One of the frustrating aspects of being a Doctor Who fan is the inability to watch lost episodes from a series that’s nearly 50 years old.

Good news is coming in from the BBC, where two missing episodes have been returned to the archives. It seems that film collector Terry Burnett purchased canisters containing Episode 3 of the William Hartnell adventure “Galaxy 4″ and Episode 2 of Patrick Troughton’s “The Underwater Menace” in the 1980s.

The two episodes in Burnett’s possession previously belonged to Australia’s ABC Channel. Parts of The Underwater Menace were censored, leaving the episode a bit incomplete. Details for commercial release of these episodes will be announced sometime in 2012.

For now, BBC has released two clips of the newly discovered episodes. Click here for a clip from Galaxy 4, Episode 3 and here for a clip from The Underwater Menace, Episode 2.

Unfortunately, over 100 other episodes remain missing. You can watch most of what is available on Netflix (you’ll need the streaming + DVD option if you want to see most of the “old” Doctor Who). Check out my guide to watching Doctor Who in order on Netflix.

via io9 and @ActionChick