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Horror of Fang Rock (TV story): Difference between revisions
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a little finetuning
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The Doctor and Leela go outside to investigate. Harker goes down as well and Reuben appears but, behaving very strangely, returns to the bunk room. The Doctor and Leela come back believing that the creature has killed Reuben, but Harker informs them that he's seen Reuben. The Doctor decides they should ask Reuben about the creature as he must have seen it. He then orders Harker to secure the lighthouse door. | The Doctor and Leela go outside to investigate. Harker goes down as well and Reuben appears but, behaving very strangely, returns to the bunk room. The Doctor and Leela come back believing that the creature has killed Reuben, but Harker informs them that he's seen Reuben. The Doctor decides they should ask Reuben about the creature as he must have seen it. He then orders Harker to secure the lighthouse door. | ||
The power returns but Palmerdale is getting more anxious about needing to return to London and leaves after arguing with Skinsale. Reuben meanwhile has locked himself in the bunk room and (unseen by the Doctor and Leela) is glowing a strange green colour. Palmerdale then gives Vince £50 to send a message to London using the telegraph machine, with a further £50 once he returns to London (though this bribe is overheard by Skinsale). While they are talking, something is shown to be climbing up the outside of the lighthouse. Palmerdale hears the Doctor coming and hides outside. Vince is nervous, as events seem to playing out in the same way as the last time the Beast of Fang Rock appeared, but the Doctor reassures him that they outnumber the beast. While Palmerdale is waiting for the Doctor to leave, a strange green light appears from below him and he is killed. | The power returns but Palmerdale is getting more anxious about needing to return to London and leaves after arguing with Skinsale. Reuben meanwhile has locked himself in the bunk room and (unseen by the Doctor and Leela) is glowing a strange green colour. In the lamp room, Palmerdale then gives Vince £50 to send a message to London using the telegraph machine, with a further £50 once he returns to London (though this bribe is overheard by Skinsale). While they are talking, something is shown to be climbing up the outside of the lighthouse. Palmerdale hears the Doctor coming and hides outside on the lamp gallery. Vince is nervous, as events seem to playing out in the same way as the last time the Beast of Fang Rock appeared, but the Doctor reassures him that they outnumber the beast. While Palmerdale is waiting outside for the Doctor to leave, a strange green light appears from below him and he is killed. | ||
Skinsale continues to voice his doubts about Palmerdale, making Adelaide furious; she goes to speak to the man himself about it. Leela breaks a hole in the bunk room door with a sledgehammer | Skinsale continues to voice his doubts about Palmerdale, making Adelaide furious; she goes to speak to the man himself about it. Leela breaks a hole in the bunk room door with a sledgehammer, through which she and the Doctor see that Reuben is standing completely still and can't seem to hear them. As Adelaide comes past them on the stairs, the Doctor promptly orders her to go back down. Vince finds that Palmerdale has disappeared from the lamp gallery, and burns the money the lord gave him. | ||
The Doctor tells Skinsale and Adelaide that the creature they are dealing with is [[extraterrestrial]], which they both dismiss. Vince then tells them that Palmerdale has fallen from the lamp gallery. Upon hearing this news, Adelaide howls in despair but is promptly silenced by a slap from Leela. The Doctor and Skinsale go outside to retrieve his body and Harker secures the door again. The Doctor then discovers that the telegraph machine has been sabotaged, thereby cutting them off from the outside world. Skinsale admits he did it to prevent Palmerdale from sending the message and thereby protect his own reputation. | The Doctor tells Skinsale and Adelaide that the creature they are dealing with is [[extraterrestrial]], which they both dismiss. Vince then tells them that Palmerdale has fallen from the lamp gallery. Upon hearing this news, Adelaide howls in despair but is promptly silenced by a slap from Leela. The Doctor and Skinsale go outside to retrieve his body and Harker secures the door again. The Doctor then discovers that the telegraph machine has been sabotaged, thereby cutting them off from the outside world. Skinsale admits he did it to prevent Palmerdale from sending the message and thereby protect his own reputation. | ||
