The Thals are a fictional race of humanoid
aliens
Alien primarily refers to:
* Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country
** Enemy alien, the above in times of war
* Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth
** Specifically, intelligent extrate ...
, originating from the planet
Skaro
Skaro is a fictional planet in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was created by the writer Terry Nation as the home planet of the Daleks.
In ''The Daleks'' (1963–64), Skaro is described as being the twelfth pl ...
, in the 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
''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...
''. The species first appeared in the 1963–64 serial ''
The Daleks
''The Daleks'' (also known as ''The Mutants'' and ''The Dead Planet'') is the second serial in the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast on BBC TV in seven weekly parts from 21 December 1963 to ...
'', and were created by writer
Terry Nation
Terence Joseph Nation (8 August 19309 March 1997) was a British screenwriter and novelist. Especially known for his work in British television science fiction, he created the Daleks and Davros for ''Doctor Who'', as well as the series '' Survivo ...
.
Fictional history
In ''
The Daleks
''The Daleks'' (also known as ''The Mutants'' and ''The Dead Planet'') is the second serial in the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast on BBC TV in seven weekly parts from 21 December 1963 to ...
'' (1963–64), the Thals describe themselves as a warrior race who fought a terrible neutronic war against the peaceful Dals, with whom they shared the planet
Skaro
Skaro is a fictional planet in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was created by the writer Terry Nation as the home planet of the Daleks.
In ''The Daleks'' (1963–64), Skaro is described as being the twelfth pl ...
. Radiation from the war caused both species to mutate. In the case of the Thals the mutation came full-circle, returning them to their original appearance of blond humanoids. They have renounced violence and become pacifist farmers. During the story it is revealed that the Dals, now calling themselves '
Daleks
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 ...
', have evolved into aggressive creatures who cannot survive outside of the mobile, metal casings they have created. After centuries of freedom from strife the Thals are forced to take up arms again when the Daleks attempt to wipe them out by releasing radiation into Skaro's atmosphere. The
First Doctor
The First Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor William Hartnell.
Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time L ...
helps the Thals to victory, with all of the Daleks apparently dying when the flow of static electricity required to power their casings is disrupted.
In ''
Planet of the Daleks
''Planet of the Daleks'' is the fourth serial of the tenth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts on BBC1 from 7 April to 12 May 1973.
Continuing from the events of t ...
'' (1973), set many generations after the events of ''The Daleks'', a Thal space expedition is sent to the planet Spiridon. Together the Thals and the
Third Doctor
The Third Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor Jon Pertwee. Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord fro ...
defeat a Dalek plan to duplicate the natural invisibility of the planet's inhabitants, launch a ten-thousand strong Dalek army hidden on the planet and release a plague capable of exterminating all organic life.
Thal history was revised in ''
Genesis of the Daleks
''Genesis of the Daleks'' is the fourth serial of the twelfth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was written by Terry Nation and directed by David Maloney, and originally broadcast in six weekly parts fr ...
'' (1975), in which they were depicted as having been involved in a generations-long
war of attrition
The War of Attrition ( ar, حرب الاستنزاف, Ḥarb al-Istinzāf; he, מלחמת ההתשה, Milhemet haHatashah) involved fighting between Israel and Egypt, Jordan, the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and their allies from ...
with the
Kaleds. This transformed Skaro into a toxic wasteland, with the survivors of each race forced to live under their own huge, protective dome. The Kaled chief scientist,
Davros
Davros () is a character from the long-running British science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was created by screenwriter Terry Nation, originally for the 1975 serial ''Genesis of the Daleks''. Dav ...
, genetically engineers mutated members of the Kaled species and places the results into travel machines, which he names Daleks (an anagram of Kaleds). Davros simultaneously provides the Thals with the technology they need to destroy the Kaled dome, so as to wipe out all opposition to his plan to create a species consisting of what he considers to be the ultimate Kaled form. He then sends the Daleks to the Thal dome, where they kill nearly all the inhabitants. A small group of Thals use explosives to seal the Daleks and Davros in a Kaled bunker but the
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 ...
speculates that they have only delayed the Dalek development and rise to power by a matter of centuries.
Other appearances
The Thals are mentioned, but not shown, in the ''
TV Century 21
''TV Century 21'', later renamed ''TV21'', ''TV21 and Tornado'', ''TV21 and Joe 90'', and ''TV21'' again, was a weekly British children's comic published by City Magazines during the latter half of the 1960s. Originally produced in partnership ...
'' Dalek comic strip story
''Genesis of Evil'' (1965). In the narrative the Thals are stated to be a peaceful race, originally inhabiting the continent of Davius, who are at war with the Daleks; short, aggressive, blue-skinned humanoids who inhabit the continent of Dalazar. The Daleks plan to use a
neutron bomb
A neutron bomb, officially defined as a type of enhanced radiation weapon (ERW), is a low-yield thermonuclear weapon designed to maximize lethal neutron radiation in the immediate vicinity of the blast while minimizing the physical power of the b ...
against the Thals but a meteorite storm detonates it prematurely, causing planet-wide destruction in which the Thals apparently perish.
Thals are featured in the film ''
Dr. Who and the Daleks
''Dr. Who and the Daleks'' is a 1965 British science fiction film directed by Gordon Flemyng and written by Milton Subotsky, and the first of two films based on the British science-fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It stars Peter Cushi ...
'' (1965), which is based upon the
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, which depicts them as having once again become a warlike society, willing to destroy an inhabited planet simply as part of a trap to defeat a Dalek attack fleet.
In the
'' (2000), a Thal attempt to use a biological weapon against the Daleks nearly creates a monstrous insectoid race.
A Thal expedition captured by the Daleks features in the Telos novella ''
discovers a Thal project to brainwash Daleks to act as 'sleeper agents', only for the plan to fail when the Daleks' true nature asserts itself.