OVERALL EPISODE NUMBER: 271
STORY NUMBER: 053
TRANSMITTED: Saturday 02 May 1970
WRITER: David Whitaker (and Malcolm Hulke - Uncredited)
DIRECTOR: Michael Ferguson
SCRIPT EDITOR: Terrance Dicks
PRODUCER: Barry Letts
RATINGS: 5.4 million viewers
FORMAT: DVD: Doctor Who-Ambassadors of Death
EPISODE FORMAT: 16mm b&w film recording recoloured using 525 off air video & chroma dot recovery
"We must protect the world. It's our moral duty!"
The Doctor bargains for his life agreeing to build a better communications device for Carrington. Carrington takes one of the aliens to Space Headquarters and prepares to make a live television broadcast revealing their existence to the world and calling for an attack on their Spacecraft. He has the UNIT troops replaced with his own and the Brigadier arrested, but the Brigadier escapes. The Doctor uses the communication device to signal for help and his transmissions are picked up by UNIT's radio operator. UNIT raids the bunker freeing the Doctor & Liz. The now captive Reegan suggests they use the remaining two aliens to get back into space control where they arrest Carrington just before he is able to broadcast live to the world. The alien ship is signalled that their Ambassadors are safe and arrangements are made to return them, finally allowing the Astronauts to come home.
Carrington's plan and motivation is quickly revealed to the Doctor at the start of this episode:
CARRINGTON: We must alert the world to the menace of an alien invasion.
DOCTOR: When do you expect this invasion?
CARRINGTON: At any time.
DOCTOR: They told me that their intentions were peaceful. That these three beings here were ambassadors.
CARRINGTON: Ambassadors! That was just to put us off our guard.
DOCTOR: You're convinced their intentions are hostile, then?
CARRINGTON: Why else should they invade the galaxy? They were on Mars before we were.
DOCTOR: Ah, so that's when you met them. When you were on a previous Mars Probe.
CARRINGTON: Yes, they killed Jim. Jim Daniels, fellow astronaut, simply by touching him.
DOCTOR: Yes, but they didn't know their touch would kill human beings.
CARRINGTON: And now they've walked into my trap. I knew that once I got them here I'd make them reveal their true natures.
DOCTOR: So it was you who sent for those three ambassadors, was it?
LIZ: And hired Reegan to kidnap them and use them as killers?
CARRINGTON: It was the only way to arouse public opinion.
DOCTOR: Was Sir James Quinlan in on this?
CARRINGTON: No. He just wanted the political glory of being the first to arrange contact with an intelligent alien species. He didn't know of my plan to save the world. He wouldn't have understood.
LIZ: What about Van Lyden and the other astronauts? The human ones?
CARRINGTON: They didn't know either. It was the only way.
DOCTOR: Well, I must say you've been very thorough, General.
CARRINGTON: It was the only way. You do understand that, don't you, Doctor?
DOCTOR: Yes. Yes, I understand. You had to do what you had to do.
CARRINGTON: Exactly. We must protect the world. It's our moral duty. Will you help us?
DOCTOR: Yes. Yes, I'll build your machine for you.
CARRINGTON: Splendid! This man can be of use to us. Give him everything he needs.
As the episode goes on Carrington gets more and more insane, focussed on his goal of destroying the alien spaceship
WAKEFIELD: We'll be ready for your live telecast very soon, General.At the same time he's becoming more and more paranoid, convinced everyone is working against him:
CARRINGTON: Splendid!
WAKEFIELD: Are you sure your men will be able to remove the helmet?
CARRINGTON: Quite sure.
WAKEFIELD: If there is some sort of alien creature inside that spacesuit
CARRINGTON: As I can assure you there is.
WAKEFIELD: Has it occurred to you, sir, that this may create world panic?
CARRINGTON: Yes, Brigadier?
BRIGADIER: Aliens have raided an isotope factory. Several deaths.
CARRINGTON: You see? They've already landed. These creatures need radiation to live and they're prepared to rob and murder to get it.
BRIGADIER: Sir!
CARRINGTON: Yes.
BRIGADIER: There were men helping them.
CARRINGTON: Traitors. Collaborators, like your friend the Doctor.
BRIGADIER: That is an unjustified assumption, sir!
