Zygon
Encyclopedia
The Zygons are a fictional extraterrestrial
race in the long-running British
science fiction television
series Doctor Who
. They first appeared in the Fourth Doctor
serial Terror of the Zygons
, where it was revealed that centuries ago, the Zygon homeworld was destroyed in a stellar explosion. A craft escaped and somehow made it to Earth
, where it then crashed into Loch Ness
. When the Doctor encountered the Zygons, they were led by a warlord named Broton. Broton wished to conquer the world to allow a refugee fleet of Zygons to colonize Earth.
The Zygons have shape-shifting abilities, allowing them to replicate the appearance of another being, but they must keep the subject alive in order to use its body print. This skill was vital in their concealment and in their scheme to seize power despite their small numbers. The Zygons were also accompanied by an armoured cyborg
creature called the Skarasen, the lactic fluid of which was necessary for them to feed. Broton planned to unleash the Skarasen (or Loch Ness Monster
as it was known) as part of a bid to conquer the Earth. The plan was foiled and both he and his crew were killed due to the intervention of the Fourth Doctor
and the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce
(UNIT). Zygon technology is biological in nature: in essence their ships and equipment are actually alive.
David Tennant
(the Tenth Doctor
) has stated that they are his favourite monsters from Doctor Who.
, a Zygon was listed as being among the prisoners kept in the titular Time Lord
prison.
A Zygon was shown trapped in a stasis pod in the Doctor Who interactive "mini-episode" Attack of the Graske
.
They were mentioned as part of the alliance in The Pandorica Opens
.
Print
The comic story "Skywatch-7", written by Alan McKenzie
(under the pseudonym "Maxwell Stockbridge") and illustrated by Mick Austin
, features a UNIT team encountering a single Zygon at a remote base. It was first published, in two parts, in Doctor Who Monthly
#58 and the Doctor Who Winter Special 1981.
The Eighth Doctor
encountered the Zygons in the spin-off novel
The Bodysnatchers
by Mark Morris
, which also named the now-destroyed Zygon homeworld as Zygor. The novel also revealed that Zygor had been destroyed as a result of an attack by an arachnid
alien race from Tau Ceti
, the Xaranti. The concept of the Zygon "sting", poisonous barbs protruding from their hands, originates from this novel; this conveniently explains why, in their television appearance, the Zygons were apparently able to inflict pain on other beings with a mere touch.
NB Actually the concept of the Zygon sting originated years earlier in the Target novelisation of the story, Terror of the Zygons which was written by Terrance Dicks and appeared in 1976 under the title Doctor Who and the Loch Ness Monster.
The Zygons appear in the New Series Adventures
novel Sting of the Zygons
by Stephen Cole
, featuring the Tenth Doctor
and Martha Jones
, which is set in the Lake District
in 1909.
, Homeland by Paul Dearing, Absolution (not to be confused with the Big Finish
play Absolution
) by Paul Ebbs and The Barnacled Baby by Anthony Keetch.
They made their Big Finish
debut in the Eighth Doctor
audio adventure The Zygon Who Fell to Earth
by Paul Magrs
and returned in Death in Blackpool
by Alan Barnes
.
promotional set, and were card number 9 in the Typhoo tea card set. Harlequin Miniatures produced two 28mm figures, and Fine Art Castings produced two Zygon figurines, sized 80mm and 40mm.
In 2008, a Zygon figure was released by Character Options
in the first wave of their classic Doctor Who toy line.
, featuring the Zygons. Early drafts were written by Lance Parkin
, and later ones by Jonathan Blum
, although both authors removed their names from the final version (which was heavily rewritten again). It was eventually released in 2008 as Zygon: When being you just isn't enough (with an 18 certificate due to scenes of an adult nature), after a post-production period of about 5 years.
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:...
race in the long-running British
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...
. They first appeared in 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....
serial Terror of the Zygons
Terror of the Zygons
Terror of the Zygons is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 30 August to 20 September 1975...
, where it was revealed that centuries ago, the Zygon homeworld was destroyed in a stellar explosion. A craft escaped and somehow made it to 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...
, where it then crashed into Loch Ness
Loch Ness
Loch Ness is a large, deep, freshwater loch in the Scottish Highlands extending for approximately southwest of Inverness. Its surface is above sea level. Loch Ness is best known for the alleged sightings of the cryptozoological Loch Ness Monster, also known affectionately as "Nessie"...
