Auton
Encyclopedia
The Autons are an artificial life form from the British
science fiction television
series Doctor Who
, and adversaries of the Doctor
. First appearing in Jon Pertwee
's first serial as the Doctor, Spearhead from Space
in 1970, they were the first monster
s on the show to be presented in colour.
Autons are essentially life-sized plastic
dummies, automaton
s animated by the Nestene Consciousness, an extraterrestrial
, disembodied gestalt intelligence
which first arrived on Earth
in hollow plastic meteorite
s. Their name comes from Auto Plastics, the company that was infiltrated by the Nestenes and subsequently manufactured their Auton shells in Spearhead.
Autons conceal deadly weapon
s within their hands, which can kill or vaporize their targets. The typical Auton does not look particularly realistic, resembling a mannequin, being robotic in its movements and mute. However, more sophisticated Autons can be created, which look and act human except for a slight plastic sheen to the skin and a flat sounding voice. In Series 5 of the new Doctor Who series, they are shown as being able to create fully life-like human replicas, able to fool other humans.
, described as creatures which existed in the "Dark Times", along with the Racnoss, Great Vampires
and Carrionites. Eventually, they sought to invade the Earth
(in Spearhead from Space
), using more human-looking Autons to replace key government figures, although these plans were thwarted by UNIT
with the help of the Doctor, who also destroyed their invasion form, a multi-tentacled cephalopod
.
The Nestenes subsequently returned in the first serial of Pertwee's second year as the Doctor, Terror of the Autons
, which also featured the introduction of the Master
. In this attempt, the Nestenes also made use of more mundane objects, animating plastic toys, inflatable chairs and artificial flowers in addition to their Auton servants. The Doctor convinced the Master that the Nestenes were too dangerous to be reliable allies, and they reversed the radio
beam the invasion force was coming in on, sending it back into space.
Early drafts of The Five Doctors
(1983) featured a scene where Sarah Jane Smith
encountered some Autons and is rescued by the Third Doctor
, but it was dropped before filming for reasons of time and expense. A third appearance was planned for the aborted 1985 season during Colin Baker
's tenure as the Doctor, but never materialized. Titled Yellow Fever and How to Cure It, it was supposed to be set in Singapore
, with appearances by the Rani
and the Master. The story, which was to be scripted by veteran writer Robert Holmes, only exists in outline form.
Although the Autons only made two appearances during the original television series run, they remain one of the more memorable monsters associated with Doctor Who. The image of store mannequins coming to life in Spearhead, in full colour and shooting people down in the street, is one of the series' iconic moments, and is often cited as an example of the series' ability to make everyday things terrifying. The use of even more ordinary objects in Terror of the Autons — including the unmasking of a police officer as an Auton — caused public controversy about whether the programme was too frightening for children. The story also featured in a discussion in the House of Lords
, where Baroness Bacon expressed worries about it being too frightening even for older children.
When the series was revived in 2005, producer and writer Russell T Davies chose the Autons as the first monster to be featured. The Nestenes infiltrated Earth once more, using warp shunt technology
, in the opening episode of the 2005 series. In "Rose
", it was revealed that the Nestenes lost their food supply in a war when their protein planets rotted. Their intent was to overthrow and destroy the human race, as Earth was ideal for their consumption needs, being filled with smoke, oil and various pollutant
s. The Doctor eventually destroyed them when a vial of his "anti-plastic" solution was spilled into the vat of molten plastic which housed the main bulk of the Consciousness by Rose, causing it to explode. (The episode never mentioned "Autons" by name other than in the credits, but the Nestene Consciousness was specifically identified.)
"Rose" also featured an Auton facsimile that could change the shape of its features and limbs, and established that the Nestenes animate the Autons by means of telepathic
projection. When duplicated, the originals are kept alive to maintain the copy (this is also seen in Spearhead from Space). It is not yet clear if the war mentioned was also the motivation behind their earlier invasions or a recent development, but it is likely to be the same war as the Time War
that is mentioned in subsequent episodes of the 2005 series.
The Autons appeared in a segment of the 2006 series episode "Love & Monsters
". The sequence, specifically filmed for the episode, was a flashback to the climactic events of "Rose".
