Classic Doctor Who Review: Web of Fear

[@chrispalmer7893]

I seem to recall that they didn’t get permission to shoot on the Underground so those are actually sets. The Underground complained later that they must have sneaked in and the production team were pretty proud of that. It is similar to how pleased they were with all the complaints they got for “blowing up a church” at the end of the Daemons.

[@kemmdog4444]

Chris Palmer right on.

[@anonagain]

I saw that too in a special feature - it's amazing how real the Underground set looked.

[@neilmcdonald8355]

Definitely not real underground (tfl refused though the sets were so realistic that they accused the BBC of going into the underground without permission!)...those pictures of missing episode 3 are called telesnaps-taken from the TV at time by a chap called John Cura

[@rosco31100]

Love the use of the word "Chap" Lol

[@darachocathain1996]

The fact that you think they got to shoot in the underground speaks volumes for how good this story looks 😍 The Underground were ready to sue the a*ses off them for filming there without permission, but really their sets were just that convincing 😂

[@theshadowdirector]

It wasn’t on location, it was a set. They scrappy got accused of breaking their promise not to film in the London Underground, it was that convincing.

[@neilmcdonald8355]

Episode 3's absence you may know was found with the others but mysteriously gone by time the story was returned to UK and it's generally believed flogged to a collector!

[@SGTMET4L]

They did not film in the underground. All of the underground scenes were shot at the Ealing film studio in west London, the rest of the interior scenes where shot the Lime Grove studios (studio D).

[@HaseOster]

I actually REALLY liked the above-ground scene with Brigadier's soldiers fighting. It had a weight to it (unlike many other similar scenes in DW), and I really loved the performance by Nicholas Courtney.

[@kemmdog4444]

Very good chemistry with Victoria and Travers especially since the are daughter and father in real life.

[@matthewgleason7495]

Definitely a favorite of mine. Good choice on behalf of your Patreon contributors. I know Jamie was killed off in a comic but I still think Jamie coming back in the modern series for an episode could work very well.

[@M-E_123]

I think the increased cast members were actually there because they always planned for UNIT to be a recurring group. So some of those extra cast were the test characters (leader, sergeant, press person, scientists etc) - they are all the archetypes that UNIT is built on.

[@SirMeowsAlot89]

Jamie, ZOE and the Doctor. Are the best companion team.. not just the Doctor and Jamie. Zoe balances out Jamie’s 17th century’s ignorance. Edit: not that Jamie’s ignorance is a bad thing. One of the aspects of his character I love.

[@Ben-vf5gk]

I'm actually quite forgiving of Victoria's frequent screaming at the monsters than I would be with another female companion like Susan cause that plays a big part in her departure.

[@lizzie8561]

The one above ground action scene that didn't work? Do you mean the battle with the Yeti in episode 4? Dude, that was an awesome sequence!!!!

[@AubreySciFi]

This is one of my favorite Troughton stories, and my Favorite Great Intelligence/Yeti story. I was really happy when most of it was recovered a few years back. For many years there was only episode one and the reconstructions for the rest. Because of that my first introduction to this story was the novelization and the Doctor Who Magazine Plot synopsis/Story breakdown article accompanied with lots of pictures.

[@Concreteowl]

I love that the sets convinced you too 😁

[@jasonthayer1309]

You should do a countdown of your favorite classic companions now that you've seen enough of Classic Who.

[@MiroDaisuke]

I laughed out loud when you said "that's right, Yetis!" Also I somehow completely missed the fact that the Great Intelligence is a Classic Who villain. That brings so much new context to it in Modern Who, since it's a character with a history (like the Master and Davros). I'll have to read up on that now!

[@rosco31100]

This is my favourite Second Doctor Story! I love it all!

[@Yan_Alkovic]

Oh, yeah, the professor's facial expressions in the first episode were phenomenal. I particularly liked the bit where he said "You _fool!"_ to that rich guy and he looked as if he was saying "Mah boi". But yeah, this is truly a great story on so many levels and I agree with basically everything that you said (although personally I found the soldiers in the above-ground combat scene to be much more cringeworthy than the yetis) and along with the Enemy of the World (my favourite 2nd Doctor story BTW) this story is especially memorable to me because the reconstructions for those came out at about the same time as I was getting close to Season 5! That coincidence really stuck with me.

[@Ocsttiac]

Also, watch "The Enemy of the World", it's a fantastic 2nd Doctor story.

[@demaupin]

Seconded! Such an enjoyable watch. I loved loved loved Fariah Neguib, even if, in typical DW fashion, she was woefully underutilized given the potential the character had. And seeing Troughton play against Troughton is such a treat!

[@thomaskirkness-little5809]

Of course Yeti use webs. The perfect trap in a snowy landscape.

[@Companion92]

I like this one. I'm only sad, that the Doctor and the Brig meet for the first time and it's offscreen. But I heard, that they put the scene in the book version. Now I want to read it.

[@rosco31100]

I liked the addition to the book, what I didn't like is the whole spiel about how they didn't know they were going to be good friends in the future. It took away from the moment.

[@Lil-Dragon]

Great video. I'm jealous of the scarf

[@timelordrohan9425]

Same!

[@spluff5]

I love Ann. I'm so sad she didn't come back in The Invasion

[@IronSalamander8]

Love this one. Seeing the Brig for the first time was great too. I first saw him in Tom's time, and seeing him earlier on in Pertwee's and Troughton's was really cool.

[@sirjedisentinel]

Fun Fact: five Classic Who monsters are based on HP Lovecraft's Cthulu mythos (in-universe, they influenced Lovecraft to write about them). The Great Intelligence is one of them

[@scl1332]

I disagree the scene where the soldiers fight the Yeti in London or rather a small trashy alleyway (because that’s all they could afford let’s be honest) is one of the most terrifying scenes in the whole story where this small platoon of soldiers with grenades, bazookas, and machine guns is virtually wiped out except for Lethbridge Stuart just shows the power of these creatures and how their really deadly. Also the Brigadier might have some PTSD from this scene where he saw all of his men get wiped out which actually kind of depressing

[@vincinel114]

I wasn't even expecting this. Also, I think that this is the first time (excluding Shada, because that just doesn't count) that you've covered a missing story in a long time; the first one you covered was the first Classic Story that you ever reviewed, which was Power of The Daleks.

[@doughosford5849]

I enjoyed the story when I both saw it and when I read the novelization. Of course being the Brigadier's first story was a big reason for it being a fan since LA's KCET showed the Pertwee episodes.

[@lizzie8561]

OK, I confess. I have the third episode film recording. It's in a box under my bed!!!

[@kaicreech7336]

YOU WILL SUB-MIT THIS RE-CORD-ING, OR YOU WILL BE EX-TER-MIN-ATED.

[@lizzie8561]

@@kaicreech7336 Come and try!! :-)

[@cable78]

I told you to watch The Enemy Of The World!

[@roguebritgravy1]

At the start of the scene did you notice that the strings they use at the yeti museum is the exact same as the ones used in 1980's The Shining with Jack Nicholson? I didn't until I watched this serial.

[@ericjohnson9623]

Yup, Bela Bartok's Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste. Freaky, scary as hell classical piece both Camfield and Kubrick used wonderfully. That first initial scene in Episode 1, the ridiculous anti-Semitic stereotype aside, is one of the best directed, tensest scenes in Who.

[@roguebritgravy1]

@@ericjohnson9623 I'm not gonna deny it's a bad stereotype but in 60's TV some characters had to embody them. Honestly I didn't know it was stereotypical until you mentioned it. It is a nice piece of music and it surprisingly links one of the best horror movies to one of the oldest and longest lasting British sci fi shows

[@demaupin]

"So if I were to tell you that the London Underground was covered in webs, what's the first thing you'd think of? That's right, *yetis*" lmao. It always makes my day when a classic who review comes across my feed, thank you!

[@jedisalsohere]

I like the story fine enough but I DON'T like that they didn't go through the effort of animating the missing episode, like with The Underwater Menace.

[@matthewduncan8523]

You know it takes over a year to make the animations, yeah. They’re getting through it

[@jedisalsohere]

Delay the DVD then. We'll wait.

