The End of the World (Doctor Who)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

"The End of the World" is the second episode of the first series of 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 ...
programme ''
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 ...
''. Written by executive producer
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 scie ...
and directed by
Euros Lyn Euros Lyn (; born 1971) is a Welsh film and television director, best known for his work in ''Doctor Who'', '' Sherlock'', ''Black Mirror'', '' Daredevil'', ''His Dark Materials'' and '' Heartstopper''. Early life Lyn was born in Cardiff. His ...
, the episode was first broadcast on
BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...
on 2 April 2005 and was seen by approximately 7.97 million viewers in the United Kingdom. In the episode, the alien time traveller the
Ninth Doctor The Ninth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Christopher Eccleston during the first series of the show's revival in 2005. Within the seri ...
(
Christopher Eccleston Christopher Eccleston (; born 16 February 1964) is an English actor. A two-time BAFTA Award nominee, he is best known for his television and film work, which includes his role as the ninth incarnation of the Doctor in the BBC sci-fi series '' ...
) takes his new companion
Rose Tyler Rose Tyler is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. She was created by series producer Russell T Davies and portrayed by Billie Piper. With the revival of ''Doctor Who'' in 2005, Rose was introd ...
(
Billie Piper Billie Paul Piper (born Leian Paul Piper; 22 September 1982) is an English actress and former singer. She initially gained recognition as a singer after releasing her debut single "Because We Want To" at age 15, which made her the youngest woman ...
) five billion years into the future where many rich alien delegates have gathered on a space station called Platform One to watch the Sun expand into a
red giant A red giant is a luminous giant star of low or intermediate mass (roughly 0.3–8 solar masses ()) in a late phase of stellar evolution. The outer atmosphere is inflated and tenuous, making the radius large and the surface temperature around or ...
and destroy the Earth, but the human guest Lady Cassandra (
Zoë Wanamaker Zoë Wanamaker (born 13 May 1949) is a British-American actress who has worked extensively with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre. A nine-time Olivier Award nominee, she won for '' Once in a Lifetime'' (1979) and '' Electra ...
) is plotting to profit from the event by fabricating a hostage situation. "The End of the World" is the first episode of the revival to be set in the future. Due in part to the numerous SFX shots, the episode used up most of the series' SFX budget. The episode also features numerous intricate costumes. Location filming principally took place in Cardiff in October 2004, with some additional scenes shot in Cardiff and
Penarth Penarth (, ) is a town and Community (Wales), community in the Vale of Glamorgan ( cy, Bro Morgannwg), Wales, exactly south of Cardiff city centre on the west shore of the Severn Estuary at the southern end of Cardiff Bay. Penarth is a weal ...
in November 2004 and February 2005. Studio work was recorded in the Unit Q2 warehouse in Newport from September to November 2004. The episode marked the first appearance of Cassandra and the
Face of Boe Captain Jack Harkness is a fictional character played by John Barrowman in ''Doctor Who'' and its spin-off series, ''Torchwood''. The character first appears in the 2005 ''Doctor Who'' episode "The Empty Child" and subsequently features in the ...
, both of which would appear in the
series two Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered sets used in ...
episode " New Earth".


Plot

The
Ninth Doctor The Ninth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Christopher Eccleston during the first series of the show's revival in 2005. Within the seri ...
takes
Rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...
five billion years into her future. They land on Platform One, a space station in orbit around Earth. They have arrived in time for a party celebrating the final destruction of the long-abandoned Earth by the expansion of the Sun. The Doctor uses his
psychic paper This is a list of notable or recurring items from the BBC television series '' Doctor Who''. C Celery The Fifth Doctor wears a sprig of celery in his lapel. He claims that he is allergic to certain gases in the praxis range; if those gases ...
to pass as their invitation to the party, and he and Rose find many elite alien beings there. The guests include Lady Cassandra, billed as "the last human" but is actually a face on a large piece of skin that must be continually moisturised. Also present is the
Face of Boe Captain Jack Harkness is a fictional character played by John Barrowman in ''Doctor Who'' and its spin-off series, ''Torchwood''. The character first appears in the 2005 ''Doctor Who'' episode "The Empty Child" and subsequently features in the ...
. Meanwhile, the gifts brought by the Adherents of the Repeated Meme contain robotic spiders that immediately work at disabling functions on Platform One. The Steward of Platform One recognises something is wrong, but is killed when the spiders lower the solar filter of his room and expose him to the powerful solar radiation. After Rose insults Cassandra, the Adherents follow her and knock her unconscious. She regains consciousness in an observation room where the solar filter drops. The Doctor gets the filter back up but cannot get her out. The Doctor determines that the Adherents sabotaged Platform One. However, they are robots commanded by Cassandra. Cassandra admits to being the saboteur: her original plan was to create a hostage situation (with herself as one of the "victims") and profit from the compensation she would have had, but now intends to gain money from Cassandra's stock holdings in the companies of the guests' competitors to increase in value after they die. Cassandra teleports off the station as the spiders bring down the shielding on the entire station. The Doctor and the sentient tree Jabe travel to the bowels of Platform One to restore the automated shields, but it requires one of them to travel through several spinning fans. Jabe sacrifices herself to hold down a switch to slow down the fan blades. This allows the Doctor to reactivate the system just before the expanding Sun hits the station and destroys Earth. The Doctor reverses Cassandra's teleport and brings her back onto the station. In the elevated temperature and without moisture, Cassandra's body creaks and ruptures. The Doctor explains to Rose, now free from the observation room, that he is the last of the
Time Lords The Time Lords are a fictional ancient race of extraterrestrial life, extraterrestrial people in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', of which the series' main protagonist, The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor, is a memb ...
, and that his planet was destroyed in the wake of a great war.


