The War Machines (TV story)

The War Machines was the tenth and final story of Season 3. There were several companion cast changes in this story - Dodo Chaplet, played by Jackie Lane, left, while Polly Wright and Ben Jackson, played by Anneke Wills and Michael Craze, joined.

Synopsis
The TARDIS arrives in London in 1966 and the Doctor and Dodo visit the Post Office Tower. There they meet Professor Brett, whose revolutionary new computer WOTAN (Will Operating Thought ANalogue) can actually think for itself and is shortly to be linked up to other major computers around the world - a project overseen by civil servant Sir Charles Summer.

It transpires however that WOTAN considers that humans are inferior to machines and should therefore be ruled by them. Exerting a hypnotic influence, it arranges the construction of War Machines - heavily-armed, self-contained mobile computers - with which to take over the world.

These prove more than a match for troops, but by establishing a magnetic force field the Doctor is able to capture one of them, which he then reprograms to destroy WOTAN. Dodo, now back in her own time, decides to remain on Earth. The Doctor enters the TARDIS alone, but Brett's secretary Polly and her merchant seaman friend Ben Jackson follow him inside just before it dematerialises.

Plot
to be added

Cast

 * The Doctor - William Hartnell
 * Dodo Chaplet - Jackie Lane
 * Ben Jackson - Michael Craze
 * Polly - Anneke Wills
 * Major Green - Alan Curtis
 * Professor Brett - John Harvey
 * Kitty - Sandra Bryant
 * Flash - Ewan Proctor
 * Sir Charles Summer - William Mervyn
 * Professor Krimpton - John Cater
 * American Journalist - Ric Felgate
 * Interviewer - John Doye
 * Worker - Desmond Cullum-Jones
 * Tramp - Roy Godfrey
 * Taxi-driver - Michael Rathbone
 * Machine Operator - Gerald Taylor
 * Worker - Eddie Davis
 * Captain - John Rolfe
 * Sergeant - John Boyd-Brent
 * Corporal - Frank Jarvis
 * Soldier - Robin Dawson
 * Television Newsreader - Kenneth Kendall
 * The Minister - George Cross
 * Garage Mechanic - Edward Colliver
 * Man in telephone box - John Slavid
 * Radio Announcer - Dwight Whylie
 * US Correspondent - Carl Conway
 * Voice of WOTAN - Gerald Taylor

Crew

 * Assistant Floor Manager - Lovett Bickford, Margot Hayhoe
 * Costumes - Daphne Dare, Barbara Lane
 * Designer - Raymond London
 * Film Cameraman - Alan Jonas
 * Film Editor - Eric Mival
 * Make-Up - Sonia Markham
 * Producer - Innes Lloyd
 * Production Assistant - Snowy White
 * Script Editor - Gerry Davis
 * Special Sounds - Brian Hodgson
 * Studio Lighting - George Summers
 * Studio Sound - David Hughes
 * Theme Arrangement - Delia Derbyshire
 * Title Music - Ron Grainer

Races and Species
Daleks, Humans, Time Lords

Planets
Earth

Locations
Inferno, London, Post Office Tower

Technology
Computers, War Machines

Vehicles
The Doctor's TARDIS

Story Notes

 * This story had the working title of The Computers.
 * Although Polly was never given an on-screen surname, "Wright" was used in an audition piece for the character at the time. It has since been adopted into various spin-off novels.
 * WOTAN is pronounced with a soft V as VOTAN by many of the characters.
 * This is the Doctor's first return to 20th century London since a brief interlude at the end of "Bell of Doom".
 * As was common in mid-late 1960s Doctor Who, this serial employs interstitial titling for the serial name, episode number and writing credit. For episodes 2 and 3, the titling is unusually placed at the end of a short teaser sequence.  For the first and last episodes, the sequence occupies a more usual position immediately after the main titles.
 * Due to budgetary constraints, this story had no original incidental music. (BBC DVD: The War Machines)

Ratings

 * Episode 1 - 5.4 million viewers
 * Episode 2 - 4.7 million viewers
 * Episode 3 - 5.3 million viewers
 * Episode 4 - 5.5 million viewers

Myths

 * A fan myth alleges that Pat Dunlop contributed to the writing of the televised version of the story. In fact, though, Dunlop was the writer originally commissioned to turn Kit Pedler's story idea into script form but had to pull out due to a clash of commitments with another BBC series, United! Ian Stuart Black used none of Dunlop's work when he took over.

Filming Locations

 * Bedford Square, London
 * Maple Street, Fitzrovia
 * Royal Opera House, Bow Street
 * Tottenham Court Road, London
 * Conway Street, London
 * Charlotte Place, Charlotte Street, Fitzrovia
 * Berners Mews, Fitzrovia
 * Covent Garden Market, London
 * Cornwall Gardens Walk, London
 * Ealing Television Film Studios
 * Riverside Studio 1, Hammersmith, London

Discontinuity, Plot Holes, Errors

 * This is the story in which the Doctor is infamously referred to as "Doctor Who" by WOTAN. This is the only time on television that the Doctor is directly called this. WOTAN perhaps refers to the Doctor in this way due to not knowing who he is. The Doctor may have given a false name at some point.


 * See discussion of other occasions on which the Doctor has referred to himself under variants of the name "Doctor Who".


 * The end of episode 2 does not match with the start of episode 3: The War Machine advances at Ben for a while in episode 2, but in episode 3 Ben has quickly moved behind some crates to avoid being seen. However, most of the serial was junked by the BBC, and as a result, the DVD version is a restored patchwork of the serial, from copies held by the various worldwide TV stations it was sent to. Most of the overseas episodes had some censor cuts, and as a result, a fraction of some of the episodes were lost, and covered by existing footage to match the audio for the DVD release. This may account for the discrepancy.
 * Why do Ben and Polly go into the TARDIS at the end? If they think it's just a police box then surely they would think that they couldn't all fit inside.
 * It seems strange that WOTAN can divine the meaning of "TARDIS". Possibly he didn't work it out using his intellect. He might have already known somehow. Though that "explanation" would that answer one mystery with another.

Continuity

 * The appearance and function of the War Machines is mentioned briefly in EDA: EarthWorld.
 * Dodo's life following this story is explored in MA: Who Killed Kennedy, which also explains how the events in this story appeared from the perspective of the general public.
 * Like Tegan, Ian and Barbara, and Rose, Dodo returns to London some time after she initially left it. Her surprise at the now-completed Post Office Tower places the events at the end of "Bell of Doom" at least a few months prior to those of The War Machines.
 * It's revealed in NA: Original Sin that Tobias Vaughn had funded Professor Brett's work.
 * The Time Travellers, set before this story (from the Doctor's point of view), reveals that the Doctor's actions in The War Machines altered history. In the original timeline, WOTAN managed to conquer Earth prior to his destruction in 1969.
 * BBC newsreaders Kenneth Kendall plays himself in episode 4, announcing the destruction of the first War Machine.

Timeline

 * This story occurs after ST: There are Fairies at the Bottom of the Garden
 * This story occurs before DW: The Smugglers

DVD, Video and Other Releases
VHS release
 * The Doctor Who Restoration Team did very extensive work on this story for the VHS release. In addition to lots of film and video cleanups, and patching censor clips in for many bits missing from the master copy, this included creation of short sections of new footage from stills and off-cuts to cover missing  bits.  Despite this, it still has a small amount of missing material where no video could be found to match the complete off-air audio.  The audio release is complete. (TV broadcasts prior to the video release usually used the unimproved, substantially cut, and very very dirty master.)

DVD Release


 * Region 2 25th August 2008
 * PAL -


 * Region 4 6th November 2008
 * PAL -


 * Region 1 TBA
 * NTSC -

Novelisation

 * Main article: The War Machines (novelisation)


 * Novelised as The War Machines in 1989 by Ian Stuart Black.