Missing Doctor Who episode revived 50 years on Published duration 21 November 2016

media caption Doctor Who missing episode restored after 50 years

A missing Doctor Who episode has been brought back to life after 50 years.

Despite the popularity of the television Timelord, 97 episodes were lost by the BBC.

Rob Ritchie, from Sunderland, was approached by a BBC producer who spotted his animation work on YouTube, and he ended up making a trailer for one of the most important lost ones.

He became the creative force behind the recreation of the Power of the Daleks, now available on DVD and download.

The serial was originally broadcast in 1966, but was later destroyed, with only a few stills surviving, and the audio, which had been recorded by a fan.

It is considered one of the most important "lost" ones, as it was the first to feature the second doctor, Patrick Troughton, and his clash with the doctor's greatest enemies.

image copyright David James Wood image caption Rob Ritchie studied a module on science fiction and fantasy TV as part of his media production degree

In February 2016 Rob Ritchie was asked to create a demo reel, which was commissioned.

The Sunderland University graduate said: "I was initially only brought on board to make the trailer and animate the Daleks for the story, but when we worked out the logistics of the production I was quickly promoted to CGI animator and lead compositor.

"This entailed piecing the whole project together, taking the character animation and placing the characters in correct places, adding the backgrounds and creating visual effects.

"It's a really, really important story in terms of the Doctor Who universe as its the first time the doctor changed faces, and without that programme the story wouldn't exist today.

"Plus, obviously, there's Daleks in it, and who doesn't love Daleks?"

As well as the release of the DVD on Monday there are 750 cinema screenings planned in the US, and 150 in Australia.

"The feedback has been fantastic", he said. "I just can't believe the scale of it!"