Dr Who-Ambassadors of Death [1970]

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Primary Contributor : Jon Pertwee

Product Details

Director : Michael Ferguson
Actor : Jon Pertwee
Format : Black & White, Colour, PAL
Binding : VHS Tape
EAN : 5014503726522
Product Group : Video
Release Date : 2002-05-20
Running Time : 171minutes
Studio : 2 Entertain Video

ASIN : B000063KLV

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review

"The Ambassadors of Death" was the third story from Jon Pertwee's first Doctor Who season, slotting into programme continuity between "Doctor Who and the Silurians" and "Inferno". Capitalising on the then-contemporary Apollo moon landings, the ambitious seven-part adventure told of a space capsule returning from Mars under radio silence, and of the alien occupants eventually retrieved by a space rescue mission. The elaborate government cover-ups and hints of high level conspiracy not only took Doctor Who in a more adult direction, but harked back to the classic BBC Quatermass dramas of the 1950s. The action is particularly elaborate, with a prolonged gun battle in the tense opening episode, a well-shot chase across a river in Episode 3, and an especially notable set-piece hi-jacking involving a helicopter in Episode 2. It all goes on an episode too long, but Pertwee makes a convincing action hero and the story is interesting for showing the development of UNIT, even if they are depicted as the world's most inept security force. Fans should note "The Ambassadors of Death" uniquely split each week's main titles into two separate sections. The video presents the episodes in a mixture of colour and black and white, as not all the material survived in colour.--Gary S Dalkin

Customer Reviews

ah one of the best stories ever! (2007-06-25)

jon pertwee was great as the doctor. and this is a good story to watch to see just how good he is. well, the 7 episode stories might be overlong for some, but this story keeps pace and interest through every episode. the plot is very complex, with all the aliens being substituted for humans and stuff. when i first saw this story i was a bit confused by what was going on, but now im older and this story is brilliant. one of the best jon pertwee stories and one of the best full stop.oh and i like it that caroline john gets to do some decent stuff for a change. and she sure is a great runner!! actually not too many special effects on this story, but this aint a bad thing at all. in fact, it makes it slightly more believable. gives the story the feel of genuine menace rather the technicolour over the top rubbish. and the alien ambassadors are a good design too.ah, cool stuff....

Ambassadors - Quatermass partly in Colour! (2003-03-09)

Well its nice to see this story in its restored version after a very long wait. Its been bouncing in and out of the restoration team's hands and up and down the BBC picking list for some time now.

As far as stories go, I've seen better. Its a homage to "The Avengers" in many ways and is very '60's despite the fact it was shown in 1970.

Script-wise its the old 'Quatermass Experiment' script again rejigged several times to give the companions something to do. It would have made a very exciting 4-parter but drags as a 7-parter.

Nevertheless, there are some wonderfully chilling moments, centred mainly around the 'astronauts' as they break into bases, etc.

We've all seen more action now with programmes like Stargate, so its crucial that we view it with our rose-tinted specs and 70's hats on (not literally or you may not be able to see the screen.)

There's been a definite buzz about this release because only part of it was in colour and I must admit to being pleasantly suporised by the presentation on this tape, but wished for more colour. How about an army of artists slaving away frame by frame using Abode Photoshop?

I'd do it - me. Yep. Anyone else game?

Restored gem, despite the mixed format (2003-02-18)

Jon Pertwee's third adventure, this story reminds us very clearly of why he was such a great Doctor Who.

This seven-parter has very few special effects, which is a _good thing_ because SF special effects tend to lose their charm when viewed in retrospect. Instead, the growing horror is done primarily by inference - a trademark of the Pertwee years. The fight scenes are much bloodier than would have been allowed in the later years, and this also adds to the gritty authenticity. And, of course, set in its own time the military and scientific hardware is done just right.

The plot?Ok then. Mars Probe 7 returns to orbit, but the crew fail to make contact with mission control (which is in England -- a nice touch). The recovery probe loses contact with Earth when it docks with the original probe. Meanwhile, a strange broadcast from the ship is picked up all over the world, while an equally strange broadcast is sent back in reply from somewhere in England. Both UNIT and the Doctor decide to take a hand, but the cooperation they receive from Mission Control is less than 100%. When the Mars Probe finally does land, it is stolen by a band of criminals (or, at least, we think they are criminals) only to be recaptured by the Doctor. However, when it is opened, the capsule is empty...

Any more and I will be giving the story away. This series sees a convincing gun battle, a desperate fight between Liz Shaw and a band of assailants on a bridge, a man murdered with an isotope, and a growing mystery which is not solved until the Doctor risks himself going into space on a faulty rocket.

There's just one caveat - this series was originally shot in colour but subsequently discarded by the BBC. Only the first episode remains of the colour version, the rest was found in black and white in the hands of an independent collector. If you've never seen Doctor Who in black and white, this may come as a shock. To many of us old timers, though, it just reminds us of what it was really like.

A Homage to BBC Televison of 30 Years Ago (2002-08-12)

Having bought this recently, I enjoyed it for a number of reasons. First, it was one of the early Jon Pertwee stories, and I still think he was the best Doctor Who. Secondly, its good value because its on one tape despite being a seven parter (well done, BBC!) And thirdly, its easy to watch and enjoy, nothing too complicated etc. Some fans rated this as overlong, well perhaps it is. And the ending is a bit of a cop out too. Still, despite the techincal limitations, some scenes being in colour, others in black and white, its still a great homage to BBC television of more than 30 years ago. Shades of Quatermass and the X-Files abound in this story, and of course one must not forget the lovely Liz Shaw (Caroline John) who was one of my favourite Doctor Who girls alongside Katy Manning and Elizabeth Sladen. I cannot ask for more than what I got here. And I am sure that real die-hard Doctor Who fans will feel the same way.

Too Long and repetitive (2002-05-29)

This is the third story of Jon Pertwee's first season, and I am afraid its not a happy one.

The reason being that it is just TOO long, far too long and drawn out. What could easily have been done in 4 or 5 episodes is extended to 7, to keep up with the trend of the season.

The result being, that it gets boring after a while as the interest is taken away.

The story is straight forward enough with plenty of Who cliches.

Liz Shaw gets kidnapped, there is a foreign scientist who gets in the way (who surprise, surprise turns out to be one of the bad guys).

The doctor knows everything within five minutes of turning up, which leaves him free the rest of the time to build a fancy gadget and go chasing around the country in Bessy, oh and the Brigadier shouts a lot. And lets not forget the alien invaders.

As I say this is Who cliche city at its best.

Conclusion is that despite efforts from the reliable main cast, this just falls flat.

Fortunatley things got better.

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