Mission to the Unknown: Season 3, Story 2/10, Serial T/A: 1 x 25min episode, 9th October 1965, Writer: Terry Nation, Director: Derek Martinus, Script Editor: Donald Tosh, Producer: Verity Lambert
The Daleks' Masterplan: Season 3, Story 4/10, Serial V: 12 x 25 minutes episodes, 13th November 1965 to 29th January 1966, Writers: Terry Nation (1-5 & 7) and Dennis Spooner (6, 8 to 12), Director: Douglas Camfield, Producer: John Wiles
00: Mission to the Unknown (09/10/1965)
This episode is not only Doctor-lite but also Companion-lite and TARDIS-lite!
We begin on the jungle planet of Kembel.The jungle sounds teeming with life.
Space Security agent Jeff Garvey is on the run, and in pain. He regains his composure. "I remember now. Must... kill..."
Nearby Marc Cory and Gordon Lowry are attempting to repair their space craft.
The screaming and screeching animal life sounds like it's getting closer. Captain Lowry just wants to get the ship off the ground, so they can make their rendezvous with a freighter, but the work goes slowly.
Lowry curses Cory's decision to come to this planet, but Cory is still keeping his reasons close to his chest.
The missing Garvey watches them from the jungle's foliage. Garvey edges closer, still muttering to himself about killing. Garvey is just about to strike Lowry down, but Cory shoots him. "It was him or you."
Lowry lunges at Cory but gets a punch in the stomach for his troubles. Cory points out the thorns in Garvey's body - "Varga thorns."
The two retreat into the craft, but Garvey doesn't appear to be dead. His arm twitches and we see his hand is covered in white fur-like growths surrounding more thorns.
Cory hands Lowry his ID and admits he's "Space Security Service - licenced to kill"!
"You've just been enlisted." Cory explains his real mission - he's Dalek hunting.
The Daleks haven't been active in "our" galaxy for some time, but they've gained control of over 70 planets in the 9th galactic system in the last 500 years, and 40 more in the constellation of Miros.
Lowry is not particularly concerned, but Cory tells him of a report from a ship's captain that described a Dalek ship in this part of space.
Garvey no longer resembles a human being, being completely consumed by Varga thorns.
Cory is right - there is a Dalek base, and there the Supreme Dalek, resplendent in his black livery, awaits the arrival of 7 alien delegates.
The Daleks monitor the flight path of the freighter, and the Supreme orders it destroyed.
The Varga plants can move, dragging themselves along by their roots and they're closing in on Cory and Garvey.
Garvey is in denial that the Daleks could be here.
The supreme orders a death squad after the remaining earthmen.
The alien delegates look brilliant, so alien, so unalike from one another or other typical TV aliens.
Cory and Lowry crouch in the bushes when the Dalek patrol arrives to destroy the ship - and their last chance of escape. As they make their escape through the dense jungle, Lowry is stung by a Varga thorn; he tears it out but the damage is done...
The Daleks begin their meeting with the arrival of the last delegate, Malpha.
Malpha's concern is that there are hostile forces on Kembel, but the Supreme assures them that their ship is destroyed and the last survivors will be hunted and destroyed.
The Supreme is confident that they will not have time to send a message.
The delegates agree the Dalek treaty; the 7 great powers of the outer galaxies are one!
Malpha, assuming the role of spokesperson, welcomes the alliance with the Daleks. "Conquest is assured!"
Malpha: "Mars, Venus, Jupiter, the Moon colonies..."
The Supreme: "They will all fall before our might but the first of them will be... Earth!"
Lowry is terror-stricken when he rolls up his sleeve to discover the Varga infection engulfing his arm.
The penny drops for Cory, who has no choice but to shoot his comrade down dead.
He begins to record a message detailing the Dalek threat, but the Dalek patrol closes in and exterminates him before he can launch the capsule. His message will go undelivered - for now.
The Daleks believe that whatever information he has discovered has died with him.
Back in the conference room, Malpha continues his bloodthirsty chest-beating.
It seems that nothing can stop the Daleks and their master-plan now...
01: The Nightmare Begins (13/11/1965)
Love the little recap of the Myth Makers on the BBC's audio version of this, gives the start of the story a real urgency.
The delirious Steven is worried about the Greeks...
The Doctor desperately tries to land somewhere they can get help for the injured Steven; it seems he's been poisoned.
Katarina thinks they've reached the place of perfection. "I rather doubt that," says the Doctor, "At least, that is, we shall be stopping at a lot of places before that!"
On the planet Kembel, Space Security Agent Bret Vyon, who appears to be a descendent of none other than Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, is trying to send a message.
Space Brig Vyon uses a phonetic alphabet that seems to have been reinvented for the 41st century: "Charlo Charlo Egan" indeed!
Vyon's crewmate Kurt Gantry has been injured and his leg is in splints.
Across the galaxy, on Earth, in the Central Communications Control Room, their message goes unnoticed. Shaven headed technicians go about their tasks while duty technicians Lizan and Roald argue over what to watch on telly.
He wants to watch the match but she wants to watch the Guardian of the Solar System. Must be some sort of prequel. Who rules the remote?
They compromise by watching a news feed that will give the results while showing Mavic Chen's holiday plans.
Turns out he's only going to the Spar. Sounds like a shit holiday, to be honest.
"The mineral agreement with the fourth galaxy proved a little more complicated than was at first expected." Probably because of Maaga and her lot playing silly beggars. The non-aggression pact of 3975 guarantees peace, but that was 25 years ago...
Chen's just going cruising apparently. Roald enjoyed Chen's speech "again".
Back on Kembel, Gantry is convinced there's something approaching, and urges Vyon to go without him. "I'll only fall on one of those spiked plants..."
"This is no time for phony heroics... without me, you've got a chance. It's not a good one, but it's a chance." Brett leaves, and it isn't long till Gantry's fears are realised: Daleks!
While Bret Vyon watches helplessly, his friend is exterminated, and the Daleks glide away.
He makes a break for it but trips and smashes his transmitter. All may not be lost, though - he hears a strange sound, and the TARDIS appears!
The Doctor tells Katarina to look after Steven while he goes for help.
Bret pursues the Doctor, who has spotted the city in the distance. Before the Doctor can get any closer,though, Bret Vyon has him at gunpoint, and is demanding the TARDIS key!
Steven regains consciousness in the TARDIS and Katarina tries to persuade him to rest. She's surprised to see Bret Vyon enter the TARDIS, but not as surprised as he is to see the ship's interior dimensions. "From the outside it looked so small..."
Bret is desperate to get back to Earth, and starts pressing switches - including the view screen, which gives away that the outraged Doctor is outside.
Bret's left the key in the door, so the Doctor feels quite confident Vyon's brawn will be no match for his brain.
As Steven gets the drop on Bret with a handy spanner, the Doctor watches as a space vessel lands nearby.
In their base, the Daleks wait to greet the new arrival.
When Bret regains consciousness, he's fixed to a chair - an invention of the Doctor's: "the magnetic chair". It has a forcefield strong enough to restrain a herd of elephants! It can only be deactivated by a switch at the back.
The Doctor tells Katarina he hopes to find help in the city, and decides to leave questioning Brett till he gets back.
The Doctor makes his way to the city, but soon finds a human skeleton, and nearby a spool of tape, which he pockets before continuing on his way.
The space craft that the Doctor observed lands at the Dalek spaceport.
The Doctor is horrified to see his old enemies in the city.
Love the venom Hartnell imbues in that one word. "DALEKS!"
In the TARDIS Steven worsens, and Bret tells Katarina that he has tablets in one of his belt pouches that will cure Steven's poisoning. Katarina decides to trust him as he can't escape the chair.
Bret says the tablets should take effect almost immediately. Katarina worries that she has disobeyed the Doctor, but that can wait - on the viewer screen, Bret spots a Dalek!
Meanwhile, the new arrival at the Dalek spaceport is none other than the Guardian of the Solar System himself - Mavic Chen! He's a traitor!
The Doctor races back to the TARDIS, but reaching the edge of the clearing, he sees the door ajar, and the ship surrounded by Daleks!
02: Day of Armageddon (20/11/1965)
The Doctor watches...
...as the Daleks find that there's no-one aboard.
They receive orders to execute "Operation Inferno" to flush out any invaders by torching the jungle.
Mavic Chen, having missed the last meeting (in Mission to the Unknown, some 6 months ago), reads the minutes, and makes some unusual looking notes.
No wonder Chen's handwriting's so crap, look at how he holds his pen.
A new delegate arrives, Zephon, master of the 5th Galaxy. Didn't his lot cause all that hubbub on Peladon?
Zephon's great. High time he and the other conspirators made a come back.
The two missed each other at the international peace conference of Andromeda, but in an embarrassing diary-clash, Zephon was attending a meeting here.
Trantis attended the Adromedan shindig so as not to arouse suspicion.
Chen admires the Daleks' "genius for war."
Zephon questions Chen's loyalty to the Dalek alliance, calling him a "supreme traitor."
The planet Fisar and the Embodiment Gris have both, at different times, tried to depose Zephon.
Chen fancies a breath of fresh air; perhaps suspecting that their conversation is being monitored.
The Dalek eavesdropper reports to the Supreme.
It seems the Daleks don't entirely trust Chen, but don't feel he's a threat.
