S2 Ep48: Exploring Doctor Who: The Dark Dimension

Back in 1993, Doctor Who fans were tempted with an early reprieve to the show's cancellation two years earlier when BBC Enterprises entered into an agreement to start production on a straight-to-video 30th anniversary special, The Dark Dimension (aka Lost in the Dark Dimension). Over the  years Doctor Who fans have been lead to believe that the eventually-cancelled project was scuppered by Philip Segal, producer of the 1996 TV Movie. However recent research published in fanzine (a term that does the publication a disservice) Nothing at the End of the Lane reveals that Segal has at best overstated his role. The real story behind The Dark Dimension is one of bad decision making, poor budgeting and almost no communication with the key people involved, resulting in a production that almost literally crumbled. It is this research that forms the basis of our discussion this week, along with a few words about the possibility of Sherlock's Benedict Cumberbatch playing the Master in the upcoming 50th anniversary season. We've only scraped the surface of this fascinating story, and you can read the full fascinating details behind the failed production in the latest edition of Nothing at the End of the Lane, which you can order for just £5.99 from endofthelane.co.uk/magazine.html.