Doctor Who producer admits he regrets axing beloved companion

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It’s true that not all of the Doctor Who‘s companions received the grand farewell they might have earned – and a previous series producer has admitted he wishes he could revisit and improve the understated exit of one particular character.

Harry Sullivan (played by Ian Marter) first appeared in the 1974-75 serial Robot – the same story that marked Tom Baker’s official debut as the Fourth Doctor – and he traveled with the TARDIS team for the following five stories.

At a BFI Southbank event celebrating the release of the Doctor Who: The Collection – Season 13 Blu-ray, producer Philip Hinchcliffe – who worked on the show from 1974 to 1977 – shared that when he started, he wanted to shift away from the previous style. This meant moving beyond stories based on Earth and the ‘UNIT family’ format, and also reducing the number of secondary characters.

He explained that he aimed to shorten the story, lean more into the science-fiction genre, and incorporate time travel. “I wanted to trim it down a bit and go more into the science-fiction side as well, and travel back in time,” he said.

Looking back, I believe I made the best choice for the story by focusing on just Lis and Tom. This approach allowed the narrative more breathing room and prevented the main character from seeming burdened by a large group of supporting characters. I continue to feel confident that it was the right decision.

During Hinchcliffe’s time as producer, the Doctor once again traveled through time and space. This also meant revisiting familiar faces at UNIT, and the storylines began to move away from featuring Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart (Nicholas Courtney) and Sergeant Benton (John Levene) as regular characters.

I was really sad when Harry, the medical officer from UNIT, left the show. It happened during Terror of the Zygons in 1975 – he made the brave decision to stay on Earth while the Doctor and Sarah-Jane Smith continued their adventures. He did pop up one last time in The Android Invasion that same year, but it wasn’t a proper goodbye, and we never really got closure on what happened to him. His final fate was just left…unsaid, which was a shame.

Reflecting on the past, Hinchcliffe stated that Harry was a truly kind person and that Ian Marter was a talented actor who deserved a longer run on the show.

“I could’ve probably kept Ian Marter for two or three stories more,” he said.

Interestingly, Tom Baker had already been chosen to play the next Doctor when Hinchcliffe joined Doctor Who. He had been hired by the previous producer, Barry Letts, before Hinchcliffe took over.

Hinchcliffe was only 29 years old when he started the job and remembered being thankful that Letts had already successfully chosen the actor to replace Jon Pertwee. “Tom was selected by Barry Letts and the Head of Series Shaun Sutton, and thankfully they did, because as a new producer, I’m not confident I would have made the right casting choice – it was a major benefit.”

The new Doctor Who: The Collection – Season 13 Blu-ray set includes remastered versions of all six stories from Tom Baker’s second season playing the Doctor – namely, Terror of the Zygons, Planet of Evil, Pyramids of Mars, The Android Invasion, The Brain of Morbius and The Seeds of Doom. You can find more information on the official website.

This box set features a variety of both new and previously released special features, exploring how the show was made and its lasting impact from the 1975-76 season.

One of the added features is Worlds Within, a documentary about Ian Marter. The film looks at his career as both an actor and a writer, featuring his role as Harry Sullivan and his overall impact on the Doctor Who universe.

Doctor Who: The Collection – Season 13 can now be pre-ordered and will be released on October 20th.

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2025-10-04 10:38