Wall to wall great characters in this. The Supreme Dalek is a top villain, so angry and vicious sounding compared to the other Daleks & Steven's such a likeable companion, a real tower of power in Purves' mighty run.
Steven awakens in the jungle, revived by Bret's space medicine.
Katarina explains they had to escape the Daleks when they approached the TARDIS.
The Doctor arrives, and Katarina explains that Bret saved them.
The Doctor concedes that Bret wasn't to know the TARDIS could have withstood any Dalek attack.
He also notes the irony that Bret had the anti-toxin he was after all along.
Nearby, the Daleks implement Operation: Inferno with pyro-flame appendages replacing their standard sucker-arms.
Jungle Arson of the Daleks! Pretty sure these jungle sound FX are the same ones used in Planet of the Daleks.
Bret is horrified and moves away to rejoin the Doctor and his companions.
Steven feels much better but his arm is still in a sling.
The Doctor has accepted Bret is an ally now.
Steven points out that the Daleks will be monitoring the TARDIS, hoping to trap them on their return.
The Doctor and Steven can't agree on a course of action, so Bret has to tell the Doctor to "shut up"!
Imagine if Hartnell had been well enough to properly take part in The Three Doctors, and went up against the Brig.
The only thing they can agree on is that the Daleks must be stopped.
The Daleks get ever closer with their flame throwers.
The Doctor cites history at Brett: "you must tell Earth to look back in the history of the year 2157, and that the Daleks are going to attack again. History will show how to deal with them."
As the jungle burns around them, they decide that the last place the Daleks will look is their own city.
Chen and Zephon observe the fire. "Primitive but efficient."
Zephon would have used ultrasonics, but Chen is not impressed.
Zephon tells Chen that he's paranoid, and afraid of the Daleks, while inflating his own importance.
Zephon decides to keep them waiting and make a fashionably late entrance.
Chen goes inside where the other delegates are arriving:
The Supreme tells his subordinate that Zephon's usefulness is in fact over.
Scoping out the assembled ships, Bret is horrified to recognise Mavic Chen's Spar ship.
The Doctor plots to steal Chen's wheels, when Zephon approaches.
Bret knocks Zephon unconscious, and the Doctor has his way in: the creatures hooded robes will make the perfect disguise.
The Supreme and the other delegates grow impatient though Chen assures them that Zephon will arrive soon.
Steven tries to talk the Doctor out of his plan to learn what the Daleks are up to, to no avail.
The Doctor hands Bret the recording he found in the jungle, and tells him to wait at Chen's ship but to leave without him if he doesn't come back in good time.
Bret's admiration for the Doctor grows, and he tells him he's a brave man. The Doctor is dismissive, though. "Rubbish. Rubbish, my boy. I'm only doing what has to be done."
The Daleks search for their missing delegate...
...and the Doctor pulls Zephon's cloak on just in time.
He's escorted into the city by a Dalek patrol.
Bret, Steven and Katarina must do their part, and prepare Chen's Spar ship for a quick getaway.
Representative Trantis is scathing about "Zephon"'s tardiness.
Chen invites "Zephon" to take the empty chair next to him.
The Dalek Supreme opens their 7th meeting by announcing that the Time Destructor is complete, only requiring the fitting of the essential Taranium Core.
This news goes down well; the delegates thump the table in appreciation.
It is Chen that has supplied this vital last piece of the puzzle. Taranium is only found on Saturn, and it has taken 50 years to gather a full "m" of the mineral. Without it the Time Destructor would be useless.
The real Zephon finds himself tied hand and foot, and has to shuffle towards an emergency alarm.
Bret and Steven overpower the Spar's crew...
...but Zephon has reached the alarm.
In the panic, the delegates scatter.
The Doctor takes advantage of the chaos to snatch the Taranium Core.
He's almost stopped by the real Zephon, and has to dash in the opposite direction.
Bret prepares for take off.
Steven and Katarina protest, but Bret begins the launch sequence...
03: Devil's Planet (27/11/1965)
As Brett's countdown ticks along, the Doctor makes it aboard.
Steven helps him aboard, as the Doctor demands "Get us off! Get us off!" Hello, to you too!
The Spar leaves Kembel at full pelt...
...much to the agitation of the Dalek Supreme.
He orders them tracked, but the ship must not be destroyed, and the intruders captured alive in order to guarantee the safety of the Core. Instead they prepare to randomize their navigational equipement.
The Doctor tells Bret about the evil alliance.
He also explains to Steven that he must not open the box containing the Taranium - a full "m" would blind him!
Back on Kembel, Zephon is accused of negligence. He blames the Daleks' own lack of security (bound to go down well) and suggests his attackers came from the Solar system.
Chen is dismissive - he did not see his attackers - but the Black Dalek seems to consider Zephon's point that no-one from outside the solar system could have known about the Taranium.
It's all fairly insubstantial stuff, though, and Zephon's fate is sealed when he threatens to take the Masters of Celation and Beaus with him.
That's the final straw for the Black Dalek: "You threaten our unity?" Zephon has nothing to say, but the Dalek Supreme does: "Execute!"
The Spar ship has been tracked to nearby the planet Desperus, and the Daleks prepare to force them down onto the planet's surface with their randomiser.
The fugitives wear visors to look at the Taranium, and the Doctor tells them that their best way to stay safe is simply to keep the Taranium up their sleeve.
The Doctor decides they now have time to listen to the recording that they found.
When they play the tape, Bret immediately recognises the voice of Marc Cory, whose warning has come too late, it seems.
The Daleks operate their randomiser...
Bret must find someone he can trust that they can deliver Cory's message to. Carlton is the man in charge of Space Security but he's close to Chen.
The ship suddenly lurches, as the randomiser forces them down to the planet Desperus, a penal planet.
The Daleks dispatch a pursuit ship, and the Black Dalek suggests that as it was Chen's Spar that was stolen perhaps the thieves were indeed from Earth.
Chen vows to retrieve the Core, and promises that if they were from Earth he will deal with them.
The Doctor and his companions are powerless to prevent being drawn down to Desperus.
On the harsh surface below three convicts scuffle over a game of cards.
Bors is leader by virtue of possessing the only knife, and when he goes to sleep, Kirkesen tries to take it from him. Bors is more alert than he seemed, though.
As the two argue again, Garge points out the Spar landing in the distance and their hopes of escape are raised.
The Doctor is unimpressed with Bret waxing lyrical about how advanced the Spar ship is and goes outside to inspect any damage there may be.
He and Katarina spot three lights coming towards them...
The Dalek pursuit ship receives orders to eliminate the fugitives once the Taranium has been recovered.
Bors, Kirkesen and Garge approach the Spar, wary of "Screamers" - rightly, as the creatures attack, driving Kirkesen off into the darkness.
Katarina calls for the Doctor and the two go back inside, where the Doctor works at rigging up a forcefield to keep out intruders.
When the convicts approach, Katarina points them out and the Doctor tells her to get ready to throw the switch.
Bors and Garge are lit up by the energy field; Bret complains that cactic power won't kill, but that of course was the Doctor's plan. The men are however rendered unconscious.
The Daleks have caught up with them, though, and their ship is about to land. Did the Doctor close the outer door?
Bret closes it as the ship heaves away, leaving the Daleks behind to make a bad landing that gains them time.
He sends Katarina to check on the door - but she's attacked by the convict Kirkesen, who made it aboard earlier when they weren't looking!
04: The Traitors (04/12/1965)
Kirkesen demands to know who's in charge, and when Bret tells him they're headed for Earth, he tells him to change it. He wants to go to Kembel.
Kirkesen doesn't seem to know who the Daleks are - and doesn't care. He says whoever the Daleks are, they'll help him.
The Daleks monitor the ship's course to Earth and the Supreme orders not only that Chen must recover the Taranium personally, but that the pursuit ship is to be destroyed for failure.
When Kirkesen doesn't believe they've changed course, Bret tells him to look at the screen. As he does, Steven tries to get the drop on him, but Kirkesen takes Katarina into the airlock and shuts them in.
The Doctor threatens to open the airlock into space but Kirkesen knows he won't sacrifice Katarina.
Bret is another matter, however...
...and so, in fact, is Katarina - she grapples free and presses the button that ejects them both into space.
Katarina is dead.
The Doctor is visibly affected: " I hope she's reached her Place of Perfection. She didn't understand. She couldn't understand. She wanted to save our lives and perhaps the lives of all the other beings of the Solar System. I hope she's found her Perfection. Oh, how I shall always remember her as one of the Daughters of the Gods. Yes, as one of the Daughters of the Gods."
On Kembel, Trantis chides the Daleks for putting too much faith in Mavic Chen, but the Supreme responds that he can be trusted to recover the Taranium because he is "hungry for power."
As the Spar approaches Earth, the Doctor, Steven & Bret are understandably subdued as they seek the best place to land.
Chen reaches Earth first, and is briefed by Lizan and Karlton as to Bret Vyon's records. They've prioritised Vyon over Gantry, whose death remains unknown to them. Chen's orders are that the "traitors" are to be killed on sight, including any other 'creatures' with them.
Chen berates Karlton for letting his agents get to Kemble, but the Security man tells him Cory kept his hunch to himself, and his disppearance caused questions. "You know you can trust me," says Karlton, who is clearly involved in Chen's conspiracy.
The Spar comes into land.
Chen has ambitions to cast the Daleks aside at the first opportunity and dismisses Karlton's speculation that Trantis, as leader of the largest galaxy, is first in line to lead the alliance.
