Lost Episodes in Zimbabwe?

Various British tabloids are reporting that lost episodes featuring William Hartnell as the original Doctor are believed to be in the possession of President Mugabe of Zimbabwe. The articles claims that Zimbabwe purchased the right to broadcast the first series of Doctor Who, much of which currently doesn’t exist within the BBC Archives.

The BBC had disposed of various Doctor Who episodes from the 60’s during the 1970’s to make room in the archives for various new programmes. The various articles suggest that President Mugabe currently has no plans to let the BBC enter Zimbabwe due to catastrophic events that have happened in Zimbabwe over the past decade.

Episodes mainly featuring William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton as the Doctor had been disposed of by the BBC but various episodes have been located over the past few decades. The fourth part of the Tenth Planet is currently the most sought-after episode from the 60’s due to the first appearance of the Cybermen, last appearance of William Hartnell and the first appearance of Patrick Troughton.