Terror of the Autons (TV story): Difference between revisions

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{{Infobox TV|
{{Infobox ClassicTV|
story name= Terror of the Autons |
story name= Terror of the Autons |
image= [[Image:Auton_in_disguise.jpg|250px]]|
image= [[Image:Auton_in_disguise.jpg|250px]]|
series=[[Doctor Who]] -<br/>[[TV stories|TV Stories]] |
series=[[Doctor Who]] -<br/>[[TV stories|TV Stories]] |
number= 55 |
number= [[Season 8]]|
story number= 55|
doctor=[[Third Doctor]] |
doctor=[[Third Doctor]] |
companions= [[Jo Grant]] (Introduction)<br/>[[Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart]]<br/>[[Mike Yates|Captain Mike Yates]] (Introduction)<br/>[[Sergeant Benton]]|
companions= [[Jo Grant]] (Introduction)<br/>[[Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart]]<br/>[[Mike Yates|Captain Mike Yates]] (Introduction)<br/>[[Sergeant Benton]]|
Line 80: Line 81:
* The Doctor says he regards military intelligence a contradiction in terms. He boils away the contents of  weapon of the Master's so that the military cannot get a hold of it and try to duplicate it.  
* The Doctor says he regards military intelligence a contradiction in terms. He boils away the contents of  weapon of the Master's so that the military cannot get a hold of it and try to duplicate it.  
* This is Jo Grant's first appearance. An uncle pulled some strings to get her a job at [[UNIT]].
* This is Jo Grant's first appearance. An uncle pulled some strings to get her a job at [[UNIT]].
* This is the Master's first appearance. The [[Time Lord]] who appears to the Doctor informs him that he now call himself this, implying that he has gone by other names. He has special powers of [[hypnosis]] that can make people act against their usual nature.
* This is the Master's first appearance. The [[Time Lord]] who appears to the Doctor informs him that he now call himself this, implying that he has gone by other names. He has special abilities including [[hypnosis]] that can make people act against their usual nature. (He hypnotises Jo)
*[[The Master's TARDIS]] is disguised as a horsebox, and uses a Mark Two [[dematerialization circuit]], as opposed to the Doctor's Mark One, they are not compatible.
*The [[Lamadines]] are a species with nine opposable digits who pioneered [[steady state micro welding]].


==Story Notes==
==Story Notes==
*The story was originally to be titled "The Spray of Death"
*This story had a working title of; '''The Spray of Death'''.


===Ratings===
===Ratings===
Line 92: Line 95:


===Myths===
===Myths===
''to be added''
*The production team had initially envisioned the new regular villain for the series as a female character, possibly called the Controller, to be played by [[Susan Jameson]]. ''(The role was always envisioned as a male character called the Master, and Roger Delgado was the only actor considered for it.)''


===Location Filming===
===Filming Locations===
''to be added''
*St. Peter's Court, Chalfont St. Peter, Buckinghamshire
*Hodgemoor Woods, Chalfont St. Giles, Buckinghamshire
*Lee Valley Ice Centre, Leyton, London (Location of Rossini's circus)
*Zouches Farm Relay Station, Caddington, Bedfordshire (Location used for exterior of [[Beacon Hill Research Establishment]])
*Church Lane car park, Chalfont St. Peter, Buckinghamshire
*Queen's Wharf, Hammersmith, London (Exterior location of the Master's bomb exploding outside UNIT lab, in water)
*Totternhoe Lime and Stone Co Ltd, Totternhoe, Dunstable (The quarry the Doctor and Jo are taken to)
*Ecomold (formerly Thermo Plastics Ltd), Luton Road, Dunstable (Farrell's Plastics Factory)
*[[BBC Television Centre]] (Studio 8 and 6), Shepherd's Bush, [[London]]


===Discontinuity, Plot Holes, Errors===
===Discontinuity, Plot Holes, Errors===
''to be added''
*All elements of [[CSO]] have a lot of flaring/fuzzing around the edges of the CSOed image (a museum, the outside of a radio telescope, a lunchbox interior, a lab, the interior of two cars, a phonebox, a kitchen, a quarry and everywhere the killer doll goes).
*In episode one the Doctor could have got to the volatizer by hopping in through the open window (which is how the Master must have got out having set the trap).


==Continuity==
==Continuity==
*This is a sequel to [[Spearhead from Space]].
*This is a sequel to ''[[Spearhead from Space]]''.
*The Nestene Consciousness appear again in ''[[PDA]]:'' [[Synthespians™]], [[Business Unusual]] and ''[[DW]]:'' [[Rose (TV story)|Rose]].
*The Nestene Consciousness appear again in [[PDA]]: ''[[Synthespians™]]'', ''[[Business Unusual]]'' and [[DW]]: ''[[Rose (TV story)|Rose]]''.
*How the Master and the Doctor know each other is explored in [[MA]]: ''[[The Dark Path]]''.


==DVD, Video and Other Releases==
==DVD, Video and Other Releases==
''to be added''
===VHS Release===
*Released  as a recolourised addition based on black and white and colour source material in the UK April [[1993]] and Australia/New Zealand June [[1993]] (BBC catalog #4957), US/Canada June [[1995]] (WHV catalog #E1276) in episodic format.
:*This release was part of the 30th Anniversary celebrations releases.


==Target Novelisations==
==Target Novelisations==
*Novelised as [[Doctor Who and the Terror of the Autons]] in [[1974]] by [[Terrance Dicks]].
*Novelised as ''[[Doctor Who and the Terror of the Autons]]'' in [[1974]] by [[Terrance Dicks]].