Chen is pleased with Karlton's selection of agent to hunt down the traitors: Kingdom. "Ruthless, hard, efficient. And does exactly as ordered."
The Spar has crash landed near the experimental station, where Bret hopes to make contact with his friend Daxtar.
Sara Kingdom enters and confirms her orders to capture Bret Vyon and anyone with him. Jean Marsh, looking a bit different from The Crusade there.
The Doctor and Steven are impatient and worry that the crash of the Spar will have attracted attention. Bret tells him that this is a restricted area, and that they must be wanted men by now. He thinks that Daxtar is the only man that will believe what they have to say.
Chen briefs Sara to return the Taranium to him personally. As she leaves, Karlton tells Chen that for a moment he thought he would share the Dalek plan with her.
"A heroic war cry to apparently peaceful ends is one of the greatest weapons a politician has."
Daxtar listen to the Doctor's "incredible" tale of the power mad Chen, and asks if they have the Taranium with them...
The Doctor immediately rumbles that Daxtar is part of the conspiracy. Bret only hesitates a moment before shooting him down.
"You brainless idiot! How many times have I told you about taking lives!" bellows the caveman-clubbing Doctor.
The Supreme Dalek expects Chen to lay his hands on the Taranium and return within 2 days. The Dalek delivering Chen's message also relays that it's believed that the thieves originated in the 10th Galaxy - that of Trantis.
Bret suggests trying to bluff their way out with the old prisoner and escort trick. Just then Sara Kingdom enters. She and Bret know each other, and when she demands the Taranium, he fears she too is involved in the conspiracy. Bret buys time for the Doctor and Steven to escape, as both he and Sara draw their guns. Sara shoots first, and Bret is killed. Sara orders her colleague Borkar to hunt down the Doctor and Steven. "They will be shot on sight - but aim for the head!"
05: Counter Plot (11/12/1965)
The Doctor and Steven run for their lives...
...and arrive in one of the experimental chambers of the centre.
In the middle of the room is a strange capsule containing a pair of white mice.
The Doctor guesses that this is some sort of transmitter.
Tell you what, Hartnell appears to have a full set of upper teeth there. He certainly doesn't by The Tenth Planet.
In a nearby control room, two scientists fuss over a bank of monitors.
Borkar demands to know if they've seen two strangers but gets short shrift from the scientists, who are at a critical stage of their dissemination experiment.
Sara creeps towards the experiment chamber and bursts in on the Doctor and Steven.
She gives them 5 seconds to hand over the Taranium...
...but before their time is up, the experiment begins.
Borkar tries to break in but the door is sealed.
Froyn and Rhymnal register perfect dissemination...
The room is completely empty when Borkar enters, and the scientists know that the the 3 people inside have gone... elsewhere.
The Doctor, Steven and Sara are transported across space.
Froyn and Rhymnal don't know if they will arrive safely, hence the transmitter on the mouse capsule.
The planet Mira is misty and swampy.
The Supreme Dalek demands an update as to Chen's progress.
Karlton interrogates Froyn and Rhymnal, who inform him that the aim was for the mice to arrive on the planet Mira.
The scientists retreat to their instruments as a signal begins to come through.
On Mira, the mice have survived, but the Doctor and the others are not with them. The white mice have escaped... It's Magrathea all over again. Only first.
Chen barely hides his panic beneath the surface.
Karlton can save his bacon, though: tell the Daleks Earth was under too much scrutiny, so they deliberately sent them to Mira to be picked off at ease.
Karlton keeps Chen on track...
...but Chen seems increasingly insane, convinced once again of his own superiority.
Chen congratulates Karlton's solution, but it seems that unbeknownst to Chen, Karlton has ambitions of his own.
The Doctor awakens on Mira and is relieved to find the Taranium Core is undamaged.
Sara lies unconscious, and first her hair, then her arms, seems to be prodded and lifted by an unseen force.
Nation thinks invisible monsters are great, doesn't he? They're really not very interesting, Tez. Steven awakens and takes Sara's gun before trying to bring her around.
The Doctor finds the mouse capsule and seems to piece together what has happened to them.
He's being followed by an invisible creature, though; one that leaves vast clawed footprints in the muddy ground.
The Doctor and Steven are reunited, and the Doctor is keen to get to shelter. "Calm down, calm down!" Hartnell goes all Scouse for a second.
"Pull yourself together, madam!"
The Dalek pursuit ship reports its arrival on Mira.
Sara demands to know where they are and how they got there.
The Doctor explains they were sent here by cellular dissemination.
Steven thinks it's fantastic, Sara impossible.
The Doctor postulates that the mice have squealed on them - the signal will reach Earth and give away their location to Chen, and the Daleks!
The Dalek patrol track down the mice and believe they're hostile, and might give them away to the fugitives...
...so they exterminate them. Bit OTT, where's the space RSPCA?
The Dalek with the compass is definitely going to fail his tracker badge.
They've detected the invisible creatures, and fire on them.
On Earth, Mouse FM has gone off the air.
The scientists have never detected life on Mira before. "Perhaps we should send more mice?"
That poor sod seems really cut up about his missing mice at first - then proposes sending more!
The Doctor investigates the area near a cave, and becomes aware he's being followed, so he lunges at his unseen stalker with his stick.
He's figured out that this is the planet Mira, and that the invisible inhabitants are Visians. How's he so sure he's not on Spiridon?
Steven condemns Sara's murder of Bret, but "one does not question the orders of the Guardian."
The thought that their story could be true troubles Sara more than they could have known: Bret was her brother...
"Something touched me!" says Sara. Pretty sure it was Steven.
The Doctor tells them that this is the planet Mira and that the invisible Visians are vicious, and have them pinned down in the cave.
Chen really needs a manicure or he'll do himself an injury.
Karlton reports to Chen that the Daleks are on Mira already, so Chen must withdraw to Kembel, and Karlton to Venus. They plan to attack the Daleks on Kembel with the forces of the Solar System, with Venus as their base.
The Visians are apparently 8 feet tall... which makes them easy targets for the Daleks.
The Daleks surround the cave and the Doctor & co. have run out of options.
"I'm afraid, my friends, the Daleks gave won!" Bit defeatist. Is that the last ever episode then? Er, obviously not.
06: Coronas of the Sun (18/12/1965)
We've reached the stage of the story that's "written by Dennis Spooner from an idea by Terry Nation."
The Doctor leads the others out of the cave, asking for guarantees that they won't be killed once they surrender the Taranium.
The Daleks won't give any such guarantee but aren't as trigger happy as they pretend - they need to ensure that the Core is not damaged.
A sudden attack by the regrouped Visians gives the Doctor and his friends their chance of escape.
The Visians are easily massacred, with only one Dalek casualty - pushed into a bubbling mud pool - as they form a defensive circle and exterminate their invisible foes.
The Dalek Supreme is informed that the Doctor has escaped again. "Failure will not be tolerated!"
The Doctor, Steven & Sara reach the Dalek ship, where there is only one guard...
"Like most of the Doctor's plans, this one's simple. It won't take long."
Steven & Sara edge closer, while the Doctor simply walks straight up to the Dalek, claiming that he has come to surrender the Taranium.
The Doctor suggests handing the Taranium over aboard the ship, but the Dalek is sceptical.
Steven chucks mud in its eye, and he and Sara shoves it away before the three fugitives rush aboard and frantically work out how to take off, with the rest of the Dalek patrol hot on their heels.
They escape in the nick of time.
Returning to Kembel, Chen has to think fast to shift the blame onto the hapless Dalek patrol on Mira - he sent the fugitives into their waiting arms, after all. "You make your incompetence sound like an achievement!" snides the Black Dalek, but it seems to accept his point, perhaps influenced by its anger that the fugitives were able to steal the pursuit squad's own ship.
The Black Dalek grows even more irate as Chen twice interrupts it to crow at the failure of the pursuit squad. "And you had the audacity to accuse me, Mavic Chen, of incompetence!"
The Doctor and his friends aren't safe yet, though - the Daleks are recalling their ship by remote control. Until, that is, Steven smashes the control unit.
The Daleks resort to giant magnets instead. When in doubt...
While they travel, the Doctor creates a decoy Taranium Core. It's perfect apart from not glowing suitably.
Steven suggest using gravity force, but the others dismiss this as too primitive.
They realize that they are caught in an energy beam, and as the Doctor & Sara are distracted, Steven attempts his plan...
... he screams in agony - although his plan worked, and the fake Core is energized, he's completely paralysed.
The ship is soon dragged back to Kembel. The Black Dalek looks forward to dealing with the fugitives.
Chen suggests that the fugitives should be returned to Earth for trial, but the Black Dalek tells him that there is no need to delay their extermination.
Chen points out that those on Earth that knew about the dissemination experiment might become curious and ask questions, but the Black Dalek orders him to deflect questions until it's too late.
The Doctor & Sara are resigned to going back to Kembel and instead concentrate on reviving Steven, who's been enclosed in a forcefield.
The Black Dalek watches as the pursuit ship is brought down. "This time there will be no error!"
The Doctor prepares to face his enemies, and has Steven, now able to walk a little, carry the box containing the fake Core ahead of them.
Chen meets them, and the Doctor's condition is that he will only hand over the Core outside the TARDIS.
