User:Pokelego999/sandbox/Doctor Who Aliens List Rewrite Doc

This is a list of fictional creatures and aliens from the universe of the long-running BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who. The series first aired in 1963 before being cancelled in 1989, with a brief attempt to revive the show in 1996 being unsuccessful. The show was successfully revived in 2005, and continues to air episodes. The series stars an extraterrestrial known as The Doctor who is capable of changing their appearance when they die in a process known as regeneration. They travel through time and space in a machine known as the TARDIS. In the process, the Doctor often comes into contact with various alien species. This list only covers alien races and other fictional creatures and not specific characters. Additionally, several alien races re-appear in Doctor Who's spin-off series The Sarah Jane Adventures, Torchwood, and Class, though antagonists original to those series do not appear on this list.

A

Aggedor

Main articles: The Curse of Peladon and The Monster of Peladon

Aggedor is the Sacred Royal Beast of the planet Peladon, first seen in The Curse of Peladon (1972). The real creature upon which the legend is based is a large, hairy beast with a single horn. Hunted to near extinction, one Aggedor beast roamed the tunnels below the citadel and, at one stage, was used to judge prisoners who were cast into a pit to face the Judgement of Aggedor. Peladon's High Priest, Hepesh, secretly captured a remaining Aggedor, and used it to attempt to generate superstition about the "curse" of Aggedor in order to stop Peladon from joining the Galactic Federation, an intergalactic alliance of planets. The Aggedor killed Hepesh, and the same Aggedor later returned in The Monster of Peladon (1974). In both of Aggedor's appearances, Aggedor is portrayed by actor Nick Hobbs.

In the audio story The Bride of Peladon, after the death of the original Aggedor, it was revealed the Aggedor had a child, which remained hidden for many years. The Fifth Doctor mind-controlled this Aggedor to aid them, after which it gave birth to many baby Aggedors.

C

Catkind

Main articles: New Earth (Doctor Who) and Gridlock (Doctor Who)

Catkind

The Catkind are felines in the future that have evolved into humanoids, first seen in "New Earth" (2006). The Catkind have hair-covered bodies, feline facial features and retractable claws. Their young resemble typical domestic kittens, with humanoid features emerging after ten months.

In "New Earth", a group of Catkind called the Sisters of Plenitude run a hospital near the city of New New York, where they test on human subjects by infecting them with every disease in order to concoct cures for them. The subjects later escape, infecting many in the hospital, including several of the Sisters. The Tenth Doctor later develops a cure for the infected, and the Sisters are arrested. In "Gridlock" (2007), most of New New York is killed by a plague, leaving the only survivors in the Under City and Motorway. A Cat Person, Thomas Kincade Brannigan, is encountered by the Tenth Doctor, and has a human wife and a litter of kittens. Additionally, a surviving member of the Sisters of Plentitude, Novice Hame, appears, who survived the plague via the protection of the Face of Boe. She aids the Tenth Doctor in opening the Motorway. Hame was portrayed by actress Anna Hope. Brannigan has several kitten offspring who appear in "Gridlock," who were portrayed by real-life kittens.

A short scene, titled "The Secret of Novice Hame" was released as part of a tie-in with a watch-along for "New Earth" held during the COVID-19 pandemic. The scene features Hame on her deathbed in the far future as she awaits the Doctor's arrival.

Cyberman

Main article: Cyberman

Various Cyberman designs from throughout the series, as well as the Cybermat and Cybershade.

The original Cybermen were a race of humanoids originating on Earth's twin planet Mondas, first seen in The Tenth Planet (1966). As they implanted more and more artificial parts into their bodies as a means of self-preservation, they became coldly logical and calculating, with emotion all but deleted from their minds. The Cyberman concept was created by Dr. Kit Pedler (the unofficial scientific advisor to the programme) and Gerry Davis in 1966, based around the ideas of the ethical issues present in innovations in prosthesis. The Cybermen were portrayed by tall actors in order to portray the Cybermen's menace, with the actors being over six feet in height. The costumes were hot and bulky, and it was difficult for the actors to see. These initial Cybermen used cloth masks, and had a zombie-like appearance, with flesh-based hands. They additionally had individual names. The Cybermen were brought back as recurring antagonists in other serials following this, and were an effort by the production team to find replacement antagonists due to the Daleks being planned to be featured in an American television series at the time. The Cybermen's design would change frequently from episode to episode, and grew more mechanical and bulky in design. Despite their popularity, the Cybermen were not brought back for any episode starring Jon Pertwee as the Third Doctor, and only had one appearance alongside Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor. Producer John Nathan-Turner brought the Cybermen back for the serial Earthshock (1982), wanting to feature a returning antagonist but not wanting to use the Daleks. Turner kept the reveal of the Cybermen a secret from the public prior to the airing of the episode, after which they reprised their role as consistent antagonists until the series' cancellation in 1989.

In the two-part story "Rise of the Cybermen" and "The Age of Steel" of the second revived series (2006), the Cybermen originate on a parallel-universe version of Earth, where they were created by John Lumic, the head of "Cybus," who was a genius obsessed with immortality. He forcibly 'upgraded' vast numbers of people in the parallel earth before a counter-revolution, initiated by the Tenth Doctor, started fighting back. These Cybermen acted as recurring foes, aiming to "upgrade" other life-forms to be like themselves, but after Steven Moffat took over as the showrunner of Doctor Who, the Cybermen from the Doctor's universe became the primary antagonists, though they still used the design of the "Cybus" Cybermen. The Cybermen were later re-designed for writer Neil Gaiman's serial "Nightmare in Silver" (2013) which used a sleeker design. These Cybermen were constantly upgrading to counter-act any threat, which Gaiman cited as being inspired by the speed of improvement in modern technology and the Cybermen's own penchant to "upgrade" other lifeforms to be like themselves. The original design seen in The Tenth Planet was later brought back for "World Enough and Time" and "The Doctor Falls" (2017), while the main Cyberman design was redesigned again for the episode "Ascension of the Cybermen" (2020).

The Cybermen have several variants, such as the Cybermat, small cybernetic creatures used by the Cybermen first seen in The Tomb of the Cybermen and the Cybershades, a sub-species of Cybermen, seen in the 2008 Christmas special, "The Next Doctor".

D

Dalek

Main article: Dalek

Various Dalek designs from throughout the series, including variants such as the Special Weapons Dalek and the Dalek Emperor.

The Daleks are a warmongering, xenophobic race of mutant creatures who live within mobile battle armour first appearing in The Daleks (1963-64), the second Doctor Who serial. The Daleks were created by a scientist named Davros as a way to survive and win a war between themselves and a species known as the Thals. They are life-long enemies of The Doctor, and he is the only being whom they fear. The Daleks see themselves as the superior lifeforms in the universe, and seek to eliminate all other life for being "impure." The creatures inside of their casings resemble squids, with a single eye, exposed brain and many tentacles. The Daleks acted as a highly recurring foe during Doctor Who's classic era, and were among its most popular. During the 1960s, public popularity for the Daleks was high, with this era being referred to as "Dalekmania." Despite The Beatles going on-air during the Daleks' second appearance, the return of the Daleks saw a higher viewer count. The Daleks were merchandised heavily during this period and grew wildly popular. Dalekmania declined following the airing of The Daleks' Master Plan, a twelve part serial. Two movie spin-offs of Dalek serials, starring actor Peter Cushing as the Doctor, titled Dr. Who and the Daleks and Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 A.D., were adaptations of other Dalek serials and produced at the highlight of Dalekmania.

The Daleks were created by Terry Nation and designed by the BBC designer Raymond Cusick. Nation's design inspiration for the Daleks came from watching a dance troupe on television, as their long skirts gave the impression that they glided across the stage. Nation additionally pulled from the cultural memory of World War II and the Nazis in designing the Daleks, and acted as an allegory for the Nazis. Cusick was only given an hour to work on the design for the Daleks, and was inspired by a pepper pot on the table. The in-human aspects of the design were considered a large part of what made the Daleks a success.

The Daleks use physical props, which are operated from the inside by actors, who manipulated aspects such as the eyestalks and appendages, and physically moved the props. For the 2019 episode "Resolution," a fully remote controlled prop was created for the Dalek. Notable Dalek operators include John Scott Martin, Barnaby Edwards, Nicholas Pegg, Jon Davey, Tony Starr, and Cy Town. Several variant designs for the Daleks existed throughout the series, including a variant known as the "Special Weapons Dalek."

The Daleks' voice has a harsh, staccato delivery. Actors Peter Hawkins and David Graham designed the voices for the Daleks and voiced them, with the voices further processed by Brian Hodgson in the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. Other actors to portray the Daleks include Roy Skelton and Nicholas Briggs, the latter of whom voices the Daleks in the revived series. Briggs uses a voice modulator to perform the Daleks, and had previously performed as the Daleks in the Big Finish Productions audio dramas featuring them.

