Season 22, Episode 5 | 4 parts | First broadcast: 9–30 March 1985 | Writer: Glen McCoy | Director: Pennant Roberts
Cast
- Colin Baker as the Doctor
- Nicola Bryant as Peri Brown
- Paul Darrow as Tekker
- Jeananne Crowley as Vena
- David Chandler as Herbert
Summary
The TARDIS is pulled to Karfel, a technologically advanced but oppressive world ruled by the sinister Borad through his scheming aide Tekker, and haunted by exiles banished into a mysterious time corridor called the Timelash. As the Doctor investigates Karfel’s dark secrets alongside Peri and a young stowaway called Herbert, he uncovers the Borad’s monstrous true nature and must prevent a tyrannical regime from using the time corridor as a weapon.
Interesting Facts
- The young character Herbert is revealed at the story’s end to be a young H.G. Wells, a wink toward the era’s fascination with science-fiction literary connections.
- Paul Darrow, well known for his role in Blake’s 7, plays the scheming Tekker in a performance often noted for its theatrical intensity.
- The story was made on a notably tight budget, and its effects and sets have often been singled out by critics and fans as a weak point of the production.
- Despite mixed critical reception at the time and since, the serial has developed a cult following for its ambitious, if uneven, blending of science fiction ideas.
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