379 Planet of the Spiders Part Four

EPISODE: Planet of the Spiders: Part Four
OVERALL EPISODE NUMBER: 379
STORY NUMBER: 074
TRANSMITTED: Saturday 25 May 1974
WRITER: Robert Sloman (and Barry Letts uncredited)
DIRECTOR: Barry Letts
SCRIPT EDITOR: Terrance Dicks
PRODUCER: Barry Letts
RATINGS: 8.2 million viewers
FORMAT: DVD: Doctor Who - Planet of the Spiders
EPISODE FORMAT: 625 video

"Tiger, tiger, burning bright, in the forests of the night. What immortal hand or eye could frame thy fearful symmetry? That's pretty. No, that's beautiful."

The Spiders leave the Doctor for dead and the villagers bring him inside. Lupton's spider tries to incite rebellion against the queen. Aided my the healing powers of the crystal Tommy begins to read, gaining proficiency and mental ability at an astonishing rate. Briefly regaining consciousness the Doctor asks Sarah to bring him a machine from the Tardis. On her way back she encounters Lupton and is captured, leaving the bag behind where the villagers retrieve it and use it too heal the Doctor. Sarah is taken to the Spider's larder and imprisoned with Sabor. Mike goes to see Lupton's group but is knocked out by Moss. Arak tells the Doctor how the human ship crashed on Metebelis 3 433 years ago and spiders on the ship mutated by the blue crystals too become the dominant life form. The Doctor finds a type of stone that will absorb the energy of the spider's attacks and has the villagers gather them to protect themselves while he leaves for the spiders' palace.

Once there he is captured and taken to the larder.

As an episode this is a bit slow and talky but it adds crucial background to the story telling us what the humans & spiders are doing on Metebelis. Virtually the only action is provided in the fight from the previous episodes in the long reprise lasting till 2m10s into the episode and another brief scene of the Doctor throwing guards around.

The "Doctor Who is a vegetarian" brigade are directed to his consumption of the mutton broth during this episode.

The character of Tommy in this story is a pretty decent portrayal of someone with a learning difficulty and actor John Kane does a decent job, first as the impaired Tommy in earlier episodes and then as his blue crystal enhanced self in the last few.

John Kane also has one of the odder entries on his CV of any performer in Doctor Who: he was the lead writer on the BBC sitcom Terry & June. You can hear him interviewed in Who's Round 65.

One of the series regular stuntmen Max Faulkner plays the second Guard Captain. He had previously appeared as a UNIT soldier in The Ambassadors of Death & Inferno, a Stuntmen/Exxilon in Death to the Daleks and a miner in The Monster of Peladon. He returns as a Thal Guard in Genesis of the Daleks, an Astronaut in Planet of Evil, Corporal Adams in The Android Invasion, Doctor Carter's stuntman in The Hand of Fear, which he also was the Fight Arranger on, a Horda Pit Guard in Face of Evil, a Coolie & Policeman in Talons of Weng-Chiang, an Other in The Sun Makers, Nesbin in The Invasion of Time and a guard in Creature from the Pit. In The Prisoner he's the First Horseman in Living in Harmony and the Scots Napoleon in The Girl Who Was Death. He then appears in Space: 1999 as Ted Clifford in Ring Around the Moon, Survivors as Phil in Mad Dog, Blake's 7 as a Death Squad Trooper in Powerplay, God's Wonderful Railway as the Scarecrow in The Permanent Way, The Day of the Triffids episode 2 as Jo's Attacker and twice in Robin of Sherwood as Gisbourne's Helper in The Children of Israel and Oliver in The Power of Albion. In the Pierce Brosnan James Bond film GoldenEye he's a Guard at the Helicopter Show.

There's a whole load of other guards in this episode. The face peaking out in the above right photo is Leslie Bates. Previously he cast the shadow that falls across the Tardis at the end of the first episode, An Unearthly Child and then played a Tribesman in the second, The Cave of Skulls. He's a Man at Lop, Mongol Warrior and Mongol Bandit in Marco Polo, a Guard in The Massacre, a Villager at Inn / Pirate in The Smugglers, an English Soldier in The Highlanders, an IE Guard in The Invasion, an 1862 soldier, Confederate Soldier, foot soldier in The War Games, a Waxworks Visitor/Auton in Spearhead from Space, a BBC3 TV Crewmember in The Dæmons, a UNIT soldier in The Three Doctors, a Lunar Guard, Draconian & Williams Guard in Frontier in Space, a Security Guard & UNIT Soldier in The Green Death, an Army Corporal & UNIT soldier in Invasion of the Dinosaurs and an Exxilon in Death to the Daleks. He returns as a Time Lord in Deadly Assassin and a Bi-Al Member in Invisible Enemy. In the The Andromeda Breakthrough he was a British Soldier in Gale Warning, in Doomwatch he was a man in Hear No Evil, The Islanders & Flood and in Moonbase 3 he's a Technician in Castor and Pollux. He's also in our favourite Adam Adamant Lives! episode D for Destruction as a TA Soldier.

