Doctor Who - The Key to Time.

[DavidXBrunt]

I dipped into my savings to buy the 7 disc Doctor Who boxset that was released last month. And do you know what? It's fracking great. Six fun stories with Tom Baker at the top of his game.

When you can look at a series of Who and say that the least effective scripts were by Robert Holmes and Douglas Adams then something is going right somewhere. Lots of imagination and effort in the production and a varied mix of stories and styles.

Particularly good are the extras, ranging from story specific docos, a profile of the producer, location reports, missing scenes, a feature on Hammers influence, 9 commentary tracks, and though there are a couple of random clip compilations and an attempt at Look Around You style silliness that fails on most levels it's still a top collection. Oh, there's an feature on Philip Madoc too.

I've really enjoyed watching it and if modern Who isn't doing it for you, and you want to wallow in nostalgia I can heartily recommend this. I've not enjoyed Who this much in a long time.

[Lobo Baggins]

What number you got?  I got 10,005...

I agree, it's a box set that puts other box sets to shame.

the least effective scripts were by Robert Holmes

That better mean 'The Power of Kroll' and not 'The Ribos Operation', boy, 'cos that there's fighting talk!

[Richmond Clements]

I wish I had money.

[Trout]

What is this thing you call money?

[DavidXBrunt]

How could anybody not love Ribos Operation? That's just crazy talk.

[ARRISARRIS]

...14471...

[Huey2]

"...the least effective scripts were by Robert Holmes and Douglas Adams."

I should point out that the incredibly dire "Armageddon Factor" wasn't written by Holmes or Adams nor was the ""Is it a Hammer Horror - no it's turned into an episode of Blakes' 7 for no reason" Stones of Blood".

The fantastic "Ribos operation" was though and so was the brilliantly mental "Pirate planet".

Although I do agree that this is a great set containing some great stories ('bout time too. They've served up some right tosh recently - Timelash, Time-flight, Survival).

Tom Baker is also on top form on the commentaries.

- Huey

[VampiraJen]

have i slipped into the mirror universe where everything is the opposite way around.  i seem to remember the key to time being shit.  haven't seen it for a while, though...

[Floyd-the-k]

my memory of the Key to Time is that it was absolutely brilliant. I've been craving this boxset for some time now.  
  Is Mary Tamm still a babe?

yours wondering if his family would take the hint this Christmas

[ARRISARRIS]

...it is brillant to watch back to back, i do remember when it was on tv that the key to time elements didnt really register, but it is done in a very hardly stated story arc 70's style type way...

[I, Cosh]

I flogged a load of old Dr Who books on eBay earlier this year and the only lot that didn't go was the one with all the Key to Time books in. Well, apart from The Pirate Planet as I could never find that one.

[Huey2]

The Pirate Planet never got novelised as Douglas Adams didn't want to do it and refused to let anybody else have a go.
A few years back the New zealand fan club did put out a fan-written version. It's available on-line and it's written by a certain Mr. David Bishop.