The long-running British
science fiction television
Science fiction first appeared in television programming in the late 1930s, during what is called the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary ...
series ''
Doctor Who'' has featured many
robot
A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may ...
s. The
Dalek
The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrials in fiction, extraterrestrial race of mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction on television, science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by write ...
s and
Cybermen
The Cybermen are a fictional race of cyborgs principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. The Cybermen are a species of space-faring cyborgs who often forcefully and painfully convert human beings ( ...
are not listed as they are depicted as organic beings that become
cyborg
A cyborg ()—a portmanteau of ''cybernetic'' and ''organism''—is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline. s as opposed to true robots.
A
Anne Droid
Auton
B
Bracewell
C
Cleaners
Clockwork Robot
D
Davinadroid
Drathro
E
Emojibot
H
Handbot
Heavenly Host
K
K1
The Doctor's first enemy in
his fourth incarnation. He is the main villain during ‘’
Robot
A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may ...
’’.
K9
The Doctor's faithful robotic dog companion, from the middle to end of
his fourth incarnation. The original model was acquired by the Doctor during ''
The Invisible Enemy''.
Kamelion
A shape-shifting android acquired by the
Fifth Doctor
The Fifth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Peter Davison.
Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord from ...
as a companion at the end of the two-part story ''
The King's Demons
''The King's Demons'' is the sixth and final serial of the 20th season of the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', which was originally broadcast on BBC1 on 15 and 16 March 1983. This serial introduced Kamelion, voiced by G ...
'' (1983). Kamelion was weak-willed, so
The Master was able to take control of him twice.
Kandyman
Kerb!am Man
M
Mechonoid
Mechonoids are large, multifaceted, spherical robots created by humans. Sent to prepare the planet Mechanus for colonisation, they kept stranded astronaut
Steven Taylor prisoner as he did not have their control codes.
Dalek
The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrials in fiction, extraterrestrial race of mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction on television, science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by write ...
s, pursuing the
TARDIS
The TARDIS (; acronym for "Time And Relative Dimension In Space") is a fictional hybrid of the time machine and spacecraft that appears in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and its various spin-offs. Its exterior a ...
crew, engaged the Mechonoids in battle; which side was victorious is not shown.
The Mechonoids (spelt "Mechanoids") next appeared in the
''TV21'' comic strip story
''The Eve of War'', the story running from December 1965 to January 1966. They are depicted as the sworn enemies of the Daleks. A race of blue-skinned humanoids subtly interfere with events, using a robot called K2, in order to prevent a war. This was followed by a further comic strip appearance (where they are again termed "Mechanoids") in the story ''The World That Waits'', included in the 1966
''The Dalek World'' annual. The narrative depicts a Dalek attack on Mechanus which results in the destruction of the Mechanoid city.
''
War of the Daleks'' (1997), an
Eighth Doctor BBC Books
BBC Books (also formerly known as BBC Publishing) is an imprint majority-owned and managed by Penguin Random House through its Ebury Publishing division. The minority shareholder is BBC Studios, the commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasti ...
novel written by
John Peel, features a Mechonoid identified as Mechon 179. It works as a gardener on the planet Hesperus and is destroyed helping to defend it against a Daleks invasion.
The Mechonoids appear in the
Big Finish audio drama
Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine ...
''
The Juggernauts (2005)''. In this story
Davros
Davros () is a character from the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was created by screenwriter Terry Nation, originally for the 1975 serial ''Genesis of the Daleks''. Davros is a major enemy of the se ...
adds human nervous tissue to robotic Mechonoid shells to create the Juggernauts of the play's title.
The third issue of
Doctor Who - Battles in Time
Doctor or The Doctor may refer to:
Personal titles
* Doctor (title), the holder of an accredited academic degree
* A medical practitioner, including:
** Physician
** Surgeon
** Dentist
** Veterinary physician
** Optometrist
*Other roles
** ...
magazine (2006) featured a two-page ''Dalek Wars'' image and accompanying text entitled ''The Battle for the Planet Mechanus'', depicting a battle inside the Mechonoid city.
In the graphic novel ''The Only Good Dalek'' the Mechonoids are depicted as having been destroyed by the Daleks, with some of their remains making their way to a human space station where research is being conducted on the Daleks in the hopes of finding a way to defeat them.
Movellan
Movellans are an android species originating from outside the galaxy. They made their first appearance in the Fourth Doctor serial
Destiny of the Daleks
''Destiny of the Daleks'' is the first serial of the 17th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 1 September to 22 September 1979. The story introduces ...
(
1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the '' International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the '' Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the so ...
) as adversaries of the Daleks.
N
Nanogene
Nanogenes are 'flocking' nanobots that repair damaged tissue. In the two-part story, "
The Empty Child
"The Empty Child" is the ninth episode of the first series of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast on BBC One on 21 May 2005. It was the first episode written by Steven Moffat, who later beca ...
" and "
The Doctor Dances
"The Doctor Dances" is the tenth episode of the first series in the reboot of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast on BBC One on 28 May 2005. It is the second of a two-part story, following t ...
" (2005), Nanogenes inadvertently use a dead child as a template, reproducing the same injuries on anyone the child touches. The Nanogenes restore those it converted after they are provided with a complete human template.
Q
Quark
The Quarks appeared in the
Second Doctor
The Second Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor Patrick Troughton. While the Troughton era of ''Doctor Who'' is well-remembered by fans an ...
serial ''
The Dominators
''The Dominators'' is the first serial of the sixth season of the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', which originally aired in five weekly parts from 10 August to 7 September 1968.
In the serial, the Second Doctor (Patri ...
'' by
Henry Lincoln
Henry Soskin (12 February 1930 – 23 February 2022), better known as Henry Lincoln, was a British author, television presenter, scriptwriter, and actor. He co-wrote three '' Doctor Who'' multi-part serials in the 1960s, and — starting in t ...
and
Mervyn Haisman
Mervyn Oliver Haisman (15 March 1928 – 29 October 2010) was a British screenwriter of film and television. Prior to this career he worked as an actor and managed a theatre company as well as working in insurance.
Biography
Haisman was bor ...
in 1969.
The Quarks were used on Dulkis by the
Dominators to enslave and terrorise the indigenous Dulcian population to ensure the drilling of bore holes through the planet's crust. The Dominators planned to use their technology to fire seeds down the holes which would force the core to erupt, thus providing a new fuel source for their fleet.
The Quarks were rectangular, with four arms: one pair which folded into the body, the other pair being retractable. On the end of each arm was a solitary claw. The spherical head was divided into octants; the upper four octants formed the ''sensory hemisphere'', which detected changes in light, heat and motion. At five of the corners of the octants were directional crystal beam transmitters (the sixth corner joined with the robot's extremely short neck). Quarks communicated by means of high-pitched sounds. Their tendency to run out of energy quickly was their primary weakness.
A Quark was also seen in the serial ''
The War Games
''The War Games'' is the seventh and final serial of the sixth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which originally aired in ten weekly parts from 19 April to 21 June 1969.
In the serial, an unnamed alien r ...
''. The Quarks were designed as an, albeit unsuccessful, attempt at creating a merchandise property, as the
Dalek
The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrials in fiction, extraterrestrial race of mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction on television, science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by write ...
s had become earlier.
Quarks are also referred to in the
Big Finish Productions audio drama
Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine ...
''
Flip-Flop''. When they attacked the space yacht ''Pinto'', the
Seventh Doctor
The Seventh Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', and the final incarnation of the original Doctor Who series. He is portrayed by Scottish actor Sylvester McCoy.
...
and
Mel
Mel, Mels or MEL may refer to:
Biology
* Mouse erythroleukemia cell line (MEL)
* National Herbarium of Victoria, a herbarium with the Index Herbariorum code MEL
People
* Mel (given name), the abbreviated version of several given names (including ...
sought leptonite crystals in order to defeat them. It is not known whether the Doctor defeated the Quarks on that occasion. The Quarks were also mentioned, and mocked viciously, in the ''
Doctor Who Unbound'' audio play ''
Exile''.
On the BBC website, Captain Jack's Monster Files entry for the Vespiform mention that they may have been at war with "Quark rebels".
The Quarks were portrayed by children.
Additional information on the Quarks can be found in:
* Harris, M. ''The Doctor Who Technical Manual'' 1983. Severn House London/J. M. Dent Pty Ltd Boronia/Australian Broadcasting Corporation Publishing, Sydney.
R
Raston Warrior Robot
The Raston Warrior Robot was found in the Death Zone on
Gallifrey
Gallifrey () is a fictional planet in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It is the original home world of the Time Lords, the civilisation to which the protagonist, the Doctor belongs. It is located in ...
; it could move faster than lightning and was capable of taking out a troop of Cybermen (''
The Five Doctors
''The Five Doctors'' is a special feature-length episode of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', produced in celebration of the programme's 20th anniversary. It had its world premiere in the United States, on the Chicago ...
'') in seconds. It moves so fast that it appears to just teleport from place to place, only visible when it remains stationary. Its own targeting systems are primarily based on detecting movement. Physically, the robot is very lithe, always moving around to scan its environment for targets, and jumping around almost like a ballet dancer when attacking (the actor portraying the robot wears a silver ballet bodysuit, in contrast to the clunky and slow-moving Cybermen). Its face is smooth with no visible eyes. According to the
Eighth Doctor Adventures
The ''Eighth Doctor Adventures'' (sometimes abbreviated as EDA or referred to as the EDAs) are a series of spin off novels based on the long running BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and published under the BBC Books impr ...
novel ''
The Eight Doctors
''The Eight Doctors'' is a BBC Books original novel written by Terrance Dicks and based on the long-running British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. It was the first of the Eighth Doctor Adventures range and features the Eigh ...
'' by
Terrance Dicks
Terrance William Dicks (14 April 1935 – 29 August 2019) was an English author and television screenwriter, script editor and producer. In television, he had a long association with the BBC science-fiction series ''Doctor Who'', working a ...
, the robots were built by an ancient race, older than the Time Lords, who were ultimately destroyed by their own weapons. However, the novel ''
Alien Bodies
''Alien Bodies'' is an original novel written by Lawrence Miles and based on the long-running British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. It features the Eighth Doctor and Sam. This story marks the first appearance of Faction Pa ...
'' by
Lawrence Miles
Lawrence Miles (born 15 March 1972 in Middlesex) is a science fiction author known for his work on original ''Doctor Who'' novels (for both the Virgin New Adventures and BBC Books series) and the subsequent spin-off Faction Paradox. He is also ...
claims this was false advertising on the part of their manufacturers. It uses atomic radiation as a power source, drawing it from the atmosphere, and locks onto electrical impulses in the brain of its victim, but can become confused if it meets two beings with the same brain pattern. A Raston Warrior Robot appears in the
Past Doctor Adventure ''
World Game
World Game, sometimes called the World Peace Game, is an educational simulation developed by Buckminster Fuller in 1961 to help create solutions to overpopulation and the uneven distribution of global resources. This alternative to war games uses ...
'', also by Dicks, and in the game ''
Destiny of the Doctors
''Doctor Who: Destiny of the Doctors'' is an action video game based on the BBC British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. It was released on 5 December 1997 by BBC Multimedia.
Overview
A collaboration between BBC Multimedia ...
''.
Russell T Davies
Stephen Russell Davies (born 27 April 1963), better known as Russell T Davies, is a Welsh screenwriter and television producer whose works include ''Queer as Folk'', '' The Second Coming'', ''Casanova'', the 2005 revival of the BBC One scien ...
, in the March 2008 issue of ''
Doctor Who Magazine'', expressed interest in bringing the Raston Warrior Robot back in the new series of ''Doctor Who'', citing the battle between the Robot and the Cybermen in ''The Five Doctors'' as one of the finest in the show's history. This has thus far not transpired.
Roboform
The Roboforms, also referred to as Pilot Fish by the
Tenth Doctor
The Tenth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the main protagonist of the BBC science fiction television franchise ''Doctor Who''. He is played by David Tennant in three series as well as nine specials. As with previous incarnations of ...
, were scavengers often used by other species for their own means. They were shown allied with the
Sycorax and the
Racnoss, as well as the
Pandorica Alliance., helping to seal the
Eleventh Doctor
The Eleventh Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. He is played by Matt Smith in three series as well as five specials. As with previous incarnations of the Doct ...
in the Pandorica. The
Empress of the Racnoss herself had an armed guard of Roboforms, which the Tenth Doctor infiltrated and knocked out. They frequently disguise themselves as people in Santa Claus outfits to avoid suspicion. They had weaponry disguised as conventional Earth items, such as
flamethrowers in the guise of
tubas
A tuba is a musical instrument that plays notes in the bass clef.
Tuba can also refer to:
Instruments
*Roman tuba, a straight trumpet of ancient Rome
*Tuba curva, a revival of the Roman ''cornu''
*Wagner tuba, an instrument like the tuba curva ...
and
Christmas Trees
A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, or an artificial tree of similar appearance, associated with the celebration of Christmas. The custom was further developed in early modern ...
capable of spinning fast enough to slice people apart. They are shown capable of detecting
Regeneration energy, as shown in
The Christmas Invasion
"The Christmas Invasion" is a 60-minute special episode of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast on BBC One on 25 December 2005. This episode features the first full-episode appearance of David Te ...
. Roboforms naturally have golden bullet shaped heads with two indentations on either side where a human's eye would be.
S
Sandminer Robots
In ''
The Robots of Death
''The Robots of Death'' is the fifth serial of the 14th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 29 January to 19 February 1977.
In the serial, the Fou ...
'' (1977), there were three types of slave Robots, created by a distant human society. The robots were originally built to perform menial tasks. In at least one instance these robots took to raising a human child, Taren Capel. He eventually learned to reprogram the robots to kill humans, and attempted to stage a Robot Revolution.
There were three classes of robots:
* D-class, colloquially known as Dums, were incapable of speech and merely followed orders.
* V-class or Vocs were capable of verbal response and performing slightly more complex tasks, but ultimately no more intelligent than the D-class.
* SV-class, or Supervocs were capable of reason and decision-making, and were used to co-ordinate the other robots in an organisation. Supervocs have been utilised in detective work.
These robots made appearances in:
* ''
The Robots of Death
''The Robots of Death'' is the fifth serial of the 14th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 29 January to 19 February 1977.
In the serial, the Fou ...
'', a
Fourth Doctor
The Fourth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Tom Baker.
Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord from the ...
serial with
Leela, written by
Chris Boucher
* ''
Corpse Marker
''Corpse Marker'' is a BBC Books original novel written by Chris Boucher and based on the long-running British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. It features the Fourth Doctor and Leela. The concepts and characters are derived ...
'', a
Fourth Doctor
The Fourth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Tom Baker.
Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord from the ...
novel with Leela written by Chris Boucher
* ''
Kaldor City: Occam's Razor'', a Kaldor City audio play, written by
Alan Stevens and
Jim Smith
* ''
Kaldor City: Death's Head'', a Kaldor City audio play, written by Chris Boucher
* ''
Kaldor City: Hidden Persuaders'', a Kaldor City audio play, written by Jim Smith
* ''
Kaldor City: Taren Capel'', a Kaldor City audio play, written by Alan Stevens
* ''
Kaldor City: Checkmate'', a Kaldor City audio play, written by Alan Stevens
* ''
Kaldor City: Storm Mine'', a Kaldor City audio play, written by
Daniel O'Mahony
Daniel O'Mahony (born 24 July 1973) is a half-British half-Irish author, born in Croydon. He is the oldest of five children, his siblings including Eoin O'Mahony of the band Hamfatter, and Madeleine O'Mahony, who has designed and made hats for Ca ...
* ''
Robophobia
''Robophobia'' is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who.'' It is a four-part story.
Plot
The Doctor arrives on a spaceship transporting over a hundred thousand po ...
'', a
Seventh Doctor
The Seventh Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', and the final incarnation of the original Doctor Who series. He is portrayed by Scottish actor Sylvester McCoy.
...
audio play, written by
Nicholas Briggs
Nicholas Briggs (born 29 September 1961) is an English actor, writer, director, sound designer and composer. He is associated with the BBC science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'' and its spin-offs, particularly as the voice of the Dal ...
Smiler
T
Teselecta
The Teselecta, first shown in "
Let's Kill Hitler
"Let's Kill Hitler" is the eighth episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', and was first broadcast on BBC One, Space and BBC America on 27 August 2011. It was written by Steven Moffat and direct ...
", is a robot with the ability to change its appearance. It is commanded by humans, who are shrunk by a miniaturization ray and kept at that size by a compression field. Teselecta are sent through time by an organization called The Justice Department, to remove people it judges deserving of punishment from their established time stream just before their death so they can be tortured, a task they regard as a responsibility that comes with the capability of time travel. In "Let's Kill Hitler",
Amy Pond
Amelia "Amy" Pond is a fictional character portrayed by Karen Gillan in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Amy is a companion of the series protagonist the Doctor, in his eleventh incarnation, played by ...
and
Rory Williams
Rory Williams is a fictional character portrayed by Arthur Darvill in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Having been introduced at the start of the fifth series, Rory joins the Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith) ...
are trapped within a Teselecta and chased by its robotic "immune system".
Wrist-bands worn by the crew serve as reverse
antibodies, preventing the "immune system" from attacking them, and anybody not wearing one with proper identification status is incinerated. Later in the episode, the crew of the Teselecta is evacuated by what appears to be a trans-mat beam.
The Teselecta reappear in the
Series 6 finale "
The Wedding of River Song
"The Wedding of River Song" is the thirteenth and final episode in the sixth series of the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', and was first broadcast on BBC One on 1 October 2011. It was written by lead writer and executiv ...
". The
Eleventh Doctor
The Eleventh Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. He is played by Matt Smith in three series as well as five specials. As with previous incarnations of the Doct ...
is supposed to be killed at Lake Silencio,
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
, but he hides with his
TARDIS
The TARDIS (; acronym for "Time And Relative Dimension In Space") is a fictional hybrid of the time machine and spacecraft that appears in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and its various spin-offs. Its exterior a ...
inside the robot, which takes his form, making it appear that he is killed.
Trine-E
W
War Machines (WOTAN)
Y
Yeti
Z
Zu-Zana
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of Doctor Who Robots
* Doctor Who
Robots "\n\n\n\n\nThe robots exclusion standard, also known as the robots exclusion protocol or simply robots.txt, is a standard used by websites to indicate to visiting web crawlers and other web robots which portions of the site they are allowed to visi ...
Doctor Who
Robots "\n\n\n\n\nThe robots exclusion standard, also known as the robots exclusion protocol or simply robots.txt, is a standard used by websites to indicate to visiting web crawlers and other web robots which portions of the site they are allowed to visi ...