To the right of the bellow left photo is Steve Ismay who had been a BBC3 TV Crewmember in The Dæmons, a Guerilla & Stills Cameraman in Day of the Daleks, Sea Devil in The Sea Devils, Varan's Bodyguard in The Mutants a Presidential Guard in Frontier in Space and a Security Guard in The Green Death. He's in every story this season playing a UNIT Soldier in The Time Warrior, an Army Soldier in Invasion of the Dinosaurs, an Exxilon and Exxilon Zombie in Death to the Daleks and a Guard in The Monster of Peladon. He returns as a Guard in The Deadly Assassin, a Leviathan Guard in Ribos Operation, a Gracht Guard & one of Zadek's Guards in The Androids of Tara, would have been a "Space Monster" in Shada, possibly a Cyberman, then plays a Citizen in Full Circle, a Cyberman in Earthshock and a Security Guard in Time Flight. He had been Man in the Doomwatch episode The Islanders & Flood, and then appears in The Sweeney as a Policeman in Cover Story, a Driver in Golden Boy and a Villain in Stoppo Driver. In Porridge he played a Prison Warden in A Night In and a Gardener in Happy Release while in The Tomorrow People he was in a Vesh Rebel in Worlds Away and an SIS Sergeant in The Dirtiest Business. In Blake's 7 he plays a Scavenger in Deliverance, a Guard in Dawn of the Gods, a Convict in Moloch and a Hommik in Power.

I'm pretty certain the guard in the above right photo is Dennis Plenty who'd previously been a Tavern Customer & a Guard in The Massacre, a Worker / Soldier in The War Machines, an English Soldier in the Highlanders, a Submarine Rating & Naval Base Sailor in the Sea Devils,a Solos Guard & Skybase Guard in The Mutants, Earth, Prison & Presidential Guards in Frontier in Space, a Security Guard in The Green Death, a UNIT Soldier in Invasion of the Dinosaurs, and an Exxilon in Death to the Daleks. He returns as a Soldier, Brethren member, Entertainer & Guard in The Masque of Mandragora. In UFO he was Lt. David Worth in Identified and one of the SHADO Mobile 1 Personnel in Computer Affair. In Doomwatch he is a Man in Flood and he's in out favourite Adam Adamant Lives! episode D for Destruction playing a RA Camp Guard and appears as a man in a 1901 photo in the later episode Black Echo. His Fawlty Towers episode is A Touch of Class where he plays a PC and he's a Technician in the Moonbase 3 episodes Achilles Heel, Castor and Pollux & View of a Dead Planet. Although he doesn't appear in the final film Plenty served as the model for the original Stormtrooper armour used in Star Wars.

Lots of guards in the bellow left photo but the on to the right of the picture might be Roy Pearce who was a Guard in The Massacre, a Soldier in Snow Camouflage / Engineer in The Tenth Planet, a Chameleon & Airport Policeman in The Faceless Ones, a Technician/Guard in Fury from the Deep, a UNIT Soldier in The Invasion, the Cyberman in The War Games, a Passenger/Plague Victims/Passersby/Ambulance Men/Policemen in Doctor Who and the Silurians, a Villager in The Dæmons, a Submarine Rating/Naval Base sailor in The Sea Devils, a Solos Guard in The Mutants, an Army Soldier in Invasion of the Dinosaurs and an Exxilon in Death to the Daleks.He returns as an Android in The Android Invasion, a Pikeman/Brother in The Masque of Mandragora and a Security Guard in Image of the Fendahl. In Blake's 7 he was an Armed Crewman in Space Fall, a Federation Trooper in Time Squad and a Scientist in Project Avalon while in Doomwatch he was a man in Invasion & Flood.

Much shakier ground now but the guard to the right in he above right photo might be Geoff Witherick who was a Cricketer & Male Reveller in Dalek Masterplan, a Guard in The Massacre, a Worker in The War Machines, an Airport Policeman in The Faceless Ones, a Villager/Coven Member the Daemons, a Sea Devil in the Sea Devils. a Solos Guard in The Mutants, a Prison Guard & Earth Guard in Frontier in Space, a Spiridon in Planet of the Daleks and a UNIT Soldier in Invasion of the Dinosaurs. He returns as a SRS Bouncer/Officers/Audience member in Robot, a Time Lord in Deadly Assassin and a Security Guard in Image of the Fendahl. He's also in Doomwatch as a Man in the missing Burial at Sea.

