The First Doctor and his faithful friends encountered The Romans in this 1965 serial and, although the four part adventure was initially panned for being unrealistic, it has since become a firm fan favourite for its witty dialogue, ambitious script and slapstick character moments, one of the show's first examples of utilising comedy to compliment the drama. The series itself was on a roll as far as the ratings were concerned as this is the third consecutive story which has earned the accolade of featuring one of the most watched Doctor Who episodes of all time. 13 million people tuned in for the Dalek Invasion of Earth, 13 million people came back for The Rescue and 13 million people joined Team TARDIS on their venture to Rome in 64 AD. The first episode, 'The Slave Traders', premiering on 16th January 1965, enjoyed the highest ratings of the bunch but it was all downhill from there, unfortunately. A true undiscovered gem of the William Hartnell era.
Dan Butler is the Doctor Who Editor at WhatCulture.com. When he isn't writing his own articles or editing other people's, he can be found trawling the internet for gifs of Steven Moffat laughing. Contact him via dan.butler@whatculture.co.uk.
