February 19th, 2026
49 comments
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Doctor Who The Movie Stunning New Restoration on 4K and Blu-ray
Available to order from 12.00am Friday 20/02/2025 from www.amazon.co.uk, www.zavvi.co.uk, www.rarewaves.com and other selected retailers.
With thanks to BBC Studios
DOCTOR WHO: THE MOVIE STUNNING NEW RESTORATION on 4K and Blu-ray
In 1996, Paul McGann debuted as the Eighth Doctor in Doctor Who, a feature length co-production between the BBC and the American Fox network, more commonly known as The TV Movie.
This 90-minute feature was shot on film, and now, for the first time, all 219 reels of original film (totalling almost 200,000 feet!) have been pulled from deep storage in the US and meticulously scanned over 21 days, then restored by Paul Vanezis to provide a definitive 4K experience.
The TV Movie has never looked or sounded so good, with a 24-frame transfer to match the original film rushes, and immersive surround sound, rebuilt from the original raw sound elements.
Also starring Sylvester McCoy (the Seventh Doctor), Daphne Ashbrook (Grace), Eric Roberts (The Master) and Yee Jee Tso (Chang Lee), The TV Movie sees the Doctor’s regeneration triggered on an operating table, with surgeon Grace Holloway accompanying the new Doctor on an epic adventure to prevent The Master from stealing the Doctor’s future lives.
This new release is available on 4K in a limited edition steelbook with exclusive artwork, as well as standard Blu-ray, and includes a host of special features including:
- The ‘uncensored’ UK version.
- The USA broadcast version.
- Soundtrack in Dolby Atmos, 5.1 and stereo.
- Sylvester McCoy and Janet Fielding featurette.
- 3 New Featurettes with Daphne Ashbrook, Eric Roberts and Yee Jee Tso.
- Two audio commentaries.
- Isolated music score.
- Production info text.
- The Seven Year Hitch making-of documentary.
- Paul McGann’s audition tape.
- Alternate takes.
- Electronic press kit and behind the scenes footage.
- TARDIS tour.
- BBC Trails.
- And much more.
Doctor Who – The Movie. The ultimate new restoration is available will be available to pre-order on Friday 20th February midday, ahead of its release on 25th May 2026 in the UK.
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Nb7
February 19th, 2026 - 9:08pmI’m pretty sure certain I’ll get this on 4K as I can’t see a 4k version being issued in the collection set. I’m torn between the steel book and standards 4k case as artwork for both looks stunning.
DPHill
February 19th, 2026 - 9:04pmThis is excellent! Ten years ago it was one of the testers for the collection range, maybe this is another perhaps? Either was a great gap filled and something totally unexpected! Cant wait for this, love it already and the artwork, can’t wait for wilderness collection set though
Although in a bit confused theres nothing new with mcgann or in the trailer, bit light on doctor 8!
K-9stein
February 19th, 2026 - 7:46pmI would have liked it if they included the censored BBC1 broadcast version as well, mainly because the 7th Doctor’s death scream in the uncut verision is far too unsettling for my tastes!
COMICshopsDontStand
February 19th, 2026 - 6:52pmAmazon link does not work
David
February 19th, 2026 - 7:21pmIt will be active Midday tomorrow
MIKK89
February 19th, 2026 - 8:31pm12:00am is Midnight tonight, not midday Friday, that would be 12pm
Jason Z
February 19th, 2026 - 10:25pmMIKK89, the source of the confusion is that ‘am’ is short for ‘ante meridiem’ = ‘before the middle of the day’, and ‘pm’ for ‘post meridiem’ = ‘after the middle of the day’. So the terms 12 am and 12 pm make no sense and can both be interpreted either way: 12 noon is midday, so ’12 pm’ is a contradiction as 12 can’t be after itself. It’s clearer to say ’12 noon’ and ’12 midnight’. Having said all that, you’re right that people do use 12 am to mean midnight… usually…!
Dalek Eye Stalk
February 19th, 2026 - 5:18pmI’d just buy the standard Blu-ray release. I don’t have 4K, so high def Blu-ray will do fine.