That leaves us with John Cash, who I can't find on IMDB, who was a UNIT Soldier Invasion of the Dinosaurs. No idea which one he is!

Problematically there do seem to be more guards than we have names for!

Onto the Villagers: Of the female villagers Mary Rennie is the only one to appear in Doctor Who before playing a Kitchen Hag in The Time Warrior. She returns as a Peasant villager/Traveller in The Masque of Mandragora, a Guide in The Leisure Hive, a Citizen in Keeper of Traken, one of the crowd in the Marketplace in Snakedance part three and a Citizen/Unbeliever in Planet of Fire

Barbara Bermel is making her Doctor Who debut: She returns as the Android Receptionist in The Android Invasion, a Female Masque Guest in The Masque of Mandragora, a Sevateem member in The Face of Evil, an Other in The Sun Makers, a Court Lady in The Androids of Tara, a Citizen in Keeper of Traken and a Lazar in Terminus. She was also a woman in the Doomwatch episode Flood, a German Woman in the Fawlty Towers episode The Germans and a Thulian in the Space: 1999 episode Death's Other Dominion.

Sue Ann Manners returns as an Android Villager in The Android Invasion while Margaret McKechnie plays the Android Barmaid in the same story.

Ann Plenty - any relation to Dennis ? - was in Moonbase 3 as a Technician in Achilles Heel, Castor and Pollux and View of a Dead Planet. Which leaves Lorna Kilner as the only female Villager I've not seen in anything else.

In the Male Villagers is Pat Gorman, who was in episode 2 as a soldier, we list his credits there.

Ian Elliot 3-6 Ian Elliot was a UNIT Soldier in Inferno, an Auton Daffodil Man Auton in Terror of the Autons, a UNIT Soldier in The Mind of Evil, a Colonist in Colony in Space, a Villager in The Dæmons, a Guard Warrior in The Mutants, a Unit Trooper in Time Monster and a UNIT soldier in Invasion of the Dinosaurs. He returns as an Android Villager in The Android Invasion, a Guard in The Seeds of Doom and a Haemovore in The Curse of Fenric. In Doomwatch he's an Ambulance Driver in Tomorrow, the Rat, a Man in You Killed Toby Wren, a Man in No Room for Error, a Man in Flight Into Yesterday, a Manservant in High Mountain and a Man in Flood.

Simon Christy comes back as an Android Young Farmhand in Android Invasion.

Ken Tracey was a Dispatch Rider / Golden Age Man in Invasion of the Dinosaurs. He returns as a Kaled Prisoner in Genesis of the Daleks, and a Soldier & Brethren member in The Masque of Mandragora. Annoyingly his Avelyman entry has another actor's photo attached Richard Reeves who is also in Genesis of the Daleks. If IMDB is correct Tracey is also in Moonbase 3 as a Technician in Castor and Pollux and Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em as a Parent at Toy Fair in Learning to Drive.

Keith Ashley was a Citizen & Male Elder in The Savages, Atlantean Guard & Miner in The Underwater Menace, Firing Squad Member in The War Games, Auton in Spearhead from Space, Technician in Doctor Who and the Silurians, Technician in Inferno, a Villager in The Dæmons and a Skybase Guard in The Mutants. He returns as a Dalek Operator in Genesis of the Daleks, a Zygon in Terror of the Zygons, an Android & Man at Defence Station in The Android Invasion, a Krynoid & Sir Colin's Aide in The Seeds of Doom and a Peasant & Brother in The Masque of Mandragora

Bill Matthews who was a Waxwork Visitor/Auton Replica & Soldier in Spearhead from Space, Davis in The Silurians,a Prison Officer in The Mind of Evil and a Draconian in Frontier in Space. He was in Quatermass and the Pit as a Sightseer in The Halfmen, Man in Crowd in The Wild Hunt and a Sightseer in Hob, A for Andromeda as an Extra in The Murderer and an extra in the Doomwatch episode The Islanders.

Briefly seen on screen, in the white shirt, is visual effects designer Ian Scoones who is operating the Spider Queen.

378 Planet of the Spiders Part Three

EPISODE: Planet of the Spiders: Part Three
OVERALL EPISODE NUMBER: 378
STORY NUMBER: 074
TRANSMITTED: Saturday 18 May 1974
WRITER: Robert Sloman (and Barry Letts uncredited)
DIRECTOR: Barry Letts
SCRIPT EDITOR: Terrance Dicks
PRODUCER: Barry Letts
RATINGS: 8.8 million viewers
FORMAT: DVD: Doctor Who - Planet of the Spiders
EPISODE FORMAT: 625 video

"We shall return to our rightful home, Earth, as rulers!"

