The Monster of Peladon
Encyclopedia
The Monster of Peladon is a serial in the British
science fiction
television series Doctor Who
, which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from 23 March to 27 April 1974.
returns, this time with Sarah
, to the planet Peladon, where once again the sacred beast Aggedor casts its shadow.
Another alien presence reaches the Citadel: the TARDIS, bearing the Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith
. He recalls his visit to Peladon fifty years earlier when the planet joined the Galactic Federation, and is pleased to find a familiar face in Alpha Centauri
, the Federation Ambassador. The Queen knows of the Doctor from her father and enlists his support in trying to find the cause of the manifestations of Aggedor. He guesses someone is deliberately trying to interrupt trisilicate production, and they seem to have succeeded when the miners decide to strike. Ettis then leads an attack on the Federation armoury and gets weapons for the striking miners. This looks like damaging trisilicate supplies even further, so Engineer Eckersley, a human in charge of the refinery, sends for Federation troops to help restore order.
Both the miners and the Pel leaders are unhappy with the notion of Federation occupation, especially when the Ice Warrior
force displays its ruthlessness in shooting down Pels. The sole concern of the force leader, Commander Azaxyr, is to maintain trisilicate production. There is now a realignment in Pel politics: Ortron and Gebek join forces in seeking to rid the planet of the Martians. Ettis, however, has become crazed and is killed trying to blow up the Citadel. The Ice Warriors now impose martial law on the capital, imprisoning the Queen and her courtiers, and even killing Ortron when he tries to flee.
The truth is now revealed: Azaxyr and Eckersley are both Galaxy Five agents and have engineered the crisis and occupation as a means to control the trisilicate supply. The Aggedor apparition was just an image created to support the panic. Gebek now leads the Pels in a final assault on the Ice Warriors, and Azaxyr and the other invaders are killed. Eckersley himself is killed by the real Aggedor when he attacks the Queen, though sadly the beast dies in the process. News now reaches Peladon that Galaxy Five has capitulated, its Peladon stratagem exhausted, and Queen Thalira seeks to repair Pel society when she appoints Gebek her new Chancellor. As ever, the Doctor and Sarah slip away quietly.
, was published by Target Books
in December 1980.
Target novelisation
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
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
television 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...
, which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from 23 March to 27 April 1974.
Synopsis
The Third DoctorThird 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....
returns, this time with Sarah
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....
, to the planet Peladon, where once again the sacred beast Aggedor casts its shadow.
Plot
On the planet Peladon a power struggle is in place between the trisilicate miners and the ruling class, with miners under the leadership of Gebek and hot-headed Ettis calling for improved conditions. The planet’s ruler Queen Thalira, daughter of the late King Peladon, is sympathetic, but knows her planet is vital to supply the war effort of the Galactic Federation of which it is a member. The Federation is in conflict with the warlike Galaxy Five confederation. The Pels become concerned when a vision of Aggedor, the royal beast, starts appearing in the mines and killing miners, including the alien engineer Vega Nexos. Chancellor Ortron tries to convince the Queen this is a sign of displeasure at the alien presence on the planet, but she remains unconvinced.Another alien presence reaches the Citadel: the TARDIS, bearing the Doctor and 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....
. He recalls his visit to Peladon fifty years earlier when the planet joined the Galactic Federation, and is pleased to find a familiar face in Alpha Centauri
Alpha Centauri (Doctor Who)
Alpha Centauri, played by Stuart Fell and voiced by Ysanne Churchman, is a fictional alien delegate for the Galactic Federation who appears in two serials of the BBC television series Doctor Who.-Character traits:...
, the Federation Ambassador. The Queen knows of the Doctor from her father and enlists his support in trying to find the cause of the manifestations of Aggedor. He guesses someone is deliberately trying to interrupt trisilicate production, and they seem to have succeeded when the miners decide to strike. Ettis then leads an attack on the Federation armoury and gets weapons for the striking miners. This looks like damaging trisilicate supplies even further, so Engineer Eckersley, a human in charge of the refinery, sends for Federation troops to help restore order.
Both the miners and the Pel leaders are unhappy with the notion of Federation occupation, especially when the Ice Warrior
Ice Warrior
The Ice Warriors are a fictional extraterrestrial race of reptilian-like humanoids in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The race originated on Mars, and first appeared in the 1967 serial The Ice Warriors where they encountered the Second Doctor and his...
force displays its ruthlessness in shooting down Pels. The sole concern of the force leader, Commander Azaxyr, is to maintain trisilicate production. There is now a realignment in Pel politics: Ortron and Gebek join forces in seeking to rid the planet of the Martians. Ettis, however, has become crazed and is killed trying to blow up the Citadel. The Ice Warriors now impose martial law on the capital, imprisoning the Queen and her courtiers, and even killing Ortron when he tries to flee.
