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Planet of Giants
Crisis
By Louis Marks
1, INT: TABLETOP
(Ian ventures out of the briefcase where he and Barbara have found themselves again, Barbara joins him. Ian squints into the distance.)
IAN: Barbara, he’s standing at the sink. I can see him standing at the sink. He’s turned the tap on!
2, INT: DRAINPIPE
(The Doctor and Susan huddle together in beneath the plug as they hear water flood the sink above them.)
DOCTOR: Quickly Susan, into the overflow pipe!
(The Doctor and Susan rush over to the small crevice to the side of the pipe.)
3, INT: LABORATORY
(Smithers fills the sink half full and washes his hands. He then pulls out the plug and walks off. With a gurgling sound the water spirals away into the drain.)
4, INT: DRAINPIPE
(Susan and the Doctor press themselves against the far wall in the safety of the overflow pipe as a torrent of water gushes downwards. After the water has gone Susan breathes a sigh of relief.)
DOCTOR: They’ve put the plug back in again.
SUSAN: Oh at least we’re safe here.
DOCTOR: Yeah. If they fill that sink with any more water...
SUSAN: Yes of course! It’ll come in here, down the overflow pipe!
DOCTOR: Exactly!
5, INT: TABLETOP/SINKTOP/SINK
(Ian and Barbara huddle behind the dish of seeds. They hear a long drawn out series of low thuds.)
IAN: I’m getting used to these sounds. I think that last one must have been the door closing.
BARBARA: Are you sure they have gone?
IAN: I’m not sure of anything Barbara.
BARBARA: Ian, the Doctor and Susan, they must have been drowned.
IAN: We don’t know. We must go and find out.(Ian moves across over to the sinktop, skips over the edge of the sink and climbs down the plug-chain. Barbara moves to follow him. She struggles a little at the top, Ian keeps climbing down.)
IAN VO: Stay up there if you want to.
BARBARA: No I’m coming with you.
IAN VO: Alright.
BARBARA: Hey, you go on.(Ian reaches sink level and looks up. Satisfying himself that Barbara is alright, he moves to the plughole and peers down. Seeing nothing he walks around and peers down again. Barbara lands and moves over to where Ian is kneeling peering into the gaping maw of the plughole.)
BARBARA: Anything?
IAN: No. Too dark to see. I’m afraid there’s not much hope Barbara.(They get up and Barbara walks across the sink a little dazed.)
BARBARA: What do we do? I mean, that’s it, what can we do?
(A familiar voice interrupts the morbid silence.)
SUSAN: Knew they’d be alright Grandfather!
BARBARA: Susan!
IAN: I don’t believe it!
DOCTOR: There we are you see, my friends. You can’t get rid of us as easily as all that, eh!(Susan laughs as she, Barbara and Ian helps Doctor up and they reunite themselves.)
6, INT: STUDY
(Smithers is sitting in an armchair smoking a cigarette and Forester is sitting at a desk. Forester holds up a sheaf of papers.)
FORESTER: Yeah...there we are. The report is ready.
SMITHERS: Alright. Well what are you doing now?
FORESTER: The report itself isn’t final enough, Farrow would have telephoned it in to his department.
SMITHERS: But you can’t do that! You’ll give yourself away! They’ll know it isn’t him speaking!
FORESTER: You leave this side of it to me.(Forester hushes Smithers with a wave of his hand.)
7, INT: POST OFFICE
(The interior of the Post office is a muddle, quite plainly spilling into the living space of the house. On the rear wall is a set of half filled pigeon holes, and a stack of crates and various rolls of paper. Through the door is the back of the post office counter. To the front of the room there is a relatively clear desk accommodating an assortment of paper and rubber stamps and chair upon which a policeman’s jacket is draped. Beside a large piece of telephone-exchange equipment in the corner a woman of autumnal years sits reading a paper. As the machine buzzes repeatedly, she lays aside her paper and plugs a receiver into the exchange.)
HILDA: Stranger operator here. Hello? Yes. London, yes... Whitehall. W-H-I. Yeah.
