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Tom Baker
Planet of Evil
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Synopsis


The Anti-matter Monster
The Anti-matter Monster
 A distress call from the last planet in the known universe forces the TARDIS to commence emergency materialisation on Zeta Minor. Simultaneous with The Doctor's arrival, is the landing of a spacecraft from the planet Morestra on a rescue mission to recover a missing group of scientists. An expeditionary force from the spacecraft soon uncovers their sinister remains, but who or what has caused their gruesome deaths?

 Only one scientist, Professor Sorenson, has survived and he is hell-bent on tapping the powerful resources within Zeta Minor to save his own planet which is slowly dying. But he and his compatriots cannot possibly realise the full extent of the dark forces at work. And so it is left to The Doctor to convince them that Zeta Minor is indeed, the Planet of Evil...

Source: BBC VHS Video


General Information

Season: Thirteen
Production Code: 4H
Story Number: 81
Episode Numbers:406 - 409
Number of Episodes: 4
Percentage of Episodes Held:100%
Working Titles:"The Planet of Evil"
Production Dates: June - July 1975
Broadcast Started: 27 September 1975
Broadcast Finished: 18 October 1975
Colour Status: Colour
Studio: Ealing Television Film Studios and BBC Television Centre (TC3 and TC6)
Location: None
Writer:Louis Marks
Director:David Maloney
Producer:Philip Hinchcliffe
Script Editor:Robert Holmes
Editor:M A C Adams
Production Assistant:Malachy Shaw Jones
Production Unit Manager:Janet Radenkovic
Assistant Floor Manager:Karilyn Collier
Designer:Roger Murray-Leach
Costume Designer:Andrew Rose
Make-Up Designer:Jenny Shircore
Cameramen:Kenneth McMillan and Stan Speel
Lighting:Brian Clemett
Visual Effects:Dave Havard
Incidental Music:Dudley Simpson
Special Sounds (SFX Editor):Peter Howell
Studio Sounds:Brendan Shaw and Tony Millier
Title Sequence:Bernard Lodge
Title Music:Ron Grainer and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. Arranged by Delia Derbyshire
Number of Doctors: 1
The Doctor: Tom Baker (The Fourth Doctor)
Number of Companions: 1The Companion: Elisabeth Sladen (Sarah Jane Smith) Additional Cast: Frederick Jaeger (Sorenson), Ewen Solon (Vishinsky), Prentis Hancock (Salamar), Graham Weston (De Haan), Louis Mahoney (Ponti), Michael Wisher (Morelli), Terence Brook (Braun), Tony McEwan (Baldwin), Haydn Wood (O'Hara), Melvyn Bedford (Reig)Setting: Zeta Minor (circa 37,166) Villain:Antimatter Creature

The Episodes

No. Episodes Broadcast
(UK)
Duration Viewers
(Millions)
In Archive
406Part 127 September 197524'02"10.4PAL 2" colour videotape
407Part 204 October 197522'30"9.9PAL 2" colour videotape
408Part 311 October 197523'50"9.1PAL 2" colour videotape
409Part 418 October 197523'43"10.1PAL 2" colour videotape

Total Duration 1 Hour 34 Minutes


Audience Appreciation

Average Viewers (Millions) 9.9
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (1998)69.73%  (Position = 71 out of 159)
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2009)71.95% Higher (Position = 84 out of 200)
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2014)73.19% Higher (Position = 92 out of 241)
Doctor Who Magazine Poll (2023) Position = 24 out of 41


Archives


 All four episodes exist as PAL 2" colour videotapes.



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Notes


"Planet of Evil" is first of the ‘gothic horror’ stories that have become the hallmark of this era’s producer, Philip Hinchcliffe. Despite being producer since the previous season’s "The Ark in Space" this is the first Philip Hinchcliffe commissioned. Previous stories for the Fourth Doctor were commissioned by previous Producer, Barry Letts, and Script Editor, Terrance Dicks.