Upon the airing of The Daleks, Nation received large amounts of letters from children who watched the series, inquiring about the Daleks. The popularity of the Daleks ensured the survival of Doctor Who, which was in danger of being cancelled due to low viewing figures from the prior serial, An Unearthly Child (1963). The ownership of the Daleks was a co-production between Nation and the BBC, and as a result, Nation received royalties whenever the Daleks appeared in Doctor Who. The Daleks have been described as British cultural icons, and a 2008 survey stated that nine out of ten British children were able to identify a Dalek correctly. The word "Dalek" has entered dictionaries, including the Oxford English Dictionary.

In the series' revival in 2005, the Daleks were initially not going to appear, with drafts of the scripts not featuring them being made if the development team was unable to use them. This was due to issues in negotiations with Nation's estate after his death in 1997, with the estate not trusting the BBC with the Daleks and the BBC not offering the same editorial control Nation had once had in the past. The BBC and Nation estate eventually came to an agreement, leading to the return of the Daleks in the episode "Dalek" (2005).

In the revived series, the Daleks fought the Doctor's species, the Time Lords, in a conflict known as the Time War, which resulted in the destruction of the Daleks and the Time Lords alike, with the Doctor the sole survivor. The Doctor eventually comes into contact with Dalek survivors as the series progresses, and the Daleks are eventually revived in the episode "Victory of the Daleks" (2010). The Daleks have since gone on to be recurring antagonists in the series.

The Daleks were briefly re-designed following "Victory of the Daleks," gaining six roles with multiple colours. Writer Mark Gatiss was inspired by the Daleks seen in the 60s Dalek films, and sought to make them big to make them intimidating. A green Dalek was planned but scrapped. These Daleks, dubbed the "New Paradigm," were widely controversial with viewers. They were re-designed for the episode "Asylum of the Daleks," (2012) but did not re-appear in subsequent episodes.

Draconian

Main article: Frontier in Space

A Draconian mask, on display at the National Space Centre

The Draconians (also called Dragons, a derogatory term in their culture) are a humanoid race seen in Frontier in Space (1973). Common interstellar travel and attempts at colonization have brought them into frequent and occasionally hostile contact with humans, leading to a treaty establishing a frontier between the two empires. Antagonist the Master attempted to trick the two sides into thinking the other broke the treaty in order to provoke galactic war, but after the truth was revealed, the Draconians allied with the humans to combat the Master.

The Draconians appear in several pieces of spin-off material. The 2020 online short story The Simple Things depicted a Draconian attempting to repair a battle cruiser in 1896 West Ham with the help of an ironworks company. The 1998 novel Catastrophea depicted the Draconians being unhappy with human colonization of the planet Catastrophea. They attempted to intervene, but after an uprising by the planet's natives, the Draconians and humans work together to make sure all inhabitants from both sides are able to evacuate the planet, with both choosing to leave the planet alone. The 2009 comic story Fugitive featured a Draconian delegate, who was arrested alongside the Tenth Doctor and delegates from the Ogron and Sontaran species. The Draconian delegate later aided the Tenth Doctor in saving the Shadow Architect, head of the Shadow Proclamation, an intergalactic police body who had arrested them before. The Draconian was freed and later attended peace talks with the other delegates.

Drashig

Main article: Carnival of Monsters

Drashigs are huge, aggressive and hungry creatures with caterpillar bodies and dragon heads, seen in Carnival of Monsters (1973). In the serial, the Drashigs were captured inside a "Miniscope," a device which kept various species trapped in miniature versions of their natural environments for entertainment. The Drashigs damage the circuitry of the Miniscope, while a group known as the Tribunal attempts to free them to cause chaos. The Drashigs kill the rogue Tribunal members, and are returned home from the Miniscope at the episode's conclusion. The Drashigs in this episode utilized puppets, with fox skulls being used for the heads. The documentary Destroy All Monsters!, released as part of the 2011 DVD release of Carnival of Monsters, detailed several aspects of the Drashigs' production. The Drashigs' name was an anagram of "dish rag" due to dish rags being used as an eyeline for the actors when filming scenes in which they encountered Drashigs. The Drashigs' roars were created by reversing the sound of a car tire screeching backwards.

Drashigs re-appear in spin-off material for the series. The Drashigs, still trapped in the Miniscope following Carnival of Monsters, re-appeared in the 2019 audio drama Peepshow, where recurring character River Song encountered them. Due to the lack of food in the Miniscope, she was able to use the Drashigs to kill several antagonist groups in the Miniscope trying to kill her. The Third Doctor returned the Drashigs to their home at the end of the audio drama. The Faction Paradox short-story anthology, The Book of Peace, released in 2018, depicted the Drashigs' creation in the short story Daring Initiation. The Drashigs in this story were the result of genetic mutation in humans who were exposed to radiation when stranded on an alien planet. Some of these mutated humans' eggs were sent back in time, creating the Drashigs. The book The Eight Doctors, published in 1997, depicted a Drashig being pulled through time via a device known as a Time Scoop. The Drashig was sent to kill the Fifth and Eighth Doctors, but the pair reversed the Scoop, sending the Drashig to kill the one who initially used the Scoop. Another audio drama, titled Planet of the Drashigs, was also released in 2019. The Fourth Doctor encountered them on a planetoid known as "DrashigWorld," a theme park where various species of Drashig are on display. The creator of the park attempted to use it as a ploy to discover what it is like to be a Drashig by connecting to the Drashigs' brain waves. The Drashigs break free, but the Doctor is able to evacuate the survivors before the Drashigs are able to kill everyone.

E

Eternals

Main article: Enlightenment (Doctor Who)

The Eternals are a race of cosmic beings first introduced in Enlightenment (1983). The Eternals live outside of time, in the realm of eternity. They consider the mortal inhabitants of the universe to be "Ephemerals." The Eternals are powerful enough to manipulate matter, creating objects out of thin air; they also read minds effortlessly through telepathy. They lack imagination and creativity, stating that they were empty and lost without Ephemeral thought to entertain and challenge them.

In Enlightenment, the Fifth Doctor ended up encountering a group of Eternals, who sought to win the "Enlightenment" from the Black and White Guardians in a competition between themselves. The Eternals captured many residents of the universe to participate in the competition, with the Doctor attempting to stop the competition. An Eternal naming themselves Captain Wrack is able to pull ahead in the competition, which involves many spaceships based off boats racing to see who would make it to victory. A rival ship, the Buccaneer, allied with the Doctor to stop Wrack from winning, with the Doctor killing her and her first mate, allowing him to win the race and stop the Eternals from claiming Enlightenment.

Though the Eternals were referenced in the revived series, they did not re-appear physically until "Can You Hear Me?" (2020), in which a pair named Zellin and Rakaya appear as the primary antagonists. Rakaya was imprisoned for causing chaos, and Zellin manipulated the Thirteenth Doctor so that she would free Rakaya. The pair wished to siphon nightmares in order to feed on them. The Doctor is able to trick the pair, imprisoning them once again.

F

Fendahl

Main article: Image of the Fendahl

The Fendahl are an alien species seen in Image of the Fendahl (1977). A race that never exceeds unlucky number 13; it is composed of one Golden Core and 12 Fendahleen. The Fendahl arose on the original fifth planet of our solar system, which they eventually wiped of all other life; so dangerous were they that the Time Lords moved the planet into a time loop. Somehow, though, the Fendahl managed to eject a skull, which passed through space (seriously harming life on Mars as it passed) to land on Earth, where its powers helped shape humanity, a new vessel for the Fendahl. Ages later, that skull was found by scientists, who believed it could grant them power; the attempt unfortunately backfired in the creation of a new Golden Core. The Core began creating Fendahleen, but one person committed suicide, preventing the Fendahl from reaching the quota. The Fourth Doctor blew up the house the Fendahl were in, and later tossed the skull that caused the trouble into a supernova.

G

Graske

Main articles: Attack of the Graske, Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane?, and The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith

The Graske are a race of diminutive aliens that first appeared in the interactive Doctor Who mini-episode "Attack of the Graske" (2005). They infiltrate planets by subtly replacing members of the planet's species with disguised Graske.

A Graske named Krislok appears in The Sarah Jane Adventures stories "Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane?" (2007) and "The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith" (2008). Originally a henchman and slave of the Trickster, who saved him from death, Krislok later gains his freedom. An unnamed Graske appears in The Proms mini-episode "Music of the Spheres" (2008). A similar species known as the Groske appeared in The Sarah Jane Adventures episode "Death of the Doctor".

The Graske has been portrayed by actor Jimmy Vee.

Guardians

Main articles: List of Doctor Who supporting characters and List of Doctor Who villains

The Guardians are a pair of powerful entities in charge of keeping balance in the universe, first seen in The Ribos Operation (1978), where the White Guardian appeared before the Doctor and asked him to re-assemble The Key to Time, warning them of the Black Guardian who also wished to obtain the Key. The White Guardian was later revealed to actually be the Black Guardian in disguise, who attempted to trick the Doctor into assembling the Key for him. The Doctor scrambled the TARDIS's piloting abilities, causing the TARDIS's landing sites to be randomized in order to evade the vengeful Black Guardian. The Black Guardian later appeared in several episodes of the series, where he attempted to manipulate Vislor Turlough into killing the Fifth Doctor. Both Guardians later appeared in Enlightenment, where the Guardians offered a crystal of great power to the winner of a race held by Eternals. Turlough threw the crystal at the Black Guardian, causing him to dissipate. The White Guardian was portrayed by actor Cyril Luckham, and briefly by Valentine Dyall in The Armageddon Factor. Dyall portrayed the Black Guardian in the character's later appearances.