Andy
February 19th, 2026 - 5:00pmAh can see what they have done there the release date it will be exactly 30 years since the original broadcast which was Monday 27th May 1996. Very clever of the BBC the artwork does look amazing but do I really want this as I already own it on Blu-ray. Is there much extras for this upcoming release. Yeah so basically its a 30th anniversary edition maybe that’s what they should of called it to avoid confusion with the current release.
Rich
February 19th, 2026 - 5:21pmDon’t forget this is a brand new 4k scan from the 35mm OCN with re-done SFX. The old blu ray is just an upscale of the SD master. This is going to be a MASSIVE upgrade whether on blu ray or UHD.
Peter
February 19th, 2026 - 5:25pmAndy – the previous blurays were not remastered from the negatives. Also, they were encoded at the wrong frame rate (sped up slightly), so yes this is very much the proper replacement for any previous releases. 🙂
Mac
February 19th, 2026 - 4:34pmLooks stunning.
But I’ll wait for the collection release, so I can finish off my McCoy run
Trenzalore
February 19th, 2026 - 4:22pmOh wow whatever next, a twin dilemma steelbook? YOU KNOW THEY’D DO IT.
bryan
February 19th, 2026 - 5:04pmI’d love a Twin Dilemma 4K NEW Effects(and mestor)
Lots of DW had a few duff bits. I think it’s a brilliant mad idea for a story.
Needed Graham Harper
Troughton’s Trousers
February 19th, 2026 - 4:17pmOrdered mine this morning from Amazon.
But now the link to the items has been pulled. Still sitting in my pre-orders though.
Clearly they missed the press release’s note about being available for pre-order from tomorrow!
MJS
February 19th, 2026 - 5:54pmSame here. Order still listed on my pre-orders. No cancellation notification
Prof Horner
February 19th, 2026 - 3:23pmWell this is good news. But it is disappointing that we still haven’t had news about new animations or missing episodes .
The ergon
February 19th, 2026 - 7:55pmIsnt there an announcement due soon? I,m sure i read sometime late february?
daz
February 19th, 2026 - 3:16pmGreat artwork by Lee Binding.
I’ll buy it and then sell it on when we get the wilderness set in say 2028 maybe.
The ergon
February 19th, 2026 - 3:36pmIll wait. 2 years go by so quickly and to watch it once doesnt justify paying out for it again. The artwork is amazing.
Gordon
February 19th, 2026 - 4:29pmNo guarantee that the 4k will also get ported over to the collection steelbook. I wouldn’t be surprised if it did
Gordon
February 19th, 2026 - 4:32pmI mean it’s No guarantee that the 4k will also get ported over to the collection release. I wouldn’t be surprised if it is left out as to have an incentive to buy it
daz
February 19th, 2026 - 5:46pmYeah, can see the collection being just the standard new Blu-ray which is fine by me.
The Silent Silent
February 19th, 2026 - 3:07pmLooks like a Fantastic Release 🙂 How much will the 4K Steelbook cost ?
Gordon
February 19th, 2026 - 3:29pm£34.99 for the 4k/blu ray combo
£24.99 standard 4k only version
£14.99 for the standard blu ray version
David Minter
February 19th, 2026 - 3:07pmI wonder if we’ll get a Region A NTSC release. Wasn’t the TV movie previously released on a Blu-Ray in the UK that wasn’t released in the US? I may be misremembering that, though.
Audred
February 19th, 2026 - 3:00pmI think there may have been a bit of a boo-boo with this as Amazon had it up for sale, but you couldn’t find the link without Google’s AI assist which took me straight to the page where I managed to place and order for two before it got taken down. Seems my insomnia paid off for once.
Anita
February 19th, 2026 - 2:29pmAnyone else getting Page Not Found with that Amazon link? It was working earlier on as I was able to order the Steelbook but it seems to be down now.
booboo
February 19th, 2026 - 2:39pmwas taken down as to early will be Friday 12am now (we hope)
Anita
February 19th, 2026 - 2:46pmThanks booboo!
Mikk89
February 19th, 2026 - 2:52pmThe irony is only a few days before the announcement of this, my Nephew had his first experience of this on the previous Blu-Ray version.
I’m looking forward to this.
