1. "The giant maggots escape
from the coal mineCopy !req
2. "and the Doctor is trapped by the real
Boss of Global Chemicals." (Radio Times)Copy !req
3. This episode was first shown
on 9 June 1973 and was watched
by 6.8 million people,Copy !req
4. a drop of a million viewers
from the previous week.Copy !req
5. Although the recap from the previous
episode features the maggot
entering the room,Copy !req
6. it loses the final point-of-view
shot as it crawls towards Jo.Copy !req
7. Watch the very bendy pane of glass
in the door as Hinks presses
his nose to it.Copy !req
8. The studio floor has been painted
to look like wooden parquet flooring.Copy !req
9. This was done with a stencil,
so the pattern repeats every six blocks.Copy !req
10. This meant the paint could just be
slapped on by a painter,
instead of hiring a scenic artist.Copy !req
11. Notice the little protrusions that have
been included on the rear
of the maggot prop?Copy !req
12. They represent the spiracles which are
an essential feature of real-life
maggot respiration.
(if you're squeamish, stop reading now.)Copy !req
13. When maggots feed on a rotting carcas,
the putrefying flesh will often
begin to liquidise.Copy !req
14. The maggots will often bury themselves
in a tight mass, side-by-side
and head-first in the ooze.Copy !req
15. With the spiracles situated at the rear,
they can happily consume
the rotting fleshCopy !req
16. whilst continuing to breathe
through their bottoms!Copy !req
17. In the next shot, listen out for the
name of the soldier called
by Sergeant Benton.Copy !req
18. This was an unscripted addition
referring to the programme's
script editor, Terrance Dicks.Copy !req
19. We'll be hearing another ad-libbed
soldier's name in the next episode.
Who will it be this time?Copy !req
20. The reference to "Old Carlo" was typed
into the script as a late addition.Copy !req
21. "Carlo" is a Welsh form of "Charles" -
though normally reserved for use
as a dog's name!Copy !req
22. As scripted, the milkman continues,Copy !req
23. "And are you likely to give orders then,
to take the milk from the babes
in the village?"Copy !req
24. Mr Ellis Davis, the colliery's safety
officer, made a vital contribution
to the filming.Copy !req
25. He gave the crew an early-morning safety
briefing on the location day
for the pit-head shots.Copy !req
26. When Cliff explains that they've been
using his own mucus membrane cells
to carry out their tests,Copy !req
27. the script calls for him to turn his
cheek inside-out and indicate
the inside of it.Copy !req
28. The end of this scene
is different in the script.Copy !req
29. After the Doctor starts to use the
centrifuge and Nancy comes
in with her news,Copy !req
30. The Doctor says to Jo,
"What! Switch off the centrifuge,"
and dashes out.Copy !req
31. In turn, Jo says,
"Cliff, switch off the centrifuge,"
and he responds,
"Nancy, switch off that thing."Copy !req
32. The location work on 'The Green Death'
was handled by two film cameramen,Copy !req
33. namely Bill Matthews, who headed up the
main unit, and Ken Lowe, who filmed
the second unit material.Copy !req
34. Two cameramen were used for the shoot
as Michael E. Briant felt that there was
too much material to film
with only one crew.Copy !req
35. Bill Matthews concentrated
on filming the main sequences,Copy !req
36. whilst Ken Lowe's team captured many the
establishing and long-distance shots
required for the story.Copy !req
37. As usual for Doctor Who, the initial
search for suitable filming locations
was the production assistant's
responsibility.Copy !req
38. For this serial, the job fell
to John Harris.Copy !req
39. After scouting a number
of possible sites, the production
assistant would then show them
to the directorCopy !req
40. who would then make the final decision
as to which ones best suited his needs.Copy !req
41. The usual procedure was that production
assistants would
show the least likely locations first,Copy !req
42. gradually working their way to the pick
of the bunch towards
the end of the recce.Copy !req
43. For 'The Green Death', they visited
a number of potential coal mines
and factories in South Wales,Copy !req
44. before settling on the Ogilvie Colliery
at Deri in the Darran Valley.Copy !req
45. "We were allowed to film at the head
of the mine," recalled Michael E. Briant
in 1987.Copy !req
46. "And the Coal Board did let us use
the cages, but only to send people down
to the bottom and then back up again.Copy !req
47. "We weren't allowed to shoot in the
mine itself because of all the risks,Copy !req
48. "which was a shame because originally
I'd planned to shoot a lot of
footage underground.Copy !req
49. "I even got to go right up to
a coal face, walking bent double along
a very narrow passageway
for nearly a mile.Copy !req
50. "But you have to understand that mines
are very dangerous places to be
and the restrictions put on
you are enormous."Copy !req
