Nightmare of Eden ( TV story ) Nightmare of Eden was the fourth story of Season 17 of " Doctor Who " . Narratively , it was notable for its anti - drug theme , delivered in an unusually unvarnished way for " Doctor Who " . Though the drug was given a " sci - fi " name and origin , it was nevertheless a direct commentary on drug use and trafficking . " Eden " was a notoriously difficult production , with cast and crew alike openly disagreeing with director Alan Bromly . In the end , producer Graham Williams dismissed Bromly partway through the shoot and finished the programme himself ; it was this incident which convinced Williams to leave the show at the end of Season 17 . ( DOC : " The Nightmare of Television Centre " ) Even though it was a disagreeable shoot , " Eden " did boast a few production peculiarities of note . It was the only serial ever written by Bob Baker " without " his usual writing partner , Dave Martin . It was also , according to Colin Mapson , the first " Doctor Who " serial in which the model effects were recorded on video , instead of film . ( DCOM : " Nightmare of Eden " ) Although Mapson was not enamoured of the results , Graham Williams extolled their virtues in at least one memo to this superiors . Video was very much cheaper than film , and Williams found the compromise between quality and cost acceptable . ( DOC : " The Nightmare of Television Centre " ) Nevertheless , the technique did not prove popular with Williams ' successor . Most model shots in future serials would again be committed to film . Synopsis . The TARDIS arrives on the space liner " Empress " , which has become locked with a private ship , the " Hecate " , after colliding with it on emerging from hyperspace . The Fourth Doctor and Romana meet the scientist Tryst , who has with him a Continuous Event Transmuter ( CET ) machine . It contains crystals on which are stored supposed recordings of planets that he and his team have visited . Someone on board the liner is smuggling the dangerously addictive drug vraxoin . To complicate matters , the interface between the two ships allows some monstrous Mandrel s from the mud - swamps of Eden to escape from the CET machine - which does not merely take recordings , but actually displaces whole planetary areas into its crystals . The smugglers are revealed to be Tryst and Dymond , the " Hecate ' s " pilot . Vraxoin is in fact the material into which the Mandrels decompose when they are killed . The Doctor thwarts this plan , separates the two ships and returns the Mandrels to Eden . Plot . Part 1 . Two spaceships , the " Empress " , a cruise liner , and the " Hecate " , a smaller ship , collide with each other , creating an unstable area where the two ships meet . The TARDIS materialises on the " Empress " , and the Doctor , Romana and K9 make their way to the bridge where they see the two captains , Rigg of the " Empress " and Dymond of the " Hecate " , arguing about their losses . The Doctor thinks he knows how to separate the ships . The Doctor and K9 go to the power unit , led there by Secker , who is acting strangely . He sneaks away , unknowingly followed by the Doctor and K9 , and takes a drug out of a drawer , moments later the Doctor gets into the drawer and finds it . K9 analyses it - it is vraxoin , a deadly drug . Meanwhile Romana and Dymond go to the first class lounge and meet members of a zoological expedition - Tryst and his assistant Della . Tryst has specimens from various planets stored on his Continuous Event Transmuter ( CET ) . Part of the machine includes a large screen that shows the planets he ' s visited , but the planets onscreen are not just images . Romana understands the principle behind the machine - matter transference of dimensional control - and is not impressed . The Doctor tells Rigg about Secker and the drug , and wonders about Tryst ' s travels . He meets Tryst , who seems happy to meet another scientist . The Doctor learns that one of Tryst ' s men died on the planet Eden . The Doctor and Rigg go to the power unit and use K9 to get to the source . Romana , alone in the lounge , plays with the controls to the CET . She looks at the projection of Eden and sees a face in the trees . Della comes in and tells her that Tryst would not like her using the machine . Secker is looking for his drugs when he is attacked . He screams and the Doctor and Rigg find him . He has been cut by something and is taken to the sick bay . The Doctor goes to find Secker ' s drug but is met by someone else who shoots him and takes the drug from the Doctor ' s pocket . Secker dies in the sick bay . Romana and K9 find the unconscious Doctor . When he wakes she tells him of what she saw in the CET . Romana heads back to the lounge while the Doctor , Rigg and K9 continue to cut through to the power source . Something from the Eden projection comes out and hits Romana on her neck , causing her to lose consciousness . K9 has finally cut a hole in the wall to the power source , and when the Doctor and Rigg open the hole , a monster is behind the wall . Part 2 . K9 fires at the monster and they cover the hole . Back in the control room , Rigg scans the ship for vraxoin , with negative results . They make plans with Dymond to try to separate the two ships . While Romana is unconscious , someone comes into the lounge and then leaves . Della comes in and helps Romana . The projection of Eden is now off . While Della gets a drink for Romana , someone pours vraxoin into the drink . Rigg arrives and she gives him the drink before making another one for Romana . The Doctor gets some equipment from the TARDIS and goes to see Romana . Tryst arrives and the Doctor expresses his concern over the CET and lists several things wrong with it . Tryst