H

A Hoix as it appears on display at the Doctor Who Experience.

Hoix

Main articles: Love & Monsters (Doctor Who) and Exit Wounds (Torchwood)

The Hoix first appeared in the episode "Love & Monsters", where the Tenth Doctor and his companion Rose Tyler attempt to stop one, during which they are briefly encountered by the episode's protagonist, Elton Pope. A Hoix later appears in the series Torchwood in the episode "Exit Wounds" (2008). One of the protagonists, Owen, distracts it by feeding it cigarettes stating that it "lives to eat". One appeared as a member of an Alliance to seal the Eleventh Doctor inside of the Pandorica, a specially-made prison for the Doctor, in "The Pandorica Opens" (2010).

I

Ice Warrior

Main article: Ice Warrior

Ice Warriors are reptilian humanoids from Mars that first appeared in The Ice Warriors (1967). The Ice Warriors wore bulky armour, which protects them from temperature fluctuations and enemy attack. They can additionally attack using sonic weaponry. Ice Warriors can remove their armour. The Ice Warriors initially intend to find a new world due to Mars being uninhabitable via conquest, but their re-appearances in the serials The Curse of Peladon and The Monster of Peladon portrayed them as having shifted towards peace, though a group in the latter episode had not eschewed violence. The Ice Warriors later re-appeared in the episodes "Cold War" and "Empress of Mars." The Ice Warriors followed a code of honor, which they treated very seriously. The Ice Warriors have a leadership ranking, being led by Ice Lords, which wear differently designed armour. They are additionally led by a Queen, who was portrayed by actress Adele Lynch.

Ice Warriors as they appeared in the classic series (left) and revived series (middle) , as well as the design of the Ice Queen, Iraxxa. (right)

Following The Evil of the Daleks, the Doctor Who production team wished to introduce new recurring monsters to replace the Daleks, who were planned to be featured in an American television series at the time. The Ice Warriors were created by writer Brian Hayles, who penned every episode featuring them in the classic era of the show. Hayles was inspired by the discovery of a pre-historic mammoth to write the original serial. Hayles initially proposed the Ice Warriors to have cybernetic enhancements, which was scrapped by costume designer Martin Baugh out of concerns that it would be seen as too similar to the Cybermen. They were designed to be able to show more personality than other recurring monsters, such as the Daleks and Cybermen. Baugh additionally gave the Warriors their reptilian appearance when designing them, with two different suits for the Ice Warriors being produced for their debut serial. Baugh designed the armour out of fibreglass. The armour was later given a redesign for their appearance in "Cold War," though it kept the basic design mostly the same. Neill Gorton, a creature designer for Doctor Who, chose to make the redesign resemble plating in order to make the Ice Warriors appear "beefier and stronger." Urethane rubber was used for the costume instead of fibreglass like their older costumes. Gorton sought to improve on the armour due to shortcomings in the older models, with the armour being specially designed around Spencer Wilding, who portrayed the Ice Warrior Grand Marshal Skaldak in "Cold War."

The Ice Warriors proved to be popular, and they were thus brought back in later episodes. Bernard Bresslaw portrayed the Ice Warrior Varga in their debut serial. Bresslaw voiced Varga with a notable whisper-like to depict the Ice Warriors' reptilian nature, with the voice believed to have been developed by Bresslaw. Steve Peters, Tony Harwood, and Sonny Caldinez portray them in the serial The Seeds of Death.

J

Judoon

Judoon, as shown at the Doctor Who Experience

The Judoon are a galactic alien police resembling rhinoceroses, who recur throughout the series. They first appeared in "Smith and Jones" (2007), where they sought to capture an alien fugitive by transporting an Earth hospital onto the Moon. They later re-appeared in "The Stolen Earth" (2008) where they aid The Shadow Proclamation, an inter-galactic body of law, and later made cameo appearances in other episodes of the series. They also appeared in the series 3 Sarah Jane Adventures story, "Prisoner of the Judoon" (2009), where a Judoon captain is in pursuit of an escaped prisoner known as Androvax.

The Judoon are blunt in their applications of laws, with the Tenth Doctor describing the Judoon as "interplanetary thugs" due to their methods. The Judoon use energy weapons to incarcerate prisoners, and can breathe for some time in space due to their powerful lungs.

