Editing The Armageddon Factor (TV story)

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{{Infobox Story
|image= The Armageddon Factor.jpg
|series=[[Doctor Who television stories|''Doctor Who'' television stories]]
|season number= Season 16 
|season serial number = 6
|story number= 103
|doctor=Fourth Doctor 
|companions= [[Romana I]], [[K9 Mark II|K9]]
|featuring = [[Drax]]
|enemy= [[The Shadow]], [[Black Guardian]], [[Marshal of Atrios]]
|setting= [[Atrios]], [[Zeos]], the [[third planet]] 
|writer= [[Bob Baker]], [[Dave Martin]]
|director= [[Michael Hayes]]
|producer= [[Graham Williams]]
|novelisation= Doctor Who and the Armageddon Factor
|epcount=6
|broadcast date= [[20 January (releases)|20 January]] - [[24 February (releases)|24 February]] [[1979 (releases)|1979]]
|network=[[BBC1]]
|format= 6x25-minute episodes
|serial production code= [[List of production codes|5F]]
|prev = The Power of Kroll (TV story) 
|next = Destiny of the Daleks (TV story)
|made prev=The Power of Kroll (TV story)
|made next=The Creature from the Pit (TV story)
|clip = You Shall Die for This! - Doctor Who - The Armageddon Factor - BBC
|series3 = ''DWM'''s "[[Stripped for action?|Stripped for action? order]]"
|prev3 = The Power of Kroll (TV story)
|next3 = Timeslip (comic story)
}}
'''''The Armageddon Factor''''' was the sixth and final story of [[season 16]]. It concluded the season-long Key to Time story arc. [[Mary Tamm]] makes her final appearance as [[Romana I]] while her replacement, [[Lalla Ward]], appears in the story in [[Astra of Atrios|a different role]]. The [[Black Guardian]] appears for the first time and isn't seen again until ''[[Mawdryn Undead]]''.

== Synopsis ==
The final segment of the [[Key to Time]] is at the heart of a devastating war between neighbouring planets [[Atrios]] and [[Zeos]]. The [[Fourth Doctor]] discovers that a [[the Shadow|sinister entity]] is manipulating events and the cost of obtaining the final segment may be more personal than he imagined.

== Plot ==
=== Part one ===
The sixth and final segment of the Key to Time is on the planet [[Atrios]]. Twin planets Atrios and [[Zeos]] are locked in a long-running war. The young [[Princess Astra]], nominal leader of Atrios, is appalled at the devastation, but [[Marshal of Atrios|the Marshal]], in charge of the war, actually possesses the power. The Marshal secretly confesses to his aide-de-camp [[Shapp]] that they are losing. He is desperate for the edge that will bring victory. On instruction from an unseen entity, he leads Astra on a fool's errand into a trap, where she is abducted and [[transmat]]ted away.

[[Fourth Doctor|The Doctor]] and [[Romana I]] land on Atrios, and [[the Doctor's TARDIS]] is soon buried in rubble from a Zeon aerial bombardment. The Marshal finds them and believes them to be spies, along with Astra's lover, [[Merak]]. The Doctor tricks the Marshal to calling for K9, who knocks out the lights to let them escape. Going to the place they landed, they find the TARDIS gone...

=== Part two ===
Merak has followed them, and they find Astra gone. K9, meanwhile, is lured away to be recycled. The Marshal is contacted by an unseen force, who tells him to treat the Doctor and Romana as guests. The Marshal implores the Doctor to assist Atrios. The Doctor proposes a shield that will stop the Zeons from attacking, but the Marshal insists he create a weapon for total victory.

Romana notices that the Marshal is acting under an outside influence when he accidentally shows a small device on his neck after flipping out when the Doctor runs to save K9 from the furnace. Afterwards, the Doctor asks the Marshal to send him to Zeos. The Marshal refuses. The Doctor reveals to Romana that something is probably blocking Zeos. Astra appears on a [[television]] and states that the Zeons will destroy Atrios if the Marshal does not surrender. The Doctor is trapped by two people in masks in a transmat.