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Down in the boiler room, Reuben corners Harker. Vince tries the siren but finds it won't sound, meaning the boiler pressure has dropped. Adelaide and Skinsale cannot understand why Palmerdale would have fallen but the Doctor tells them that he was killed by an electric current, and therefore dead before he hit the ground. Vince then informs them about the siren and the Doctor realises something has happened to Harker. | Down in the boiler room, Reuben corners Harker. Vince tries the siren but finds it won't sound, meaning the boiler pressure has dropped. Adelaide and Skinsale cannot understand why Palmerdale would have fallen but the Doctor tells them that he was killed by an electric current, and therefore dead before he hit the ground. Vince then informs them about the siren and the Doctor realises something has happened to Harker. | ||
They all go down and discover Harker's body. Adelaide and Skinsale then go back upstairs and the Doctor remarks that Harker was killed the same way as the others. They inspect the boiler room and find Reuben's body, which has been hidden. The Doctor says that he's in ''[[rigor mortis]]'' — he's been dead for hours. Leela is confused, as she knew that Reuben was in his room. The shocked Doctor realises that he has overlooked the chameleon factor, which he says is sometimes called [[lycanthropy]]. In securing the lighthouse, the Doctor has locked the creature | They all go down and discover Harker's body. Adelaide and Skinsale then go back upstairs and the Doctor remarks that Harker was killed the same way as the others. They inspect the boiler room and find Reuben's body, which has been hidden. The Doctor says that he's in ''[[rigor mortis]]'' — he's been dead for hours. Leela is confused, as she knew that Reuben was in his room. The shocked Doctor realises that he has overlooked the chameleon factor, which he says is sometimes called [[lycanthropy]]. In securing the lighthouse, the Doctor has locked the creature not outside, but inside with them... | ||
=== Part four === | === Part four === | ||
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The three devise a plan, with Leela suggesting that the Doctor change the lighthouse into a laser, but the Doctor needs crystalline [[carbon]] — [[diamond]] — to focus it. Skinsale says that Palmerdale always carried diamonds, and they get to work. | The three devise a plan, with Leela suggesting that the Doctor change the lighthouse into a laser, but the Doctor needs crystalline [[carbon]] — [[diamond]] — to focus it. Skinsale says that Palmerdale always carried diamonds, and they get to work. | ||
The men make their way downstairs while Leela covers them with the flare. Skinsale retrieves the diamonds from a hidden pouch. The Doctor selects one, then throws the rest on the floor before running back upstairs. Skinsale tries to collect the other diamonds, and so doesn't see the Scout approaching. The Doctor glances back and watches as the Scout kills Skinsale. Leela shoots it with the mortar before gloating over its death. As the Doctor converts the lighthouse into a high-energy laser using the diamond, they watch the | The men make their way downstairs while Leela covers them with the flare. Skinsale retrieves the diamonds from a hidden pouch. The Doctor selects one, then throws the rest on the floor before running back upstairs. Skinsale tries to collect the other diamonds, and so doesn't see the Scout approaching. The Doctor glances back and watches as the Scout kills Skinsale. Leela shoots it with the mortar before gloating over its death. As the Doctor converts the lighthouse into a high-energy laser using the diamond, they watch the mother ship approach. The Doctor warns Leela that once he turns it on, they cannot look back and they will have 117 seconds to get out of the lighthouse. They flee the lighthouse and run for cover as the laser destroys the Rutan mothership. Leela sneaks a look back despite the Doctor's orders not to and is blinded by the flash; she gives her [[knife]] to the Doctor and begs to be killed, as amongst the [[Sevateem]] that is the fate of the old and crippled. Although he takes the knife, the Doctor laughs as he gets a closer look at her eyes. He explains that the blindness is temporary, but he is surprised to find that the flash has caused pigmentation dispersal in Leela's eyes — in plain English, they've changed colour and are now [[blue]]. The Doctor quotes Wilfrid Gibson's poem {{wi|Flannan Isle}} as they leave Fang Rock, which echoes eerily on the empty island as the TARDIS fades away: | ||
::Aye: though we hunted high and low, | ::Aye: though we hunted high and low, | ||
::And hunted everywhere, | ::And hunted everywhere, | ||
