John Nathan-Turner

Production

John Nathan-Turner

Born — Died

1947-08-12 — 2002-05-01

Place of birth

Birmingham, West Midlands, England, UK

Known for

Production

Credits

62 titles

John Turner, known professionally as John Nathan-Turner, was an English television producer. He was the ninth producer of the long-running BBC science fiction series Doctor Who and the final producer of the series' first run on television (from 1980 until it was cancelled in 1989). He finished the role having become the longest-serving Doctor Who producer and cast Peter Davison, Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy as the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Doctors, respectively.

Known for

Doctor Who: The Curse of Fenric poster
8.4

The Doctor and Ace arrive at a secret military base during World War II, where an ancient evil from the Doctor's past prepares to make his final deadly move. As hideous vampires rise from the sea and Russian commandoes begin to close in, they are confronted not only with a mystery from the distant past but also a terrifying vision of mankind's future...

Doctor Who: The Curse of Fenric

1989

Doctor Who: Resurrection of the Daleks poster
7.9

Captured in a time corridor, the Doctor and his companions are forced to land on 20th century Earth, diverted by the Doctor's oldest enemy - the Daleks. It is here the true purpose of the time corridor becomes apparent: after ninety years of imprisonment, Davros, the ruthless creator of the Daleks, is to be liberated to assist in the resurrection of his army. Not even the Daleks foresee the poisonous threat of their creator. Indeed, who would suspect Davros of wanting to destroy his own Daleks - and why? Only the Doctor knows the truth. Will he descend to Davros' level of evil to stop him?

Doctor Who: Resurrection of the Daleks

1984

Doctor Who: Paradise Towers poster
6.5

The Doctor and Mel visit Paradise Towers, a residential complex that promises a peaceful life to its residents. However, the establishment is far from what its name suggests: A conflict persists among the Kangs, humanesque multicolour beings who gather in opposing gangs based on which colour of the rainbow they bear; killer cleaning robots prowl the halls, and a secret in the complex's basement poses the greatest threat of all.

Doctor Who: Paradise Towers

1987

Doctor Who: Revelation of the Daleks poster
8.7

At the Tranquil Repose mortuary, the Doctor and Peri uncover a sinister plot to create a new breed of Daleks under the supervision of the mysterious Great Healer.

Doctor Who: Revelation of the Daleks

1985

Doctor Who: Full Circle poster
6.6

On the planet Alzarius in the alternate universe of E-Space, the Doctor, Romana and K9 find survivors of a crashed starliner, strange creatures lurking in the marshes and a genetic riddle which stretches back centuries.

Doctor Who: Full Circle

1980

Adventures in Space and Time poster
9.0

A documentary on the history of Doctor Who (1963) featuring new interviews with cast and crew, transmitted as part of "Doctor Who Night" on BBC2.

Adventures in Space and Time

1999

Film credits

2020s · 2 titles

2010s · 6 titles

Showman: The Life of John Nathan-Turner poster
NR

This well researched and insightful documentary about producer John Nathan-Turner looks at his career with a special emphasis on his time at Doctor Who which he worked on throughout the 1980s until the show went on hiatus following the Season 26 story ‘Survival’. Featuring rare footage and commentary from those who knew him and worked with him, Showman is a fascinating look at the life of a troubled showman with lots of stories to tell.

Showman: The Life of John Nathan-Turner

2019

Longleat '83: The Lost Footage poster
NR

In April 1983, Roger Stevens and James Russell were given “Access All Areas” passes to the BBC’s Doctor Who celebrations at Longleat. Armed with a Ferguson Videostar camera they set out to record as much of the event as they could. While the BBC’s official footage amounts to only a few minutes for news broadcasts, James and Roger recorded several hours, and their material includes interviews with both Patrick Troughton and Tom Baker. Some of this material has been used in other productions by both Reeltime Pictures and BBC Video, but the original tapes were thought to be lost forever – until rediscovered earlier this year. So now enjoy another chance to take a trip to Longleat in 1983. The sound may not be perfect and the pictures come from ageing VHS tapes – but the atmosphere is unmistakable. So avoid the queues, and get to the front of the line with a trip down memory lane!

Longleat '83: The Lost Footage

2015

Come in Number Five poster
NR

A special retrospective of Peter Davison's tenure as the Fifth Doctor.

