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The '''sonic screwdriver''' is a versatile tool and defensive weapon first used by [[the Doctor]] in his [[Second Doctor|second incarnation]].
The '''sonic screwdriver''' was a versatile tool and defensive weapon used by [[the Doctor]].


==Technology and Functions==
==Technology and Functions==
The sonic screwdriver is apparently the product of [[Gallifrey]]an technology since other Time Lords (i.e. [[Romana]]) used the device and understood it enough to construct their own versions of it. The name of the device itself suggests that it functions using soundwaves, although the actual workings of the device have never been explained.
The sonic screwdriver is apparently the product of [[Gallifrey]]an technology since other Time Lords (i.e. [[Romana]]) used the device and understood it enough to construct their own versions of it. The name of the device itself suggests that it functions using soundwaves, although the actual workings of the device have never been explained.


A crystal similar to [[Metebelis Crystal]] sought after by the [[Eight Legs]] of [[Metebelis III]] was used in the Mark VI sonic screwdriver. ([[IDW]]: ''[[The Forgotten]]'')
A crystal similar to [[Metebelis Crystal]] sought after by the [[Eight Legs]] of [[Metebelis III]] was used in the Mark VI sonic screwdriver. ([[IDW]]: ''[[The Forgotten]]'') There were also electrical components. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[The Halls of Sacrifice]]'')


The screwdriver also seems to have a multitude of settings, along with different versions of settings, as he tells Rose to use "setting 15B" to help him triangulate the source of the ghosts ([[DW]]: ''[[Army of Ghosts]]'') and it is said to have a setting 85. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Lazarus Experiment]]''). The Doctor tells Rose to use setting 2428D to re-attach barbed wire, suggesting that the screwdriver (at least the Mark V screwdriver) has at least this many functions. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Doctor Dances]]'')
The screwdriver also seems to have a multitude of settings, along with different versions of settings, as he tells Rose to use "setting 15B" to help him triangulate the source of the ghosts ([[DW]]: ''[[Army of Ghosts]]'') and used 34-H to sink a ship ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[Second Wave]]''). It is also said to have a setting 85. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Lazarus Experiment]]''). The Doctor tells Rose to use setting 2428D to re-attach barbed wire, suggesting that the screwdriver (at least the Mark V screwdriver) has at least this many functions. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Doctor Dances]]'')


The different versions of the Doctor's sonic screwdrivers have exhibited different capabilities and uses, such as the interception of signals ranging from transmat beams to conscious thought; medical diagnostics and repair of organic parts; cutting, but also re-attaching together materials such as barbed wire; operating Earth machinery such as computers and even cash machines (at regular and high eject speeds); creating a spark to light a candle; and, on the rare occasion, driving screws without touching them. Although it is primarily a tool, it can also be used as a defensive weapon, such as when the Tenth Doctor put it in a sound board to destroy the [[Robot Santa]]s. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Runaway Bride]]'') However, according to the [[Tenth Doctor]], the device cannot be used to wound, maim or kill living things. ([[DW]]: ''[[Doomsday]]'') It can still be used to destroy non-living objects or mechanisms or place living creatures in circumstances where they might die, if the situation requires.
The different versions of the Doctor's sonic screwdrivers have exhibited different capabilities and uses, such as the interception of signals ranging from transmat beams to conscious thought; medical diagnostics and repair of organic parts; cutting, but also re-attaching together materials such as barbed wire; operating Earth machinery such as computers and even cash machines (at regular and high eject speeds); creating a spark to light a candle; and, on the rare occasion, driving screws without touching them. Although it is primarily a tool, it can also be used as a defensive weapon, such as when the Tenth Doctor put it in a sound board to destroy the [[Robot Santa]]s. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Runaway Bride]]'') However, according to the [[Tenth Doctor]], the device cannot be used to wound, maim or kill living things. ([[DW]]: ''[[Doomsday]]'') It can still be used to destroy non-living objects or mechanisms or place living creatures in circumstances where they might die, if the situation requires.


