Back in the early 1960s, still very much in the early days of television, the BBC were trying to find a new series for Saturday nights, suitable for a family audience. The Head Of BBC Drama, Sydney Newman, was considering all kinds of different science fiction topics.

The idea that won out in the end was that of time -travel, that of a machine which had the ability to take its inhabitants back through time to any period in history. Having decided on the concept that they wanted, the producers were then faced with the problem of finding the right actor for the crucially important lead role.

Earlier in the year in which the new series, eventually to be called Doctor Who, started, a film had been released called “This Sporting Life”. Playing in this film was the long established actor William Hartnell, who had often been cast in the role of a tough guy.

The producers decided to approach Hartnell about the possibility of his becoming the first Doctor Who. Initially, he was reluctant. The producers managed to persuade him, and the rest was history.

Hartnell only stayed in the role for three and a half years, but during that time Doctor Who became established as a permanent fixture in that Saturday night slot.

It all began on November 23rd 1963 with the very first episode of Doctor Who, which was called “An Unearthly Child”. This “Unearthly Child” referred to Doctor Who's granddaughter, played initially by Carole Ann Ford. The story began when two of her teachers became suspicious of her behavior, and follow her to her home, which happens to be a junk yard.

When the two teachers follow Susan into the yard, she seems to disappear, and eventually the teachers bump in to an old man in Edwardian dress. They believe that Susan may have been kidnapped by the old man, and at one point are ready to call the police.

They don't call the police, because the door of a police box in the junk yard suddenly opens, and the teachers' pupil calls out to them. They rush into the box, and discover that their pupil is the granddaughter of a time traveler, and that this apparent police box is in fact a machine for time travel.

Doctor Who refuses to let the teachers escape from the booth, believing that they will tell the story to the outside world. From that day onward, the teachers were destined to travel with the Doctor through time and space.

Thanks to modern technology, many of these early episodes can now be seen again, on demand, on DVD or VHS. Now, a range of fully downloadable Doctor Who Audiobooks has been produced, with many of the early William Hartnell episodes available for listening.

---

Our Tags:Doctor Who Audiobooks First Episode Of Doctor Who william hartnell