Doctor Who: The Androids of Tara: Special Edition

Getting the fourth segment of the Key to Time is the easiest part of the trip to the planet Tara, whose idyllic atmosphere lulls the Doctor into a mood to go fishing and leave the segment-tracing to Romana. She locates it after a short walk on a beautiful day, but her luck changes when she meets the courtly Count Grendel. Contrary to appearances, Tara is a hotbed of political intrigue, and beneath its Old World veneer lies a surprising advanced level of technological development that includes lifelike androids and electric swords. Count Grendel mistakes Romana for an android double of Princess Strella, and carries her away for future use in his plot to wrench the crown from its rightful claimant, Prince Reynart. Meanwhile, the Doctor arouses suspicion when Prince Reynart's men discover him fishing on the prince's estate. Before he and Romana are reunited, the Doctor will be unwillingly thrust in the roles of android repair-man, king-maker and ultimately, swordsman - when finds himself locking swords with Grendel, the finest swordsman of all Tara.

The Doctor knows the planet Tara to be a peaceful and pleasant place. So, having collected three of the segments of the Key to Time, he decides to take a rest and allow Romana to find the fourth on her own. But the planet is not as peaceful as it appears. Romana is rescued from a wild animal by a charming man who introduces himself as Count Grendel - only to find herself imprisoned in his castle and about to be "dismantled" as an android. The Doctor also finds himself involved with androids when he is taken prisoner by another group of Tarans led by Prince Reynart. The Prince is to be crowned the next day, but Count Grendel, it seems, will stop at nothing to claim the crown. To thwart any move, the Prince has an android copy of himself which he intends to use to divert Grendel, but it is broken and they need the Doctor to repair it. Soon the Doctor and Romana find themselves completely embroiled in plots and counter-plots involving not only the Prince and Count, but also the beautiful Princess Strella (who happens to be able to pass as Romana's double) and it also imprisoned in Grendel's castle. When the Count captures the real Prince, leaving the Doctor and his friends with only a badly damaged android copy, the situation looks hopeless. It takes all the Doctor's considerable ingenuity, with a little help from K9 and great deal of remarkably expert swordsmanship, to prevent disaster for all concerned.

Director - Michael Hayes
Assistant Floor Manager - Rosemary Webb
Costumes - Doreen James
Designer - Valerie Warrender
Fight Arranger - Terry Walsh
Film Cameraman - John Walker
Film Editor - David Yates
Incidental Music - Dudley Simpson
Make-Up - Jill Hagger
Producer - Graham Williams
Production Assistant - Teresa-Mary Winders
Production Unit Manager - John Nathan-Turner
Script Editor - Anthony Read
Special Sounds - Dick Mills
Studio Lighting - Brian Clemett
Studio Sound - Richard Chubb
Title Music - Ron Grainer and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, arranged by Delia Derbyshire
Visual Effects - Len Hutton
Writer - David Fisher

Mary Tamm plays both Romana and Strella, as well as android doubles of each.