8, INT: STUDY
FORESTER: ...Eight-seven. Thank you.
SMITHERS: How do you know who to speak to?
FORESTER: I’ve been dealing with these people for years.
9, INT: POST OFFICE
HILDA: Three-eight-seven? Yes, hold on, I’ve a call for you. Go ahead please.
(In the background a rather portly “Dixon of Dock-Green” type shambles through the back of the post office counter, and enters the exchange room, adjusting at the sleeves of his neat white shirt.)
10, INT: STUDY
FORESTER: Hello is Mr Whitmore there please? Arnold Farrow speaking. Yes. Oh hello, how are you? Good, I’ll hold on.
(He covers the receiver with his hand.)
FORESTER: The secretary asked me how I was. Told you it would be alright!
11, INT: POST OFFICE
(Hilda is sitting at the exchange idly listening in to the call.)
HILDA: Doesn’t sound like Mr Farrow at all!
(The man takes the Policeman’s jacket from the chair and pulls it on.)
12, INT: STUDY
FORESTER: The tests are very satisfactory, I’m sending in my report. Hah-ha, yes it is a bad line isn’t it? Well... I would say that DN6 as they call it is about a sixty percent improvement on normal insecticide. Yes, I know I’m not usually so enthusiastic, but this is really extraordinary! Mm, crossing over to France tonight. And I’ll send in the report, will you send in the authorisation? Good, I’ll tell Forester. Yes, goodbye.
SMITHERS: Well?
FORESTER: Perfect. As soon as they get the r-report, we’ll get the go ahead.
13, INT: TABLETOP
(A little way along the table Ian comes across a huge writing pad covered in scribbles.)
IAN: Certainly wasn’t here before.
SUSAN: Half drawing and half writing. Ian it’s a formula!
IAN: Yes, I believe you’re right Susan!
BARBARA: Do you think it’s the formula to the insecticide, Doctor?
DOCTOR: Perhaps.
BARBARA: Well if it is it can tell us what we’re fighting against, we might even find a cure.
DOCTOR: A cure?! What’s the good of that?
BARBARA: I dunno...
IAN: Well neither do I, if we’re going to do anything at all we must stop it!
SUSAN: Yes, Ian’s right, Barbara. You only need a cure if someone’s infected, what we’ve got to do it to stop it being produced.
BARBARA: Yes alright!
DOCTOR: Well I think we should take a closer look at this oversized document, the more we know about the enemy, the better.
IAN: Well those things up there are definitely molecular structures.
DOCTOR: Yes you’re quite right, my boy. I only wish I could see it more with a whole...
BARBARA: Well couldn’t we, ah, lever it up in some way, stand back and have a look at it?
DOCTOR: Mm-mm.
SUSAN: Yes, it would be like a huge advertising poster wouldn’t it?
IAN: I’m afraid it’s far too heavy, we’d never lift it.
DOCTOR: Let me have the notebook, child. No, we shall have to make a map of this. Now Chesterton, you start marking off a section with your feet, will you?
IAN: Yeah.
DOCTOR: And Susan and Barbara, I want you to call out to me what you see written beneath you.
(Fades to black, then fades in again with the Doctor examining his notebook curiously.)
DOCTOR: Yes, yes. This is the insecticide quite clearly. A bit rough of course, but it tells us the story.
(The Doctor hands the book to Ian who examines it.)
IAN: Yeah. I’m not very well up in this Doctor, but, er, isn’t that phosphoric acid?
(The Doctor points to the book.)
DOCTOR: Now this indicates the amount of organic esters...
IAN: Yeah, and this is mineral nitrates...
DOCTOR: Mm-hm.
IAN: And... Ah, that’s about as far as I go I’m afraid.
DOCTOR: My dear boy this formula’s quite clear look, with one vital difference. The inventor has made the insecticide everlasting!
SUSAN: That means it would seep into the soil.
IAN: Get into the drinking water.
BARBARA: Er, what about human beings?
DOCTOR: Well given sufficient quantity of course it’s capable of killing human beings.