The sonic screwdriver needed to be recharged, ([[NSA]]: ''[[The Monsters Inside]]'') which was likely done by the TARDIS ([[DW]]: ''[[Aliens of London]]'', ''[[The Eleventh Hour]]'')
The sonic screwdriver needed to be recharged, ([[NSA]]: ''[[The Monsters Inside]]'', [[DWAM]]: ''[[Bizarre Zero]]'') which was likely done by the TARDIS ([[DW]]: ''[[Aliens of London]]'', ''[[The Eleventh Hour]]'')


Sonic screwdrivers and similar technology cannot unlock a [[deadlock seal]] ([[DW]]: ''[[School Reunion]]''); one of few exceptions is Miss Foster's [[sonic pen]], which was able to open the deadlock seals on and within the Adipose Industries building when the Doctor's sonic screwdriver could not. ([[DW]]: ''[[Partners in Crime]]'') Some or all versions may be ineffective against wood, or in the presence of some models of hairdryers. ([[DW]]: ''[[Silence in the Library]]'' / ''[[Forest of the Dead]]'',''[[The Hungry Earth]]'', [[PDA]]: ''[[Catastrophea]]'')
Sonic screwdrivers and similar technology cannot unlock a [[deadlock seal]] ([[DW]]: ''[[School Reunion]]''); one of few exceptions is Miss Foster's [[sonic pen]], which was able to open the deadlock seals on and within the Adipose Industries building when the Doctor's sonic screwdriver could not. ([[DW]]: ''[[Partners in Crime]]'') Some or all versions may be ineffective against wood, or in the presence of some models of hairdryers. ([[DW]]: ''[[Silence in the Library]]'' / ''[[Forest of the Dead]]'',''[[The Hungry Earth]]'', [[PDA]]: ''[[Catastrophea]]'')
==Charging==
[[File:Sonic_tardis.jpg|thumb|This screenshot suggests that the Sonic Screwdriver is charged by the TARDIS.]]
In [[DW]]: ''[[Aliens of London]]'' the [[Ninth Doctor|Doctor's]] sonic screwdriver is seen standing upright on the TARDIS console. This suggests that the TARDIS may charge the sonic screwdriver. This means that the sonic screwdriver may have a battery supply of some sort. However, with the revelation in [[DW]]: ''[[The Eleventh Hour]]'' that the TARDIS itself can manufacture screwdrivers, that this recess may simply be the equivilant of a tool holder or fabrication station. In [[NSA]]: "[[The Monsters Inside]]" the sonic screwdriver needs charging. This may mean the TARDIS creates, stores and charges sonic devices.


==Variants of the Doctor's sonic screwdriver==
==Variants of the Doctor's sonic screwdriver==
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*Open electronic locks. ([[DW]]: ''[[Carnival of Monsters]]'')
*Open electronic locks. ([[DW]]: ''[[Carnival of Monsters]]'')
*As conventional screwdriver, on large, flathead screw. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Monster of Peladon]]'')
*As conventional screwdriver, on large, flathead screw. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Monster of Peladon]]'')
*Overloading the brains of [[Space Greyhound]]s. ([[IDW]]: ''[[The Forgotten]]'')
*To distract giant maggots. ([[DW]] ''[[The Green Death]]'')
*To distract giant maggots. ([[DW]] ''[[The Green Death]]'')