The truth is now revealed: Azaxyr and Eckersley are both Galaxy Five agents and have engineered the crisis and occupation as a means to control the trisilicate supply. The Aggedor apparition was just an image created to support the panic. Gebek now leads the Pels in a final assault on the Ice Warriors, and Azaxyr and the other invaders are killed. Eckersley himself is killed by the real Aggedor when he attacks the Queen, though sadly the beast dies in the process. News now reaches Peladon that Galaxy Five has capitulated, its Peladon stratagem exhausted, and Queen Thalira seeks to repair Pel society when she appoints Gebek her new Chancellor. As ever, the Doctor and Sarah slip away quietly.
Continuity
- This story is a sequel to The Curse of PeladonThe Curse of PeladonThe Curse of Peladon is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 29 January to 19 February 1972.-Synopsis:...
, and features same themes. - Sarah Jane refers to these events in the episodes "The Temptation of Sarah Jane SmithThe Temptation of Sarah Jane SmithThe Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith is a story of The Sarah Jane Adventures which was broadcast on CBBC on 17 and 24 November 2008. It is the fifth serial of the second series.-Part 1:...
" and "Death of the DoctorDeath of the DoctorDeath of the Doctor is a two-part story of The Sarah Jane Adventures which was broadcast on CBBC on 25 and 26 October 2010. It is the third story of the fourth series. This episode features the return of Katy Manning to the role of Jo Grant and a guest appearance by Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor...
" in The Sarah Jane AdventuresThe Sarah Jane AdventuresThe Sarah Jane Adventures is a British science fiction television series, produced by BBC Cymru Wales for CBBC, created by Russell T Davies and starring Elisabeth Sladen...
. - The Fifth DoctorFifth DoctorThe Fifth Doctor is the fifth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He is portrayed by Peter Davison....
returns to Peladon in the Big FinishBig Finish ProductionsBig Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays based, primarily, on cult British science fiction properties...
audio play The Bride of PeladonThe Bride of PeladonThe Bride of Peladon is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.-Cast:*The Doctor — Peter Davison*Peri — Nicola Bryant*Erimem — Caroline Morris*Beldonia — Phyllida Law...
. - The Third Doctor Big Finish visits the planet again in the Companion Chronicles story The Prisoner of PeladonThe Prisoner of PeladonThe Prisoner of Peladon is a Big Finish Productions audiobook based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
.
Production
- The mineral was named Trisilicate because Barry LettsBarry LettsBarry Leopold Letts was a British actor, television director, writer and producer best known for his work on the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who, and for producing the BBC's Sunday Classic drama serials in the late 1970s and early 1980s...
saw it listed on the back of a tube of Boots Toothpaste as one of the ingredients.
Cast notes
- The character played by Roy Evans is credited as 'Miner' on-screen, but is named as Rima in dialogue – and is also credited as such in the Radio TimesRadio TimesRadio Times is a UK weekly television and radio programme listings magazine, owned by the BBC. It has been published since 1923 by BBC Magazines, which also provides an on-line listings service under the same title...
.
In print
A novelisation of this serial, written by Terrance DicksTerrance Dicks
Terrance Dicks is an English writer, best known for his work in television and for writing a large number of popular children's books during the 1970s and 80s.- Early career :...
, was published by Target Books
Target Books
Target Books was a British publishing imprint, established in 1973 by Universal-Tandem Publishing Co Ltd, a paperback publishing company. The imprint was established as a children's imprint to complement the adult Tandem imprint, and became well known for their highly successful range of...
in December 1980.
VHS, DVD and CD release
- The serial was released on VHSVHSThe Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
on 27 December 1995. - The serial was released on Audio CDRed Book (audio CD standard)Red Book is the standard for audio CDs . It is named after one of the Rainbow Books, a series of books that contain the technical specifications for all CD and CD-ROM formats.The first edition of the Red Book was released in 1980 by Philips and Sony; it was adopted by the Digital Audio Disc...
with linking narration by Elisabeth SladenElisabeth SladenElisabeth Clara Heath-Sladen was an English actress best known for her role as Sarah Jane Smith in the British television series Doctor Who. She was a regular cast member from 1973 to 1976, alongside both Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker, and reprised the role many times in subsequent decades, both on...
, on 3 March 2008. - The serial was released on DVDDVDA DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
on 18 January 2010 in a boxset entitled 'Peladon Tales', along with The Curse of Peladon
External links
Fan reviewsTarget novelisation