The Tomb of the Cybermen
Encyclopedia
The Tomb of the Cybermen is a serial in the British
science fiction television series Doctor Who
that originally aired in four weekly parts from September 2 to September 23, 1967 and is the earliest serial starring Patrick Troughton
as the Second Doctor
to exist in its entirety. It stars Frazer Hines
and Deborah Watling
as companions Jamie McCrimmon
and Victoria Waterfield
and features recurring villains the Cybermen
, as well as the introduction of the Cyberman Controller and the Cybermats.
The TARDIS
lands nearby, and the expedition is joined by the Doctor
, Jamie
and Victoria
. Parry, the expedition's leader, explains that they are here to find the remains of the Cybermen, who apparently died out five centuries before. The expedition is funded by Kaftan, who is accompanied by her giant manservant Toberman and her colleague Klieg.
A man is electrocuted opening the doors, but the party manages to enter the chamber. They find a control panel and a large, sealed hatch. The Doctor is able to open two hidden doors in the walls, but the hatch remains sealed. Parry and Klieg continue to try and open it as Toberman slips out.
The remaining members of the expedition begin to explore. Victoria and Kaftan come across a chamber with a sarcophagus
-like wall inset facing a projection device that was apparently used to revitalise the Cybermen. Victoria curiously climbs inside. Kaftan secretly seals Victoria in the sarcophagus and tries to activate the projector pointing at the sarcophagus but the Doctor, thinking Victoria had only accidentally locked herself in, frees her.
Meanwhile, Haydon and Jamie have been experimenting with a control panel in another room; a Cyberman slides into view and a gun fires, killing Haydon.
The Doctor points out that Haydon was shot in the back. Throwing the switches again, the Cyberman -in reality an empty shell - is destroyed by the gun which emerges from a hidden panel, showing that the room is actually a testing range.
Outside, Toberman reports to Kaftan that "It is done." Captain Hopper, the expedition's pilot, returns and angrily reveals that someone has sabotaged the rocket ship
— they cannot leave the planet until repairs are made.
The hatch is finally opened. Leaving Kaftan and Victoria behind, the men descend through the hatch. They find a vast chamber beneath, with a multistorey structure containing cells of frozen Cybermen.
Back in the control room, Kaftan drugs Victoria and reseals the hatch. Inside it, Klieg activates more controls in the tomb and the ice begins to melt. When Viner tries to stop him, Klieg shoots him dead and holds the rest at bay as the Cybermen return to life. Klieg reveals that he and Kaftan belong to the Brotherhood of Logicians, who possess great intelligence but no physical power. He is certain the Cybermen will be grateful for their revival and will ally themselves with him.
Victoria awakes and confronts Kaftan, who threatens to shoot her if she tries opening the hatch. A small mechanical cybermat revives and attacks Kaftan, rendering her unconscious. Victoria grabs Kaftan's pistol and shoots the cybermat. Not knowing which lever opens the hatch, she leaves to find Hopper.
Down in the tombs, the Cybermen free their leader, the Cyberman Controller, from his cell. When Klieg steps forward to take the credit for reviving them, the Cybercontroller grabs and crushes his hand, declaring, "You belong to us; You shall be like us."
The Doctor realises that the tombs were an elaborate trap: the Cybermen were waiting for beings intelligent enough to decipher the controls to free them. The expedition will be converted into Cybermen in preparation for a new invasion of Earth.
In the control room, Capt. Hopper and Callum have figured out how to open the hatch. Hopper descends into the tombs, and uses smoke grenades to distract the Cybermen while the humans make their escape - all but Toberman, who has his arms cybernetically converted.
Klieg and Kaftan are moved into the testing range to keep them out of mischief while the others decide on their next course of action. Klieg extricates the weapon from wall, an X-ray laser
he calls a cybergun, to coerce the Cybermen to do their bidding. Meanwhile, the others fend off an attack by cybermats.
Klieg and Kaftan step out, and Klieg fires the laser in the direction of the Doctor.
Klieg misses, wounding Callum. He opens the hatch, and calls for the Cyberman Controller. The Controller climbs up, accompanied by Toberman, who has been partially cyberconverted and is under Cyberman control. The Controller moves slowly, as his energy is running low — most of the Cybermen have been ordered back to their tombs to conserve power. Klieg says he will allow the Controller to be revitalised if the Cybermen help him conquer the Earth. It agrees. The Doctor helps the Controller into the sarcophagus in an attempt to trap it there, but the revitalised Controller is too strong and breaks free. Toberman knocks Klieg unconscious. The Controller picks up Klieg's cybergun and kills Kaftan when she tries to block its return to the tombs.
