The Ambassadors of Death
Encyclopedia
The Ambassadors of Death is a serial in the British
science fiction television series Doctor Who
, which was first broadcast in seven weekly parts from March 21 to May 2, 1970.
providing security, the British space programme
under Professor Ralph Cornish oversees the launch of the Recovery Seven probe. This has been sent to Mars
to make contact with the missing Mars Probe Seven and its two astronauts, who lost contact with Earth eight months earlier. The pilot of Recovery Seven, Van Lyden, makes contact with the Probe but is then silenced by a piercing unearthly sound. The noise troubles the Doctor
who travels with his assistant Liz Shaw
to the Space Centre to investigate the situation, offering insights into the origin and meaning of the sound, which he interprets as coded messages. He also identifies a reply message sent from Earth and this is pinpointed to be coming from a warehouse seven miles away. Led by Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart
, UNIT troops attack the warehouse and engage in a gun battle with troops organised by General Carrington.
Meanwhile Recovery Seven has returned to Earth and while UNIT is transporting it more of Carrington’s troops stage an ambush and steal the vessel. The Doctor relocates it, by which time it is empty. Carrington has ensured the contents – three space suited astronauts – are detained elsewhere, feeding them radiation to keep them alive. Carrington is now introduced to the Doctor by Sir James Quinlan, the Minister for Technology, who explains that he is head of the newly formed Space Security Department, and that his actions were to protect the astronauts as they had been infected with contagious radiation. Quinlan states that they did not want the public to become panic-stricken and so Carrington had been acting with authority in his actions.
By the time Carrington takes the Doctor and his friends to meet the astronauts the situation has changed again. A criminal named Reegan has organised their abduction, killing the soldiers and scientists protecting them. When the Doctor and Liz examine the situation they work out that human tissue could not have withstood the degree of radiation emitted to the astronauts, who are still in orbit, meaning the three space suits contain alien beings instead. Reegan now engineers the kidnapping of Liz Shaw to aid his own scientist, Lennox, a disgraced Cambridge professor, in maintaining the alien beings while they are incarcerated. Together they build a device to communicate with and control the aliens, who are sent on a killer rampage at the Space Centre, killing Quinlan and others. Liz later helps Lennox escape, but his bid for freedom is cut short by Reegan’s merciless revenge.
Despite the obstruction of the authorities, Ralph Cornish is determined to organise another space flight to Mars to investigate the situation. With Quinlan dead, the Doctor now decides to pilot the Recovery Seven probe ship himself. As he prepares to blast off Reegan tries to sabotage the probe by increasing the feed of M3 variant, but the Doctor survives the attempt on his life and succeeds in piloting the probe so that it connects with an enormous spacecraft orbiting Mars. Aboard the spaceship the Doctor discovers the three original astronauts are unharmed but mentally deluded into believing they are in quarantine. An alien being now reveals itself to the Doctor and explains the humans are being held aboard the craft pending the safe return of the Alien Ambassadors. They had been sent to Earth following a Treaty between the race and mankind, but the terms of this agreement have now been broken because of the detention of the Ambassadors. The Doctor offers his personal guarantee to help return the Ambassadors to their mother ship and resolve the conflict before a state of war is declared, and is permitted to leave the alien craft and return to Earth.
When the Doctor touches down he is gassed and kidnapped by Reegan, who takes him to Liz. Reegan’s real paymaster and the real organiser of the situation is revealed to them: General Carrington. The General reveals his actions have been prompted by xenophobia driven by his own encounter with the alien beings when he piloted Mars Probe Six some years earlier. His co-pilot, Jim Daniels, was killed on contact with the aliens and the General signed the treaty with the aliens to lure three of their number to Earth, where he hoped he could unveil their real agenda of alien invasion. The use of the ambassadors to kill people was similarly done to arouse public opinion against them. The next phase of his plan is to force the Ambassadors to confess their plot on public television. Leaving the Doctor and Liz working on a new and improved communication device to translate the aliens, Carrington departs for the Space Centre, where he aims to unmask the alien Ambassador before the eyes of the world – and then call on the powers of the Earth to blast the spaceship from the skies.
UNIT soldiers raid the secret base and rescue the Doctor and Liz, apprehending Reegan and his thugs. The Doctor races to the Space Centre and he and the Brigadier apprehend Carrington before he can make his broadcast. Sadly, he is taken away, protesting he was only following his moral duty. The Doctor arranges for Cornish and Liz to send the Ambassadors back to their own people, after which the three human astronauts will be returned.
. In this story, the UK is already engaging in manned space missions to Mars and Jupiter, yet this would seem to contradict "The Christmas Invasion
", where it is revealed that the UK has only just sent out its first unmanned probe to Mars in search of life.
has written about connections between this Doctor Who serial and earlier science-fiction TV programmes. The Quatermass Experiment
(1953), for example, has a similar storyline concerning astronauts endangering humanity after coming into contact with extraterrestrials. Chapman also refers to the 1960s Gerry Anderson
series Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
, whose eponymous aliens are another race of malevolent Martian
s.