The Autons returned in the 2010 episode, "The Pandorica Opens
", allying with the Daleks, Sontarans, Cybermen, Judoon
, Silurians, Sycorax, Hoix, Roboforms and Weevils to trap the Eleventh Doctor
. The Autons in this episode were programmed to believe they were the soldiers of a Roman legion, among them Rory Williams
, using the memories of Amy Pond
. They were very realistic and far more sophisticated than the average Auton, and their hands contained futuristic laser guns rather than projectile weapons. As in the 2005 appearance, the name "Auton" was not used in dialogue; the phrase "Nestene duplicate" was introduced here to describe the copy of Rory. Due to the influences of the cracks in time, the Rory copy possessed the personality of the real Rory and helped save the universe. The Rory duplicate survived on Earth from A.D. 102 to 1996, demonstrating that Autons can have a long lifespan.
novels (which linked the Consciousness with the Great Old Ones of the Cthulhu Mythos
, in particular as an offspring of Shub-Niggurath
).
In the Sixth Doctor
novel
Business Unusual
by Gary Russell
(which gave Melanie Bush
a belated introduction story), the Nestenes used computer games and plastic toys in another bid for world conquest. In Synthespians™
by Craig Hinton
, a far-future television station's artificial actors were not what they seemed. This novel also featured the Time Lord
s launching an assault on the Nestene homeworld Polymos, which may or may not be connected to the war mentioned in "Rose".
A Tenth Doctor
novel Autonomy
was released in September 2009 featuring the Autons
In the Doctor Who Annual 2006, an article written by Russell T Davies mentions the loss of the Nestene Consciousness's planets during the Time War, and states that it "found itself mutating under temporal stress". This may be a reference to the difference between the portrayal of the Consciousness in Spearhead from Space and "Rose".
In the late 1990s, BBV
released a trilogy of made-for-video films, titled Auton, Auton 2: Sentinel and Auton 3
. These stories featured UNIT battling the Consciousness. In the first film, a Nestene energy unit and several Autons captured by UNIT in Spearhead from Space are accidentally reactivated. In the sequels, the escaped Autons attempt to awaken several dormant Nestenes put in place since before the development of human civilization. Though BBV was licensed to use the Nestenes, Autons and UNIT by the writers who created them, as with all spin-off productions the canonicity
of these films is unclear.
In the first series of the televised Dead Ringers
, in a sketch with Jon Culshaw
visiting The London Eye (calling it an Interstitial Time Delay Helix) in the persona of the Fourth Doctor
, he humorously accused two tourists: "You are Autons from the planet Tosos!"
In 2006, a sketch
on The Charlotte Church Show
showed the Doctor examining the inner thigh of a scantily clad female mannequin; when confronted by Church (playing his companion), he claimed that he thought it was an Auton.
The Autons appear as sketches in John Smith's A Journal of Impossible Things in the episode "Human Nature
".
They appeared in issue 15 of Doctor Who - Battles in Time
in which they were the main theme of the issue.
"Autonomous" Autons, which had a piece of Nestene Consciousness inside them and developed personalities when separated from the control unit, were featured in the 2008 Eighth Doctor
audio story "Brave New Town
".
In the book Voyage of the Shadowmoon
, the term auton is used to describe self-contained autonomous magical entities, similar to the manner of homunculi.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
science fiction television
Science fiction on television
Science fiction first appeared on a television program during the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary world not limited by the constraints of reality; this makes television an excellent medium...
series Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
, and adversaries of the Doctor
Doctor (Doctor Who)
The Doctor is the central character in the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who, and has also featured in two cinema feature films, a vast range of spin-off novels, audio dramas and comic strips connected to the series....
. First appearing in Jon Pertwee
Jon Pertwee
John Devon Roland Pertwee , was an English actor. Pertwee is best known for his role in the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who, in which he played the third incarnation of the Doctor from 1970 to 1974, and as the title character in the series Worzel Gummidge...
's first serial as the Doctor, Spearhead from Space
Spearhead from Space
Spearhead from Space is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 3 January to 24 January 1970. The serial opened Series 7 of the show and was the first to be produced in colour. The serial introduced Jon Pertwee as the...
in 1970, they were the first monster
Monster
A monster is any fictional creature, usually found in legends or horror fiction, that is somewhat hideous and may produce physical harm or mental fear by either its appearance or its actions...
s on the show to be presented in colour.