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*Breaching a [[force field]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Sontaran Experiment]]'')
*Breaching a [[force field]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Sontaran Experiment]]'')
*Shutting down [[Styre's Robot]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Sontaran Experiment]]'')
*Shutting down [[Styre's Robot]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Sontaran Experiment]]'')
*Sabotaging a two-way [[radio]]. ([[DW]]: [[Genesis of the Daleks|''Genesis of the Daleks'']])
*Sabotaging a two-way [[radio]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Genesis of the Daleks]]'')
*Creating a temporary hole in [[Gallifrey|Gallifrey's]] force field above the Citidel. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Invasion of Time]]'')
*Shattering the [[Clynex]]. ([[DWM]]: ''[[The Naked Flame]]'')
*Using the correct sonic frequency to return [[Fourth Doctor|The Doctor]] and Ernestina Stott to normal size. ([[BBCR]]: ''[[Hornets' Nest]]'' - ''[[The Dead Shoes]]'')  
*Creating a temporary hole in [[Gallifrey]]'s [[force field]] above the Citadel. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Invasion of Time]]'')
*Using the correct sonic frequency to return [[Fourth Doctor|The Doctor]] and [[Ernestina Stott]] to normal size. ([[BBCR]]: ''[[Hornets' Nest]]'' - ''[[The Dead Shoes]]'')  
*Opening doors on [[Ribos]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Ribos Operation]]'')
*Opening doors on [[Ribos]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Ribos Operation]]'')
*Unlocking multi-levered interlocks to the Ribos crown jewels casket ([[DW]]: ''[[The Ribos Operation]]'')
*Unlocking multi-levered interlocks to the Ribos crown jewels casket ([[DW]]: ''[[The Ribos Operation]]'')
*Opening the door to the real [[Xanxia|Queen Xanxia's]] camber. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Pirate Planet]]'')
*Opening the door to the real [[Xanxia|Queen Xanxia's]] camber. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Pirate Planet]]'')
*Blowing up a [[Dalek]] bomb. ([[DW]]: ''[[Destiny of the Daleks]]'')
*Blowing up a [[Dalek]] bomb. ([[DW]]: ''[[Destiny of the Daleks]]'')
*Disarming [[fusion bomb]]s by reversing the polarity of the neutron-flow. ([[MA]]: ''[[Cold Fusion]'')


===Mark IV===
===Mark IV===
[[image:ChangLooksThroughSonic.jpg|thumb|[[Chang Lee]] discovers the sonic screwdriver the [[Seventh Doctor]] had at [[regeneration]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Doctor Who (1996)|Doctor Who]]'')]]
[[image:ChangLooksThroughSonic.jpg|thumb|[[Chang Lee]] discovers the sonic screwdriver the [[Seventh Doctor]] had at [[regeneration]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Doctor Who (1996)|Doctor Who]]'')]]
Towards the end of his [[Seventh Doctor|Seventh Incarnation]] The Doctor used a model quite simillar to his Mark III exept that instead of the ring around the tip being red, the tip it self was red. This is used throughout the [[Eighth Doctor]]'s life and has a torch built in the handle.
Towards the end of his [[Seventh Doctor|Seventh Incarnation]] The Doctor used a model quite similar to his Mark III except that instead of the ring around the tip being red, the tip it self was red. This is used throughout the [[Eighth Doctor]]'s life and had a torch built in the handle.


====Known Uses====
====Known Uses====
 
*To lock the casket containing [[the Master]]'s remains. ([[DW]]: ''[[Doctor Who (1996)|Doctor Who]]'')
* To lock the casket containing [[the Master]]'s remains. ([[DW]]: ''[[Doctor Who (1996)|Doctor Who]]'')
*Repel [[ghost]]s ([[EDA]]: ''[[Vanderdeken's Children]]'')


