Galaxy 4
Encyclopedia
Galaxy 4 is a serial in the British
science fiction television series Doctor Who
, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 11 September to 2 October 1965.
, Vicki
, and Steven Taylor
arrive on an eerily silent planet and encounter curious small robots, which Vicki names Chumblies. It is unclear whether the robots are hostile, when one is disabled by a party of female, cloned Drahvins, from the planet Drahva in Galaxy 4. It is revealed that this unknown planet is also in Galaxy 4, but is not given a name. The Drahvins are dominated by their leader, Maaga, who treats her other warriors with bullying contempt. The Drahvins are at war with the reptilian Rills, the masters of the Chumblies, and both races have crashed spaceships on this planet.
The planet will be destroyed in 14 planetary cycles and, with the Drahvin ship irreparable, Maaga and her warriors are keen to capture the Rill ship, which they believe has been made functional again. Maaga paints a picture of the Drahvins as the attacked species in the scenario, but the Doctor has witnessed some of the Drahvin aggression and is clearly not convinced. He also reworks the probability on the planet’s destruction and calculates it will break up in just two days time. The Doctor tries to keep this new finding from the Drahvins, but Maaga reveals her true colours and forces the truth from him at the point of a gun.
With Steven held as hostage to ensure their co-operation, the Doctor and Vicki are sent by the Drahvins to try to seize control of the Rill ship. The Doctor works out that the Rills are a very advanced species: when he meets one he is impressed, not least by their telepathy. The ugly, horned, ammonia
-breathing Rill explains that the Rills have offered to take the Drahvins away with them but Maaga has refused, preferring to maintain the state of war she began when the Drahvins shot down the Rill craft. The Doctor tells the Rills of the true life remaining in the planet and promises to help them escape, since the solar energy converters on the Rill craft have not gathered enough power to effect a lift-off.
The Doctor and Vicki return to the Drahvin ship to find Steven unconscious after Maaga has tried to kill him by leaving him in a depressurised airlock. They all then return to the Rill vessel, where the Doctor successfully develops a power converter linked to the TARDIS
, which charges the Rill craft. Maaga leads the Drahvins in a final assault on the Rill craft, but the Chumblies defend their ship long enough for it to power up and leave the planet. One Chumbley left behind to aid the time travellers helps them get back to the TARDIS. Once the ship leaves, the planet explodes, with the Drahvins perishing on the dying world.
The story ends with a lead in to "Mission to the Unknown
" with Vicki looking at a planet, and wondering what is happening on it. The action then switches to the planet, where a man in a jungle is chanting "Must Kill"
Ian Levine
claimed that the Doctor Who Appreciation Society
obtained legal permission to privately screen this serial at a convention in 1978, only to find that the BBC had junked the episodes about three weeks prior. Later research subsequently showed this to be mistaken, as the DWAS never held any agreement to show the serial, and BBC Enterprises appear to have junked at least one of the episodes by the end of 1976.
, was published by Target Books
in November 1985, entitled Galaxy Four.
The script of this serial was published by Titan Books in 1994, edited by John McElroy. It was correctly titled Galaxy 4. At the time of printing, no audio recordings were known to exist.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
science fiction television series Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 11 September to 2 October 1965.
Plot
The DoctorDoctor (Doctor Who)
The Doctor is the central character in the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who, and has also featured in two cinema feature films, a vast range of spin-off novels, audio dramas and comic strips connected to the series....
, Vicki
Vicki
Vicki is a fictional character played by Maureen O'Brien in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. An orphan from the 25th century, she was a companion of the First Doctor and a regular in the programme in Seasons 2 and 3 in 1965...
, and Steven Taylor
Steven Taylor (Doctor Who)
Steven Taylor is a fictional character played by Peter Purves in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. A space pilot from Earth in the future, he was a companion of the First Doctor and a regular in the programme from 1965 to 1966.-Character history:Steven first...
arrive on an eerily silent planet and encounter curious small robots, which Vicki names Chumblies. It is unclear whether the robots are hostile, when one is disabled by a party of female, cloned Drahvins, from the planet Drahva in Galaxy 4. It is revealed that this unknown planet is also in Galaxy 4, but is not given a name. The Drahvins are dominated by their leader, Maaga, who treats her other warriors with bullying contempt. The Drahvins are at war with the reptilian Rills, the masters of the Chumblies, and both races have crashed spaceships on this planet.
The planet will be destroyed in 14 planetary cycles and, with the Drahvin ship irreparable, Maaga and her warriors are keen to capture the Rill ship, which they believe has been made functional again. Maaga paints a picture of the Drahvins as the attacked species in the scenario, but the Doctor has witnessed some of the Drahvin aggression and is clearly not convinced. He also reworks the probability on the planet’s destruction and calculates it will break up in just two days time. The Doctor tries to keep this new finding from the Drahvins, but Maaga reveals her true colours and forces the truth from him at the point of a gun.
With Steven held as hostage to ensure their co-operation, the Doctor and Vicki are sent by the Drahvins to try to seize control of the Rill ship. The Doctor works out that the Rills are a very advanced species: when he meets one he is impressed, not least by their telepathy. The ugly, horned, ammonia
Ammonia
Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . It is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or...
