The most quoted bit of The Forest of Fear comes in the first couple of minutes: ‘Fear makes companions of all of us.’ It’s a charming moment, beautifully played by Hartnell and Hill. But it’s atypical of the episode, which elsewhere pits the Doctor’s self-centredness against Barbara’s compassion. This is most represented in the moment when the Doctor picks up a rock, clearly to finish off the injured Za and make good his and Susan’s escape (Ian’s visible disgust at this point is one of the best William Russell moments). It’s the third time in the episode that a lot of focus is placed on a hand clutching a sharp rock. In the opening sequence, Old Mother steals Za’s knife, and Waris Hussein dwells on it, in close up, for several seconds. Later, there’s a focus on Kal’s knife as he finishes off Old Mother. These are all the moments of most apparent peril.

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In the first episode, the Doctor talks about the Red Indian seeing the first steam train. The Cave of Skulls begins with a caveman seeing a time machine materialising from thin air. Inside the TARDIS, the time travellers are still arguing. Ian still refuses to believe – clinging to his old ideas. Barbara is more imaginative. I love the shot of the TARDIS doors opening to reveal the frozen sands of prehistoric Earth. Outside, the Doctor is perturbed by the TARDIS’ failure to change shape. It’s the first hint we get that he doesn’t really have any idea how to properly work the Ship. Susan remains odd – prone to hysterical outbursts when she realises the Doctor has been kidnapped by the watching caveman.

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Although I’ve seen or heard every Doctor Who story at some point, I’ve never done the start-to-finish, episode by episode watch through that’s the hallmark of a true fan. So, in this hiatus year I thought I’d take the opportunity to go back, back to the beginning, and review each episode, one by one. Here goes…

It’s weird from the off: strange, swirling interference, like something’s gone wrong with the TV. Without resorting to The Outer Limits’ ominous voiceover, it’s basically saying that for the next 25 minutes we’re entering the Doctor’s world. The first character we see is a policeman, drawn towards a strange, humming Police Box that then dissolves into the corridors of Coal Hill school. The next five minutes introduce three of the four regulars. Barbara gets the first line: she’s established as being considerate, tenacious and interested in people. Ian is a bit more laid back: wry, plain speaking, with a matter-of-fact solidity to him that balances out Barbara’s intuition. The third wheel is Susan, who’s just a bit odd and exotic. Right from the off she’s more an object of idle curiosity than a character with much agency of her own.

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