It's ten years since David Tennant's first series of Doctor Who was first broadcast in the UK. To celebrate we take a look back in time...
First Broadcast on 1st July 2006. Running Time: 45 Minutes. Viewing Figures: 8.19 million.
Written By Russell T Davies.
Directed By Graeme Harper.
Executive Producers Russell T Davies and Julie Gardner.
Synopsis:
The human race rejoices as the ghosts of loved ones return home but as the Doctor, Rose and Jackie investigate the Torchwood Tower, the whole of modern-day Earth threatens to fall to an almighty invasion force.
Extras: Promotional Photos | On Set Photos | Screen Caps | Videos | Articles
Production Notes:
Army Of Ghosts is the first part of a two part finale to Series Two. It is the beginning of Rose Tyler's swansong. The episode begins with a narration by Rose (Billie Piper) reminiscing about her life with The Doctor before she shocks viewers by announcing "This is the story of how I died."
The episodes were originally going to be set in Cardiff, but Russell T Davies decided to change the location to London as the spin off series Torchwood had been commissioned and was to be set in the Welsh city.
The interior of Torchwood's offices were studio sets, although some filming was done at RAF St Athan in Glamorgan and Brackla Bunkers in Bridgend. Further Welsh locations included Coal Exchange and Mount Stuart Square in Cardiff Bay. The Brandon Estate in London featured again as Rose Tyler's home the Powell Estate.
The episode was filmed in the same production block as Rise Of The Cybermen and The Age Of Steel this ensured that both Noel Clarke (Mickey Smith) and Shaun Dingwall (Pete Tyler) were available for filming.
The episode debuted a new black Dalek, which was actually the Dalek from the series one episode 'Dalek', repainted. A black Dalek had not been seen in the show since Remembrance Of The Daleks.
The Genesis Ark was a new idea thought of for the episode and was designed by Matt Savage.
Rose's mum Jackie travels in the TARDIS for the very first time during this episode.
Freema Agyeman makes her debut in this episode as Adeola Oshodi who is killed by a Cyberman. Freema of course went on to star as Martha Jones her resemblance to Adeola was explained as Martha being her cousin.
The Friends:
Jackie Tyler plays a major role in helping the Doctor throughout the Series Two finale. Mum to Rose, Jackie is fiercely protective of her only daughter. She was left a young widow after her husband, Pete Tyer, was killed on the day of their friend's wedding. Rose was just six months old when he died. Jackie and Rose lived in Bucknall House on the Powell Estate in South East London. Jackie ran her own mobile hairdressing business to provide for them both.
The day before Rose first met the Doctor Jackie got a phone call from her from 5 billion years in the future, though she didn't realise this and continued to do the washing. After she was caught in the Auton Invasion, in Series One opener 'Rose', Jackie was scared that Rose was missing or dead. She even suspected Rose's boyfriend Mickey of having something to do with her disappearance. Rose was actually missing for a year by the time that she returned home. When she did she explained where she had been and who the Doctor was and Jackie begged her not to continue travelling with him. Jackie felt that The Doctor was willing to sacrifice both his own life and Rose's to save the world.
Jackie eventually realised she was fighting a losing battle and resigned herself to the fact that the Doctor and Rose came as a pair. In 'The Parting Of The Ways' when the Doctor tricked Rose in to going back home Jackie helped Rose to get back to him.
When Rose returned home with the newly regenerated Doctor in 'The Christmas Invasion' Jackie helped them foil the Sycorax invasion. She was impressed with the new Doctor and invited him to her flat for Christmas dinner with Rose and Mickey. Jackie seemed more relaxed about Rose travelling with the Tenth Doctor and happily waved her daughter off on her travels with the Time Lord in 'New Earth'.
When the TARDIS materialised on the Powell Estate in 'Army Of Ghosts' the Doctor and Rose found that Jackie was convinced she wasbeing visited by the ghost of her dad, Granddad Prentice, which turned out to be a Cyberman. As a result of the ghostly vision, Jackie found herself being taken to the Torchwood Institute by the TARDIS. Whilst there, due to a mix up, the Doctor let everyone believe that Jackie was Rose.
After escaping the Cybermen, Jackie meets up with the alternative Earth version of her husband Pete Tyler.
They begin to bond and Jackie and Pete start a new life together in 'Pete's World' where Jaclie gives birth to a new baby, Tony. This isn't the the last of Jackie's adventures with the Doctor....
