Davros

Davros was the sixth episode of Season 43 of Doctor Who. It was written by Lance Parkin, directed by Gary Russell and featured Hugh Grant as the Doctor & Ingrid Oliver as Petronella Osgood.

## Davros

### Director

Gary Russell

Synopsis

TAI stock has shot up by over fifteen percent on news that galaxy-famous scientist Davros, controversial creator of the Daleks, has been hired to work on unspecified technological projects.

Davros has been given the chance to redeem himself.

Humanity stands on the verge of a new era, but it needs the help of the galaxy's greatest ever scientist. But Davros is dead... isn't he?

From the bunkers and shelters of ancient Skaro to the gleaming domes of the future Earth Empire, Davros has always been a man of destiny. Now he's working for mankind's benefit. But how much do we really know about Davros?

Has Davros really turned over a new leaf? The Doctor certainly doesn't think so. But is the Doctor always right?

Plot

"When I press this switch, I will die. The poison in that projectile injector will kill me in a moment." Davros is about to die, forced to carry out his own execution. He, however, refuses to press the switch to do the deed, intending to create "the supreme power in the universe". "This is not the end; this is only the beginning..."

Meanwhile, Davros' body is found by Arnold and Lorraine Baynes. They steal the corpse with the chair, shooting their pilot in Davros' place to trick the patrols. The advanced medical equipment available to them on the ship confirm that the Kaled is dead. They shouldn't give up, though; Lorraine decides to bring him "back home", where even better equipment can be found. All hope is not lost yet.

Meanwhile, the Doctor arrives, having been called by a journalist named Willis. He and Kimberly Todd explain to the Doctor that TransAllied, Inc. — TAI — are planning to shut down every mining colony, a plan which would render 12 billion people out of jobs, devastating planets for generations. Kim works for the company's computer section, and has found secret files. All the mines are profitable... so why are TAI closing them down?

Against all evidence, Davros is alive. He recalls past events in his life: the Kaled Supreme informs Davros of the council of Elites' decision that he must die for his crimes. None of them, though, can do it — "If Davros is to die, it must be by his own hand." The Supreme hands him a projectile poison injector.

A spaceship suddenly appears overhead, and the Doctor and company use this opportunity to escape into the TAI dome. Baynes — revealed to be the chief executive of TAI — and his wife exit the ship, and bring Davros with them. Davros, meanwhile, is still dreaming of his past. His larynx was damaged in an attack, and was replaced with a voice box. His skin is badly burnt; even the most powerful sedatives can't help with the pain. Davros demands to see his face, and cries in terror and despair at the sight of it.

Outside, the Doctor confronts Baynes about his harbouring Davros, "the most evil being this galaxy has created". Even though Baynes assures the Doctor that the Kaled is dead, the Doctor is not convinced. He lets it slip that he could potentially revive Davros, and Baynes takes him to inspect the corpse. When there, though, Baynes' wife Lorraine notices that Davros has brain activity. He has been in suspended animation. At the Doctor's voice, Davros awakes. The Doctor can't bring himself to flick the switch to kill him himself. He soon stabilises, laughing maniacally.

The Doctor watches in horror as Arnold and Lorraine Baynes introduce themselves to the newly revived Davros, and offer him a job as head of TAI's R&D department. After being shown a commercial for the company — propaganda, in the words the Doctor — Davros agrees. "We have a deal."

The Doctor, though, desperate, offers a counter-offer: he will offer himself to do the same work. Davros assures the Baynes' that the Doctor's intellect is very much equal to his own. But, with the Doctor threatening to return him to suspended animation, he accuses the Time Lord of being an obvious potential saboteur — he must be incarcerated. Baynes has a better idea. Both will work for him — together.

The Doctor is woken up in the morning by a device placed in his inner ear during his sleep. He goes back to sleep, telling it to wake him up 5 minutes before the start of his work day. After having breakfast, he arrives in the lab, and purposely ruins two hours of Davros' work. He turns the tables around, making Davros act as his assistant — even getting him to make him some tea.

Meanwhile, Willis is conducting an interview with Baynes. After bringing up the mines, though, Baynes destroys his tape recorder and demands that Willis stay for a few days. Willis, in no situation to bargain being trapped in the dome with no way of calling for help, is forced to oblige.

The Doctor and Davros have a discussion about their past. Davros considers the Doctor to be the closest thing to a friend he's ever had, and tries to convince him that he has changed his ways after 90 years of nothing to do but think and remember.

They break for lunch, as is government-required. Baynes shows the Doctor to the computer centre, the centre of all the dome's electronic systems. Though, as the Doctor notes, a tactical disadvantage with everything in one place, its walls are heavily fortified, and the fortress of a centre has everything in it for men to survive for weeks on end.

In the computer centre, Kim tells the Doctor of what she and Willis had seen earlier: a secret automated production line for a whole army of robots. What is going on? What is TAI preparing for? They decide to meet again.

Lorraine sits dinner with Davros, whom she admires greatly. She wants to write the definitive biography of Davros, and intends to interview him for it. He reminisces about his past, about the food pills offered on Skaro. While the Doctor warns Baynes about Davros, Davros does the opposite with Baynes' wife.

Within their first day at work, the Doctor and Davros complete a prototype of the alpha matrix, something Baynes thought would take them months. He then tasks Davros with something far more complex: to end the galactic famine, and feed Mutter's Spiral. The Doctor doesn't trust him, and expresses this to Willis and Kim in their prearranged meeting.

Baynes expresses the same thing to his wife Lorraine: the Doctor may be right, and they should be prepared for this possibility. The Doctor and co. explore the dome, to find the secret robot factory Willis and Kim discovered earlier. He inspects one of the robots, and finds out where his work has gone. His invention has not been used as a starship's navigation computer — it's in a robot's central processing unit.

When Willis contemplates destroying an approaching robot, though, it goes into defensive mode. The machine advances; it is just about to kill them.

to be added.

Cast

The Doctor - Hugh Grant

Davros - Terry Molloy

Arnold Baynes - Bernard Horsfall

Lorraine Baynes - Wendy Padbury

Willis - Eddie de Oliveira

Kimberly Todd - Ruth Sillers

Shan - Katarina Olsson

Scientist Ral - David Bickerstaff

Kaled Medics - Louise Faulkner, Karl Hansen

Pilot - Andrew Westfield

Crew

Created by Sydney Newman, Donald Wilson and C.E. Webber

Executive Producers - Ira Steven Behr and Julie Gardner

Co-Executive Producers - Ronald D. Moore, D.C. Fontana, Robert Shearman, and Steven Moffat

Producer - Tony Redston

Script Editor - Paul Cornell

Consulting Producers - Nicholas Meyer and Russell T Davies

Writer - Lance Parkin

Director - Gary Russell

Director of Photography - Ernie Vincze

Production Designer - Chris Wilkinson

Visual Effects - The Mill

Make-Up - Davy Jones

Casting Director - Andy Pryor

Music - Murray Gold

Costume Designer - Emma Rosenthal

Edited by - Mike Jones

Original Theme Music - Ron Grainer

Title Sequence - BBC Wales VFX

Music conducted & orchestrated by Ben Foster

Memorable Quotes

To be added.

Background Information

To be added.

Development

To be added.

Pre-Production

To be added.

Production

To be added.

Post-Production

To be added.

Reaction

This episode received a 7-Day Viewing Figure from BARB of 8.04m viewers. It ranked at 14th over the week.

Story Notes

To be added.

Continuity

To be added.

Home Video Releases

To be added.