This story was inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson's story Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and the appearance of the anti-matter creature was inspired by the creature from the 1956 classic SCIFI film Forbidden Planet. The anti-matter monster, which is sometimes invisible and otherwise is seen as red outlines, bears a close resemblance to the film's ‘Creature from the ID’. The monster is invisible in the filmed sections of this story (where a wind machine was used to show its progress), and as outlines in the video sections (created with CSO). Forbidden Planet was itself inspired by William Shakespeare's play The Tempest, and The Doctor is heard quoting Shakespeare at one point in this story (see below for details). Also in the DVD commentary Elisabeth Sladen, in a discussion about Forbidden Planet's influence from The Tempest, compares Sorenson/Anti-man to Caliban.

The original script had Sorenson dying after falling into the pit, but Philip Hinchcliffe ordered that this be changed, as he felt it would too grim an ending for this character because he saw Sorenson as a victim of the planet's influence rather than an evil man in himself. Instead, a scene was added in which Sorenson is seen being released from the pit, cured of his anti-matter contamination.

This is the final appearance in Doctor Who for Michael Wisher who plays Morelli. Michael Wisher appeared in several previous Doctor Who stories in various roles, but is best known for his portrayal of Davros in "Genesis of the Daleks".

Frederick Jaeger and Ewen Solon, appearing in this story as Professor Sorenson and Vishinsky, had previously played Jano and Chal in the 1966 First Doctor story "The Savages".

Prentis Hancock, who plays Salamar, made his third appearance in the show. He previously appeared in the Third Doctor stories "Spearhead From Space" (in 1970) and "Planet of the Daleks" (in 1973). He would later appear in "The Ribos Operation" in 1978. He is though best known for playing Paul Morrow in Space:1999.

David Maloney, who directed this story, had recently completed work on the previous season’s "Genesis of the Daleks".

With no location filming allocated to the production, Designer Roger Murray-Leach was given the freedom to design a fabulously detailed, exotic and alien jungle set at Ealing. This set proved so successful that it was extensively photographed by the BBC Educational Service, which would use it as an example of design excellence for years afterward and producer Philip Hinchcliffe recommended that Roger Murray-Leach be nominated for an award for this work. However, it was found that this intricately detailed jungle set did cause some problems, in particular making it virtually impossible to position sound booms; this forced most of the dialogue to be dubbed in postproduction.

The TARDIS control room appears for the first time since the 1974 Third Doctor story "Death to the Daleks". This is also the first time we get to see the TARDIS interior in a Fourth Doctor story.

A refurbished TARDIS console also makes its television debut in this story although it was first used in "Pyramids of Mars" which was filmed before "Planet of Evil".

This story includes two quotations from Shakespeare: ‘Night's candles are burnt out...’ (from "Romeo and Juliet") and ‘That is the question’ from "Hamlet"), and an allusion to Laurence Oates (‘I'm going out now, and I may be some time’).

The Doctor is also heard to state that he met William Shakespeare prior to the bard taking up writing. If taken at face value, this would suggest that The Doctor met Shakespeare prior to the events of the 2007 Tenth Doctor story "The Shakespeare Code", set in 1599.

This story directly follows on from the previous story, "Terror of the Zygons", with Sarah saying that The Doctor has promised that he'd get her back to London five minutes before they left Loch Ness.

Despite the hugely inaccurate first landing, later in the story The Doctor is seen executing two perfect short range trips (from the Morestran ship to the pool and back to the ship again).

The attachment of two discs to the front of the TARDIS to teleport it on to a spaceship was seen again in the 2008 Tenth Doctor story "The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky".

Look out for another dramatic freeze-frame cliffhanger at the end of Part Two.

This story marked the last appearance of the Fourth Doctor's original red jacket.

This is one of the few stories in which the Fourth Doctor removes his scarf for an extended period of time. He does not wear it for most of the third and fourth episodes.

Tom Baker almost falls over after throwing Sorenson and the container of anti-matter down into the pool.