Lupton materialises at the meditation centre where his arrival is witnessed by Tommy. The spider communicates with her sisters and queen on Metebelis 3. Their leader, the Great One, plans the conquest of Earth. The Doctor, Sarah & Mike come to the Monastery accusing Lupton of stealing the crystal. Barnes overhears and warns Lupton. Tommy spots the crystal and steals it while Lupton is distracted and hides it in his collection of pretty things in a shoebox. Sarah follows Lupton to the cellar leaving a message with Tommy to say where she has gone. Sarah see Lupton dematerialise, but following him steps on the prayer mat he was was using and is transported to Metebelis 3.

Sarah is first captured and then sheltered from the spiders by the humans living on Metebelis 3. The Queen is demanding the human Arak be surrendered for attacking a guard but takes his father Sabor instead. As Sarah is found the Doctor arrives in the Tardis and, after a fight, is knocked out by a blast from on of the spider's servants.

Hmmm. I'm not sure we move very far in this episode, it feels a bit like padding. And the humans on Metebelis 3, the descendants of colonists, don't feel terribly realistic to me.

We hear two more spider voices in this episode. Kismet Delgado is of course the widow of Roger Delgado. After her husband was killed in a car crash in Turkey she found herself in impoverished circumstances due to his life insurance refusing to pay up. Barry Lettsobtained her an equity card and got her this job to help tide her over.

The third spider voice is Maureen Morris who was in the second & third episodes of the second series of the Tripods and as Mrs. Macready in the BBC's 1988 version of The Lion, the Witch, & the Wardrobe.

The Spiders are operated by puppeteer Barry Smith.

Onto to the Metebelis colonists:

Arak should be recognisable as Gareth Hunt, shortly to find fame for playing Mike Gambit in The New Avengers. You can see him as an Eagle Pilot in the Space: 1999 episode Guardian of Piri.

Ralph Arliss, playing Tuar, appears to have been in most dramas I've ever watched from the 70s. He was in The Sweeney as Ames in Taste of Fear, Survivors as Jim in Mad Dog and the 1979 Quatermass as Kickalong.

The older Sabor is played by Geoffrey Morris has a TV career stretching back to 1946 but the thing you'll mostly likely have seen him in is the Fawlty Towers episode The Hotel Inspectors where he plays John, one of the two inspectors. (The same episode features Bernard Cribbins as a man Basil thinks is a hotel inspector. And hilarity ensues).

Jenny Laird, playing Neska, was an experienced actress who gave her name to an acting award at RADA won by Richard Franklin (Captain Yates) and Jan Chappel (Cally in Blake's 7). I've seen Laird in the Inspector Morse story Second Time Around where she plays Mrs. Keelan.

Joanna Monro, here playing Rega, has had a somewhat eclectic career including starring in the stage production of Mamma Mia!, appearing as a regular on the That's Life, and winning a celebrity edition of the Weakest Link! You can hear Joanna Monro interviewed in Who's Round 236.

Finally, from the credited cast, playing the guard Captain and making his final Doctor appearance is our old friend Walter Randall who'd been in The Aztecs as Tonila, The Crusade as El Akir, The Daleks' Master Plan as Hyksos, The Invasion as a Patrolman and Inferno as Harry Slocum. His first & last appearances are the only ones *not* directed by Douglas Camfield. Outside of Doctor Who he was a Sightseer / Man in Crowd in three episodes of Quatermass and the Pit and in Out of the Unknown he appears as Thomas Hobbs in To Lay a Ghost, one of the four existing Fourth Season episodes found in the Out of the Unknown DVD Set. In The Professionals he plays President Parsali in Mixed Doubles and in Yes Minister he's a Qumrani man in The Moral Dimension.

Onto the Guards..... and here we have a small problem: I can see hardly any of the guards that the DWAS Production File says are in this episode and the only ones I can see clearly and identify are ones the Production File says are in episode 4! For example the photo on the left clearly contains Alan Chuntz on the left of the picture and Stuart Fell between Sarah & Rega. Reading around I discover that episode 3 originally ran short so their listing as being only in episode four is almost certainly down to material being pulled forward from the intended episode four. Fell was in the last episode as the Tramp but we've not seen Chuntz for a bit:

