Saudi Arabia
SAUDI ARABIA is a Middle Eastern country, between the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf.
Contents
Population
When Doctor Who screened in Saudi Arabia in 19XXX, the population was 7 million, and licensed TV sets numbered only 30,000 (per WRTH, 1966).
In 1970s, it was 7.741 million, and 122,000 sets (per WRTH, 1974).
TV & system
Saudi Arabia began its television service in 1957.
Aramco-TV, based in Dhahran.
Colour transmissions began in 1973 using the SECAM colour broadcast system.
Language/s
The main language of Saudi Arabia is Arabic, although television broadcasts were also in English, for the benefit of the English-speaking worker at the oil-fields.
DOCTOR WHO IN SAUDI ARABIA
Saudi Arabia was the 27th country to screen Doctor Who; it was the third to screen the series in Arabic (see Selling Doctor Who).
BBC Records
The Seventies records a sale of 4 stories by 28 February 1977. The Handbook identifies these as being: C, E, J and L.
The Eighties - The Lost Chapters records a sale of 25 stories (by 10 February 1987).
In DWM, Saudi Arabia is identified in 16 story Archives: the same four Hartnells as above, plus K; and AAA, BBB, DDD, EEE, KKK, MMM, LLL, RRR, PPP, QQQ, UUU for Pertwee, in 1977.
Stories bought and broadcast
WILLIAM HARTNELL
Nine stories, 37 episodes:
| A | An Unearthly Child | 1 |
| B | The Daleks | 7 |
| C | Inside the Spaceship | 2 |
| E | The Keys of Marinus | 6 |
| F | The Aztecs | 4 |
| G | The Sensorites | 6 |
| J | Planet of Giants | 3 |
| K | The Dalek Invasion of Earth | 6 |
| L | The Rescue | 2 |
Saudi Arabia therefore bought the standard package of 37 GROUP A, B and C of the William Hartnell stories dubbed into Arabic.
The programme was supplied as 16mm black and white film prints with Arabic soundtracks. It is possible that the broadcaster was also supplied with English prints, enabling a simulcast in both languages, with the English soundtrack available through radio.
JON PERTWEE
20 stories, XX episodes: ????????
| . | TBC | . |
Saudi Arabia therefore bought GROUP ONE and GROUP TWO of the Jon Pertwee stories.
The programme was supplied as 16mm black and white film prints with Arabic soundtracks. It is possible that the broadcaster was also supplied with English prints, enabling a simulcast in both languages, with the English soundtrack available through radio.
TOM BAKER
??? 3 stories, XX episodes:
| . | TBC | . |
Saudi Arabia therefore bought part of GROUP A of the Tom Baker stories.
The programme would have been supplied as PAL colour video tapes with English soundtracks.
Origin of the Prints?
Tunisia and Morocco had screened the Hartnell stories by the time Saudi Arabia began so it's possible the prints sent to Saudi Arabia came from one of these two countries.
Transmission
WILLIAM HARTNELL
Unknown. Circa 1968.
JON PERTWEE
The series started on Tuesday, 26 April 1977, at 4.45pm (which was only a few days after the Pertwee episodes screened in Lebanon).
The first story was Doctor Who and the Silurians.
MORE TO GO HERE.
TOM BAKER
?????????
There is no record that Saudi Arabia screened Doctor Who again.
TV listings
1960s
None found.
1970s
TV listings have been obtained from the English newspapers Arab News, from Jeddah, and Gulf Mirror from Bahrain.
REQUIRES A BIT HERE
1980s
REQUIRES A BIT HERE
Fate of the Prints?
Jordan was the next Arabic country in the Middle East country to air Doctor Who, from mid-1969). It is possible that Saudi Arabia sent its prints of the Hartnell stories to Jordan.
Saudi Arabia appears to be the last ever country to screen a full run of Jon Pertwee stories from black and white film. With the exception of Bangladesh, who aired a handful in black and white in 1980, all other countries screened the third Doctor stories in colour.
Saudi Arabia in Doctor Who
There are no instances where Saudi Arabia is mentioned in the series.
References