=== Part three ===
The unseen entity tells Marshal that the war will stop, while the entity traps him in his domain. It calls itself [[the Shadow]], who reveals that he has the TARDIS. The Shadow asks the Doctor to open his TARDIS and bring out the other five segements and then leaves. The Doctor decides to search for the sixth segment. Merak, meanwhile, has transmatted to the Zeos. Astra is on the ship in chains, being asked by the Shadow where the sixth segment is. Romana and K9 transmat to Zeos, following Merak.

Shapp finds himself with the Doctor after being transmatted. K9 finds the commandant of the Zeon forces, which is actually a supercomputer named [[Mentalis]]. The Marshal, meanwhile, has decided to attack Zeos. They find that Mentalis has been instructed to conceal any information on Astra.

The Marshal, in his spaceship, prepares to launch the missiles to destroy Zeos...

=== Part four ===
They learn that if it is destroyed, it will destroy Zeos and Atrios — a concept known as the Armageddon Factor. The computer can't counterattack because it's been told that the war is over. They discover the Marshal, in a last-ditch effort, is piloting the last Atrian warship to destroy the Zeon capital with a [[nuclear missile]]. The attack will set the mutual destruction in motion.

Astra is [[hypnosis|hypnotised]] by the Shadow, and a projection of her lures Merak, and he begins falling. The Doctor is, meanwhile, trying to reinstruct Mentalis but accidentally triggers the computer into waiting for an attack to blow itself up immediately. The computer becomes mindless by destroying its own control centre.

Desperate to stop the Marshal's attack, the Doctor uses the five segments of the [[Key to Time]], plus an artificial sixth segment made from [[chronodyne]], to generate a temporary [[time loop]] around the Marshal's ship.

Meanwhile, K9 is hypnotised by a small device which takes the guise of a distress call. K9 is then transported away, where he is reprogrammed. The TARDIS heads to the third planet. On the third planet, the Shadow laughs that the Key to Time is his...

=== Part five ===
The Doctor, Astra and Romana are on the third planet, and each one is separated from the others. The Doctor finds another renegade Time Lord, [[Drax]], in the corridors of the third planet. Drax was employed with threat of death, and he was forced to build Mentalis. The Doctor persuades Drax to assist him, and they remove the control device from K9. Drax repairs his [[dimensional circuit]].

They uncover the ultimate truth: a third party, known as [[the Shadow]], is manipulating the entire war from his enormous vessel midway between the two planets. An agent of the [[Black Guardian]], the Shadow has been watching the final segment of the Key (Princess Astra herself), setting the war in motion and simply waiting while the Doctor risked life and limb to find the first five segments.

The Shadow forces the Doctor to get the Key. Arriving at the TARDIS, the Doctor tries to distract the Mute escorting him by saying the Shadow will kill him and his fellows. Drax then enters with the dimensional circuit and shrinks the Doctor down.

=== Part six ===
Drax also shrinks himself, and they decide to have one of them provide a distraction. Romana, meanwhile, realises that Princess Astra is the sixth segment to the Key to Time. Merak transports himself to the third planet. Drax and the Doctor return to normal size and take the Key to Time from the Shadow. Merak stays behind to look for Astra, who has turned into the sixth segment.

When the artificial time loop expires, the Doctor and Drax disarm Mentalis. When the Marshal fires, the war rockets are deflected by a [[force field]], destroying the Shadow and his ship instead. Hearing his minion's dying words, the Black Guardian disguises himself as the White Guardian, telling the dying Shadow that he will trick the Doctor into giving him the Key to Time himself.

Astra converts herself into the final segment, completing the Key to Time, and giving the Doctor, for the moment, absolute power over the entire universe. The [[White Guardian]] appears on the TARDIS monitor. He demands that the Doctor hand the Key over to him. When he rather callously dismisses Astra's sacrifice, the Doctor realises this is actually the Black Guardian in disguise. The Doctor orders the Key segments to disperse across the universe, which also allows Astra to reunite with Merak. The Black Guardian is furious and threatens to destroy the Doctor. However, the Doctor has installed a [[randomiser]] on the TARDIS console, ensuring that neither he nor the Black Guardian knows where he'll end up next.