. When the Doctor encountered the Zygons, they were led by a warlord named Broton. Broton wished to conquer the world to allow a refugee fleet of Zygons to colonize Earth.
The Zygons have shape-shifting abilities, allowing them to replicate the appearance of another being, but they must keep the subject alive in order to use its body print. This skill was vital in their concealment and in their scheme to seize power despite their small numbers. The Zygons were also accompanied by an armoured cyborg
Cyborg
A cyborg is a being with both biological and artificial parts. The term was coined in 1960 when Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline used it in an article about the advantages of self-regulating human-machine systems in outer space. D. S...
creature called the Skarasen, the lactic fluid of which was necessary for them to feed. Broton planned to unleash the Skarasen (or Loch Ness Monster
Loch Ness Monster
The Loch Ness Monster is a cryptid that is reputed to inhabit Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. It is similar to other supposed lake monsters in Scotland and elsewhere, though its description varies from one account to the next....
as it was known) as part of a bid to conquer the Earth. The plan was foiled and both he and his crew were killed due to the intervention 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....
and the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce
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...
(UNIT). Zygon technology is biological in nature: in essence their ships and equipment are actually alive.
David Tennant
David Tennant
David Tennant is a Scottish actor. In addition to his work in theatre, including a widely praised Hamlet, Tennant is best known for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, along with the title role in the 2005 TV serial Casanova and as Barty Crouch, Jr...
(the 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...
) has stated that they are his favourite monsters from Doctor Who.
Television
In an unfilmed scene in Part Five of the never completed serial ShadaShada
Shada is an unaired serial of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was intended to be the final serial of the 1979-80 season , but was never completed due to a strike at the BBC during filming...
, a Zygon was listed as being among the prisoners kept in the titular 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...
prison.
A Zygon was shown trapped in a stasis pod in the Doctor Who interactive "mini-episode" Attack of the Graske
Attack of the Graske
"Attack of the Graske" is an interactive mini-episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who that was first broadcast on the BBC Red Button service on 25 December 2005. It is now available as an online game on the official Doctor Who website.-Synopsis:The human race is in...
.
They were mentioned as part of the alliance in 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...
.
Alan McKenzie
Alan McKenzie is a British comics writer known for his work at 2000 AD.-Biography:McKenzie worked for Marvel UK during the early 1980s, editing Starburst, Cinema and Doctor Who Monthly magazines. After leaving the Marvel staff in 1985, he wrote several Doctor Who comic stories for the Monthly under...
(under the pseudonym "Maxwell Stockbridge") and illustrated by Mick Austin
Mick Austin
Michael J. "Mick" Austin is a fine artist who lives and works in the UK. Initially a comic book artist and illustrator his painterly style led to him leaving this genre and concentrating on fine art in 1996.-Biography:...
, features a UNIT team encountering a single Zygon at a remote base. It was first published, in two parts, in Doctor Who Monthly
Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine is a magazine devoted to the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
#58 and the Doctor Who Winter Special 1981.
The 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...
encountered the Zygons in the spin-off novel
Eighth Doctor Adventures
The Eighth Doctor Adventures are 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. 73 books were published overall...
The Bodysnatchers
The Bodysnatchers (Doctor Who)
The Bodysnatchers is an original novel written by Mark Morris and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
by Mark Morris
Mark Morris (writer)
Mark Morris is an author known for his series of horror novels, although he has also written two novels based on the BBC Television series Doctor Who. He currently lives in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, with his wife . He has used the pseudonym J. M...
, which also named the now-destroyed Zygon homeworld as Zygor. The novel also revealed that Zygor had been destroyed as a result of an attack by an arachnid
Arachnid
Arachnids are a class of joint-legged invertebrate animals in the subphylum Chelicerata. All arachnids have eight legs, although in some species the front pair may convert to a sensory function. The term is derived from the Greek words , meaning "spider".Almost all extant arachnids are terrestrial...
alien race from Tau Ceti
Tau Ceti
Tau Ceti is a star in the constellation Cetus that is spectrally similar to the Sun, although it has only about 78% of the Sun's mass. At a distance of just under 12 light-years from the Solar System, it is a relatively close star. Tau Ceti is metal-deficient and so is thought to be less likely to...
, the Xaranti. The concept of the Zygon "sting", poisonous barbs protruding from their hands, originates from this novel; this conveniently explains why, in their television appearance, the Zygons were apparently able to inflict pain on other beings with a mere touch.
