Egyptian Escapade (comic story)
Egyptian Escapade was a TV Comic story featuring the Second Doctor, John and Gillian.
Summary
The TARDIS brings the Doctor and his grandchildren to Egypt in 1880, where they find themselves right in the middle of an armed confrontation between British soldiers and an Arab tribe.
Plot
The TARDIS lands in the middle of a game of cricket, which is being played by British soldiers near the River Nile. The soldiers don't have time to investigate the strange object, as Arab troops approach them - the soldiers are hastily leaving the area believing to be outnumbered. The Doctor, John and Gillian watch the action on the TARDIS scanner.
The Arab warriors decide to take the police box with them as a prize, the camels take the TARDIS to the camp, where leader Mahadi is waiting for his troops. He orders to open the box, but every attempt fails, including one with a big fire burning the TARDIS. After that, it's decided to leave the box in the treasure cave, as there are more important things to do - planning the next attack on the British.
The Doctor exits the TARDIS and knocks out one of the Arabs with a stone, then puts on his clothes, disguising himsels as one of them. He overhears Mahadi's plans to attack the British fort Cavendish and decides to alert the troops. Reaching the fort, the Doctor does not take off his Arab robes, and the patrol soldiers decide to kill him on the spot as a spy, but change their minds when they hear him speak English.
The Doctor is taken to General Harvey, but his warnings of an imminent Arab attack are ignored by the British soldiers and he is thrown into a cell. The Doctor watches helplessly from the prison window as the Arabs launch their attack, catching the British by surprise - they set fire to the fort and the wooden floor of the Doctor's cell collapses, freeing him. The Doctor decides to help the British and uses smoke bombs that create an intimidating image, and the Arabs retreat. The soldiers thank the Doctor, but when they begin to question him, he again creates a large cloud of smoke and slips away unnoticed.
The Doctor returns to the deserted Arab camp, discovering that they have taken all the treasures from the cave, except for the most valuable - the TARDIS.
Characters
References
- The Doctor claims that Mahadi will execute them because he and his grandchildren are British. He repeats this statement to General Harvey, saying "I'm British like you".
Notes
- The story is loosely based on the real world Siege of Khartoum which happened in 1884-1885 as part of the Mahdist War. General Harvey's historical counterpart is British General Charles George Gordon, and Mahadi's - Muhammad Ahmad of Sudan, who claimed to be the Mahdi.
Continuity
- The TARDIS was already carried by a caravan before in 13th century Cathay. (TV: Marco Polo)
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