In a rare moment, The Doctor uses a blaster against an opponent. This contradicts his statement made during "Pyramids of Mars" that he never uses firearms. Further contradictions of this statement are made throughout the show.

Another contradiction is that anti-matter and matter can exist without causing an explosion. In the 1973 Third Doctor story "The Three Doctors" it was stated that they can’t exist together.

This story was repeated on BBC One in July 1976.

A sequel to this story was released by BBC Books in The Past Doctors Stories range in 1998. Titled "Zeta Major" this novel was written by Simon Messingham and dealt with the future of the Morestran Empire.



First and Last

The Firsts:

 The first ‘gothic horror’ story that became the hallmark of this era’s producer, Philip Hinchcliffe.

 The first appearance of the TARDIS interior in a Fourth Doctor story.

 The final appearance in Doctor Who for Michael Wisher.

 Janet Radenkovic's first involvement in the show as Production Unit Manager.


The Lasts (Subject to Future Stories):

 The last appearance of the Fourth Doctor's original red jacket.


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The Plot

WARNING: May Contain SpoilersHide Text
In the Jungle
In the Jungle

After dealing with the Zygons (see the previous story "Terror of the Zygons") The Doctor, and his travelling companion Sarah Jane Smith, use the TARDIS to travel back to London. However, on their way the TARDIS picks up a faint distress call, which The Doctor detects is coming from the edge of the known universe, and he promptly resets the co-ordinates so they can assist whoever needs rescuing.

The TARDIS soon arrives on the planet Zeta Minor in the Morestran year 37,166, where The Doctor and Sarah discover that a Morestran scientific expedition has fallen prey to an unseen killer which is slowly killing everyone. Now only Professor Sorenson is left, and he is not all that he seems to be.

The TARDIS's arrival coincides with that of a military spaceship from Morestra, sent to investigate exactly what has happened to their expedition. The Morestrans discovers, when they question Sorenson, that he is confused and unable to supply the answer as to what has killed the members of the scientific expedition. Then when members of the military crew start dying, the logical suspects become The Doctor and Sarah, strangers who just happened to have arrived as the killings started.

Sarah by the TARDIS Console
Sarah by the TARDIS Console

The culprit is eventually revealed to be a creature comprised of anti-matter that has come from a universe of anti-matter. When seen it is a shimmering red outline of a huge creature. It is retaliating for the removal, by Sorenson, of some anti-matter samples from a crossing-point of the two universes, a bottomless black pool located deep in the jungle.

When The Doctor discovers the black pool leading to the universe of anti-matter Sarah, who is watching events from the bridge of the Morestran ship, is alarmed when the anti-matter creature emerges from the pool and The Doctor is dragged forward and then topples over the edge. Thankfully he eventually appears from the pool – seemingly unharmed.

What is it?
What is it?

The Morestrans then have a shock when they try to take off in their spaceship. They soon discover that regardless of how much power they use that they are slowly being dragged back towards the planet. The creature, The Doctor deduces, will not allow the Morestrans to leave with the anti-matter on board their spaceship and despite how hard they try, the forces that hold the spaceship intensify until they are held stationary in space, struggling against the increasing pull back towards the Zeta Minor.

The Doctor realises that Sorenson himself has become infected with anti-matter and is gradually transforming into an anti-man, a bestial creature capable of draining the life from other beings.

The Morestran commander, Salamar, who has become increasingly unstable under the pressures of command, finally cracks, and goes after Sorenson with a neutron accelerator. Instead of killing him, the radiation from this causes the creature, which Sorenson has become, to multiply. The spaceship is soon overrun with snarling deadly creatures, able to walk through doors and intent on sucking the life from the crew.

The Doctor and Sarah
The Doctor and Sarah

The Doctor manages to find the original Sorenson anti-man and takes him back to the planet, in the TARDIS, and throws both him and his samples into the pit, fulfilling a bargain he earlier made with the anti-matter creature when he earlier he had fallen into the black pool.

Sorenson then reappears unharmed and The Doctor returns him to the Morestran spaceship. Now freed of the planet's influence it starts its long journey back towards Morestra.

The Doctor and Sarah then leave, in the TARDIS, so as to keep their original appointment with The Brigadier in London.

 
Professor Sorenson
Professor Sorenson
Aboard the Morestran's Spaceship
Aboard the Morestran's Spaceship
Vishinsky and Sarah
Vishinsky and Sarah
Controller Salamar
Controller Salamar
 
Sorenson Becomes an Anti-man
Sorenson Becomes an Anti-man
Sorenson Multiplies
Sorenson Multiplies
The Doctor by the Black Pool
The Doctor by the Black Pool
The Anti-matter Monster
The Anti-matter Monster




Quote of the Story


 'You and I are scientists, Professor. We buy our privilege to experiment at the cost of total responsibility.'

The Doctor (to Sorenson)



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Release Information

FormatTitleRelease Date (UK)Code NumberCover ArtRemarks
Video
VHS
The Tom Baker YearsSeptember 1992BBCV 4839PhotoClip only Introduced and commented on by Tom Baker Double cassette release
Audio
CD
Pyramids of Mars (Classic Music from the Tom Baker Era)1993FLMCD 134Music score
Video
VHS
Planet of EvilJanuary 1994BBCV 5180Colin Howard
Video
DVD
Planet of EvilOctober 2007BBCDVD 1814


In Print

FormatTitleRelease Date (UK)PublisherAuthorCover ArtRemarks
Novel
Novel
Doctor Who and the Planet of EvilAugust 1977Target No. 47Terrance DicksMike LittleISBN: 0-426-11682-8
(1st Edition Target Cover)
Novel
Novel
Doctor Who and the Planet of Evil1982Target No. 47Terrance DicksAndrew SkilleterISBN: 0-426-11682-8
(Reprinted Target Book Cover)
CD
CD
Doctor Who and the Planet of EvilApril 2023Target No. 47Terrance DicksAndrew SkilleterAudio version of the Target Novel read by Tim Treloar.
Doctor Who CMS Magazine (In Vision)Issue 8 (Released: September 1988)
Doctor Who Magazine - ArchiveIssue 183 (Released: February 1992)
Doctor Who Magazine - Time TeamIssue 348 (Released: October 2004)
Doctor Who Magazine - The Fact of FictionIssue 405 (Released: March 2009)
Doctor Who DVD FilesVolume 94 (Released: August 2012)

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Photo Gallery


The Doctor and Companion

 
Tom Baker
The Fourth Doctor

   

 
Elisabeth Sladen
Sarah Jane Smith
 
   




On Release

Tom Baker Years VHS Video Cover
Tom Baker Years VHS Video Cover

BBC
VIDEO
Pyramids of Mars CD Cover
Pyramids of Mars CD Cover

Silva Screen
AUDIO
VHS Video Cover
VHS Video Cover

BBC
VIDEO
DVD Cover
DVD Cover

BBC
VIDEO
   



In Print

Original Target Book Cover (Blue Logo Cover)
Original Target Book Cover (Blue Logo Cover)

Target
NOVEL
Reprinted Target Book Cover
Reprinted Target Book Cover

Target
NOVEL
Target Audio CD Cover
Target Audio CD Cover

BBC
CD
   


Magazines

Doctor Who CMS Magazine (In Vision): Issue 8
Doctor Who CMS Magazine (In Vision): Issue 8

CMS
Doctor Who Magazine - Archive: Issue 183
Doctor Who Magazine - Archive: Issue 183

Marvel Comics
Doctor Who Magazine - Time Team: Issue 348
Doctor Who Magazine - Time Team: Issue 348

Marvel Comics
Doctor Who Magazine - The Fact of Fiction: Issue 405
Doctor Who Magazine - The Fact of Fiction: Issue 405

Marvel Comics
   
Doctor Who DVD Files: Volume 94
Doctor Who DVD Files: Volume 94

GE Fabbri


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