They used to say that playing the title role in Doctor Who was the best job in television.

If such a remark is ever repeated nowadays, it’s always qualified with reference to the incredibly long hours, the arduous hanging around waiting for shots to be ready, the stress of carrying the heavy burden of the BBC’s flagship family drama series on one’s back like a titanium Yoda and the suffocating interest of the popular press.

But was it always like this? Has such crippling pressure always been there? Probably, but after watching this clip of Tom Baker relaxing on the set over Christmas in 1979, walloping back the neat vodka and getting an eyeful of the beautiful Mary Tamm’s low-cut costume, one gets the feeling playing the Doctor isn’t just the best job on the telly; it’s the best job FULL STOP…