Autons are essentially life-sized plastic
Plastic
A plastic material is any of a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic organic solids used in the manufacture of industrial products. Plastics are typically polymers of high molecular mass, and may contain other substances to improve performance and/or reduce production costs...
dummies, automaton
Automaton
An automaton is a self-operating machine. The word is sometimes used to describe a robot, more specifically an autonomous robot. An alternative spelling, now obsolete, is automation.-Etymology:...
s animated by the Nestene Consciousness, an extraterrestrial
Extraterrestrial life in popular culture
In popular cultures, "extraterrestrials" are life forms — especially intelligent life forms— that are of extraterrestrial origin .-Historical ideas:-Pre-modern:...
, disembodied gestalt intelligence
Group mind (science fiction)
A group mind, hive mind or group ego in science fiction is a single consciousness occupying many bodies. Its use in literature goes back at least as far as Olaf Stapledon's science fiction novel Last and First Men ....
which first arrived on Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
in hollow plastic meteorite
Meteorite
A meteorite is a natural object originating in outer space that survives impact with the Earth's surface. Meteorites can be big or small. Most meteorites derive from small astronomical objects called meteoroids, but they are also sometimes produced by impacts of asteroids...
s. Their name comes from Auto Plastics, the company that was infiltrated by the Nestenes and subsequently manufactured their Auton shells in Spearhead.
Autons conceal deadly weapon
Weapon
A weapon, arm, or armament is a tool or instrument used with the aim of causing damage or harm to living beings or artificial structures or systems...
s within their hands, which can kill or vaporize their targets. The typical Auton does not look particularly realistic, resembling a mannequin, being robotic in its movements and mute. However, more sophisticated Autons can be created, which look and act human except for a slight plastic sheen to the skin and a flat sounding voice. In Series 5 of the new Doctor Who series, they are shown as being able to create fully life-like human replicas, able to fool other humans.
History
The Nestenes are among the oldest beings in the Doctor Who universeWhoniverse
Whoniverse, a portmanteau of the words "Who" and "universe", is a word used to describe the fictional setting of the television series Doctor Who, K-9 and Company, Torchwood, The Sarah Jane Adventures and K-9, as well as other related stories...
, described as creatures which existed in the "Dark Times", along with the Racnoss, Great Vampires
State of Decay
State of Decay is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 22 November to 13 December 1980. The serial was the second of three loosely connected serials known as the E-Space trilogy...
and Carrionites. Eventually, they sought to invade the Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
(in Spearhead from Space
Spearhead from Space
Spearhead from Space is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 3 January to 24 January 1970. The serial opened Series 7 of the show and was the first to be produced in colour. The serial introduced Jon Pertwee as the...
), using more human-looking Autons to replace key government figures, although these plans were thwarted by UNIT
United Nations Intelligence Taskforce
UNIT is a fictional military organisation from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures...
with the help of the Doctor, who also destroyed their invasion form, a multi-tentacled cephalopod
Cephalopod
A cephalopod is any member of the molluscan class Cephalopoda . These exclusively marine animals are characterized by bilateral body symmetry, a prominent head, and a set of arms or tentacles modified from the primitive molluscan foot...
.
The Nestenes subsequently returned in the first serial of Pertwee's second year as the Doctor, Terror of the Autons
Terror of the Autons
Terror of the Autons is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, broadcast in four weekly parts from 2 to 23 January 1971...
, which also featured the introduction of the Master
Master (Doctor Who)
The Master is a recurring character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He is a renegade Time Lord and the archenemy of the Doctor....
. In this attempt, the Nestenes also made use of more mundane objects, animating plastic toys, inflatable chairs and artificial flowers in addition to their Auton servants. The Doctor convinced the Master that the Nestenes were too dangerous to be reliable allies, and they reversed the radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
beam the invasion force was coming in on, sending it back into space.
Early drafts of The Five Doctors
The Five Doctors
The Five Doctors is a special feature-length episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, produced in celebration of the programme's twentieth anniversary. It had its world premiere in the United States, on the Chicago PBS station WTTW and various other PBS member stations...
(1983) featured a scene where Sarah Jane Smith
Sarah Jane Smith
Sarah Jane Smith is a fictional character played by Elisabeth Sladen in the long-running British BBC Television science-fiction series Doctor Who and its spin-offs K-9 and Company and The Sarah Jane Adventures....
encountered some Autons and is rescued by the Third Doctor
Third Doctor
The Third Doctor is the third incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by actor Jon Pertwee....