[@patrickt.6492]

Enemy of the World is my favorite Troughton storyline. Definitely check it out.

[@Reprodestruxion]

They did the robo sasquatch before Steve Austin

[@ishaandw]

The actor who portrays Professor Travers was Deborah Watling's (Victoria) real life father

[@citrinedragonfly]

Finally had the chance to see this one thanks to the Twitch stream last summer, and I adored it. I'm sad the show never saw fit to bring Anne back - she would have been a fun recurring character, and is kind of a prototype for Dr. Liz Shaw (Never Miss Shaw, Brigadier, thank you). Victoria is not well-served in this episode. The writers seem to give her less and less agency as her tenure continues. Tomb of the Cybermen, she's great. She's scared and screams, but she also knows to get help when she needs it, tricks the villain, and is a crack shot with a pistol. This story, though, is an excellent Second Doctor one (though, if I'm honest, I like Enemy of the World more). Jamie is one of the best companions, and definitely the one who comes to mind when you think Second Doctor.

[@BronyDanProductions]

Kathleen Fowler well, on the original plan for 'The Invasion', Travers was meant to be in it, as opposed to Professor Watkins, but the production team didn't want to pay for royalties to use the character, so maybe if he had come back, we may have had Anne as well.

[@citrinedragonfly]

@@BronyDanProductions If only it could have gone that way. Imagine Anne Travers and Zoe being brilliant together!

[@BulbasaurRepresent]

You haven't seen Enemy of the World?? Okay, well this was 3 years ago so you might have seen it since, but Enemy of the World is probably my favourite classic story - potentially my favourite doctor who story!

[@CouncilofGeeks]

I’ve seen it since then. It’s quite good.

[@meowth900]

Can’t believe yetis make webs

[@mortdewerewolfe691]

Part written by Henry Lincoln who went on to write The Holy Blood And The Holy Grail with Richard Leigh and Michael Baigent. Baigent went on to sue Dan Brown for plagiarising the book in the Da Vinci Code. He lost and incurred legal costs of £3 million.

[@Reprodestruxion]

Idea 💡: combine Burlesque with Pantomime >.>

[@Ocsttiac]

They did NOT get permission to film in the London Underground. Where the heck did you hear that?!

[@ilovecatweazle]

The London Underground was fooled into complaining to the BBC that they used it without permission. The sets were that good.

[@Ocsttiac]

@@ilovecatweazle Exactly. That's a widely spread story that I'm surprised it's not just a commonly known fact about this story.

[@Thunderwing88]

THEY DID NOT GET PERMISS...wait, people have pointed that out already.

[@paulkeddo1778]

l got it on dvd

[@BretAHart]

I assume it was Jack Watling's way of portraying an older, stiff jointed man, which was unnecessary due to the aging makeup he's wearing. In his appearance in Abonimable he did not act that way at all.

[@Reprodestruxion]

Lorry 🚛 driver!!!!

[@theevildalek5425]

It is better if you watch Enemy of the World first. Now you know what happens to Salamander (P.S Enemy of the World I think is a better story then The Web of Fear.)

[@highvoltage7797]

I don’t want to say it but you never seem that happy with classic Doctor Who. The only episode I’ve seen you genuinely love is City of death.

[@Aidenkong523]

Enemy of the world is better

[@jandoor2068]

.....are you wearing earrings?! You forgot the lipstick and mascara .. and would it kill you to put on a nice evening dress? ;)

[@CouncilofGeeks]

Thanks for the notes. Check out my more recent stuff to see all this in action.

[@neddystark3351]

I was so disappointed with this story. It bored the pants off me. It took me 7 days to watch 6 episodes as I just couldn't do it any quicker without falling asleep.

[@jamiestevens3074]

I really found this story really boring to be honest. I watched the first 30 minutes of it months ago and still haven’t finished it.

[@rationraw5017]

that cheery boy, yeah he just tells everybody that he’s a driver, isn’t his dialect hilarious, his dialect is hilarious as India people saying funny India dialect, people with black skin saying funny African accent, and poor Asians with broken English, the only difference between that driver and the others, England took their stuff from their lands in a much earlier ancestral times,yeah that made the English kind of dialects more dignified