13.4. Village of the Angels

Series 13 - 2021 (Flux)

Writer: Chris Chibnall and Maxine Alderton
Co-Executive Producer: Nikki Wilson
Director: Jamie Magnus Stone
Music: Segun Akinola

Synopsis

In the village of Medderton Professor Jericho is questioning Claire Brown, who is attached to a lie detector. When he asks her the date she replies November 21st. But when asked the year she replies 1967 - and the lie detector detects a lie. When asked for her date of birth - 13th May 1985 - the lie detector detects another lie. Even though both statements are true Claire does not believe either of them. As Jericho examines Claire she begins to go into a spasm and starts speaking with a new voice.

After the TARDIS had previously been hijacked by a Weeping Angel the Doctor finds a risky way to eject quantum lifeforms from the TARDIS by causing the TARDIS to reboot. The TARDIS lands whilst it reboots - but is it the place where the Weeping Angel was planning to take the TARDIS anyway? When the Doctor, Yaz, and Dan, emerge they find Gerald and Jean trying to use the police box to call for the police to help find their missing daughter Peggy. The Doctor leaves Yaz and Dan with Gerald and Jean to investigate what her sonic screwdriver is detecting.

In the grounds of a village church Reverend Shaw finds one of the note that Mrs Hayward has been sending to villagers telling them all to leave and confronts her about it. She tells the vicar to count the gravestones even though he knows there are 92 as she hears villagers calling out for the missing Peggy. Intrigued the vicar counts the graves and gets to 93 - a statue. As he examines it he blinks...

As Jericho is trying to calm Claire with honey infused tea the Doctor bursts into him room. The sonic screwdriver had detected Jericho's psychic experiment equipment. When the Doctor notices Claire she realises the sonic was not reacting to the equipment - it was reacting to Claire. On Jericho's desk she sees some of Claire's sketches of her premonitions including the TARDIS and a Weeping Angel. The Doctor checks the rest of Jericho's house and finds broken glass from a ball thrown through a window. Jericho, angry, goes outside to find the perpetrator and finds an the house is surrounded by Weeping Angels. The Doctor and Jericho lock all entrances to the house. As the Angels break into the house the Doctor tells Jericho and Claire to go back into the basement she she rigs up a camera they can use to view watch the Angels. Claire tells the Doctor she looked up the village before her first premonition: On 21st November 1967 everyone on the village disappears, and that the same thing happened in 1901.

Yaz and Dan join in with the hunt for Peggy. As they walk through a field Dan notices a scarecrow in the distance. He turns to Yaz and in an instant a Weeping Angel appears in front of them. They keep their eyes on the Angel until the torch fails and the moonlight is blocked by clouds. Moments later they find themselves in the same field, but it's daytime. They go back to the village and find it deserted with overturned carts strewn in the street. They are all alone - apart from a 10 year old girl, Peggy. Peggy tells them that Angels have put thoughts into her head and warns them they must stay within the village and must not go beyond the sign. Peggy takes Yaz and Dan to the edge of the village - which is now closer to the village than it used to be. Beyond the sign the world appears to end leaving them staring into space.

In 1967 Peggy's parents are walking down the same road and encounter the same thing and reach the edge of the world. Behind them a Weeping Angel appears. Gerald, thinking it's a prank, approaches the Angel to return it to the church. As he leans down to pick it up he takes his eyes off it and Jean watches him disappear before she, too, blinks.

Returning to the village in 1901 Dan, Yaz, and Peggy, can see the edge of space is getting closer as parts of the village crumble away. When the hear voices they see Gerald and Jean. Peggy shouts at her parents to stay away from an Angel in the road but Gerald ignores her. As he walks past the Angel it grabs hold of him. As Jean tries to help both Gerald and Jean appear to turn to stone before shattering.

Peggy later leads Dan and Yaz to a burial site where on one side is the it's dark. On the other side they can see Mrs Hayward, who tells Peggy she remembers the current encounter before telling Peggy that she is an older Peggy from 66 years in the future.

In Jericho's basement the Doctor rigs up her camera to a television. A big risk as that which contains the image of an Angel can become an Angel. But the Doctor misses Claire's sketch of Angel, which she had ripped apart, pulling the parts back together. As the Doctor destroys the sketch, and the Angel, Jericho wonders what they way, and Claire says she thinks she is one of them as she shows her arms that are turning to stone. After seeing an image of an Angel in her premonition now an Angel is living within her.

The Doctor, with Claire's permission, enters Claire's mind where she sees the Angel. The Doctor recognises the Angel as the one who hijacked the TARDIS. The Angel asks for the Doctor's help, and tells the Doctor it has been hiding from the other Angels inside Claire. The other Angels in the village are not trying to rescue the Angel they are trying to capture it. The Angel tells the Doctor the other Angels are an extraction squad - for Division. The Angel tells the Doctor it ran from Division, as the Doctor did, and that the other Angels are working for Division. The Angel tells the Doctor it has all the knowledge of Division, and of the Doctor, and that if the Doctor stops the Angels it will let Claire live.

In the basement Jericho can hear the Angels and when he looks back at the television he can only see one Angel that talks to him, telling him to look away as there is nothing he can do to stop them. As Angels break into the basement Jericho throws a cup at the Doctor to bring her back out of Claire's mind. The Angels seems to have the only exit blocked, but the Doctor reveals the basement has a hidden tunnel through which the Doctor, Claire, and Jericho escape. The tunnel, however, is full of Angels in the wall, and they are trapped with Angels at both ends of the tunnel. As they try to rush past the Angel Jericho blinks and is transported back to 1901 where he finds Dan, Yaz, and Peggy.

As the Doctor leaves the tunnel she realises the Angels are not attacking, which she tests by blinking. When she leaves the tunnel she can see the 1901 village with Yaz, Dan, Jericho, and Peggy. The burial site she is in is now full of Weeping Angels. Realising there is no choice the Doctor tells the Angels to take the rogue Angel from Claire, but Claire says the rogue Angel has been communicating with the Angels and made a better offer, offering up the Doctor instead. The Doctor comes to the realisation this was the rogue Angel's plan all along. As the Angels start to glow the Doctor starts to sprout wings and turns to stone.

Regular Cast

  • Yasmin Khan: Mandip Gill
  • Dan Lewis: John Bishop

Guest Cast

  • Professor Jericho: Kevin McNally
  • Claire Brown: Annabel Scholey
  • Reverend Shaw: Alex Frost
  • Gerald: Vincent Brimble
  • Jean: Jemma Churchill
  • Mrs Hayward: Penelope McGhie
  • Bel: Thaddea Graham
  • Namaca: Blake Harrison
  • Vinder: Jacob Anderson
  • Peggy: Poppy Polvinick
  • Azure: Rochenda Sandall
  • Weeping Angels: Barbara Fadden, Isla Moody, Lowri Brown
  • Passenger: Jonny Mathers

Original broadcast on the BBC

Channel Title Date Viewers Rating
BBC 1 (HD) 4. Village of the Angels Sunday, 21 November 2021 18:20 - 19:10 4.57M 79

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