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RUSHING back in time was never a problem for Doctor Who, BBC TV’s
time-travelling sci-fi hero. But it’s taken a real-life British doctor to rescue
the Time Lord’s exploits in authentic form.

Many 1960s episodes of the sci-fi drama are missing from the BBC’s archives.
Though they were recorded on video, the BBC routinely wiped and reused the
expensive 2-inch-wide tape. The programmes were also recorded on film, for sale
to foreign networks, and although the BBC didn’t keep them, Doctor Who fans have
been able to find copies in film archives abroad and even in skips. But they are…

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