Regular stuntman Alan Chuntz was previously a UNIT Soldier in The Invasion, Technician Harvey & a Security Guard in The Seeds of Death, one of Collinson’s Men & a UNIT Soldier in the Ambassadors of Death, a Technician, UNIT solider and RSF Soldier in Inferno, during which he was injured when Jon Pertwee ran him over in Bessie, an Auton in Terror of the Autons, a Prisoner in Mind of Evil a Sea Devil & Sailor in The Sea Devils, Omega's Champion in The Three Doctors and a Security Guard in The Green Death. He returns as a soldier in Genesis of the Daleks, a Vogan in Revenge of the Cybermen, the Doctor's stunt double in Planet of Evil, the Chauffeur in Seeds of Doom, a Horda Pit Guard in Face of Evil, a Coolie in Talons of Weng-Chiang, a guard in State of Decay and a Masked Villager in The Visitation. He also did stunt work on the Sean Connery James Bond film You Only Live Twice and on The Italian Job.

Since those two stuntmen are here and The Doctor, or rather his stunt double Terry Walsh, gets a bit physical with several guards, it's likely that the other guard stuntman listed for episode four, Billy Horrigan, is also present - and I'm about 90% certain he's one of the guards in the second picture! Horrigan was a UNIT Soldier in The Invasion, the Man on Bike Killed by Auton in Spearhead from Space, one of Collinson's men in Ambassadors of Death, a Technician and UNIT & RSF Soldiers in Inferno, a U.N.I.T. soldier, Auton Policeman & other stunts in Terror of the Autons, a UNIT Corporal & Prisoner in The Mind of Evil, a colonist in Colony in Space, a guard in The Curse of Peladon, a Sea Devil & Sailor Stuntman in The Sea Devils and a security guard in The Green Death. He returns as a soldier/guard in Masque of Mandragora. He was also in Blake's 7 as a Scavenger in Deliverance. In the world of films he acts or does stunt work in Jabberwocky, The Spy Who Loved Me, Superman, Superman II, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Return of the Jedi, Superman III, Krull, Never Say Never Again, 1984 Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

There's two guards down as only being in this episode: Derek Hunt was an Atlantean Guards Underwater Menace, a British Soldier in The War Games, a Soldier in Spearhead from Space, a UNIT Solider in Doctor Who and the Silurians, a Technician in Inferno, a U.N.I.T. Soldier in Day of the Daleks and a Prison Guard in Frontier in Space. He returns as an Android Mechanic/Soldier in Android Invasion, a Bi-Al member in Invisible Enemy, a Time Lord in Invasion of Time a Technicians/Guards/Citizen in Pirate Planet, a Passenger in Nightmare of Eden, James the footman in Black Orchid, a Worthy in Snakedance, a Guard in Planet of Fire and Time Lord in Mysterious Planet, Mindwipe & Terror of the Vervoids, during which he's wearing orange robes!

The other guard is a first appearance with Third Doctor Jon Pertwee for our friend Harry Fielder! 'Aitch first appeared in The Enemy of the World as a guard after which he was back as a Wheel Crewmember in The Wheel in Space. He returns as a Vogan in Revenge of the Cybermen, a Guard in The Seeds of Doom for which he gets a credit, a Guard in The Deadly Assassin, the Second Assassin in The Face of Evil part one (he gets on the commentary for that DVD!), a Titan Base Crewman in The Invisible Enemy part one, a Levithian Guard in The Ribos Operation, a Guard in The Armageddon Factor part two (another credited role!), the Krarg Commander in Shada, a Tigellan in Meglos part one and a Security Guard in Castrovalva part one. His Blake's 7 appearances include an Armed Crewman in Space Fall and Cygnus Alpha, a Scavenger in Deliverance a Federation Trooper in Weapon, Trial, Voice from the Past (where he's also a rebel), Children of Auron, Games, Warlord and Blake meaning he was present at the final climatic scene! I first knew him as Harry the Security Guard in CBTV but he's been in everything from when I was growing up! Aitch was on Facebook, has a website recalling the many productions he's been in and has adapted it into a rather good book. He died 6th February 2021 aged 80.

377 Planet of the Spiders Part Two

EPISODE: Planet of the Spiders: Part Two
OVERALL EPISODE NUMBER: 377
STORY NUMBER: 074
TRANSMITTED: Saturday 11 May 1974
WRITER: Robert Sloman (and Barry Letts uncredited)
DIRECTOR: Barry Letts
SCRIPT EDITOR: Terrance Dicks
PRODUCER: Barry Letts
RATINGS: 8.9 million viewers
FORMAT: DVD: Doctor Who - Planet of the Spiders
EPISODE FORMAT: 625 video

"I have come to give you the power you seek!"

