The Time Monster (TV story)

The Time Monster was the fifth and final story of Season 9.

Synopsis
The Master, in the guise of Professor Thascalos, has constructed at the Newton Institute in Wootton a device known as TOMTIT - Transmission Of Matter Through Interstitial Time - with which to gain control over Kronos, a creature from outside time. The creature is summoned but proves uncontrollable.

Part one
The Doctor is sitting before the Master, who stands next to a crystal, laughing. Explosions resound.

In UNIT HQ, Jo wakes the Doctor. He enquires if there have been any reports of volcanic eruptions or earthquakes lately.

The Master - or Professor Thascalos, as he calls himself - is holding the crystal the Doctor saw in his dream. He's in a laboratory at the Newton Institute, working with Dr. Ruth Ingram. The crystal, the Master claims, is no different than any other piece of quartz, yet it is. Stuart Hyde enters. He is working with them. The Master leaves them to conduct further experiments. After he has left, Ruth comments that she doesn't know which is more annoying: "his dictatorial manner or that infernal courtesy of his."

At UNIT HQ, Mike Yates points out the Thera group of islands where the quakes have struck. Jo mentions Atlantis, telling the Doctor that Thera is reputedly its location.

The Doctor talks to the Brigadier on the phone and tells him to put out a worldwide warning to every section of UNIT, all the UNIT HQs. He explains it is due to a dream he had about a half hour ago. The Brigadier joins him and the Doctor explains that he is too busy to see the TOMTIT demonstration at the Newton Institute, so Benton is asked to go instead.

At the institute, the Master hypnotises the Director, Dr. Charles Percival, into believing him about his TOMTIT experiments and his credentials. In the lab, Ruth and Stu decided to run the test without "the Professor". Outside, a window cleaner observes their efforts, having been distracted from his work.

At UNIT HQ, the Doctor is using a time sensor to detect the Master. It activates, showing a TARDIS in use. The experiment at the institute shows that the jar at one end is disappearing and then reappearing at the other. Looking at the clock outside his window, the Master notices that it has slowed down. The experiment is causing an overload, but Ruth and Stu contain it. Outside, the window cleaner falls from his ladder.

Meanwhile, the Doctor and Jo decide to follow the signal. They set off in Bessie. Back at the institute, the Master confronts Ruth and Stu, berating them for their foolishness. They tell him about the overload and he tells them they were drawing power from outside time itself. Stu looks out the window; a convoy is approaching with a UNIT Jeep in it. The Master tells Ruth and Stu to leave him to his work.

The Doctor and Jo realise that the signal must be coming from Wootton, where the institute is. Using Bessie's super-drive function, they speed along. UNIT arrive at the institute and find the window cleaner, alive but injured.

The Brigadier, Benton, Dr. Cook, his aide Proctor and Percival enter the control room with Ruth at the research station. Cook complains about his pheasant lunch and expenditures. The Master enters in a radiation suit, his features hidden.

The test begins and Ruth warns the Master that the power is overloading. Stu is in the crystal room. He gets too much power and can't control it. He yells at them to switch off. Ruth yells at the Professor to turn it off. The Master only yells out, "Come, Kronos, come!!!"

Part Two
The Doctor and Jo arrive in Bessie. Jo seems to freeze. The Doctor runs to the laboratory, where he orders Ruth to reverse the polarity and cut the power. They go to help Stu, only to find he has been aged to an eighty year old man.

Different theories are suggested - radiation and a change in metabolism, both of which the Doctor denies. The Brigadier points out that the only thing that makes people age naturally is the passing of time; the Doctor realises this is the explanation - Stu's personal time has been vastly accelerated. They find out that Professor Thascalos is the Master (Thascalos is Greek for Master).

Stu wakes up and starts rambling. The Doctor demands he tell what he saw. With difficulty, Stu replies "Kronos!" The Doctor and Ruth go back to the laboratory whilst the Brigadier orders troops sent from UNIT, as well as the Doctor's TARDIS. He tells Percival to order an evacuation of the building of all but essential personnel, by 3 o' clock.

Meanwhile, Ruth shows the Doctor the crystal. He explains that outside space-time live creatures called Chronovores, time eaters. Kronos is the most fearsome of the lot. The Doctor explains that the crystal is the original from Atlantis, which summoned Kronos.

Percival finds the Master in his study, and panics. The Master hypnotises him into not worrying and continues with his sums. Both the Doctor and the Master are confused about the earlier power build up, which logically shouldn't have happened. The Doctor discovers that the crystal has been moved through interstitial time. This means it really is the original crystal used to summon Kronos in Atlantis.

The Master tricks Benton out of the laboratory by faking instructions from the Brigadier. Benton, however, climbs back in through the window, having seen through the Master's ruse. The Master knocks him out, and summons an Atlantean priest called Krasis.

Whilst the Master orders Krasis to give him the secret to controlling Kronos, Benton escapes and warns the Doctor. Kronos is summoned and devours Percival. The Brigadier, Benton and Ruth all begin to run in slow motion, so the Doctor pulls them out of the time field. Stu's ageing is suddenly reversed, returning his age to twenty-five. The Doctor orders them all back inside.

The Master returns Kronos to the crystal, which Krasis claims is but a portion of the original. In Atlantis, Hippius asks Lord Dallius if the time has come for Kronos to return at last. Dallius is old enough to remember the time of Kronos and fears his return. He shows Hippius the true crystal, which is guarded by a creature "too horrible to imagine".

The Doctor cobbles together a time flow analog, which works like jamming a radio signal. He claims he made them at school to spoil his fellow student's time experiments. It works, until the Master uses the TOMTIT device to overload it. He sets about delaying the convoy from UNIT, using a medieval knight, a troop of Roundheads and a Doodlebug (a German bomb).

The Doctor, Jo and the Brigadier go to meet the convoy. Fortunately they are unharmed. Ruth, Stu and Benton go to the laboratory to stop the Master. The Doctor and Jo follow in the Doctor's TARDIS, using the time sensor as a homing device and placing the Doctor's TARDIS inside the Master's.

The Doctor explains that if the frequency of the two TARDISes is too high, even by a fraction, a Time Ram will occur - utter annihilation. This does not dissuade Jo, so they take off. According to the Doctor, the length of time the journey seems to take (it really takes no time at all) depends on the mood of the TARDIS.

They end up stuck in a space loop with the Master's TARDIS - if they enter one, they come out into the other. The UNIT convoy arrives at the Institute, but the Master freezes them in space-time. Krasis and he escape into the TARDIS, leaving Benton, Ruth and Stu trapped inside the building. As this is going on, the Master taunts the Doctor, pointing out that he could easily throw his enemy into the Time Vortex and refusing to listen to the Doctor. When the Doctor forces the sound of his voice through to the Master's TARDIS, the Master feeds the words back to him and makes them come out as garbled nonsense.

With no other options, the Doctor orders Jo to close the door behind him when he steps into the Master's TARDIS. Yet again the Master refuses to listen to reason and summons Kronos, who devours the Doctor. The Master sends Kronos back into the crystal and breaks the lock on the Doctor's TARDIS, sending it and Jo tumbling off through the Vortex.

Jo hears the Doctor calling to her, along with many other whispering voices. He explains they are his subconscious thoughts and tells her not to listen too closely. The TARDIS is relaying his thoughts through to Jo; she follows his instructions and pulls a red handle on the third control panel, allowing the TARDIS to pull the Doctor out of the Vortex.

Cast

 * The Doctor - Jon Pertwee
 * Jo Grant - Katy Manning
 * Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart - Nicholas Courtney
 * Sergeant Benton - John Levene
 * Captain Mike Yates - Richard Franklin
 * The Master - Roger Delgado
 * Dr. Ruth Ingram - Wanda Moore
 * Stuart Hyde - Ian Collier
 * Dr. Percival - John Wyse
 * Dr. Cook - Neville Barber
 * Proctor - Barry Ashton
 * Window cleaner - Terry Walsh
 * Krasis - Donald Eccles
 * Hippias - Aidan Murphy
 * Neophite - Keith Dalton
 * UNIT Sergeant - Simon Legree
 * Kronos - Marc Boyle
 * Dalios - George Cormack
 * Knight - Greg Powell
 * Roundhead officer - Dave Carter
 * Farmworker - George Lee
 * Galleia - Ingrid Pitt
 * Crito - Derek Murcott
 * Lakis - Susan Penhaligon
 * Miseus - Michael Walker
 * Guard - Melville Jones
 * Minotaur - Dave Prowse
 * Face of Kronos - Ingrid Bower

Crew

 * Assistant Floor Manager - Rosemary Hester
 * Costumes - Barbara Lane
 * Designer - Tim Gleeson
 * Film Cameraman - Peter Hamilton
 * Film Editor - Martyn Day
 * Incidental Music - Dudley Simpson
 * Make-Up - Joan Barrett
 * Producer - Barry Letts
 * Production Assistant - Marion McDougall
 * Script Editor - Terrance Dicks
 * Special Sounds - Dick Mills
 * Studio Lighting - Derek Hobday
 * Studio Sound - Tony Millier
 * Theme Arrangement - Delia Derbyshire
 * Title Music - Ron Grainer
 * Visual Effects Designer - Michealjohn Harris

The Doctor

 * The Doctor's reaction times are ten times faster than those of a human.
 * The Doctor talks to Jo (while they're tied up) about his home: "When I was a little boy, we used to live in a house that was perched halfway up the top of a mountain. Behind our house, there sat under a tree an old man. A hermit, a monk. He'd lived under this tree for half his lifetime, so they said, and had learned the secret of life. So, when my black day came, I went and asked him to help me.'"
 * The Doctor asks Jo not to listen too closely to his subconscious thoughts, saying he's "...not all that proud of some of them". At least one of the voices seems to be humming thoughtlessly.

The Doctor's items

 * Bessie has brakes that absorb inertia, resulting in an instant, safe stop, even at high speeds.

Earth locations

 * Atlantis is destroyed.

Governments

 * The Seventh Enabling Act allows the Brigadier to take over from government forces.

Individuals

 * Kronos knows of the Doctor.
 * The Chronovore spares the Master.

The Master

 * The Master is capable of flawlessly imitating the voice of another, such as the Brigadier.

TARDISes

 * The Doctor tells Jo the TARDIS has been redecorated. (The Master's TARDIS appears to have undergone a similar redecoration.)
 * Jo uses The Master's TARDIS to time ram the Doctor's (both the Doctor and the Master hesitated to start the time ram).
 * The perceived speed of a journey outside of space-time (i.e. in the Time Vortex) depends, according to the Doctor, on the mood of the TARDIS.

Temporal theory

 * The Doctor makes a Time flow analogue from a Moroccan burgundy bottle, spoons, forks, corks, keyrings, tea leaves and a mug.
 * The Doctor gets ejected into the time vortex and speaks to Jo through the TARDIS telepathic circuits.
 * The Doctor has built a time sensor which detects disturbances in the time field.
 * The effect of the crystal ages Stuart by over fifty years. Despite this, his nails and hair do not grown out to match his rapid ageing.

Transport technology

 * The TOMTIT machine works with assistance from the Master.

Story notes

 * During the Doctor's vision, the volcano stock footage used in the title sequence of the parallel Earth story DW: Inferno is re-used.
 * This is the only appearance of the "washing up bowl" interior for the TARDIS (designed by Tim Gleeson).
 * Dave Prowse, later to play (but not voice) the masked Darth Vader in the Star Wars films, features in an equally incognito role as the Minotaur. He was also well-known for playing the Green Cross Code man in 70's ITV public information films, as well as having a small part in Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange.
 * The Doctor's TARDIS and the Master's TARDIS would again materialise inside one another in DW: Logopolis.
 * Ian Collier (Stuart Hyde) would later play Omega in DW: Arc of Infinity and BFA: Omega.
 * Neville Barber (Dr Humphrey Cook) would later play Howard Baker in KAC: A Girl's Best Friend.

Ratings

 * Episode 1 - 7.6 million viewers
 * Episode 2 - 7.4 million viewers
 * Episode 3 - 8.1 million viewers
 * Episode 4 - 7.6 million viewers
 * Episode 5 - 6.0 million viewers
 * Episode 6 - 7.6 million viewers

Myths

 * Well-known actress Susan Penhaligon, making an early television appearance as Galleia's handmaiden Lakis, was originally to have been credited as Virginia Mull. (Virginia Mull was a different actress who had a small uncredited walk-on role as a serving girl in the Atlantis scenes of this story. Susan Penhaligon, who was a late replacement for actress Ann Michelle, was always to have been credited under her own name.)
 * The Master's alias is 'Thascales'. (The majority of printed and online episode guides say this. Unfortunately, (a) 'Thascales' isn't the Greek for 'Master', and (b) no-one in the story says 'Thascales'. They all say 'Thascalos', which is the Greek for 'Master'. The error first appears in the second edition of Terrance Dicks and Malcolm Hulke's The Making of Doctor Who, and presumably has been taken from there by all subsequent episode guides, without checking against the broadcast episodes. Terrance Dicks, however, has the correct spelling in the novelization.)

Filming locations

 * Swallowfield Park, Swallowfield, Berkshire
 * Stratfield Saye Park, Stratfield Saye, Hampshire
 * Old Church Farm (road), Hartley Wintney, Hampshire
 * Park Lane, Fair Cross, Berkshire
 * School Lane, Heckfield Heath/Riseley, Hampshire
 * Ealing Television Film Studios, Ealing Green, Ealing
 * BBC Television Centre (Studio 3 & 4), Shepherd's Bush, London

Production errors

 * In episode one, the interior of the police box prop is visible.
 * Jo is obviously operating a button with her index finger on the time sensor in episode 1 in order to make the prop spin as it "detects" the Doctor's TARDIS.
 * The crystal moves when Benton tries to lift it, even as he and the Doctor talk about it being impossible to move.
 * The Doctor doesn't close the TARDIS door all the way before taking off with Jo, yet it is completely shut when they dematerialise.
 * The V1 footage is black and white.
 * The Doctor's supposedly backwards dialogue when played backwards is still gibberish.
 * The smashed "mirror" in episode 6 is obviously made of foil.

Continuity

 * PDA: The Quantum Archangel is a sequel to this story.
 * Another Chronovore appears in NA: No Future.
 * This features (another) explanation of how Atlantis was destroyed; DW: The Underwater Menace and DW: The Dæmons also featured explanations of this.
 * The Doctor goes for another 'dip' in the time vortex in DW: Shada / WC: Shada / BFA: Shada and BFA: Seasons of Fear.
 * The Doctor builds a device similar to his time sensor in DW: Blink.
 * The Doctor mentions a "crack in time", which appears again in DW: The Eleventh Hour.
 * The Doctor mentions a hermit he used to talk to on Gallifrey. This hermit would later be given a name and appear in DW: Planet of the Spiders.
 * The Doctor again referenced his hermit friend to Romana. (DW: State of Decay)

For the Doctor and Jo

 * This story occurs after TVA: Who is the Stranger.
 * This story occurs before ST: Morphology.

For the Brigadier

 * This story occurs after: DW: Day of the Daleks.
 * This story occurs before: DW: The Three Doctors.

For the Master

 * This story occurs after: DW: The Sea Devils.
 * This story occurs before: DW: Frontier in Space.

DVD releases

 * This story was first released on DVD in the UK on 29 March 2010 as part of the Myths and Legends Boxset. The one disc set includes a restored version of the story, as well as the following special features:
 * Commentary by John Levene (Benton), Susan Penhaligon (Lakis), Barry Letts (Producer), Marion McDougall (Production Assistant), Graham Duff (Fan/Writer), Phil Ford (Fan/Writer), Joe Lidster (Fan/Writer), James Moran (Fan/Writer) and Toby Hadoke (Moderator).
 * Between Now… And Now!
 * Restoration Comparison
 * Coming Soon Trailer
 * Radio Times Billings
 * Production Subtitles
 * Photo Gallery


 * Editing for DVD release was completed by the Doctor Who Restoration Team.

VHS releases
This story was released in the UK as Doctor Who: The Time Monster in November 2001 (as part of the Master box set which also contains DW: Colony in Space).