BARBARA: Yes, if-if they drink and eat infected food and water.
DOCTOR: Yes, or even coming in contact with it.
IAN: Penetrating the skin to get into the bloodstream.
BARBARA: Oh then why do we go on just sitting..!
DOCTOR: Now, now, now, my dear. Gently, gently.
BARBARA: I’m sorry.
SUSAN: Barbara, are you alright?
BARBARA: Yes, I-I feel a bit giddy. I-I think I must be hungry.
DOCTOR: Now there’s another point to consider my dear boy, eating - we can’t! Even if we do find food here.
IAN: Yes, well, the less we talk about food the more I’ll like it.
DOCTOR: We can go back to the sink of course, the water in the tap is quite safe.
IAN: Well, there’s no need for all of us to go. I’ll go and fetch some.
DOCTOR: Ah, but I want to go into that direction. You see, there’s something over there that might be the solution to all this business.
IAN: Oh what’s that?
DOCTOR: A telephone, my dear, mm?
IAN: Ah. Come on then, let’s go.(Fades to black.)
14, INT: TABLETOP
(We fade in to the TARDIS crew standing before an ordinary black bakelite telephone that could happily house one or two families inside it. To one side is a gaping hole where a cloth wire is fed into the body of the phone, and to the side, bunches and bunches of extension is piled up beside the phone in a spongy staircase.)
IAN: Mm, it’s climbable.
SUSAN: Yes. The thing is my boy, how heavy is that receiver mm?
IAN: Ehh.
SUSAN: Grandfather,
DOCTOR: Mm?(Barbara and Susan walk over carrying a cork between them.)
SUSAN: I think I’ve got just the thing, look. We can push this underneath the receiver.
DOCTOR: Mm.
BARBARA: Yes, there are..there are, there are lots more over there.(Barbara wobbles on her feet.)
IAN: Hey, are you alright?
BARBARA: Yes, I’m fine. I told you, I haven’t eaten for ages, I-I think that’s what it must be. Don’t make a fuss!
IAN: Well Susan, ah, you and I will do the climbing, eh?
SUSAN: Yes alright.
IAN: Ah, Doctor?
DOCTOR: Ah?
IAN: Pass this up to Susan, and she can then pass it on up to me.
DOCTOR: Very well.
IAN: Right, I’ll get started.(Ian and Susan climb up the mounds of cloth telephone wire by the side of the phone.)
SUSAN: Can you manage alright?
IAN: Yes, I can make it.
DOCTOR: Oh, er, oh Barbara, would you mind bringing another one of these, please?(He hefts a cork on his own, and with a very great effort he heaves it up to Susan who struggles it up to Ian.)
DOCTOR: Ah, thanks my dear. You look very tired.
BARBARA: Yes I am a bit.
DOCTOR: Well we can manage. You just sit down and rest for a while, mm?(Ian stands high up on the telephone plate opposite the receiver, and places the first cork down and dusts his hands.)
IAN: Right you’d better all come up now.
SUSAN VO: COMING! Grandfather! Barbara!(The Doctor and Susan appear up on the plate.)
DOCTOR: Do you think er, we three could manage eh?
IAN: Why?
DOCTOR: Well, I don’t think Barbara’s quite up to it.
IAN: Oh alright, well we can try.
BARBARA: It’s alright, I’m here.
IAN: Ah good. Now listen Susan, we’re going to try and lift this end.
SUSAN: Mm-hm.
IAN: Now you, when we get it lifted up, push this cork underneath.
SUSAN: Alright.
IAN: Alright.
SUSAN: Yes.
IAN: Now, you ready?
DOCTOR: Yes yes yes yes.
IAN: Barbara?
BARBARA: Yes
IAN: Right, now, lift!(They all heave at the telephone receiver, but it doesn’t budge. They heave again and it wobbles.)
15, INT: LABORATORY
(The left end of the telephone moves slightly.)
16, INT: TABLETOP
BARBARA: Ah...
DOCTOR: Oh!
IAN: Quickly!(Just as they are about to drop the receiver again, Susan slips a cork under it. They all breathe again in succession.)
IAN: Ah!
SUSAN: Ah!
DOCTOR: Ah!
SUSAN: Oh goodness!
IAN: Right,
DOCTOR: Uh!
BARBARA: Whew!
IAN: We’ll try the other end now. Now we...(Ian moves to the opposite end and lifts the cork up.)
IAN: Uh.. There, there we are! Same thing Susan.
(Susan holds the cork in place.)
SUSAN: Uh, thank you, thank...
IAN: Ready now? Lift!
17, INT: LABORATORY
(The right end of the telephone moves this time.)
18, INT: TABLETOP
SUSAN: Uh..Right..oh!
IAN: Oh!
SUSAN: Uh! Oh. We did it!(Susan and the others rest for a while, all exhausted by the effort of lifting the receiver a little way.)
19, INT: POST OFFICE
(The telephone exchange begins to buzz again, Bert is trying to read a paper, but not having much success.)
BERT: Hilda! Come and answer this thing, it’s driving me mad!
(Hilda glances at the equipment as she enters.)
HILDA: It’s the old farmhouse again.
(She sits down and struggles the headset on, then plugs herself in.)
HILDA: Hello? Ah... What number do you want?
20, INT: TABLETOP
(Still on the plate, the three yell into the mouthpiece of the receiver as loud as they can and Barbara listens into the earpiece.)
DOCTOR/IAN/SUSAN: CAN YOU HEAR US?!!
HILDA: WOORRRRLLLLLL...WHHA..WORRLLLWHAAA....?(They stop for a moment, but Barbara doesn’t really understand.)
DOCTOR/IAN/SUSAN: PUT US THROUGH TO POLICE!!
IAN: Any luck?
BARBARA: No... No nothing at all.(Barbara pants heavily and falls to the floor of the receiver-plate.)
IAN: We can’t have failed after having tried so hard!
DOCTOR: Yes I’m afraid that we have, and it’s my fault. I thought it was worth trying!(He shakes his head sadly.)
IAN: Well we must try again!
DOCTOR: Ahh..(He waves a dissuading hand.)
SUSAN: Oh Ian, I don’t think It’ll do any good.
IAN: Well we must try, we must try! I’ll go and tell Barbara.(The Doctor Nods silently and Ian walks across the phone. Barbara is sitting down looking at her green stained hands trying to work off the insecticide with Ian’s handkerchief, but not succeeding. She looks about to burst into tears when Ian turns up.)
IAN: Hey! You’ve been overdoing things.
BARBARA: Yes... Yes, I-I think I have.
IAN: I’ll go and get you some water it’ll freshen you up, eh?
BARBARA: Thank you(He moves to take the handkerchief, but Barbara snatches it away.)
BARBARA: What are you doing?
IAN: I want your handkerchief. I was going to...
BARBARA: No!
IAN: What’s the matter?
BARBARA: You can’t have it, you mustn’t touch it!
IAN: Barbara!(The Doctor and Susan join them.)
BARBARA: No-one must touch...
(She keels over in a dead faint.)
SUSAN: Barbara!
(Very carefully the Doctor pulls out a pencil and picks up the handkerchief with it, he gives it a sniff and so does Ian.)
DOCTOR: There, it’s the same aroma! Insecticide. You didn’t eat or drink anything?
IAN: Well no, certainly not!(The Doctor takes hold of one of Barbara’s wrists and examines her hand.)
DOCTOR: Shes got insecticide on her hands, she touched it.
IAN: Well she never told me, I never saw her do this! I... She did borrow my handkerchief.
DOCTOR: Where were you then?
IAN: By that pile of seeds.
DOCTOR: Yes you sh, you see, she’s got it on her hands! And she rubbed it off on your handkerchief!
SUSAN: Oh... Why didn’t she tell us?!
IAN: You can help her can’t you Doctor?
SUSAN: Grandfather we can do something can’t we?(Barbara’s eyes flick open.)
BARBARA: What happened? D-did I..?
IAN: You fainted, that’s all.
BARBARA: The insecticide... Is that why I feel like this?
DOCTOR: Yes. You got some of it on your hands and you didn’t us tell anything about it! It was very wrong of you wasn’t it?(Barbara sits up.)
BARBARA: Am I... Am I?
DOCTOR: No-no-no, no this little attack...experience is only temporary.
SUSAN: Oh take it easy Barbara,(The Doctor moves aside as Susan helps Barbara over to one side .)
DOCTOR: Look out.
SUSAN: Come on Barbara take it easy
IAN: Well what can we do for her?
DOCTOR: Well it’s urgent that we get her back to normal size, but, ah, at the moment her protective cells are too small to cope with the molecules of poison in her bloodstream. But if we can, that dosage of insecticide will be seventy times less dangerous, practically nothing at all!
IAN: Are you sure?
DOCTOR: Yes I’m quite sure. But we must get her back to the ship.
IAN: What are we waiting for?(He moves over to Barbara.)
IAN: How are you feeling?
BARBARA: Ooh..a bit ropey. Ooh, could do with a glass of water.
IAN: We’re going to take you back to the ship.
BARBARA: Alright, just give me a minute.
IAN: Come on Barbara, we’ve got a long way to go.(He turns to the Doctor.)
IAN: You can get us back to normal size?
DOCTOR: Oho, yes! of course I can dear boy, yes, course I can...(Ian wanders off again. The Doctor sucks in his cheeks and looks concerned.)
DOCTOR: I hope.
21, INT: STUDY
(Forester picks up the receiver of the telephone, and taps the plate a few times, puffing on a cigarette.)
FORESTER: What the devil’s wrong with this phone?!
(He puts the receiver down, and jams a cigarette into his mouth, deep in thought.)
22, INT: TABLETOP
IAN: Barbara, you’re ill. You’ve got to let us take you back to the ship. You could die!
(He turns to the Doctor.)
IAN: Doctor make her see some sense!
DOCTOR: There’s nothing I can say dear boy. Barbara’s quite right.
IAN: Susan?(Susan turns and hugs Barbara.)
BARBARA: Ian we must find a way to stop this, we must!
23, INT: STUDY
(Forester slams the phone down onto the plate.)
FORESTER: Any other phones around here?
SMITHERS: Uh? Oh, yes, there’s one in the lab next to the sink.
FORESTER: Maybe that’s where the trouble is. Perhaps the phone’s off the hook or something?
SMITHERS: Yes, I’ll..I’ll go and see.(He moves off.)
SMITHERS: I want to have a look at Farrow’s notes.
FORESTER: Why?(Smithers leaves apparently not hearing him. He reaches into his pocket and withdraws his spudgun, flipping open the chamber, and then closing it again.)
24, INT: TABLETOP
DOCTOR: Yeah, that’s it, we’ll cause trouble! Start a fire, my boy!
IAN: Yes... Can we start a big enough one to do any real damage?
DOCTOR: Well we can try anyway. Hah-ha, there’s nothing like a good fire eh? Ha-ha-ha... Mm, hm-hm.(He looks amused.)
IAN: What do you think Barbara
BARBARA: I think it’s a good idea. If we could manage to start a fire it would certainly attract people here.
SUSAN: Yes! They’d might find that man’s body!
25, EXT: PATIO
(Smithers and Forester walk from the door of the house to the door of the laboratory, and Smithers unlocks the door.)
26, INT: TABLETOP
(Ian Looks up and sees a gas tap.)
IAN: Gas! That’s it!
SUSAN: What’s it?
IAN: If we could only turn it on.
SUSAN: Well then what?
IAN: I’ll soon show you.(They hear a low rumbling sound and the all freeze like startled rabbits.)
SUSAN: W-look out!
IAN: Quick, behind this water tap!(They all scurry behind the tap.)
27, INT: LABORATORY
(Smithers and Forester enter the lab.)
28, INT: TABLETOP
(The TARDIS crew slide behind a tap with their backs firmly pressed against the metal.)