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* [[John Abbott]] recalled that director [[Paddy Russell]] cast him as [[Vince Hawkins]] after seeing him play {{w|Snoopy}} in a play in the {{w|Edinburgh Festival Fringe|Edinburgh Fringe}}. | * [[John Abbott]] recalled that director [[Paddy Russell]] cast him as [[Vince Hawkins]] after seeing him play {{w|Snoopy}} in a play in the {{w|Edinburgh Festival Fringe|Edinburgh Fringe}}. | ||
* The story was inspired by [[Wilfred Gibson]]'s 1912 poem {{wi|Flannan Isle}}, which was in turn based upon true events which occurred in 1900, when a supply ship discovered that the lighthouse crew on the Flannan Isles in the Outer Hebrides had vanished without a trace. Terrance Dicks also drew on [[Ray Bradbury]]'s 1951 short story "The Fog Horn", about an aquatic dinosaur which has survived in the ocean's depths but is attracted by the call of a lighthouse's fog horn. | * The story was inspired by [[Wilfred Gibson]]'s 1912 poem {{wi|Flannan Isle}}, which was in turn based upon true events which occurred in 1900, when a supply ship discovered that the lighthouse crew on the Flannan Isles in the Outer Hebrides had vanished without a trace. Terrance Dicks also drew on [[Ray Bradbury]]'s 1951 short story "The Fog Horn", about an aquatic dinosaur which has survived in the ocean's depths but is attracted by the call of a lighthouse's fog horn. | ||
* [[Paddy Russell]] didn't particularly enjoy her experience working on this story, largely because she much preferred Terrance Dicks' original script and didn't think much of the hastily-written replacement, but was contractually obligated to still direct the new story. Filming also wasn't a particularly happy experience for her, in part due to constantly clashing with [[Tom Baker]] and [[Louise Jameson]], and also because the facilities at the BBC's Birmingham studios (where they had to move production of the story to, due to scheduling conflicts at the BBC Television Centre) weren't up to scratch. This resulted in her deciding not to direct for the show again. | * [[Paddy Russell]] didn't particularly enjoy her experience working on this story, largely because she much preferred Terrance Dicks's original script and didn't think much of the hastily-written replacement, but was contractually obligated to still direct the new story. Filming also wasn't a particularly happy experience for her, in part due to constantly clashing with [[Tom Baker]] and [[Louise Jameson]], and also because the facilities at the BBC's Birmingham studios (where they had to move production of the story to, due to scheduling conflicts at the BBC Television Centre) weren't up to scratch. This resulted in her deciding not to direct for the show again. | ||
* In the DVD commentary, [[Terrance Dicks]] says he was unhappy about Tom Baker's delivery of the line "Dead, with honour", when telling Leela of Colonel Skinsale's fate. In the episode, Baker says "Dead with honour", with no pause. In his novelisation of the story, Dicks writes the line as "Dead. With honour", to emphasise what he had intended — that Skinsale was dead, but after a moment's thought adding that it was "with honour" (even though it wasn't). | * In the DVD commentary, [[Terrance Dicks]] says he was unhappy about Tom Baker's delivery of the line "Dead, with honour", when telling Leela of Colonel Skinsale's fate. In the episode, Baker says "Dead with honour", with no pause. In his novelisation of the story, Dicks writes the line as "Dead. With honour", to emphasise what he had intended — that Skinsale was dead, but after a moment's thought adding that it was "with honour" (even though it wasn't). | ||
* The "pigment dispersal" scene at the end of the story when [[Leela]]'s eyes change from brown to blue was a practical (rather than story) motivated event. It was so Louise Jameson did not have to continue wearing brown contact lenses. This was done to keep her as a member of the cast, as she found wearing the lenses uncomfortable and seriously considered leaving the show. ''Horror of Fang Rock'' was actually the second story filmed of the season, after ''[[The Invisible Enemy (TV story)|The Invisible Enemy]]'', so when the time came to don the contacts for this story, Jameson's eyes had had a rest for several weeks and she was better able to cope. | * The "pigment dispersal" scene at the end of the story when [[Leela]]'s eyes change from brown to blue was a practical (rather than story) motivated event. It was so Louise Jameson did not have to continue wearing brown contact lenses. This was done to keep her as a member of the cast, as she found wearing the lenses uncomfortable and seriously considered leaving the show. ''Horror of Fang Rock'' was actually the second story filmed of the season, after ''[[The Invisible Enemy (TV story)|The Invisible Enemy]]'', so when the time came to don the contacts for this story, Jameson's eyes had had a rest for several weeks and she was better able to cope. | ||
