Stories Television Doctor Who Season 15 Serial: 1 2 3 4 5 6 Horror of Fang Rock Original Story TV Soundtrack Original Story TV Soundtrack 1 image Overview Episodes Characters How to Watch Reviews 13 Statistics Related Stories Quotes 4 Transcript Overview First aired Saturday, September 3, 1977 Production Code 4V Written by Terrance Dicks Directed by Paddy Russell Runtime 100 minutes Time Travel Past Tropes (Potential Spoilers!) Base Under Siege, Shape Shifting, Spaceship Location (Potential Spoilers!) Earth, England, Fang Rock Synopsis The Doctor and Leela arrive at a lighthouse on the island of Fang Rock off the south coast of England, a place of rumour and tales of beasts from the sea. In the minutes before their arrival, a strange light fell from the sky which was followed by an unnatural glow in the ocean, a thick fog has appeared out of nowhere, the lighthouse power flow has become strangely erratic and one of the keepers is dead. Has the fabled Beast of Fang Rock returned? Watch Watched Favourite Favourited Add Review Edit Review Log a repeat Skip Skipped Unowned Owned Owned Save to my list Saved Edit date completed Custom Date Release Date Archive (no date) Save 4 Episodes Part One First aired Saturday, September 3, 1977 Runtime 25 minutes Written by Terrance Dicks Directed by Paddy Russell UK Viewers 6.8 million Appreciation Index 58 Synopsis The English channel, the 1900s AD. The TARDIS lands on barren Fang Rock, inhabited until now only by three lighthouse keepers. But what is the strange fog covering the island, and can it be connected to the falling star sighted earlier that night? Part Two First aired Saturday, September 10, 1977 Runtime 25 minutes Written by Terrance Dicks Directed by Paddy Russell UK Viewers 7.1 million Synopsis The survivors of a wrecked ship are stranded with the lighhouse crew on Fang Rock as a deadly menace slithers through the fog. Has the Beast of Fang Rock returned? Part Three First aired Saturday, September 17, 1977 Runtime 25 minutes Written by Terrance Dicks Directed by Paddy Russell UK Viewers 9.8 million Appreciation Index 60 Synopsis The Doctor barricades everyone in the lighthouse to protect them from the mysterious deadly creature in the fog. But it may already be inside, biding its time… Part Four First aired Saturday, September 24, 1977 Runtime 25 minutes Written by Terrance Dicks Directed by Paddy Russell UK Viewers 9.9 million Appreciation Index 57 Synopsis The Rutan starts picking off the surviving humans one by one as the Doctor and Leela struggle to defeat not only the alien but an entire fleet waiting to occupy Earth. Show All Episodes Characters Fourth Doctor Tom Baker Leela Louise Jameson Rutans First Appearance Show All Characters (3) How to watch Horror of Fang Rock: Watch on iPlayer Blu-Ray The Collection – Season 15 DVD Horror of Fang Rock VHS Horror of Fang Rock (VHS) Reviews Add Review Edit Review Sort: Default Date (Newest First) Date (Oldest First) Likes (High-Low) Likes (Low-High) Rating (High-Low) Rating (Low-High) Word count (High-Low) Word count (Low-High) Username (A-Z) Username (Z-A) Spoilers First Spoilers Last 13 reviews 5 July 2025 New· · 54 words Review by Jonathan_ Spoilers This review contains spoilers! Easily the best 4 story so far. The TARDIS appears at a lighthouse that is under attack by an unknown force. We get to see the Rutans for the first time (though their design is kind of goofy), and the whole episode has an air of gothic horror to it. Just an amazingly atmostpheric story. Jonathan_ View profile Like Liked 0 22 May 2024 · 122 words Review by uss-genderprise Spoilers 5 This review contains spoilers! This episode was fantastically tense. I expected at least one of the side characters to get out alive, and each time another died I was surprised. Speaking of the side characters, they were expertly written to cover the entire spectrum of likeability and garnered drastically different reactions when each one of them eventually died. I've never seen such a fantastic set of characters, from the lighthouse keeper who all clearly care for each other despite their differences, to a greedy capitalist doing whatever it take to get ahead, to a man just trying to save face. I especially enjoyed how done Leela was with Adelaide's antics and how even the Doctor smiled when she threatened Palmerdale. I really like Leela so far. uss-genderprise View profile Like Liked 5 10 May 2024 · 222 words Review by thedefinitearticle63 Spoilers 3 This review contains spoilers! This is part of a series of reviews of Doctor Who in chronological timeline order. Previous Story: The Ghost of Margaret Wow, what a start to a season. It starts slow, mysterious and delightfully gothic, the isolated setting of a lighthouse in the early 1900s really makes you feel quite trapped and makes it fairly scary until you actually see the Rutan. The supporting cast are all fun to watch and the Doctor and Leela feel in their element throughout, I do think some of their deaths felt forced but it makes for an interesting ending knowing that nobody will have a clue what happened. The Doctor turns up to a place, everyone gets killed, he saves the world and leaves and nobody ever knows he was there. The Rutans as a villain feel like they should be interesting but their main ability (shapeshifting) is