CARRINGTON: Is it?
WAKEFIELD: General, what exactly do you intend to say in your telecast? It'll be on a world wide hook-up, you know.
CARRINGTON: I shall call on the nations of the world to unite in an attack on the aliens and their spacecraft. It must be obliterated!
BRIGADIER: There's been a message from my HQ, sir. They're picking up SOS radio signals.Fortunately the Brigadier escapes and the Doctor manages to communicate with the aliens
CARRINGTON: Well?
BRIGADIER: There's a chance it may be from the Doctor, sir. I'd like to follow it up, if you'll excuse me.
CARRINGTON: Just a moment!
BRIGADIER: Sir?
CARRINGTON: You think I don't know what's going on, don't you?
BRIGADIER: I don't quite follow you?
CARRINGTON: That Doctor of yours is in league with these creatures and you've been helping him. Security! Place this officer under close arrest.
BRIGADIER: Sir, I must protest!
CARRINGTON: Hand over your revolver, Brigadier.
CARRINGTON: I've suspected you for some time. All your UNIT people have been locked up and replaced by men I can trust. Take him away.
CARRINGTON: What are you doing?
CORNISH: I'm getting on to the Ministry.
CARRINGTON: Too late, Mister Cornish. All communications are under my control.
CORNISH: This Space Centre is under my control.
CARRINGTON: Not any longer.
DOCTOR: Now, we are trying to convert our speech into your radio impulses. Can you understand me? We are trying to convert our human speech into your radio impulses. Can you understand me?It's the aliens themselves who help solve the problem, enabling the Doctor to walk back into space command:
REEGAN: It doesn't work.
DOCTOR: Can you understand me? Please try to answer.
ALIEN: Why are we kept prisoners? Why do you make us kill?
REEGAN: You'll obey my orders. If you don't, we'll let you die.
ALIEN: We are ambassadors and came in peace.
REEGAN: If you want to live, you'll do exactly what you're told.
CARRINGTON: They're here! We're being invaded! Security patrol!
BRIGADIER: It's no good, General. I've released my men. This place is in my hands.
CARRINGTON: I must make this broadcast. It's a matter of world survival.
BRIGADIER: I'm sorry, General. I must place you under arrest.
CARRINGTON: Arrest?
BRIGADIER: The Sergeant will look after you.
CARRINGTON: I had to do what I did. It was my moral duty. You do understand, don't you?
DOCTOR: Yes, General. I understand.
Ambassadors of Death is a bit of an odd beast. It's individual parts might feel like they're padded somewhat but put them all together it feels bigger than the sum of it's parts. We've labelled Carrington as the Villain of the piece, and he is, but by the end of the story he's obviously a very unwell man: the accidental death of his co-pilot Jim Danials has greatly affected him and led him down some dark and dangerous paths. The Alien Ambassadors are reduced to pawns in his hands and he ends up provoking the very conflict he believed was coming. Only the Doctor & the Brigadier's action prevents it. In all respects Ralph Cornish's earlier analysis that the General is "quite mad" would seem to be accurate and as such he gets very little condemnation from the Doctor at the end of the story.
This is a decent episode for UNIT & the Brigadier First he gets arrested! There's Two Military Policemen on duty inside the centre:
One is Tom O'Leary who was a Man in Firing Squad, Sergeant (at prison), German Soldiers, Roman Soldiers and an Austro-Hungarian in The War Games. He's also a Gatekeeper in this episode and returns as an Auton in Terror of the Autons, a Miner in Monster of Peladon and a Genius in Time & The Rani. In Monty Python's Flying Circus he was in The Buzz Aldrin Show as a Hench-vicar and It's a Living as a Guest at Award Ceremony. O'Leary is in the middle of the second picture.
The other is Royston Farrell had appeared as a Male Guardians Slaves in The Ark, a Male Elder in The Savages, a Laboratory Assistant, Miner, Atlantean Priest & Atlantean Refugee in The Underwater Menace, a Technician in Seeds of Death, a Roman Soldier in The War Games, He returns as an RSF Soldier in Inferno and a Technician in Claws of Axos. He also did stunts for Flash Gordon. Farrell is at the left of the second picture.