Chen is taken aback by Sara's scathing retort of "Traitor!"
The delirious Steven is worried about the Greeks...
The Doctor desperately tries to land somewhere they can get help for the injured Steven; it seems he's been poisoned.
Katarina thinks they've reached the place of perfection. "I rather doubt that," says the Doctor, "At least, that is, we shall be stopping at a lot of places before that!"
On the planet Kembel, Space Security Agent Bret Vyon, who appears to be a descendent of none other than Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, is trying to send a message.
Space Brig Vyon uses a phonetic alphabet that seems to have been reinvented for the 41st century: "Charlo Charlo Egan" indeed!
Vyon's crewmate Kurt Gantry has been injured and his leg is in splints.
Across the galaxy, on Earth, in the Central Communications Control Room, their message goes unnoticed. Shaven headed technicians go about their tasks while duty technicians Lizan and Roald argue over what to watch on telly.
He wants to watch the match but she wants to watch the Guardian of the Solar System. Must be some sort of prequel. Who rules the remote?
They compromise by watching a news feed that will give the results while showing Mavic Chen's holiday plans.
Turns out he's only going to the Spar. Sounds like a shit holiday, to be honest.
"The mineral agreement with the fourth galaxy proved a little more complicated than was at first expected." Probably because of Maaga and her lot playing silly beggars. The non-aggression pact of 3975 guarantees peace, but that was 25 years ago...
Chen's just going cruising apparently. Roald enjoyed Chen's speech "again".
Back on Kembel, Gantry is convinced there's something approaching, and urges Vyon to go without him. "I'll only fall on one of those spiked plants..."
"This is no time for phony heroics... without me, you've got a chance. It's not a good one, but it's a chance." Brett leaves, and it isn't long till Gantry's fears are realised: Daleks!
While Bret Vyon watches helplessly, his friend is exterminated, and the Daleks glide away.
He makes a break for it but trips and smashes his transmitter. All may not be lost, though - he hears a strange sound, and the TARDIS appears!
The Doctor tells Katarina to look after Steven while he goes for help.
Steven regains consciousness in the TARDIS and Katarina tries to persuade him to rest. She's surprised to see Bret Vyon enter the TARDIS, but not as surprised as he is to see the ship's interior dimensions. "From the outside it looked so small..."
Bret is desperate to get back to Earth, and starts pressing switches - including the view screen, which gives away that the outraged Doctor is outside.
Bret's left the key in the door, so the Doctor feels quite confident Vyon's brawn will be no match for his brain.
As Steven gets the drop on Bret with a handy spanner, the Doctor watches as a space vessel lands nearby.
In their base, the Daleks wait to greet the new arrival.
When Bret regains consciousness, he's fixed to a chair - an invention of the Doctor's: "the magnetic chair". It has a forcefield strong enough to restrain a herd of elephants! It can only be deactivated by a switch at the back.
The Doctor tells Katarina he hopes to find help in the city, and decides to leave questioning Brett till he gets back.
The Doctor makes his way to the city, but soon finds a human skeleton, and nearby a spool of tape, which he pockets before continuing on his way.
The space craft that the Doctor observed lands at the Dalek spaceport.
The Doctor is horrified to see his old enemies in the city.
Love the venom Hartnell imbues in that one word. "DALEKS!"
In the TARDIS Steven worsens, and Bret tells Katarina that he has tablets in one of his belt pouches that will cure Steven's poisoning. Katarina decides to trust him as he can't escape the chair.
Bret says the tablets should take effect almost immediately. Katarina worries that she has disobeyed the Doctor, but that can wait - on the viewer screen, Bret spots a Dalek!
Meanwhile, the new arrival at the Dalek spaceport is none other than the Guardian of the Solar System himself - Mavic Chen! He's a traitor!
The Doctor races back to the TARDIS, but reaching the edge of the clearing, he sees the door ajar, and the ship surrounded by Daleks!
02: Day of Armageddon (20/11/1965)
The Doctor watches...
...as the Daleks find that there's no-one aboard.
They receive orders to execute "Operation Inferno" to flush out any invaders by torching the jungle.
Mavic Chen, having missed the last meeting (in Mission to the Unknown, some 6 months ago), reads the minutes, and makes some unusual looking notes.
No wonder Chen's handwriting's so crap, look at how he holds his pen.
A new delegate arrives, Zephon, master of the 5th Galaxy. Didn't his lot cause all that hubbub on Peladon?
Zephon's great. High time he and the other conspirators made a come back.
The two missed each other at the international peace conference of Andromeda, but in an embarrassing diary-clash, Zephon was attending a meeting here.
Trantis attended the Adromedan shindig so as not to arouse suspicion.
Chen admires the Daleks' "genius for war."
Zephon questions Chen's loyalty to the Dalek alliance, calling him a "supreme traitor."
The planet Fisar and the Embodiment Gris have both, at different times, tried to depose Zephon.
Chen fancies a breath of fresh air; perhaps suspecting that their conversation is being monitored.
The Dalek eavesdropper reports to the Supreme.
It seems the Daleks don't entirely trust Chen, but don't feel he's a threat.
Wall to wall great characters in this. The Supreme Dalek is a top villain, so angry and vicious sounding compared to the other Daleks & Steven's such a likeable companion, a real tower of power in Purves' mighty run.
Steven awakens in the jungle, revived by Bret's space medicine.
Katarina explains they had to escape the Daleks when they approached the TARDIS.
The Doctor arrives, and Katarina explains that Bret saved them.
The Doctor concedes that Bret wasn't to know the TARDIS could have withstood any Dalek attack.
He also notes the irony that Bret had the anti-toxin he was after all along.
Nearby, the Daleks implement Operation: Inferno with pyro-flame appendages replacing their standard sucker-arms.
Jungle Arson of the Daleks! Pretty sure these jungle sound FX are the same ones used in Planet of the Daleks.
Bret is horrified and moves away to rejoin the Doctor and his companions.
Steven feels much better but his arm is still in a sling.
The Doctor has accepted Bret is an ally now.
Steven points out that the Daleks will be monitoring the TARDIS, hoping to trap them on their return.
The Doctor and Steven can't agree on a course of action, so Bret has to tell the Doctor to "shut up"!
Imagine if Hartnell had been well enough to properly take part in The Three Doctors, and went up against the Brig.
The only thing they can agree on is that the Daleks must be stopped.
The Daleks get ever closer with their flame throwers.
The Doctor cites history at Brett: "you must tell Earth to look back in the history of the year 2157, and that the Daleks are going to attack again. History will show how to deal with them."
As the jungle burns around them, they decide that the last place the Daleks will look is their own city.
Chen and Zephon observe the fire. "Primitive but efficient."
Zephon would have used ultrasonics, but Chen is not impressed.
Zephon tells Chen that he's paranoid, and afraid of the Daleks, while inflating his own importance.
Zephon decides to keep them waiting and make a fashionably late entrance.
Chen goes inside where the other delegates are arriving:
The Supreme tells his subordinate that Zephon's usefulness is in fact over.
Scoping out the assembled ships, Bret is horrified to recognise Mavic Chen's Spar ship.
The Doctor plots to steal Chen's wheels, when Zephon approaches.
Bret knocks Zephon unconscious, and the Doctor has his way in: the creatures hooded robes will make the perfect disguise.
The Supreme and the other delegates grow impatient though Chen assures them that Zephon will arrive soon.
Steven tries to talk the Doctor out of his plan to learn what the Daleks are up to, to no avail.
The Doctor hands Bret the recording he found in the jungle, and tells him to wait at Chen's ship but to leave without him if he doesn't come back in good time.
Bret's admiration for the Doctor grows, and he tells him he's a brave man. The Doctor is dismissive, though. "Rubbish. Rubbish, my boy. I'm only doing what has to be done."
The Daleks search for their missing delegate...
...and the Doctor pulls Zephon's cloak on just in time.
He's escorted into the city by a Dalek patrol.
Bret, Steven and Katarina must do their part, and prepare Chen's Spar ship for a quick getaway.
Representative Trantis is scathing about "Zephon"'s tardiness.
Chen invites "Zephon" to take the empty chair next to him.
It is Chen that has supplied this vital last piece of the puzzle. Taranium is only found on Saturn, and it has taken 50 years to gather a full "m" of the mineral. Without it the Time Destructor would be useless.
The real Zephon finds himself tied hand and foot, and has to shuffle towards an emergency alarm.
Bret and Steven overpower the Spar's crew...
...but Zephon has reached the alarm.
In the panic, the delegates scatter.
The Doctor takes advantage of the chaos to snatch the Taranium Core.
He's almost stopped by the real Zephon, and has to dash in the opposite direction.
Bret prepares for take off.
Steven and Katarina protest, but Bret begins the launch sequence...
03: Devil's Planet (27/11/1965)
As Brett's countdown ticks along, the Doctor makes it aboard.
Steven helps him aboard, as the Doctor demands "Get us off! Get us off!" Hello, to you too!
The Spar leaves Kembel at full pelt...
...much to the agitation of the Dalek Supreme.
He orders them tracked, but the ship must not be destroyed, and the intruders captured alive in order to guarantee the safety of the Core. Instead they prepare to randomize their navigational equipement.
The Doctor tells Bret about the evil alliance.
He also explains to Steven that he must not open the box containing the Taranium - a full "m" would blind him!