29, INT: LABORATORY
(Forester heads straight for the phone. He takes out the corks and examines one.)
FORESTER: Who put these under the phone?
(Smithers sniff his fingers.)
SMITHERS: DN6..it’s DN6!
(He wipes his hands on a cloth.)
FORESTER: Come on, I want an explanation! Why did you put these under the phone to stop me using it?!
(The phone begins to ring.)
SMITHERS: Oh that’s not important now!
FORESTER: Of course it’s important!
SMITHERS: Will you LISTEN to me?!(Forester picks up the phone.)
30, INT: POST OFFICE
HILDA: O-oh you’ve replaced your receiver have you Mr Smithers?
FORESTER: This isn’t Mr Smithers. The extension was left off, I’m sorry.
HILDA: Is that Mr Farrow?
31, INT: LABORATORY
FORESTER: Farrow? No.
HILDA: Oh the other gentleman, I see. Only I’ve a call for Mr Farrow.
FORESTER: Oh, er..just a minute.
32, INT: POST OFFICE
BERT: Do you think that you ought to be doing this Hilda?
HILDA: Shh, listen.
33, INT: LABORATORY
(Forester places a handkerchief over the receiver.)
FORESTER: Farrow here. Who is this?
34, INT: POST OFFICE
(Hilda cover the microphone with her hand.)
HILDA: D’you see, it’s the same man!
BERT: Get him to talk a bit more.
35, INT: LABORATORY
HILDA: Mr Farrow, I’ve got a London call for you. Will you accept the charges?
36, INT: POST OFFICE
FORESTER: London? Oh, er... Yes, er, alright.
HILDA: Hold on please.
BERT: Mm, yes, they do sound alike, I must say that. Perhaps I had better go up there..
HILDA: H-hello, er, Mr Farrow.
37, INT: LABORATORY
HILDA: I’m sorry, London has broken the connection, perhaps they’ll call again?
FORESTER: Oh, er very well. Thank you.(He replaces his receiver.)
38, INT: POST OFFICE
HILDA: Bert, it’s the same man, no doubt about it!
BERT: Well, we’ll soon find out.(He puts on his Policeman’s helmet and walks out.)
39, INT: LABORATORY
(Forester mops his face with his handkerchief, and goes out of the lab.)
40, EXT: GARDEN
(Smithers is tending to the plants in the garden, he looks up a little worried at something he’s seen.)
41, INT: TABLETOP
(The Doctor and Susan are tugging at the lever of a gas tap.)
SUSAN: Ooh I, er, think it’s moving a bit...
DOCTOR: Now come on, all together!(Barbara joins in.)
DOCTOR: Wai.. It’s coming.
42, INT: TABLETOP
(Ian is wrestling with a match trying to turn it over so that it faces the right way for striking. Susan runs over and joins him.)
SUSAN: Ian!
IAN: Huh?
SUSAN: The tap’s ready to turn on now.
IAN: Good. Now, Susan, I’ve wedged the matchbox against a knothole. What we’re going to do is run at the side.
SUSAN: Mm. Oh, like using a battering ram!
IAN: Yes, that’s the idea. (He smiles.)
SUSAN: Yes.
IAN: Come on, get a hold of this.
SUSAN: Right.(She grabs the end of the enormous match.)
43, INT: TABLETOP
DOCTOR: Yes, I.. I think that’s got it in about the right angle in this gas jet, mm.
BARBARA: Yes.
DOCTOR: Hm?
BARBARA: Well all we’ll succeed in doing is just melting this tin.
DOCTOR: No no no no, I’ve had a good look at this. This is pressurised, it’s a spray kind. Our problem will be..will be, er, to get away, to get away far enough to, er...when it explodes.
BARBARA: Explodes?
DOCTOR: Oh yes, it’s going to explode. And when it does it’ll go off..well, to us, a-a thousand pound bomb!
44, EXT: GARDEN
SMITHERS: It’s killed everything. Everything!
(Behind his crouched form, a pair of neatly suited legs appears from the cottage.)