Come in Number Five

2011

Hanging by a Thread: The Making of Logopolis poster
NR

Hanging by a Thread: The Making of Logopolis is a documentary about the production of the Doctor Who story, Logopolis, which aired in 1981. It is part of the Season 18 Blu-ray collection of Doctor Who. The documentary explores the challenges and complexities faced during the filming of the story, including the transition from Tom Baker to Peter Davison

Hanging by a Thread: The Making of Logopolis

2019

The Doctors: The Colin Baker Years poster
NR

This is the definitive set of interviews with the team who brought the Colin Baker era of Doctor Who to life! This documentary includes the best in-depth interviews with Colin Baker (the Sixth Doctor), Nicola Bryant (Peri), Bonnie Langford (Mel), Michael Jayston (The Valeyard), John Nathan-Turner (Producer) and Eric Saward (Script Editor) ever undertaken!

The Doctors: The Colin Baker Years

2019

The Last Chance Saloon poster
NR

During the mid-1980s, senior BBC executives had doubts about whether Doctor Who should continue. In 1987, the programme was given one final chance...

The Last Chance Saloon

2010

2000s · 5 titles

A New Beginning poster
NR

A look at the radical changes made to Doctor Who by John Nathan-Turner for his first story as producer, which opened the programme's eighteenth year on BBC1.

A New Beginning

2004

Lords and Luddites: Making 'The Mark of the Rani' poster
NR

Actors and members of the production team recall the making of the programme in this specially-shot documentary, which features contributions from actors Colin Baker, Nicola Bryant, Kate O'Mara and Gary Cady (Luke), writers Pip & Jane Baker, script editor Eric Saward and composer Jonathan Gibbs.

Lords and Luddites: Making 'The Mark of the Rani'

2006

Longleat '83: The Greatest Show in the Galaxy poster
7.0

Over Easter weekend the 3rd and 4th of April 1983 the BBC held the biggest Doctor Who event ever to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the programme. The BBC expected 10,000 people a day. They got 30,000. We travel back to 1983 using extensive video footage of the entire event plus interviews with those people who were there – both the organisers and the attendees. In this landmark video we feature Heather Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, Peter Davison and a host of celebrities and production staff from Doctor Who in what might be for some… The greatest show in the galaxy!

Longleat '83: The Greatest Show in the Galaxy

2001

Trials and Tribulations poster
NR

A retrospective of Colin Baker's turbulent three-years as the Sixth Doctor in Doctor Who (1963), covering his casting, the 1985 hiatus, and his sacking on the orders of BBC One controller Michael Grade.

Trials and Tribulations

2008

The Home Whovian poster
NR

In the 1980’s US public television station New Jersey Network produced some groundbreaking documentaries about Doctor Who following the programme’s huge success in America. The Home Whovian was planned to be the first in a series of video releases in the USA featuring interviews with the stars of Doctor Who. In the event it proved to be a one-off. Featuring interviews with Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Colin Baker and John Nathan-Turner. Unique material from a unique moment in Time Travel TV – when Doctor Who conquered America!

The Home Whovian

2001

1990s · 5 titles

1980s · 3 titles

Series credits

Behind the camera

Doctor Who: The Curse of Fenric poster
8.4

The Doctor and Ace arrive at a secret military base during World War II, where an ancient evil from the Doctor's past prepares to make his final deadly move. As hideous vampires rise from the sea and Russian commandoes begin to close in, they are confronted not only with a mystery from the distant past but also a terrifying vision of mankind's future...

Doctor Who: The Curse of Fenric

1989

Doctor Who: Resurrection of the Daleks poster
7.9

Captured in a time corridor, the Doctor and his companions are forced to land on 20th century Earth, diverted by the Doctor's oldest enemy - the Daleks. It is here the true purpose of the time corridor becomes apparent: after ninety years of imprisonment, Davros, the ruthless creator of the Daleks, is to be liberated to assist in the resurrection of his army. Not even the Daleks foresee the poisonous threat of their creator. Indeed, who would suspect Davros of wanting to destroy his own Daleks - and why? Only the Doctor knows the truth. Will he descend to Davros' level of evil to stop him?

Doctor Who: Resurrection of the Daleks

1984

Doctor Who: Paradise Towers poster
6.5

The Doctor and Mel visit Paradise Towers, a residential complex that promises a peaceful life to its residents. However, the establishment is far from what its name suggests: A conflict persists among the Kangs, humanesque multicolour beings who gather in opposing gangs based on which colour of the rainbow they bear; killer cleaning robots prowl the halls, and a secret in the complex's basement poses the greatest threat of all.

