Children in Need 1985 (TV story)

Children in Need 1985 was a short sketch during the BBC One Children in Need telethon. All the actors were partially in-character and at the end a cheque for £1,000 was presented by the Sixth Doctor and a further cheque for £100 was presented by the Second Doctor from the Doctor Who Appreciation Society.

Synopsis
Children In Need host Terry Wogan and The Sky At Night presenter Patrick Moore, witness twenty Doctor Who stars emerging from the TARDIS, before three of the Doctors argue about a cheque that reveals a link to the Doctor Who Appreciation Society, Blackpool and a DWAS member in the audience, known as The Man In Blue.

Plot
It is November 22nd, 1985. Children In Need host Terry Wogan and The Sky At Night presenter Patrick Moore walk over to a materialising TARDIS, with Moore asking the studio audience whether he should open the door, which they encourage him to do. Prior to him doing this the camera cuts to the audience and we see The Man In Blue (Andrew Ross Hay). Patrick Moore opens the door and we then see Patrick Troughton emerge from the box in full costume blowing a party blower.

Terry then begins to introduce a total of twenty Doctor Who stars who also emerge from the TARDIS. Patrick Troughton is followed by Carole Ann Ford, Maureen O'Brien, Peter Purves, Michael Craze, and Adrienne Hill.

At this point Jon Pertwee steps out carrying the beginnings of a very large cheque, which requires several people to hold. These are Pertwee, Caroline John, Nicholas Courtney, Richard Franklin, John Levene, Elisabeth Sladen, Louise Jameson, Ian Marter, and Peter Davison. The cheque carriers end at this point.

The last few to leave the TARDIS are Janet Fielding, Matthew Waterhouse, Mark Strickson, Nicola Bryant, and Colin Baker. As Baker presents a smaller version of the cheque for £1000, the show cuts back to the audience and The Man In Blue. Troughton then steps forward with a second cheque for £100 from The Doctor Who Appreciation Society.

In character, Pertwee then intervenes asking whether Troughton had said where the cheque came from. An in character argument then breaks out between Pertwee, Troughton and Baker, with Pertwee revealing that Troughton was told to say it came from one day's showing of the Doctor Who show in Blackpool. Colin Baker then looks to the audience asking "Who's that?" pointing directly toward The Man In Blue. Fed up of the arguing, Wogan gets into the TARDIS and dematerialises. We then see the audience with The Man In Blue clapping, talking to his friend, and then looking round towards the camera.

Cast

 * The Doctor - Colin Baker
 * The Doctor - Peter Davison
 * The Doctor - Jon Pertwee
 * The Doctor - Patrick Troughton
 * Peri - Nicola Bryant
 * Susan - Carole Ann Ford
 * Vicki - Maureen O'Brien
 * Steven - Peter Purves
 * Ben - Michael Craze
 * Katarina - Adrienne Hill
 * Liz - Caroline John
 * The Brigadier - Nicholas Courtney
 * Yates - Richard Franklin
 * Benton - John Levene
 * Sarah - Elisabeth Sladen
 * Leela - Louise Jameson
 * Harry - Ian Marter
 * Tegan - Janet Fielding
 * Adric - Matthew Waterhouse
 * Turlough - Mark Strickson
 * Terry Wogan - himself
 * Patrick Moore - himself
 * The Man In Blue - Andrew Ross Hay

Crew
Dialogue was ad-libbed by the cast.

Given the story was part of the Children in Need teleathon, all other production duties were carried out by the individuals that did so for the teleathon as a whole.

Story Notes

 * All the actors are partially in-character. Therefore, this is the only time Colin Baker and Nicholas Courtney appear together partially in-character as the Sixth Doctor and the Brigadier when Baker was the incumbent Doctor.
 * This was the last on-screen appearance of Patrick Troughton as the Second Doctor.
 * The Man In Blue in the audience was Andrew Ross Hay, who went onto become a radio chat show host who among numerous others interviewed Sir Patrick Moore, Colin Baker, Peter Davison, Peter Purves and John Levene. As a writer, Hay wrote and produced the 2021 Hospital Radio Productions play The Thirteenth Dimension, which starred David Burton.

Home Video Releases

 * It was released as a special feature on the DVD release of Mindwarp in the Trial of a Time Lord box set.