Audred
February 19th, 2026 - 2:58pmI was up late last night and saw a YouTuber say it was released on Amazon, I couldn’t find it via a regular search, but I found that typing it into Google’s AI assistant it gave me a direct link to the page, so I snapped-up two of them right then and there. It’s clearly been an error and taken down, but my purchase is still showing as ordered.
Rory, the original you might say
February 19th, 2026 - 2:59pmTiming malfunction.
James
February 19th, 2026 - 2:26pmDoes anyone know why the differences are between the ‘uncensored’ UK version, and the USA broadcast version?
Thanks
Rex F
February 19th, 2026 - 2:43pmThe Millennium Effect website has the differences. Google millennium effect tvm, and it’s the second link.
Demdike@CultLabs
February 19th, 2026 - 1:49pmLooks gorgeous doesn’t it compared to the original which looked like, well, a 90’s tv movie.
DaveR1974
February 19th, 2026 - 1:46pmBBC messed up with the trailer and press release.
In the trailer, at 1m37s, Sylvester states “available to pre-order now”, but it is not available to pre-order until midday tomorrow.
Also, there is an error in regard to the statements “The ‘uncensored’ UK version” and “The USA broadcast version”.
The original UK broadcast was edited, whereas the USA version was not.
It will be interesting to know if the UK version in this release will include the Jon Pertwee dedication at the start as per the first broadcast and first DVD release.
I am looking forward to finally seeing this in the original 24fps instead of the stupid PAL speed up (resulting in higher pitched voices and stuttering of some camera moves). If only the BBC would re-release the Torchwood Miracle Day Blu-ray with the correct frame rate and pitched voices too.
Rex F
February 19th, 2026 - 2:54pm“Uncensored UK version” relates to the BBC2 edit, which had no cuts but retained the alternative act break treatments of the UK BBC1 premiere. Basically it’s the DVD edit.
Audred
February 19th, 2026 - 2:56pmThe Steelbook was posted for sale on Amazon, but it was only discovered through a link supplied by Google AI, so I got in quick and ordered two. Must have been some technical error, but I got my order number.
War Chief
February 19th, 2026 - 1:43pmWell, good luck with that…..it looked a bit rubbish back in 1996……
Much as i’m a big Paul McGann fan now, back then i didn’t know who he was…..i could be forgiven for not recognising him from Alien 3, and i didn’t see Withnail and I till the following year….
Clay
February 19th, 2026 - 1:42pmThis is beautiful and an instant must-buy for me, but it makes me a little sad that it probably means we’ll never get that long-rumoured ‘wilderness years’ collection set with all the missing retrospective-type features that haven’t made the jump from DVD.
Gordon
February 19th, 2026 - 2:01pmI’m pretty sure this doesn’t rule out a wilderness years set. This needed a stand alone release as this never would have gotten a new remastering on the budget of the collection range especially with everything else needed for that release.
Rory, the original you might say
February 19th, 2026 - 3:18pmSeems to me this makes Wilderness Years more likely rather than less. BBC are going to want to get as much money out of this as possible, so it makes sense to do a solo release to recoup costs of the restoration, then package it into a Collection set in a couple of years time so they can spend the Collection money on the rest of the set.
D84
February 19th, 2026 - 5:40pmHope so
Id really like a “Wilderness Years” set
Neil
February 19th, 2026 - 1:27pmPity it doesn’t seem like we are getting any deleted scenes (we’ve all seen the pictures of Gordon Tipple in costume as the Muster..), and no mention of those awful Dalek voices from the beginning being replaced, oh well….
Gordon
February 19th, 2026 - 2:09pmI imagine that will probably happen for the collection release in a couple of years time. Considering they have 37 hours of rushes and this was a massive long complex job I think it can be forgiven if they didn’t get round to it
DanielM
February 19th, 2026 - 4:37pmThe main focus for this Release I imagine is to recoup the Costs involved in re-scanning everything shot for the Film. I believe we’ll get the more interesting VAM on a later release…
Bookcollector
February 19th, 2026 - 1:21pmI do rather enjoy this story, it’s heart (or should that be hearts) are in the right place even if it is half human…
Ricky
February 19th, 2026 - 1:20pmWow thats fantastic and I love the steelbook artwork.