Back on Kembel, Zephon is accused of negligence. He blames the Daleks' own lack of security (bound to go down well) and suggests his attackers came from the Solar system.
Chen is dismissive - he did not see his attackers - but the Black Dalek seems to consider Zephon's point that no-one from outside the solar system could have known about the Taranium.
It's all fairly insubstantial stuff, though, and Zephon's fate is sealed when he threatens to take the Masters of Celation and Beaus with him.
That's the final straw for the Black Dalek: "You threaten our unity?" Zephon has nothing to say, but the Dalek Supreme does: "Execute!"
The Spar ship has been tracked to nearby the planet Desperus, and the Daleks prepare to force them down onto the planet's surface with their randomiser.
The fugitives wear visors to look at the Taranium, and the Doctor tells them that their best way to stay safe is simply to keep the Taranium up their sleeve.
The Doctor decides they now have time to listen to the recording that they found.
When they play the tape, Bret immediately recognises the voice of Marc Cory, whose warning has come too late, it seems.
The Daleks operate their randomiser...
Bret must find someone he can trust that they can deliver Cory's message to. Carlton is the man in charge of Space Security but he's close to Chen.
The ship suddenly lurches, as the randomiser forces them down to the planet Desperus, a penal planet.
The Daleks dispatch a pursuit ship, and the Black Dalek suggests that as it was Chen's Spar that was stolen perhaps the thieves were indeed from Earth.
Chen vows to retrieve the Core, and promises that if they were from Earth he will deal with them.
The Doctor and his companions are powerless to prevent being drawn down to Desperus.
On the harsh surface below three convicts scuffle over a game of cards.
Bors is leader by virtue of possessing the only knife, and when he goes to sleep, Kirkesen tries to take it from him. Bors is more alert than he seemed, though.
As the two argue again, Garge points out the Spar landing in the distance and their hopes of escape are raised.
The Doctor is unimpressed with Bret waxing lyrical about how advanced the Spar ship is and goes outside to inspect any damage there may be.
He and Katarina spot three lights coming towards them...
The Dalek pursuit ship receives orders to eliminate the fugitives once the Taranium has been recovered.
Bors, Kirkesen and Garge approach the Spar, wary of "Screamers" - rightly, as the creatures attack, driving Kirkesen off into the darkness.
Katarina calls for the Doctor and the two go back inside, where the Doctor works at rigging up a forcefield to keep out intruders.
When the convicts approach, Katarina points them out and the Doctor tells her to get ready to throw the switch.
Bors and Garge are lit up by the energy field; Bret complains that cactic power won't kill, but that of course was the Doctor's plan. The men are however rendered unconscious.
The Daleks have caught up with them, though, and their ship is about to land. Did the Doctor close the outer door?
Bret closes it as the ship heaves away, leaving the Daleks behind to make a bad landing that gains them time.
He sends Katarina to check on the door - but she's attacked by the convict Kirkesen, who made it aboard earlier when they weren't looking!
04: The Traitors (04/12/1965)
Kirkesen demands to know who's in charge, and when Bret tells him they're headed for Earth, he tells him to change it. He wants to go to Kembel.
Kirkesen doesn't seem to know who the Daleks are - and doesn't care. He says whoever the Daleks are, they'll help him.
The Daleks monitor the ship's course to Earth and the Supreme orders not only that Chen must recover the Taranium personally, but that the pursuit ship is to be destroyed for failure.
When Kirkesen doesn't believe they've changed course, Bret tells him to look at the screen. As he does, Steven tries to get the drop on him, but Kirkesen takes Katarina into the airlock and shuts them in.
The Doctor threatens to open the airlock into space but Kirkesen knows he won't sacrifice Katarina.
Bret is another matter, however...
...and so, in fact, is Katarina - she grapples free and presses the button that ejects them both into space.
Katarina is dead.
The Doctor is visibly affected: " I hope she's reached her Place of Perfection. She didn't understand. She couldn't understand. She wanted to save our lives and perhaps the lives of all the other beings of the Solar System. I hope she's found her Perfection. Oh, how I shall always remember her as one of the Daughters of the Gods. Yes, as one of the Daughters of the Gods."
On Kembel, Trantis chides the Daleks for putting too much faith in Mavic Chen, but the Supreme responds that he can be trusted to recover the Taranium because he is "hungry for power."
As the Spar approaches Earth, the Doctor, Steven & Bret are understandably subdued as they seek the best place to land.
Chen reaches Earth first, and is briefed by Lizan and Karlton as to Bret Vyon's records. They've prioritised Vyon over Gantry, whose death remains unknown to them. Chen's orders are that the "traitors" are to be killed on sight, including any other 'creatures' with them.
Chen berates Karlton for letting his agents get to Kemble, but the Security man tells him Cory kept his hunch to himself, and his disppearance caused questions. "You know you can trust me," says Karlton, who is clearly involved in Chen's conspiracy.
The Spar comes into land.
Chen has ambitions to cast the Daleks aside at the first opportunity and dismisses Karlton's speculation that Trantis, as leader of the largest galaxy, is first in line to lead the alliance.
Chen is pleased with Karlton's selection of agent to hunt down the traitors: Kingdom. "Ruthless, hard, efficient. And does exactly as ordered."
The Spar has crash landed near the experimental station, where Bret hopes to make contact with his friend Daxtar.
Sara Kingdom enters and confirms her orders to capture Bret Vyon and anyone with him. Jean Marsh, looking a bit different from The Crusade there.
The Doctor and Steven are impatient and worry that the crash of the Spar will have attracted attention. Bret tells him that this is a restricted area, and that they must be wanted men by now. He thinks that Daxtar is the only man that will believe what they have to say.
Chen briefs Sara to return the Taranium to him personally. As she leaves, Karlton tells Chen that for a moment he thought he would share the Dalek plan with her.
"A heroic war cry to apparently peaceful ends is one of the greatest weapons a politician has."
Daxtar listen to the Doctor's "incredible" tale of the power mad Chen, and asks if they have the Taranium with them...
The Doctor immediately rumbles that Daxtar is part of the conspiracy. Bret only hesitates a moment before shooting him down.
"You brainless idiot! How many times have I told you about taking lives!" bellows the caveman-clubbing Doctor.
The Supreme Dalek expects Chen to lay his hands on the Taranium and return within 2 days. The Dalek delivering Chen's message also relays that it's believed that the thieves originated in the 10th Galaxy - that of Trantis.
Bret suggests trying to bluff their way out with the old prisoner and escort trick. Just then Sara Kingdom enters. She and Bret know each other, and when she demands the Taranium, he fears she too is involved in the conspiracy. Bret buys time for the Doctor and Steven to escape, as both he and Sara draw their guns. Sara shoots first, and Bret is killed. Sara orders her colleague Borkar to hunt down the Doctor and Steven. "They will be shot on sight - but aim for the head!"
05: Counter Plot (11/12/1965)
The Doctor and Steven run for their lives...
...and arrive in one of the experimental chambers of the centre.
In the middle of the room is a strange capsule containing a pair of white mice.
Tell you what, Hartnell appears to have a full set of upper teeth there. He certainly doesn't by The Tenth Planet.
In a nearby control room, two scientists fuss over a bank of monitors.
Borkar demands to know if they've seen two strangers but gets short shrift from the scientists, who are at a critical stage of their dissemination experiment.
Sara creeps towards the experiment chamber and bursts in on the Doctor and Steven.
She gives them 5 seconds to hand over the Taranium...
...but before their time is up, the experiment begins.
Borkar tries to break in but the door is sealed.
Froyn and Rhymnal register perfect dissemination...
The room is completely empty when Borkar enters, and the scientists know that the the 3 people inside have gone... elsewhere.
The Doctor, Steven and Sara are transported across space.
Froyn and Rhymnal don't know if they will arrive safely, hence the transmitter on the mouse capsule.
The planet Mira is misty and swampy.
The Supreme Dalek demands an update as to Chen's progress.
Karlton interrogates Froyn and Rhymnal, who inform him that the aim was for the mice to arrive on the planet Mira.
The scientists retreat to their instruments as a signal begins to come through.
On Mira, the mice have survived, but the Doctor and the others are not with them. The white mice have escaped... It's Magrathea all over again. Only first.
Chen barely hides his panic beneath the surface.
Karlton can save his bacon, though: tell the Daleks Earth was under too much scrutiny, so they deliberately sent them to Mira to be picked off at ease.
Karlton keeps Chen on track...
...but Chen seems increasingly insane, convinced once again of his own superiority.
Chen congratulates Karlton's solution, but it seems that unbeknownst to Chen, Karlton has ambitions of his own.
The Doctor awakens on Mira and is relieved to find the Taranium Core is undamaged.
Sara lies unconscious, and first her hair, then her arms, seems to be prodded and lifted by an unseen force.
Nation thinks invisible monsters are great, doesn't he? They're really not very interesting, Tez. Steven awakens and takes Sara's gun before trying to bring her around.
The Doctor finds the mouse capsule and seems to piece together what has happened to them.
He's being followed by an invisible creature, though; one that leaves vast clawed footprints in the muddy ground.
The Doctor and Steven are reunited, and the Doctor is keen to get to shelter. "Calm down, calm down!" Hartnell goes all Scouse for a second.
"Pull yourself together, madam!"
The Dalek pursuit ship reports its arrival on Mira.
Sara demands to know where they are and how they got there.
