UNIT United Kingdom
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The United Nations Intelligence Taskforce (British Section) (PROSE: The Ambassadors of Death) later known as UNIT UK (PROSE: Bullet Time, The Shadows of Avalon, Island of Death, Battlefield) was the British contingency (PROSE: The Ambassadors of Death, The Secret Lives of Monsters, UNIT, et al.) of the transnational paramilitary organisation known as UNIT, led by Brigadier Alastair Lethbridge-Stewart from its formation until the late 20th century.
Not unlike its parental body, the United Kingdom branch shared its remit with all other geographical UNIT branches; its remit was to still protect humanity, no matter the cost. (PROSE: UNIT History: Fighting the Unknown)
History
20th century
Early history
Formation
According to one account, the United Nations had been working on a taskforce for alien threats since at least 1958. General Farquhar was tasked with setting up UNIT's British end and asked for Prentis's assistance in setting it up. There was a thirty-year investment plan by 1967, though UNIT was embarrassed when they missed the Post Office Tower incident (TV: Survivors of the Flux)
Most accounts, however, agreed the Great Intelligence's use of Robot Yeti and web-like fungus to invade the London Underground (TV: The Web of Fear) was the catalystic incident that led to the formation of the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce over the course of the next four years, (TV: The Invasion, et al.) and, at the recommendation of ICMG's Ian Gilmore, (PROSE: The Scales of Injustice) Alastair Lethbridge-Stewart was promoted from rank of Colonel to Brigadier, and was placed in charge of leading (TV: The Invasion) the British contingent of the taskforce, (PROSE: The Ambassadors of Death, The Secret Lives of Monsters, UNIT, et al.) being instrumental to the organisation's set up. (PROSE: The Scales of Injustice) The "London Menace", as one alientologist noted, had been documented by UNIT, despite it taking place prior to their formation, however they had little information upon the Whisper Men. (PROSE: The Secret Lives of Monsters)
While Alastair was the Commanding Officer of the British Section, (PROSE: The Ambassadors of Death, The Five Doctors, et al.) but still had to report to his superior and longtime friend, Major-General (TV: The Invasion, PROSE: The Secret Lives of Monsters, et al.) William Routledge until he was convinced to shoot himself by Tobias Vaughn, (PROSE: The Invasion) and his replacement, Major-General Scobie. (TV: Spearhead from Space, PROSE: Doctor Who and the Auton Invasion, The Secret Lives of Monsters, et al.) That being said, the heirarchy of command led UNIT Central Control in Geneva to have the highest authority. (TV: The Invasion)
However, many accounts disputed the dating of these events: some accounts date the "Yeti invasion" to 1975; (TV: The Web of Fear, PROSE: The Enfolded Time) while others date it to August 1966; (PROSE: Who Killed Kennedy) 1968; (PROSE: Downtime, Revolution Man, UNIT History: Fighting the unknown, HOMEVID: Global Conspiracy?) or February 1969. (PROSE: The Forgotten Son)
As the formation of UNIT was four years later, it would've been formed in 1979, (TV: The Invasion)
According to some accounts, Lethbridge-Stewart, unable to get the British government to form a permanent special operations force for alien threats, went over their heads to the UN Security Council, who proved more receptive. (PROSE: Who Killed Kennedy, Fear of the Web)
First Operations
UNIT's first full operation (PROSE: UNIT) was an intensive investigation of International Electromatics, which turned violent. UNIT agents were killed and UNIT launched a helicopter raid to liberate prisoners at an Electromatics' facility. With the help, again, of the Second Doctor, UNIT discovered the company was a front for a Cybermen invasion, and was able to defend against it. Initially they had only intervened thinking Tobias Vaughn was involved in strange criminal activity, with the Brigadier agreeing with Captain Turner that Geneva would think he was mad without proof of the Cybermen's existence. (TV: The Invasion, PROSE: The Invasion)
After Lethbridge-Stewart
After the period of time that was retroactively described as UNIT's "golden period", the late 1960s to the ealy 1980s, though some claimed that UNIT was still operating fully during the 1980s. From the mid-1980s to the early 2000s, UNIT's activities would gradually decline due to the smaller amount of threats to humanity at that time; UNIT's size also decreased, in part due to less personnel being available from world governments, reducing the taskforce to "a hard core of operationally experienced higher ranks and a still very active non-conventional R&D Corps." (PROSE: UNIT History: Fighting the unknown)
UNIT was involved in the 1995 Bonnybridge Cigar Confrontation, which was a larger incident in their relatively quieter period of operations. (PROSE: UNIT Hsitory: Fighting the unknown)
The 21st century
2000s