, was published by Target Books
in May 1987 and was the final Third Doctor serial to be adapted.
Fan reviews
Target novelisation
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 seven weekly parts from March 21 to May 2, 1970.
Plot
With the United Nations Intelligence TaskforceUnited Nations Intelligence Taskforce
UNIT is a fictional military organisation from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures...
providing security, the British space programme
British space programme
The British space programme is a plan by the UK government and other interested bodies to promote British participation in the international market for satellite launches, satellite construction and other space endeavours. Significantly, however, it has never been government policy to create a...
under Professor Ralph Cornish oversees the launch of the Recovery Seven probe. This has been sent to Mars
Mars (Doctor Who)
Mars, the fourth planet in our solar system, has been featured in the Doctor Who fictional universe on a number of occasions. In the various Doctor Who serials which feature the Ice Warriors, mention is made that Mars is their homeworld....
to make contact with the missing Mars Probe Seven and its two astronauts, who lost contact with Earth eight months earlier. The pilot of Recovery Seven, Van Lyden, makes contact with the Probe but is then silenced by a piercing unearthly sound. The noise troubles the Doctor
Doctor (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....
who travels with his assistant Liz Shaw
Liz Shaw (Doctor Who)
Dr. Elizabeth "Liz" Shaw is a fictional character played by Caroline John in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spin-offs...
to the Space Centre to investigate the situation, offering insights into the origin and meaning of the sound, which he interprets as coded messages. He also identifies a reply message sent from Earth and this is pinpointed to be coming from a warehouse seven miles away. Led by Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart
Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart
Brigadier Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, generally referred to simply as the Brigadier, is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, played by Nicholas Courtney...
, UNIT troops attack the warehouse and engage in a gun battle with troops organised by General Carrington.
Meanwhile Recovery Seven has returned to Earth and while UNIT is transporting it more of Carrington’s troops stage an ambush and steal the vessel. The Doctor relocates it, by which time it is empty. Carrington has ensured the contents – three space suited astronauts – are detained elsewhere, feeding them radiation to keep them alive. Carrington is now introduced to the Doctor by Sir James Quinlan, the Minister for Technology, who explains that he is head of the newly formed Space Security Department, and that his actions were to protect the astronauts as they had been infected with contagious radiation. Quinlan states that they did not want the public to become panic-stricken and so Carrington had been acting with authority in his actions.
By the time Carrington takes the Doctor and his friends to meet the astronauts the situation has changed again. A criminal named Reegan has organised their abduction, killing the soldiers and scientists protecting them. When the Doctor and Liz examine the situation they work out that human tissue could not have withstood the degree of radiation emitted to the astronauts, who are still in orbit, meaning the three space suits contain alien beings instead. Reegan now engineers the kidnapping of Liz Shaw to aid his own scientist, Lennox, a disgraced Cambridge professor, in maintaining the alien beings while they are incarcerated. Together they build a device to communicate with and control the aliens, who are sent on a killer rampage at the Space Centre, killing Quinlan and others. Liz later helps Lennox escape, but his bid for freedom is cut short by Reegan’s merciless revenge.
Despite the obstruction of the authorities, Ralph Cornish is determined to organise another space flight to Mars to investigate the situation. With Quinlan dead, the Doctor now decides to pilot the Recovery Seven probe ship himself. As he prepares to blast off Reegan tries to sabotage the probe by increasing the feed of M3 variant, but the Doctor survives the attempt on his life and succeeds in piloting the probe so that it connects with an enormous spacecraft orbiting Mars. Aboard the spaceship the Doctor discovers the three original astronauts are unharmed but mentally deluded into believing they are in quarantine. An alien being now reveals itself to the Doctor and explains the humans are being held aboard the craft pending the safe return of the Alien Ambassadors. They had been sent to Earth following a Treaty between the race and mankind, but the terms of this agreement have now been broken because of the detention of the Ambassadors. The Doctor offers his personal guarantee to help return the Ambassadors to their mother ship and resolve the conflict before a state of war is declared, and is permitted to leave the alien craft and return to Earth.
When the Doctor touches down he is gassed and kidnapped by Reegan, who takes him to Liz. Reegan’s real paymaster and the real organiser of the situation is revealed to them: General Carrington. The General reveals his actions have been prompted by xenophobia driven by his own encounter with the alien beings when he piloted Mars Probe Six some years earlier. His co-pilot, Jim Daniels, was killed on contact with the aliens and the General signed the treaty with the aliens to lure three of their number to Earth, where he hoped he could unveil their real agenda of alien invasion. The use of the ambassadors to kill people was similarly done to arouse public opinion against them. The next phase of his plan is to force the Ambassadors to confess their plot on public television. Leaving the Doctor and Liz working on a new and improved communication device to translate the aliens, Carrington departs for the Space Centre, where he aims to unmask the alien Ambassador before the eyes of the world – and then call on the powers of the Earth to blast the spaceship from the skies.