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* The story's exact year is never made explicit, but a reference to the beast being seen "eighty years ago" in the "twenties" suggests the early 20th century. [[Lance Parkin]]'s unofficial chronology ''[[aHistory]]'' dates it to c.1902. | * The story's exact year is never made explicit, but a reference to the beast being seen "eighty years ago" in the "twenties" suggests the early 20th century. [[Lance Parkin]]'s unofficial chronology ''[[aHistory]]'' dates it to c.1902. | ||
* According to the DVD commentary by Louise Jameson, a scene in part three was crucial to the behind-the-scenes relationship between her and co-star Tom Baker. In the scene where he comes in carrying Palmerdale's body, he consistently came in ahead of his cue, thereby upstaging her. On the grounds that this move was "not what [they] had rehearsed", she insisted on three successive retakes until he finally came in at the rehearsed time. This apparently won his respect. From that point forward, she claims, their working relationship was much smoother. | * According to the DVD commentary by Louise Jameson, a scene in part three was crucial to the behind-the-scenes relationship between her and co-star Tom Baker. In the scene where he comes in carrying Palmerdale's body, he consistently came in ahead of his cue, thereby upstaging her. On the grounds that this move was "not what [they] had rehearsed", she insisted on three successive retakes until he finally came in at the rehearsed time. This apparently won his respect. From that point forward, she claims, their working relationship was much smoother. | ||
* Though not stated in the televised story, the reason Vince burns Lord Palmerdale's bribe money following his death is because he is concerned that he may be accused of | * Though not stated in the televised story, the reason Vince burns Lord Palmerdale's bribe money following his death is because he is concerned that he may be accused of murdering Palmerdale should he be found to have the money. This is clarified by Terrance Dicks in both the novelisation and the DVD commentary. | ||
* This is the second of two serials in which Leela does not wear either of her famous leather outfits. After this, however, it was decided to return her to her original, more revealing costume introduced in ''[[The Face of Evil (TV story)|The Face of Evil]]''. | * This is the second of two serials in which Leela does not wear either of her famous leather outfits. After this, however, it was decided to return her to her original, more revealing costume introduced in ''[[The Face of Evil (TV story)|The Face of Evil]]''. | ||
* This story marks the last time that the Doctor travels with only a single companion until ''[[The Caves of Androzani]]'' in 1984. However, if the introduction of [[Nyssa]] in ''[[The Keeper of Traken]]'' does not qualify her as a companion, then the next occasion really occurs in that story. | * This story marks the last time that the Doctor travels with only a single companion until ''[[The Caves of Androzani]]'' in 1984. However, if the introduction of [[Nyssa]] in ''[[The Keeper of Traken]]'' does not qualify her as a companion, then the next occasion really occurs in that story. | ||
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=== Myths === | === Myths === | ||
* [[Louise Jameson]] breaks character and corpses on camera after delivering Leela's "pep talk" to the Doctor in the boiler room. ''(She can be seen breaking into a smile and laughing after [[Tom Baker]] turns his back, but Jameson says on the DVD commentary that the laughter was scripted.)'' | * [[Louise Jameson]] breaks character and corpses on camera after delivering Leela's "pep talk" to the Doctor in the boiler room. ''(She can be seen breaking into a smile and laughing after [[Tom Baker]] turns his back, but Jameson says on the DVD commentary that the laughter was scripted.)'' | ||
* This story was originally written while [[Sarah Jane Smith]] was still a companion but was shelved and then brought back after [[Terrance Dicks]]' original script had to be changed. (''Dicks confirmed on the DVD commentary that this was an original story and had not been written beforehand.)'' | * This story was originally written while [[Sarah Jane Smith]] was still a companion but was shelved and then brought back after [[Terrance Dicks]]'s original script had to be changed. (''Dicks confirmed on the DVD commentary that this was an original story and had not been written beforehand.)'' | ||
=== Filming locations === | === Filming locations === | ||
