What's on the label?

[Deleted]

In continuing to try to get to the bottom of this mystery surrounding the Singapore RTS returns (where they/where they not sent back in 1973), I am wondering if there is any clue on the film cans or film reels of existing Doctor who episodes in the archive that might indicate that these film cans are the ones returned by RTS? Would the personnel at RTS have marked the film cans/reels with a label, or enclosed documentation within the film cans to indicate that the broadcasts had been fulfilled? In the case of The Web of Fear 4 the Hong Kong Broadcaster RTV placed their own labels on the film reels. But now this only confuses the matter because I have nominated an example that went from Hong Kong onto Singapore, and there is clearly (going by the photo) no further addition of a label by RTS on this reel! So can we only draw a blank on finding any RTS clue in the extant material?

I'm also interested in knowing what the film can labels and film reel labels for The Tenth Planet 1-3 look like. The reason I mention these candidates is that it's thought that these were New Zealand/ Singapore returns from 1973 (the regeneration clip from the returned Episode 4 possibly being used for the 05/11/73 edition of Blue Peter). So, what can we learn from the labels/markings on these three? And are there other film cans which bear similar labels/marks to TP 1-3, and can we then draw up a list from this group of labels that seems to correlate with Block One shown on Channel 5 by RTS and then Block 2, and so forth (excepting those that don't exist in the archive)?

Another point to mention about film can/film reel labels is this: why is it we never see many photos of the current holdings? If you Google 'Doctor Who film cans' there are actually very few to view (The Evil of The Daleks pt 2 - again, a potential Singapore return, Assassin at Peking). Posters on here and elsewhere debate about the origin of the existing The Daleks' Masterplan episodes, including the Mormon Mystery etc. Well, surely a good aid to the debate would be any labels or markings on the film can/reels? But again, where are the available photos of these? Is there a reason why so few photos of the labels are available? I have seen one photo of a collection of what exists, but not any close-ups of the labels of this group.

[Jon Preddle]

The episodes were put onto new cores and placed in new cans when they were lodged into the archive. If the old cans and reels had any labels or markings on them, that valuable information was lost when the cans and reels were discarded or repurposed.

When 'Tomb of the Cybermen' was returned in 1992, the episodes were still on the old RTV Hong Kong reels, but the films were transferred onto new cores and cans when they were lodged into the archive. The old RTV reels were sold in auction at the 1993 Panopticon convention. IIRC the person who bought them later threw them away.

You mention the 'Evil of the Daleks' 2 label -- that's not the original label or can; Gordon Hendry who owns the prints put that label on.

There are some labels here: (FILM CANS) but note, many of these are labels that were applied later on; they aren't original 1960s BBC or foreign labels.