The death of Kaftan and the urging of the Doctor shake Toberman out of his controlled state. He struggles with the Controller and hurls it into a control panel, apparently killing it. The Doctor, wanting to make sure the Cybermen are no longer a threat, goes back down into the tombs with Toberman. Klieg regains consciousness and sneaks down with the cybergun and revives the Cybermen once again. Klieg expects to control them now that the Controller is dead, but a revived Cyberman throttles Klieg from behind and kills him. Toberman fights and kills this Cyberman by tearing open its breathing apparatus, while the Doctor and Jamie refreeze the others in their cells.
Hopper's crew have repaired the ship, and the Doctor rewires the controls to the station so they can't be used. He then sets up a circuit to electrify the doors again along with the control panels. The Controller, still alive, lurches forward. Everyone tries to shut the outer doors, but the Controller is too strong. Toberman comes forward, pushes the others aside and uses his bare hands to shut the doors. He succeeds, completing the circuit, and both he and the Controller are electrocuted.
The expedition members say good-bye to the Doctor and his companions and return to the TARDIS. No one notices a lone cybermat, moving along the ground toward Toberman's body.
, was published by Target Books
in 1978, entitled Doctor Who and The Tomb of the Cybermen.
, sound effects from Doctor Who: 30 Years at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop
and stock music used in the story. It was planned to be the first in a series of mini-albums, with The Faceless Ones
and Inside the Spaceship being mooted as future albums. Neither were produced.
This recording does not actually feature in The Tomb of the Cybermen
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 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...
that originally aired in four weekly parts from September 2 to September 23, 1967 and is the earliest serial starring Patrick Troughton
Patrick Troughton
Patrick George Troughton was an English actor most widely known for his roles in fantasy, science fiction and horror films, particularly in his role as the second incarnation of the Doctor in the long-running British science-fiction television series Doctor Who, which he played from 1966 to 1969,...
as the Second Doctor
Second Doctor
The Second Doctor is the second incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by character actor Patrick Troughton....
to exist in its entirety. It stars Frazer Hines
Frazer Hines
Frazer Hines is an English actor best known for his roles as Jamie McCrimmon in Doctor Who and Joe Sugden in Emmerdale. Hines was born in Horsforth, a civil parish of Leeds.-Acting career:...
and Deborah Watling
Deborah Watling
Deborah Watling is a British actress best known for her role as Victoria Waterfield, a companion of the Second Doctor in the BBC television series Doctor Who....
as companions Jamie McCrimmon
Jamie McCrimmon
James Robert "Jamie" McCrimmon is a fictional character played by Frazer Hines in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. A piper of the Clan McLaren who lived in 18th century Scotland, he was a companion of the Second Doctor and a regular in the programme from 1966...
and Victoria Waterfield
Victoria Waterfield
Victoria Waterfield is a fictional character played by Deborah Watling in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. A native of Victorian England, she was a companion of the Second Doctor and a regular in the programme from 1967 to 1968.-Character history:Victoria first...
and features recurring villains the Cybermen
Cyberman
The Cybermen are a fictional race of cyborgs who are amongst the most persistent enemies of the Doctor in the British science fiction television series, Doctor Who. Cybermen were originally a wholly organic species of humanoids originating on Earth's twin planet Mondas that began to implant more...
, as well as the introduction of the Cyberman Controller and the Cybermats.
Plot
On the planet Telos, an archeological expedition uncovers a hidden entrance in a mountain.The TARDIS
TARDIS
The TARDISGenerally, TARDIS is written in all upper case letters—this convention was popularised by the Target novelisations of the 1970s...
lands nearby, and the expedition is joined by 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....
, Jamie
Jamie McCrimmon
James Robert "Jamie" McCrimmon is a fictional character played by Frazer Hines in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. A piper of the Clan McLaren who lived in 18th century Scotland, he was a companion of the Second Doctor and a regular in the programme from 1966...
and Victoria
Victoria Waterfield
Victoria Waterfield is a fictional character played by Deborah Watling in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. A native of Victorian England, she was a companion of the Second Doctor and a regular in the programme from 1967 to 1968.-Character history:Victoria first...
