Delta and the Bannermen (TV story)

Synopsis
In a Welsh holiday camp, the Doctor and Mel protect the Chimeron queen Delta and her newly-hatched princess from the pursuit of Gavrok and the evil Bannermen.

Plot
On the planet of the Chimerons, the population has been wiped out by the brutal Bannermen, led by Gavrok. The last survivor is the Queen, Delta, who escapes in a Bannerman spaceship with an unhatched Chimeron egg. Gavrok and the Bannermen pursue.

The Doctor and Mel arrive at intergalactic toll port G715, where the Tollmaster informs them that by being the 10,000,000,000th customer, they've won a trip to Disneyland in the year 1959, with an intergalactic travel company Nostalgia Tours. They join a party of Navarinos, who undergo a transformation to look human. Mel joins them on their vessel, a rickety bus fitted with warp engines, but the dubious Doctor elects to follow in the TARDIS. Delta lands nearby and slips on board. The bus collides with an orbiting satellite, and plummets toward Earth. The Doctor envelops them in a gravitational field so they land safely; not in Disneyland, but in a holiday camp in Wales (Shangri-La). Burton, the camp leader, greets them warmly, mistaking them for a scheduled party. Burton enlists his camp mechanic, Billy, and his adoring assistant Ray to assist the Doctor and busdriver Murray in repairs. Gavrok and the Bannermen, however, are in hot pursuit. A bounty hunter named Keillor has infiltrated the tourists, spotted Delta, and contacted Gavrok with their location.

That night the campers enjoy a dance, with Billy leading his band. Ray, however, is heartbroken when he dedicates a song not to her, but to Delta, with whom he has fallen in love despite her green skin. The Doctor finds Ray crying in a linen room and comforts her, but they are confronted by Keillor. He recognizes the Doctor, and raises his gun...

Once Gavrok has pinpointed the location of the camp, they no longer need Keillor and dispatch him with an ionic pulse. Mel and Delta watch as the egg hatches. Billy discovers that his new girlfriend is an alien, as well as mother of a rapidly growing newborn.

The next morning, Billy and Delta slip away with the baby for a motorcycle tour of the countryside while the Doctor informs the rest of the party of the oncoming Bannermen. Mel and Murray complete the repairs of the bus. Mel stays behind to wait for the Doctor as the others board, but the Bannermen arrive and destroy the bus, killing the entire tour group. Mel convinces Gavrok -- at first -- that Delta was aboard. The Doctor and Ray catch up with Billy, Delta & the young princess, and they find shelter with a kindly beekeeper Goronwy. As the Bannermen close in, the princess repels them with a high-pitched shriek, which also causes Goronwy's bees to assist and attack.

With the help of Billy's amplified speakers (and some extra jiggery-pokery by the Doctor), the young princess's shrieks subdue the remaining Bannermen, and Gavrok is killed by a trap he set for the Doctor. Billy has been secretly eating some of the Chimeron food supply, which is transforming him into a Chimeron. He elects to leave with Delta and the princess, but Ray's heartbreak is eased when he leaves his beloved Vincent motorcycle with her.

Cast

 * The Doctor - Sylvester McCoy
 * Mel - Bonnie Langford
 * Gavrok - Don Henderson
 * Delta - Belinda Mayne
 * Weismuller - Stubby Kaye
 * Hawk - Morgan Deare
 * Tollmaster - Ken Dodd
 * Burton - Richard Davies
 * Billy - David Kinder
 * Ray - Sara Griffiths
 * Murray - Johnny Dennis
 * Keillor - Brian Hibbard
 * Chima - Tim Scott
 * Bollitt - Anita Graham
 * Adlon - Leslie Meadows
 * The Lorells - Robin Aspland, Keff McCulloch, Justin Myers, Ralph Salmins
 * Vocalists - Tracey Wilson, Jodie Wilson
 * Goronwy - Hugh Lloyd
 * Vinny - Martyn Geraint
 * Callon - Clive Condon
 * Arrex - Richard Mitchley
 * Young Chimeron - Jessica McGough, Amy Osborn
 * Chimeron Princess - Laura Collins, Carley Joseph

Crew

 * Assistant Floor Manager - Christopher Sandeman, Kim Wilcocks
 * Costumes - Richard Croft
 * Designer - John Asbridge
 * Film Cameraman - William Dudman
 * Incidental Music - Keff McCulloch
 * Make-Up - Gillian Thomas
 * OB Cameraman - Alastair Mitchell, Chas Snare
 * Producer - John Nathan-Turner
 * Production Assistant - Rosemary Parsons
 * Production Associate - Anne Faggetter
 * Script Editor - Andrew Cartmel
 * Special Sounds - Dick Mills
 * Stunt Arranger - Roy Scammell
 * Theme Arrangement - Keff McCulloch
 * Title Music - Ron Grainer
 * Visual Effects - Andy McVean

Music
The story's setting in the late-1950s resulted in a number of vintage songs from the era being heard or performed (though all had to be rerecorded by series composer Keff McCullough and the Lorells. The songs heard in the serial are: "Rock Around the Clock", "Singing the Blues", "Why Do Fools Fall in Love", "Mr. Sandman", "Goodnight, Sweetheart", "That'll Be the Day", "Only You", "Lollipop", "Who's Sorry Now?", and "Happy Days Are Here Again".

Story Notes

 * Working title for this story was: The Flight Of The Chimeron and Flight of the Chimeron.
 * The Doctor's question mark umbrella makes its first appearance.
 * Sylvester McCoy can be seen wearing his glasses - normally removed before recording - in some long shots of him riding a motor bike.
 * Keillor, the alien bounty hunter, is never referred to by name in the story's dialogue; his name is given only in the closing credits.
 * Ray was considered to be the next companion after Mel, but it was decided Ace would be.
 * This was the first 3-episode story (in the traditional 25-minute episode format) since Planet of Giants in 1964.

Ratings

 * Part 1 - 5.3 million viewers
 * Part 2 - 5.1 million viewers
 * Part 3 - 5.4 million viewers

Myths
to be added

Filming Locations

 * Springwell Lock Quarry in Rickmansworth, Buckinghamshire
 * Majestic Holiday Camp on Barry Island, South Glamorgan, Wales (The camp no longer exists, but Barry Island would be the filming location for parts of the 2005 episodes "The Empty Child" and "The Doctor Dances".)

Discontinuity, Plot Holes, Errors
to be added

Continuity

 * In NA: Return of the Living Dad Navarinos also appear.

DVD and Video Releases
to be added

Target Novelisations

 * Novelised as Delta and the Bannermen by Malcolm Kohll in 1989.