Dimensions in Time is a charity television special crossover between the science fiction series Doctor Who and the soap opera EastEnders, broadcast in two parts on 26 and 27 November 1993 for Children in Need. In celebration of Doctor Who's 30th anniversary, it features every surviving actor to have played the Doctor as well as several of the character's companions. In this special, the amoral scientist the Rani (Kate O'Mara) traps various incarnations of the Doctor (Sylvester McCoy, Colin Baker, Peter Davison, Tom Baker and Jon Pertwee) in a time loop in Albert Square.
Doctor Who was put on hiatus in 1989. A 30th anniversary "multi-Doctor" special, The Dark Dimension, began development in mid-1992 but fell through by July 1993. In May 1993, producer John Nathan-Turner was asked to produce a Doctor Who sketch for the charity Children in Need. The script, co-written by Nathan-Turner and David Roden, went through many iterations due to the changing availability of the cast. A crossover with EastEnders was pitched to guarantee publicity for Children in Need and to allow the production to film on existing sets.
The special was filmed in 3D on location at Greenwich and the EastEnders Albert Square set in September 1993. None of the cast or crew were paid for their work due to an agreement with Equity. Dimensions in Time was universally panned by both critics and fans, with criticism aimed at the plot, special effects and cameos from the contemporary cast of EastEnders. Due to Children in Need's high licensing fees, it is unlikely to ever receive a home video release.
Plot
The Rani (Kate O'Mara) plans to trap the Doctor in a time loop in London's East End; she has already ensnared his first and second incarnations in a time tunnel. The Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker) warns his other incarnations.
The Seventh Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) and Ace (Sophie Aldred) are confused when the TARDIS lands near Cutty Sark in 1973. Time jumps and Ace finds herself in 1993 Albert Square with the Sixth Doctor (Colin Baker). They speak to local resident Sanjay (Deepak Verma) and his wife Gita (Shobu Kapoor).
Following another time jump, the Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) and Mel Bush (Bonnie Langford) learn from an older Pauline Fowler (Wendy Richard) and Kathy Beale (Gillian Taylforth) that it is 2013. Another time jump occurs. In 1973, the Sixth Doctor tells Susan Foreman (Carole Ann Ford) he feels he is being pulled backwards in time, with his companions being drawn back with him.
In 2013, Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) finds the Third Doctor after chatting with Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean). He deduces that an operator is utilising time distortion to trap him in a 20-year time loop of the years 1973, 1993 and 2013. The Rani releases her menagerie of alien specimens to distract the Doctor. The menagerie attack the Fifth Doctor (Peter Davison), Nyssa (Sarah Sutton) and Peri (Nicola Bryant) in 1993, and after failing to warn Pat Butcher (Pam St Clement) of the danger, the Rani stops them outside the Queen Vic.
The Fifth Doctor summons his remaining selves and becomes the Third Doctor. Mandy Salter (Nicola Stapleton) helps Liz Shaw (Caroline John) run from the Rani. Mike Yates (Richard Franklin) arrives in the Doctor's car Bessie to take him to Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart (Nicholas Courtney). The Third Doctor becomes the Sixth Doctor after another time jump, and says farewell to the Brigadier. At the Arches in 1993, Phil (Steve McFadden) and Grant Mitchell (Ross Kemp) find Romana (Lalla Ward) looking for the Doctor. The Rani captures her in front of Frank Butcher (Mike Reid). The Third Doctor returns to the TARDIS with Victoria Waterfield (Deborah Watling), explaining that the Rani's control is breaking down.
The Seventh Doctor meets Leela (Louise Jameson), who has escaped from the Rani's menagerie. Alongside Ace and K9 (John Leeson), the Doctor overrides the Rani's computer by harnessing the time tunnel's power, sending the Rani into the time tunnel and freeing all the Doctor's incarnations.
Production
Background Doctor Who was put on hiatus after the broadcast of season 26 in 1989, but its producer, John Nathan-Turner, continued to work on various Doctor Who-related BBC projects on a freelance basis. According to Nathan-Turner's memoir, as early as 1990 he pitched a direct-to-video Doctor Who special to mark the series' 30th anniversary in November 1993. Nathan-Turner continued pitching throughout 1991 and 1992, and on two occasions costed the project to prove it could be produced economically. In a memo to Penny Mills (Head of Video Production for BBC Enterprises) on 18 February 1992, he mentioned the special alongside other proposed video releases which could commemorate the 30th anniversary year.
The Dark Dimension During the production and launch of the VHS release of Shada in February 1992, Tom Baker expressed his willingness to return for a new Doctor Who story. Doctor Who video sales were a regular source of profit for BBC Enterprises, and on 28 May 1992 a meeting was chaired to examine a "long-term strategy for the continual exploitation of the programme". It was noted that producing an original special would "be giving something back to the fans and not just extracting money from them". Writer Adrian Rigelsford was approached and hired to develop the rough story, which at that time involved a dying Fourth Doctor uniting with a group of children to fight an ecological disaster.