, but it was dropped before filming for reasons of time and expense. A third appearance was planned for the aborted 1985 season during Colin Baker
Colin Baker
Colin Baker is a British actor who is known for playing Paul Merroney in The Brothers from 1974 to 1976 and as the sixth incarnation of the Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series Doctor Who, from 1984 to 1986.- Background:Colin Baker was born in London, but moved north to...
's tenure as the Doctor, but never materialized. Titled Yellow Fever and How to Cure It, it was supposed to be set in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, with appearances by the Rani
Rani (Doctor Who)
The Rani is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. She was played by Kate O'Mara. The word "Rani" means "queen" in the Urdu and Hindi languages and "The Rani" follows the naming convention for other renegade timelords, "The Doctor," "The Monk," "The War...
and the Master. The story, which was to be scripted by veteran writer Robert Holmes, only exists in outline form.
Although the Autons only made two appearances during the original television series run, they remain one of the more memorable monsters associated with Doctor Who. The image of store mannequins coming to life in Spearhead, in full colour and shooting people down in the street, is one of the series' iconic moments, and is often cited as an example of the series' ability to make everyday things terrifying. The use of even more ordinary objects in Terror of the Autons — including the unmasking of a police officer as an Auton — caused public controversy about whether the programme was too frightening for children. The story also featured in a discussion in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
, where Baroness Bacon expressed worries about it being too frightening even for older children.
Faster-than-light
Faster-than-light communications and travel refer to the propagation of information or matter faster than the speed of light....
, in the opening episode of the 2005 series. In "Rose
Rose (Doctor Who)
"Rose" is the first episode of Series One of the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by show runner Russell T Davies and directed by Keith Boak, the episode was first broadcast on 26 March 2005....
", it was revealed that the Nestenes lost their food supply in a war when their protein planets rotted. Their intent was to overthrow and destroy the human race, as Earth was ideal for their consumption needs, being filled with smoke, oil and various pollutant
Pollutant
A pollutant is a waste material that pollutes air, water or soil, and is the cause of pollution.Three factors determine the severity of a pollutant: its chemical nature, its concentration and its persistence. Some pollutants are biodegradable and therefore will not persist in the environment in the...
s. The Doctor eventually destroyed them when a vial of his "anti-plastic" solution was spilled into the vat of molten plastic which housed the main bulk of the Consciousness by Rose, causing it to explode. (The episode never mentioned "Autons" by name other than in the credits, but the Nestene Consciousness was specifically identified.)
"Rose" also featured an Auton facsimile that could change the shape of its features and limbs, and established that the Nestenes animate the Autons by means of telepathic
Telepathy
Telepathy , is the induction of mental states from one mind to another. The term was coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Fredric W. H. Myers, a founder of the Society for Psychical Research, and has remained more popular than the more-correct expression thought-transference...
projection. When duplicated, the originals are kept alive to maintain the copy (this is also seen in Spearhead from Space). It is not yet clear if the war mentioned was also the motivation behind their earlier invasions or a recent development, but it is likely to be the same war as the Time War
Time War (Doctor Who)
The Time War, more specifically called The Last Great Time War, is a conflict within the fictional universe of the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
that is mentioned in subsequent episodes of the 2005 series.
The Autons appeared in a segment of the 2006 series episode "Love & Monsters
Love & Monsters
"Love & Monsters" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. In this episode, an ordinary man named Elton Pope becomes obsessed with a man called the Doctor and his strange blue box, and joins a group of like-minded people in hopes of finding him...
". The sequence, specifically filmed for the episode, was a flashback to the climactic events of "Rose".
The Autons returned in the 2010 episode, "The Pandorica Opens
The Pandorica Opens
"The Pandorica Opens" is the twelfth episode, and first in a two-part story, in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, broadcast on 19 June 2010. The Doctor's friends send him a warning; he deals with a message on a cliff, a mysterious box and a love story that...
", allying with the Daleks, Sontarans, Cybermen, Judoon
Judoon
The Judoon are a fictional extraterrestrial species of mercenary police from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spin-offs. They first appeared in the episode Smith and Jones in 2007....
