Radio Free Skaro – Tales from the Edit

Radio Free Skaro (Episode 980) features an interview with Chris Hayden, who edited the film segments for The War Games which was showcased in The War Games in Colour.

BBC Film Editor Recalls Doctor Who’s Early Days and Hidden Production Secrets

MAINE, USA — Tucked away in the quiet countryside of Maine lives a man with a direct link to one of Britain’s most iconic television series: Doctor Who. Chris Hayden, a former BBC film editor, contributed to several classic episodes during the show’s formative years in the 1960s — including the landmark serial The War Games, which marked the end of Patrick Troughton’s tenure as the Second Doctor.

Now in the United States, Hayden sat down with Radio Free Skaro, a long-running Doctor Who podcast, to reflect on his early BBC career, his path into television, and some fascinating behind-the-scenes anecdotes from one of TV’s longest-running sci-fi shows.

From London to Maine: A Career’s Unlikely Journey

Hayden’s path into television was anything but conventional. After an early interest in filmmaking — sparked by observing a director in action — he began working on film trailers in London before a chance phone call from a friend changed the trajectory of his career.

“I got a call one day from a friend who had just joined the BBC,” Hayden recalled. “He told me to quit my job and come work with him. So I did — just like that. And suddenly, I was at the BBC.”

Though he had ambitions to direct, Hayden found his calling in the edit suite. “I realised quickly that editors have so much control over the emotional tone and timing of a story,” he said. “It’s the editor who brings the raw footage to life.”

Editing the Doctor’s Adventures

Hayden’s BBC career saw him work across various productions, but his time on Doctor Who would become his most lasting legacy. He served as a supervising film editor on several key serials, including Planet of Giants (1964), The Faceless Ones (1967), The Dominators (1968), and the epic ten-part The War Games (1969).

At the time, Doctor Who was still seen internally as “children’s television” — not yet the cultural juggernaut it would become in later decades. As a result, production resources were modest at best.

“Budgets were tiny,” Hayden admitted. “Sometimes the effects were… let’s just say not quite Hollywood standard. But the team made do.”

In one particularly revealing anecdote, Hayden recalled that the First World War sequences in The War Games were filmed on a set borrowed from a different BBC drama. “We had access to a huge set built for another production,” he explained. “But while we were filming, they were dismantling it. So the clock was ticking, quite literally, during those scenes.”

A New Life in America

Hayden’s time with the BBC ended in the early 1970s when he accepted an opportunity to move to the United States. He initially worked in San Francisco, editing and directing films, before relocating to Maine, where he became involved in an ambitious plan to launch a new television channel based in New York.

When the venture ultimately collapsed due to the dot-com bubble’s burst, Hayden stayed in Maine, where he transitioned into teaching — though his passion for media never waned.

Now semi-retired, he remains a quiet observer of the industry he helped shape decades ago.

Preserving a Legacy

Though Doctor Who has changed dramatically in budget, technology, and tone since Hayden’s day, his contributions to the show’s early years continue to be appreciated by dedicated fans and historians. Through podcasts like Radio Free Skaro and ongoing efforts to restore and archive classic episodes, Hayden’s work is finding a new generation of admirers.

Asked whether he watches the modern version of the show, Hayden admitted with a chuckle, “I keep an eye on it — but it’s a different beast now.”

Still, there’s no denying that Hayden helped lay the foundation for the enduring legacy of Doctor Who. In the edit suite, with scissors and tape, he helped shape the Doctor’s earliest adventures — one cut at a time.