The spider claims to have come to give Lupton power, jumping on his back and merging with him. The Doctor reviews his recording's of Clegg's thoughts seeing nothing but Spiders. Sarah leaves the monastery to warn the Doctor while Mike seeks out the Abbot. The spider detects the crystal as the Doctor looks into it. The Doctor is entranced by the crystal but is brought round by the smell of Benton's coffee. First Tommy, then Lupton, prevent Mike from seeing Abbot K'anpo. The next morning Sarah tells the Doctor her story, but he only starts listening when she mentions the spider. He tells her how he obtained the crystal from Metebelis 3. Lupton enters UNIT HQ stunning Benton with an electrical bolt. Seeing the crystal through the lab door's window the spider transports it to Lupton's hand and he runs off. Stealing the Whomobile he is pursued by the Doctor, Brigadier & Benton in Bessie leading to a pursuit on land, in the air and on water. As the Doctor's hovercraft catches up with Lupton's boat he finds the boat empty and Lupton vanished.

Deary me. You're enjoyment of this episode almost 100% depends on if you're ten or not. Jon Pertwee had always had a love of vehicle and, where possible working them into Doctor Who stories. Here his love is indulged with a chase involving the Whomobile, making it's second appearance now in it's final form, Bessie, a police car, a gyro-copter, a boat and a hovercraft that Jon Pertwee liked so much that he ordered one for his holiday home in Ibiza. They've obviously had a lot of fun making it but at 12 minutes it's far far too long and is basically an indulgence. Then right at the end the villain teleports away rendering the entire chase pointless. Ok you could argue the spider needed time to recharge it's energies after teleporting the crystal earlier in the episode but.....

There's a nice little touch in the episode though when The Brigadier rings the UNIT Medical Officer:

BRIGADIER: Doctor. Doctor? Good grief. Sergeant Benton?
BENTON : Yes, sir?
BRIGADIER: Oh, there you are. Looks as if we have an emergency on our hands. I can't get him to come round. Damn silly idea. Thought so all along. Give me the M.O. Quickly. Oh, is that you, Sullivan? Get over to the lab straight away.
DOCTOR: Absolutely beautiful.
BRIGADIER: What's that, Doctor?
DOCTOR: Oh, the smell of that coffee. Thank you, Sergeant.
BRIGADIER: Forget it, Sullivan.
DOCTOR: You know, I've always said that next to Mrs Samuel Pepys you make the finest cup of coffee in the world.
BENTON: Thank you very much, Doctor. Actually the secret of it is, is to get the water
BRIGADIER: Yeah. Look, never mind the dratted coffee.

In the next story we will meet Doctor Harry Sullivan: it's nice little touches like this between stories that make you feel that the show is being thought about behind the scenes on a scale larger than a single story!

I don't usually comment on the effects but the CSO'd electrical bolt on location is rather good

But the original effects work on the Whomobile flying where it turns gold is dreadful.

This was fixed for the DVD but the compilation version of this story, included on disc 2, contains the original effect still.

The spider voice heard in this episode is provided by Ysanne Churchman who had previously Voiced Alpha Centauri in Curse of Peladon & Monster of Peladon. She's famous for playing Grace Archer, the character killed off in the long running BBC radio soap opera the same night that ITV launched.

The policeman involved in the car chase is Chubby Oates, a well known comedian. I didn't think I'd seen him in anything else but a quick run down his CV on IMDB reveals he was in the first episode of Morning Sarge, The New Constable, as Bobby. Morning Sarge is one of those programs forgotten by many but I recall it being rather good. I can see two other Doctor Who alumni have appeared in it too - Kinda's Lee Cornes and Battlefield's Ling Tai.

The voice of the Policeman's Control talking him on the radio is producer Barry Letts.

