Wednesday 19 January 2022

On This Day... 19th January

 
The alien Sil, played by Nabil Shaban, made his first appearance today when Part One of Vengeance on Varos was broadcast in 1985.
Another opening episode was The Awakening, in 1984.
Otherwise it was very much a day for second instalments.
Invasion of the Dinosaurs gave us it second episode in 1974, Four to Doomsday in 1982, and Snakedance in 1983.
Moving on to the new series, Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror was one of the better Series 12 stories. It made its debut today in 2020.

Someone who worked on a few of those episodes is remembered today - the production manager Gary Downie. A controversial figure, he was John Nathan Turner's life partner as well as working alongside him on Doctor Who. He was originally a dancer and choreographer before he got into TV production. He gave a rather ill-tempered interview with Doctor Who Magazine after JNT died - his spleen being particularly vented towards those whom he felt had abandoned JNT after he had given them work. He was especially scathing about people who had failed to attend JNT's funeral.
If you want to see his nicer side, check out the feature he made as an extra on the DVD of The Two Doctors, where he describes his role in that story, along with general behind the scenes detail.
Downie passed away on this day in 2006, aged 65.

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