Delta and the Bannermen
Encyclopedia
Preproduction
- This was the first three-part story since Planet of GiantsPlanet of Giants*An early draft of this story – by C.E. Webber and entitled The Giants – was originally meant to be the first story of the first season.-Episode 4:*This story was originally four episodes in length...
(1964), not counting the 3 x 45 minute episodes of The Two DoctorsThe Two DoctorsThe Two Doctors is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in three weekly parts from 16 February to 2 March 1985. It starred Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant as the Sixth Doctor and his companion Peri, respectively...
, which had been broadcast two years previously, and the first intended to be this length. - Working titles for this story included The Flight of the Chimeron. The eventual title is a reference to the British band Echo & the BunnymenEcho & the BunnymenEcho & the Bunnymen are an English post-punk band, formed in Liverpool in 1978. The original line-up consisted of vocalist Ian McCulloch, guitarist Will Sergeant and bass player Les Pattinson, supplemented by a drum machine. By 1980, Pete de Freitas had joined as the band's drummer, and their debut...
. - The character of Ray was originally created as a new companion for the Doctor as Bonnie Langford had announced she would be leaving the series at the end of the season. The serial, with the working title, The Flight Of The Chimeron, was originally scheduled to end the season. However, as the serial neared production, Langford had not yet decided whether she would leave at the end of Season 24 or during Season 25; that, plus the rescheduling of Delta and the Bannermen to earlier in the season and the decision by script editor Andrew CartmelAndrew CartmelAndrew Cartmel is a British science fiction writer and journalist, and former script editor of Doctor Who. He has also worked as a script editor on other television series, as a magazine editor, a film studies lecturer and as a novelist.-Biography:...
to create another replacement companion named Alf (later renamed 'Ace'), led to the idea of Ray as a new companion being abandoned.
Production
- The scenes at the Shangri-La holiday camp were shot on location at the ButlinsButlinsButlins is a chain of large holiday camps in the United Kingdom. Butlins was founded by Billy Butlin to provide affordable holidays for ordinary British families....
Holiday camp on Barry IslandBarry Island (Vale of Glamorgan)Barry Island is a district, peninsula and seaside resort, forming part of the town of Barry in the Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales. It is named after the 6th century Saint Baruc...
, Wales. The holiday camp is no longer there, but the island was used again, this time as a stand-in for a bomb site in 1941 LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, in the 2005 series episodes "The Empty ChildThe Empty Child"The Empty Child" is an episode in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 21 May 2005. It is the first of a two-part story. The concluding episode, "The Doctor Dances", was broadcast on 28 May...
" and "The Doctor DancesThe Doctor Dances"The Doctor Dances" is an episode in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 28 May 2005. It is the second of a two-part story and saw Jack Harkness, played by John Barrowman, join the Doctor as a companion. The first part, "The Empty Child", was...
". - The soundtrack of this serial contained a higher-than-usual number of recognisable pop songs, although due to licensing costs all were re-recorded by "The Lovells", a fictional group created by the show's incidental music composer Keff McCullough. The songs featured in the serial were: "Rock Around the ClockRock Around the Clock"Rock Around the Clock" is a 12-bar-blues-based song written by Max C. Freedman and James E. Myers in 1952. The best-known and most successful rendition was recorded by Bill Haley and His Comets in 1954...
", "Singing the BluesSinging the Blues"Singing the Blues" is a popular song written by Melvin Endsley and published in 1956. The best-known recording was released in October 1956 by Guy Mitchell and spent nine weeks at #1 on the U.S...
", "Why Do Fools Fall in LoveWhy Do Fools Fall in Love (song)"Why Do Fools Fall in Love" is a song that was originally a hit for early New York City-based rock and roll group Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers in 1956. It reached No. 1 on the R&B chart, No. 6 on Billboards Pop Singles chart, and number one on the UK Singles Chart...
", "Mr. SandmanMr. Sandman"Mr. Sandman" is a popular song written by Pat Ballard which was published in 1954 and first recorded in that year by The Chordettes. The song's lyrics convey a request to "Mr...