NB Actually the concept of the Zygon sting originated years earlier in the Target novelisation of the story, Terror of the Zygons which was written by Terrance Dicks and appeared in 1976 under the title Doctor Who and the Loch Ness Monster.
The Zygons appear in the New Series Adventures
New Series Adventures (Doctor Who)
The New Series Adventures are a series of novels relating to the long-running BBC science fiction television series, Doctor Who. The 'NSAs', as they are often referred to, are published by BBC Books, and are regularly published in the spring and autumn of each year. Beginning and concluding with...
novel Sting of the Zygons
Sting of the Zygons
Sting of the Zygons is a BBC Books original novel written by Stephen Cole and based on the long running science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Tenth Doctor and Martha Jones...
by Stephen Cole
Stephen Cole (writer)
Stephen Cole is an author of children's books and science fiction. He was also in charge of BBC Worldwide's merchandising of the BBC Television series Doctor Who between 1997 and 1999: this was a role which found him deciding on which stories should be released on video, commissioning and editing...
, featuring the 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...
and Martha Jones
Martha Jones
Martha Jones is a fictional character played by Freema Agyeman in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. She is a companion of the Tenth Doctor in Doctor Who, replacing Rose Tyler...
, which is set in the Lake District
Lake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
in 1909.
Audio
The Zygons have been featured in three audio plays produced by BBVBBV
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...
, Homeland by Paul Dearing, Absolution (not to be confused with the Big Finish
Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays based, primarily, on cult British science fiction properties...
play Absolution
Absolution (Doctor Who audio)
Absolution is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.-Cast:*The Doctor — Paul McGann*Charley — India Fisher*C'rizz — Conrad Westmaas*Aboresh - Robert Glenister...
) by Paul Ebbs and The Barnacled Baby by Anthony Keetch.
They made their Big Finish
Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays based, primarily, on cult British science fiction properties...
debut in the 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 adventure The Zygon Who Fell to Earth
The Zygon Who Fell to Earth
The Zygon Who Fell to Earth 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.-Plot:...
by Paul Magrs
Paul Magrs
Paul Magrs is a writer and lecturer. He was born in Jarrow, Tyne and Wear, England, and now lives in Manchester with his partner, author and lecturer Jeremy Hoad.-Early life:...
and returned in Death in Blackpool
Death in Blackpool
Death in Blackpool 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.-Plot:...
by Alan Barnes
Alan Barnes (writer)
Alan Barnes is a British writer and editor, particularly noted for work in the field of cult film and television.-Biography:Barnes served as the editor of Judge Dredd Megazine from 2001 until December 2005, during which time the title saw a considerable increase in the number of new strip pages. ...
.
Merchandise
The Zygons were featured in the second Doctor Who WeetabixWeetabix
Weetabix is a whole grain wheat breakfast cereal produced by Weetabix Limited of the United Kingdom. It comes in the form of palm-sized biscuits. Variants include organic and Weetabix Minis versions. The UK cereal is manufactured in Burton Latimer, Kettering, United Kingdom and in Canada and...
promotional set, and were card number 9 in the Typhoo tea card set. Harlequin Miniatures produced two 28mm figures, and Fine Art Castings produced two Zygon figurines, sized 80mm and 40mm.
In 2008, a Zygon figure was released by Character Options
Character Options
Character Options is a British toy company, notable for having both the Disney and Doctor Who toy licenses. It hit the headlines during 2007 as the UK distributor for the Bindeez range of products was recalled due to a dangerous chemical.-Doctor Who:...
in the first wave of their classic Doctor Who toy line.
Zygon (BBV production)
Zygon is a spin-off drama production from BBVBBV
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...
, featuring the Zygons. Early drafts were written by Lance Parkin
Lance Parkin
Lance Parkin is a British author, best known for writing fiction and reference books for television series, in particular Doctor Who and Emmerdale...
, and later ones by Jonathan Blum
Jonathan Blum
Jonathan Blum is an American writer most known for his work for various Doctor Who spin-offs, usually with his wife Kate Orman although he has also been published on his own...
, although both authors removed their names from the final version (which was heavily rewritten again). It was eventually released in 2008 as Zygon: When being you just isn't enough (with an 18 certificate due to scenes of an adult nature), after a post-production period of about 5 years.