UNIT soldiers raid the secret base and rescue the Doctor and Liz, apprehending Reegan and his thugs. The Doctor races to the Space Centre and he and the Brigadier apprehend Carrington before he can make his broadcast. Sadly, he is taken away, protesting he was only following his moral duty. The Doctor arranges for Cornish and Liz to send the Ambassadors back to their own people, after which the three human astronauts will be returned.
Continuity
- In the first episode, the Doctor makes a reference to the Brigadier's destruction of the Silurians.
- Sergeant Benton has been promoted from Corporal since his appearance in The InvasionThe Invasion (Doctor Who)The Invasion is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in eight weekly parts from 2 November to 21 December 1968...
. - The Mars Probe space programme appeared in two of Virgin's Doctor Who novels. Who Killed KennedyWho Killed KennedyWho Killed Kennedy is an original novel written by David Bishop and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who....
revealed that the shuttles were developed from technology taken from International ElectromaticsThe Invasion (Doctor Who)The Invasion is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in eight weekly parts from 2 November to 21 December 1968...
. In The Dying DaysThe Dying DaysThe Dying Days is an original novel written by Lance Parkin and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was last of that range to feature the Doctor and the only one of that range to feature Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor. Thereafter the series centred around...
, the programme was abandoned when Mars Probe 13 accidentally encountered the Ice WarriorIce WarriorThe Ice Warriors are a fictional extraterrestrial race of reptilian-like humanoids in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The race originated on Mars, and first appeared in the 1967 serial The Ice Warriors where they encountered the Second Doctor and his...
s and it was agreed that Earth would stay away from their territory; however, a 1997 Mars Probe mission precipitates a Martian invasion and takeover.
UNIT dating
This serial is another example of the UNIT dating controversyUNIT dating controversy
The UNIT dating controversy is an ongoing debate in Doctor Who fandom, concerning exactly when the stories featuring the fictional military organisation known as United Nations Intelligence Taskforce, or more recently as the Unified Intelligence Taskforce, take place in the timeline of the...
. In this story, the UK is already engaging in manned space missions to Mars and Jupiter, yet this would seem to contradict "The Christmas Invasion
The Christmas Invasion
"The Christmas Invasion" is a 60-minute special episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is Christmas, but there is little cause for celebration as planet Earth is invaded by aliens known as the Sycorax...
", where it is revealed that the UK has only just sent out its first unmanned probe to Mars in search of life.
Production
- This story was initially developed to feature the Second DoctorSecond DoctorThe Second Doctor is the second incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by character actor Patrick Troughton....
and his last companions, Jamie McCrimmonJamie McCrimmonJames Robert "Jamie" McCrimmon is a fictional character played by Frazer Hines in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. A piper of the Clan McLaren who lived in 18th century Scotland, he was a companion of the Second Doctor and a regular in the programme from 1966...
and Zoe HeriotZoe HeriotZoe Heriot , or simply Zoe, is a fictional character played by Wendy Padbury in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
. As such, it was set well into the future, and did not include UNITUnited Nations Intelligence TaskforceUNIT is a fictional military organisation from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures...
. When all three actors left the programme at the end of the sixth series, it was rewritten to fit the consequential revamp. Original script editorScript editorA script editor is a member of the production team of scripted television programmes, usually dramas and comedies. The script editor has many responsibilities including finding new script writers, developing storyline and series ideas with writers, ensuring that scripts are suitable for production...
David Whitaker proved incapable of writing for the incoming new format and cast, hence the contributions of Trevor RayTrevor RayTrevor Ray is a British actor who has appeared in many TV-series..Ray penned the final version of the first episode of the Doctor Who serial The Ambassadors of Death, though he was not credited on the episode...
, Terrance DicksTerrance DicksTerrance Dicks is an English writer, best known for his work in television and for writing a large number of popular children's books during the 1970s and 80s.- Early career :...
and Malcolm HulkeMalcolm HulkeMalcolm Hulke was a British television writer and author of the industry "bible" Writing for Television in the 70s...