== Cast ==
* [[Fourth Doctor|Doctor Who]] - [[Tom Baker]]
* [[Romana I|Romana]] - [[Mary Tamm]]
* Voice of [[K9]] - [[John Leeson]]
* [[Marshal of Atrios|Marshal]] - [[John Woodvine]]
* Princess [[Astra of Atrios|Astra]] - [[Lalla Ward]]
* [[Shapp]] - [[Davyd Harries]]
* [[Merak]] - [[Ian Saynor]]
* [[Hero (The Armageddon Factor)|'Hero']] - [[Ian Liston]]
* [[Heroine (The Armageddon Factor)|'Heroine']] - [[Susan Skipper]]
* [[Guard 1 (The Armageddon Factor)|Guard]] - [[John Cannon]]
* [[Guard 2 (The Armageddon Factor)|Guard]] - [[Harry Fielder]]
* [[The Shadow]] - [[William Squire]]
* [[Technician (The Armageddon Factor)|Technician]] - [[Iain Armstrong]]
* [[Pilot (The Armageddon Factor)|Pilot]] - [[Pat Gorman]]
* [[Drax]] - [[Barry Jackson]]
* [[Black Guardian|The Guardian]] - [[Valentine Dyall]]

=== Uncredited cast ===
* [[Mute (species)|Mutes]] - [[Ridgewell Hawkes]], [[Derek Suthern]], [[Stephen Calcutt]], [[James Haswell]], [[Danny Rae]] ([[DWM 223]])
* Guards - [[Peter Roy]], [[Barry Summerford]], [[Tony O'Leary]], [[Reg Turner]], [[Richard Sheekey]] ([[DWM 223]])

== Crew ==
* [[Assistant Floor Manager]] - [[Steve Goldie]]
* [[Assistant Floor Manager]] - [[Rosemary Padvaiskas]]
* [[Costumes]] - [[Michael Burdle]]
* [[Designer (crew)|Designer]] - [[Richard McManan-Smith]]
* [[Make-Up]] - [[Ann Briggs]]
* [[Producer]] - [[Graham Williams]]
* [[Production Assistant]] - [[Ann Aronsohn]]
* [[Production Unit Manager]] - [[John Nathan-Turner]]
* [[Script Editor]] - [[Anthony Read]]
* [[Special Sounds]] - [[Dick Mills]]
* [[Studio Lighting]] - [[Mike Jefferies]]
* [[Studio Sound]] - [[Richard Chubb]]
* [[Theme Arrangement]] - [[Delia Derbyshire]]
* [[Doctor Who theme|Title Music]] - [[Ron Grainer]]
* [[Video effects|Video Effects]] Operator - [[Dave Chapman]]
* [[Visual Effects]] - [[John Horton]]
* [[Videotape editor|VT Editor]] - [[Rod Waldron]]

== References ==
=== Animals ===
* Romana compares the "identification ritual" between K-9 and Mentalis to the dance of the [[bee]]s.
* The Doctor compares the programmation of Mentalis to the behaviour of a suiciding [[scorpion]].

=== Astronomical objects ===
* Atrios and Zeos are in the [[Helical Galaxy]].
* The Shadow operates on an [[artificial planet]] (called [[third planet]] or [[Planet of Evil]]) put between Atrios and Zeos.

=== Cultural references to real world ===
* The Doctor mentions [[Christopher Columbus]].
* The Doctor mentions [[Troy]].
* The Doctor claims to have learnt the tricks of the fire walkers while in [[Bali]].

=== Substances ===
* The door to [[K-Block]] is shielded with [[lead]].

=== Technology ===
* Atrions are provided with hand-wrist [[Geiger counter]]s called [[rad-check]]s.
* On Atrios there is a recycling shaft, able to work [[metal]].
* The Shadow uses a little black neck device for [[mind control]].

=== Weapons ===
* [[Disintegration capsule]]s are used in the war to avoid prisoners.

