Reference pictures: Mk II Console (1976)

[Rassilons Rod]

Ah yes. I hadn't noticed the "missing" stained glass rounded that gives it away

[warmcanofcoke]

[jontennant]

It is mirrored. On most stories I've seen, the camera is where the view screen is. It makes sense that it would be mirrored if you look at it that way. It may be possible that they took away one wall?

[tony farrell]

In each the four stories in which the wooden control room was used, the set was assembled in full, though the orientation of the console differed in each story (and, indeed it was actually rotated during a recording break in episode four of The Hand of Fear to allow the sequence where Tom Baker's head is inside the plinth to be recorded).

Contrary to popular belief, the wooden console was only ever fitted with one 'writing desk' - the way to tell which side the desk is fitted is to look at the plinth which had three panels which opened; two of the plinth's access panels were hinged on the left (as you face them) whilst the access panel under the 'writing desk' was hinged on the right. This explains why the console had to be rotated half way through episode four of The Hand of Fear i.e, so that Tom's face could be seen. (Had the console not been rotated, either Tom's head would have been hidden behind the opened access panel or the production team would have been forced to tape that sequence with the camera pointing towards the non-existent 'fourth wall' opposite the entrance steps!)

Over the course of Season Fourteen, the wooden console gained two additional control panels (it was only fitted with one in The Masque of Mandragora).

In The Masque of Mandragora and again in The Hand of Fear, the main entrance was fitted with two sets of 'brass' rails (two tall and two short), for The Deadly Assassin and The Robots of Death, the shorter two rails were omitted. In addition, in The Deadly Assassin, the previously multi-coloured 'stained glass' roundels were all fitted with red gels which were added over the top of the pre-existing 'stained glass' patterns.








(With thanks to Nathaniel King for inspiring me to draw these overhead diagrams.)

T

[fivefingeredstyre]

Awww... Tony, you've peaked too soon...














Also, why is Tom Baker holding his groin? Just askin... ;-)

[tony farrell]

Awww... Tony, you've peaked too soon...

Oh Steve, there's a lot more to come!

Also, why is Tom Baker holding his groin? Just askin... ;-)

He's just resting his hand Steve either that or Sarah Jane has just kicked him where no gentleman should be kicked! 

T

[exleo]

You also have to bear in mind that the control panels were not 'fixed' within the console.
Back during this period the TARDIS was 'built' by several BBC Departments.... The Room would have been built and placed in the studio each time by the Scenery Department... The Console was built and provided by the Props Department, and , The control panels were created and owned by the Visual FX Department.
It would have been the Production Managers Job to Hire in each of the parts from each department for the studio filming days as each department owned their particular part and rented it out to the show. Only a representative of each department could place their particular item within the studio due to Union rules...
So 'Harrys' team would bring in the room and construct it, 'Bert from props would deliver the console and put it in place.... and Then 'Fred' from Visual FX would bring in the control panels and place them inside the console and wire them up to work......
This is why things moved around and controls were often in different places as different people from props placed the console at different rotations, and then various different people from VFX would put the controls in however they wanted to with no set position......

[tony farrell]

You also have to bear in mind that the control panels were not 'fixed' within the console.

Yes, I agree with that - only the writing desk was 'fixed' (i.e., actually part of the the console). The original control panel was detachable as were the two additional panels which were created for The Hand of Fear and The Deadly Assassin respectively.

Back during this period the TARDIS was 'built' by several BBC Departments.... The Room would have been built and placed in the studio each time by the Scenery Department... The Console was built and provided by the Props Department, and , The control panels were created and owned by the Visual FX Department.
It would have been the Production Managers Job to Hire in each of the parts from each department for the studio filming days as each department owned their particular part and rented it out to the show. Only a representative of each department could place their particular item within the studio due to Union rules...
So 'Harrys' team would bring in the room and construct it, 'Bert from props would deliver the console and put it in place.... and Then 'Fred' from Visual FX would bring in the control panels and place them inside the console and wire them up to work......

Again Exleo, I agree with the majority of this: The only part I'm not sure about is who would actually have constructed the console (i.e., the timber 'frame-work', wooden panels and writing desk). I rather think this would have been made by the Scenery Department in much the same way as the actual Tardis (Police Box) was - hence the BBC actually classified the Tardis exterior as a piece of scenery rather than a prop; thus, it was the scene-shifters who moved the Tardis into and out of position (the exception to this being the Tardis' lamp which came under VFX).

This is why things moved around and controls were often in different places as different people from props placed the console at different rotations, and then various different people from VFX would put the controls in however they wanted to with no set position......

Whilst I agree that the control panels had no fixed position, I do not agree that they were fitted "however (the VFX Department) wanted" i.e., on a whim. The positioning of the detachable control panels is more likely to have been determined by the script requirements and by the requirements of the camera script as well i.e., the director would have decided which camera positions a certain scene would be recorded from and the panels would be fitted accordingly - effectively to provide greater visual interest and to create the illusion that there were more control panels present than were actually fitted!

T

[davidnagel]

Has anyone got any further reference for the other button control panel?



This one on the right.

The left one is well documented, as we have a few better close ups of it.

[tony farrell]

This is the best I can find for you David:



This 'control panel' appears to be a simple flat board (possibly a sheet of hardboard) onto which simple coloured circles of sticky-backed plastic have been applied.

T

[davidnagel]

Fab! Cheers Monsieur Farrell.

[galacticprobe]

That is an amazing close-up of that panel, Tony! Wherever did you find it? I've only ever seen the image of it that David posted (which is also posted, in several sizes, in the http://tardisbuilders.com/index.php?topic=3050.0 topic). I've never seen an image of it this close up. (Too bad Tom Baker's hands are in the way, but at least what circles we can see of it show they're some sort of sticker... or were stenciled on.) In either case, the horizontal alignment of the circles is straight, so there must have been some sort of guide line for the person that applied the circles to follow.

The vertical alignment is odd. It looks like they started out following the angle of the panel's left side, and were straightening things out with the intent of swinging that alignment over to match the angle of the panel's right side when they finished... but miscalculated how much room they allowed themselves for that swing along the way as the circles on the right side are nearly straight vertically.

Thanks for such an eye-popping image!

Dino.

[davidnagel]

At a guess its probably from Deadly Assassin

[tony farrell]

"The Hand of Fear" actually - this was the second control panel made for the wooden console! Please refer to the overhead diagrams I posted a few replies ago. 

T

[warmcanofcoke]

I love what you are doing here Tony.