===Mark V===
===Mark V===
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*Interfacing with a [[computer]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The End of the World]]'')
*Interfacing with a [[computer]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The End of the World]]'')
*To control an elevator. ([[DW]]: ''[[Aliens of London]]'')
*To control an elevator. ([[DW]]: ''[[Aliens of London]]'')
*As a medical scanner and diagnostic tool. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Empty Child]]'')
*Atmospheric excitation to cause rain. ([[DWM]]: ''[[Death to the Doctor!]]'')
*Obtaining money from a cash machine. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Long Game]]'')
*Obtaining money from a cash machine. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Long Game]]'')
*Battery charging. ([[DW]]: ''[[Father's Day]]'')
*Battery charging. ([[DW]]: ''[[Father's Day]]'')
*As a medical scanner and diagnostic tool. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Empty Child]]'')
*Completely corroding thin metal (e.g. barbed wire) so that it crumbles into rust. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Doctor Dances]]'')
*Completely corroding thin metal (e.g. barbed wire) so that it crumbles into rust. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Doctor Dances]]'')
*Re-connecting barbed wire. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Doctor Dances]]'')
*Re-connecting barbed wire. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Doctor Dances]]'')
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*Blowing up a remote control Christmas tree. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Christmas Invasion]]'')
*Blowing up a remote control Christmas tree. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Christmas Invasion]]'')
*To transfer its powers to a remote control. ([[DW]]: ''[[Attack of the Graske]]'')
*To transfer its powers to a remote control. ([[DW]]: ''[[Attack of the Graske]]'')
*Igniting swamp gas. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[The Hunt of Doom]]'')
*Stop the emergence of [[Mirrorling]]s from mirrors. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[Mirror Image]]'')
*Dislodging and reinserting teeth. ([[DWM]]: ''[[The Lodger (comic story)|The Lodger]]'')
*To create small flames. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Girl in the Fireplace]]'')
*To create small flames. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Girl in the Fireplace]]'')
*To make the [[Cybus Cyberman|Cybermen]] turn away from the Doctor's direction. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Age of Steel]]'')
*To make the [[Cybus Cyberman|Cybermen]] turn away from the Doctor's direction. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Age of Steel]]'')
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*Locking / unlocking a hatch in Cybus Industries ([[DW]]: ''[[The Age of Steel]]'')
*Locking / unlocking a hatch in Cybus Industries ([[DW]]: ''[[The Age of Steel]]'')
*To threaten [[the Wire]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Idiot's Lantern]]'')
*To threaten [[the Wire]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Idiot's Lantern]]'')
*Illuminate [[Rose Tyler|Rose]]. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[Warfreekz!]]'')
*Reverse an [[anti-gravity]] [[umbrella]]. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[Smart Bombs]]'')
*To partially reverse the [[Abzorbaloff]]'s absorption of [[Ursula Blake]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Love & Monsters]]'')
*To partially reverse the [[Abzorbaloff]]'s absorption of [[Ursula Blake]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Love & Monsters]]'')
*Partially cracking glass so it can be smashed with the push of a finger. ([[DW]]: ''[[Army of Ghosts]]'')
*Partially cracking glass so it can be smashed with the push of a finger. ([[DW]]: ''[[Army of Ghosts]]'')
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*To cut a spider web. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Runaway Bride]]'')
*To cut a spider web. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Runaway Bride]]'')
*To destroy the Robot Santas with sound (used in conjunction with a professional sound system). ([[DW]]: ''[[The Runaway Bride]]'')
*To destroy the Robot Santas with sound (used in conjunction with a professional sound system). ([[DW]]: ''[[The Runaway Bride]]'')
*Detect heated [[water]]. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[The Halls of Sacrifice]]'')
*Overload [[Cyberman (Pete's World)|Cybermen]]. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[The Power of the Cybermen]]'')
*Crashing an [[aircar]]. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[Time of the Cybermen]]'')
*Confusing the antibodies of a living [[planet]]. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[Lonely Planet]]'')
*To increase the radiation output of a device such as an [[x-ray]] scanner; this action burned out the screwdriver. ([[DW]]: ''[[Smith and Jones]]'')
*To increase the radiation output of a device such as an [[x-ray]] scanner; this action burned out the screwdriver. ([[DW]]: ''[[Smith and Jones]]'')


