Thal (Doctor Who)
Encyclopedia
The Thals are a fictional race of humanoid aliens
from the British
science fiction television series Doctor Who
, originating on the planet Skaro
.
as given by them in the original Dalek story
(1963), they were once a warlike race, but following a terrible war with the peaceful and scientific Dals who shared their planet, they renounced violence and became pacifist
farmers. After centuries of this lifestyle, they were forced to take up arms again when the Dals — now developed into the aggressive and xenophobic
Dalek
s — returned and attempted to wipe them out.
This history was revised in Genesis of the Daleks
(1975), which revealed the detailed origin of the Daleks. The race (or nation) the Thals were at war with was the Kaleds, who at the time of the fourth Doctor
's arrival were a fascistic
society involved in a generations-long war of attrition
with the Thals (whose use of slave labour did not make them much better, although all slaves were freed and given a blanket pardon after the war was over). The prolonged conflict had turned Skaro into a wasteland, and radiation sickness was a common hazard. The Kaled chief scientist, Davros
, accelerated the mutation of the Kaled species and put the results into tank
-like travel machines, which became the dreaded Daleks.
Davros simultaneously tricked the Thals into wiping out opposition to his plans by providing them the technology that they needed destroy the last city of the Kaleds.
In The Daleks, the Doctor helped the Thals defeat the Daleks on Skaro, apparently returning them to a peaceful age before he left.
At some point, the Thals established a space-faring civilisation. In Planet of the Daleks
(1973), set in Earth's 26th century, and several generations after the events of The Daleks, a Thal expedition was sent to the planet Spiridon. Together, the Thals and the Third Doctor
defeated a Dalek plan to duplicate the natural invisibility of the planet's inhabitants and launch a ten-thousand strong Dalek army hidden on the planet. What happened to the Thals after this is not revealed in the series, though in Destiny of the Daleks
(1979) Skaro was shown to be an abandoned planet. Skaro
was destroyed in Remembrance of the Daleks
(1988), when the Seventh Doctor
sent the Omega Device
to the future to destroy the Dalek/Thal homeworld, although nothing further has been noted about the Thals after the aforementioned Spiridon encounter.
It was never made clear whether the Thals and Kaleds were intended to be separate species
or simply a different race or nation.
The Dalek Factor
by Simon Clark
. They also appear in the Eighth Doctor Adventures
novel War of the Daleks
by John Peel
, which depicts them having become a warlike society willing to destroy an inhabited planet simply as part of a trap to defeat a Dalek attack fleet- although the Doctor's disgust at their actions lends some hope that they will begin to reconsider their stance-, and the Big Finish Productions
audio plays The Mutant Phase
, where their attempt to use a biological weapon against the Daleks nearly creates a monstrous insectoid race, and Brotherhood of the Daleks
, where the Sixth Doctor
discovers a Thal project to brainwash Daleks to act as 'sleeper agents', only for the plan to fail when the Daleks' true natures assert themselves.
Extraterrestrial life in popular culture
In popular cultures, "extraterrestrials" are life forms — especially intelligent life forms— that are of extraterrestrial origin .-Historical ideas:-Pre-modern:...
from the British
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...
, originating on the planet Skaro
Skaro
Skaro is a fictional planet from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who created by the writer Terry Nation as the home planet of the Daleks and, at times, the centre of the Dalek Empire....
.
History within the show
According to Thal historyHistory
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
as given by them in the original Dalek story
The Daleks
The Daleks is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in seven weekly parts from 21 December 1963 to 1 February 1964...
(1963), they were once a warlike race, but following a terrible war with the peaceful and scientific Dals who shared their planet, they renounced violence and became pacifist
Pacifism
Pacifism is the opposition to war and violence. The term "pacifism" was coined by the French peace campaignerÉmile Arnaud and adopted by other peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress inGlasgow in 1901.- Definition :...
farmers. After centuries of this lifestyle, they were forced to take up arms again when the Dals — now developed into the aggressive and xenophobic
Xenophobia
Xenophobia is defined as "an unreasonable fear of foreigners or strangers or of that which is foreign or strange". It comes from the Greek words ξένος , meaning "stranger," "foreigner" and φόβος , meaning "fear."...
Dalek
Dalek
The Daleks are a fictional extraterrestrial race of mutants from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Within the series, Daleks are cyborgs from the planet Skaro, created by the scientist Davros during the final years of a thousand-year war against the Thals...
s — returned and attempted to wipe them out.
This history was revised in Genesis of the Daleks
Genesis of the Daleks
Genesis of the Daleks is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who that was originally broadcast in six weekly parts from 8 March to 12 April 1975. It marks the first appearance of Davros, the creator of the Daleks.-Plot:...
(1975), which revealed the detailed origin of the Daleks. The race (or nation) the Thals were at war with was the Kaleds, who at the time of the fourth Doctor
Fourth Doctor
The Fourth Doctor is the fourth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC British television science-fiction series Doctor Who....
