Tomb of the Cybermen is the one many Doctor Who fans of a certain age remember as their FIRST Doctor Who experience. They remember especially the iconic scene in which the Cybermen begin to move within their ice chambers and emerge, breaking through the membranes that concealed them. It is recalled as one of the truly frightening and iconic scenes of Doctor Who history.

Watching the story over again in its restored version that scene is still very iconic. The soundtrack as the Cybermen emerge enhances the feeling of something momentous happening on screen. It is possible to forget that they are only bursting through polythene. And who could forget those creepy voices with the strange, almost musical tone and cadence that was everything a human voice WASN’T.

As for the main plot, the intrigue between the humans, double crossing each other for the ‘prize’ of controlling the Cybermen makes for a drama in its own right. The Doctor’s efforts to prevent the Cybermen taking control for themselves, and the heroic sacrifice of Toberman, make for a story worthy of a movie rather than an episodic TV serial. And those who dismiss Doctor Who as a children's programme have obviously never seen stories like this that are far above much of what is produced for children’s drama even now, let alone in the 1960s.

10/10

Extras

Great commentary by Frazer Hines and Deborah Watling, who retain a friendship and a fondness and enthusiasm for remembering their days on Doctor Who.

10/10

Introduction by Morris Barry. A piece recorded for the original 1992 VHS release. Director Morris Barry talks about casting the episode and the impact it had in its original 1967 broadcast. Interesting and informative as far as it goes, but directors are not always great in front of camera and Morris does not come across with a particularly great screen presence.

9/10

Late Night Line Up – Joan Bakewell talks to Jack Kine, BBC Visual Effects designer about his work on Doctor Who. The style looks very forced compared to modern equivalents such as Mike Tucker demonstrating his model making on the 2005 box set. Joan Bakewell has a condescending style more suited to Blue Peter than a programme with ‘Late Night’ in the title and the whole thing looks terribly dated.

5/10

Tombwatch – In 1992, the VHS version of the previously lost Tomb of The Cyvbermen was shown to enthusiasts who gathered at the BAFTA HQ in London. Afterwards there was a discussion with Frazer Hines and Deborah Watling, Shirley Cooklin, Michael Kilgariff, Peter Bryant and Victor Pemberton answering questions fielded by fans. While interesting and spontaneous the fact that the questions are not heard, only the replies, makes it hard to follow at times.

8/10

The Final End – The Tomb of The Cybermen begins with the TARDIS crew leaving Skaro. The previous story, The Evil of The Daleks is completely lost but this is a reconstruction of the final moments of the story. It uses an 8mm film copy and a low quality soundtrack which is a little grating on the ear.

7/10

Title Sequence Tests - Footage used to create the Patrick Troughton titles, which included his face in the howl-round effect. Strictly for the die hard fan.

9/10

Restoration – A feature showing how the prints which were discovered in Hong Kong in 1991, were cleaned up for the DVD release using modern techniques.

10/10

Photo Gallery, On-Screen Production Notes – Standard on all Doctor Who DVDs.

Some slight let downs on the Extras, but otherwise a good DVD.

9 out of 10