Earthshock (1982) featured the unexpected return of the Cybermen after seven years, updated for the 1980s, and the unexpected death of one of the Doctor’s companions, for the first time since the 1960s.
It was also the first example of a new style of Doctor Who serial that the show revisited regularly, albeit to diminishing returns. A high point of 1980s Doctor Who, it also potentially sowed the seeds for the show’s ultimate cancellation in 1989.
Brian J Robb is a New York Times and Sunday Times bestselling biographer who has also written books on silent cinema, Philip K. Dick, Wes Craven, Laurel and Hardy, Star Wars, Superheroes, Gangsters and Walt Disney, as well as Doctor Who and Star Trek.
THE BLACK ARCHIVE:
Book-length looks at single Doctor Who stories from 1963 to the present day