===Mark VI===
===Mark VI===
The [[Tenth Doctor|tenth incarnation]] used another screwdriver after the X-ray incident. This model was damaged during the Doctor's [[The End of Time (TV story)|tenth regeneration]] and the TARDIS' subsequent crash, as well as by [[Prisoner Zero]] and was ultimately destroyed when the Doctor used it to overload technology to alert the Atraxi. ([[DW]]:''[[The Eleventh Hour]]'')
The [[Tenth Doctor|tenth incarnation]] used another screwdriver after the X-ray incident. This model was damaged during the Doctor's [[The End of Time (TV story)|tenth regeneration]] and the TARDIS' subsequent crash, as well as by [[Prisoner Zero]] and was ultimately destroyed when the Doctor used it to overload technology to alert the Atraxi. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Eleventh Hour]]'')


====Known uses====
====Known uses====
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*In conjunction with a pipe organ, it produced hypersonic sound waves which lead to the death of the Lazarus creature. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Lazarus Experiment]]'')
*In conjunction with a pipe organ, it produced hypersonic sound waves which lead to the death of the Lazarus creature. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Lazarus Experiment]]'')
*Scanning for the transformed Lazarus creature after it escaped to [[Southwark Cathedral]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Lazarus Experiment]]'')
*Scanning for the transformed Lazarus creature after it escaped to [[Southwark Cathedral]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Lazarus Experiment]]'')
*Disabling robotic flies. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[Exhausting Evil]]'')
*Disabling [[security orb]]s. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[Wrath of the Warrior]]'')
*Modifying hearing aids. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[The Screaming Prison]]'')
*Reversing [[Teleportation|teleport feeds]]. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[Warriors' Revenge]]'')
*Sinking a ship. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[Second Wave]]'')
*Resonate a floor to destroy it, via crystal gems. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[Operation Lock-up]]'')
*Melting [[chocolate]] by increasing the resonance frequency of a torch. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[Crimes and Punishment]]'')
*Locking the TARDIS navigational systems to only allow travel between its current position and its previous position. ([[DW]]: ''[[Utopia (TV story)|Utopia]]'')
*Locking the TARDIS navigational systems to only allow travel between its current position and its previous position. ([[DW]]: ''[[Utopia (TV story)|Utopia]]'')
*Fixing a decades-broken [[Vortex Manipulator]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Utopia (TV story)|Utopia]]'')
*Fixing a decades-broken [[Vortex Manipulator]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Utopia (TV story)|Utopia]]'')
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*As a soldering iron to make [[perception filter]]s using [[TARDIS key]]s. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Sound of Drums]]'')
*As a soldering iron to make [[perception filter]]s using [[TARDIS key]]s. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Sound of Drums]]'')
*Uncorking a [[wine]] bottle. ([[DW]]: ''[[Voyage of the Damned]]'')
*Uncorking a [[wine]] bottle. ([[DW]]: ''[[Voyage of the Damned]]'')
*Loop temporal energy of a [[fraxis pod]] back into a the [[zygma drive]]. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[Blooms of Doom!]]'')
*Shatter robot assassins. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[A Suitable Showdown]]'')
*Controlling a cable cart. ([[DW]]: ''[[Partners in Crime]]'')
*Controlling a cable cart. ([[DW]]: ''[[Partners in Crime]]'')
*Breaking into a silo on the [[Ood-Sphere]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Planet of the Ood]]'')
*Breaking into a silo on the [[Ood-Sphere]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Planet of the Ood]]'')
*Create a [[stasis beam]]. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[School of the Dead]]'')