, Silurians, Sycorax, Hoix, Roboforms and Weevils to trap the Eleventh Doctor
Eleventh Doctor
The Eleventh Doctor is the eleventh incarnation of the protagonist of the BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. Matt Smith plays this incarnation, replacing David Tennant's Tenth Doctor in the 2010 episode "The End of Time, Part Two"...
. The Autons in this episode were programmed to believe they were the soldiers of a Roman legion, among them Rory Williams
Rory Williams
Rory Williams is a fictional character portrayed by Arthur Darvill in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Having been introduced at the start of the 5th series, Rory joins the Eleventh Doctor as a companion in the middle of Series 5...
, using the memories of Amy Pond
Amy Pond
Amelia Jessica 'Amy' Pond is a fictional character portrayed by Karen Gillan in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
. They were very realistic and far more sophisticated than the average Auton, and their hands contained futuristic laser guns rather than projectile weapons. As in the 2005 appearance, the name "Auton" was not used in dialogue; the phrase "Nestene duplicate" was introduced here to describe the copy of Rory. Due to the influences of the cracks in time, the Rory copy possessed the personality of the real Rory and helped save the universe. The Rory duplicate survived on Earth from A.D. 102 to 1996, demonstrating that Autons can have a long lifespan.
Other appearances
The Nestenes have also appeared in the Doctor Who spin-offDoctor Who spin-offs
Doctor Who spin-offs refers to material created outside of, but related to, the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who....
novels (which linked the Consciousness with the Great Old Ones of the Cthulhu Mythos
Cthulhu Mythos
The Cthulhu Mythos is a shared fictional universe, based on the work of American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft.The term was first coined by August Derleth, a contemporary correspondent of Lovecraft, who used the name of the creature Cthulhu - a central figure in Lovecraft literature and the focus...
, in particular as an offspring of Shub-Niggurath
Shub-Niggurath
Shub-Niggurath, often associated with the phrase “The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young”, is a deity in the Cthulhu Mythos of H. P. Lovecraft...
).
In the Sixth Doctor
Sixth Doctor
The Sixth Doctor is the sixth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by Colin Baker...
novel
Past Doctor Adventures
The Past Doctor Adventures were a series of spin-off novels based on the long running BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who and published under the BBC Books imprint. For most of their existence, they were published side-by-side with the Eighth Doctor Adventures...
Business Unusual
Business Unusual
Business Unusual is a BBC Books original novel written by Gary Russell and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Sixth Doctor, Melanie Bush, and the Brigadier....
by Gary Russell
Gary Russell
Gary James Russell is a freelance writer and former child actor. As a writer, he is best known for his work in connection with the television series Doctor Who and its spin-offs in other media...
(which gave Melanie Bush
Melanie Bush
Mel, also sometimes referred to as Melanie, is a fictional character in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. A computer programmer from the 20th Century who is a companion of the Sixth and Seventh Doctors, she was a regular in the programme from 1986 to 1987...
a belated introduction story), the Nestenes used computer games and plastic toys in another bid for world conquest. In Synthespians™
Synthespians™
Synthespians™ is a BBC Books original novel written by Craig Hinton and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
by Craig Hinton
Craig Hinton
Craig Paul Alexander Hinton was a British writer best known for his work on various spin-offs from the BBC Television series Doctor Who....
, a far-future television station's artificial actors were not what they seemed. This novel also featured the Time Lord
Time Lord
The Time Lords are an ancient extraterrestrial race and civilization of humanoids in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, of which the series' eponymous protagonist, the Doctor, is a member...
s launching an assault on the Nestene homeworld Polymos, which may or may not be connected to the war mentioned in "Rose".
A Tenth Doctor
Tenth Doctor
The Tenth Doctor is the tenth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He is played by David Tennant, who appears in three series, as well as eight specials...
novel Autonomy
Autonomy (Doctor Who)
Autonomy is a BBC Books original novel written by Daniel Blythe and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Tenth Doctor without an official companion. It was released on September 3, 2009, alongside The Taking of Chelsea 426 and The...
was released in September 2009 featuring the Autons
In the Doctor Who Annual 2006, an article written by Russell T Davies mentions the loss of the Nestene Consciousness's planets during the Time War, and states that it "found itself mutating under temporal stress". This may be a reference to the difference between the portrayal of the Consciousness in Spearhead from Space and "Rose".
