre himself, and has to talk himself out of trouble. Ian and Barbara, meanwhile, have a close encounter with a future ruler of France, Napoleon Bonaparte.
As events reach their climax, Robespierre is overthrown - shot in the jaw and dragged off to the prison - and the Doctor and his friends slip quietly away.
Episode Endings
The Doctor lies unconscious in a locked room in a deserted house as fire spreads rapidly through the building.
In the Conciergerie Prison, Ian watches helplessly through a grille in his cell wall as Barbara and Susan are led away to be taken to the guillotine.
The shopkeeper from whom the Doctor obtained his disguise as a Regional Officer of the Provinces tells the prison jailer that he has evidence of a traitor - and holds out the Doctor's ring.
Ian meets Leon Colbert in the crypt of a disused church. Revolutionary soldiers suddenly appear, but when Ian turns to warn Leon he finds that the man is aiming a pistol at him. The traitorous Leon announces that Ian has walked into his trap.
The Doctor arrives at Jules Renan's house - but he has brought Lemaitre with him. Jules exclaims that the Doctor has betrayed them.
As the viewer sees an image of a spectacular starscape, the Doctor tells Ian that they must search for their destiny in the stars.
Roots
A Tale of Two Cities.
The Scarlet Pimpernel.
Dialogue Triumphs
Road works overseer : "I suppose you think you're very clever."
The Doctor : "Well, without any undue modesty, yes!"
Robespierre : "Death, always death! Do you think I want this carnage?"
Barbara Wright : "You can't influence or change history. I learned that lesson with the Aztecs."
The Doctor : "The events will happen, just as they are written. I'm afraid so, and we can't stem the tide. But at least we can stop being carried away with the flood!"
Ian Chesterton : "What are we going to see and learn next, Doctor?"
The Doctor : "Well, unlike the old adage, my boy, our destiny is in the stars, so let's go and search for it..."
Continuity
The Doctor only admits to the TARDIS having displayed two 'minor' faults before [the failure of the chameleon circuit and the Fast Return switch jamming].
The French Revolution is the Doctor's favourite period of Earth history. As usual he has no money on him and is forced to barter with his ring.
Barbara once took a holiday in Somerset. Susan is terrified of rats.
QV
Location
Paris and environs, July 1794.
Links
Reference is made to the Doctor's previous attempt to take Ian and Barbara home (Marco Polo).
The cell reminds Barbara of their imprisonment in An Unearthly Child, and she later says that she's 'learnt her lesson' about trying to interfere with history after The Aztecs (See Carnival of Monsters).
Trivia
William Russell appears only in pre-filmed inserts in the second and third episodes as he was on holiday during the weeks when they were recorded.
The second episode features Doctor Who's first ever location filming: some shots of the Doctor walking through the countryside supposedly toward Paris, with Brian Proudfoot doubling for William Hartnell.
This story was a replacement for a postponed and ultimately abandoned David Whitaker six-parter about sixteenth century Spain after the Armada, which was to have been directed by Gerald Blake.
As producer and story editor respectively of the 'Saturday afternoon serial', it was originally intended that Verity Lambert and David Whitaker should provide a replacement programme to run in Doctor Who's slot while it was off air for its between-seasons break. They were eventually spared this requirement and the slot was filled instead by repeats of a comedy series called The Valiant Varneys starring Reg Varney.
Myth
An elaborate model of Paris was constructed for the production but ultimately unused. It was later given to Carole Ann Ford as a present. (There was no such model. What Ford was given was a design model made by Roderick Laing to help him in his work.)
Goofs
The hum of the control room can be heard in the forest before the TARDIS appears.
When the TARDIS finally materializes, it does so silently, and the flashing light shines through the windows. (From The Dalek Invasion of Earth onwards the TARDIS materialization is reasonably consistent. Deviations from the norm also feature in The Keys of Marinus, The Aztecs, Colony in Space, Planet of Evil, The Brain of Morbius and The Invasion of Time.)
The clothes found in a box in the farmhouse fit the travellers perfectly.
The dying Webster tells Ian of 'Le Chien Oris' and Jules Renan, but he remembers him talking of 'The Sinking Ship' and Barrass.
Renan has made a rule that the escape line works on first name only terms, yet he knows two of the people on it as Rouvray and D' Argenson.
The involvement of Robespierre (who never controlled the Terror) and Napoleon in this story is historically inaccurate.
Fashion Victim
Ian's comment on Barbara's hair: 'Hairstyle's a bit modern, but it's alright.'
Cast & Crew
Cast
The Doctor - William Hartnell
Barbara Wright - Jacqueline Hill
Ian Chesterton - William Russell
Susan Foreman - Carole Ann Ford
D'Argenson - Neville Smith
Danielle - Caroline Hunt
Jailer - Jack Cunningham
Jean - Roy Herrick
Judge - Howard Charlton
Jules Renan - Donald Morely
Lemaitre - James Cairncross
Léon Colbert - Edward Brayshaw
Lieutenant - Ken Lawrence
Napoleon - Tony Wall
Paul Barrass - John Law
Peasant - Denis Cleary
Physician - Ronald Pickup
Road works overseer - Dallas Cavell
Robespierre - Keith Anderson
Rouvray - Laidlaw Dalling
Sergeant - Robert Hunter
Shopkeeper - John Barrard
Small boy - Peter Walker
Soldier - James Hall
Soldier - Terry Bale
Soldier - Patrick Marley
Webster - Jeffry Wickham
Crew
Director - Henric Hirsch
Director - John Gorrie
The Reign of Terror