Evolution (TV Story)

***Evolution*** was the fifth serial of Season 34 of *Doctor Who*. It was written by Rona Munro, directed by Graeme Harper, and starred Stephen Fry as the Ninth Doctor and Emma Fielding as Lena Haigh.

## Synopsis

A break-in at a UNIT facility. A monster sighted in the surrounding countryside. The disappearance of troops sent to reclaim an escaped convict. All of these have one thing in common: the Rani.

Two weeks ago, the Rani escaped from facility 236, and now Brigadier Bambera is getting worried. There has been no trace of her found, no matter what's done to find her. Now, she must call on the Doctor for his expertise.

Meanwhile, the Rani has her own plans. Broken out by a Silurian under her control, she has created a chemical so nobody can get near her whilst she escapes, all the while furthering her heinous experiments. Is the jumpstarting of evolution a risk worth taking in the pursuit of a way out?

## Cast

* The Doctor - Stephen Fry
* Lena Haigh - Emma Fielding
* The Rani - Kate O'Mara
* Kate Lethbridge-Stewart - Jemma Redgrave
* Brigadier Bambera - Angela Bruce
* 001 - David Sax
* Captain Walton - Gareth Preston
* Corporal Lavenza - Christine Stephen-Daly
* Aberrants - Stefan Kopiecki, Aidan Cook, Paul Flanagan, Ben Onwukwe, Stephen Tindall
* UNIT soldiers - Amanda Dickinson, Stephan Grothgar, Tim Faraday

## Crew

* Visual effects supervisor - Gabriel Mykaj, Elisabeth Mykaj
* *TBA*

## Worldbuilding

### Species

* The Rani previously used her chemical on Trion and Q'ell.
* There is a Silurian colony located directly under UNIT facility 236.

### Science & Technology

* The Rani's chemical alters DNA in order to heighten the evolutionary drive for survival. It also weakens the mind of humans to the point that they become feral.
* The Doctor is able to work out when DNA has been tampered with using just a microscope.
* The Aberrants are an umbrella term used by the Rani in relation to creatures that have had the chemical tested on them.

### Weapons

* Despite working at UNIT, Kate insists on not carrying a firearm.
* Lena uses a gun to coerce two Aberrants into backing down.

## Notes

* The story is very loosely based on Mary Shelley's *Frankenstein*. This can be seen through both the similar themes of tampering with life, as well as through certain character's names, with Captain Walton and Sergeant Lavenza both getting their surnames from characters in the novel.

## Continuity

* The Rani is still in custody for the events of TV: *Network*.
* Kate Lethbridge-Stewart expressed interest in joining UNIT at the end of TV: *Downtime*.
* When convincing 001 not to trust the Rani, the Doctor references a similar ploy used by the Master to gain the trust of the Sea Devils. (TV: *The Sea Devils*)
* *TBA*

## Home Video & DVD Releases

### VHS

* This story was released alongside TV: *Genocide* on VHS in 1999.

### DVD

* This story along with the other stories in Season 34 were released as *Doctor Who: The Complete Thirty-Fourth Season* in 2011.

### Blu-ray

* This story along with the other stories in Season 34 were upscaled in 1080i50 high definition and were released as *Doctor Who: The Collection - Season 34* in the UK.