The Doctor explains they were sent here by cellular dissemination.
Steven thinks it's fantastic, Sara impossible.
The Doctor postulates that the mice have squealed on them - the signal will reach Earth and give away their location to Chen, and the Daleks!
The Dalek patrol track down the mice and believe they're hostile, and might give them away to the fugitives...
...so they exterminate them. Bit OTT, where's the space RSPCA?
The Dalek with the compass is definitely going to fail his tracker badge.
They've detected the invisible creatures, and fire on them.
On Earth, Mouse FM has gone off the air.
The scientists have never detected life on Mira before. "Perhaps we should send more mice?"
That poor sod seems really cut up about his missing mice at first - then proposes sending more!
The Doctor investigates the area near a cave, and becomes aware he's being followed, so he lunges at his unseen stalker with his stick.
He's figured out that this is the planet Mira, and that the invisible inhabitants are Visians. How's he so sure he's not on Spiridon?
Steven condemns Sara's murder of Bret, but "one does not question the orders of the Guardian."
The thought that their story could be true troubles Sara more than they could have known: Bret was her brother...
"Something touched me!" says Sara. Pretty sure it was Steven.
The Doctor tells them that this is the planet Mira and that the invisible Visians are vicious, and have them pinned down in the cave.
Chen really needs a manicure or he'll do himself an injury.
Karlton reports to Chen that the Daleks are on Mira already, so Chen must withdraw to Kembel, and Karlton to Venus. They plan to attack the Daleks on Kembel with the forces of the Solar System, with Venus as their base.
The Visians are apparently 8 feet tall... which makes them easy targets for the Daleks.
The Daleks surround the cave and the Doctor & co. have run out of options.
"I'm afraid, my friends, the Daleks gave won!" Bit defeatist. Is that the last ever episode then? Er, obviously not.
06: Coronas of the Sun (18/12/1965)
We've reached the stage of the story that's "written by Dennis Spooner from an idea by Terry Nation."
The Doctor leads the others out of the cave, asking for guarantees that they won't be killed once they surrender the Taranium.
The Daleks won't give any such guarantee but aren't as trigger happy as they pretend - they need to ensure that the Core is not damaged.
A sudden attack by the regrouped Visians gives the Doctor and his friends their chance of escape.
The Visians are easily massacred, with only one Dalek casualty - pushed into a bubbling mud pool - as they form a defensive circle and exterminate their invisible foes.
The Dalek Supreme is informed that the Doctor has escaped again. "Failure will not be tolerated!"
The Doctor, Steven & Sara reach the Dalek ship, where there is only one guard...
"Like most of the Doctor's plans, this one's simple. It won't take long."
Steven & Sara edge closer, while the Doctor simply walks straight up to the Dalek, claiming that he has come to surrender the Taranium.
The Doctor suggests handing the Taranium over aboard the ship, but the Dalek is sceptical.
Steven chucks mud in its eye, and he and Sara shoves it away before the three fugitives rush aboard and frantically work out how to take off, with the rest of the Dalek patrol hot on their heels.
They escape in the nick of time.
Returning to Kembel, Chen has to think fast to shift the blame onto the hapless Dalek patrol on Mira - he sent the fugitives into their waiting arms, after all. "You make your incompetence sound like an achievement!" snides the Black Dalek, but it seems to accept his point, perhaps influenced by its anger that the fugitives were able to steal the pursuit squad's own ship.
The Black Dalek grows even more irate as Chen twice interrupts it to crow at the failure of the pursuit squad. "And you had the audacity to accuse me, Mavic Chen, of incompetence!"
The Doctor and his friends aren't safe yet, though - the Daleks are recalling their ship by remote control. Until, that is, Steven smashes the control unit.
The Daleks resort to giant magnets instead. When in doubt...
While they travel, the Doctor creates a decoy Taranium Core. It's perfect apart from not glowing suitably.
Steven suggest using gravity force, but the others dismiss this as too primitive.
They realize that they are caught in an energy beam, and as the Doctor & Sara are distracted, Steven attempts his plan...
... he screams in agony - although his plan worked, and the fake Core is energized, he's completely paralysed.
The ship is soon dragged back to Kembel. The Black Dalek looks forward to dealing with the fugitives.
Chen suggests that the fugitives should be returned to Earth for trial, but the Black Dalek tells him that there is no need to delay their extermination.
Chen points out that those on Earth that knew about the dissemination experiment might become curious and ask questions, but the Black Dalek orders him to deflect questions until it's too late.
The Doctor & Sara are resigned to going back to Kembel and instead concentrate on reviving Steven, who's been enclosed in a forcefield.
The Black Dalek watches as the pursuit ship is brought down. "This time there will be no error!"
The Doctor prepares to face his enemies, and has Steven, now able to walk a little, carry the box containing the fake Core ahead of them.
Chen meets them, and the Doctor's condition is that he will only hand over the Core outside the TARDIS.
Chen is taken aback by Sara's scathing retort of "Traitor!"
The Black Dalek allows the Doctor and Sara to enter the TARDIS and leave Steven to hand the Taranium over.
Chen snatches the box, and is delighted to look upon the fierce glow within the box.
When the Daleks fire to exterminate Steven, he is able to dive back in the TARDIS.
The Daleks are worried as to how Steven was unharmed, but Chen doesn't care - they have the Core of the Time Destructor back, and "the universe is ours!"
Aboard the TARDIS, the Doctor explains that the Dalek weapons removed the forcefield paralysing Steven; he's back to normal now, and the Doctor forbids any further such experiments. "If you don't like it, you can get off!"
They appear to have landed, but the viewscreen only shows swirling mist, and the Doctor tells them that the readings indicate that the atmosphere is poisonous!
07: The Feast of Steven (25/12/1965)
The "poisonous stmosphere" is no such thing - it's just smog. They've landed on Earth, outside a police station in Liverpool in the 1960s.
Realising that they should be able to go out after all, the Doctor insists Steven and Sara stay behind while he looks outside.
He immediately bumps into a policeman, whose colleague is disbelieving when the Doctor ducks back inside.
When they move away the Doctor decides he'd better make some excuses at the front desk to dispell any curiosity.
Once there, he encounters a strange man who's there to complain that people keep moving his greenhouse, and for a moment he mistakes him for a man he met at the marketplace in Jaffa, during The Crusade.
The Doctor is pleased to learn that it's Christmas, but when the policemen suggest she could be Scottish, or Welsh, the Doctor repsonds that "Your ideas are too narrow, too small, too crippled. I suppose you might say that I am a citizen of the universe, and a gentleman to boot.", which the CID officer interprets as "no fixed abode."
Steven sneaks out of the TARDIS, and finds a policeman's uniform on the backseat of a nearby police car.
He uses this in an attempt to get the Doctor out of trouble. Not sure his unconvincing Scouse accent is aiding his credibility.
Sara exits the TARDIS too, and perplexes an officer with her talk of fixing the scanner. He thinks she's going to a party, and says he doesn't want to run her in for loitering, before wishing her a "swinging time."
Steven paces until the Doctor is brought out, and tells the desk sergeant "E's a funny fella, but I know how to handle him."
Just as they're nearly out, Sara is hauled in. When it's clear Steven knows her too, it's "You know all the queer people!"
The TARDIS crew scarper back to the TARDIS and take off. Sara has fixed the scanner, and the Doctor confesses to having quite enjoyed running rings around the police.
They mustn't forget about the Daleks, though.
The Doctor and Steven are separated from Sara, so while they rush past a figure that looks rather like Charlie Chaplin, Sara arrives in a Sheikh's tent.
Director Ingmar Knopf is waiting for Professor Webster arrive, and is horrified to see Sara's "costume".
Steven, still wearing the policeman's unform, is bundled off to appear in a Keystone Cops farce, where a car chase ends in disaster before he gets away.
When the Doctor stumbles onto Knopf's set, he's mistaken for Professor Webster.
As Sara and Steven are chased around, and chaos ensues, the Doctor commiserates with a clown leaning by the TARDIS.
"All the time they want something new. New jokes. There aren't any."
"Aren't there? Well, that's a joke in itself."
The source of his ennui is soon apparent.
"Custard pies have been done by Chaplin, so I'm not allowed to. A drink of water, done by Chaplin. Banana skins... they won't even let me do the wallpaper and paste routine"
The Doctor just wants the clown to get out of the way so he can get inside the TARDIS. The clown eventually moves off. "I think I'll give it up and take to singing, but who'd use a singer with a name like Bing Crosby?"
The Doctor and his friends finally make their escape, and inside the TARDIS, the Doctor brings out some glasses of Champagne, reminding them that it was Christmas at the police station.
Then he turns to look at YOU. "Incidentally, a Happy Christmas to all of you at home!"
I do love Hartnell bulldozing the 4th wall, there, but you know, for all his reputation as a comedy writer pre-Who, Nation's "comedy" is mostly piss-poor. Maybe some of the visuals might have glossed over it - Hartnell down the nick, Purves as a Scouse bobby, The Chaplin-hating Sideshow Bing... Sadly, I suspect not, though as it's mostly terrible performances of a terrible script.
08: Volcano (01/01/1966)
The Daleks haven't wasted time wishing viewers at home well, they've spent Christmas fitting the Core of the Time Destructor.
Celation hisses that Chen must be relieved that the Daleks have recovered the Core. Chen claims they could not have done so without him. Celation's people have not yet mastered time travel, but Trantis' people are experimenting in that area.
