Two lost episodes of Doctor Who from 1965 have been discovered.
Film is Fabulous!, an organisation made up of film collectors and vintage television enthusiasts, uncovered the black-and-white instalments among film cans belonging to a deceased collector whose estate wishes to remain anonymous.
The discovery marks the first confirmed recovery of missing Doctor Who material in more than a decade.
The previous find occurring in 2013 when nine episodes surfaced in a Nigerian television relay station storeroom.
The recovered episodes are titled The Nightmare Begins and Devil's Planet
|BBC
Justin Smith, a cinema professor at De Montfort University and chair of trustees at Film is Fabulous!, confirmed the discovery to the BBC today.
The recovered episodes, titled The Nightmare Begins and Devil's Planet, originally aired on November 13 and November 27, 1965.
Both instalments form part of The Daleks' Master Plan, a 12-episode serial described as "dark and gritty" that featured the iconic pepperpot-shaped villains whose catchphrase remains "Exterminate!"
William Hartnell stars as the first incarnation of the Doctor.
William Hartnell stars as the first incarnation of the Doctor
|BBC
He portrayed the Time Lord from 1963 until 1966.
Peter Purves appears alongside him as companion Steven Taylor, a role he played across 46 instalments of the programme.
With this recovery, the opening three chapters of the serial are now complete, after the intervening episode was located in 2004.
BBC Archives has carried out restoration work on the original 16mm telerecordings to bring them up to broadcast standard.
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William Hartnell portrayed the Time Lord from 1963 until 1966
|BBC
Noreen Adams, Director of BBC Archives, said: "We're thrilled to have worked with the team at Film is Fabulous! to bring these lost Doctor Who episodes to viewers on BBC iPlayer this Easter.
"BBC Archives has been working to restore the original recordings and update these to broadcast quality, ensuring fans can enjoy a little extra treat with their Easter Eggs this April."
Film is Fabulous! has also arranged a special screening event on the same date.
Mr Purves, 87, is attending as a guest of honour.
During the 1960s, the BBC routinely wiped tapes for reuse, a common archiving practice at the time.
As a result, scores of episodes were destroyed, leaving 95 instalments of the programme still missing.
Mr Purves, who is missing a number of his own episodes, expressed mixed emotions about the discovery.
William Hartnell as Dr Who in colour
|BBC
"Twenty-seven of mine still are missing, but I'm delighted that two have been found," he told the BBC.
"It's rather sad, but it's great when some turn up."
Doctor Who originally ran from 1963 to 1989 before being revived by Russell T Davies in 2005.
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