Norman Clegg in Outer Space

In the four-part Doctor Who story "Enlightenment", the TARDIS dematerializes aboard an old wooden sailing vessel. The fifth Doctor and his companions spend some time belowdecks, getting to know the crew, and learn that the officers are competing in a race. Then they visit the bridge, or the wheelhouse, and see on the view screen that they are actually racing through space.

The officers are Eternals, people who cannot die, but who exist throughout eternity. They draw their crew from the Temporals, people like you and me with a finite lifespan. The Eternals have no real society or interests of their own. So they seek diversion through competitions such as this one, where the Eternals use ships and peoples from different times and cultures in Earth history to race on the solar winds. The prize? One lucky group of Eternals hopes to win is enlightenment: to know where one stands in relation to everything else.

For the part of Captain Striker, who commands the antique wooden sailing vessel on which the TARDIS lands, director Fiona Cumming set her sights on veteran actor Peter Sallis.  Cumming had previously worked with Sallis on the 1974 BBC drama "The Pallisers." She decided that, of all the actors she had ever worked with, Sallis best fit the role of the detached, commanding Captain Striker. 

Unfortunately, industrial action derailed the production of many BBC shows in late 1982. When the labor union disagreements halted rehearsals and studio recording, producer John Nathan Turner worked behind the scenes to ensure "Enlightenment" did not suffer the same fate as "Shada", the fourth Doctor story written by "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" author Douglas Adams, which was never finished. As scheduled filming dates passed, contracts with cast and production crew expired. The only hope for the story then was this: would the BBC ever agree to pay all the associated story costs to remount the production, in order to see "Enlightenment" become a reality?

Producer John Nathan Turner worked with Fiona Cumming and Peter Sallis on 1974 drama "The Pallisers." He had seen how Sallis elevated that production with his presence. Also he was always keen to cast well known actors on "Doctor Who", and by this time Sallis had risen to stardom as Norman Clegg on the BBC comedy "Last of the Summer Wine". No wonder he wished to cast the veteran character actor for the principle guest spot in the production. We can only imagine how much he and Cumming yearned to see Peter Sallis assume the bridge of a rickety nineteenth century sailing vessel, and race his fellow Eternals among the stars. 

Dragon Dave