The team behind the recent animation of The Power of the Daleks has been commissioned to animate Shada, the legendary “lost” Fourth Doctor story.
Shada has a long and complicated history in Doctor Who circles. Initially planned to end the seventeenth season of the programme, the scripts were completed by then-script editor Douglas Adams, now best known for The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Unfortunately, due to a strike at the BBC in November 1979, the final studio recording sessions were cancelled, and the story was never completed.
BBC Worldwide released the story on VHS in 1992, with Tom Baker providing linking material to camera for the missing scenes. A full-length web version, using basic Flash animation and a new cast lead by Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor, was produced to celebrate Doctor Who’s 40th anniversary in 2003.
A novelisation was published in 2012, while 2013 saw not only a remastered edition of the VHS release on DVD but also an unofficial fan version, using animation to fill in the missing scenes. Whilst a number of the original cast re-voiced their parts, the role of the Fourth Doctor was recast.
Now, thirty-eight years after it was originally filmed, BBC Worldwide is releasing a new official version of Shada. This will combine the original, remastered footage with new colour animation. The animation will feature newly recorded dialogue by the original cast, including Tom Baker as the Doctor and Lalla Ward as Romana.
Australian release dates are yet to be announced.
To whet your appetite for the new version, check out a teaser trailer below: