UNIT HQ

UNIT HQ was the name given to the operating base of a UNIT branch and usually refers to the headquarters of the British arm. It is not to be confused with UNIT Central Control in Geneva, (TV: The Invasion) the command and control facility for the entire international organisation. The UNIT HQ has occupied a number of physical locations.

Military plane
During the Cybermen invasion in the 20th century, UNIT HQ was on a military cargo-type propeller-driven aircraft. The facility included offices, a command and control centre, a vehicle bay and space and equipment for a UNIT Assault Platoon. The plane served as HQ for the officer commanding unit. There was also a Wing Commander aboard who held responsibility for flight operations. This mobile base allowed UNIT to move about more easily. (TV: The Invasion)

In the early 21st century, when the UK branch were briefly framed as criminals, they escaped the country in another military plane which also served as a temporary in-transit base. (AUDIO: The Wasting)

Building in London
UNIT had a London street address, located in an anonymous-looking building near the high street in Ealing Broadway. James Stevens visited this location in his attempt to track down and get an interview with the Brigadier. (PROSE: Who Killed Kennedy)

During the Auton incident, UNIT HQ was in a building in London. This HQ included offices, a science lab and a parking garage. (TV: Spearhead from Space)

According to one account, this HQ was temporary. (PROSE: The Scales of Injustice) According to another, UNIT had to move as it became increasingly difficult to move soldiers and munitions out of a Central London car park. It was kept as a secure storage facility, mainly for paperwork but also for weapons and armour. (AUDIO: Kaleidoscope)

Building on the edge of London
For a significant part of its existence UNIT HQ was located in Priory Mews in Denham, outside of London. (PROSE: The Scales of Injustice, The Face of the Enemy, AUDIO: Bessie Come Home) The priory had previously been home to Marcus Scarman. It was visited by the Fourth Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith in 1911, and was burnt to the ground after an incident with Sutekh. (TV: Pyramids of Mars) The building was "haunted" by two "ghosts", actually cases of misplacement — moments in time taken out of context and looped into eternity. They were known as the Screaming Soldier and the Solitary Egyptian. The latter was an Egyptian man in Edwardian clothing, (AUDIO: Memories of Tomorrow) thus resembling Ibrahim Namin, Scarman's former assistant, who died inside the Scarman house in 1911. (TV: Pyramids of Mars)

According to one account, the Third Doctor, after rescuing Doc Dantalion, requested that he sign over ownership of his 16th century manor house. This allowed UNIT to have a rent-free HQ, and its funding (which had been cut by the government) was restored. (PROSE: Where the Heart Is) According to another account, Anne Travers was still scientific advisor when the Brigadier's "new special forces" moved into an estate which had previously belonged to an egyptologist before the building had burned down. (AUDIO: Memories of Tomorrow)

This HQ featured offices, a parking garage and a science lab. It was briefly transported to an alternate universe by the Time Lord Omega. (TV: The Three Doctors) This HQ was visited by the Second Doctor in 1983 for a UNIT reunion. (TV: The Five Doctors)

On 25 January 2005 - the thirty-fifth anniversary of Project Waxwork - a memorial service was held at UNIT HQ, attended by over fifty members accompanied by their family members, and £568 was raised, and was donated to the Veteran Serviceman's Union. This was reported on on the UNIT website. (PROSE: UNIT News)

By 2021, there was a housing estate on the land once occupied by this UNIT HQ. A building called Priory Close was located where Bessie's garage once was. (AUDIO: Bessie Come Home)

Tower of London
During the Sycorax's attack of Earth, UNIT had a HQ located under the Tower of London. (TV: The Christmas Invasion)

Later, under Kate Stewart's leadership, the Tower was used a base for tests on the Shakri cubes. (TV: The Power of Three)

Articulated truck
During the Sontaran incident in 2009, UNIT maintained a mobile base in an articulated lorry. The vehicle included offices and modern command and control facilities. Nevertheless, at this time, the official HQ was still in the Tower of London. (TV: The Sontaran Stratagem)

Headquarters in Geneva
During the Tengobushi incident, the UNIT Headquarters in Geneva was situated near the Palace of Nations, a short drive from the airport. (AUDIO: Death in Geneva)

Headquarters in New York
After Major A Highway's reorganisation of UNIT's disjointed operations in America into a single site, (PROSE: UNIT's New York Operation Expansion) the UNIT HQ in New York City was the centre of UNIT's operations in America. However, much of this base was ravaged by the Daleks in their invasion of Earth in 2009. (TV: The Stolen Earth) Later, the Tenth Doctor requested a clean-up of suspicious items sold at an auction at the Rockefeller Center from UNIT HQ, NY. (COMIC: The Fountains of Forever)