Doctor Who: Paradise Towers

1987

Doctor Who: Revelation of the Daleks poster
8.7

At the Tranquil Repose mortuary, the Doctor and Peri uncover a sinister plot to create a new breed of Daleks under the supervision of the mysterious Great Healer.

Doctor Who: Revelation of the Daleks

1985

Doctor Who: Full Circle poster
6.6

On the planet Alzarius in the alternate universe of E-Space, the Doctor, Romana and K9 find survivors of a crashed starliner, strange creatures lurking in the marshes and a genetic riddle which stretches back centuries.

Doctor Who: Full Circle

1980

Doctor Who: Mindwarp poster
7.7

As the Doctor's trial continues, evidence is presented showing his most recent adventure, one where he faces an old adversary, Sil. As a scientist conducts his unethical experiments to prolong the life of Sil's boss Kiv, the Doctor's memories of the events begins to return and an unpleasant surprise awaits him.

Doctor Who: Mindwarp

1986

Doctor Who: Meglos poster
5.0

On the lush planet Tigella, two opposing factions are divided over the usage of the Dodecahedron, an ancient and powerful artefact which provides the entire planet's energy. The Doctor is summoned to arbitrate the conflict, but the power-crazed Meglos intercepts the call and impersonates him in order to steal the Dodecahedron.

Doctor Who: Meglos

1980

Doctor Who: Delta and the Bannermen poster
6.2

The Doctor and Mel go for a holiday trip to Shangri-La aboard a Nostalgia Tours bus, only to get dragged into the battle against genocide of their fellow passenger Delta, a Chimeron Queen fleeing from the Bannermen who wish to make her species extinct.

Doctor Who: Delta and the Bannermen

1987

Doctor Who: Silver Nemesis poster
7.1

The arrival of a mysterious comet heralds impending danger from enemies both old and new. As Ace helps the Doctor defend Earth, she is confronted with a dangerous question..."Doctor Who?"

Doctor Who: Silver Nemesis

1988

Doctor Who: Battlefield poster
7.3

Knights from a parallel universe arrive on Earth to find the legendary sword Excalibur. Only the Doctor and Ace, with the assistance of Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, can save the Earth from total catastrophe.

Doctor Who: Battlefield

1989

Doctor Who: Terror of the Vervoids poster
4.7

As evidence for the defense at his ongoing trial, the Doctor presents an adventure from his future when he is travelling with a computer programmer named Mel. Answering a mysterious distress call from the space liner Hyperion III, they find that the passengers aboard include unscrupulous scientists, secret agents, saboteurs, thieves and a murderer. And lurking in the shadows are the Vervoids, the product of sinister botanical experiments, who will stop at nothing to destroy all non-plant life.

Doctor Who: Terror of the Vervoids

1986

Doctor Who: The Awakening poster
5.4

The Doctor, Tegan and Turlough arrive in Little Hodcombe, where the townspeople's re-enactments of English Civil War battles are causing a dormant entity, the Malus, to re-awaken.

Doctor Who: The Awakening

1984

Doctor Who: Snakedance poster
5.0

Tegan falls once more under the influence of the Mara and directs the TARDIS to the planet Manussa. There, the Federator's son Lon and his mother Tanha are preparing for a ceremony to celebrate the banishment of the Mara five hundred years earlier. The Mara takes control of Lon and uses him and Tegan to obtain from Ambril, the Director of Historical Research, the 'Great Crystal' - the large blue stone that originally brought it into being by focusing energy from the minds of the planet's one-time inhabitants. The Mara now plans to use the crystal during the ceremony to bring about its return to corporeal existence.

Doctor Who: Snakedance

1983

Doctor Who: Logopolis poster
7.4

After an encounter with the Master, an airline stewardess named Tegan Jovanka becomes an unwitting stowaway aboard the TARDIS as it travels to the planet Logopolis. There, the Doctor discovers that the Master's interference with the Logopolitans' advanced mathematics has unleashed a wave of entropy which threatens to consume the entire universe.

Doctor Who: Logopolis

1981

Doctor Who: Dragonfire poster
7.2

As trouble brews on the space trading colony of Iceworld, the Doctor and Mel encounter their sometimes-ally Sabalom Glitz and a new friend who goes by the name "Ace".