. Parry, the expedition's leader, explains that they are here to find the remains of the Cybermen, who apparently died out five centuries before. The expedition is funded by Kaftan, who is accompanied by her giant manservant Toberman and her colleague Klieg.
A man is electrocuted opening the doors, but the party manages to enter the chamber. They find a control panel and a large, sealed hatch. The Doctor is able to open two hidden doors in the walls, but the hatch remains sealed. Parry and Klieg continue to try and open it as Toberman slips out.
The remaining members of the expedition begin to explore. Victoria and Kaftan come across a chamber with a sarcophagus
Sarcophagus
A sarcophagus is a funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved or cut from stone. The word "sarcophagus" comes from the Greek σαρξ sarx meaning "flesh", and φαγειν phagein meaning "to eat", hence sarkophagus means "flesh-eating"; from the phrase lithos sarkophagos...
-like wall inset facing a projection device that was apparently used to revitalise the Cybermen. Victoria curiously climbs inside. Kaftan secretly seals Victoria in the sarcophagus and tries to activate the projector pointing at the sarcophagus but the Doctor, thinking Victoria had only accidentally locked herself in, frees her.
Meanwhile, Haydon and Jamie have been experimenting with a control panel in another room; a Cyberman slides into view and a gun fires, killing Haydon.
The Doctor points out that Haydon was shot in the back. Throwing the switches again, the Cyberman -in reality an empty shell - is destroyed by the gun which emerges from a hidden panel, showing that the room is actually a testing range.
Outside, Toberman reports to Kaftan that "It is done." Captain Hopper, the expedition's pilot, returns and angrily reveals that someone has sabotaged the rocket ship
Spacecraft
A spacecraft or spaceship is a craft or machine designed for spaceflight. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, earth observation, meteorology, navigation, planetary exploration and transportation of humans and cargo....
— they cannot leave the planet until repairs are made.
The hatch is finally opened. Leaving Kaftan and Victoria behind, the men descend through the hatch. They find a vast chamber beneath, with a multistorey structure containing cells of frozen Cybermen.
Back in the control room, Kaftan drugs Victoria and reseals the hatch. Inside it, Klieg activates more controls in the tomb and the ice begins to melt. When Viner tries to stop him, Klieg shoots him dead and holds the rest at bay as the Cybermen return to life. Klieg reveals that he and Kaftan belong to the Brotherhood of Logicians, who possess great intelligence but no physical power. He is certain the Cybermen will be grateful for their revival and will ally themselves with him.
Victoria awakes and confronts Kaftan, who threatens to shoot her if she tries opening the hatch. A small mechanical cybermat revives and attacks Kaftan, rendering her unconscious. Victoria grabs Kaftan's pistol and shoots the cybermat. Not knowing which lever opens the hatch, she leaves to find Hopper.
Down in the tombs, the Cybermen free their leader, the Cyberman Controller, from his cell. When Klieg steps forward to take the credit for reviving them, the Cybercontroller grabs and crushes his hand, declaring, "You belong to us; You shall be like us."
The Doctor realises that the tombs were an elaborate trap: the Cybermen were waiting for beings intelligent enough to decipher the controls to free them. The expedition will be converted into Cybermen in preparation for a new invasion of Earth.
In the control room, Capt. Hopper and Callum have figured out how to open the hatch. Hopper descends into the tombs, and uses smoke grenades to distract the Cybermen while the humans make their escape - all but Toberman, who has his arms cybernetically converted.
Klieg and Kaftan are moved into the testing range to keep them out of mischief while the others decide on their next course of action. Klieg extricates the weapon from wall, an X-ray laser
Laser
A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...
he calls a cybergun, to coerce the Cybermen to do their bidding. Meanwhile, the others fend off an attack by cybermats.
Klieg and Kaftan step out, and Klieg fires the laser in the direction of the Doctor.
Klieg misses, wounding Callum. He opens the hatch, and calls for the Cyberman Controller. The Controller climbs up, accompanied by Toberman, who has been partially cyberconverted and is under Cyberman control. The Controller moves slowly, as his energy is running low — most of the Cybermen have been ordered back to their tombs to conserve power. Klieg says he will allow the Controller to be revitalised if the Cybermen help him conquer the Earth. It agrees. The Doctor helps the Controller into the sarcophagus in an attempt to trap it there, but the revitalised Controller is too strong and breaks free. Toberman knocks Klieg unconscious. The Controller picks up Klieg's cybergun and kills Kaftan when she tries to block its return to the tombs.
