1. Dr. Who & The Daleks
1965 - 1965
Synopsis
A Regal Films and Lion International Film (83 mins)
The Doctor, Susan and Barbara are relaxing at home. Ian Chesterton comes round to take Barbara out for the evening. Barbara had forgotten, and quickly rushes off to get ready while Susan lets Ian into the house. The Doctor takes this opportunity to show off his new invention: TARDIS.
Barbara joins them in the TARDIS, and hugs Ian. In doing so Ian leans on the control that de-materialises the TARDIS and the Doctor has not set the co-ordinates. They could end up anywhere...
They land on an apparently dead planet. Venturing through a petrified forest they spot a city in the distance. The Doctor and Susan want to explore, but Ian and Barbara do not. Determined to get his own way the Doctor sabotages a fluid link preventing the TARDIS from leaving. They have no choice.
The city is far from deserted. The inhabitants are known as Daleks. Barbara is captured. The Doctor, Ian and Susan find a geiger counter showing the planet is highly radioactive. Ian is paralysed by the Daleks, and soon all four are put in the same cell.
The Daleks overhear the Doctor and his companions, and learn of Thal drugs that offer immunity to radiation sickness. Ian is still suffering from paralysis, and the Doctor and Barbara are to ill; it is left to Susan to fetch them from the TARDIS.
The Daleks discover that the drugs are useless to them, and plan to destroy the Thals using a neutron bomb. The Doctor and his companions manage to escape and warn the Thals. The Thals are a pacifistic race, but the Doctor and Ian manage to get them to fight the Daleks.
The power in the Dalek city is destroyed, and the Daleks become powerless. The Doctor sets the controls of the TARDIS to return home. Instead they end up in Roman times...
Regular Cast
- Susan: Roberta Tovey
Guest Cast
- Barbara: Jennie Linden
- Ian: Roy Castle
- Alydon: Barry Igham
- Temmosus: Geoffrey Toone
- Elyon: Mark Petersen
- Antodus: John Brown
- Ganatus: Michael Coles
- Dyoni: Yvonne Antrobus
- Dalek Operators: Bruno Castagnoli, Michael Dillon, Brian Hands, Robert Jewell, Kevin Manser, Eric McKay, Len Saunders, Gerald Taylor
- Thals: Ken Garady, Martin Grace, Nicholas Head, Michael Lennox, Jane Lumb, Virginia Tyler, Jack Walters, Bruce Wells, Garry Wyler, Sharon Young
Bloopers
As Susan is being escorted from the Dalek city to fetch the anti-radiation medicine from the TARDIS watch the leftmost Dalek following her. At one point its upper half suddenly rises up 3 or 4 inches and then drops back down again - as if the operator had stepped on a nail!
Shortly afterwards, as Susan opens the doors to the TARDIS, the interior lights don't come on. (They do on every other occasion in the movie when the doors are opened)
Working Titles
Invasion of the Daleks
Notes
The Doctor's first venture into colour was this big screen adaptation of the first Dalek story. However, there was a slight format change; the main character was now an eccentric human scientist called Doctor Who who has invented the TARDIS, and his companions bear little resemblance to their TV counterparts other than their names. The premiere of the film was held on 24th June 1965 and the film was shown on television for the first time on BBC1 on 1st July 1972.