17th
March – 21st April1953
Whilst
I was doing some research for my monthly column, Gadgets and Gizmo’s and
looking for suitable items from 1953, due to the episode of focus 'Out of
Time', I stumbled on this little gem and so decided I really should write
something.
To
most Whovian's Patrick Troughton will always be remembered as the man who had
the daunting job of taking over from the very first Doctor, William Hartnell,
back in 1966. Patrick took the bull by the horns, as it were, and played one of
the most loved Doctors of the classic series, and also the favourite of the 11th
Doctor, Matt Smith. But just over 10 years previous to William Hartnell playing
the first Doctor, Patrick was making his own
mark as televisions first Robin Hood.
Written
by Max Kester, Robin Hood was a drama shown over 6 weeks. Each episode was 30
minutes long and was broadcast live from the Gaumont-British Studios in Lime
Grove, London. Today such a show is seen as a challenge for the cast and crew
and is rarely ever done. Back in the 1950's live shows were the norm. Though by
this point the BBC had been experimenting with a new monitor that had been
adapted to record anything that was being televised. Unfortunately only episode
02 of Robin Hood, The Abbot of St Mary's has survived.
Patrick
was ideal for the role of Robin Hood as he was an expert swordsman and an
extremely versatile actor. And Patrick, though the first Troughton to appear in
Robin Hood, he was most certainly not the last. From 2006-2009 a certain Sam
Troughton played the role of Much (Robin’s man servant) in a new BBC adaptation
of the Robin Hood stories. Sam is Patrick's grandson and the son of David
Troughton, who has also appeared in a number of Doctor Who episodes, both
classic Who and new Who, but notably never with his father Patrick.
I
did manage to find a very brief clip of Patrick as Robin Hood. So I thought it
would be nice to share this with you all. Here's a link to the YouTube page:
It's
also interesting to note that Patrick wasn't the only Robin Hood cast member to
appear in Doctor Who, though he was the only one to play the Doctor. Below is a
list of Robin Hood actors who appeared in the classic Doctor Who. Enjoy!
John
Breslin
(1929-2009)
played
Alan a Dale in Robin Hood
Doctor
Who:
1970
Spearhead from Space As Captain Munro in 4 episodes
Dudley
Jones (1914
-1990)
played
Much in Robin Hood
Doctor
Who:
1966The
Tenth Planet as Dyson 4 episodes
Leonard
Sachs
(1909–1990)
played
Sir Gilbert in Robin hood
Doctor
Who:
1966
as Admiral Gaspard de Coligny in 3 episodes:
Bell
of Doom
Priest
of Death
The
Sea Beggar
1983
Arc of Infinity as Lord President Borusa in 4 episodes
Whovian
trivia about Leonard:
He
was a possibility for the role of of Marcus Scarman in the episode Pyramids
of Mars in 1963. This role was eventually played by Bernard Archard.
His
role as Lord President Borusa in the 4 part story, Arc Of Infinity, was
his final television role before his death in 1990.
Leslie
French
(1904–1999)
role
uncredited in Robin Hood
Doctor
Who:
1988
Silver Nemesis Part 1 as Mathematician
Source Links:
Patrick Troughton
Sam Troughton
John Breslin
Dudley Jones
Leonard Sachs
Leslie French
Robin Hood Information
Image Source:
Patrick as Robin Hood
Patrick, dressed as Robin, with young children (publicity Shot)
Sam Troughton played Much in BBC
Ones Robin Hood 2006-2009
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