The death of Kaftan and the urging of the Doctor shake Toberman out of his controlled state. He struggles with the Controller and hurls it into a control panel, apparently killing it. The Doctor, wanting to make sure the Cybermen are no longer a threat, goes back down into the tombs with Toberman. Klieg regains consciousness and sneaks down with the cybergun and revives the Cybermen once again. Klieg expects to control them now that the Controller is dead, but a revived Cyberman throttles Klieg from behind and kills him. Toberman fights and kills this Cyberman by tearing open its breathing apparatus, while the Doctor and Jamie refreeze the others in their cells.
Hopper's crew have repaired the ship, and the Doctor rewires the controls to the station so they can't be used. He then sets up a circuit to electrify the doors again along with the control panels. The Controller, still alive, lurches forward. Everyone tries to shut the outer doors, but the Controller is too strong. Toberman comes forward, pushes the others aside and uses his bare hands to shut the doors. He succeeds, completing the circuit, and both he and the Controller are electrocuted.
The expedition members say good-bye to the Doctor and his companions and return to the TARDIS. No one notices a lone cybermat, moving along the ground toward Toberman's body.
Continuity
- The iconography of this serial, in particular the image of Cybermen breaking through plastic sheeting to escape their tombs, has had an influence on nearly all subsequent Cyberman stories. Likewise, the idea of Cybermen being kept in cold storage has since been a continuing theme.
- The Doctor returns to Telos in the Sixth DoctorSixth DoctorThe 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...
serial Attack of the CybermenAttack of the CybermenAttack of the Cybermen is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in two weekly parts from 5 January to 12 January 1985. It opened Season 22 of the series...
, where he also encounters the Cryons, the original inhabitants of the planet. - The story contains a rare reference to the Doctor's family. When Victoria doubts he can remember his family because of "being so ancient", the Doctor says that he can when he really wants to and "the rest of the time they sleep in my mind" because he has "so much else to think about, to remember".
- The Doctor mentions here that he is about 450 years old.
- Eleventh DoctorEleventh DoctorThe 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"...
actor Matt Smith has stated that it was watching this serial that inspired his own costume as the Doctor.
Production
Writing
- The working titles for this story were The Ice Tombs of Telos and The Cybermen Planet.
- Peter BryantPeter BryantPeter Bryant was the fourth producer of the BBC science fiction programme Doctor Who. He was born in London....
, who had previously been assistant to Gerry DavisGerry Davis (screenwriter)Gerry Davis was a British television writer, best known for his contributions to the science-fiction genre. He also wrote for the soap operas Coronation Street and United!....
and been newly promoted to script editor on the preceding story, was allowed to produce this serial in order to prove that he could take over from Innes LloydInnes LloydInnes Lloyd was a British television producer of BBC drama producers.-Doctor Who:...
as producer later on in the season. Bryant's own assistant, Victor PembertonVictor PembertonVictor Pemberton is a British writer and television producer.Victor Pemberton's scriptwriting work included BBC radio plays, and television scripts for the BBC and ITV, including Doctor Who, The Slide and The Adventures of Black Beauty.His television production work included the British version of...
acted as script editor on this serial, but left the series after production of the serial was finished, deciding that he didn't want to be a script editor. When Bryant's eventual promotion to producer came, Derrick SherwinDerrick SherwinDerrick Sherwin is a British television producer, writer, and actor. He is best known as the story editor and later producer of Doctor Who...
would become script editor. - Toberman was originally intended to be deaf, hence his lack of significant speech; his hearing aid would foreshadow his transformation into a Cyberman.
Recording
- The cybermats were controlled by various means - some by wires, some by wind-up clockwork, some by radio control, and some by simply being shoved into the shot. The scene of the Cybermen breaking out of their tombs was filmed entirely in one take.
In print
A novelisation of this serial, written by Gerry DavisGerry Davis (screenwriter)
Gerry Davis was a British television writer, best known for his contributions to the science-fiction genre. He also wrote for the soap operas Coronation Street and United!....
, 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 1978, entitled Doctor Who and The Tomb of the Cybermen.
VHS, DVD and CD releases
- When the BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's film archive was first properly audited in 1978, this serial was one of many believed missingDoctor Who missing episodesThe Doctor Who missing episodes are the instalments of the long-running British science-fiction television programme Doctor Who that have no known film or videotape copies. They were wiped by the BBC during the 1960s and 1970s for economic and space-saving reasons...
