Mission to the Unknown ( TV story ) Mission to the Unknown was the second story of season 3 of " Doctor Who " , although it was recorded with " Galaxy 4 " as part of the series ' second recording block . It was a single - episode prologue to " The Daleks ' Master Plan " and was the last episode of " Doctor Who " for which Verity Lambert served as producer . It is the only " Doctor Who " story to feature neither the Doctor nor his companion s . Though the episode is missing from the BBC archives , it was reconstructed in animated format through a private project led by Ian Levine . Summary . On the planet Kembel , Space Security Service agent Marc Cory is investigating a recent sighting of a Dalek spaceship . His suspicion that the creatures may have established a base proves well - founded . He learns of a plot by the Daleks to invade and destroy the Sol ar System , but he is discovered and exterminated . The Daleks and their allies vow to conquer the universe , beginning with the planet Earth . Plot . A man , Jeff Garvey , is lying on the ground in the jungle on Kembel . He wakes and sits up . His face twists in agony . When the pain passes he stands . He starts repeating , " Kill ! Kill ! " Meanwhile , two men named Marc Cory and Gordon Lowery are trying to repair their ship from UN Deep Space Force Group 1 with little success . The two men are very hostile to one another , mainly because Lowery wonders why Cory landed on Kembel in the first place due to the fact that it is one of the most hostile planets in the galaxy . They speculate where the third member of their crew , Garvey , has gone . Little do they know that Garvey is hiding in the undergrowth watching them . When Cory goes into the ship for more tools , Garvey sneaks up behind Lowery , drawing his gun . Just before Garvey shoots , Cory returns and shoots Garvey dead . Lowery is initially shocked at Cory ' s act , but Cory shows Lowery a long thorn from behind Garvey ' s ear . Cory explains that it is a Varga thorn , one sting from which can render the victim into a homicidal killing machine . Cory and Lowery go into the spaceship , leaving Garvey ' s body . Once inside the ship , Cory reveals to Lowery that he is an agent from the Space Security Service and possesses a licence to kill . He explains they are all there on a mission to stop the Daleks . Lowery states that he is confused due to the fact that the Daleks have not been heard from for a thousand years . Cory reveals that the Daleks have started to seize planets in different galaxies and that a Dalek spaceship has recently been spotted in the Solar System . Cory also informs Lowery that Varga plants are indigenous to the Dalek ' s home planet Skaro , so he believes that it is proof positive that the Daleks have established a base on this planet . Outside the ship Garvey ' s hand begins to twitch and hair starts to grow over his body , as well as Varga thorns ; he is becoming a Varga plant . In the Dalek city on Kembel , the Dalek Supreme waits to be updated on the latest developments . He is told that the representatives from the seven planets will arrive soon and their meeting can start . The Dalek Supreme then sends out a troop of Daleks to destroy the human ship . After reaching the conclusion that they will not fix the ship on time , especially now they suspect that the Daleks will be aware of their location , Cory takes drastic measures . He plans to use a small rocket containing a recorded message to report their position to any rescue vessels . They leave the ship only to see a large group of Varga plants slowly descending upon them . As they have this conversation the two men see a large spaceship looming above them . They realise it is nothing that can be seen in the Solar System and decide it must be something hostile . As they start to prepare the message , the Varga plants are the least of their worries — some Daleks start to descend upon them . Unseen , the men hide in the underbrush and watch as the Daleks destroy their ship completely . The two men slink away with their small rocket and their recording device , but as they do Lowery slips and his hand is impaled on a Varga thorn . In the Dalek city , the representatives from the seven galaxies have gathered in a conference room . They are worried about the humans ; they consider them hostile , but the Daleks assure them that the humans will be dealt with . The meeting is held and the seven delegates all agree to join forces in an alliance with the Daleks . The Daleks lay out the plan for seizing the Solar System by attacking Mars , Venus , Jupiter , the Moon Colonies and , firstly , Earth . Lowery is in pain and is still trying to suck the Varga poison from his hand . He realises that Varga spines are growing all over his body and quickly covers them when he hears Cory returning . Cory has heard what the Daleks said on the loudspeaker and knows of the plan to conquer the Solar System . When he realises that Lowery is becoming a Varga plant , he kills Lowery . He then picks up the rescue beacon and starts recording his message . However , as he is hastily recording a new message to reflect the new information , some Daleks advance upon him and exterminate him . As he lies dead , the Daleks leave , chanting , " Victory " . However , both the beacon and the message survive on the planet ' s surface unscathed . . . References . " to be added " Story notes . Title and production code . Perhaps more than any other " Doctor Who " production , " Mission to the Unknown " generates confusion and debate over both the title used and the serial / production code allocated . No " Doctor Who " story from this period has an overall on - screen title . The story was referred to either by a production code or an internal title by the production team . ( For example , the early 1965 story featuring Nero was " Serial M " or " The Romans " . ) The two were confusingly used interchangeably in many production and overseas sales documents . " Mission to the Unknown " generates further confusion because some documents do not refer to it as a serial but rather as a " cutaway episode " . As the story was produced alongside " Galaxy 4 " the two appear to have been referred to together . Several of the production codes offered are either Serial T or Serial T + , an appendage . Early in 1965 , the term " Dalek Cutaway " started to be used to describe the episode in the production office . The on - screen title " Mission to the Unknown " came later but both continued in circulation , with " Dalek Cutaway " seemingly being used in places as " both " a story title " and " a production term . The abbreviation " DC " also appears on a few early production documents . Design documents successively refer to the episode as " Serial T / A " and later " Serial T Episode 5 " . The episode ' s camera script gives " Dalek Cutaway " as a description and a handwritten addition states " Serial T Episode 4 " ( which is the wrong number ) . Later , when the videotape of the episode was wiped , the relevant paperwork referred to " Serial Ta Episode 1 / 1 " . When it came to offering the story for sale overseas , the synopsis sent by BBC Enterprises gave the title as " Mission to the Unknown ( Dalek Cutaway ) " . The 1974 Enterprises document " A Quick Guide to Doctor Who " , which listed the stories produced so far for potential overseas buyers , gave the title as " Dalek Cutaway ( Mission to the Unknown ) " and did not offer any production code at all . When fans started compiling reference books in the mid 1970s it was this latter document which formed the basis of many lists . The story was referred to alternatively as " Dalek Cutaway " and " Mission to the Unknown " on many occasions , whilst the production code went vacant until the discovery of the design documents stating T / A . In more recent years the exploration of the BBC ' s written archives has exposed the problems of the title and production code .