The Crusade (Doctor Who)

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The Crusade is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from March 27 to April 17, 1965. The story is set in Palestine, near Jerusalem, during the Third Crusade.

[edit] Synopsis

The Doctor and his companions become ensnared in the political struggles between Richard the Lionheart and Saladin.

[edit] Plot

"And when you men of eloquence have stunned each other with your words, we... we the soldiers have to face it out!"

The TARDIS materializes in 12th century Palestine, during the time of the Third Crusade. When the Doctor, Ian, Barbara, and Vicki emerge, they find themselves in the middle of a Saracen ambush. In the confusion, Barbara is captured by the Saracens, while the rest of the TARDIS crew stop the attackers from killing William de Tornebu, an associate of King Richard. William des Preaux, another companion of the king, is also captured by Saracens and pretends to be Richard in order to protect him. The Doctor, Ian, and Vicki agree to take the wounded de Tornebu back to Richard's court, but first must steal clothes from the market in order to blend in.

Meanwhile, des Preaux and Barbara are presented to Saladin's brother Saphadin by El Akir, who mistakenly believes them to be King Richard and his sister Lady Joanna. When des Preaux reveals their true identity, El Akir is furious but, before he can act, Saladin emerges from hiding and prevents any violence from occurring. Saladin is intrigued by Barbara, who tells tales of having met Nero, and tell her she can become the new Scheherazade.

The disguised Doctor and company bring the injured de Tornebu to the King's court. They are met by Richard, who witnessed their fight during the ambuscade. The King, however, is in a foul mood, and treats the TARDIS crew very curtly. Ian, anxious to rescue Barbara, asks for the King's help in rescuing her, but the irritated monarch tells Ian that Barbara can remain with Saladin until her death.

De Tornebu and the Doctor are able to convince the King to change his mind by playing up the embarrassment Saladin will feel when it's revealed he has not actually captured the King. Richard is amused, and asks the Doctor to join his court. Ian is knighted "Sir Ian of Jaffa" so that he may serve as a proper emissary, and is sent to Saladin's court to both request the release of des Preaux and Barbara, and to offer the hand of the real Lady Joanna in marriage to Saphadin. When Joanna learns of these plans, she is infuriated, and tells her brother she will not consent.

Ian, on the way to Saladin's court, is attacked by bandits and knocked out. When he claims to have no money, one of the bandits, Ibrahim, ties him down with stakes in the hot sun and daubs him with honey. He tells Ian the ants will loosen his purse strings.

Barbara manages to escape, and is taken in by Haroun ed-Din. He is sympathetic because El Akir killed his wife and kidnapped his daughter, and now Haroun is looking for revenge. Haroun leaves to attack El Akir, but is knocked out by soldiers. They go to Haroun's house, recapture Barbara, and bring her to El Akir. El Akir taunts Barbara with threats of death, but she once again manages to escape, this time hiding out in the Emir's harem. El Akir tries to find Barbara, but she is hidden by a sympathetic harem girl.

Ian eventually tricks Ibrahim into untying his feet, and overpowers him. Ian convinces the bandit to accompany him to Lydda and aid him in his quest for Barbara. Meanwhile, Barbara convinces the harem girl, Maimuna, to help her get out of the castle. It turns out Maimuna is Haroun's long lost daughter and, when she finds out her father is still alive, joyfully agrees to help. Before they can do so, another harem girl, Fatima, betrays them and El Akir bursts in on the two women.

El Akir is about to attack Barbara when Haroun arrives in the nick of time and fatally stabs El Akir. Fatima screams, and two guards burst in. Ian arrives, and he and Haroun subdue the guards. Haroun and Maimuna are reunited, and Barbara and Ian head for the TARDIS.

The Doctor, who has been trying not to get caught up in court politics, attempts to make a break for the TARDIS. He is caught by the Earl of Leicester, who thinks the Doctor is a spy for Saladin. He sentences the Doctor to death. Ian arrives and, presenting himself as "Sir Ian of Jaffa," tells Leicester that the Doctor is a spy and that he is here to carry out the execution. The Doctor plays along and asks for one last chance to see Jaffa before he dies. Leicester agrees, and the Doctor is able to sneak away to the TARDIS with the rest of the crew and leave. When Leicester and his knights see the TARDIS vanish, they agree to keep the story quiet, so as not to look like fools.

On board the TARDIS, the crew enjoy a good laugh over their escape. As the TARDIS prepares to land, the power fails and all the interior lights dim. The crew freeze into immobility.

