Two teachers follow home a mysterious and gifted pupil who lives with her grandfather. However, all they find is an old junkyard with a police box in it. Confronting the girl's grandfather and forcing themselves into the police box, they are whisked off through time and space on a set of bizarre adventures.

So began the first episode of Doctor Who in November 1963. The first actor to play the part was William Hartnell, who initially interpreted the role as being something of an irritable and grouchy anti-hero, though this would give way to a much kinder and more gentle, eccentric grandfather over his three years.

These early stories of Doctor Who are very different from those which were to follow, due to the show's original briefing which was that it must educate as well as entertain. This resulted in the Doctor and his companions encountering a string of famous historical characters and being present at many of our most important events in history, such as the French Revolution, the Crusades, the siege of Troy and the Gunfight at the OK Corral.

It was, however, the immediate success of the Daleks which led to the popularity of the show itself. Throughout the entire William Hartnell era, Britain was held firmly in the grip of 'Dalekmania', with merchandisers attaching the Dalek name to everything from soap to ice lollies.

Unfortunately, many of the episodes from these early years no longer exist, due to the BBC's policy during the seventies of 'junking' old episodes when their sales potential had been fully exploited.

William Hartnell starred in the initial tales of season four, passing the gauntlet to Patrick Troughton who took over the role of the Doctor in the show's first regeneration scene at the end of the story, The Tenth Planet.

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