*Disabling a [[Sontaran]] teleport. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Sontaran Stratagem]]'')
*Disabling a [[Sontaran]] teleport. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Sontaran Stratagem]]'')
*Scanning shadows for the presence of [[Vashta Nerada]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Silence in the Library]]''/''[[Forest of the Dead]]'')
*Scanning shadows for the presence of [[Vashta Nerada]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Silence in the Library]]''/''[[Forest of the Dead]]'')
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*Checking [[Crusader 50]]'s control console for faults. ([[DW]]: ''[[Midnight (TV story)|Midnight]]'')
*Checking [[Crusader 50]]'s control console for faults. ([[DW]]: ''[[Midnight (TV story)|Midnight]]'')
*Teleporting a [[Graske]] to the other side of the universe. ([[DW]]: ''[[Music of the Spheres]]'')
*Teleporting a [[Graske]] to the other side of the universe. ([[DW]]: ''[[Music of the Spheres]]'')
*Opening the casing of a cleaning robot. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[Carnage Zoo]]'')
*[[Teleport]]ing onto a [[Nim]] [[spacecraft]]. ([[DWBIT]]: ''[[The Day the Earth Was Sold]]'', ''[[The King of Earth]]'')
*As a [[Sonic Toothbrush]]. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[The Continuity Cap]]'')
*As a [[Sonic Toothbrush]]. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[The Continuity Cap]]'')
*Tracing [[distress signal]]s. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[The Ghost Factory]]'')
*Modifying a [[gravity converter]]. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[Skydive]]'')
*Disabling a [[Cyrronak Robot]]. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[Highway Robbery]]'')
*Scanning slime. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[Doomsilk]]'')
*Cancelling out a [[phonic blast]]. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[We Will Rock You]]'')
*Shattering ice. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[Arctic Eclipse]]'')
*Scanning the [[President of Earth (Return of the Klytode)|President of Earth]] for [[alien]] influence. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[Return of the Klytode]]'')
*Blowing up a fire hydrant. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[Creature Feature]]'')
*Atmospheric excitation to cause rain. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[Mudshock]]'')
*Tickling a [[lion]] with sonic waves. ([[NSA]]: ''[[The Slitheen Excursion]]'')
*Tickling a [[lion]] with sonic waves. ([[NSA]]: ''[[The Slitheen Excursion]]'')
*Repair an overloading distribution box. ([[TDL]]: ''[[The Graves of Mordane]]'')
*Download a journal. ([[TDL]]: ''[[The Colour of Darkness]]'')
*Detecting and illuminating [[ultraviolet]] characters. ([[TDL]]: ''[[The Game of Death]]'')
*Remotely controlling environmental controls. ([[TDL]]: ''[[The Game of Death]]'')
*Detecting the arrival of [[spacecraft]]. ([[TDL]]: ''[[The Pictures of Emptiness]]'')
*Pick up traces of [[Psychic energy|psychic spoor]]. ([[DWM]]: ''[[Mortal Beloved]]'')
*Tinting the Doctor's glasses. ([[DW]]: ''[[Planet of the Dead (TV story)|Planet of the Dead]]'')
*Tinting the Doctor's glasses. ([[DW]]: ''[[Planet of the Dead (TV story)|Planet of the Dead]]'')
*Opening bus doors. ([[DW]]: ''[[Planet of the Dead (TV story)|Planet of the Dead]]'')
*Opening bus doors. ([[DW]]: ''[[Planet of the Dead (TV story)|Planet of the Dead]]'')
*Unlocking handcuffs. ([[DW]]: ''[[Planet of the Dead (TV story)|Planet of the Dead]]'')
*Unlocking handcuffs. ([[DW]]: ''[[Planet of the Dead (TV story)|Planet of the Dead]]'')
*Cracking ice. ([[DWAM]]: ''[[Arctic Eclipse]]'')
*Incapacitate a [[Gizou]]. ([[IDW]]: ''[[Fugitive]]'')
*Detecting time traces. ([[SJA]]: ''[[The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith]]'')
*Detecting time traces. ([[SJA]]: ''[[The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith]]'')
*As an actual Screwdriver, without touching the screws. ([[DW]]: ''[[Dreamland]]'')
*As an actual Screwdriver, without touching the screws. ([[DW]]: ''[[Dreamland]]'')

Revision as of 16:49, 10 July 2010

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The sonic screwdriver was a versatile tool and defensive weapon used by the Doctor.

