Finding more Sea Devils - Part 2

The Sea Devils is just a story I really enjoy and has a lot of location work.  On a previous visit to the Isle of Wight last year I took photos of the place where the Doctor and Jo first see the Sea Devil, but I never had time to see one of the most prominent locations at the Naval Base.  In reality is is the disused Fraser Gunnery Range.  It was also a Radar testing site and had various uses but was taken over by QinetQ and eventually closed for good in 2006.  Various plans to use the site for flats have come to nothing.  The large towers on the site were demolished in recent years over safety concerns, and as I found there have been other alterations too.  Given that I was visiting Portsmouth again, a walk down the coast to see what was still standing seemed worthwhile.

The site is currently fenced off as of June 2015, but in the past I've seen photos showing the fence with large gaps and everyone from vandals to people walking their dogs free to walk around the site.  Personally I think it's safe enough if you avoid going into the buildings, but on this visit it was all very secure so I never had the choice.  I also found out the rumours that the beach has become an unofficial nudist spot were in fact true, and there were several guys lying around with nothing on.  Fortunately none were likely to stray into my photos.  Having to rely on what I could photograph through the fence, I took what I could and looked at them afterwards to work out what was what in the story...

Around the front of the base facing inland is the entrance as used by Trenchard and the Master to visit in episode 2.  The buildings in shot are easy to identify today.

Most of the filming took place on the other side facing the sea.  The first time this is seen is where the Master gets out in uniform to walk through the base.  Some small buildings have been demolishing making identification of what was filmed where rather complicated.

The small building nearest the Master on the right still stands painted grey as in the photo below, though this was taken from the front rather than the back where the filming took place.  The building behind is gone.  The building with the Radar equipment partially blocked by the Master's head is also gone.

This second demolished building is much clearer in this photo where the Doctor tackles the Sea Devils immediately in the reprise at the start of episode 6.

To the left of where this building stood, however, is the large door that the Sea Devils lock all the Navy personnel after they take control of the base.

Another long shot, but the tall white door on the far building is the tall blue door in the lower shot from the story, and also the roof from which a Sea Devil tumbles.

Another photo with the demolished Radar building in the background but this time with the white/grey building by the Doctor and Sea Devil.

Which is the back of this building.

The large building in all these photographs is the headquarters for Captain Hart.  The front entrance is seen several times throughout the story and is in the centre of the photo below.  Although taken through the fence, the shot corresponds well with a shot from the story where Captain Hart and Jo Grant escape the occupied base pursued by Sea Devils.

Looking across to the left is a smaller building that appears in the background of several shots including where Captain Hart leads his reinforcements to attack the base.

A second shot shortly later shows the concrete wall in front of the building where Sea Devils lie dead, that's what happens when you take on the Royal Navy wearing string vests.

Looking right from the main building is the direction in which the Sea Devils make a suicidal head on charge against Captain Hart in a Bofors gun.  Only identifying feature here in the building on the left, this was quite far away.

With the battle going badly for the Sea Devils the Master legs it down the beach leaving the Naval base behind for this story.

A very recognisable location for a site 40 years old and abandoned, I feared it would be a waste visit but there was plenty still standing so that photographs could be taken.  I would have liked to get a little closer but no matter.  A beautiful sunny day out.  It wasn't the last Doctor Who thing I saw that day, I later stopped in 'Southsea Models and Games' and bought an old Harlequin Miniatures Wood Beast of Tara.

Finding the Sea Devils!

My holiday to the Isle of Wight same shortly after completing the Sea Devils in my day by day episode marathon of the Pertwee era.  The Mutants was completed in the days before I was due to set off, and the holiday provided a little break to prepare ourselves at home for the Time Monster.  Meanwhile, a few days in the Isle of Wight put my very near the filming of the Sea Devils.  There are numerous locations in the area but most I wouldn't visit or are very restricted to public access, but I did get to see one of the most memorable parts of the story which I clearly remember from the repeat of the Sea Devils in 1993. 

'I've got a ticket to Ryde...'

Travel to the Isle of Wight was by hovercraft.  It's clearly not the same as the one pictured, but seemed worth the experience of a different mode of transport, it's also the fastest means to travel from the mainland to the Isle.  The hovercraft in the story is an SRN5, one of fourteen built and used around the world.  An original SRN5 in the colours seen in the Sea Devils is preserved in the Hovercraft Museum in Lee-on-the-Solent.

The first location see is No Man's Land sea fort.  These forts can all be seen from the coast of Portsmouth, the nearest being Spitbank fort which can be seen in detail.  No Man's Land fort is best seen from the Isle of Wight and pictured below from Ryde.  Since filming it and the other forts in the area have been bought from the MOD by various companies trying to convert them into hotels and private residences with varied success.

Picture sourced from BBC News

On the Isle the location visited were those used during the Doctor and Jo's escape from the castle and the first appearance of a Sea Devil on land.  First is a section of red-brown coloured cliffs up the coast from Sandown.  The Doctor and Jo are pursued by the Master and Trenchard onto the beach.  The area is undergoing constant coastal erosion so will have changed, and the life ring isn't present even if it ever were a fixture prior to filming.

 Jo and the Doctor scale down the short cliff onto the beach.  Again the location has changed but a similar section is pictured.

Once onto the beach the Doctor and Jo turn to find themselves on the much larger beach of Whitecliff Bay, in reality a mile or so further up the coast and around some large cliffs.  Here the castle guards arrive in a Citroën Dyane with the doors removed.

The Sea Devil arrives, wading up from the ocean, and makes short work of the guards.  Meanwhile the Doctor and Jo run the opposite direction to a minefield.  Stuck between the the Mines and the Sea Devil, they press ahead.

Squint and you can just about recognise the cliff behind the minefield.  The Sea Devil pursues the Doctor and Jo into the minefield.  The coastline is recognisable, in particular that singular tree that is present in both old and new pictures.

The Doctor uses the sonic screwdriver to set off some land mines.  Frightening or wounding the Sea Devil into beating a hasty retreat.

 Despite all the changes the locations do resemble those of nearly 40 years ago and were interesting to see while walking and looking for fossils.  We found a couple the next day, but no sign of Sea Devils surviving today.

This is the same patch of sea the Sea Devil emerges, honest...