In the late 1990s, BBV
BBV
BBV is a video and audio production company specialising in science fiction drama, known for its links with the British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
released a trilogy of made-for-video films, titled Auton, Auton 2: Sentinel and Auton 3
Auton trilogy
The Auton trilogy is a series of direct-to-video spin-off productions based on the long running BBC science fiction series Doctor Who. The three films in the series are Auton , Auton 2: Sentinel and Auton 3...
. These stories featured UNIT battling the Consciousness. In the first film, a Nestene energy unit and several Autons captured by UNIT in Spearhead from Space are accidentally reactivated. In the sequels, the escaped Autons attempt to awaken several dormant Nestenes put in place since before the development of human civilization. Though BBV was licensed to use the Nestenes, Autons and UNIT by the writers who created them, as with all spin-off productions the canonicity
Canon (fiction)
In the context of a work of fiction, the term canon denotes the material accepted as "official" in a fictional universe's fan base. It is often contrasted with, or used as the basis for, works of fan fiction, which are not considered canonical...
of these films is unclear.
In the first series of the televised Dead Ringers
Dead Ringers (comedy)
Dead Ringers is a UK radio and television comedy impressions broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and later BBC Two. The programme was devised by producer Bill Dare and developed with Jon Holmes, Andy Hurst and Simon Blackwell. It starred Jon Culshaw, Jan Ravens, Phil Cornwell, Kevin Connelly and Mark Perry...
, in a sketch with Jon Culshaw
Jon Culshaw
Jonathan Peter Culshaw is an English impressionist and comedian. He was educated at St Bede's RC High School, Ormskirk and St John Rigby College, in Orrell, Wigan....
visiting The London Eye (calling it an Interstitial Time Delay Helix) in the persona of the Fourth Doctor
Fourth Doctor
The Fourth Doctor is the fourth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC British television science-fiction series Doctor Who....
, he humorously accused two tourists: "You are Autons from the planet Tosos!"
In 2006, a sketch
Doctor Who spoofs
The long running science fiction television series Doctor Who has over the years been the subject of many comedy sketches and specially made comedy programmes, from Spike Milligan's "Pakistani Dalek" to the Comic Relief episode Doctor Who and the Curse of Fatal Death...
on The Charlotte Church Show
The Charlotte Church Show
The Charlotte Church Show was a Channel 4 entertainment television show presented by Welsh singer Charlotte Church. It was first broadcast on 1 September 2006 and ran for 6 subsequent Fridays. The show was commissioned for a further two series, the first of which aired from 23 February to 6 April...
showed the Doctor examining the inner thigh of a scantily clad female mannequin; when confronted by Church (playing his companion), he claimed that he thought it was an Auton.
The Autons appear as sketches in John Smith's A Journal of Impossible Things in the episode "Human Nature
Human Nature (Doctor Who episode)
"Human Nature" is the eighth episode of the third series of the revived British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is the first episode of a two-part story written by Paul Cornell adapted from his 1995 Doctor Who novel Human Nature...
".
They appeared in issue 15 of Doctor Who - Battles in Time
Doctor Who - Battles in Time
Doctor Who – Battles in Time is a trading card game and fortnightly magazine from the partwork publishers, GE Fabbri, who acquired the license to produce Battles in Time...
in which they were the main theme of the issue.
"Autonomous" Autons, which had a piece of Nestene Consciousness inside them and developed personalities when separated from the control unit, were featured in the 2008 Eighth Doctor
Eighth Doctor
The Eighth Doctor is the eighth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by Paul McGann...
audio story "Brave New Town
Brave New Town
Brave New Town is an audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. This audio drama was produced by Big Finish Productions.-Cast:*The Doctor — Paul McGann*Lucie Miller — Sheridan Smith...
".
Other uses
In the film Alien Resurrection (1997) the character Annalee Call, when revealed as being a robot, is noted by another character to be "an Auton, a robot designed by other robots."In the book Voyage of the Shadowmoon
Voyage Of The Shadowmoon
Voyage of the Shadowmoon is the title of the first book in the The Moonworlds Saga fantasy series by Sean McMullen. The novel was first published in New York in October, 2002.-Plot introduction:...
, the term auton is used to describe self-contained autonomous magical entities, similar to the manner of homunculi.