Technology and Functions

The sonic screwdriver is apparently the product of Gallifreyan technology since other Time Lords (i.e. Romana) used the device and understood it enough to construct their own versions of it. The name of the device itself suggests that it functions using soundwaves, although the actual workings of the device have never been explained.

A crystal similar to Metebelis Crystal sought after by the Eight Legs of Metebelis III was used in the Mark VI sonic screwdriver. (IDW: The Forgotten) There were also electrical components. (DWAM: The Halls of Sacrifice)

The screwdriver also seems to have a multitude of settings, along with different versions of settings, as he tells Rose to use "setting 15B" to help him triangulate the source of the ghosts (DW: Army of Ghosts) and used 34-H to sink a ship (DWBIT: Second Wave). It is also said to have a setting 85. (DW: The Lazarus Experiment). The Doctor tells Rose to use setting 2428D to re-attach barbed wire, suggesting that the screwdriver (at least the Mark V screwdriver) has at least this many functions. (DW: The Doctor Dances)

The different versions of the Doctor's sonic screwdrivers have exhibited different capabilities and uses, such as the interception of signals ranging from transmat beams to conscious thought; medical diagnostics and repair of organic parts; cutting, but also re-attaching together materials such as barbed wire; operating Earth machinery such as computers and even cash machines (at regular and high eject speeds); creating a spark to light a candle; and, on the rare occasion, driving screws without touching them. Although it is primarily a tool, it can also be used as a defensive weapon, such as when the Tenth Doctor put it in a sound board to destroy the Robot Santas. (DW: The Runaway Bride) However, according to the Tenth Doctor, the device cannot be used to wound, maim or kill living things. (DW: Doomsday) It can still be used to destroy non-living objects or mechanisms or place living creatures in circumstances where they might die, if the situation requires.

The sonic screwdriver needed to be recharged, (NSA: The Monsters Inside, DWAM: Bizarre Zero) which was likely done by the TARDIS (DW: Aliens of London, The Eleventh Hour)

Sonic screwdrivers and similar technology cannot unlock a deadlock seal (DW: School Reunion); one of few exceptions is Miss Foster's sonic pen, which was able to open the deadlock seals on and within the Adipose Industries building when the Doctor's sonic screwdriver could not. (DW: Partners in Crime) Some or all versions may be ineffective against wood, or in the presence of some models of hairdryers. (DW: Silence in the Library / Forest of the Dead,The Hungry Earth, PDA: Catastrophea)

Variants of the Doctor's sonic screwdriver

Earliest known sonic screwdriver in use. (DW: The War Games)

Mark I

A small, simple device similar to a penlight, first used by the Doctor in his first (MA: Venusian Lullaby) and second incarnations (DW: Fury from the Deep).

Known uses

Mark II

File:Early-sonic-screwdriver.jpg
Variation likely created during the Doctor's exile on Earth.
A cross-section of the Marks II, III and IV

A larger and more elaborately detailed version, the Doctor began using this model in his third incarnation. In addition to a redesign on the tip which remained the norm for the next two versions, it had a silver handle, and black and yellow stripes. It had a removable head which the Doctor would change with other heads, each doing a different function. (DW: The Sea Devils)

Known uses

Mark III

The Fourth Doctor remade his sonic screwdriver into a silver version that lacked the interchangeable heads. It was capable of extending its tip.

Known uses

Mark IV

Chang Lee discovers the sonic screwdriver the Seventh Doctor had at regeneration. (DW: Doctor Who)

Towards the end of his Seventh Incarnation The Doctor used a model quite similar to his Mark III except that instead of the ring around the tip being red, the tip it self was red. This is used throughout the Eighth Doctor's life and had a torch built in the handle.

