The Hood Maker

***The Hood Maker*** is the first episode of *Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams*. Based on Philip K. Dick's story "The Hood Maker," it was first broadcast on September 17, 2017.

## Synopsis

*In a world without advanced technology, mutant telepaths have become humanity's only mechanism for long distance communication. But their powers have unintended implications. When the public begin to embrace mysterious, telepath-blocking hoods, two detectives with an entangled past are brought in to investigate.*

## Plot

Honor is a Teep working for the Free Union's Clearance Department. At a protest against telepaths, she monitors the members of the crowd to see who is dangerous. When one feels that she is reading his mind, the protest erupts into violence forcing a police response. Agent Ross shields Honor from the crowd. A hooded figure uses a firebomb against the police; Agent Ross gives chase and captures him.

Despite the prejudice against Teeps within the Clearance Department, Honor helps Agent Ross to interrogate the man, John Rathbone. The information gleaned from his mind leads them to an underground movement. During the police operation to arrest them, Honor comes face to face with another hooded figure and realises that she cannot read his mind.

In a Teep brothel, Franklyn, director of Federal Resources for the Free Union, forces Mary to read his mind about a brutal and disturbing sexual fantasy. Later, she is still traumatised and her trauma spreads to other telepaths, including Honor who lives in the same hostel.

Ross picks up Honor from her home, and they begin investigating the mysterious "Hood Maker," the person behind the telepath blocking hoods. While outside, Honor "hears" a cry for help from Mary. Ross and Honor investigate and find Franklyn holding her hostage while wearing a hood. He forced her to read him while he wore it, causing her pain as she tried. Ross arrests Franklyn, but lets him go in exchange for information on the case he is working on.

Ross and Honor review the files on a secret government project to block telepathic powers, led by a scientist named Dr. Thaddeus Cutter who disappeared thirteen years previously.

Franklyn tries to get Mary to get into his car after the ordeal, but she organises some telepaths to kill him. As the city descends into rioting, Ross takes Honor to his apartment. As they have been growing closer, they end up having sex. After, Honor works out where Thaddeus Cutter might be hiding. Ross heads off alone, but Honor follows.

At Cutter's hideout, Ross finds the scientist and is surprised when Honor arrives as well. Cutter reveals Ross' secret to Honor – Ross is a natural telepath blocker. Honor tries to read him but cannot, and realises that Ross has been lying to her from the start. Mary and other telepaths arrive, having been drawn by Honor. Cutter directs them to another exit from the building, but intends to face the telepaths.

Honor gets ahead of Ross and locks the door on him. As the telepaths kill Cutter, Ross begs her to open the door. Honor wants to read Ross to know the truth so he lets her in. She finds out that not only has he been lying to her about his abilities, but that he is prejudiced against Teeps completely. His superior had ordered him to ingratiate himself with Honor to use her as a conduit to the Teep underground, and to do anything to earn her trust.

The telepaths start a fire in the building. Ross begs Honor to open the door, saying that she knows what is in his head, but not his heart. He fell for her despite his missions. As Ross continues to beg Honor to open the door, she looks out into the city beyond.

## Cast

* Richard Madden as Agent Ross
* Holliday Grainger as Honor
* Noma Dumezweni as Senior Agent Okhile
* Richard McCabe as Dr. Thaddeus Cutter
* Anneika Rose as Mary
* Chris Mayo as Damien Gibbs
* Remmie Milner as Teep Hooker
* Tom Mothersdale as John Rathbone
* Ian Pink as Second Lobby Teep
* Richard Row-McGhie as Rickshaw Kid
* Paul Ritter as Franklyn
* Sarah Vevers as Teep
* Darcey Brown as Teep Girl

## Behind the scenes

The cause of the world's technological regression and the rise of telepaths is not documented. However, in an interview, Richard Madden revealed that a meteor struck the Earth decades prior which caused all higher technology to fail. The radiation fall out also led to the births of mutants with telepathic powers.

## Facts

* "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" contains every letter of the English alphabet. It's used to preview Font Faces to show all of it's main characters at once in a real world example sentence on PCs.
* The picture seen at around 50 minutes in, of the couple with the hoods over their heads is "The Lovers" by René Magritte, painted in 1928.