In early June, a meeting was convened to discuss production of a 90-minute direct-to-video Doctor Who special, with Tom Baker being the sole actor to return as the Doctor. Within a short period of time, it was suggested that the incumbent Seventh Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) could be involved; Tom Baker then proposed the involvement of all surviving actors who played the Doctor in supporting roles. Rigelsford completed his outline of the special, titled Timeflyers, by 21 July. Graeme Harper, who directed the serials The Caves of Androzani (1984) and Revelation of the Daleks (1985), was excited by the script and agreed to direct. Budget and script discussions were held through August and September 1992, and a location recce was held on 8 September. However, budget issues and BBC Enterprises' lack of production experience caused major setbacks. The other Doctor actors were unenthusiastic about the script, retitled The Dark Dimension. Colin Baker criticised the other Doctors' lack of screen time, and Jon Pertwee and Sylvester McCoy later commented that a more experienced writer should have been involved. Pertwee and Peter Davison were unhappy that the production team contacted them directly instead of through their agents. Nathan-Turner pitched his proposed Doctor Who special again in late 1992, apparently unaware of The Dark Dimension. In early 1993 he declined the role of script consultant on The Dark Dimension.
On 10 June 1993, BBC Enterprises formally confirmed the upcoming production of The Dark Dimension starring Tom Baker, with Harper to direct. The shooting script was finalised on 21 June, and with the special now aimed for broadcast instead of video, Alan Yentob greenlit the special with a delivery date of 27 November. Budget issues continued to plague the production, and on 9 July, The Dark Dimension was cancelled for "financial and logistical reasons". Philip Segal claimed responsibility for the cancellation, as he wanted to avoid drawing attention from the new Doctor Who television series pilot he was developing in the United States (this manifested in 1996 as Doctor Who: The Movie), though this narrative has been debunked by researcher Richard Bignell.
Writing
In May 1993, Children in Need editor Nick Handel invited Nathan-Turner to make a five-minute 3D Doctor Who sketch for the organisation's annual telethon broadcast. Nathan-Turner thought of turning down the offer but was persuaded by his agent to make the sketch his "swansong", since he did not have the chance to leave Doctor Who on his own terms in 1989. Nathan-Turner sought a "talented, yet relatively inexperienced co-writer" who could enthusiastically adapt to the myriad of requests typical of Children in Need productions. He approached David Roden, a 22-year-old aspiring writer with no professional experience, with an open brief to write the charity special. Roden's initial concept, Destination: Holocaust, which involved the Seventh Doctor and Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart battling Cybermen in a church, was considered too expensive for the allocated budget. Nathan-Turner wanted a more nostalgic feel for the special, and also wanted to involve multiple monsters to make use of existing costumes. Another low-cost concept was set entirely in the TARDIS featuring the Seventh Doctor and Ace facing an alien which fed off nightmares. One underdeveloped story idea involved Easter Island heads.
It was originally thought that only the Seventh Doctor would appear, but in recognition of the upcoming 30th anniversary, Nathan-Turner and Handel decided to involve as many of the Doctor's incarnations as possible. Doctor Who traditionally celebrated its past anniversaries with "multi-Doctor" stories; The Three Doctors (1972–1973) and "The Five Doctors" (1983) featured past incarnations of the Doctor interacting with the incumbent incarnation. Roden was also requested to involve as many companions and monsters from the series as possible. Per Nicholas Courtney's request, the Brigadier was depicted interacting with the Sixth Doctor, as Colin Baker was the only Doctor Who lead Courtney hadn't shared a scene with on the series. Nathan-Turner wanted to call the special 3-Dimensions of Time; Roden changed it to The Dimensions of Time. It was retitled Dimensions in Time when it was discovered that "The Dimensions of Time" was an episode from the 1965 serial The Space Museum.In a 2015 interview, Roden discussed the difficulty of shouldering the numerous requests made on the script, stating that he felt "heavily pressured" by Nathan-Turner's demands and describing the completed special as a "mess". Anthony Ainley declined an offer to return as the Master, possibly due to a personal clash with Nathan-Turner. In his stead, Kate O'Mara agreed to return as the Rani, the ruthless villain she portrayed in The Mark of the Rani (1985) and Time and the Rani (1987). The production team behind light entertainment show Noel's House Party wanted to be involved with Children in Need, so Dimensions in Time gained another episode which could be shown during that programme.
Nathan-Turner suggested that the special could crossover with popular BBC soap opera EastEnders to satisfy Handel's request to guarantee press attention. This could also save budget by enabling the production to film on the existing Albert Square set. EastEnders producer Leonard Lewis was not amenable to the idea as the filming would disrupt his production schedule. He allowed Nathan-Turner only one day to film at Albert Square, which was not enough time due to the complicated nature of filming in 3D. Major rewrites were in order. Roden devised a new script, titled The Endgame, involving the Celestial Toymaker in an amusement park. Roden recently acted in Wittgenstein (1993) with Michael Gough, who played the Toymaker in the 1966 serial, and he felt he could persuade Gough to reprise the role. Roden suggested that the Toymaker could facilitate a multi-Doctor storyline by plucking the various Doctors from their timestreams, but there were concerns it would be too similar to "The Five Doctors". According to Roden, Gough at first agreed to return but later declined, either due to unavailability or disinterest in the script. The Endgame was ultimately scrapped and development returned to Dimensions in Time.