Doctor Who
The Tyrant of France (The Reign of Terror, Part Four)
TV Flash files “The Tyrant of France (The Reign of Terror, Part Four)” as hour 40 of 700 in the TV Flash guide — Doctor Who (1963–) on BBC, season 1, episode 40, aired 1964-08-29, 25 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S01E40: listed hour 40 of 700 in the Doctor Who guide, hour 40 of 42 in season 1. It aired 1964-08-29 (25 min). The listed hour before it is “A Change of Identity (The Reign of Terror, Part Three)” (S01E39). Next is “A Bargain of Necessity (The Reign of Terror, Part Five)” (S01E41). Broadcast log — titles and dates, not a plot bible.
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
The TARDIS materialises not far from Paris in 1794 — one of the bloodiest years following the French Revolution of 1789. The travellers become involved with an escape chain rescuing prisoners from the guillotine and get caught up in the machinations of an English undercover spy, James Stirling — alias Lemaitre, governor of the Conciergerie prison.
Viewer FAQ
Where does The Tyrant of France (The Reign of Terror, Part Four) sit in the Doctor Who guide?
S01E40 is listed hour 40 of 700 — hour 40 of 42 in season 1, season 1 episode 40.
When did Doctor Who S01E40 air?
The Tyrant of France (The Reign of Terror, Part Four) aired 1964-08-29 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)
- S01E05 The Dead Planet (The Daleks, Part One)
- S01E06 The Survivors (The Daleks, Part Two)