11 Reasons Why Remembrance of the Daleks Rocks!
The Doctor Who Team
Today (20 August) is the birthday of Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred, aka the Seventh Doctor and his companion, Ace, so what better time to remember Remembrance of the Daleks? If you’re fascinated by the Doctor’s oldest foes or you just love a cracking adventure, it’s definitely one you should check out. So, what it makes it, so, err… ace?
You’ll believe a Dalek can fly!
Before Remembrance we had to put up with endless jokes about how the Daleks couldn’t get up stairs… Then came this…
…and suddenly fans could shake their heads and point out that Daleks could el-e-vate!
Kick Ass Companion
New companion Ace was instantly in her element, taking on a Dalek with a baseball bat, lugging around nitro-9 ‘grenades’ that the Doctor used to explosive effect and in this scene, taking out one of the metal monsters using a bazooka…
Wait a minute! That reminds us of someone…
You were born to serve the Daleks!
This scene still typifies everything that the Daleks were about and it’s even got an evil little girl and TV legend George Sewell. Her last line is fantastic!
The Doctor and Ace
They squabble and bicker but the bond between them is unbreakable. Just like Clara these days, Ace doesn’t always understand the Doctor, but she knows he’s always got her back.
Pacey Plot
The plot moves faster than an upgraded Cyberman (or a Raston Warrior Robot for all you 80s fans out there!) and is more explosive than nitro-9, as Steven Moffat reflects in this video…
The Bringer of Darkness…
The Doctor became darker and more cunning in this adventure. He still liked a laugh but you remember the Doctor playing his cards close to his chest in Mummy on the Orient Express? He was more like that. Except he wasn’t making ‘Are you my mummy?’ jokes which in retrospect, was a missed opportunity.
Dalek Action!
If you’re going to wheel in the Daleks, it’s great to give them plenty to do! Remembrance had them running amok, well, gliding amok as they engaged in civil war, battled humanity, tried to get their grubby protuberances on some Time Lord tech, and repeatedly tried to take out the Doctor. No. Not like that.
A galaxy of stars!
An awesome guest cast included Pamela Salem (middle, photo below) as Professor Rachel Jensen…
And Karen Gledhill (right in this pic) as her assistant, Allison Williams.
Together with Group Captain ‘Chunky’ Gilmore, played by Simon Williams…
They formed an intrepid trio helping the Doctor as he fought not just the Daleks, but the evil Ratcliffe (below, right), played by the marvellous George Sewell.
Sign of the times
Remembrance’s writer, Ben Aaronovitch, returns the Doctor’s oldest foes to their right-wing roots and even has them forge an alliance with Ratcliffe’s fascist organisation. Remembrance of the Daleks is at its heart a roller coaster of adventure loaded with wit and some genuinely wow action sequences, but now and again it pauses to reflect some of the viler elements of 1960s Britain. In one scene, Ace finds a sign in a B&B window which advises potential clients, ‘No coloureds’. Her repulsion is deftly conveyed by actor Sophie Aldred who captures her character’s horror and sadness at the message.
Davros!
The old boy shows up in episode 4, giving the Doctor a great excuse to mock his creations and their quest for, ‘Unimaginable power! Unlimited rice pudding, et cetera, et cetera!’
The Special Weapons Dalek
There’s something appealing about using the word ‘special’ to describe one of these killing machines. Just don’t tell the other Daleks we think it’s special. They’ll get en-vi-ous!
Remembrance of the Daleks opened Doctor Who’s 25th season. You can enjoy more videos from the adventure, take a look through galleries and find out the facts behind the story… It’s all on our Remembrance of the Daleks pages!
