C08S01 Terror of the Autons
Synopsis
The Doctor is still trapped on Earth and unable to use the TARDIS, but the Time Lords are looking out for him. They send warning that the Master has arrived and the Doctor soon discovers that the evil Time Lord is working alongside the Nestene Consciousness, controller of lethal Auton creatures.
Once again, the planet is in terrible danger. Can the Doctor and his new assistant Jo Grant save it before it's too late and the true terror of the Autons is revealed?
Cover notes
Terror of the Autons opens Jon Pertwee's second series of Doctor Who and creates a fresh template for an exciting new era of the show.
The story is bright, bold and full of plastic. It features the return of the nightmarish Autons, who appeared the year before in Spearhead from Space, and is quite different in tone and style from previous Doctor Who.
There are many firsts here. As well as a new UNIT base and laboratory for the Doctor, there's a new companion, new Captain at UNIT and a brilliant new villain. The Master, played here with suitable menace by Roger Delgado, was created to provide a Moriarty figure for the Third Doctor. The character appears in every story that year - and returns again and again throughout Doctor Who's history.
Katy Manning makes her debut as the Doctor's endearingly clumsy assistant Jo Grant, and is very different from the previous year's companion. Jo is the antithesis of Liz Shaw - less of an equal to the Doctor, and more about asking important questions and getting into trouble. By the end of the first episode, she has already been hypnotised into trying to blow-up UNIT!
The Nestene and the Autons are popular and well-remembered monsters, even though they only appeared in two stories. They were originally going to return to fight the Sixth Doctor in 1985 - but it wasn't until Doctor Who's comeback in 2005, the Russell T Davies resurrected them as the alien menace for the first new series adventure, Rose.
Cast
| The Doctor | Jon Pertwee | listed as Doctor Who; ep. 3,4 listed as Dr. Who |
| Jo Grant | Katy Manning | |
| Brigadier Lethbridge Stewart | Nicholas Courtney | |
| The Master | Roger Delgado | |
| Captain Mike Yates | Richard Franklin | ep. 1,2,3,4 |
| Sergeant Benton | John Levene | ep. 1,2,4 |
| Rex Farrel | Michael Wisher | ep. 1,2,3,4 |
| Mc Dermott | Harry Towb | ep. 1,2 |
| Time Lord | David Garth | ep. 1 |
| Radio Telescope director | Frank Mills | ep. 1 |
| Professor Philips | Christopher Burgess | ep. 1,2 |
| Goodge | Andrew Staines | ep. 1 |
| Rossini | John Baskcomb | ep. 1,2 |
| Museum attendant | Dave Carter | ep. 1 |
| Farrell Senior | Stephen Jack | ep. 2 |
| Mrs. Farrell | Barbara Leake | ep. 2,3 |
| Strong man | Roy Stewart | ep. 2 |
| Brownrose | Dermot Tuohy | ep. 3 |
| Telephone mechanic | Norman Stanley | ep. 3 |
| Policeman | Bill McGuirk | ep. 3 |
| Auton policeman | Terry Walsh | ep. 3 |
| Auton Leader | Pat Gorman | ep. 3,4 |
| Auton voices | Haydn Jones | ep. 3,4 |
Crew
| Written by | Robert Holmes | |
| Title music | Ron Grainer and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop | |
| Incidental music | Dudley Simpson | |
| Circus sequences by courtesy of | Robert Brothers | ep. 1,2 |
| Film Cameraman | John Baker | |
| Film Editor | Geoffrey Botterill | |
| Visual effects | Michael John Harris | |
| Action by | HAVOC | ep. 3,4 |
| Costumes | Ken Trew | listed ep. 1,4; probably all |
| Make-up | Jan Harrison | listed ep. 1,4; probably all |
| Lighting | Eric Monk | listed ep. 1,4; probably all |
| Sound | Colin Dixon | listed ep. 1,4; probably all |
| Special sound | Brian Hodgson and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop | listed ep. 1,4; probably all |
| Script Editor | Terrance Dicks | |
| Designer | Ian Watson | |
| Producer | Barry Letts | |
| Director | Barry Letts | not listed in credits |
DVD Extras
| Katy Manning Nicholas Courtney Barry Letts |
commentary track | |
| Life on Earth | A new documentary about the making of Terror of the Autons. Actors Katy Manning and Richard Franklin, both of whom made their debuts in this story recount the production of Terror of the Autons. | |
| The Doctor's Moriarty | With the introduction of the Master, the Doctor now had his very own Moriarty, who would be the dark figure behind every story in season eight, and many more beyond that. This documentary discusses the enduring appeal of the character. | |
| Plastic Fantastic | How did the writers of Doctor Who take something as everyday as plastic and turn it against us? | |
| Nestlé promotion | ||
| Sugar Smacks promotion | ||
| photo gallery | ||
| Radio Times listings |
Commentary
| serial code : | EEE |
| episode count : | 4 |
| initial broadcast date : | 1971-01-02 |
| DVD release date : | |
| DVD SE release date : | |
| BluRay release date : | |
| part of the Mannequin Mania boxset | |