Doctor Who (1963) 13.03.01

Pyramids of Mars - Part One

The Doctor and Sarah Jane arrive at UNIT headquarters but something threw them off course. They have arrived decades too early. in 1911 to be precise, although they don't learn that fact until later in the episode. They find that the TARDIS landed in the home of Egyptologist Marcus Scarman. Ibrahim Namin, an Egyptian who claim s to work for Professor Scarman, has taken over the house.

Doctor Warlock, a friend of Professor Scarman, comes to see what's going on in the house. Ibrahim Namin almost kills him. The Doctor and Sarah Jane help Doctor Warlock to get away. Namin and a large lumbering mummy come after them but the Doctor, Sarah Jane, and Doctor Warlock avoid them and meet up with Laurence Scarman, brother of Marcus.

Laurence helps to bandage Doctor Warlock and then shows them his Marconiscope. He demonstrates it for them. It picks up a signal coming from Mars before it malfunctions. The Doctor uses a similar device to get a better read of the signal which he deciphers as BEWARE SUTEKH.

The Doctor, Sarah Jane, and Laurence return to the house where Namin is playing the organ. They witness a portal opening and a humanoid steps through. Namin believes it to be Sutekh but it identifies itself as the Servant of Sutekh before killing Namin.

Thoughts

I have seen this story before but it has been more than 20 (possibly more like 30 to 40) years since I last watched it. I recall enjoying it very much. So far I am not disappointed.

Notes

Peter Maycock played the part of Ibrahim Namin. This is the first of two Doctor Who stories in which he appeared. The second was 14.03 The Deadly Assassin. 

Peter Copley played the part of Doctor Warlock. This is the only Doctor Who story in which he appeared. He also appeared in episodes of Tales of the Unexpected and The Avengers.

Michael Sheard played the part of Lawrence Scarman. This is the third of six Doctor Who stories from this series in which he appeared. Some of the other stories in which he appeared were 8.2 The Mind of Evil, 15.2 The Invisible Enemy, and 25.1 Remembrance of the Daleks.

This story was written by Robert Holmes under the pseudonym of Stephen Harris. He was the script editor at the time.

Paddy Russell directed this story. It is the third of four Doctor Who stories from this series that she directed. The second was 11.2 Invasion of the Dinosaurs and the fourth was 15.01 Horror of Fang Rock.