FORESTER: Smithers!
(Smithers turns.)
45, INT: TABLETOP
(The Doctor is watching Ian and Susan trying to light their match. They take a run up and strike the box from the side, but they barely scrape it and the match remains unlit.)
DOCTOR: No no no, dear boy, try hitting the box at a sharper angle, more force, more pith!
IAN: Doctor, have you ever tried to lift one of these things?
SUSAN: Come on Ian, lets try again.(Ian and Susan take a run up with the match.
SUSAN VO: Charge!
(As the Doctor and Barbara look on from the gas tap there is an almighty crackle and their faces are lit up.)
BARBARA: They did it!
DOCTOR: Yes! Come on, let’s light the gas tap...turn it on!(He and Barbara both tug the lever.)
IAN: Turn it down a bit, you don’t want us burned alive! Uh, Doctor, Barbara, get behind that tap. Get behind...that’s it. Take it easy now, breathe.
(He and Susan walk the match slowly towards the tap...)
46, INT: LABORATORY
(The lit end of the match edges closer to the leaking tap. Suddenly a gout of flame spews from the nozzle onto the can.)
47, EXT: GARDEN
FORESTER: And then he told me he couldn’t authorise DN6! I had too much money sunk into it. I had to kill him. Once I’d started I had to see it through, all the way!
(He produces his stubby weapon from the confines of his jacket and waves it menacingly at Smithers.)
48, INT: TABLETOP
(The Doctor is watching the flame.)
DOCTOR: Quickly!
(The other three run past him towards cover, he pauses a moment face alit like an evil leprechaun.)
DOCTOR: Won’t be long now!
(He chuckles to himself rubbing his hands together, then hurries after the other three.)
49, INT: LABORATORY
(Under the vicious onslaught of the flame from the gas-tap, the paint on the outside of the can, already blackened, begins to blister.)
50, INT: TABLETOP
IAN: Take as much cover as you can, when that thing explodes there’ll be metal flying all over the place.
SUSAN: It’ll be just like that air-raid Grandfather, do you remember?
DOCTOR: Yes, very well. And what infernal machines those zeppelins were hm!
51, INT: LABORATORY
SMITHERS: Forester, think what you’re doing! DN6 is more deadly than radiation! Doesn’t that mean anything to you?
FORESTER: Get the briefcase!(Smithers moves to obey, but smelling burning paint, the scientist immediately looks to see what is happening and notices the can, which is beginning to bulge and warp. Forester moves closer to the can just as it explodes with a loud pop, ripping the metal canister asunder and spaying molten metal and boiling DN6 into Forester’s face. The businessman falls to the ground in agony. His own gun levels at him, Smithers has obviously ducked the explosion and recovered it, but before he gets the chance to do anything he feels a long arm on his hand. Bert the Policeman has just arrived on the scene, and relieves an ashamed looking Smithers of the pistol.)
52, INT: TABLETOP
DOCTOR: It’s worked, it’s worked! Come on, all of you, back to the ship! Susan, you take, er, Barbara. Quickly, quickly.
(The Doctor stoops and picks up one of the seeds in his long cloak.)
IAN: But Doctor, what are you doing, that thing’s covered in poison!
DOCTOR: Yes I know it is, I know all about it.
IAN: Well what do you want it for?
DOCTOR: You’d be surprised. (He chuckles mischievously to himself.) Go on, lead on.(They all exit due sinkwards.)
53, INT: LABORATORY
(Bert pulls Forester to his feet and glances at him. His face is burnt, scalded, lacerated, his eyes are seared shut, but he’s still moving.)
BERT: Mm, he’ll live. Now I have some questions that need answering, now turn that gas off, you’ll kill the lot of us!
(Smithers silently goes to the gas tap and turns it off. He picks up a fragment of the insecticide can from the tabletop and looks at it in bewilderment.)
54, INT: TARDIS CONSOLE ROOM
DOCTOR: We’ve got to repeat exactly wha..the things that happened to us when we landed.
IAN: Is there anything I can do?