's arrival were a fascistic
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
society involved in a generations-long war of attrition
Attrition warfare
Attrition warfare is a military strategy in which a belligerent side attempts to win a war by wearing down its enemy to the point of collapse through continuous losses in personnel and matériel....
with the Thals (whose use of slave labour did not make them much better, although all slaves were freed and given a blanket pardon after the war was over). The prolonged conflict had turned Skaro into a wasteland, and radiation sickness was a common hazard. The Kaled chief scientist, Davros
Davros
Davros is a character from the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Davros is an archenemy of the Doctor and is the creator of the Doctor's deadliest enemies, the Daleks...
, accelerated the mutation of the Kaled species and put the results into tank
Tank
A tank is a tracked, armoured fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat which combines operational mobility, tactical offensive, and defensive capabilities...
-like travel machines, which became the dreaded Daleks.
Davros simultaneously tricked the Thals into wiping out opposition to his plans by providing them the technology that they needed destroy the last city of the Kaleds.
In The Daleks, the Doctor helped the Thals defeat the Daleks on Skaro, apparently returning them to a peaceful age before he left.
At some point, the Thals established a space-faring civilisation. In Planet of the Daleks
Planet of the Daleks
Planet of the Daleks is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from April 7 to May 12, 1973.-Synopsis:...
(1973), set in Earth's 26th century, and several generations after the events of The Daleks, a Thal expedition was sent to the planet Spiridon. Together, the Thals and the Third Doctor
Third Doctor
The Third Doctor is the third incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by actor Jon Pertwee....
defeated a Dalek plan to duplicate the natural invisibility of the planet's inhabitants and launch a ten-thousand strong Dalek army hidden on the planet. What happened to the Thals after this is not revealed in the series, though in Destiny of the Daleks
Destiny of the Daleks
Destiny of the Daleks is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 1 September to 22 September 1979. The story introduces Lalla Ward as the newly-regenerated Romana....
(1979) Skaro was shown to be an abandoned planet. Skaro
Skaro
Skaro is a fictional planet from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who created by the writer Terry Nation as the home planet of the Daleks and, at times, the centre of the Dalek Empire....
was destroyed in Remembrance of the Daleks
Remembrance of the Daleks
Remembrance of the Daleks is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 5 October to 26 October 1988....
(1988), when the Seventh Doctor
Seventh Doctor
The Seventh Doctor is the seventh incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by the actor Sylvester McCoy....
sent the Omega Device
Hand of Omega
The Hand of Omega is a fictional device from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who.In Remembrance of the Daleks the Seventh Doctor explains that the "Hand of Omega" is the mythical name for the remote stellar manipulator invented by Omega, the first of the Time Lords of the...
to the future to destroy the Dalek/Thal homeworld, although nothing further has been noted about the Thals after the aforementioned Spiridon encounter.
It was never made clear whether the Thals and Kaleds were intended to be separate species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
or simply a different race or nation.
Other appearances
A Thal expedition captured by the Daleks is featured in the Telos novellaTelos Doctor Who novellas
The Telos Doctor Who novellas were a series of tie-in novellas based on the long-running BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who, officially licensed by the BBC and published by Telos Publishing Ltd...
The Dalek Factor
The Dalek Factor
The Dalek Factor is an original novella written by Simon Clark and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features a Doctor whose incarnation is unspecified. It was released both as a standard edition hardback and a deluxe edition featuring a frontispiece...
by Simon Clark
Simon Clark
Simon Clark is a horror novel writer from Doncaster, England. One of his most notable works is the novel The Night of the Triffids.Clark has been nominated for the Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel, World Fantasy Award for Best Novella and British Fantasy Award...
. They also appear in the Eighth Doctor Adventures
Eighth Doctor Adventures
The Eighth Doctor Adventures are a series of spin off novels based on the long running BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who and published under the BBC Books imprint. 73 books were published overall...
novel War of the Daleks
War of the Daleks
War of the Daleks is an original novel written by John Peel, published in 1997, based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Eighth Doctor and Sam. This novel was the first appearance of the Daleks in an original Doctor Who novel; they had not...
by John Peel
John Peel (writer)
John Peel is a British writer, best known for his books connected to several television series. He has written under several pseudonyms, including John Vincent and Nicholas Adams. He lives in Long Island, New York and his wife is a U.S...
, which depicts them having become a warlike society willing to destroy an inhabited planet simply as part of a trap to defeat a Dalek attack fleet- although the Doctor's disgust at their actions lends some hope that they will begin to reconsider their stance-, and the Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays based, primarily, on cult British science fiction properties...
audio plays The Mutant Phase
The Mutant Phase
The Mutant Phase is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who....
, where their attempt to use a biological weapon against the Daleks nearly creates a monstrous insectoid race, and Brotherhood of the Daleks
Brotherhood of the Daleks
Brotherhood of the Daleks is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
, where the Sixth Doctor
Sixth Doctor
The Sixth Doctor is the sixth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by Colin Baker...
discovers a Thal project to brainwash Daleks to act as 'sleeper agents', only for the plan to fail when the Daleks' true natures assert themselves.