But, yes, good old Betamax! I think the first video recording I did, Betamax again, was The Five Doctors! I must still have that tape somewhere, though no means to play it! I did convert all my old Betamax tapes to VHS a couple of years later (by simply connecting the two recorders together). Can’t play even those anymore now. Never bothered to convert them onto DVD (the picture/audio quality is shocking by today’s standards!)

I had a major incident when originally recording Attack of the Cybermen onto Betamax. You may remember that Betamax tapes were physically smaller and gave better picture quality. Therefore they also had less recording time than VHS. About ten minutes before the end of the second part the tape ran out! In a panic I let the tape rewind and recorded the end over the beginning of part one! For years I’d only seen the diamond heist stuff once but most of the rest of the story countless times (missing about a minute or so somewhere towards the end while the tape was rewinding!) It was tricky to watch on Betamax but I did what I could to stitch the end segment back onto the end when transferred to VHS!
A day or two after Attack part 2 screened I ended up writing up the missing first ten or so minutes at school, as a story for an English class. Just so I wouldn’t forget it! I may even still have that somewhere!

I must admit, though, I never had much of a problem over the cyber design changes. For a long time I thought the Cybermen in Tomb of the Cybermen looked like the Revenge of the Cybermen type, thanks to the misleading Target book cover! David Banks’ excellent Cybermen book had an attempt at explaining it all. Something to do with cybernomads meeting the Telos Cybermen and upgrading them. Who knows how much time has passed, I can take that or any other explanation!

Rewatching Timelash over and over for 18 months?! It’s a wonder you don’t have constant nightmares about Paul Darrow, tinsel or being trapped in a cave with a Morlox! I know I would!

Oh, and Free Software (as in freedom, rather than as in beer) is definitely the way to go!

There is talk of Mondas and Telos but all the cybermen we see are the same BBC 1980’s standard Model and even when I was a Kid I knew this was wrong.

The Tomb and Tenth Planet cybermen are so different.

I know that seeing the cloth mask cybs are unlikely in New Who but for something so reliant on the past.. the story just needed to go that extra yard…

even the Cyons arnt as bad as people say.

And dont for a MOMENT think that Im better than the staggering crew. I am just a bloke and a 4 quid mic from ebay. And some free software.

Oh and as for Time Lash? Its well recorded that this was the first story I ever taped off TV.. onto Beta max and during the hiatus I only had that and Daleks to keep me going for 18 months and I STILL love WHO.

Mr Simpkins, how can you reply to Mr B without pointing and laughing at the Timelash fetish?

I must admit, Nathan, I think I am exactly the same about Attack of the Cybermen. Everyone else seems to hate it and generally see nothing but faults. Me, I can’t even really seen any faults with it! Must be that cyber-conditioning (it’s great for the hair, I’m told).

As for the coffee down the nose – you have Andy to entirely thank for that one. He’d been lobbying for Sinclair vs. Cutter for a while. All his idea and execution! Any dry cleaning bills to him! It was a great idea, I must admit, though…

cheers

Back to Trial of a Time Lord…. Bod help me.