The Daleks are ready to test the Time Destructor and just need a subject. One has been selected...
Aboard the TARDIS, the Doctor is concerned to note that they are being followed. Steven thinks it must be the Daleks, but the Doctor is not so sure.
The Daleks have decided to test their Time Destructor on Trantis, and to have Chen and Celation bear witness.
"So that's what's supposed to happen. A kind of abject insanity." says Chen.
"I do not know, though," replies Celation, "I always thought Trantis was a little unstable anyway."
But the Time Destructor has no effect: "The Core is worthless!" Chen realizes that the Doctor has palmed a dud off on them.
The Black Dalek orders a time machine be dispatched from Skaro. Celation is allowed to retire back to his fellow conspirators, but Chen will be required to come along.
On Earth, at the Oval in South London, a cricket match is underway, when the TARDIS materialises in the middle of the pitch.
It's soon on its' way but England still need 78 runs in 42 and a half minutes...
The Dalek time machine arrives, and the Black Dalek assembles his task force, including Mavic Chen.
"If you fail, or if we find that you have deceived us, you will suffer the same fate as the time travellers. Annihilation!"
The TARDIS arrives on the volcanic planet of Tigus, where the Doctor tells his friends they have been joined by their pursuer.
A large boulder nearby suddenly opens up, and out steps none other than the Meddling Monk!
Sara wants to go back to Kembel and take the fight to the Daleks, but the Doctor wants to confront their stalker. He seems to have a good idea as to who it could be.
The Monk circles round to the Doctor's TARDIS as the trio wander off.
The Monk kicks petulantly at the TARDIS, before pulling on a pair of goggles and vandalising the TARDIS lock with a laser.
He soon hears the Doctor's calls echoing around the barren landscape...
...and goes to greet him.
"Well, hello, Doctor. Keeping well?"
"Oh, no complaints, no. And you?"
"Oh, so so, you know, just so so."
Steven explains to Sara that they've encountered the Monk - whom the Doctor labels "an amateur" - before.
The Monk can't help revealing his trick almost immediately, laughing that he's marooned the Doctor just as he was marooned after their encounter in 1066. They race back to the TARDIS to discover the lock has been damaged, as the Monk continues to enjoy their predicament from a distance.
His sabotage doesn't inconvenience the Doctor for long, though. He's able to use his ring to reflect the rays of Tigus's sun onto the lock, rectifying the damage.
The Monk can't believe his eyes when the Doctor simply slots in the key and opens the door. The TARDIS dematerializes, but the Monk promises he won't leave it at that.
The Daleks track the TARDIS to Earth again - as they materialize in London's Trafalgar Square on New Year's Day, 1966.
The TARDIS lands next to the Great Pyramid in ancient Egypt.
Aboard the Dalek time machine, Chen welcomes the responsibility of recovering the Taranium.
The TARDIS lock requires a proper repair before the Doctor and his friends can leave Egypt. Hartnell sounds like he's rather losing his voice here. Steven doesn't have the right tool to give the Doctor what he wants.
As the Doctor works, Steven sees the Dalek time machine arrive.
The Doctor tells Sara and Steven they can go and look for the Monk while he strips down the lock mechanism.
The Doctor is observed by Tuthmos, who goes report what he's seen to Hyksos, the Captain of the guard.
They spot Chen and the Daleks, but as they duck out of the way they're captured by the Egyptians.
Hyskos reaches Tuthmos and breaks the news of the slaughter.
The Daleks have sustained no damage, and their leader orders that any more Egyptians that get in their way should be exterminated on sight.
The Doctor has finished repairing the lock, so locks the door and goes to look for his companions.
He sneaks past a sleeping guard into a tomb laden with riches. After a quick look around he pauses to fan himself, feeling the effect of the oppressive heat.
He soon hears a familiar noise, though, as the Monk's TARDIS materializes.
The Monk emerges, but quickly goes back in for a pair of sunglasses!
The Doctor realizes that if the Monk has only just arrived, then it must have been the Daleks that arrived earlier.
Hyskos accuses Steven & Sara of being Tomb Raiders. Steven says that none of their party are interested in the treasures, but Hyskos says he knows they're lying because the Doctor was looking so closely at the big blue box that he says belongs to Pharoah!
The Doctor watches as the Monk tries to bluff his way out of an accidental meeting with the Daleks.
His panicked exclamation has given him away as a time traveller.
The Monk says he has "an old score to settle" with the Doctor "though I'm sure yours is the prior claim." and "I came here to inflict a terrible vengeance on him!"
Chen discloses that the Doctor has an 'm' of Taranium that belongs to the Daleks, and recovering it will save his life.
The Doctor emerges from hiding and finds that the Monk, in his panic, failed to lock his TARDIS.
He goes inside and after a few variations, has the ship disguised in the form of a blue Police telephone box...
The Monk is puzzled by the readings on his TARDIS tracker, but not as puzzled as the Doctor, who finds that his ship has been moved.
Love the Egyptian sets.
Chen pushes his luck: "Will the Daleks never learn that all things do not work to a pattern?"
The Monk tries to waffle his way into the TARDIS...
This seems to appease Chen, and the Daleks order them taken back to their time machine.
The Monk wants to be on his way, but the Daleks order him back too.
Butterworth with the Daleks reminds me a bit of Ainley with the Cybermen in the Five Doctors. Surprised JNT never tried to bring the Monk back, actually. Needs to be someone who's too bumbling to be straight down the line 'evil'. Graeme Garden from The Goodies does a good job for Big Finish.
The Daleks have Chen deliver the ultimatum by loudspeaker, because, y'know they haven't given themselves deliberately intimidating machine voices with which to do so. Could it be possible that they're actually playing it a bit safe, web of time wise? They didn't seem to mind dispensing a few exterminations in person earlier on.
Hartnell should have worn that hat more. Looks well cool.
Sure enough, Tuthmos thinks that the voice like thunder is that of the Gods. Khephren knows the truth though; that the "war machines that throw fire" are built by mortals.
The Doctor comes to rescue his friends, agreeing to hand over the Taranium, but only on his own terms.
The Daleks dare not fire for risk of damaging the Taranium Core.
The Doctor also negotiates for the release of the Monk, "though I don't know why I should bother with him."
Chen expresses surprise that the Daleks agreed so readily to only one Dalek attending the handover. The response? " One Dalek is capable of exterminating all!"
When it comes to the handover...
The Monk finds the Doctor's TARDIS is now inside the tomb, and there the Doctor confronts him.
The Monk teases him that he'd be better off with a TARDIS that could disguise itself like his, and says it's a pity that they feud. Could they have been friends in another life?
The Doctor doesn't trust him, of course, but the Monk says he only wants to help - simply hand over the Taranium and the Daleks will let him be on his way. "If you believe that, you'll believe anything!"
Love the Egyptian sets.
Steven & Sara find the TARDIS has been moved into the tomb.
The Doctor is nowhere to be seen...
10: Escape Switch (15/01/1966)
The bandaged figure is in fact the Monk - he was bundled up and shoved out of the way by that peace-loving Doctor!
The Daleks declare that the Monk's hour is up, and that Chen's decision to trust him was a failure.
Chen pushes his luck: "Will the Daleks never learn that all things do not work to a pattern?"
The Daleks move out to recapture the Taranium themselves, with Chen in tow, who petulantly swats a Dalek eyestalk on the way out.
The Monk tries to waffle his way into the TARDIS...
...but Steven & Sara aren't having any of it, and take him with them to look for the Doctor.
The Monk's 'shouts' are half-arsed to say the least.
He sneaks off at the first opportunity only to run straight into the Daleks and an enraged Chen.
Ever the weasel, the Monk claims that although he doesn't have the Taranium, he's brought Steven & Sara for them to use as hostages.
This seems to appease Chen, and the Daleks order them taken back to their time machine.
The Monk wants to be on his way, but the Daleks order him back too.
Butterworth with the Daleks reminds me a bit of Ainley with the Cybermen in the Five Doctors. Surprised JNT never tried to bring the Monk back, actually. Needs to be someone who's too bumbling to be straight down the line 'evil'. Graeme Garden from The Goodies does a good job for Big Finish.
Although the Egyptians have noticed Steven & Sara's escape they'll have to bide their time until Hyskos returns with reinforcements before they can take on the "War Machines".
There's a simply beautiful bit of direction from Douglas Camfield here as the shot of the sun crossfades into a light reflected on a Dalek dome, which only becomes apparent as the camera pulls back - it's these sorts of touches that the archive junking has robbed from stories like these.
The Monk tries to claim he only came up with the hostages idea to save Steven & Sara's lives and that Steven's incredulity "destroys my faith in human nature."
The Monk tries to claim he only came up with the hostages idea to save Steven & Sara's lives and that Steven's incredulity "destroys my faith in human nature."
The Daleks have Chen deliver the ultimatum by loudspeaker, because, y'know they haven't given themselves deliberately intimidating machine voices with which to do so. Could it be possible that they're actually playing it a bit safe, web of time wise? They didn't seem to mind dispensing a few exterminations in person earlier on.
Hartnell should have worn that hat more. Looks well cool.
Sure enough, Tuthmos thinks that the voice like thunder is that of the Gods. Khephren knows the truth though; that the "war machines that throw fire" are built by mortals.