(although it is absent in earlier 1976 listings). This story was prepared for release in early 1991 on cassette as part of the "Missing Stories" collection, with narration by Jon Pertwee. Then in late 1991, film telerecordings of all four episodes were returned to the BBC from the Hong KongHong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
-based ATVAsia Television LimitedAsia Television Limited is one of the two free-to-air television broadcasters in Hong Kong, the other being rival Television Broadcasts Limited . It launched in 1957 under the name Rediffusion Television as the first television station in Hong Kong...
television company. In May 1992, the serial was released on VHSVHSThe Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
, to much fan excitement and with a special introduction from director Morris Barry. The VHS release topped the sales charts throughout the country. This was the only original Doctor Who episode from the original era to top the UK charts. - With the recovery of the film prints, the planned soundtrack release was delayed until 1993, when contractual obligations forced its release. See List of Doctor Who audio releases.
- In the UK the 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....
was released 13 January 2002. - A special edition of the DVD, with new bonus features, is to be released in 2012 in the third of the ongoing Revisitations DVD box sets.
- Following the 1993 cassette release, on 1 May 2006 the soundtrack was released on a 2-CD set with linking narration by and a bonus interview with Frazer Hines. This was the first existing story to be released on audio in the same format as the missing story range.
Music release
Stock music and sound effects from this story was released on a "mini-album" by Via Satellite in 1997. It is composed of 2 versions of the Doctor Who theme musicDoctor Who theme music
The Doctor Who theme is a piece of music composed by Ron Grainer and realised by Delia Derbyshire at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. Created in 1963, it was one of the first electronic music signature tunes for television and after nearly five decades remains one of the most easily...
, sound effects from Doctor Who: 30 Years at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop
Doctor Who: 30 Years at The BBC Radiophonic Workshop
Doctor Who: 30 Years at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop was a 1993 album celebrating the 30th anniversary of popular BBC science-fiction series Doctor Who, which had been taken off the air four years previous...
and stock music used in the story. It was planned to be the first in a series of mini-albums, with The Faceless Ones
The Faceless Ones
The Faceless Ones is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from April 8 to May 13, 1967. The story concerns a race of identity-stealing aliens known as the Chameleons...
and Inside the Spaceship being mooted as future albums. Neither were produced.
Track listing
| Track # | Composer | Track name |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ron Grainer Ron Grainer Ronald Erle “Ron” Grainer was an Australian-born composer who worked for most of his professional career in the United Kingdom. He is mostly remembered for his film and television music.- Biography :... (realised by Delia Derbyshire Delia Derbyshire Delia Ann Derbyshire was an English musician and composer of electronic music and musique concrète. She is best known for her electronic realisation of Ron Grainer's theme music to the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and for her work with the BBC Radiophonic Workshop.-Early... ) |
"Dr. Who Theme" |
| 2 | Brian Hodgson Brian Hodgson Brian Hodgson is a British television composer and sound technician. Born in Liverpool in 1938, Hodgson joined the BBC Radiophonic Workshop in 1962 where he became the original sound effects creator for the science fiction programme Doctor Who... |
"Tardis Interior" |
| 3 | "Tardis Landing" | |
| 4 | Dick Mills Dick Mills Dick Mills is a British sound engineer, specialising in electronic sound effects which he produced at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop.... |
"Tardis Doors Opening" |
| 5 | M. Slavin | "Space Adventures (Parts 1-3)" |
| 6 | J. Scott | "Palpitations" |
| 7 | E. Sendel | "Astronautics Theme (Parts 1-7)" |
| 8 | H. Fleischer | "Desert Storm" |
| 9 | Wilfred Josephs Wilfred Josephs -Life:Born in Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne, Wilfred Josephs had his first musical studies in Newcastle with Arthur Milner, and showed early promise, but was persuaded by his parents to take up a 'sensible' career. He subsequently became a dentist, qualifying as a Bachelor of Dental Surgery of the... |
"Space Time Music (Parts 1-4) |
| 10 | Brian Hodgson | "Tardis Take Off" |
| 11 | Ron Grainer (realised by Delia Derbyshire) |
"Dr. Who Theme (A New Beginning)" |
This recording does not actually feature in The Tomb of the Cybermen
External links
- Doctor Who Locations - The Tomb of the Cybermen