", "Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite", "That'll Be the DayThat'll Be the Day"That'll Be the Day" is a song written by Buddy Holly and Jerry Allison and recorded by various artists including The Crickets and Linda Ronstadt. It was also the first song to be recorded by The Quarrymen, the skiffle group that subsequently became The Beatles...
", "Only YouOnly You (And You Alone)"Only You " is a pop song composed by Buck Ram. It was recorded most successfully by The Platters, with lead vocals by Tony Williams, in 1955....
", "LollipopLollipop (1950s pop song)"Lollipop" is a pop song written by Julius Dixson and Beverly Ross in 1958 for the duo Ronald & Ruby, which was covered most successfully by The Chordettes. Dixson's name is sometimes spelled Dixon....
", "Who's Sorry Now?Who's Sorry Now?"Who's Sorry Now?" is a popular song with music written by Ted Snyder and lyrics by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby. It was published in 1923."Who's Sorry Now?" was featured in the Marx Brothers film A Night in Casablanca , directed by Archie Mayo and released by United Artists.The song has been...
" and "Happy Days Are Here AgainHappy Days Are Here Again"Happy Days Are Here Again" is a song copyrighted in 1929 by Milton Ager and Jack Yellen and published by EMI Robbins Catalog, Inc./Advanced Music Corp...
". - The motorbike ridden by Billy in this story is a Vincent, made by British manufacturer Vincent MotorcyclesVincent MotorcyclesVincent Motorcycles was a British manufacturer of motorcycles from 1928 to 1955. Their 1948 Black Shadow was at the time the world's fastest production motorcycle...
. - The guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
the Doctor is seen hugging at the end of the story is a Squier StratocasterSquier StratocasterThe Squier Stratocaster is an electric guitar based on the Stratocaster, manufactured and sold by Squier, a marque of Fender.-Origins:After Fender's decision to switch Squier's production from strings to guitars in 1982, the Stratocaster was one of the first models to be put under the Squier...
by FenderFenderFender Musical Instruments Corporation, commonly referred to as simply Fender, of Scottsdale, Arizona is a manufacturer of stringed instruments and amplifiers, such as solid-body electric guitars, including the Stratocaster and the Telecaster...
, although the model is not one available at the time the story was set. - The TARDISTARDISThe TARDISGenerally, TARDIS is written in all upper case letters—this convention was popularised by the Target novelisations of the 1970s...
scenes were recorded during production of the next story Dragonfire.
Cast notes
- Features guest appearance by Ken Dodd, Don Henderson, Hugh Lloyd, Richard Davies, and American stage and screen actor Stubby Kaye. See also Celebrity appearances in Doctor WhoCelebrity appearances in Doctor WhoThis is a list of actors who have made guest appearances in Doctor Who.-First Doctor stories:-Second Doctor stories:-Third Doctor stories:-Fourth Doctor stories:-Fifth Doctor stories:-Sixth Doctor stories:-Seventh Doctor stories:...
. - Morgan Deare later played Senator Waldo Pickering in the audio play Minuet in HellMinuet in HellMinuet in Hell is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Unlike the other Eighth Doctor audio plays from this "season", Minuet in Hell was not broadcast on BBC 7 in 2005, primarily due to story references that were...
.
In print
A novelisation of this serial, written by Malcolm KohllMalcolm Kohll
Malcolm Kohll was born in 1953 in South Africa. He is a writer and producer.-Education:He attended Rhodes University in Grahamstown, South Africa, where he trained as a journalist...
, was published by Target Books
Target Books
Target Books was a British publishing imprint, established in 1973 by Universal-Tandem Publishing Co Ltd, a paperback publishing company. The imprint was established as a children's imprint to complement the adult Tandem imprint, and became well known for their highly successful range of...
in January 1989. In addition to a typographical error on the spine's title (which purports the name of this novelisation to be 'Delta and the Bannerman'), this novelisation contains an infamous typo which results in the Doctor 'peeing over a shelf'.
VHS and DVD releases
- The story was released on VHSVHSThe Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
in March 2001 in the UK and June 2002 in North America, but music clearance issues prevented the release of the serial in Australia. - A DVD edition was released in the UK on 22 June 2009.