==External Links==
==External Links==
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide/terrorautons/ BBC Episode Guide Page for '''Terror of the Autons''' with video clips]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide/terrorautons/ Official BBC Episode Guide Page for '''Terror of the Autons''' with video clips]
*[http://www.gallifreyone.com/episode.php?id=3e Outpost Gallifrey Episode Guide: '''Terror of the Autons''']
* [http://www.drwhoguide.com/who_3e.htm Doctor Who Reference Guide: Detailed Synopsis - '''Terror of the Autons''']
* [http://www.drwhoguide.com/who_3e.htm Doctor Who Reference Guide: Detailed Synopsis - '''Terror of the Autons''']
* [http://www.shannonsullivan.com/drwho/serials/eee.html A Brief History of Time (Travel) - '''Terror of the Autons''']
* [http://www.shannonsullivan.com/drwho/serials/eee.html A Brief History of Time (Travel) to '''Terror of the Autons''']
*[http://www.gallifreyone.com/episode.php?id=3e Outpost Galifrey entry for '''Terror of the Autons''']
*[http://www.eofftv.com/episodes/d/doctor_who/3rd_doctor/terror_of_the_autons_main.htm '''Terror of the Autons''' entry at Encyclopedia of Fantastic Film and Television]
*[http://www.eofftv.com/episodes/d/doctor_who/3rd_doctor/terror_of_the_autons_main.htm '''Terror of the Autons''' entry at Encyclopedia of Fantastic Film and Television]
 
*[http://www.doctorwholocations.net/stories/terroroftheautons The Locations Guide to Doctor Who - '''Terror of the Autons''']


{{TV stub}}
{{TV stub}}

Revision as of 12:34, 28 March 2008


Synopsis

The Master arrives on Earth at a circus run by a man named Rossini and steals a dormant Nestene energy unit from a museum. He reactivates it using a radio telescope and uses his hypnotic abilities to take control of a small plastics firm run by the Farrel family, where he organises the production of deadly Auton dolls, chairs and daffodils.

Humanoid Auton dummies distribute the daffodils - designed to spray a suffocating plastic film over their victim's mouth and nose - by giving them away free to members of the public in a fake promotional campaign.

The Master plans to activate the flowers with a signal from the radio telescope, which he will then use to bring the main Nestene Consciousness to Earth. The Doctor manages to persuade the Master that the Nestenes will have no further use for him once they arrive. The two Time Lords then work together to send the Consciousness back into space.

Plot

to be added

The Doctor with Jo Grant and Captain Yates.

Cast

Crew

References

  • This is the first story to feature Mike Yates, Jo Grant, and the Master.
  • First appearance of the Tissue Compression Eliminator (as it would come to be called).
  • The Doctor says he regards military intelligence a contradiction in terms. He boils away the contents of weapon of the Master's so that the military cannot get a hold of it and try to duplicate it.
  • This is Jo Grant's first appearance. An uncle pulled some strings to get her a job at UNIT.
  • This is the Master's first appearance. The Time Lord who appears to the Doctor informs him that he now call himself this, implying that he has gone by other names. He has special abilities including hypnosis that can make people act against their usual nature. (He hypnotises Jo)
  • The Master's TARDIS is disguised as a horsebox, and uses a Mark Two dematerialization circuit, as opposed to the Doctor's Mark One, they are not compatible.
  • The Lamadines are a species with nine opposable digits who pioneered steady state micro welding.

Story Notes

  • This story had a working title of; The Spray of Death.

Ratings

  • Episode 1 - 7.3 million viewers
  • Episode 2 - 8.0 million viewers
  • Episode 3 - 8.1 million viewers
  • Episode 4 - 8.4 million viewers

Myths

  • The production team had initially envisioned the new regular villain for the series as a female character, possibly called the Controller, to be played by Susan Jameson. (The role was always envisioned as a male character called the Master, and Roger Delgado was the only actor considered for it.)

Filming Locations

  • St. Peter's Court, Chalfont St. Peter, Buckinghamshire
  • Hodgemoor Woods, Chalfont St. Giles, Buckinghamshire
  • Lee Valley Ice Centre, Leyton, London (Location of Rossini's circus)
  • Zouches Farm Relay Station, Caddington, Bedfordshire (Location used for exterior of Beacon Hill Research Establishment)
  • Church Lane car park, Chalfont St. Peter, Buckinghamshire
  • Queen's Wharf, Hammersmith, London (Exterior location of the Master's bomb exploding outside UNIT lab, in water)
  • Totternhoe Lime and Stone Co Ltd, Totternhoe, Dunstable (The quarry the Doctor and Jo are taken to)
  • Ecomold (formerly Thermo Plastics Ltd), Luton Road, Dunstable (Farrell's Plastics Factory)
  • BBC Television Centre (Studio 8 and 6), Shepherd's Bush, London

Discontinuity, Plot Holes, Errors

  • All elements of CSO have a lot of flaring/fuzzing around the edges of the CSOed image (a museum, the outside of a radio telescope, a lunchbox interior, a lab, the interior of two cars, a phonebox, a kitchen, a quarry and everywhere the killer doll goes).
  • In episode one the Doctor could have got to the volatizer by hopping in through the open window (which is how the Master must have got out having set the trap).

Continuity

DVD, Video and Other Releases

VHS Release

  • Released as a recolourised addition based on black and white and colour source material in the UK April 1993 and Australia/New Zealand June 1993 (BBC catalog #4957), US/Canada June 1995 (WHV catalog #E1276) in episodic format.
  • This release was part of the 30th Anniversary celebrations releases.

Target Novelisations

External Links

TVStub.png
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