The Foes:
The Cybermen began to appear on this Earth as 'ghosts' as they crossed the void from the alternative Earth that they had been inhabiting. Under the guise of being the ghosts of loved ones they successfully transported 5 million Cybermen across the globe before revealing their true identity.
Following their reveal, Cyberleader One took charge and using a camera located in a Cyberform's forearm he transmitted a message of their triumphant invasion to the world. The Cybermen based themselves in Torchwood Tower in Canary Wharf and walked the streets of London collecting people for upgrades.
Cyberleader One was responsible for taking over Torchwood Tower. He was later destroyed by Jake Simmond's troopers, but all of his knowledge was instantly downloaded into another Cyberman who became Cyberleader Two. The Cyberman who became leader was about to convert Jackie Tyler when the upgrading to Cyberleader occurred and Jackie was fortunately able to escape during the momentary confusion.
When the Daleks emerged from their Void Ship the Cybermen offered them an alliance which the Daleks rejected, this led to a war between the two with Earth and the human race trapped in the middle.
As the Cybermen's fatalities mounted up they began an emergency upgrade of all Torchwood personnel and attempted to retreat through the void.
Torchwood's CEO Yvonne Hartman was hopelessly out of her depth as the Cybermen took over and was unable to resist her Ultimate Upgrade, but the upgrade was not entirely successful and even in her Cyberform Yvonne defended Torchwood Tower 'for Queen and Country' shedding a single tear as she turned on her fellow Cybermen and shot them down...
Quotes:
- Rose Tyler: Planet Earth. This is where I was born. And this is where I died. For the first nineteen years of my life nothing happened. Nothing at all. Not ever. And then I met a man called The Doctor. A man who could change his face. And he took me away from home in his magical machine. He showed me the whole of time and space. I thought it would never end. That's what I thought. But then came the Army of Ghosts, then came Torchwood and the war. And that's when it all ended. This is the story of how I died.
- The Doctor: If I'm the enemy, does that mean I'm a prisoner?
- Yvonne Hartman: Oh yes, but we'll make you perfectly comfortable.
- Yvonne Hartman: So this is?
- The Doctor: That's Rose Tyler.
- Yvonne Hartman: (looking at Jackie) Then she is?
- Jackie Tyler: I'm her mother.
- Yvonne Hartman: You travel with her mother?
- Jackie Tyler: I was kidnapped!
- The Doctor: Please, when you come to write my official biography, please don't say I traveled with her mother..... Well I have a reputation to uphold.
- Rose Tyler: Doctor, they've got guns.
- The Doctor: And I haven't! Which makes me the better person, don't you think? They can shoot me dead, but the moral high ground is mine!
- The Doctor: But I don't understand; the Cybermen don't have the technology to build a void ship. How did you manage it?
- Cyberleader: The sphere is not ours. We followed it its wake; its origin is unknown to us.
- The Doctor: Then what's inside?
Facts:
- The aerial shot of One Canada Square in Canary Wharf is taken from the opening credits of The Apprentice.
- Although seen as part of a fictional TV show in this episode, the world of EastEnders has appeared as part of the Doctor Who universe. Characters from both shows appeared alongside each other in the 3D adventure Dimensions In Time as part of 1993's Children In Need appeal
- Actress Freema Agyeman so impressed the production team as Adeola that she was offered the chance to take over from Billie Piper as the Doctor's new companion. The rest, as they say, is history.
- Fake ghosts have featured in previous adventures, including a device used to frighten people away from Magnus Greel's hidden sewer lair in The Talons Of Weng Chiang (1977).
- Freema Agyeman was the second companion to be cast as such following a guest role in the series. Lalla Ward got the job of Romana 2 after playing Princess Astra in the Armageddon Factor (1979). Karen Gillan who went on to star as Amy Pond in the Eleventh Doctor stories also appeared as a guest actress in the Tenth Doctor adventure The Fires Of Pompeii.
Cast:
- David Tennant - The Doctor
- Billie Piper - Rose Tyler
- Camille Coduri – Jackie Tyler
- Noel Clarke – Mickey Smith
- Tracy-Ann Oberman – Yvonne Hartman
- Raji James – Dr Rajesh Singh
- Freema Agyeman – Adeola Oshodi
- Hadley Fraser – Gareth
- Oliver Mellor – Matt
- Barbara Windsor – Peggy Mitchell
- Guest Starring Derek Acorah, Alistair Appleton, Trisha Goddard as themselves.
Videos:
0 comments:
Post a Comment