Despite UNIT's decrease in size over the course of the 1980s and 1990s, UNIT would begin to expand rapidly again in the early 2000s due to the sheeer increase in "extra-territorial threats." Following their re-expansion, (PROSE: UNIT History: Fighting the unknown) UNIT adopted a controversial attitude towards civil rights and civil liberties, (TV: The Sontaran Stratagem)[1] all in the name of "Homeworld Security". According to Alastair Lethbridge-Stewart in the mid-2000s, he believed UNIT's focus on Homeworld Security "[was] the trouble with UNIT these days. Too many buzzwords, too many directives." (TV: Enemy of the Bane) UNIT even established a secret prison where detainees could be held without charges being pressed or without the usual rights of prisoners. (TV: Fragments)
Toshiko Sato was imprisoned by UNIT, without trial or appeal, after she stole blueprints for a sonic disruptor from the Ministry of Defence, despite having done so under duress. UNIT refused to communicate with Sato, intending to make an example out of her, but she was eventually released when Jack Harkness recruited her to work for Torchwood Three, even then with the condition she'd work for Torchwood for five years. (TV: Fragments)
At sometime prior to the 2009 Sontaran invasion, UNIT changed its name from United Nations Intelligence Taskforce to Unified Intelligence Taskforce. UNIT retained its traditional logos, even though they displayed the now-technically incorrect initialisation "U.N.I.T." (TV: The Sontaran Stratagem) The UN had come to publicly deny any connection with UNIT, forcing the secretive military organisation to alter its name. (PROSE: The Secret Lives of Monsters)
2005
Prior to late January 2005, a fifty-strong squad of UNIT troops, all equiped with standard DL/3 class X-hazard chemical survival suits, were stationed in the Russian Steppes for a five day period for an investigation of reports of extreme chemical pollution. Thirteen personnel would die, protecting the local population. Captain Martin Berry would later spoke out about the tragic loss of those soldiers in a press briefing embargoed until 31 January 2005, filed by Corp M Osborne. (PROSE: UNIT's Position on the Skaniska Incident)[2]
The 2005 Auton invasion of Earth, (TV: Rose) an attack known to high-ranking UNIT officers as Operation Mannequin (PROSE: Operation Mannequin) but referred to as The London Incident by UNIT to the public, (PROSE: UNIT's Position on The London Incident) took place on 5 March (TV: Aliens of London, AUDIO: One Rule, PROSE: The Secret Lives of Monsters, et al.) or 26 March. (PROSE: UNIT's Position on The London Incident, Operation Mannequin) After the incident, UNIT issued an embargoed press briefing on 28 March, filed by Staff Sargeant A. Frederick, which ignored the allegations of the attack being mounted by terrorists or robots, and completely denied that it was in any way evidence of alien life existing. (PROSE: UNIT's Position on The London Incident)
On 10 March, UNIT issued yet another press briefing, this time about a computer virus named "RUFFCUT". (PROSE: Computer Virus File Sharing Alert)
In early 2005, UNIT issued one press briefing which noted the upcoming transistion to British Summertime. (PROSE: The Clocks Go Forward)
UNIT released an embargoed press briefing on 31 March 2005, filed by Staff Sergeant A. Frederick, about Major A Highway's plan to reorganise UNIT's pan-territorial activities in America into a single site operation, (PROSE: UNIT's New York Operation Expansion) the New York UNIT HQ. (TV: The Stolen Earth, COMIC: The Fountains of Forever)
2006
to be added (TV: World War Three) Jones later claimed that the destruction of 10 Downing Street was a terrorist attack. This was repeated in a press briefing issued by UNIT. (PROSE: Number Ten Pays Tribute to UNIT)
In July 2006, many Schlechter Wolf artillery shells were excavated during renovations to the refurbishings of the Northern and Jubilee lines of the London Underground. UNIT issued a press briefing about the dangers on 28 July. (PROSE: Unexploded WWII Bomb Warnings)
to be added (TV: Boom Town) UNIT issued a press briefing about the Cardiff Earthquake, saying that the clean up was successful, though a number of people were missing (including Blaine), and that UNIT's Scientific Advisors had all agreed that the plans for the Blaidd Drwg plant should be abandoned. (PROSE: Cardiff Earthquake)
After the attack, UNIT issued another press briefing, confirming the existence of aliens. (PROSE: Alien Life)
2010s
Footnotes
- ↑ The Privacy Policy, Disclaimer and Terms of Use on the U.N.I.T. website also provided a concerning attitude towards the public, where they absolved themselves from responsibility from any harm caused to the public by any alien threats and that failure to comply with their legal procedure can result in changes to statutory rights.
- ↑ The UNIT News page on the U.N.I.T. website would provide further details about the Skaniska Incident, stating that Captain Martin Berry (now spelled Martin Bury) had been promoted to Major and placed in charge of the Geneva B Company following the success of the Skaniska Incident.
