Classic children’s characters The Clangers are to be given a Doctor Who-themed makeover, with the news that a new range of goodies will feature one of the moon-dwelling aliens in the garb of the Fourth Doctor.

Launched to celebrate the Clangers’ 50th anniversary, the new range of ‘DoppelClangers’ items is set to feature the first eight Doctors. It’s fitting that Tom Baker’s Doctor and Major Clanger, two titans of the BBC1 schedule in the 1970s, should be the first mash-up.

An impressive array of merchandise includes stationery, mugs, clocks, and lunch boxes although, strangely, not soft toys which one would have thought would be a must-have item on the Christmas lists of a generation of Doctor Who fans.

The Clangers made a memorable appearance in Doctor Who in 1972 in The Sea Devils when we learned that the Master passed the long hours of captivity watching children’s television. Roger Delgado’s look as his joke sails right over Colonel Trenchard’s head is priceless…

Would it be too much to hope for a special edition featuring the Master in his elegant polo neck and robe combo?

The Clangers originally ran between 1969 and 1972, later being revived on the CBeebies channel in 2015. The gentle tales of the good-natured, inquisitive aliens were a classic example of the stop-motion animation made by Oliver Postgate and Peter Firmin which television was blessed with in that era.

You can buy the first wave of items from the DoppelClangers range from the official site.