The Judoon appeared in the series 12 episode "Fugitive of the Judoon" (2020), where they attempt to find and arrest The Fugitive Doctor, who is hiding out in Gloucester. The Judoon captain in the episode is named Pol-Kon-Don, named after the Doctor Who fan Paul Condon, who passed away a year before the episode released. The Judoon re-appear in the finale episode "The Timeless Children" (2020) where their "cold case unit" appears and imprisons the Thirteenth Doctor at the end of the episode.

K

Krillitane

Main article: School Reunion (Doctor Who)

The Krillitanes are a race who take attributes from other races to change their appearance. In the episode "School Reunion" (2006), the Tenth Doctor states that he has encountered them before, but that due to their composite nature, they looked different, hence him not recognizing them. He also states that they gain their composite nature from consuming other beings.

Kroton

Main article: The Krotons

See also: Kroton (Cyberman)

The Krotons are a crystalline species encountered in The Krotons (1968-69).

Krynoid

Main article: The Seeds of Doom

The Krynoids appeared in the Fourth Doctor story The Seeds of Doom (1976). They are a highly dangerous, sentient form of plant life which are renowned amongst galactic botanists. They spread via seed pods which travel in pairs and are violently hurled through space by frequent volcanic eruptions on their unnamed home planet. The pods when opened are attracted to flesh and are able to infect and mingle their DNA with that of the host, taking over their body and slowly transforming them into a Krynoid. The species can also exert a form of telepathic control over other plant life in the surrounding area, making it suddenly dangerous and deadly to animal-kind. In the later stages of development the Krynoid can also control the vocal cords of its victims and can make itself telepathically sympathetic to humans. Fully grown Krynoids are many meters high and can then release hordes of seed pairs for further colonisation.

Two pods arrived on Earth at the South Pole during the prehistoric Pleistocene era and remained dormant in Antarctica until discovered at the end of the twentieth century. One of them hatched after being exposed to ultra-violet light, and took control of a nearby human scientist. The Fourth Doctor intervened in the nick of time and ensured the Krynoid was destroyed by a bomb, but the second pod was stolen and taken to the home of millionaire botanist Harrison Chase in England. Chase ensured the germination of the second pod, which overtook his scientific adviser Arnold Keeler, and transformed its subject over time into a virtually full-sized Krynoid. Unable to destroy the creature by other means, and with the danger of a seed release imminent from the massive plant, the Doctor orchestrated an RAF bombing raid to destroy the creature before it could germinate.

The Krynoid are also featured in the Eighth Doctor audio story for Big Finish entitled Hothouse, where an environmentalist group uses samples from the original Krynoid to try and create hybrids that can be controlled by the human host and thus control Earth's fauna to cope with the environmental damage, only for their efforts to merely create a rapidly-growing Krynoid before the Doctor sets it on fire.

A Krynoid appears as one of the villains in the Eleventh Doctor short story collection Tales of Trenzalore, as one of the creatures attacking Trenzalore during the Doctor's defence of the planet ("The Time of the Doctor", 2013), the Doctor defeating the Krynoid by blasting it with rapidly-freezing water from a specially modified hose and then shattering it with the reverberations of the town bell.

M

Macra

Main article: The Macra Terror

The Macra first appear in the Second Doctor story The Macra Terror (1967). They are an intelligent, giant crab-like species from an unnamed planet colonised by humanity in the future. The Macra invade the control center of the colony and seize the levers of power without the colonists – including their Pilot – knowing what had happened. Thereafter the Macra only appear at night, when the humans are in their quarters, observing a curfew. They have strong hypnotic powers which alter human perception. They also have the ability to ensure messages are vocalised through electronic apparatus such as television or sensor speakers. Both these tools are used to keep the human colonists under control, believing they are blissfully happy. This provides a cover for the Macra to use the colonists as miners in a vast gas mine. The gas is deadly to the miners but vital to the Macra, enabling them to move more quickly and rejuvenating their abilities. The Second Doctor effects a revolution on the Macra planet and helps engineer an explosion in the control centre, destroying the Macra in charge.

The Macra are also featured in the 2007 episode "Gridlock", becoming the first one-off opponent of the Doctor in the classic series to appear in the revived series, with the Zygons reappearing in the Eleventh Doctor story, "The Day of the Doctor" (2013). In the episode, some Macra are found to be alive below New New York, a city of New Earth. They live in the thick fog of exhaust gases on the main motorway under the city, tracking the flying cars by their lights and snatching at them when they get too close. The Doctor says that the species is billions of years old and once developed a small empire as "the scourge of this galaxy", but the Macra beneath New New York must have devolved into nothing more than beasts.