Most of the rest of the cast is a series of cameos for the extras and stuntmen that have helped make the Third Doctor stories: Pat Gorman, regular extra, plays the Soldier who is working on Whomobile. Previously he was a Freedom Fighter/Rebel in Dalek Invasion of Earth, a Planetarian in Mission to the Unknown: Delegate Detective thinks he's Sentreal the black Christmas tree, a Greek Soldier in The Myth Makers, a Guard in Massacre, a Worker in The War Machines, a Monk in The Abominable Snowmen, a Guard in The Enemy of the World, a Cyberman in The Invasion, a Technician in The Seeds of Death, a Military Policeman in The War Games episode two, the Silurian Scientist in The Silurians, a Technician in The Ambassadors of Death, a Primord in Inferno, the Auton Leader in Terror of the Autons, a Primitive and Long in Colony in Space, a Coven Member in The Dæmons, a Guard & Film Cameraman in Day of the Daleks, a Sea Devil in The Sea Devils, a UNIT Soldier in The Three Doctors, a Presidential Guard and Sea Devil in in Frontier in Space, a Global Chemicals Guard / 'Nuthatch' Resident in The Green Death, a UNIT Corporal in Invasion of the Dinosaurs and a Guard in The Monster of Peladon. He returns as the Gate Guard in Robot part one, a Thal Soldier in Genesis of the Daleks, a Cyberman/Dead Crewman in Revenge of the Cybermen, a Guard in The Seeds of Doom, a Soldier/Brother in The Masque of Mandragora, a Chancellery Guard in The Deadly Assassin, a Medic in The Invisible Enemy, a Kro in The Ribos Operation, the Pilot in The Armageddon Factor, a Thug in City of Death part one, a Gundan in Warriors' Gate, a Foster in The Keeper of Traken, Grogan in Enlightenment, a Soldier in The Caves of Androzani, a Slave Worker and a Cyberman in Attack of the Cybermen. Of those it' easiest to spot his face in Abominable Snowmen, Planet of the Spiders, Robot and The Armageddon Factor! He's got several Blake's 7 appearances to his name as a Scavenger in Deliverance, Federation Trooper / Rebel in Voice from the Past, Trantinian planet hopper Captain in Gambit, Death Squad Trooper in Powerplay, Federation Trooper in The Harvest of Kyros & Rumours of Death, Hommik Warrior in Power, Helot in Traitor and a Federation Trooper in Games & Blake. We was also in Adam Adamant Lives! as a Guard in More Deadly Than the Sword, a Man at Club in Beauty Is an Ugly Word, a Coven Member in The Village of Evil, a War Office Guard / TA Soldier in D for Destruction and an S.S. Guard in A Sinister Sort of Service. He appears once in The Prisoner as a Hospital Orderly in Hammer Into Anvil and just once in Doomwatch as Man in Hear No Evil. His Porridge appearance in the second Christmas Special The Desperate Hours is another easy spot: he's the Prison Officer who comes into the loos as Fletcher and friends are sampling the contraband home brew. He was in two episodes of The Sweeney as a Flying Squad Officer in Thou Shalt Not Kill (director: D Camfield) & Latin Lady, and two The Tomorrow People stories: Worlds Away as the Vesh Hunter and War of the Empires as a US Marine. In the BBC The Day of the Triffids he played a Blind Man in episode 5 while in Douglas Camfield & Robert Holmes adaption of The Nightmare Man he played The Killer with Camfield using him again as a Legionnaire in Beau Geste. He was in The Professionals five times: as a Golfer in Killer with a Long Arm, a CI5 Agent in Close Quarters & Servant of Two Masters, a Security Man in Weekend in the Country and the Police Superintendent at inquest in Discovered in a Graveyard. He's a Policeman again in The Young Ones: Interesting and towards the end of his career Russell T Davies uses him in Dark Season as a Heavy.

Pertwee's regular stunt double Terry Walsh is the Man with Boat. He was a Militiaman in The Smugglers, a Soldier in The Web of Fear, a UNIT Soldier in The Invasion, The Ambassadors of Death & Inferno, in the last of which he also played a Technician and an RSF Soldier, an Auton Policeman & Unit Soldier in Terror of the Autons, a UNIT Motorcyclist in The Mind of Evil, a Primitive, Colonist & IMC Guard Rogers in Colony in Space, Castle Guard Barclay & a Sea Devil in The Sea Devils, an Overlord Guard in The Mutants, the Window Cleaner in The Time Monster and a Guard in The Green Death. a Warehouse Looter in Invasion of the Dinosaurs, Jack, an Exxilon & a Zombie in Death to the Daleks and The Guard Captain & a Guard in The Monster of Peladon. He returns as a Bouncer in Robot, Zake in The Sontaran Experiment, a Thal Soldier, Muto and Kaled Scientist in Genesis of the Daleks, a Vogan in Revenge of the Cybermen, a Crew Member in Planet of Evil, the Executioner in The Masque of Mandragora, a Horda Pit Guard in The Face of Evil, Mensch in The Power of Kroll and Doran in The Creature from the Pit.