only shown once and doesn't really trick anyone, leaving them as sort of basic. Similarly their voices are just slightly softer-spoken Daleks, the only thing they really have going for them is their design and connection with the Sontarans, the latter basically just being a namedrop. Despite having a fairly slow pace, I was hooked throughout the entire thing, it really is a story that lives up to the hype. Next Story: The Foe from the Future thedefinitearticle63 View profile Like Liked 3 8 May 2024 · 263 words Review by 15thDoctor Spoilers 2 This review contains spoilers! If I have seen any of season 15 before, it will have been this story, at least 11 years ago. I immediately recognised the Rutan in part 4, though knowing my memory I could have picked this up from a DVD extra for another story. This is a brilliant way to kick off the Graham Williams era, continuing the extraordinary run the show has seen since The Deadly Assassin. Like many of my favourites it is set in the recent past, where life is recognisable but different enough to be interesting. The world building is top notch, I loved seeing the different generational attitudes towards electricity for example. The story felt claustrophobic and frightening, inventively set on four sets all seemingly one story above another - it really felt like I was in that lighthouse, it felt real. The acting of the younger lighthouse worker was not all that great in part one, but for some reason it dramatically improved when the cast grew in part two, with the introduction of the shipwrecked citizens. Otherwise there were flawless performances all round from the well balanced ensemble of actors. It is shocking that every single character other than The Doctor and Leela die, especially given how well developed they were. This story carries on the Gothic darkness I associate with the Hinchcliffe era (not exactly considered Williams' trademark by fan consensus). It will be interesting to see if and when this is dropped. This was also Terrance Dicks' best effort since The War Games, 8 years before. I have everything crossed hoping this run of form will continue. 15thDoctor View profile Like Liked 2 5 November 2024 · 130 words Review by dema1020 Spoilers 1 This review contains spoilers! I quite like Horror of Fang Rock overall, with a fun sense of characters in a distinct setting, and a very strong sense of atmosphere. I'd rate it higher but it really feels like we are giving similar plot beats to another season premiere story, Terror of the Zygons, and I much prefer the earlier version with Sarah and Harry over Leela. I don't have anything against Louise Jameson or her character, she just feels a little more awkward here compared to most other Fourth Doctor companions. I find the whole bit around changing her eye colours weirdly distracting for something so trivial. I don't know. I enjoyed this one overall but can see how this was a start of a bit of a weird season in Doctor Who history. dema1020 View profile Like Liked 1 Show All Reviews (13) Open in new window Statistics AVG. Rating520 members 3.99 / 5 Member Statistics Watched 933 Favourited 112 Reviewed 13 Saved 6 Skipped 1 Related Stories The Lucy Wilson Mysteries The Keeper of Fang Rock Rating: ??? Story Skipped Book More Actions View Sets Close Related Sets Set of Stories: The Lucy Wilson Mysteries Add Review Edit Review Skip Skipped Unowned Owned Save to my list Saved The Lucy Wilson Mysteries The Phantoms of Tusker Rock Rating: ??? Story Skipped Book More Actions View Sets Close Related Sets Set of Stories: The Lucy Wilson Mysteries Add Review Edit Review Skip Skipped Unowned Owned Save to my list Saved Other adaptations of this story: We define an adaptation as a recreation of a similar story but on a different medium or with different characters. Target Collection Doctor Who and the Horror of Fang Rock Rating: 3.93 Story Skipped Book Reviews(1) More Actions View Sets Close Related Sets Set of Stories: Target Collection Add Review Edit Review Skip Skipped Unowned Owned Save to my list Saved Other variations of this story We define a variation as another way of experiencing the exact same story - like an autiobook, a reconstruction or an omnibus edition. BBC Audio Soundtracks Horror of Fang Rock (BBC Audio Soundtrack) Rating: 3.63 Story Skipped Soundtrack Reviews(1) More Actions View Sets Close Related Sets Set of Stories: BBC Audio Soundtracks Add Review Edit Review Skip Skipped Unowned Owned Save to my list Saved Quotes Add Quote Link to Quote Favourite LEELA: Silence! You will do as the Doctor instructs, or I will cut out your heart. — Leela, Horror of Fang Rock Show All Quotes (4) Open in new window Transcript Needs checking Part One [Lamp gallery] (A blazing object streaks through the atmosphere and lands in the sea near a lighthouse. One of the keepers, a young man, watches it through a telescope on the small gallery running round the outside of the lantern room. Although it is night, the lantern is not lit. All the men speak with 'yokel' accents, presumably meant to be West Country.) VINCE: Ere, Reuben. Come and look, quick.REUBEN: What is it, boy?VINCE: This light, shot across the sky. Went under the sea, it did, and the sea was all glowing. Over there. (Reuben looks through the telescope.) Show Full Transcript Open in new window