The Brigadier gets a nice little action sequence evading these chaps and breaking out of the Space Centre, raids the bunker, gets back into the Space Centre and arrests the villain. Unfortunately it is spoilt in the middle by the UNIT troops riding into battle, to attack the Bunker, in Bessie accompanied by the same music used as they raid the warehouse in the first episode!
Joining the cast for this episode only playing Private Johnson, UNIT's Radio Operator, is Geoffrey Beevers, the husband of Caroline John who plays companion Liz Shaw. He'll be back in The Keeper of Traken playing the Master. Away from Doctor Who you can see him in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy as Number Three in episode 6, A Very Peculiar Practice as Sodd in Catastrophe Theory, Yes Prime Minister as the Arts Minister in The Patron of the Arts, Inspector Morse as Peter Foster in Deceived by Flight, Jonathan Creek as Neville Spivey in Jack in the Box and Red Dwarf as the Doctor in Back in the Red: Part 2. You can hear him interviewed by Toby Hadoke in Who's Round 151.
There's a number of UNIT Soldiers with the Brigadier on location including Stuntmen Terry Walsh & Derek Ware who fulfilled that role in episode 1.
They're joined this episode by the following:
Mike Stevens is on his Doctor Who debut and returns as a Daffodil Man in Terror of the Autons, a Prisoner & Motorcyclist/Unit Soldier in Mind of Evil, a Guard in Curse of Peladon, a Stuntmen/UNIT Troop in The Time Monster, part of the Army Patrol with Norton & an Army Corporal in Invasion of the Dinosaurs,
Brian Justice was a UNIT Soldier in Spearhead from Space and returns as an IMC Guard in Colony in Space, a Stuntmen/UNIT Soldiers (inc. McDougall, Parker) in Claws of Axos, a Guerilla in Day of the Daleks, Castle Guard Wilson in The Sea Devils and Yates' Guard in The Green Death.
Dixie Dean is making his only Doctor Who appearance.
Reegan uses a number of Heavies in this episode.
Frustratingly I can't find Alf Joint, who should be used in the studio scenes. He returns as a Stuntman/Primitive & Stuntman/IMC Guard in Colony in Space and also is the Fight Arranger on Battlefield. He's in The Prisoner episodes Free for All, as the 2nd Mechanic, and Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling, as the Village Thug. In Adam Adamant Lives! he's the 1st Judo Student in A Sinister Sort of Service as well as doing stunts for The Deadly Bullet. He also did stunts for Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased): For the Girl Who Has Everything. In Space: 1999 he was Steiner in Breakaway, which he also did stunts for, an Alphan on Balcony in Collision Course, a Security Guard in Alpha Child & The Last Sunset and an Overseer in The Metamorph. He's got a few James Bond films to his name appearing in Goldfinger as Capungo, as well as being the stunt double for Sean Connery, and Casino Royale as the Man in Casino. He also does stuntwork for On Her Majesty's Secret Service. He also has an association with the Superman films serving as Stunt Coordinator on Superman, Superman II and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace plus the spin off Supergirl. He also did stunts for Macbeth, An American Werewolf in London, Return of the Jedi and Krull and served as the sword master on Knights of God
I can spot Barry Kennington, who was a Heavy in the previous episode.
Going on location we're joined by Tony Bradburne, who was Reegan's Heavies is episode 3: He's one of the ones on location who dies in the back of the van with the aliens in! Given the van pops up again here being driven down the road I'd suggest he's the one in it!
So fighting it out with the UNIT troops we have these chaps:
Michael Horsburgh had been a Stunt Pirates in The Smugglers and returns as a Heavy in Ambassadors of Death, a Stuntman/Primitive & Stuntman/IMC Guard in Colony in Space, a Stuntman/Guard in Curse of Peladon, and a Castle/Chateau Guard, Sailor & Stuntmen/Sea Devils in The Sea Devils. He was in Adam Adamant Lives! as the Chauffeur in A Slight Case of Reincarnation, an uncredited role in Death Begins at Seventy and as an S.S. Man in A Sinister Sort of Service. My thanks to Movie Dude for identifying him for me!
By a process of elimination Heavy on the right is Charles Pickess a Daffodil Man in Terror of the Autons, a Medical Orderly in Mind of Evil and a Colonist in Colony in Space.