-breathing Rill explains that the Rills have offered to take the Drahvins away with them but Maaga has refused, preferring to maintain the state of war she began when the Drahvins shot down the Rill craft. The Doctor tells the Rills of the true life remaining in the planet and promises to help them escape, since the solar energy converters on the Rill craft have not gathered enough power to effect a lift-off.
The Doctor and Vicki return to the Drahvin ship to find Steven unconscious after Maaga has tried to kill him by leaving him in a depressurised airlock. They all then return to the Rill vessel, where the Doctor successfully develops a power converter linked to the TARDIS
TARDIS
The TARDISGenerally, TARDIS is written in all upper case letters—this convention was popularised by the Target novelisations of the 1970s...
, which charges the Rill craft. Maaga leads the Drahvins in a final assault on the Rill craft, but the Chumblies defend their ship long enough for it to power up and leave the planet. One Chumbley left behind to aid the time travellers helps them get back to the TARDIS. Once the ship leaves, the planet explodes, with the Drahvins perishing on the dying world.
The story ends with a lead in to "Mission to the Unknown
Mission to the Unknown
"Mission to the Unknown", sometimes known as "Dalek Cutaway", is an episode in the television series Doctor Who. It is a standalone episode, serving as an introduction to the 12 part story The Daleks' Master Plan...
" with Vicki looking at a planet, and wondering what is happening on it. The action then switches to the planet, where a man in a jungle is chanting "Must Kill"
Production
- The working title for this story was The Chumblies. Different resources alternatively spell out the title: Galaxy Four.
- The BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
no longer holds the serial in its archives. The only remaining visual record of this story consists of about six minutes of footage from Episode 1 and several publicity photographs. See Doctor Who missing episodesDoctor Who missing episodesThe Doctor Who missing episodes are the instalments of the long-running British science-fiction television programme Doctor Who that have no known film or videotape copies. They were wiped by the BBC during the 1960s and 1970s for economic and space-saving reasons...
. - The story's central twist, that the beautiful Drahvins are actually the villains of the piece, was partially ruined by the British newspapers stating this information before the story was broadcast.
- The Drahvins are named (but not seen) as being among the many alien races gathered above Earth in the 2010 story The Pandorica OpensThe Pandorica Opens"The Pandorica Opens" is the twelfth episode, and first in a two-part story, in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, broadcast on 19 June 2010. The Doctor's friends send him a warning; he deals with a message on a cliff, a mysterious box and a love story that...
.
Broadcast and reception
The ratings for this story ranged from 9 million viewers for Episode 1 and a peak of 11.3 million viewers for Episode 3.Ian Levine
Ian Levine
Ian Levine is an English songwriter, producer, and DJ. He is also a well-known fan of the long-running television show Doctor Who.Levine attended Arnold School in Blackpool from 1963 to 1970...
claimed that the Doctor Who Appreciation Society
Doctor Who Appreciation Society
The Doctor Who Appreciation Society is a society for fans of the television series Doctor Who. It was founded in May 1976, emerging from the Westfield College Doctor Who Appreciation Society and the editors and readers of the fanzine Tardis...
obtained legal permission to privately screen this serial at a convention in 1978, only to find that the BBC had junked the episodes about three weeks prior. Later research subsequently showed this to be mistaken, as the DWAS never held any agreement to show the serial, and BBC Enterprises appear to have junked at least one of the episodes by the end of 1976.
In print
A novelisation of this serial, written by William EmmsWilliam Emms
William Emms wrote the Doctor Who serial Galaxy 4 in 1965 and also adapted the script for a Target novelisation. Later scripts for the programme from the 1960s to the 1980s were not commissioned...
, was published by Target Books
Target Books
Target Books was a British publishing imprint, established in 1973 by Universal-Tandem Publishing Co Ltd, a paperback publishing company. The imprint was established as a children's imprint to complement the adult Tandem imprint, and became well known for their highly successful range of...
in November 1985, entitled Galaxy Four.
The script of this serial was published by Titan Books in 1994, edited by John McElroy. It was correctly titled Galaxy 4. At the time of printing, no audio recordings were known to exist.
VHS, DVD and CD releases
- All extant audio-visual material for this story was released on VHSVHSThe Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
(see The Ice WarriorsThe Ice WarriorsThe Ice Warriors is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from November 11 to December 16, 1967...
): within the documentary The Missing Years. - The same material was released on DVDDVDA DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
by the BBC in 2004 as part of the Lost in Time box set. - The soundtrack for the serial is intact and has been released commercially, with linking narration provided by Peter Purves. See List of Doctor Who audio releases.
Reviews
- Galaxy 4 reviews at Outpost GallifreyOutpost GallifreyOutpost Gallifrey was a fan website for the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was active as a complete fan site from 1995 until 2007, then existing solely as a portal to the still-active parts of the site, including its news page and forums Outpost Gallifrey was a fan website...
Target novelisation
Audio Adaptation
- Galaxy 4 audio reviews at Outpost GallifreyOutpost GallifreyOutpost Gallifrey was a fan website for the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was active as a complete fan site from 1995 until 2007, then existing solely as a portal to the still-active parts of the site, including its news page and forums Outpost Gallifrey was a fan website...