Mechonoid

A Mechanoid, hidden away in the Doctor Who Experience

Main article: Mechonoid

Mechonoids (sometimes spelled 'Mechanoids') are large, multifaceted, spherical robots created by humans. They first appear in the second season serial, The Chase (1965), being sent to prepare the planet Mechanus for colonisation. While working on the colonisation task, they imprison stranded astronaut Steven Taylor due to him not having their control codes. A group of Daleks, pursuing the TARDIS crew, engaged the Mechanoids in battle; which side was victorious is not shown.

In the original shooting script, they were to be called 'Mechons', but this was changed shortly before filming. But some actors had already memorised lines from the previous draft, leading to the robots being erroneously referred to as Mechons in some dialogue in the finished episodes. Accidental misspellings in media publications and offial sources have led to confusion about the spelling of 'Mechonoids'. Originally intended to be spelled with an 'o' as a slight revision of the name 'Mechon', the name has been commonly misspelled with an 'a' both in episode credits and in other sources.

The Mechanoids next appeared in the TV21 comic strip story The Eve of War (1966). They are depicted as the sworn enemies of the Daleks. A race of blue-skinned humanoids subtly interfere with events, using a robot called K2, in order to prevent a war. This was followed by a further comic strip appearance (where they are again referenced as "Mechanoids") in the story The World That Waits, included in the 1966 The Dalek World annual. The narrative depicts a Dalek attack on Mechanus resulting in the destruction of a Mechanoid city.

Mentors

Main article: Vengeance on Varos

Mentors are amphibious capitalists who first appear in the serial Vengeance on Varos (1985).

N

Nestene

Main article: Auton

The Nestenes are a race of amorphous aliens who can control all forms of plastic, first seen in Spearhead from Space (1970). The Nestenes can create humanoid plastic creatures called Autons. Since the Last Great Time War destroyed their food supply planets, the Nestenes have been seeking replacements.

O

Ogron

Main article: Day of the Daleks

Ogrons are mercenaries employed by various parties to "do their dirty work" throughout the universe, first appearing in Day of the Daleks (1972). They strongly resemble Orcs or Uruk-hai from The Lord of the Rings, being large humanoids with thick gray skin, protruding brow ridges, and thick, tangled hair. They primarily employ stun weapons, and have been employed by both the Daleks and the Master on at least one occasion.

Ood

Main article: Ood

The Ood are an intelligent species first encountered in "The Impossible Planet" (2006).

Q

Quark

The Quarks first appeared in the Second Doctor serial The Dominators (1969).

These robots were rectangularly shaped, with four arms: one pair folding into the body, the other pair being retractable. On the end of each arm was a solitary claw. The spherical head was divided into octants; the upper four octants formed the sensory hemisphere, which detected changes in light, heat and motion. At five of the corners of the octants were directional crystal beam transmitters (the sixth corner joined with the robot's neck). They communicated by means of high-pitched frequency, possibly contributing to their tendency to run out of energy quickly, which was their primary weakness.

The Quarks were used on the planet Dulkis by the Dominators to enslave and terrorise the indigenous Dulcian population to ensure the drilling of bore holes through the planet's crust. The Dominators planned to use their technology to fire down the holes, forcing the core to erupt, providing a new fuel source for their fleet.

A Quark was also seen in the serial The War Games.

Quarks are also referred to in the Big Finish Productions audio drama Flip-Flop. In this, they attacked the space yacht Pinto, where the Seventh Doctor and Mel sought leptonite crystals in order to defeat them. It is not known however, whether the Doctor defeated the Quarks on that occasion. The Quarks were also mentioned, and mocked viciously, in the Doctor Who Unbound audio play Exile.

On the BBC website, Captain Jack's Monster Files entry for the Vespiform mention that they may have been at war with "Quark rebels".

The Quarks were also portrayed by children in their appearances.

R

Raxacoricofallapatorian

Main article: Slitheen

Slitheen, as shown at the Doctor Who Experience

The Raxacoricofallapatorians first appeared in the Ninth Doctor episode "Aliens of London" (2005). They are native to the fictional planet of Raxacoricofallapatorius and may be grouped by extended family names which are sometimes used to refer to their species generically. They hatch from eggs and are composed of living calcium. Capital punishment is practised on the homeworld, which involves immersion of convicted criminals in acid that slowly dissolves them while still alive, which spectators then drink as a soup.

The Slitheen family are a ruthless criminal sect motivated by profit. After being convicted for their crimes on Raxacoricofallapatorius, they are exiled and threatened with execution if they returned.

