Doctor Who has been a part of TV history since 1963, meaning it has accumulated a lot of episodes, even accounting for that break from 1989 to 2005. However, not all those episodes can be re-watched, thanks to the BBC purging over 100 episodes from its archives from 1967 to 1978 to make room for newer content. Some of those episodes have been rediscovered and pieced back together for today's viewers, but for the most part, these "lost episodes" can never be watched in their original form. Fortunately, the audio from these episodes remain intact, and thanks to this, fans may get to see six from the bunch recreated through animation.
BBC Worldwide has reportedly commissioned a company to animate the six-part Doctor Who serial "The Power of the Daleks," according to The Mirror. First airing from November 6, 1966 to December 10, 1966, this was the first serial to star the Second Doctor, played by Patrick Troughton. Although the audio and short clips from these episodes survived thanks to fan recordings, it's rarely ever been seen, as it only aired once in the United Kingdom and was only sent overseas to Australia and New Zealand. BBC has yet to officially confirm this animation project, but for longtime fans, this would be a great treat.
It's worth noting that this wouldn't be the first time Doctor Who has played around with animating scenes from the classic series. Three years ago, they released this animated clip showing the First Doctor (played by William Hartnell) regenerating into the Second Doctor at the end of "The Tenth Planet."
Regeneration has been a recurring element in Doctor Who, as every time the eponymous Time Lord is mortally injured, he becomes a new man with a new personality as his body heals. As seen with other Time Lords, males can even become females thanks to regeneration, and vice-versa. However, the concept was still fresh in "The Power of the Daleks," to the point that one of his companions, Ben, questioned if the new man in front of them was an impostor. As Ben and Polly got used to this status quo change, they joined the Second Doctor in battling his arch-enemies, the Daleks, on the planet Vulcan.
In the decades since the Doctor Who purging, there have been instances where previously lost material was found somewhere outside of the U.K. 2013, which was also the franchise's 50th anniversary, proved especially beneficial, as the serials "The Enemy of the World" and "The Web of Fear" were rediscovered and later released on iTunes. The former had all its episodes intact, while the latter's third episode was represented as a "tele-snap" reconstruction. If this animation news is legitimate, then this could result in other classic serials being recreated in animation form so they can finally be fully watched rather than summarized.
While classic Doctor Who fans can possibly look forward to the "Power of the Daleks" animated tale being released in the near future, the modern series will return this winter with a new Christmas special, followed by Season 10 premiering sometime in early 2017.
