Season 16



The sixteenth season of Doctor Who ran between 2 September 1978 and 24 February 1979. It consisted of six serials, making up twenty-six episodes, making this season the longest one, up to this point. This season saw the introduction of the Black and White Guardians as well as the companion Romana I, played by Mary Tamm. This season is sometimes colloquially known as The Key to Time season after the story arc involving the Key to Time, where the Doctor and Romana must collect the six pieces of The Key to Time, an all-powerful device which gives the user complete control over time. However, to prevent the key being in the hands of any one individual, the six segments have been scattered around in the universe. Romana and the Doctor have a Tracer, a device which can locate the planet where the segments are. Although not the first season to consist of linked stories (Season 8 in 1971 was the first, as all the stories that year featured The Master), it was the first to be recognised as having a series-long arc. Although multi-serial arcs would occur again, such a full-season experiment wouldn't be attempted again until Season 23.

Season 16 marked a triple milestone for Doctor Who: the hundredth story (The Stones of Blood), the five-hundredth episode (episode 1 of The Armageddon Factor) and the fifteenth anniversary of the first broadcast, on November 23, 1978.

In 2002 (Region 1) it became the first Doctor Who season to be released to DVD in its entirety in a single box set; it remained the only "classic series" season to be available as a single set until the release of Season 23, The Trial of a Time Lord to DVD in 2008.

Main cast

 * The Fourth Doctor - Tom Baker
 * Romana - Mary Tamm (introduced The Ribos Operation)
 * K9 - John Leeson (voice) (absent during The Power of Kroll)

Stories set during this season

 * PDA: Tomb of Valdemar (between The Ribos Operation and The Pirate Planet)
 * MA: The Shadow of Weng-Chiang (between The Stones of Blood and ''The Androids of Tara)
 * PDA: Heart of TARDIS (between The Stones of Blood and The Androids of Tara)
 * CC: Ferril's Folly (between The Stones of Blood and The Androids of Tara)
 * DWAN: X-Rani and the Ugly Mutants (between The Androids of Tara and The Power of Kroll)
 * DWAN: Light Fantastic (between The Androids of Tara and The Power of Kroll)
 * DWAN: Reluctant Warriors (between The Androids of Tara and The Power of Kroll)
 * DWAN: The Weapon (between The Androids of Tara and The Power of Kroll)
 * DWAN: Return of the Electrids (between The Androids of Tara and The Power of Kroll)
 * DWAN: The Sleeping Guardians (between The Androids of Tara and The Power of Kroll)

VHS

 * The Ribos Operation
 * The Pirate Planet
 * The Stones of Blood
 * The Androids of Tara
 * The Power of Kroll
 * The Armageddon Factor
 * The Tom Baker Years (excerpts from all stories)

DVD

 * The Key to Time (box set containing all stories)


 * Region 1 1 October 2002
 * NTSC -
 * Bare-bones version consisting of the six stories in individual clam-shell boxes, with extras limited to commentaries, photo galleries, and production information subtitles


 * Region 2 24 September 2007
 * PAL -
 * Expanded edition featuring copious extras (7 1/2 hours) for each serial.


 * Region 4 7 November 2007
 * PAL -

The Key to Time: Special Edition
 * Region 1 3 March 2009
 * NTSC - Same as 2007 Region 2 version, only published in a single book-like DVD case (similar to that used for the release of Torchwood Series 2 in Region 1) rather than each serial packaged individually (although separate releases of the serials have been Released).


 * Region 2 16 November 2009. Titled The Key to Time: The Complete Adventure, this is a reissue of the 2007 version in a new edition.

Novels
Target Books was unable to come to an agreement with Douglas Adams to novelise his script, The Pirate Planet, leaving it one of only a half-dozen classic-series episodes never adapted as a book.
 * Doctor Who and the Ribos Operation, by Ian Marter
 * Doctor Who and the Stones of Blood, by Terrance Dicks
 * Doctor Who and the Androids of Tara, by Terrance Dicks
 * Doctor Who and the Power of Kroll, by Terrance Dicks
 * Doctor Who and the Armageddon Factor, by Terrance Dicks