An Unearthly Child

Lore & Background

At Coal Hill School, Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright grow concerned about pupil Susan Foreman's alien outlook. Investigating her address, they find a police box containing a technologically advanced control room far larger than its exterior. Inside, an elderly man reveals he and Susan are exiles from their home planet. Refusing to let the teachers leave, he sets the TARDIS in flight, landing them in a Stone Age setting. There, primitive factions led by Za and Kal struggle for power after losing the secret of fire. The group is ambushed, imprisoned in a cave, and threatened with sacrifice until they can make fire. Ian succeeds in lighting a torch, but Kal attacks Za and is killed. Susan discovers that placing skulls over burning flames creates terrifying illusions. This allows the group to flee back to the TARDIS, escaping through time and space to an unknown forest.

In Their Own Story

The narrative opens at Coal Hill School with teachers Ian and Barbara worried about student Susan Foreman. They visit her address and find a police box in a junkyard, hearing her voice inside before an elderly man refuses them entry. Forcing their way in, they discover the interior is a vast control room. The man, whom they call 'the Doctor,' reveals he and Susan are exiles. He sets the TARDIS in flight against their wishes, transporting them to a primitive era where Za attempts to make fire while Kal threatens to take leadership if he fails. After witnessing the Doctor light a match, Kal ambushes him, taking him back to the tribe. Ian, Barbara, and Susan intervene but are all imprisoned in a large cave. With help from Old Mother, who believes fire brings death, they escape but are recaptured before reaching the TARDIS. While Ian tries to start a fire, Kal attacks Za and is killed. Ian gives a burning torch to Za, who declares himself leader. Susan then uses burning skulls to terrify the tribe into fleeing, allowing the group to return to the ship and depart for an unknown forest.

Reader's Guide

An Unearthly Child consists of four weekly episodes broadcast from 23 November to 14 December 1963. The story begins in contemporary London at a junkyard where Ian and Barbara investigate Susan Foreman, discovering the TARDIS. After being taken aboard, they are transported to a Stone Age setting involving warring factions over the secret of fire. Key moments include the Doctor's refusal to let them leave, the imprisonment in a cave, and the use of burning skulls to escape Kal's tribe. The serial was originally intended to open with a scrapped story called 'The Giants' written by C.E. Webber; due to script delays, Coburn's untitled second serial was moved to first. Production faced delays, with the pilot recorded on 27 September 1963 on 405-line black and white videotape but re-recorded the following month due to technical errors. The launch was overshadowed by the assassination of President John F. Kennedy the previous day, leading to a repeat of the first episode.

Did You Know?

• The serial was originally intended to open with a story called 'The Giants', which was scrapped because its technical requirements were beyond the production team's capabilities.
• Carole Ann Ford, who played Susan, was only 23 years old at the time but typically played younger roles.
• The first episode was recorded on 405-line black and white videotape in September 1963 but had to be re-recorded the following month due to technical and performance errors.
• Sydney Newman conceived the idea of the TARDIS being larger on the inside than the outside, as well as the character of the Doctor.
• The show's launch was overshadowed by the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, resulting in a repeat of the first episode the following week.