The Doctor comes to rescue his friends, agreeing to hand over the Taranium, but only on his own terms.
The Doctor also negotiates for the release of the Monk, "though I don't know why I should bother with him."
Chen expresses surprise that the Daleks agreed so readily to only one Dalek attending the handover. The response? " One Dalek is capable of exterminating all!"
When it comes to the handover...
...the hostages are released...
....the Doctor gives Chen the Core...
...but just as the Daleks are about to strike, the Egyptians attack, allowing the time travellers to get away.
As for the Monk, " I don't care if he's in Timbuktu!"
The Monk laughs at his good fortune as he escapes, and though he's perturbed to find that his TARDIS looks like a police box, meaning that the Daleks fire on him as he dematerializes...
"I'll get you for this, Doctor! I'll get you one day!" The Monk's stuck on the Planet of Polystyrene!
Chen tells the Daleks not to bother giving chase - he has the Taranium.
He throws the switch... and there's a blinding flash as the TARDIS lurches out of control...
11: The Abandoned Planet (22/01/1966)
Chen bigs himself up, crowing that "his" guile and cunning have retrieved the Taranium Core after it's theft 9 episodes ago.
"No, his arrogance and greed have a further use for us. Alert the council to attend their final conference."
In the council chamber, Celation is stirring up feeling against Chen, calling for him to be voted off now that they have the Taranium back.
Steven and Sara realize that the Doctor must have known his way better than he pretended and taken a shorter route to get to the Dalek city ahead of them. They have no choice but to press on without him.
They're astonished to see a Dalek glide past - from a tunnel leading underground. The Daleks haven't left at all!
The increasingly irrational Chen thinks the Doctor intends to usurp his place at the side of the Dalek Supreme.
He staggers, and with a final desperate effort, she helps him up, but it's the last thing she ever does, as she falls to the ground...
...but just as the Daleks are about to strike, the Egyptians attack, allowing the time travellers to get away.
They're safe back at the TARDIS, but the Doctor did indeed hand over the real Taranium.
There's one consolation, though; the Doctor stole the Monk's directional circuit from his TARDIS, meaning they should at least manage to get back to Kembel. 
As for the Monk, " I don't care if he's in Timbuktu!"
The Monk laughs at his good fortune as he escapes, and though he's perturbed to find that his TARDIS looks like a police box, meaning that the Daleks fire on him as he dematerializes...
...he discovers too late that his TARDIS is now as uncontrollable as the Doctor's. He arrives half a galaxy away on an icy planet, on a glacier.
"I'll get you for this, Doctor! I'll get you one day!" The Monk's stuck on the Planet of Polystyrene!
Chen tells the Daleks not to bother giving chase - he has the Taranium.
The Monk's circuit is from a different model TARDIS, and could be incompatible. The Doctor will just have to take a terrible chance.
He throws the switch... and there's a blinding flash as the TARDIS lurches out of control...
11: The Abandoned Planet (22/01/1966)
Chen bigs himself up, crowing that "his" guile and cunning have retrieved the Taranium Core after it's theft 9 episodes ago.
The Black Dalek's lieutenant, a Red Dalek, enquires as to Chen's usefulness:
"Do we now deal with Mavic Chen?""No, his arrogance and greed have a further use for us. Alert the council to attend their final conference."
At first the Doctor thinks they've failed, but as the scanner clears it seems his fears were unfounded: they have indeed arrived on Kembel. The Doctor goes to get ready to leave, leaving Sara exasperated.
In the council chamber, Celation is stirring up feeling against Chen, calling for him to be voted off now that they have the Taranium back.
Chen and the Dalek Supreme sweep in, and the representatives find Chen's superior air most objectionable. "Some of us are more equal than others!" he preens.
A scuffle breaks out, which results in Chen gunning down Gearon. "This council is now under my power!"
Deep in the jungle, Steven leads the way, and is puzzled that not only do the Varga plants appear to have vanished, but so does the Doctor, who was just behind them a moment ago!
There's still unrest in the council chamber, and Chen's delusion means the penny doesn't quite drop when he finds himself locked in with the others when a squad of Daleks sweep in to round up the respresentatives.
The Daleks prepare to abandon Kembel, and begin their invasion countdown.
Sara demands Steven tells her how to operate the compass device in case anything happens to him and she has to go on alone. "Oh, you're so cheerful, aren't you!"
They find their way into the city, but it's eerily deserted, with only the familiar metallic sounds of a typical Dalek city swirling around creepily.
Sarah tries to use the intercom to order the release of the Doctor, but it's Mavic Chen that answers.
Celation is prepared to work with Steven & Sara but Chen continues to scheme and has deluded himself into thinking that Sara may still harbour some loyalty to him as Guardian of the Solar System.
The other representatives vow to mobilize the armies of their worlds to fight against the Daleks, and Steven reluctantly frees them.
Chen promises Sara she will be rewarded, but she is unmoved.
Steven & Sara watch as the other ships leave, Celation and Beaus leave, with the ships of the dead delegates remaining. Chen is last to leave - but his Spar explodes on take off.
They're astonished to see a Dalek glide past - from a tunnel leading underground. The Daleks haven't left at all!
As they prepare to follow, they are horrified to be confronted by Mavic Chen! He wasn't aboard when his Spar exploded. "I am alive, and soon to be master of the universe!" Pretty sure that's He-Man, actually.
They descend into darkness, led at gunpoint by Mavic Chen, into the Dalek invasion base.
12: Destruction of Time (29/01/1966)
As Chen prepares to hand Steven & Sara over to the Daleks, Sara denounces him as mad. He demands to know where the Doctor is, but he's still off somewhere sulking at John Wiles.
The increasingly irrational Chen thinks the Doctor intends to usurp his place at the side of the Dalek Supreme.
An assault division of 5000 Daleks awaits the order to begin their attack, and the Black Dalek orders the Time Destructor installed in the lead ship.
The Red Dalek reports that Chen and 2 of the time travellers have been apprehended and the Black Dalek orders them brought before him.
The Daleks are humouring Chen for some reason.
Chen smugly escorts his prisoners in, only to be told that his alliance with the Daleks has ended. He's deluded to the end. "But I have helped you time and time again with your absurd incompetence! I, Mavic Chen, will decide when the Alliance is at an end. "
When he tries to give an order, the Daleks simply ignore him. Outraged, Chen points his gun at the Dalek Supreme. He fires, but his weapon has no effect.
The Supreme orders his extermination; he makes a break for it, but is hunted down, and exterminated in the corridor outside.
From the shadows, the Doctor reappears, handing the TARDIS key to Steven, before activating the Time Destructor where it stands.
The Daleks dare not fire so close to the Time Destructor, so they're able to retreat to the corridor and make their getaway.
The Doctor urges Sara and Steven to go ahead as he tries to accelerate the effect of the Time Destructor.
Sara goes back to help the Doctor, while Steven goes on.
The range of the Time Destructor is small at the moment, but begins to grow exponentially as it throws out its wave of destructive energy.
The Doctor has to take the Time Destructor with them so there's no chance that the Daleks can deactivate it. He just needs to keep it out of their clutches long enough to get it back to the TARDIS and neutralise it, or until the Taranium burns out.
The Doctor has to take the Time Destructor with them so there's no chance that the Daleks can deactivate it. He just needs to keep it out of their clutches long enough to get it back to the TARDIS and neutralise it, or until the Taranium burns out.
The Supreme dispatches a squad to recapture the Time Destructor.
Steven reaches the safety of the TARDIS and stumbles inside.
Still clutching the Time Destructor, the Doctor leads the way back through the jungle but realises that Sara has fallen behind.
He's horrified as she begins to age before his eyes, the human's shorter lifespan making her far more susceptible to the time winds unleashed by the Destructor than he is.
The jungle too is ravaged by the winds, the plants withering and dying, crumbling to dust .
The jungle too is ravaged by the winds, the plants withering and dying, crumbling to dust .
The pursuing Daleks too find that the winds begin to erode and twist their casings.
Frail and weak, the Doctor stumbles on, determined to deactivate the Destructor before time runs out for Sara.
He staggers, and with a final desperate effort, she helps him up, but it's the last thing she ever does, as she falls to the ground...
Steven is delighted to see his friends on the scanner, and rushes outside, but is horrified to see Sara dissolve into dust before his eyes.
He struggles to deactivate the Time Destructor, but to no avail; all he can do is haul the Doctor to his feet, and get him into the TARDIS.
Although Steven's interference didn't deactivate the Destructor, it did reverse it, and time now runs backwards across the surface of Kembel, splitting and melting the Casings of the pursuing Daleks, revealing the clawed mutants inside, which scream as they're reduced to embryos, and then dust.
When the Taranium has burnt out and the time winds have faded, the Doctor and Steven emerge from the TARDIS.
When the Taranium has burnt out and the time winds have faded, the Doctor and Steven emerge from the TARDIS.
The landscape of Kembel is unrecognisable, devastation and dust all that remains.
The Doctor pays tribute to Sara's sacrifice. "Without her help, this could never have been achieved." He scoops up the remains of a Dalek mutant in his hand and shows it to Steven. "millions of years of progress reversed back."
Steven just wants to leave; he's had enough of Kembel, and laments their fallen friends, Bret, Katarina, and Sara.
The Doctor has the last word: "What a waste. What a terrible waste."
TTFN! K.
Coming Soon... The Sea Devils
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