[edit] Cast

• Dr. Who — William Hartnell
• Ian Chesterton — William Russell
• Barbara Wright — Jacqueline Hill
• Vicki — Maureen O'Brien
• El Akir — Walter Randall
• Saphadin — Roger Avon
• Saladin — Bernard Kay
• Richard the Lionheart — Julian Glover
• Reynier de Marun — David Anderson
• William de Tornebu — Bruce Wightman
• William des Preaux — John Flint
• Ben Daheer — Reg Pritchard
• Thatcher — Tony Caunter
• Joanna — Jean Marsh
• Luigi Ferrigo — Gabor Baraker
• Earl of Leicester — John Bay
• Chamberlain — Robert Lankesheer
• Haroun — George Little
• Sadiya — Petra Markham
• Maimuna — Sandra Hampton
• Sheyrah — Zohra Segal
• Fatima — Viviane Sorrél
• Hafsa — Diana McKenzie
• Ibrahim — Tutte Lemkow
• Turkish Bandit — David Brewster
• Man-at-Arms — Billy Cornelius
• Saracen Warriors — Derek Ware, Valentino Musetti, Chris Konyils, Raymond Novak, Anthony Colby

[edit] Cast notes

• Julian Glover was cast by Douglas Camfield to play King Richard I. Seventeen years later, Camfield again cast Glover as Richard I in the 1982 production of Ivanhoe. Glover would return to Doctor Who to play Scaroth in the 1979 serial City of Death. He also provided a commentary on episode three of the story, alongside Doctor Who expert Gary Russell, for the 2004 DVD release. See also Celebrity appearances in Doctor Who.
• Jean Marsh, who played Princess Joanna, would play Sara Kingdom in The Daleks' Master Plan (1965) and Morgaine in Battlefield (1989). See also Celebrity appearances in Doctor Who. Marsh was married to Third Doctor actor Jon Pertwee from 1955 to 1960
• In episode 3, William Russell appears only in a pre-filmed insert.
• In this serial, Ian is knighted by King Richard. William Russell had earlier played Sir Lancelot in the television series The Adventures of Sir Lancelot.

[edit] Production

The four episodes of the serial had individual titles. They were, respectively: "The Lion", "The Knight of Jaffa", "The Wheel of Fortune" and "The Warlords".

[edit] Missing episodes

Copies of the four episodes were believed lost in the mass junking of episodes in the 1970s, with BBC Enterprises junking their copies. The BBC Film Library retained a copy of "The Wheel of Fortune" that it had accidentally acquired, but a copy of "The Lion" had been junked from the library by 1972.

The first episode of the subsequent story, The Space Museum, begins with a brief clip of the finale of Episode 4, "The Warlords", where the time-travellers stand in period costume round the TARDIS console, literally frozen in time (it is confirmed as a clip rather than a restaged scene by an off-camera cough on the soundtracks to both "The Warlords" and The Space Museum). This is the only known surviving footage from the final episode.

The story had been thought to be one of the very few for which no off-air soundtrack was known to exist, until copies were located in 1995. In 1999, a film copy of "The Lion" was discovered by Neil Lambess and Paul Scoones in the collection of Bruce Grenville, a film collector in New Zealand (who purchased the story but never transmitted it).

[edit] Outside references

This story has been noted for its non-stereotypical treatment of the two opposing leaders. Saladin (played by Bernard Kay) is portrayed as calculating but compassionate, while King Richard I is portrayed as volatile and at times childish.

[edit] In print

Doctor Who book
Doctor Who and the Crusaders
Series	Target novelisations
Release number	12
Writer	David Whitaker
Cover artist	Chris Achilleos
ISBN	0 426 10137 5
Release date	2 May 1973
Preceded by	Doctor Who and the Zarbi
Followed by	Doctor Who and the Auton Invasion

This serial was the third and final story to be novelised by Frederick Muller publishers. Written by David Whitaker as Doctor Who and the Crusaders, it was first published in 1965, and was later reprinted by Target Books in May 1973. There have been French, Dutch and Portuguese editions.

In 2005 the novel was also issued by BBC Audio as part of the "Doctor Who: Travels in Time and Space" audio book collectors tin, read by David Whitaker.

[edit] Broadcast, video, CD and DVD releases

• In 1991, "The Wheel of Fortune", the then-only known extant episode, was released on VHS as part of The Hartnell Years

• In 1999 a VHS version was released of episodes 1 and 3, with the events of Episodes 2 and 4 related by William Russell in character as an aged Ian Chesterton.

• The two extant episodes and the two soundtracks for The Crusade were again released as part of the Lost in Time DVD collection of restored episodes and clips in 2004, with Russell's sections as an 'Easter Egg'.

• An audio-only version of this story, with narration again by Russell, was released as a two-CD set in 2005.

[edit] External links

• The Crusade at bbc.co.uk
• The Crusade photonovel at bbc.co.uk
• The Crusade at Doctor Who: A Brief History Of Time (Travel)
• The Crusade at the Doctor Who Reference Guide
• The Crusade at Outpost Gallifrey
• The Lion's Tale, by Paul Scoones (Time Space Visualiser issue 57, January 1999)

[edit] Reviews

• The Crusade reviews at Outpost Gallifrey
• The Crusade reviews at The Doctor Who Ratings Guide

[edit] Target novelisation

• Doctor Who and the Crusaders reviews at The Doctor Who Ratings Guide
• On Target — Doctor Who and the Crusaders