12.7. Can You Hear Me?

Series 12 - 2020

Writer: Charlene James and Chris Chibnall
Produced by: Alex Mercer
Director: Emma Sullivan
Music: Segun Akinola

Synopsis

Aleppo, Syria, 1380: Tahira, after stealing from a Souk, is let back inside a hospital. She suffers from mental health problems so isn't taken seriously when she tries to warn others about the things that come for them at night.

Sheffield, Endland, 2020: The Doctor lets Yaz, Graham, and Ryan, return home for a day. But the Doctor is vague about what she will be doing whilst they are out of the TARDIS. When the Doctor is alone a figure, Zellin, materialises breifly inside the TARDIS. The Doctor tracks him to Aleppo, and follows him in the TARDIS.

The Doctor arrives at the hopsital and finds it practically deserted. She finds Tahira alone in a room. On the ceiling of the room is a wolf like creature. When the creature runs out of the room the Doctor follows but the creature has vanished. The Doctor uses her sonic screwdriver but can't get any trace. Tahira tells the Doctor the hopsital contained about 10 - 12 patients, all of whom have presumably been taken by the creatures.

In Sheffield Ryan meets up with an old mate Tibo who doesn't seem to be his usual self. Tibo tells Rynan he is struggling, and has been having nightmares that all have a strange man in them. But in the last fre days Tibo has seen the man outside his flat, and sometimes in his room. Afraid Tibo asks Ryan to stay the night, and Ryan sleeps on the sofa. When Tibo is asleep in his room he visited by Zellin, who detaches his fingers and one attaches to Tibo. Hearing something Ryan enters Tibo's room in time to see Zellin fade away - along with Tibo.

At home, after a meal with her sister, Yaz falls asleep during a movie and starts to dream about being on a empty Sheffield moor with another police officer, #Officer, and #Person. When she awakes suddenly she sees Zellin in the room.

In Syria the Doctor gets three phones calls, from Ryan regarding the disappearance of Tibo, from Yaz about seeing Zellin, and from Graham who is seeing images about a trapped woman. The Doctor, with Tahira, collects Yaz, Graham, and Ryan. The Doctor starts to argue with the TARDIS. The TARDIS is telling her that two strands of fur that she has collected do not ecist; or at least do not register in the TARDIS systems.

Eager to find out more about the woman in Graham's pshychic projections the Doctor links him to the TARDIS telepathic circuits. Moments later the TARDIS materialises on board a space station. But not one that Graham recognises. As the Doctor walks around systems start to activate, including a screen showing two worlds with something lodged between them. Zooming in they can see a geo-orb, and Graham gets more visions about a woman trapped inside. In the control area Yaz finds a section containing fingers, and when the Doctor scans them she finds they are transmitting a pshychic signal into the orb.

Whilst they were busy Tahira slips out of the control area and wanders about the station. She finds a room where people, including Tibo and Maryam from the hospital, are being held. Behinds a transparent wall is the creature from the hopsital, called a Chagaska by Zellin. Yaz, Ryan, and Graham arrive just as Zellin detaches his fingers. Moments later they, too, are held in a dream state with the other people. Yaz once again is dreaming about the Sheffield moor. Ryan finds himself in a burning room with Tibo and Dregs. Graham dreams that his cancer has returned, with Grace giving him the bad news.

The Doctor realises she is alone in the control room talking to herself when Zellin appears. The Doctor recognises the name Zellin. Zellin is an immortal who likes to extract fear from scared and vulnerable people for fun. The Doctor realises that Zellin has been collecting nightmares from humans and transmitting them into the mind of the trapped woman. The Doctor thought she was being clever by freeing the woman from the orb, but Zellin tells her he made the Chagaskas target the humans in order to entice the Doctor to the station to break the lock. Only someone from this realm could break the lock. Zellin reveals that the station is not his, and that he was using the Doctor to release Rakaya from her prison.

Leaving the Doctor trapped on the station Rakaya and Zellin head to Earth for more nightmares. The Doctor isn't held for long, and with her sonic screwdriver is able to free Yaz, Ryan, and Graham, and the other people including Tibo and Maryam. Rakaya and Zellin are called to Aleppo where the find the Doctor and her friends. Zellin created the Chagaska from Tahira's nightmares which allows Tahira to control them. Using the fingers left behind by Zellin the Doctor is able to trap Zellin, Rakaya, and the Chagaska, inside the orb.

Regular Cast

  • Graham O'Brien: Bradley Walsh
  • Ryan Sinclair: Tosin Cole
  • Yasmin Khan: Mandip Gill

Guest Cast

  • Zellin: Ian Gelder
  • Tibo: Buam Tihngang
  • Rakaya: Clare-Hope Ashitey
  • Grace O'Brien: Sharon D. Clarke
  • Sonya Khan: Bhavnisha Parmar
  • Tahira: Aruhan Galieva
  • Maryam: Sirine Saba
  • Anita Patel: Nasreen Hussain
  • Gabriel: Everal A. Walsh
  • Fred: Michael Keane
  • Mum: Amanda Liberman
  • Old Tiba: Willie Jonah
  • Andrew: Anthony Taylor

Original broadcast on the BBC

Channel Title Date Viewers Rating
BBC 1 (HD) 7. Can You Hear Me? Sunday, February 9, 2020 7:10 PM - 8:00 PM 4.90M 78

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