Production


Conception

"The End of the World" was conceived as a deliberately expensive spectacle to show off how much the new ''Doctor Who'' could do. Platform One was designed to be like a "hotel for the most poshest, richest, and influential aliens in the universe", and is partly based on
Douglas Adams Douglas Noel Adams (11 March 1952 – 11 May 2001) was an English author and screenwriter, best known for ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy''. Originally a 1978 BBC radio comedy, ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'' developed into a " ...
' ''
The Restaurant at the End of the Universe ''The Restaurant at the End of the Universe'' is the second book in the ''Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'' comedy science fiction "trilogy" by Douglas Adams, and is a sequel. It was originally published by Pan Books as a paperback in 1980. ...
''. One function of the episode is to reveal that the Doctor is the last of his people. Davies had also initially intended to have the last humans escaping the doomed Earth aboard massive space arks (similar arks appeared in the serial '' The Ark''). This was dropped when the complexity of the character of Cassandra was fully realised during development. The episode features the first appearance of concepts such as the
psychic paper This is a list of notable or recurring items from the BBC television series '' Doctor Who''. C Celery The Fifth Doctor wears a sprig of celery in his lapel. He claims that he is allergic to certain gases in the praxis range; if those gases ...
, the Time War and the words 'Bad Wolf', which would go on to form a story arc throughout the series. It also mentions 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 ap ...
' universal translation capabilities, which had been referenced in the 1976 serial ''
The Masque of Mandragora ''The Masque of Mandragora'' is the first 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 4 to 25 September 1976. The serial is set in the fi ...
''. An unaired scene would have shown the Doctor to have nine strands of DNA instead of one, an allusion to his eight previous incarnations. This episode begins with a
cold open A cold open (also called a teaser sequence) is a narrative technique used in television and films. It is the practice of jumping directly into a story at the beginning of the show before the title sequence or opening credits are shown. In Ameri ...
, the first time ''Doctor Who'' did this, which would soon become a standard feature. The show had previously used pre-credits teaser sequences, but only for some special episodes in the 1980s, such as the post-
regeneration Regeneration may refer to: Science and technology * Regeneration (biology), the ability to recreate lost or damaged cells, tissues, organs and limbs * Regeneration (ecology), the ability of ecosystems to regenerate biomass, using photosynthesis ...
'' Castrovalva'' (1982); the 20th-anniversary special, ''
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 ...
'' (1983); and the 25th-anniversary story, ''
Remembrance of the Daleks ''Remembrance of the Daleks'' is the first serial of the 25th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. The serial was first broadcast in four weekly episodes from 5 to 26 October 1988. It was written by Ben Aaronovi ...
'' (1988). The villain Lady Cassandra, a CGI creation voiced by actress Zoë Wanamaker, was developed for the episode. Executive producer
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 scie ...
stated that Cassandra was inspired by drastic beauty treatments that had been taken by female celebrities, particularly inspired by the appearance of various ones at the
Oscars The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
. He said, "It was horrific seeing those beautiful women reduced to sticks.
Nicole Kidman Nicole Mary Kidman (born 20 June 1967) is an American and Australian actress and producer. Known for her work across various film and television productions from several genres, she has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid act ...
struck me in particular. Nicole is one of the most beautiful women in the world. But she looks horrifying because she’s so thin. It’s like we’re killing these women in public. We watch while you die." Originally, Cassandra was intended to have collected pieces of human history, such as the
Magna Carta (Medieval Latin for "Great Charter of Freedoms"), commonly called (also ''Magna Charta''; "Great Charter"), is a royal charter of rights agreed to by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215. First drafted by the ...
and ''
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' is a 1997 fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling. The first novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series and Rowling's debut novel, it follows Harry Potter, a young wizard who discovers hi ...
''. The book still appears as a set piece, being contained in a glass cabinet decorating the Platform One hotel. Wanamaker reprised the role of Cassandra in the 2006 series' first episode, " New Earth".


Filming

"The End of the World" was scheduled as part of the second production block along with "
The Unquiet Dead "The Unquiet Dead" is the third episode of the first series of the British science-fiction television programme '' Doctor Who'', first broadcast on 9 April 2005 on BBC One. It was written by Mark Gatiss and directed by Euros Lyn. In the episo ...
".
Camille Coduri Camille Coduri (born 18 April 1965) is an English actress. She is best known for playing Jackie Tyler, the mother of Rose Tyler, in '' Doctor Who'', and also for her roles as Faith in ''Nuns on the Run'', Miranda in ''King Ralph'', and Dot Clapto ...
's scene as
Jackie Tyler Jackie Tyler is a fictional character played by Camille Coduri in the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who''. The character, a resident of contemporary London, is introduced in the first episode of the 2005 revival as the mot ...
was shot in advance during the first production block because of commitments for the film '' The Business'' that would make her unavailable. The scene was shot at the Unit Q2 warehouse in Newport on 7 September 2004. The main recording for the episode began in the studio at Unit Q2 from 22 September. Many of the Platform One interiors were filmed at the Temple of Peace in Cardiff from 6 to 14 October. During the recording of "The Unquiet Dead" on 20 October, several pick-up shots were recorded at Headlands School in
Penarth Penarth (, ) is a town and Community (Wales), community in the Vale of Glamorgan ( cy, Bro Morgannwg), Wales, exactly south of Cardiff city centre on the west shore of the Severn Estuary at the southern end of Cardiff Bay. Penarth is a weal ...
.Ainsworth, ed. (2016). ''Doctor Who: The Complete History''. Volume 48, p. 98. The main recording on the block concluded in Q2 on 22 October. To help with the convenience of locations, the scenes with the Doctor and Rose on present-day Earth were shot during the third production block on 9 November. Filming took place at Helmont House on Churchill Way, and on Queen Street.Ainsworth, ed. (2016). ''Doctor Who: The Complete History''. Volume 48, p. 99. Some additional shots involving the air ducts were shot at Q2 on 26 November. The filming of screens with Cassandra proved to be difficult, with one crew member comparing it to pushing around a faulty shopping trolley. Zoë Wanamaker was unable to be present on the set during the filming of her scenes so a
stand-in A stand-in for film and television is a person who substitutes for the actor before filming, for technical purposes such as lighting and camera setup. Stand-ins are helpful in the initial processes of film and television production. Stand-ins a ...
had to be used. Due to complexities in animating Cassandra, some of her lines were dropped and the episode underran. To compensate, Davies came up with the character of maintenance worker Raffalo, and scenes between Raffalo and Rose were filmed at the Temple of Peace on 19 February 2005.


Effects and costumes

The episode contains 203 visual effects shots that were completed over eight weeks, compared to "about 100" in the film ''
Gladiator A gladiator ( la, gladiator, "swordsman", from , "sword") was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gla ...
''; Russell T Davies joked that there never would be an episode of the same scale due to the expense in producing it. As of "
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 ...
" (2011), no ''Doctor Who'' episode contains as many special effects shots. Producer
Phil Collinson Philip Collinson (born 26 August 1970) is a British television producer. He was initially an actor, before switching to working behind the cameras in the industry as a script editor and writer on programmes such as ''Springhill'' and ''Emmerda ...
also said the episode had more monsters than ever before. Both Cassandra and the robotic spiders — other than an inactive one — are completely CGI creatures. According to Russell T Davies, Cassandra was worked on for "many many months" and costed a "fortune". The Moxx of Balhoon was originally going to be animated, but this changed to a "glove puppet" and then a full rubber suit when it was desired he be "chunkier". Actor
Jimmy Vee James Vee (born 3 February 1959) is a Scottish actor, puppeteer and stunt performer. He is best known for playing a number of ''Doctor Who'' monsters and aliens including Bannakaffalatta in the 2007 Christmas special ''Voyage of the Damned'', ...
had done similar parts before, although the actor said it was hard filming in the costume, which took three hours to put on. Jabe was originally more tree bark-like in the face, but it was decided that she be a
Silver Birch ''Betula pendula'', commonly known as silver birch, warty birch, European white birch, or East Asian white birch, is a species of tree in the family Betulaceae, native to Europe and parts of Asia, though in southern Europe, it is only found ...
instead. Other effects include the creation of a fake 7" single for
Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...
' "
Toxic Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a subst ...
". In the episode, Cassandra unveils an "
iPod The iPod is a discontinued series of portable media players and multi-purpose mobile devices designed and marketed by Apple Inc. The first version was released on October 23, 2001, about months after the Macintosh version of iTunes ...
" (actually a
Wurlitzer The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to as simply Wurlitzer, is an American company started in Cincinnati in 1853 by German immigrant (Franz) Rudolph Wurlitzer. The company initially imported stringed, woodwind and brass instruments ...
jukebox A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that will play a patron's selection from self-contained media. The classic jukebox has buttons, with letters and numbers on them, which are used to selec ...
), that plays "
Tainted Love "Tainted Love" is a song composed by Ed Cobb, formerly of American group the Four Preps, which was originally recorded by Gloria Jones in 1964. It attained worldwide fame after being covered and reworked by British synthpop duo Soft Cell in 198 ...
" by
Soft Cell Soft Cell are an English synthpop duo who came to prominence in the early 1980s. The duo consists of vocalist Marc Almond and instrumentalist David Ball. The band are primarily known for their 1981 hit version of "Tainted Love" and their plat ...
and later "Toxic". Since "Toxic" was not actually released as a 7" 45 rpm vinyl
single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...
, the production team mocked up a 7" single for use in the episode.Burk and Smith, 2012, p. 11


Broadcast and reception

According to a March 2006 interview with Russell T Davies, he requested for this episode to be broadcast back-to-back with "Rose", but the request was given to the BBC too close to transmission to do so. In the United States the
Sci-Fi Channel Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. Launc ...
did run the two episodes consecutively on 17 March 2006. The broadcast of "The End of the World" in the US was watched by 1.61 million viewers. In Canada, the episode had 899,000 viewers, making it the evening's 4th-most viewed primetime show. Overnight figures showed that "The End of the World" was watched by 7.3 million viewers in the UK, down 2.6 million viewers from the premiere. When final ratings were calculated, figures rose to 7.97 million. The episode received an
Audience Appreciation Index The Audience Appreciation Index (AI) is an indicator measured from 0 to 100 of the public's appreciation for a television or radio programme, or broadcast service, in the United Kingdom. Until 2002, the AI of a programme was calculated by the B ...
score of 76, which was the lowest in the show's history until 2015's " Sleep No More". Arnold T Blumburg of the magazine '' Now Playing'' gave "The End of the World" a grade of "A−", praising the spectacle as well as the performances of Eccleston and Piper and their developing characters. However, he felt that the climax suffered from pacing issues. '' SFX'' called it a "brave episode to air so early, but it works", praising the way the alien concepts were reminiscent to the classic series. However, the reviewer wrote that "the full drama of the event is never quite captured" and "the murder plot...never quite takes flight, but it provides the framework for some brilliant scenes". In ''Who Is the Doctor'', a guide to the revived series, Graeme Burk described "The End of the World" as "sheer, unadulterated fun", particularly praising the emotional connection that was built between the Doctor and Rose. Burk felt that there could have been more of a build-up to the Cassandra revelation, but commented that "a lot of the success of the story" was due to her.Burk and Smith, 2012, p. 11-12 Burk's co-author Robert Smith added that the episode allowed Eccleston to shine by offering the Doctor a wide range of emotions.Burk and Smith, 2012, p. 12-13 Despite their positive reviews, Burk and Smith noted that the switch at the end of the hallway with giant fans was "contrived" and "silly".Burk and Smith, 2012, p. 10 In 2013, Patrick Mulkern of ''
Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...
'' felt that the episode had everything to be expected from Davies' ''Doctor Who'': boldness,
camp Camp may refer to: Outdoor accommodation and recreation * Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site * a temporary settlement for nomads * Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to descri ...
, and emotional and character drama. ''
The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
'' reviewer Alasdair Wilkins gave the episode a grade of B+, noting that the episode was not concerned with plot, but it succeeded in character moments and reintroducing ''Doctor Who''.


References


Bibliography

* *


External links


BBC Doctor Who Homepage"The End of the World"
at
BBC iPlayer BBC iPlayer (stylised as iPLAYER or BBC iPLAYER) is a video on demand service from the BBC. The service is available on a wide range of devices, including mobile phones and tablets, personal computers and smart televisions. iPlayer services del ...
*
Doctor Who Confidential
' — Episode 2: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly * {{DEFAULTSORT:End of the World, The Ninth Doctor episodes 2005 British television episodes Television shows written by Russell T Davies Doctor Who stories set on Earth Fiction set in the 7th millennium or beyond Apocalyptic television episodes Television episodes set in space