According to the Guinness Book Of World Records, Doctor Who is listed as the longest-running science fiction series in the world, and the most successful of all time in terms of broadcast ratings, DVD sales, and other associated merchandise. The original run of the series was an astonishing 26 years, from 1963-89.

The premise is a fairly standard science fiction one. Dr. Who is a Time Lord who travels through time and space in a contraption called a TARDIS (which is an old-style British police box). He, and the various associates who accompany him, are on a mission to fight the forces of evil in the universe.

Chief among these adversaries are the Daleks. They are a unique looking bunch, kind of like moving trash canisters with lights all over. Their greeting is a not so subtle “Heil Hitler” arm extension. Their “arms” actually resemble nothing so much as a toilet plunger.

The Daleks' sinister campiness was a huge hit immediately upon their first appearance on the program. In fact, the period leading up to the first feature-length film has been described as “Dalekmania” in Britain.

That first film, Dr. Who & The Daleks was released in 1965. The soundtrack was scored by Malcolm Lockyer. The second feature, Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 A.D. came out the following year. That soundtrack was by Bill McGuffie. Both of these are being released together for the first time on one CD, by the Silva Screen label.

Lockyer’s score for the first picture is fairly standard soundtrack music from this era, comparable to Herrman or Bernstein I suppose. There are a couple of nods to the James Bond theme in his “Fanfare” however, and the “groovy” guitar sound of “The Petrified Jungle” is a scream. The more fully realized tracks such as “The Trap,” “The Swamp,” and “The Mountain,” towards the end are much more satisfying.

Article Author: Greg Barbrick

Greg Barbrick is an old time "music biz" groupie/writer. He thinks that nothing good has been recorded since 1978.

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