One last new location this episode: The Radioactive Isotope store raid by Reegan and two of the astronauts filmed at Little Marlow Sewage Treatment Works.
Guarding the gates we have, below left, Bob Blaine who returns a Daffodil Man in Terror of the Autons, a Prisoner in Mind of Evil, a Colonist & IMC Guard in Colony in Space, a Stuntmen/UNIT Soldiers (inc. McDougall, Parker) in Claws of Axos, a Chateau Guard in The Sea Devils, a Stuntman/UNIT Troop in The Time Monster, an Exxilon in Death to the Daleks and a Guard in Monster of Peladon.
With him is Tom O'Leary, who we've already seen this episode as a Military Policemen.
The actors playing the Policemen who attend the isotope store have also been in this story already: Les Conrad was a UNIT Soldier in episode 1 and a Control Room Assistant in episode 6 while Marc Boyle was a UNIT Motorcyclists in episode 2.
Michael Wisher is back this episode as television presenter John Wakefield who we last saw in episode 1.
There's two Cameramen for the broadcast. One is Les Shannon, who was one of Collinson's Men in episode 1, and the other is Roy Reeves, who had been a Galley Slave & Soldier in The Romans and a Varga Plant in Mission to the Unknown.
This episode has the Doctor's first close brush with television, just failing to appear on it. We'd seen a news broadcast concerning activities the Doctor is involved in all the way back in The War Machines, also directed by this story's director Michael Ferguson. In the following years the Third Doctor will gatecrash a live broadcast of an archaeological dig and interrupt a news broadcast of a peace conference, while The Master enjoys Clangers during The Sea Devils. I think the next time we see a television set after that is during a little end joke in Remembrance of the Daleks.
The Military Policemen on the Gates of Space Headquarters is Derek Chafer, who was a Saxon in The Time Meddler, a Greek/Trojan Soldiers/People in Square in The Myth Makers, a Guard in the Massacre, a Settler in The Gunfighters, a Cyberman in The Moonbase, a Guard in Fury from the Deep, a Cyberman in The Invasion, a Miner, Issigri HQ in The Space Pirates and a UNIT Soldier in the Silurians. He's also a UNIT Soldier in this episode and returns as a Prisoner in Mind of Evil, a Primitive in Colony in Space, a Guard in Curse of Peladon, a Warrior in the Mutants, an Exillon in Death to the Daleks, a Guard in Monster of Peladon, a Soldier, Armourer & Brethren in Masque of Mandragora, a Levithian Guard in Ribos Operation, a Gracht Guard in The Androids of Tara, a Skonnan Elder in Horns of the Nimon, Doctor Body Parts & a Pangol Doctor in The Leisure Hive and a Gundam in Warriors Gate. In Out of the Unknown he was a Man in 1+1=1.5 and in Doomwatch he was a Man in Project Sahara, Re-Entry Forbidden & The Red Sky. In Monty Python's Flying Circus he was yet another Gasman in Dinsdale!
Interestingly Movie Dude's Ambassadors of Death page, which has been a HUGE help this episode, reckons that the UNIT solider he has up against the fence is Keith Goodman, who the DWAS Production file thinks is only in episode 6!
There's many more UNIT soldiers seen surrounding the Control Centre set during the climax of the episode and most of them are returning from playing the same role in previous episodes: Rod Peers & Stuart Myers were in episode 1, Clive Rogers episodes 1 & 5, Keith Simons episodes 1-2 & 5, Joe Santo episode 2 and David Aldridge episode 5. With them is Derek Chafer, a Military Policemen elsewhere in this episode.
They're joined by three more actors:
Steve Kelly had been a UNIT Soldier in the Invasion, and returns as an Ogron in Frontier in Space, a Gladiator in Shada, or would have done if the story had been finished, the Marshman leader in Full Circle and a Sea Devil in Warriors of the Deep. In Blake's 7 he's a Scavenger in Deliverance, a Customer/Gambler in Gambit, a Goth Guard in The Keeper, a Hommik Warrior in Power and a Plantation Bounty Hunter in Blake. In Doomwatch he was a Man in Re-Entry Forbidden, a Man in The Islanders and the Lieutenant in Flood. In Monty Python's Flying Circus he was a Viking in Spam and in Fawlty Towers a Lorry Driver in Gourmet Night and an Ambulance Driver in The Germans. He's also in The Young Ones episode Cash.