Doctor Who: Dragonfire

1987

K-9 and Company: A Girl's Best Friend poster
5.7

Sarah Jane Smith arrives at the home of her Aunt Lavinia in the cozy village of Moreton Harwood, only to find that Lavinia is nowhere to be found and that the Doctor has left her a parting gift in K·9 Mark III. With the help of K·9 and Lavinia's young ward Brendan Richards, Sarah Jane starts investigating her aunt's disappearance. In the process, they discover that Moreton Harwood is home to a coven worshipping the pagan god Hecate and preparing for a human sacrifice...

K-9 and Company: A Girl's Best Friend

1981

A Fix with Sontarans poster
3.0

While operating the controls on his TARDIS console, The Doctor accidentally transports his former companion Tegan Jovanka on board. Less than happy about her situation, she reluctantly agrees to help when the Doctor reveals that two Sontarans are on board with a powerful vitrox bomb with which they intend to blow up the ship.

A Fix with Sontarans

1985

Doctor Who: The Five Doctors poster
7.8

Many incarnations of the Doctors and their old companions are taken out of time and deposited in the Death Zone on Gallifrey. There, they must battle the Master, Daleks, Cybermen and Yeti in order to reach the Dark Tower and discover the Tomb of Rassilon.

Doctor Who: The Five Doctors

1983

Doctor Who: Frontios poster
7.8

"Frontios buries its own dead", or so the saying goes. The Doctor, Turlough and Tegan are forced into landing on the remote planet of Frontios, a human colony where deaths go unaccounted for. What lies beneath the surface, dragging its victims down?

Doctor Who: Frontios

1984

Doctor Who: Warriors' Gate poster
5.1

The Doctor, Romana, Adric and K9 encounter the enslaved time-sensitive Tharils, who lead them to a white void occupied only by the ruins of an old building and a spaceship - a dimension that might be the key to escaping E-Space.

Doctor Who: Warriors' Gate

1981

Doctor Who: Castrovalva poster
7.8

The Doctor needs somewhere peaceful to recover from his traumatic regeneration. But the sanctuary of Castrovalva is not all it seems, as the Master will stop at nothing to gain his revenge over the Doctor...

Doctor Who: Castrovalva

1982

Doctor Who: The Tom Baker Years poster
NR

A documentary where Tom Baker watches and gives spontaneous reactions to numerous excerpts from his tenure on Doctor Who. Released on two VHS cassettes with nearly 3 hours of clips.

Doctor Who: The Tom Baker Years

1992

Doctor Who: The Tom Baker Years poster
NR

A documentary where Tom Baker watches and gives spontaneous reactions to numerous excerpts from his tenure on Doctor Who. Released on two VHS cassettes with nearly 3 hours of clips.

Doctor Who: The Tom Baker Years

1992

Doctor Who: The Caves of Androzani poster
9.8

Arriving on the barren world of Androzani Minor, the Doctor and Peri find themselves embroiled in a long running, literal underground war. At the heart of the conflict is a substance called Spectrox - both valuable and deadly! The Doctor & Peri wind up being poisoned by the material, which is killing them slowly and painfully unless they can find a cure. As the conflict heats up and the situation gets more desperate, the Doctor realises time is running out - both for Peri and himself...

Doctor Who: The Caves of Androzani

1984

Doctor Who: The Greatest Show in the Galaxy poster
7.5

The Doctor and Ace head for the Psychic Circus on the planet Segonax, where they meet a disparate group of performers and visitors, including a self-centred explorer named Captain Cook, his companion Mags and a biker known as Nord.

Doctor Who: The Greatest Show in the Galaxy

1988

Doctor Who: Mawdryn Undead poster
7.0

A warp ellipse draws the TARDIS off course. The Fifth Doctor's companions are separated from him not in space, but in time, and he has to deal with a treacherous schoolboy named Turlough. But why does the Doctor's old friend, the Brigadier, not remember him at all?

Doctor Who: Mawdryn Undead

1983

Doctor Who: Vengeance on Varos poster
7.4

When the TARDIS is in need of repairs, the Doctor and Peri are forced to land on Varos, a mining planet whose population is entertained and enslaved by a sadistic system of public torture and execution, and find themselves the latest unwilling subjects in this most extreme form of reality TV.