51. In 1971, only two years before
the filming of 'The Green Death',
a serious fire had broken out
underground.Copy !req
52. This resulted in the entire coalface
of the south pit being permanently
closed down.Copy !req
53. The sealing of the mine in this
sequence is, of course,
achieved with a model.Copy !req
54. Just before it blows up, you might be
able to spot all the various
pre-cut cracks in the front section,Copy !req
55. which ensure that it breaks
apart just as planned.Copy !req
56. "The mine shaft blows up with
a satisfying 'crump'," notes the script.Copy !req
57. After 111 years of coal production,
Ogilvie Colliery closed down in 1975
when it was deemed to be uneconomic.Copy !req
58. Virtually all trace of the original mine
has now gone: The site was turned into
a country park, Parc Cwm Darran.Copy !req
59. Ogilvie also featured in the film
Above Us The Earth, shot by independent
filmmaker Karl Francis in 1975.Copy !req
60. Released in 1977, the film explored
the impact of the pit closure
on the local communityCopy !req
61. and in particular, the family of
a retired mine worker, riddled with
emphysema due to his years down the pit.Copy !req
62. It is notable for its use of
local amateur and professional actors
mixed with documentary footage.Copy !req
63. In this scene, BOSS refers to the
German philosopher,
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844-1900).Copy !req
64. Nietzsche favoured nihilism,
the philosophy that traditional values
and beliefs have no valid foundation.Copy !req
65. Its corollary is the rejection
of all established laws
and institutions.Copy !req
66. Between 1883 and 1885, Nietzsche wrote
the four parts of his philosophical
novel, Also sprach Zarathustra,Copy !req
67. which details the travels and the
spiritual enlightenment
of his central character, Zarathustra.Copy !req
68. The novel presents the concept of the
übermensch, or "Superman",
as BOSS refers to Stevens.Copy !req
69. This was seen by Nietzsche
as man's next step: He needed to master
himself and shake off
Christian morality,Copy !req
70. creating his own morals and values so
that he would become a superior being.Copy !req
71. In the 1930s, the übermensch concept
became a philosophical foundation
for Germany's Nazi party.Copy !req
72. It was frequently used by Hitler and his
regime during World War II to describe
their ultimate objective:Copy !req
73. "Der Tag" (The Day) would see the
establishment of a ruling Aryan master
race of Nietzschean supermen.Copy !req
74. But "D-Day", which BOSS used
as a synonym for "Der Tag"
was another day entirely:Copy !req
75. 6 June 1944, the day when Allied forces
landed in Normandy, and the beginning
of the end for European fascism.Copy !req
76. Another slight reordering of scenes
occurs at this point in the story.Copy !req
77. After Elgin's upcoming discovery of
oil waste and giant maggots
in the pipelineCopy !req
78. the next scripted scene was his
confrontation with Stevens.
We'll see that in a few moments time.Copy !req
79. The location scene with Benton that
separates the two was scripted
to come after that.Copy !req
80. In the scripted dialogue,
the soldier is named Reed.Copy !req
81. The scripted stage direction indicates:
"Benton is about to drive away as
the soldier turns,
walks two paces and stumbles.Copy !req
82. "He puts his foot in a hole which wasn't
there a moment ago. He backs away
as a maggot burrows its way
to the surface."Copy !req
83. As originally placed in the script,
the slag heap scene was followed
by one set in Cliff's lab.Copy !req
84. As the Doctor places one of the slides
into some advanced piece of equipment,
Cliff comments:Copy !req
85. "But even if we manage to establish
the structure of the maggot cells,Copy !req
86. "we still can't find an antidote without
some living cells to try it on..."Copy !req
87. Cliff holds up a test tube containing
a piece of cotton wool covered with
a greenish stain of cells.Copy !req
88. "And you can't grow any more without
some oil waste?" asks Jo.Copy !req
89. "... or a maggot," continues the Doctor.Copy !req
90. This unintentionally ended up being
Tony Adams's final scene in the story.Copy !req
91. As scripted, Elgin was due to appear
again towards the end of Episode 5,
now brainwashed.Copy !req
92. But real life intervened in a rather
uncomfortable and unexpected way.Copy !req
93. We'll look at what happened when we meet
a new character called Mr James
in the next episode.Copy !req
94. After the shooting done around the
pithead itself, the next two days,
Wednesday 14 and Thursday 15 March,Copy !req
95. were spent here on the slag heaps
to the north of the mine, where the more
familiar term "uphill" became "up slag".Copy !req
96. As the production filming diary noted:
"Every effort must be made to take
everything we need up slag
at start of day.Copy !req
97. "Journeys down slag will waste
valuable time.
Cars (apart from in-vision props)
Must not go up."Copy !req
98. The crew were also warned to be careful
as they made their way up the road
on the slag heaps.Copy !req
99. As Ogilvie was still a working colliery,
lorries were continually using the road
to offload more slag.Copy !req
100. Jo might be a self-confessed
"cloth-head",Copy !req
101. but she still seems to understand
exactly what Cliff means when he talks
about an "atavistic mutation".Copy !req
102. The word "atavistic" implies
a regressive throwback
to an earlier formCopy !req
103. but how Professor Jones thinks
this relates to what they've seen
with the maggots is anyone's guess!Copy !req
104. The sound of a bullet ricocheting
was dubbed on after the event.Copy !req
105. Prepare now for a display of Doctorly
ignorance, compounded by a small error
on the part of his producer.Copy !req
106. Jon Pertwee confessed to Barry Letts
that he didn't know how to pronounce
the upcoming word "chitinous".Copy !req
107. Letts told him that it would be
with the "ch" pronounced softly,
as in "some chit of a girl".Copy !req
108. In reality, chitin, the horny substance
that forms the outer shell of many
insects, arachnids and crustaceans,Copy !req
109. is pronounced with a hard "ch",
as in "chorus".Copy !req
110. A few days after this episode
was broadcast, Letts received
a letter saying, in rhyme:Copy !req
111. "Dear Barry Letts,
The reason I'm writin',
is how to say 'kitin'..."Copy !req
112. There's a short section of this scene
that's been so neatly edited out, you
probably wouldn't notice
anything missing.Copy !req
113. After the Brigadier says, "There's any
amount of it out there going begging,"
Benton arrives.Copy !req
114. "Ah, Benton," says the Brigadier.
"The Doctor wants one
of those creatures.
Go and get him one."Copy !req
115. Benton gulps at the prospect.
"Yes, sir," he says.Copy !req
116. That's what the Doctor's reacting
to here: The prospect of Benton
in particular risking his life.Copy !req
117. Jon Pertwee turned round twice during
the various takes that were shot
to make up the sceneCopy !req
118. and those turns were then edited
together into one to remove the Brig's
order and Benton's apprehension.Copy !req
119. The strange plastic bobbly thing
on the wall is actually a calendar.
We'll get a better look at it
in a moment.Copy !req
120. Assuming the top line in red
are the days of the week
starting on Monday,Copy !req
121. the date is Monday 28 April,
making this either 1969, 1975 or 1980.Copy !req
122. In the studio, this small office set
was separate from the rest
of the Global Chemicals interiors.Copy !req
123. It was snugly tucked in behind the main
corridor of the Wholeweal house
and Cliff's laboratory.Copy !req
124. This is exactly the same free-standing
window that was used for Stevens's
office in the previous episode.Copy !req
125. Jon Pertwee had spent much
of his career doing comic voicesCopy !req
126. in such radio series
as Waterlogged Spa (1948-9)
Puffney Post Office (1950)
And The Navy Lark (1959-77).Copy !req
127. He'd not been given much of chance
to do it in Doctor Who- until now.Copy !req
128. He was still recording The Navy Lark on
a regular basis during his time
as the Doctor.Copy !req
129. This scene was one of the last
to be shot on Friday 16 March,Copy !req
130. and when filming broke for the weekend,
Pertwee returned to London so that
he could record The Navy Lark
on the Sunday.Copy !req
131. He then drove back to South Wales
very early on Monday morning to continue
the filming at RCA International.Copy !req
132. The script calls this character just
"Very Old Milkman".Copy !req
133. Here, Jo refers to a comment made by
the Brigadier in 'Terror of the Autons'.Copy !req
134. After the Doctor's previous assistant,
Liz Shaw, had gone back to Cambridge,Copy !req
135. the Brigadier assigned him
the newly recruited Jo Grant.Copy !req
136. The Doctor protested, demanding
a properly qualified scientist,
as Liz had been,Copy !req
137. but the Brigadier pointedly responded,
"Nonsense. What you need,
as Miss Shaw so often remarked,Copy !req
138. "is someone to pass you your test tubes
and tell you how brilliant you are."Copy !req
139. The end-of-scene direction indicates,
"we see that on one of the slides
with the powdered fungus
(indeed on all),Copy !req
140. "a brown stain is enveloping
the green stain."Copy !req
141. The cupboard is right at the very edge
of this corridor set and built with
no back so the camera can look through
the shelves.Copy !req
142. None of the business with the Doctor's
moustache was scripted: It's all comedy
improvisation by Pertwee.Copy !req
143. For this studio session,
Camera 1 (taking this shot) was fitted
with lamps underneath
and either side of the lens.Copy !req
144. These lamps were usually used to provide
fill-lighting when a camera needed
to get in close to a subject.Copy !req
145. In this scene, Camera 1
has its fill-lights switched on,
but in a moment,
when we go back to its output,Copy !req
146. the cameraman will realise that you can
see his lights reflected in the glass
of the pinball machine by the fireplace...Copy !req
147. so he quickly switches them off!Copy !req
148. In this set, to the right of the wall
telephone are a set of lift doors.Copy !req
149. Once past the cleaner's cupboard,
the set runs out,Copy !req
150. so these shots of the lift were done
back round the corner
in the first part of the set.Copy !req
151. So Jon Pertwee isn't facing
Richard Franklin in these shots,Copy !req
152. and Richard Franklin
isn't looking at Jon Pertwee!Copy !req
153. Coming up is a bit of unscripted
ad-libbing from the two actors,Copy !req
154. which, judging from Richard Franklin's
face in a moment, may well have been
a very last-minute change.Copy !req
155. After "You say one word," Yates
originally said, "Doctor, it suits you,"
to which he replies,
"I thought it rather fetching myself."Copy !req
156. Notice Franklin's amused reaction
when Pertwee "sloshes"
him with his bucket.Copy !req
157. As we begin the next scene
of the Doctor and Yates
entering his office to talk,Copy !req
158. just notice the extent
of the Doctor's disguise.Copy !req
159. It's not just a cleaner's overall
and headscarf that the Doctor's wearing.Copy !req
160. He's also removed his trousers
and put on a pair
of wrinkled stockings as well!Copy !req
161. Writing about these scenes
in An Adventure in Space and Time,
Michael E. Briant noted,Copy !req
162. "These were totally Jon's idea which,
against my better judgement,
I let him get away with.Copy !req
163. "Jon slipped away and came back
a while later in full camp drag
with this outrageous make-up job.Copy !req
164. "By the time Richard Franklin
added his 'I like your handbag' ad-lib,
things had got totally out of control."Copy !req
165. Normally, the BBC were
very conscientious about covering
over labels on products so as to
not advertise brands.Copy !req
166. The very obvious pink bottle
of "Windolene" window-cleaning cream
must have escaped their notice.Copy !req
167. The guard's chat with "Doris"
was also unscripted, allowing Pertwee
to do another of his voices.Copy !req
168. Now for some poor laboratory technique
from the Nobel-Prize-winning
Professor Clifford Jones.Copy !req
169. In order for him to see anything
though his microscope,Copy !req
170. one of the three magnification lenses
should be pointing straight down
at the slide, in line with the eyepiece!Copy !req
171. This is actually
Katy Manning's handwriting.Copy !req
172. These were the very last studio shots
done for this second two-day session.
Then come some shots
recorded a fortnight later.Copy !req
173. You can see the join.Copy !req
174. Notice the Doctor's jacket
is undone as he walks up the corridor.Copy !req
175. A fortnight later, when these final
shots were done for the episode,
his jacket is done up.Copy !req
176. You'll be seeing these lift doors again
in a few moments' time,
only they'll be somewhere else.Copy !req
177. This talk of involving
the Royal Air Force sounds
terribly impressive, but prepare
for disappointment next week...Copy !req
178. These are the very same set
of lift doors that you saw the Doctor
entering twenty seconds ago.Copy !req
179. They haven't moved: Before,
they were framed in close-up
so that you couldn't see
any of the surrounding set.Copy !req
180. Doing this saved both money
and studio space
in the final recording session.Copy !req
181. If you find any of this set familiar,
then you're probably a fan
of early 1970s television
science fiction.Copy !req
182. How do we know that? You'll discover
the reason when we come back to BOSS's
computer room in the next episode.Copy !req
183. Also appearing in this episode were:Copy !req
184. Edward Wyman,
Roger Knott,
Roger Chapple (UNIT Soldiers)Copy !req
185. John Cadwallader,
Bill Baker,
Peter McGowan (UNIT Soldiers)Copy !req
186. David Braddick,
John Jeffries (UNIT Soldiers)Copy !req
187. Steve Ismay,
Pat Gorman (Security Guards)Copy !req
188. There's a dodgy bit of grammar
coming up
from the Graphics Department here.Copy !req
189. This should of course read
"Yates's Guard"!
Thanks.Copy !req
190. - What's all the fuss?
- Oh, some milkman,Copy !req
191. wandering about where he shouldn't be.
They'll find him.Copy !req
192. - Okay?
- Yes.Copy !req
193. Oh, I've forgotten my attaché case.Copy !req
194. I'll join you downstairs.Copy !req
195. If you say one word...Copy !req
196. I like your handbag.Copy !req
197. Do you? Well, watch out
I don't slosh you with it!Copy !req
198. - Now, where can we talk?
- In my office.Copy !req
199. All right, come on.Copy !req
200. - Hello. Looking for the Doctor?
- Er...Copy !req
201. Er... Yes.Copy !req
202. He's not here.
He's gone over to the complex.Copy !req
203. Oh, well, I'll take a look around
while I'm here.Copy !req
204. Sorry, Miss Grant.
Brigadier's orders and all that.Copy !req
205. It's too dangerous up there,Copy !req
206. with all those things popping out
of the ground all over the place.Copy !req
207. Oh. All right.Copy !req
208. See you later, then. Bye.Copy !req
209. All right, Captain Yates,
what have you found out?Copy !req
210. Well, clearly, Global Chemicals is
responsible for the trouble at the pit.Copy !req
211. Yes, yes, I know. That's obvious.Copy !req
212. But have you been able to get a hold
of any of that waste?Copy !req
213. It'd be like stealing the Crown Jewels.Copy !req
214. - Can you get a hold of the formula?
- Not much chance but we could try.Copy !req
215. - Where is it kept?
- Everything importantCopy !req
216. is isolated on the top floor.Copy !req
217. There's a special lift
at the end of the block.Copy !req
218. Mmm-hmm.Copy !req
219. It works with some sort of key,Copy !req
220. but the director's
the only person who's got it.Copy !req
221. Well done, Captain Yates.
This could prove absolutely vital.Copy !req
222. - There's one other thing.
- Mmm-hmm.Copy !req
223. The director isn't the real boss.Copy !req
224. He takes his instructions
from someone else.Copy !req
225. - Oh, who?
- Whoever lives on the top floor.Copy !req
226. Ah, Mr Yates, we were looking for you.Copy !req
227. You said you had to
get an attaché case.Copy !req
228. Yes, here it is.Copy !req
229. - I'm ready now.
Good.Copy !req
230. How's the old man, Doris?Copy !req
231. That's it. Of course!Copy !req
232. Jo, we can cure it!Copy !req
233. Jo?Copy !req
234. "Gone to get you a maggot."Copy !req
235. Silly young fool.
She'll get herself killed!Copy !req
236. - It won't be long now, Benton.
- You mean reinforcements, sir?Copy !req
237. Yes. I've just been onto the RAF.Copy !req
238. They'll be flying a low-level strike
with HE grenades in...Copy !req
239. In just seven minutes.Copy !req
240. In ten minutes' time, there'll be
nothing left alive in that whole area.Copy !req
241. How kind of you
to drop in, Doctor!Copy !req
242. I've been looking forward
to having a little chat with you.Copy !req
243. Who are you?Copy !req
244. - Where are you?
- (BOSS LAUGHS)Copy !req
245. You disappoint me, Doctor.Copy !req
246. I should have thought
you'd have guessed.Copy !req
247. I am the Boss.Copy !req
248. I'm all around you.Copy !req
249. Exactly.Copy !req
250. I am the computer.Copy !req