Classic Doctor Who has a reputation for being low budget. When you read about the classic series you’re almost guaranteed to come across one reference to “wobbly sets”. Classic Doctor Who certainly had its fair share of special effects failures, but as I watch old episodes, even from the black-and-white era, I’m impressed by what they did accomplish.
The High-Altitude Windak Pressure Suits in action.
Take for instance the space suits in “The Wheel in Space“. When I saw these suits come on screen I was rather surprised. The suits they used were High-Altitude Windak Pressure Suits. Since it’s an actual working pressure suit, I have to say it’s a pretty convincing costuming choice. These suits also appeared in The First Men in the Moon and eventually found there way into Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back.
It’s this philosophy of using real world items that can add a layer of believability to stories like Doctor Who and Star Wars. The Doctor Who costumes look like working space suits. The Star Trek costumes from the same period look dated and require a lot more suspension of disbelief.