shuts it off . Back in the control room Rigg is being affected by the drug but no one realises . K9 goes into one of the unstable areas where the two ships are joined , while the Doctor waits for him . A strange man in glasses comes through the unstable area and runs away . The Doctor chases him . They run through the " Empress " and enter one of the unstable areas . Rigg , affected by the drug , accuses the Doctor and Romana of being the drug smugglers . He also claims that the Doctor is a narcotics agent . The Doctor is attacked by the man he was chasing , and comes face to face with another of the monsters . He comes out of the unstable area where Romana is waiting . The Doctor has found a radiation wrist band from the man he was chasing . It has the name " Volante " - Tryst ' s ship - on it . Tryst tells Della he thinks the smuggler was their crewmember who died - Stott . The Doctor and Romana learn that Rigg is affected by vraxoin . They go the CET , and Tryst offers to help . When Romana is sent away , Tryst tells the Doctor that Della is responsible for the drug smuggling . The Doctor and Romana go to the control room , where agents from the Azurian Empire Customs question them about their involvement in the drug smuggling . One of them , Costa , searches the Doctor and finds traces of vraxoin from the sample he had in his pocket earlier . The Doctor and Romana run away , and are chased by Costa and his boss Fisk . They run to the lounge , where the CET is on and showing Eden . The Doctor takes something from the machine and they run into the projection . Part 3 . As the Doctor and Romana explore the projection , they discuss the problems with Tryst ' s machine . The Doctor is attacked by a man - eating plant monster , but bites it in the root , which causes it to release him . Back on the " Empress " , Tryst tells the agents that the selector for the machine is gone and he can ' t turn it off . The Doctor and Romana are attacked by one of the monsters , but are saved by a man who shoots the monster . He identifies himself as Stott , and the monsters as Mandrel s . Taking them to a safe place , he tells them he works for the Space Corps ' Intelligence Section . He thought the Doctor and Romana were the drug smugglers , but overheard their conversation . He now thinks Secker may have been involved . The three of them leave the projection and end up on the " Empress " where K9 is . On the " Empress " , passengers are being attacked and killed by Mandrels that have come out of the projection . Rigg is still acting silly and Fisk threatens to have him shot . The Doctor works in the power room in order to separate the two ships . A Mandrel chases Romana into the room and then grabs the Doctor . K9 stuns it but the Doctor thinks it ' s dead . He sends Romana to the bridge and K9 to the demat gun to await his signal . Fisk arrests Rigg . Tryst asks Fisk not to kill the Mandrels . Fisk orders that the Doctor and Romana are to be found and , if they resist , shot . After they leave , the stunned Mandrel wakes up and attacks the Doctor . After chasing the Doctor , it is electrocuted when it hits the connections the Doctor has set up . It turns into dust which the Doctor identifies as vraxoin . Romana reaches the control room . Rigg wants her to give him more drugs and attacks her when she can ' t . Fisk enters and shoots Rigg . He tells Romana she is going to be killed , and tries to stop her touching the power controls . The Doctor signals to Romana and K9 that he is ready . K9 activates the demat gun and Romana hits the power switch . The ships start to separate , everything shakes , and the Doctor vanishes . Part 4 . In the confusion , Romana escapes from Fisk . Now that the ships are separated , Dymond wants to go back to his ship but Fisk won ' t let him - he is wanted as a witness . Romana meets up with Della and tells her that Stott is alive . The Doctor wakes up on the " Hecate " and discovers a laser . He hides from Dymond who has returned , and discovers on Dymond ' s computer that he is involved in the drug smuggling . Dymond gets in a shuttle to return to the " Empress " , and the Doctor stows away . The Doctor , on the " Empress " , is reunited with Romana and K9 . Romana tells him the laser can send telecom messages and can also send a CET crystal . They realise that Tryst and Dymond are the smugglers . The Doctor works on the CET machine , and Stott tells the agents that Tryst and Dymond are the smugglers . Tryst and Dymond temporarily hold Della , but when she escapes they shoot her . They head for the shuttle and back to the " Hecate " . Romana finds Della who is hurt but alive . The guards have control of the Mandrels and herd them back to the projection . The Doctor lures them into the projection with the dog whistle . When he comes back out , they close down the machine . Romana has to rebuild the CET . Part of the plan is to allow Tryst and Dymond to make their transfer . K9 locates the " Hecate " and the Doctor uses the machine to put it in the projection . Fisk ' s men take Tryst and Dymond out of the projection and into custody . The Doctor and Romana make their farewells and head off to return the electric zoo to their original planets . DVD , video and other releases . Digital releases . " Nightmare of Eden " was released onto the iTunes Store in the US , Australia and UK in 2008 / 2009 . The story is also available for streaming in the US through Hulu Plus or Amazon Instant Video in the UK . Video releases . " Nightmare of Eden " was released on video in 1999 . DVD release . The DVD was released in April 2012 in Region 2 and May 2012 in Regions 1 and 4 . Special features include : It was also released as issue 134 of " Doctor Who DVD Files " .