The Second Doctor classic, The Faceless Ones will be getting an animated release on DVD, Blu-ray, and steelbook, available in 2020.
The six-part serial is the last to feature Anneke Wills and Michael Craze as companions, Polly Wright and Ben Jackson respectively.
Here’s the synopsis:
The Faceless Ones is the mostly missing eighth serial of the fourth season in Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from April to May 1967. Starring Patrick Troughton as the Doctor, the story concerns a race of identity-stealing aliens known as the Chameleons.
Only two of the six episodes are held in the BBC film archives with snippets of footage and still images existing from the other four. Off-air recordings of the soundtrack also still exist, making the animation of a complete serial possible once again.
The six new animated episodes are being made in full colour and high definition. The DVD/Blu-ray release will also include surviving archive material from the original 1967 production.
Episodes One and Three remain in the archive, and will be on the DVD and Blu-ray; however, for the sake of consistency, all six episodes will be animated. It also means the black-and-white only episodes can be enjoyed in colour too. If this is how the BBC intends to release missing serials, it does explain why we haven’t seen releases of more intensive stories like The Daleks’ Master Plan. As this serial leads directly into The Evil of the Daleks, we at least hope that’s on the schedule too (though this is purely speculation at this point).
Further details, including an exact release date, cover art, and special features, will be revealed later this year. We do at least know that The Faceless Ones will be out in 2020, hopefully (and most likely) early in the year to coincide with Doctor Who Series 12 airing on TV.