Known Uses

Mark V

In his ninth incarnation the Doctor had a new model with a glowing blue diode at one end. The tenth incarnation of the Doctor also carried this model, until it was burnt out after modifying an x-ray scanner to increase the radiation output. (DW:Smith and Jones)

File:Sonic Screwdriver Mark 1.gif
A version known to be used by the ninth and tenth incarnations of the Doctor

Known uses

Mark VI

The tenth incarnation used another screwdriver after the X-ray incident. This model was damaged during the Doctor's tenth regeneration and the TARDIS' subsequent crash, as well as by Prisoner Zero and was ultimately destroyed when the Doctor used it to overload technology to alert the Atraxi. (DW: The Eleventh Hour)

Known uses

File:2007SonicHorizontal.jpg
Sonic screwdriver created after its predecessor was destroyed at Royal Hope Hospital.
A cross-section of the Mark VI

Mark VII

Following the Mark VI's destruction, the Doctor received a new Sonic Screwdriver from the TARDIS. It was radically different to the previous model, having “claws” and a green diode, rather than blue. It also has copper plating in various places, both of which are similar to the new TARDIS interior. (DW: The Eleventh Hour)

The Mark VII in the TARDIS console. (DW: The Eleventh Hour)

Known Uses

Mark ?

The Doctor's future screwdriver, loaned out to River Song. (DW: Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead)
A cross-section of the future sonic screwdriver

In the Doctor's personal future, he would upgrade the screwdriver with, in addition to the Mark VI settings, red settings and damper settings. He gave it to River Song, both for her use and, unknown to River, a Neural Relay, which saved River's Data Ghost for uploading into the main computer of the Library. (DW: Silence in the Library / Forest of the Dead)

Known uses

Related Tools

  • Liz Shaw had her own version of the Doctor's "door handle" device, which she used to open the door to the Doctor's shed. (DW: Inferno)
  • Romana constructed her own sonic screwdriver. Her version so impressed the Doctor that he attempted (unsuccessfully) to swap sonic screwdrivers with her. (DW: The Horns of Nimon) She later gave it to the Doctor. (NA: Lungbarrow)
This resembled a smaller, slimmer version of the Doctor's Mark II.

Behind the scenes

  • The tool was retired during the Fifth Doctor serial The Visitation as it was felt it had become overused. It was absent for the Sixth Doctor era and all of the Seventh, except in Doctor Who in which the Seventh Doctor was seen to use it to lock the Master's remains away, and the Eighth Doctor recovered it at the end of the film. The tool was reintroduced with the Ninth Doctor and has become the show's most frequently used gadget besides the TARDIS itself. It has since appeared in many Seventh and Eighth Doctor audio adventures from Big Finish Productions.
  • For unexplained reasons, the Tenth Doctor's Sonic Screwdriver had a green casing in The Infinite Quest.
  • During early production of Series 1 (2005), the production crew decided to switch from their original prop to one based on the toy Sonic Screwdriver because the first prop was prone to falling apart and so the production team secured molds from the toy replica in order to make a more reliable prop for the next season.
  • Early conceptual art of the modern era Sonic Screwdriver feature a different "tube" section, with notes referring to "glowing organic circuitry", and a movable ball-joint on the emitter, to allow use around corners and in tight spaces. Instead of the "glowing circuitry," the actual prop and toy reproductions feature a black "swivel," like a simple helix. When given a personal copy of the concept art, David Tennant himself commented on the lack of the swivelling emitter.
  • Another early piece of concept art, similar to a simple Bitmap drawing, reveals that the black "cap" at the reverse end of the Sonic Screwdriver was intended to be an opening set of "feet," allowing the Sonic Screwdriver to plug into a section of the TARDIS console. This feature was also dropped from the eventual prop model. The "claws" on the Series 5 model of the sonic screwdriver may be a re-imagining of these "feet".
  • There are two main versions of the Sonic Screwdriver - one has a slide feature with button, and one which does not slide and has a fixed button. The two prop types varied each episode.

External links

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