. All concerned parties agreed to leave sole credit to Whitaker and this was the last Doctor Who serial with his name on it. In an interview years later, Terrance Dicks recounted the experience of rewriting Whitaker's story:
- Working titles for this story included The Invaders from Mars (later the title of a Big Finish ProductionsBig Finish ProductionsBig Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays based, primarily, on cult British science fiction properties...
audio dramaInvaders from Mars (Doctor Who audio)Invaders from Mars is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
), and The Carriers of Death. - The opening titles of this story start with the normal music and graphics, yet immediately fade after the Doctor Who title caption. There is a short "teaser" for episode one, and episodes 2-7 feature a reprise of the previous episode's cliffhanger. Starting with the "scream", followed by a zoom-in on the words "The Ambassadors", concluding with "of Death", and a "zap" effect. The experiment was not repeated after this story.
- This was the first story to feature the sting or "scream" into the end title theme.
Cast notes
- Features a guest appearance by Ronald Allen. See also Celebrity appearances in Doctor WhoCelebrity appearances in Doctor WhoThis is a list of actors who have made guest appearances in Doctor Who.-First Doctor stories:-Second Doctor stories:-Third Doctor stories:-Fourth Doctor stories:-Fifth Doctor stories:-Sixth Doctor stories:-Seventh Doctor stories:...
. - Cyril Shaps, who plays Lennox in this serial, previously played Viner in The Tomb of the CybermenThe Tomb of the CybermenThe Tomb of the Cybermen is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who that originally aired in four weekly parts from September 2 to September 23, 1967 and is the earliest serial starring Patrick Troughton as the Second Doctor to exist in its entirety...
.
Reception
Cultural historian James ChapmanJames Chapman (historian)
James Chapman is a British media historian who has written a number of books on cinema and television. Chapman is Director of Film Studies and the Visual Arts at the University of Leicester.-Biography:...
has written about connections between this Doctor Who serial and earlier science-fiction TV programmes. The Quatermass Experiment
The Quatermass Experiment
The Quatermass Experiment is a British science-fiction serial broadcast by BBC Television in the summer of 1953 and re-staged by BBC Four in 2005. Set in the near future against the background of a British space programme, it tells the story of the first manned flight into space, overseen by...
(1953), for example, has a similar storyline concerning astronauts endangering humanity after coming into contact with extraterrestrials. Chapman also refers to the 1960s Gerry Anderson
Gerry Anderson
Gerry Anderson MBE is a British publisher, producer, director and writer, famous for his futuristic television programmes, particularly those involving specially modified marionettes, a process called "Supermarionation"....
series Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, often referred to as Captain Scarlet, is a 1960s British science-fiction television series produced by the Century 21 Productions company of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, John Read and Reg Hill...
, whose eponymous aliens are another race of malevolent Martian
Martian
As an adjective, the term martian is used to describe anything pertaining to the planet Mars.However, a Martian is more usually a hypothetical or fictional native inhabitant of the planet Mars. Historically, life on Mars has often been hypothesized, although there is currently no solid evidence of...
s.
In print
A novelisation of this serial, written by Terrance DicksTerrance Dicks
Terrance Dicks is an English writer, best known for his work in television and for writing a large number of popular children's books during the 1970s and 80s.- Early career :...
, 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 May 1987 and was the final Third Doctor serial to be adapted.
VHS and CD releases and restoration
- Although the entire story was made on colour videotape, only the first episode was retained in this format. In fact, it is the earliest episode that survives in the series' original videotaped format, either in colour or black and white. The remaining six episodes were retained only as black-and-white film recordings and poor-quality domestic colour recordings made from a US transmission in the 1970s. This recording was severely affected by a rainbow-coloured pattern of interference that at times overtook the entire picture.http://www.purpleville.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/rtwebsite/helpus.htm
- In May 2002, a restoration projectDoctor Who Restoration TeamThe Doctor Who Restoration Team is a loose collection of Doctor Who fans, many within the television industry, who restore Doctor Who episodes for release on DVD....
for the story's VHSVHSThe Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
release combined the usable colour information from the domestic recordings with the black and white picture from the film prints, creating a high-quality colour picture. All told, over half of the serial's running time is presented in colour, including all of Episodes 1 and 5, and sections from 2, 3, 6 and 7. The remaining footage, including all of Episode 4, was deemed unsuitable for restoration, and so remained in black-and-white until the full colour restoration was completed in late 2010. - In 2009, a commentary for the future DVD release was recorded, including Caroline John, Nicholas Courtney, Michael Ferguson, Peter Halliday, Derek Ware and Terrance Dicks. The January 2011 edition of WIRED UK magazine, published in December 2010 carried a full-page article on the recolourisation of the story. It was stated in the article that the Restoration Team expect to deliver a fully restored colour version of the story to the BBC "within weeks". In issue 430 of Doctor Who magazine the DVD announced but later set back due to restoration difficulties. This has since been delayed with no release date yet confirmed.
- The original soundtrack for this serial was released on CD in the UK in August 2009. The linking narration was provided by Caroline John.
External links
- Doctor Who Locations - The Ambassadors of Death
Fan reviews
Target novelisation