<span class="SFPTagline"> From SCIFIPEDIA </span>

Doctor Who, Season 17 was to be yet another difficult year for producer Graham Williams. He had been forced to find a new script editor for this season after an exhausted Anthony Read had left the program at the end of season 16. Douglas Adams, who had scripted the previous season's "The Pirate Planet," stepped into the role. However, Adams had also penned a popular radio serial called The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy the previous year and by the time Adams began work as script editor on Doctor Who, the success of the Hitchhiker's Guide was growing by leaps and bounds. Finding time to work on Doctor Who would become a challenge for him by the end of the season.

Williams also had cast problems. From the start of her involvement with Doctor Who, Mary Tamm had insisted that she would only play Romana for a single season. Yet, Williams had stubbornly refused to have her written out at the end of the previous season on the hopes that the actress could somehow be tempted back. He determined the simplest solution would be to have Romana simply regenerate at the beginning of the new season. Lalla Ward, who had greatly impressed the production team as Princess Astra in the previous season's closer, was cast as Romana's new incarnation. Unfortunately, Tamm had became very visibly pregnant by the time season 17 went before the cameras. So, a regeneration scene in which the original actress would not actually appear had to be written.

John Leeson had also left at the end of the previous season. He had tired of doing voice over work as K-9 and wanted to pursue other acting opportunities. David Brierley would be tapped to fill the role.

Tom Baker was also becoming a problem. The actor's increasing propensity to add his own humorous ad libs clashed with the rather traditional sensibilities of "Nightmare of Eden" director Alan Bromly. Bromly became so frustrated by the final day of shooting that he was unable to continue and had to hand the reins over to Williams himself to complete the story. This turn of events proved the breaking point for Williams, who soon decided that he would leave the show at the end of the season.

But, all these things were inconsequential compared to the real tragedy of the season. The Douglas Adams penned season closer "Shada" became the victim of a strike at the BBC. Although its location filming and a single day of studio recording were completed, the BBC's persistant union difficulties made it impossible to complete the story.

Nevertheless the season does have some genuine highlights. The second story, "City of Death", is frequently cited as a fan favorite, showcasing some beautiful location work in Paris, the outstanding chemistry between Tom Baker and Lalla Ward and a humorous cameo by Monty Python alum. John Cleese.

Additionally, the season opened with a return of fan favorite villains the Daleks and contained a timely commentary on drug abuse ("Nightmare of Eden").

Season seventeen began airing on September 1, 1979. Although the season achieved the highest average episode ratings in the entire 26-season run of the classic series, it remains controversial to fans. The budgetary limitations had become extremely apparent, particularly in the last three serials to air, and some viewers felt that Adams's comedic additions had pushed the show into the realm of self-parody.

• Destiny of the Daleks (4 episodes)
• City of Death (4 episodes)
• The Creature form the Pit (4 episodes)
• The Nightmare of Eden (4 episodes)
• The Horns of the Nimon (4 episodes)
• Shada (unfinished, never aired, 6 episodes)