== Story notes ==
* Originally the sixth segment was to be the shadow of the Shadow.
* This story had the working title of ''Armageddon''.
* Part one was promoted as the five-hundredth episode of ''Doctor Who''.
*  This story was the final six-part story broadcast until ''[[Dreamland (TV story)|Dreamland]]'' in [[2009 (production)|2009]]. Two other stories during the classic series do come close, however. ''[[Shada (TV story)|Shada]]'' was partially produced for the next season, but never broadcast and when sold internationally, ''[[The Two Doctors]]'' was broken up from its format of 3 x 45 minute episodes into the more traditional 6 x 25 minute episodes.
* According to [[Mary Tamm]] in the DVD featurette "There's Something About Mary", it was while filming this serial that she made her final decision to leave the series.
* Twenty-three minutes into transmission of part five, a technical fault on the playback equipment resulted in the programme going off the air for twenty seconds. The break occurred at the point where the Doctor is being escorted to the TARDIS by the Mute; and the Shadow makes to remove his control device from Princess Astra, saying "Now, Princess, your work is done. Your dest—". BBC continuity apologised to viewers for the breakdown in transmission, displaying a ''TEMPORARY FAULT'' caption slide and playing music, "Gotcha" by Tom Scott, better known as the theme music to NBC's cop buddy show ''Starsky & Hutch'' (1975-79), until the fault was rectified. When transmission was restarted, the 625 line PAL colour videotape had been slightly rewound so there was a repeat of the action immediately prior to the break — with the Shadow's previously interrupted line also finally completed as "Your destiny is at hand."
* Pat Gorman (Pilot) is uncredited on-screen for part six, but credited in ''Radio Times''.
* Stephen Calcutt (Mute) is uncredited on-screen for parts five and six, but credited in ''Radio Times''. His character was referred to as "Super Mute" in existing BBC documentation for the story.
* It was on the set of ''The Armageddon Factor'' that Tom Baker was very angry with some scripts. However, director Michael Hayes got along with Baker.
* PBS's August 19, 2017 syndication of ''The Armageddon Factor'' mistakenly had the serial aired in a 1:1 aspect ratio rather than the intended 4:3, causing the video image to appear horizontally squashed for the entirety of the serial's duration.<ref>https://twitter.com/game4brains/status/899105120402759682</ref>

=== Outtakes and gag reel footage ===
Several clips of scene performances not intended for broadcast have been circulated from this serial, including two sequences videotaped during rehearsal (Mary Tamm is seen wearing glasses and hair-curlers). In one scene, Tamm and Baker jokingly pretend to move in for a kiss after delivering a line, and in another widely circulated clip, the Doctor replies to a negative comment from K9, "You never f****** know the answer when it's important!" Off screen crewmembers laughed at both of these outtakes.

It was also during production of ''The Armageddon Factor'' that Baker, Tamm and John Leeson filmed a brief one-minute gag scene dubbed "Doug Who?" for the BBC staff Christmas party. The scene begins with the Doctor and Romana sitting on the floor by the TARDIS console, apparently kissing off screen, and then acting tipsy as they share a bottle of vodka with K9, who is asked to sing a few bars of "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". The Doctor then asks K9 what he wants for Christmas; K9 replies and then asks the Doctor for what his desire is, to which the Doctor looks into the camera and then leers at Romana, who leers back before the two actors and the crew break into laughter.

To date, the rehearsal outtakes have not been commercially released, though they are widely available on video-posting websites. "Doug Who?", retitled "Merry Christmas Doctor Who", is included as a bonus feature in the expanded ''Key to Time'' DVD set released in 2007 in the UK and 2009 in Region 1.

=== Ratings ===
* Part one - 7.5 million viewers
* Part two - 8.8 million viewers
* Part three - 7.8 million viewers
* Part four - 8.6 million viewers
* Part five - 8.6 million viewers
* Part six - 9.6 million viewers

=== Myths ===
* Theta Sigma is the Doctor's real name. ''It's implied here and further established in ''[[TV]]'': [[The Happiness Patrol]] that this is a nickname.''
* The outtake in which Tom Baker barks at K9 "You never f*** ing know the answer when it's important" is sometimes described as an outtake from actual filming, and sometimes is used as an illustration of Baker's temperament on the set. In reality — as revealed from an actual viewing of the clip — it was simply a joke that occurred during a taped rehearsal (as evidenced by the fact Mary Tamm is not in full costume, is wearing her off-screen glasses and has her hair up in rollers).
* Similarly, the rumour that Baker and Tamm filmed an unbroadcast kissing scene also stems from the existence of another rehearsal gag take, as well as the infamous "Doug Who?" skit (described above). Nothing of this sort was filmed for TV broadcast, nor was "Doug Who?" ever intended as part of the televised story either.
* A longstanding myth holds that Mary Tamm revealed to the production team that she was pregnant and this led to her resignation during or after production of ''Armageddon Factor''. This is openly contradicted by Tamm in interviews and the 2007/09 DVD featurette "There's Something About Mary" in which she states she chose to leave because she was no longer satisfied with the character of Romana and would have returned to film a regeneration if she'd been invited.