Ron Gregory had been a Guardian in the first two episodes of The Ark. He returns as a Priest in Androids of Tara and the Chief Terminal Duty Officer in Timeflight. He'd been in The Prisoner as a Pub Customer/Boxing Fan/Man at Fairground in The Girl Who Was Death and in Doomwatch as a Computer Technician in The Plastic Eaters and a Guard in Train and De-Train. In Monty Python's Flying Circus he's one of the many Gasman in Dinsdale! and in Jeeves and Wooster he's a Man in Court in Bertie Takes Gussie's Place at Deverill Hall. On the big screen he's in the Sean Connery James Bond films Diamonds Are Forever as a Casino Patron and Never Say Never Again as a Clerk. In Superman II he's a Presidential Advisor while in Morons from Outer Space he's a the Minister's Dinner Guest.
They're also joined by a David Pike, on his only Doctor Who appearance. The balance of probability suggests he's the same David Pyke, albeit with a different spelling, that appeared in the Survivors Lights of London: Part 1 as Mac.
Also in the background of these scenes are our last round of Control Room Assistants. Lindsey Scott, episodes 1, 4 & 6, is back again with three more newcomers. One of them is David J Grahame, who the DWAS Production file lists here without the E. He's probably also David Grahame and is definitely NOT David J Graham the voice artist, who worked on the Dalek. Confused? I was, especially when I spotted a David Graham as a Male Freedom Fighter in Dalek Invasion of Earth. Which is he: the voice artist or the extra? David J Grahame DOES appear then as a Passer By in The Massacre and a Pedestrian in The War Machines. He returns as a Man in Pub/Coven in The Dæmons, the Old Man in The Mutants, the Chestnut Seller & a Audience Member/Stagehands/Doorman (Fred) in Talons of Weng Chiang, and a Coven Member in Image of the Fendahl. Elsewhere he can be seen in Hancock's Half Hour as Mister Charlesworth in The Continental Holiday, Doomwatch as the Gillie in High Mountain, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy episode 1 as the Sandwich-Board Man and Octopussy
With him is the distinctively gaunt faced Tony Lang who had been an Egyptian Slave in The Dalek Masterplan, a Scotsman in Hold/Highlander in The Highlanders, and a Chameleon Airport Personnel in Plane and Airport Worker in The Faceless Ones. He returns as a Time Lord in The Three Doctors and a Kaled Councillor in Genesis of the Daleks. He can be also seen in Return of the Jedi as Emperor Palpatine's Advisor Sim Aloo and in the opening The Crimson Permanent Assurance segment of Monty Python's The Meaning of Life. In Dad's Army he's a Warden in Uninvited Guests and in Carry On Again Doctor he's a Sick-looking Man.(uncredited)
Completing the group is debutant Sheila Vivian returns as a Female Guest in Masque of Mandragora, a Citizen in Keeper of Traken, Castrovalvan Woman in Castrovalva and a Worthy in Snakedance. She was in Doomwatch as a Woman in Burial at Sea.
Fact Philip couldn't squeeze in anywhere else: Ambassadors of Death is Doctor Who & TV Historian Andrew Pixley's favourite Doctor Who story.
For one of the earlier broadcast Jon Pertwee serials it's ended up being one of the last released on two formats already. For many years it was one of four Pertwee stories not adapted by Target Books - the following story Inferno was another. It eventually ended up being the last Pertwee story released in the process turning Pertwee into the first Doctor to have all his stories adapted and creating a run of books from The War Games to The Ribos Operation. The Video meanwhile was released on 20th May 2002 and was one of the last Pertwee releases. I know Invasion Of The Dinosaurs was the last story released on 20/10/2003 and can't think of a Pertwee story released in between. The Soundtrack of The Ambassadors of Death has a CD Audiobook with narration by Caroline John. A DVD was due to be released in August 2011, paired with The Sunmakers, but due to some issues with the colour restoration it dropped off the schedules. The Sunmakers emerged as a solo release and Ambassadors of Death came out DVD during 2013
Two day after this episode was broadcast the thirteenth Doomwatch episode, Survival Code, which was the last of it's first series was shown on BBC1.
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