Doctor Who: Vengeance on Varos

1985

Doctor Who: The Leisure Hive poster
7.0

Romana fancies a proper holiday and convinces the Doctor to visit the leisure planet Argolis, where a takeover by the Argolins' historic enemy is underway.

Doctor Who: The Leisure Hive

1980

Doctor Who: Dimensions in Time poster
4.8

All of the Doctor's incarnations are in crisis when The Rani creates a time-loop in the East-end of London in this 30th Anniversary Special.

Doctor Who: Dimensions in Time

1993

Doctor Who: Dimensions in Time poster
4.8

All of the Doctor's incarnations are in crisis when The Rani creates a time-loop in the East-end of London in this 30th Anniversary Special.

Doctor Who: Dimensions in Time

1993

Doctor Who: Attack of the Cybermen poster
7.0

An alien distress call draws the Doctor and Peri to Earth, 1985, where they uncover a Cyberman plot to change the course of history.

Doctor Who: Attack of the Cybermen

1985

Doctor Who: Remembrance of the Daleks poster
8.9

London, 1963: The Doctor returns to the place where it all began — alongside his latest companion, Ace, with unfinished business. Not for the first time, unusual events are unfolding at Coal Hill School. At 76 Totter's Lane, the Doctor discovers that his oldest foes — the Daleks — are on the trail of stolen Time Lord technology that he left on Earth long ago. The Daleks are planning to perfect their own time-travel capability, in order to unleash themselves across the whole of time and space.

Doctor Who: Remembrance of the Daleks

1988

Doctor Who: The Happiness Patrol poster
8.0

The TARDIS arrives on the planet Terra Alpha, where the Seventh Doctor and Ace discover a society in which sadness is against the law - a law enforced zealously by the brightly uniformed Happiness Patrol. The planet is ruled by Helen A with the aid of her companion, Joseph C, and her carnivorous pet Stigorax, Fifi.

Doctor Who: The Happiness Patrol

1988

Doctor Who: Black Orchid poster
6.2

The TARDIS arrives in 1925 England where the Doctor ends up playing in a local cricket match due to a case of mistaken identity. The travellers accept an invitation to a masked fancy dress ball, but events take on a more sinister tone as murders are perpetrated at the country home of their host, Lord Charles Cranleigh.

Doctor Who: Black Orchid

1982

Doctor Who: The Ultimate Foe poster
5.7

Charged with genocide by the treacherous Valeyard at his trial, the Doctor receives help from an unlikely source to turn the tide of the High Council's rulings in his favour and reveal the Valeyard as a wrongdoer: the Master. For the Valeyard's own crimes are so atrocious, even the Doctor's archenemy will help him to ensure that the villain won't see the light of day again. Cornered, the Valeyard flees to the Matrix, where he can be the Doctor's judge, jury and executioner...

Doctor Who: The Ultimate Foe

1986

Doctor Who: Warriors of the Deep poster
4.8

The Fifth Doctor, Tegan and Turlough arrive on Sea Base 4, a nuclear warhead station under the sea that has some very nasty neighbours.

Doctor Who: Warriors of the Deep

1984

Doctor Who: The Two Doctors poster
7.3

Suddenly gripped by a memory of being executed in his second incarnation, the Sixth Doctor travels to Seville to save his past self and ensure his own existence in his present.

Doctor Who: The Two Doctors

1985

Doctor Who: Ghost Light poster
8.4

The Doctor takes Ace on an initiative test to a strange Victorian old house where she is forced to confront her darkest fears.

Doctor Who: Ghost Light

1989

Doctor Who: The Keeper of Traken poster
7.4

The Doctor and Adric learn from the wizened Keeper of Traken that a great evil has come to his planet in the form of a Melkur - a calcified statue. The Keeper of Traken is nearing the end of his reign and seeks the Doctor's help in preventing the evil from taking control of the bioelectronic source that is the keystone of the Traken Union's civilisation.

Doctor Who: The Keeper of Traken

1981

Doctor Who: The Power of Kroll poster
4.7

The Doctor and Romana arrive on the marsh moon of Delta Magna in search of the next segment of the Key to Time. They are caught in the conflict between the native Swampies and the crew of a chemical refinery. The presence of a gun runner complicates matters; to make things worse, the Swampies intend to awaken Kroll, the giant god that lives beneath the swamps.

Doctor Who: The Power of Kroll

1979