=== Filming locations ===
* [[BBC Television Centre]] (Studio 3), Shepherd's Bush, [[London]]
* [[Ealing Television Film Studios]], Ealing Green, [[Ealing]]

=== Production errors ===
{{discontinuity}}
* In part two, after the TARDIS has left, it can still be seen behind Romana just after K9 starts blasting a door. 
* In the same scene, K9's laser beam is not properly aligned because the camera moves slightly. 
* In part three, Shapp's gun falls apart when it hits the floor.
* In part four, when K9 exits the transmat, he's got the new left panel he gains in part five.
* In part six, Astra regains the circlet Merak had used to distract the Mute.
* In part six, one of the Mutes kicks up a piece of studio carpet.
* In part six, when Drax is sitting next to K9 inside the TARDIS, the shadow of a boom microphone can be seen on the wall above his head.

== Continuity ==
* When the Doctor calls to K9 to come out of the TARDIS upon arrival on [[Atrios]], he mentions the absence of "water" or "swamps", which kept K9 relegated to the TARDIS on [[Delta Magna]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Power of Kroll (TV story)|The Power of Kroll]]'')
* The Doctor has been shrunk before. ([[TV]]: ''[[Planet of Giants (TV story)|Planet of Giants]]'', ''[[Carnival of Monsters (TV story)|Carnival of Monsters]]'') The dimensional stabiliser of the Doctor's TARDIS was used similarly to [[shrink]] before as well. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Invisible Enemy (TV story)|The Invisible Enemy]]'')
* In an attempt to evade the Black Guardian the Doctor activated the TARDIS' [[randomiser]] and programmed it to travel to approximately 1,000 planets, which took approximately one month. He left K9 aboard the TARDIS while he and Romana took up residence in a [[London]] townhouse in the [[1920s]]. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Auntie Matter (audio story)|The Auntie Matter]]'')
* The [[Fifth Doctor]] later encountered [[Astra of Atrios|Princess Astra]] on [[Chaos (planet)|Chaos]] at the [[far future|end of recorded time]]. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Chaos Pool (audio story)|The Chaos Pool]]'')
* The Doctor recalls [[Troy]] while miniaturised and hiding in K9, as they head to the hideout of the Shadow. The [[First Doctor]] was indeed behind the trick of the Trojan horse in the [[Trojan War|homonymous war]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Myth Makers (TV story)|The Myth Makers]]'')

== DVD and video releases ==
=== DVD releases ===
* This story was released along with ''[[The Ribos Operation]]'', ''[[The Pirate Planet]]'', ''[[The Stones of Blood]], '' ''[[The Androids of Tara]]''  and ''[[The Power of Kroll]]'' as ''Doctor Who: The Key to Time''. This [[October (releases)|October]] [[2002 (releases)|2002]] release was only in Region 1. Extras include commentary by Mary Tamm, [[John Woodvine]] and [[Michael Hayes]], a photo gallery and production information subtitles.
* It was also released with same stories as ''Doctor Who: The Key to Time'', an extras-laden box set limited to 15,000 in its initial UK release on [[24 September (releases)|24 September]] [[2007 (releases)|2007]], later followed by wide release in Region 1 on [[3 March (releases)|3 March]] [[2009 (releases)|2009]] as ''The Key to Time - Special Edition''. In the 2009 version, ''The Armageddon Factor'' is presented over two discs, with the six episodes and minimal extras on disc one and the remaining extras on disc two.

