Season 4, Episode 6 | 4 parts | First broadcast: 11 February – 4 March 1967 | Writer: Kit Pedler | Director: Morris Barry
Cast
- Patrick Troughton as the Doctor
- Anneke Wills as Polly
- Michael Craze as Ben Jackson
- Frazer Hines as Jamie McCrimmon
- Patrick Barr as Hobson
Summary
The TARDIS makes a bumpy landing on the Moon in the year 2070, near a base housing the Gravitron, a device that controls Earth’s weather. The crew discover the Cybermen, in only their second appearance, have infiltrated the base and are secretly poisoning the staff’s sugar supply, part of a scheme to seize control of the Gravitron and use it to wipe out life on Earth.
Interesting Facts
- This serial redesigned the Cybermen’s appearance and voice, establishing the more robotic look and distinctive sing-song vocal delivery that would define the monsters for years to come.
- It introduced the Doctor’s now-famous rallying line about evil, delivered as he reflects on why he must keep fighting monsters across time and space.
- Episodes 2 and 4 survive in the BBC archive; Episodes 1 and 3 have been recreated with animation.
- Writer Kit Pedler, the show’s unofficial scientific advisor, based the base’s isolated, claustrophobic setting on real contemporary concerns about lunar exploration during the Space Race.
No Responses