Walsh stunt doubled for the Doctor in Inferno, Terror of the Autons, Day of the Daleks, Curse of Peladon, The Sea Devils, Carnival of Monsters, Frontier in Space, The Green Death, The Time Warrior, Death to the Daleks, Monster of Peladon, Planet of the Spiders, The Sontaran Experiment, Revenge of the Cybermen, Planet of Evil, The Android Invasion, The Seeds of Doom, The Deadly Assassin, The Face of Evil, The Androids of Tara, The Creature from the Pit. He was also the double for The Master in The Sea Devils, the Minotaur in the Time Monster, Mike Yates in The Green Death & Planet of the Spiders, Harry Sulivan in The Sontaran Experiment, Sorenson in Planet of Evil, Chancellor Goth in The Deadly Assassin, Count Grendel in The Androids of Tara and a Stuntman on Power of Kroll. He was Fight Aarranger for The Sea Devils, The Mutants, The Green Death, Death to the Daleks, Monster of Peladon, Planet of the Spiders, The Sontaran Experiment, The Android Invasion, The Seeds of Doom, The Deadly Assassin, The Face of Evil, The Androids of Tara & The Creature from the Pit. He also doubled for The Doctor in the Children In Need Spoof The Dimensions in Time and played the Duelling Guard and a Mercenary in The Ultimate Adventure where he also staged the fights.

He was also in the Adam Adamant Lives! episode - D for Destruction as Watts, which we like because it has Patrick Troughton and a load of control panels in it! In Space: 1999 he was Clan Guard in Journey to Where, the Rescue Eagle Pilot in The Mark of Archanon, a Technician in Space Warp and a Security Guard in The Seance Spectre. He was in Superman II as a KFC Man / French Officer and An American Werewolf in London as the Taxi Driver Who Crashes His Cab. He did stuntwork on The Italian Job, the Roger Moore James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me, Superman, Superman III & Superman IV: The Quest for Peace, Douglas Camfield & Robert Holmes' The Nightmare Man, the aforementioned An American Werewolf in London, Krull and Robin of Sherwood.

Stuntman Stuart Fell, previously seen (or rather not seen) inside Alpha Centauri, plays the tramp run over by the hovercraft which gave Jon Pertwee an exaggerated story that he'd enjoy telling at conventions for years after. He had previous been a UNIT soldier & Auton in Terror of the Autons, UNIT staff member & a photographer in The Mind of Evil, a UNIT Soldier & Axon in The Claws of Axos, Alpha Centauri in The Curse of Peladon which was his first credited appearance, a Guard, Sailor & Sea Devil in The Sea Devils, a Functionary in Carnival of Monsters and Alpha Centauri once again in The Monster of Peladon. He goes on to play a Wirrn Larvae & Wirrn in The Ark in Space, Double for Styre in The Sontaran Experiment, The Kraal in The Android Invasion part three, the Monster in The Brain of Morbius, Forking peasant / Guard / Acolyte in The Masque of Mandragora, a Policeman, Coolie & the Giant Rat in Talons of Weng Chiang, a Guard in The Sun Makers, a Sontaran in The Invasion of Time, a Shrivenzale in the Ribos Operation, Roga in State of Decay, a Castrovalvan Warrior in Castrovalva, a masked villager in The Visitation and a Cyberman in The Five Doctors plus he did stunts in Terror of the Autons, was fight arranger in The Talons of Weng-Chiang, more stunts in The Ribos Operation & Full Circle and served as fight arranger again in State of Decay. In Blake's 7 he was Dortmunn in Mission to Destiny, a Subterron in Project Avalon, a Goth Warrior in The Keeper, a Sarran in Aftermath, a Labourer in The Harvest of Kyros, a Guard in City at the Edge of the World, a Federation Trooper in Rumours of Death, a Guard in Moloch, a Gunman in Death-Watch, a Link in Terminal & Rescue and a Hommik Warrior in Power plus he was the stunt coordinator for Project Avalon, The Keeper, Aftermath, Volcano, The Harvest of Kyros, City at the Edge of the World, Rumours of Death, Moloch, Death-Watch, Terminal, Rescue & Power. He plays a man in the Doomwatch episode Spectre at the Feast. He's in The Empire Strikes Back as a Snowtrooper and does stunts in Return of the Jedi. He also does stunt work on the Roger Moore James Bond films For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy & A View to a Kill. And so much more.

However Hopkins, the man driving the hovercraft, is played by Michael Pinder, the owner of Pindair the firm that made the Hovercraft.

The chase sequence starts at Le Marchant Barracks in Devizes, Wiltshire. Yes, Doctor Who has gone to Devizes (one for my Swindon readers).

We then proceed to a variety of locations near Membury in Wiltshire, close to locations used in the Daemons. First Membury Airfield....

.... then Ramsbury Road, ....

.... then Membury Crossroads, which actually featured in the Daemons!

Of the footage recorded at Half Mile Road, it's initial appearance with The Whomobile has been flipped left to right!

The last Wiltshire location is Membury Hall Lane.

Then we move to Gloucestershire and a place named Strand ....

.... which is on the banks of The River Severn where the chase concludes!