Doctor Who
The Dead Planet (The Daleks, Part One)
TV Flash files “The Dead Planet (The Daleks, Part One)” as a desk essential hour — Doctor Who (1963–) on BBC, season 1, episode 5, aired 1963-12-21, 25 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S01E05: listed hour 5 of 700 in the Doctor Who guide, hour 5 of 42 in season 1. It aired 1963-12-21 (25 min). The listed hour before it is “The Firemaker (An Unearthly Child, Part Four)” (S01E04). Next is “The Survivors (The Daleks, Part Two)” (S01E06). Broadcast log — titles and dates, not a plot bible.
Essential hour: “The Dead Planet (The Daleks, Part One)”. The Dead Planet opens The Daleks: the creature brand that proved the show could outlive a single Time Lord.
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
The TARDIS has brought the travellers to the planet Skaro where they meet two indigenous races — the Daleks, malicious mutant creatures encased in armoured travel machines, and the Thals, beautiful humanoids with pacifist principles. They convince the Thals of the need to fight for their own survival. Joining forces with them and braving Skaro's many dangers, they launch a two-pronged attack on the Dalek city. The Daleks are all killed when, during the course of the fighting, their power supply is cut off.
Viewer FAQ
Where does The Dead Planet (The Daleks, Part One) sit in the Doctor Who guide?
S01E05 is listed hour 5 of 700 — hour 5 of 42 in season 1, season 1 episode 5.
When did Doctor Who S01E05 air?
The Dead Planet (The Daleks, Part One) aired 1963-12-21 and is listed at 25 minutes.
Where should I start with the 1960s serials?
William Hartnell's First Doctor is the origin of the TARDIS-and-companions contract. Patrick Troughton's Second Doctor is the proof that regeneration works. Start at a serial whose surviving episodes interest you; missing-episode gaps are part of the classic-era weather.
In the series
Why this series still plays
A Time Lord, a police box bigger on the inside, and regeneration as infinite franchise life: Doctor Who launched from the BBC in 1963 and never really parked. Early black-and-white serials built the mythology; Hartnell-to-Troughton proved the lead could change without ending the show. The longest experiment in serialized reinvention — woolly, weird, endlessly renewable.
November 23, 1963, is a drop that never really parked. BBC's *Doctor Who* launched a Time Lord and a blue police box bigger on the inside, then treated the lead as renewable inventory. **Regeneration is the window.** Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber, and Donald Wilson were among the early architects. Early black-and-white serials built the mythology; companions, sonic screwdrivers, and cliffhangers became ritual. Rex wants woolly national inheritance. Fine. The business model is recasting without ending the show.
Filed against
- William Hartnell as The First Doctor
William Hartnell’s First Doctor launched Doctor Who from the BBC in 1963 — a Time Lord, a police box bigger on the inside, regeneration as infinite franchise life. Early black-and-white serials built the mythology; Hartnell-to-Troughton…
- Patrick Troughton as The Second Doctor
Patrick Troughton played the Second Doctor on Doctor Who, the 1960s BBC proof that a Time Lord could change faces without ending the franchise. Police box bigger on the inside, regeneration as infinite life, early black-and-white serials…
- Jon Pertwee as The Third Doctor
Jon Pertwee’s Third Doctor kept Doctor Who’s police box moving — a Time Lord, a box bigger on the inside, regeneration as infinite franchise life. BBC serials launched in 1963 and never really parked; Hartnell-to-Troughton proved the lead…
Also in season 1
- S01E01 An Unearthly Child (An Unearthly Child, Part One)
- S01E02 The Cave of Skulls (An Unearthly Child, Part Two)
- S01E03 The Forest of Fear (An Unearthly Child, Part Three)
- S01E04 The Firemaker (An Unearthly Child, Part Four)
- S01E06 The Survivors (The Daleks, Part Two)
- S01E07 The Escape (The Daleks, Part Three)