Contents (2009 version):

Disc one:
* Commentary by Mary Tamm, [[John Woodvine]] and [[Michael Hayes]] (carried over from the 2002 set).
* New commentary by [[Tom Baker]], [[Mary Tamm]] and [[John Leeson]].
* Production subtitles.
* [[Doctor Who Annual 1979]] DVD-ROM feature (PC/Mac)
* Radio Times Billings - Original listings from ''Radio Times'' (DVD-ROM PC/Mac)

Disc two:
* ''[[Defining Shadows]]'' - featurette on the production of the serial, featuring interviews with [[Bob Baker]], [[Dave Martin]], [[Richard McManan-Smith]], [[Lalla Ward]], [[Davyd Harries]], [[Barry Jackson (actor)|Barry Jackson]].
* ''[[Directing Who]]'' - retrospective on [[Michael Hayes]]' work directing the serials ''[[The Androids of Tara]]'', ''The Armageddon Factor'' and ''[[City of Death]]''.
* ''[[Rogue Time Lords]]'' - featurette on various errant Time Lords featured throughout the series.
* Pebble Mill at One interview with Tom Baker promoting the broadcast of the 500th episode of ''Doctor Who'', ''Armageddon Factor'' part 1.
* Pebble Mill at One featurette on [[Dick Mills]] and the [[BBC Radiophonic Workshop]], featuring the creation of sound effects for ''The Armageddon Factor''.
* ''The New Sound of Music'' - a brief look at [[Dick Mills]] creating a sound effect for ''Doctor Who''.
* ''[[Merry Christmas Doctor Who (TV story)|Merry Christmas Doctor Who]]'' - an infamous skit filmed for BBC staff viewing only in which the Doctor and Romana get a little tipsy while celebrating the season and get K9 to sing a holiday song.
* Alternative/deleted scene from the serial.
* BBC continuity announcements played before and after each episode of the serial.
* Photo Gallery
* Bonus series: Five episodes of ''Late Night Story'', a series from December 1978 featuring [[Tom Baker]] performing dramatic readings of "The Photograph" by Nigel Kneale, "The Emissary" by Ray Bradbury, "Nursery Tea" by Mary Danby, "The End of the Party" by Graham Greene, and the untransmitted "Sredni Vashtar" by Saki.
* Easter egg: On disc two, click right on continuities to find this Easter Egg. On 17 February 1979, as 8.6 million watched Part Five of The Armageddon Factor near its climax...a break in transmission which lasted several minutes. Presumably derived from an off-air video recording, this is a presumably cut-down (1:26) reproduction of it, complete with apologetic continuity announcer and temporary music.

Notes:
* Editing for the DVD release was completed by the [[Doctor Who Restoration Team]].

<gallery position="center" captionalign="center" hideaddbutton="true">
File:The Armageddon Factor DVD US cover.jpg|DVD Region 1 US cover
File:Bbcdvd-theArmageddon Factor.jpg|DVD Region 2 UK cover
File:The Armageddon Factor DVD US special edition cover.jpg|DVD Region 1 US special edition cover
The Armageddon Factordvd.jpg|DVD Region 4 AUS cover
</gallery>

==== The Key to Time boxed set covers ====
<gallery position="center" captionalign="center" hideaddbutton="true">
File:Ktt_region2.JPG|DVD Region 2 UK The Key to Time cover
File:Ktt_region1.jpg|DVD Region 1 US The Key to Time cover
File:The Key to Time DVD Australian boxed set cover.jpg|DVD Region 4 Australian The Key to Time cover
</gallery>

=== Video releases ===
<gallery position="center" captionalign="center" hideaddbutton="true">
File:The Armageddon Factor VHS UK cover.jpg|VHS UK cover
File:The Armageddon Factor VHS Australian cover.jpg|VHS Australian cover
File:The Armageddon Factor VHS US cover.jpg|VHS US cover
</gallery>

== External links ==
* {{bbcepguideclassic|armageddonfactor/|The Armageddon Factor}}
{{dwcast}}
{{dwrefguide|who_5f.htm|The Armageddon Factor}}
* {{briefhistory|serials/5f.html|The Armageddon Factor}}
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{{Black Guardian stories}}
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[[Category:Doctor Who (1963) television stories]]
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[[Category:Season 16 stories]]
[[Category:Six part serials]]
[[Category:Romana I television stories]]
[[Category:Television stories that use Delia Derbyshire's 2nd theme]]
[[Category:Black Guardian television stories]]