DOCTOR: Yes, that seed over there by the chair. Take it over to the table so that we can all see it. And wrap that round it when you do it.(He points to his cloak. Ian takes the seed from beside where Barbara is sitting unconscious in a chair, and places it on a table on the other side of the room. The Doctor operates the controls.)
55, EXT: MAIN CLEARING
(Silently the TARDIS fades away.)
56, INT: TARDIS CONSOLE ROOM
IAN: Doctor!
DOCTOR: Er!
IAN: Doctor I...
DOCTOR: Shh-sh. I think it’s working. Splendid, I think it’s working, my boy!
IAN: Doctor, look at that seed!(They both look at the seed in the Doctors cloak as it begins to shrink until it is virtually non-existent.)
DOCTOR: Yes yes, we’ve done it! Yes, ha-ha ha-ha, we’ve done it, yes!
IAN: Doctor, it’s incredible, that seed, it’s completely vanished!
DOCTOR: No no my dear boy, no. Hah-ha!(He moves over to the cloak and holds the seed up between his finger and thumb like a magician.)
DOCTOR: Look, can you see, it hasn’t vanished at all!
(A little way away Barbara is sitting on an old mahogany chair where she collapsed after the journey back. For the first time she begins to stir, and she opens her eyes seeming to wake up from a deep sleep.)
SUSAN: Barbara?
BARBARA: Mm..mm, I’m so thirsty.(Susan offers her a glass of water she had previously dialed up.)
SUSAN: There you are, drink that.
(Barbara falls upon the water and drains the glass in a moment.)
BARBARA: Oh, I’d no idea water could taste so good.
(Susan laughs, and the Doctor joins her side.)
DOCTOR: Well well, here we are then, the patient is beginning to look her usual self again, mm? Hah-ha!
(Ian looks the most relieved of them all.)
IAN: Thank you Doctor.
DOCTOR: Not at all my dear boy, always at your service.
BARBARA: Doctor what happened in the laboratory, I don’t remember much after the explosion.
DOCTOR: Well I’m happy to say our plan worked, and we didn’t have to fire the laboratory. But we did attract attention. Do you know that a policeman came into the room just as I was about to climb down that pipe?
BARBARA: Oh good! Now what about us, can you get us back to normal?
DOCTOR: Yes, there’s your answer my dear.(He produces the seed.)
SUSAN: Grandfather, is that the seed you brought in with you?
DOCTOR: The same seed!
SUSAN: Hah-ha!
BARBARA: Then we are back to normal!
DOCTOR: Completely my dear!(They all make relieved noises.)
DOCTOR: Now before I check up and see where we are, I suggest you all go and have a good scrub mm?
SUSAN: Oh please!
DOCTOR: Go-on, off you go!(Ian, Barbara and Susan all sidle off like children who have just come in from playing in the sandpit. The Doctor moves to the console and examines it then he gazes up at the monitor, but all it shows is murky static.)
DOCTOR: Oh dear-dear-dear-dear-dear, now isn’t that irritating mm?! I had to repair that wretched thing and now look at it, I can’t see a thing!
(The dematerialisation noise echoes through the console room.)
DOCTOR: Wait I... I think we’re beginning to materialise, perhaps I shall know now where we are, mm? Hm-hm...
(The Doctor looks at the screen as it flickers away to itself.)
Next Episode – World’s End
The Doctor
William HartnellIan
William RussellBarbara
Jaqueline HillSusan
Carole Ann FordForester
Alan TilvernSmithers
Reginald BarrattHilda Rowse
Rosemary JohnsonBert Rowse
Fred FerrisTitle music by
Ron Grainer with the
BBC Radiophonic WorkshopIncidental Music
Dudley SimpsonCostumes supervised by
Daphne DareMake-up supervised by
Sonia MarkhamLighting by
Howard KingSound Mixing by
Alan FoggStory Editor
David WhitakerDesigner
Raymond P. CusickProducer
Verity LambertDirector
Douglas Camfield(C) BBCTV 1964
Transcribed by
Rynad