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Two lost episodes of Doctor Who unseen since airing in the 1960s have been discovered in a cardboard box belonging to a deceased film aficionado.
The film cans, which were wrapped in plastic bags, have now been regenerated by BBC archivists and will be available next month on iPlayer.
The episodes feature the first incarnation of the Time Lord, played by William Hartnell, tackling a Dalek plan to take over Earth, the solar system and the galaxy in a storyline only ever shown in the UK.
The first, titled The Nightmare Begins, was part of the third series and was originally aired in November 1965. The second recovered episode, Devil’s Planet, was broadcast two weeks later.
Film is Fabulous!, a charitable trust in Leicester that works to preserve cinema and television history, found the film cans containing the two black-and-white episodes in the collector’s vintage film collection.
Justin Smith, a professor of cinema and television history at De Montfort University and chair of trustees of Film is Fabulous!, told Associated Press: “The main broadcasters in the UK in the 1960s, 70s, up to the 80s really, junked quite a lot of content.
“In some ways finding missing Doctor Whos is the holy grail of classic TV discoveries.”
Peter Purves, who played the Doctor’s assistant Steven Taylor in 46 instalments of the show, was invited to the Phoenix cinema in Leicester under false pretences to view the two episodes. He said: “My flabber has never been so gasted.”
Purves, 87, told the BBC: “Twenty-seven of mine still are missing, but I’m delighted that two have been found. It’s rather sad, but it’s great when some turn up.”
It leaves 95 episodes still missing from the long-running series, which debuted in 1963.
The discovery is the first since 2013, when nine lost Doctor Who episodes were found in the storeroom of a television relay station in Nigeria.
The newly recovered episodes form part of a 12-part storyline, much of which is still missing.
Smith said: “We know that other episodes are in existence. We don’t know where they are or who’s got them – otherwise we’d be knocking on doors.
“But, yeah, I think there are more. The only question is when and where they will come to light.”
A special screening of the two episodes organised by Film Is Fabulous!, with Purves as guest of honour, is being held in London on 4 April, the same day the two restored episodes will be made available on BBC iPlayer.
Noreen Adams, the director of BBC Archives, said: “BBC Archives has been working to restore the original recordings and update these to broadcast quality, ensuring fans can enjoy a little extra treat with their Easter eggs this April.”
Doctor Who ran from 1963 to 1989 and was revived in 2005. The most recent series, starring Ncuti Gatwa as the protagonist, aired in 2025.
The show will be back on screen at Christmas with a special episode written by Russell T Davies. The series is due to return with an undisclosed actor in the main role.
