'Doctor Who' missing episodes returned to BBC

Two episodes of Doctor Who thought lost have been returned to the BBC archives.

It has been confirmed that the third episode of 1965 tale 'Galaxy 4' - starring William Hartnell - has been uncovered. No episodes from this story were previously thought to exist.

In addition, the second instalment of 1967's 'The Underwater Menace' has also been found, serving as the earliest complete episode to feature the Second Doctor (Patrick Troughton).

Both episodes were purchased by film collector Terry Burnett at a village fete near Southampton in the early '80s, with the copies believed to have originated from the ABC channel in Australia.

They were screened this afternoon for the first time since original transmission, as part of the British Film Institute's 'Missing Believed Wiped' event. Details of a commercial release will be confirmed in 2012.

The last missing Doctor Who episode to be recovered in full was 1965's 'Day of Armageddon' - part of 'The Daleks' Master Plan' - back in 2004. Over 100 episodes from the 1960s remain missing, after the original copies were wiped by the BBC.

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Watch a clip from Doctor Who 'Galaxy 4' episode 3 below: