12.11. Revolution of the Daleks

Series 12 - 2020

Writer: Chris Chibnall
Producer: Alex Mercer
Director: Lee Haven Jones
Music: Segun Akinola

Synopsis

After the events of New Year's Day 2019 (see Resolution) the clean-up begins. Part of the job involves taking the remains of the Dalek shell by lorry from London. On the way the lorry driver stops at a roadside cafe where his is killed and the lorry, with the remains of the Dalek shell, is stolen.

A few months later Jack Robertson, the CEO of a group of companies, and Leo Rugazzi, CEO of Rugazzi Technologies, acquired by Robertson, are demonstrating a new security drone they have developed to Jo Patterson, the Technology Secretary. The drone for the demonstration has relatively safe CS gas and water spray fitted. Jo is impressed, and Robertson says he has factories ready to be repurposed to creating the new drones. Robertson tells Jo that he could have the drones ready within a year or so.

A lot happens during the year. The Doctor is trapped in a Judoon prison 79 billion light years away from Earth. Every day seems to be the same. Food is transported into her cell, and when she is allowed out of her cell she is directed around the prison, seeing other prisoners including a weeping angel, and even a Pting. And a man: Captain Jack Harkness.

Jack managed to track down the Doctor and, with a way out, gets himself imprisoned along with a concealed temporal-freezing gateway disinhibitor bubble (which Jack says he would have called a breakout ball) and a vortex manipulator. (Just don't ask where they were concealed). The breakout ball can literally create a bubble that freezes time and allows the occupants to pass through walls. Using the breakout ball and the vortex manipulator Jack teleports the Doctor back to her TARDIS.

On Earth Ryan and Graham visit the TARDIS they were left with after the events on Gallifrey. Inside Yaz is doing all she can to locate the Doctor. She is so preoccupied in trying to find the Doctor she didn't even notice they were now on a new year. In an attempt to take Yaz's mind off the Doctor Graham shows her secret footage of Robertson and his drone test. With a drone that looks a lot like a Dalek.

After a general election the new Prime Minister Jo Patterson meets Robertson to tell him she wants to expedite the drone project and go nation wide. Robertson returns to London where he meets Leo who tells him that production is underway and that they should be ale to meet the deadline.

Leo takes the opportunity to tell Robertson that he has a side project. The original Dalek casing has contained traces of organic material. From that Leo had been able to clone a creature. When Robertson sees the creature he is disgusted and orders Leo to incinerate it.

Leo takes the creature down to the incinerator, but when he opens the creature's box he is attacked - and the creature jumps on to his back and takes him over.

In Graham's house in Sheffield Yaz, Ryan, and Graham, are trying to work out how to deal with the Dalek and Robertson when the Doctor's TARDIS materialises inside. The Doctor was expecting them to be happy to see her, but Yaz is angry and shoves the Doctor, telling her that they had been worried about her. The Doctor had set the TARDIS co-ordinates to arrive at the same time as the other TARDIS - but she is in fact ten months late.

At the same time Leo, now controlled by a Dalek, travels to Osaka, Japan. Whilst Leo had his own side project so did the Dalek. Secretly it had been setting up a Dalek creature factory. When the Doctor scans Earth for Dalek DNA she finds the factory. She drops Jack and Yaz at the factory whilst she, Ryan, and Graham, visits Robertson's factory in London. Roberston tells her the 3D printed security drones are empty - controlled by an AI. Robertson also tells the Doctor he doesn't have a facility in Osaka. The Docor takes Ryan, Graham, and Robertson, to the facility in Osaka whilst in London Jo Patterson reveals the new drones to the British public, telling them to expect the drones on the streets of Britain.

At the Osaka facility Jack breaks in and he and Yaz see the Dalek clone farm. Yaz wants to take a sample of liquid that feeds the creatures whilst Jack starts to set explosives with the aim of destroying the facility. When the TARDIS arrives with the Doctor, Ryan, Graham, and Roberson, they meet Leo/the Dalek. Robertson is more concerned about how Leo was able to set up the facility. When asked why there are no other people at the facility Leo tells them the people have been liquidised to feed the creatures.

Something is bothering the Doctor, but she can't say what. When Yaz mentions the lighting has been changing slowly from green to purple the Doctor realises the light is turning ultra-violet, and the Dalek creatures can use that to transport into Robertson's drones - that have also had a design input by the Dalek. Now in their new bodies the transported Daleks immediately start exterminating any humans they meet on the streets of Britain - including the Prime Minister Jo Patterson.

Safe inside the TARDIS the Doctor feels there is only one option left - and Jack is against it. The Daleks were cloned from parts of the Reconnaissance Dalek, which itself is not a pure Dalek. The Doctor sends a message into space where it is received by a group of pure Daleks - a Death Squad. They trace the signal to Earth where the detect the impure Daleks on Earth. Once the Dalek ship is in orbit the true Daleks attack and destroy all the Robertson Daleks.

Seeing all his product, the drones, being destroyed Robertson goes to negotiate with the Daleks - and demands to be taken to their leader. On board the Dalek ship he tells the Daleks they are being led into a trap - by the Doctor.

With phase one of the Doctor's plan complete it's time for phase two: getting rid of the pure Daleks. The Doctor suggests Jack goes to the Dalek ship where he can blow it up. Ryan and Graham go with Jack as Yaz stays with the Doctor.

On board the Dalek ship whilst Ryan and Graham start to set explosives Jack overhears Roberson negotiate with the Daleks and sell-out the Doctor. Yaz suggests the Doctor stays out of the way, but she has a very different plan.

The Dalek ship detects the Doctor's TARDIS materialising in space. From the door the Doctor appears to taunt the Daleks flying around the TARDIS and they rush inside. But inside they find the other TARDIS, and the Doctor is only a hologram. They are trapped inside a TARDIS the Doctor has rigged to collapse in on itself. Back on the Dalek ship Ryan, Graham, and Robertson, teleport away with Jack's help, as the ship explodes, taking out any remaining Daleks.

Jack returns to Cardiff as Robertson returns to America. The Doctor tells Yaz, Ryan, and Graham, that she wants to take them to a meringue restaurant where every course, and everything, is meringue. But Ryan decides to stay on Earth, and Graham leaves with him.

Regular Cast

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

Guest Cast

  • Captain Jack Harkness: John Barrowman
  • Robertson: Chris Noth
  • Jo Patterson: Harriet Walter
  • Leo Rugazzi: Nathan Stewart-Jarrett
  • Armen: Nathan Armarkwei-Laryea
  • Rachel: Helen Anderson
  • Voice of the Daleks: Nicholas Briggs
  • Dalek Operator 1: Barnaby Edwards
  • Dalek Operator 2: Nicolas Pegg
  • Grace: Sharon D. Clarke

Original broadcast on the BBC

Channel Title Date Viewers Rating
BBC 1 (HD) 11. Revolution of the Daleks Friday, 1 January 2021 18:45 - 20:00 6.6M 79

Click here to show repeat broadcasts on the BBC

Notes

During the live transmission there was an option to watch the episode on the BBC iPlayer in 4K UHD.