4Wood, one of the UK’s leading set construction companies, was behind the sets for the BBC’s Doctor Who 60th anniversary episodes. The highly anticipated three-part series premiered tonight with The Star Beast featuring the almighty Meep Ship built by 4Wood in their facility in Cardiff.
The massive creation required the use of many different specialist set construction skills including metal fabrication, carpentry, model making and the use of a robotic arm. Creating the effect of the crash site and concrete rubble was finessed by 4Wood’s expert scenic finishers.
4Wood were the main set construction team who worked on this series of Doctor Who. Their creations will also be on display across the following two episodes, including the Tardis, another huge set build.
James Thorne, Creative Director, 4Wood said:
“Being asked to build the sets for the 60th anniversary series of Doctor Who has been a real source of pride and a rewarding creative challenge for all of us at 4Wood.”
Thorne continued:
“The Meep Ship is unlike anything that we have built before. This is the fun part of set construction, finding ways to create brand new worlds. There is no reference for these in reality and definitely no manual. It takes the expertise from across all the different skills in our team to build a believable set, which also works practicality for all the mechanics of a large-scale TV production.”
The 60th anniversary specials of Doctor Who feature the return of the 14th Doctor, David Tennant and Catherine Tate as Donna Noble. The series continues for another two episodes: Wild Blue Yonder and The Giggle.
