Black Orchid (TV story)

A series of murderes take place and the Doctor is blamed...

Synopsis
The TARDIS arrives on Earth in 1925 where, due to a case of mistaken identity, the Doctor ends up playing in a local cricket match. The travellers then accept an invitation to a masked fancy dress ball, but events take on a more sinister tone as a number of murders are perpetrated at the country home of their host Lord Cranleigh.

The Doctor comes under suspicion but the murderer is eventually revealed to be Cranleigh's brother George, who has been kept locked up in the house ever since returning in a deranged and disfigured state from an expedition up the Amazon to find the legendary black orchid. George mistakes Nyssa for his former fiancée Ann Talbot, who looks identical, and takes her up to the roof of the house. He is persuaded by the Doctor to let her go, but then falls from the roof to his death.

Part One
The TARDIS lands in 1925 and the is adressed by a Policeman and tells him he's expected, he then adresses him as the Doctor and drives him, Adric, Nyssa and Tegan to the home of the Cranleigh family. The Doctotr is imediately put into a game of Cricket. The Doctor plays superbly and brings the team back from defeat to a win. They then come into a room to meet the family. Nyssa meets Ann Talbot, the fioncee of Charles Cranleigh who is exactly alike in appearence to Nyssa except for a different hair style. They then set off to rooms they had been given and prepare for the up coming fany dress ball. The Doctor hears a sound and while investigating is trapped in a corridor. An unseen person takes the Doctors costume. Nyssa and Ann dress in the same costumes in order to trick the guests into which is which. The Doctor finds his way out of the corridor. He finds a body in a cupboard and when he finds Lady Cranleigh and Latoni, an indian, and shows them the body. The Doctor agrees to not tell the guests unless the police wish to. The unseen figure dresses himself in the Doctors costume and dances with Ann. He takes he indoors and begins to attack her. A servant attacks the figure and is killed. The figure closes in on Ann.

Cast

 * The Doctor - Peter Davison
 * Adric - Matthew Waterhouse
 * Tegan - Janet Fielding
 * Nyssa/Ann Talbot - Sarah Sutton
 * Lady Cranleigh - Barbara Murray
 * Sir Robert Muir - Moray Watson
 * Lord Charles Cranleigh - Michael Cochrane
 * Brewster - Brian Hawksley
 * Tanner - Timothy Block
 * Latoni - Ahmed Khalil
 * George Cranleigh - Gareth Milne
 * Sergeant Markham - Ivor Salter
 * Constable Cummings - Andrew Tourell
 * Digby - uncredited
 * James - uncredited

Crew

 * Assistant Floor Manager - Val McCrimmon
 * Choreographer - Gary Downie
 * Costumes - Rosalind Ebbutt
 * Designer - Tony Burrough
 * Film Cameraman - Peter Chapman
 * Film Editor - Mike Houghton
 * Incidental Music - Roger Limb
 * Make-Up - Lisa Westcott
 * Producer - John Nathan-Turner
 * Production Assistant - Juley Harding
 * Production Associate - Angela Smith
 * Script Editor - Eric Saward
 * Special Sounds - Dick Mills
 * Studio Lighting - Fred Wright
 * Studio Sound - Alan Machin
 * Theme Arrangement - Peter Howell
 * Title Music - Ron Grainer
 * Visual Effects - Tony Auger

Story Notes

 * This story has characters who not evil or bad people, but have a vested interest in maintaining appearances to avoid the embarrassment of a disfigured relative.
 * This is the first story since The Highlanders not to feature any science fiction elements (except the TARDIS) in the story.
 * The Doctor claims he always wanted to drive a train as a boy.

Ratings

 * Episode 1 - 9.9 million viewers
 * Episode 2 - 10.1 million viewers

Myths
to be added

Filming Locations
to be added

Discontinuity, Plot Holes, Errors

 * Police boxes did not exist in the 1920s (yet the policemen recognise the TARDIS for one).

Continuity

 * The Visitation follows straight into this story and so is mentioned.
 * Ace visits the Cranleigh's party and briefly meets Adric in DWM: Time & Time Again.
 * Ann Talbot reappears in MA: The Sands of Time.

DVD and Video Releases
Black Orchid was released on DVD in April 2008. It was originally schedualed for May but changed at the last moment.

Target Novelisations

 * Novelised as Black Orchid by Terence Dudley in 1987.