Doctor Who confirms release date for missing story The Savages animation

The story was first broadcast between May and June 1966 and is now being reimagined as an animated adventure, also marking the farewell outing for companion Steven Taylor.

Due to the BBC's historic policy of wiping content after transmission, the original master recordings of The Savages were lost.

Thankfully, BBC Studios has used the original audio from all four episodes plus brand new animation to bring this story back to life for a new legion of fans.

With William Hartnell's First Doctor at the helm, the story sees him joined by companions Steven (Peter Purves) and Dodo (Jackie Lane), who arrive on an unnamed planet.

When there, they realise that there are two distinct groups of people, the Elders and the Savages.

In a typical Doctor Who twist, they soon discover that the Elders are evil and are actually draining the Savages of their power in a bid to remain young.

You can get a taste of how the story is being brought to life in the new episode, with a teaser trailer giving us a glimpse into some of the action to come.

While no dialogue is played, it's clear to see the mischievous ways in which the Elders are operating and how they have literally taken away everything from the Savages.

But will the Doctor and his companions be able to help them in time?

As we can see, they've got to work together to try and save the Savages, but with smoke quickly filling the small enclosed space they seem to be in, could it spell trouble for the Doctor, Steven and Dodo?

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On the announcement of The Savages, Paul Hembury, executive producer, commented: "We have a wonderful team of creators who work together to bring these lost Doctor Who stories back to life through animation."

For dedicated Whovians who wish to get the episode for themselves, the three-disc release boasts some exciting content.

Not only will they get the four 25-minute episodes in both colour and black and white, but they will also be able to watch episode reconstructions of all four episodes, featuring material from the original 1966 production.

Other bonus content includes cast and crew audio commentaries presented by Toby Hadoke, with actors Kay Patrick (Flower) and the late Robert Sidaway (Avon) on episodes 1 and 2 while Peter Purves (Steven) and studio floor assistant Julian Aston are on episodes 3 and 4.

There's plenty more including animation and photo galleries, a new 90-minute documentary on the life of Doctor Who producer Innes Lloyd and even a new 100-minute documentary on the making of the original 1966 production of The Savages.

The Savages is due for release on 24th March 2025 and can be pre-ordered from Amazon.

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