The Blathereen family are sworn enemies of the Slitheen and infiltrate the prison on the planet Justicia. A pair of Blathereen appear in The Gift (The Sarah Jane Adventures). This pair are created by the marriage of a member of both Slitheen and Blathereen families, and attempt to trick Sarah Jane Smith into accepting a gift of the Raxacoricofallapatorian plant Rakweed, which begins to poison the Earth with deadly spores. The Slitheen-Blathereen have no interest in the Blathereen's law-abiding ways, and instead turn to the Slitheen's greed and need to make profit. After indulging on Rakweed, which is highly sensitive to sound, Mr Smith sounds an alarm which ultimately led to the Slitheen-Blathereen exploding.

A Roboform, disguised in a Santa Claus outfit to avoid detection

A Roboform's true appearance

Roboform

Main articles: The Christmas Invasion and The Runaway Bride (Doctor Who)

The Roboforms, also referred to as Pilot Fish by the Tenth Doctor, were scavengers often used by other species for their own means. They were shown allied with the Sycorax and the Racnoss, as well as the Pandorica Alliance., helping to seal the Eleventh Doctor in the Pandorica. The Empress of the Racnoss herself had an armed guard of Roboforms, which the Tenth Doctor infiltrated and knocked out.

They are shown to sometimes disguise themselves in Santa Claus outfits to avoid suspicion. Their weaponry was also disguised as conventional Earth items, such as flamethrowers in the guise of tubas and Christmas Trees capable of spinning fast enough to slice people apart. They are also shown to be capable of detecting Regeneration energy. Without disguises, Roboforms naturally have golden bullet shaped heads with two indentations on either side where a human's eyes would be.

Rutan

See also: Horror of Fang Rock and Doctor Who: The Adventure Games

An alien species who have been at war with the Sontarans for millennia, the Rutans first appeared on screen in Horror of Fang Rock (1977), although they were mentioned in the Sontaran story The Time Warrior in 1974. They appear as jellyfish-like glowing green spheres. Like the Zygons, Rutans can shapeshift at will. They are also vulnerable to certain sound frequencies. A Rutan appeared in "Horror of Fang Rock", where it attempted to invade the planet as a strategic outpost in their war with the Sontarans. The Rutans have since appeared in a variety of spin-off media, including books, audio dramas, and video games.

S

Sandminer Robots

In The Robots of Death (1977), three types of slave robots were created by a distant human society are shown. These robots were originally built to perform menial tasks. In at least one instance, these robots took to raising a human child, Taren Capel. He eventually learned to reprogram the robots to kill humans, and attempted to stage a robot revolution.

The three classes of robots were:

• D-class, colloquially known as Dums; were incapable of speech and merely followed orders.
• V-class or Vocs were capable of verbal response and performing slightly more complex tasks, but ultimately no more intelligent than the D-class.
• SV-class, or Supervocs were capable of reason and decision-making, and were used to coordinate and direct the other robots. Supervocs have also been shown to be utilised in detective work.

These robots made appearances in:

• The Robots of Death, a Fourth Doctor serial with Leela, written by Chris Boucher
• Corpse Marker, a Fourth Doctor novel with Leela written by Chris Boucher
• Kaldor City: Occam's Razor, a Kaldor City audio play, written by Alan Stevens and Jim Smith
• Kaldor City: Death's Head, a Kaldor City audio play, written by Chris Boucher
• Kaldor City: Hidden Persuaders, a Kaldor City audio play, written by Jim Smith
• Kaldor City: Taren Capel, a Kaldor City audio play, written by Alan Stevens
• Kaldor City: Checkmate, a Kaldor City audio play, written by Alan Stevens
• Kaldor City: Storm Mine, a Kaldor City audio play, written by Daniel O'Mahony
• Robophobia, a Seventh Doctor audio play, written by Nicholas Briggs

Sea Devil

Main article: Silurian (Doctor Who)

Sea Devils are turtle-like humanoids who first appeared in The Sea Devils (1972). They lived in Earth's oceans millions of years before humans evolved. They believed that a small planet would crash into Earth, which instead became Earth's moon. Like the Silurians, they went into hibernation and wanted to take the planet back from humans when they awoke.

The Silence

Main article: The Impossible Astronaut

The Silence first appeared in "The Impossible Astronaut" (2011). Self-proclaimed "Sentinels of History", the Silence are genetically engineered members of the Papal Mainframe under the Academy of the Question. As they were originally created as confessional priests, Silents cannot be remembered unless they are being looked at, or if someone is wearing an eyedrive. In "The Time of the Doctor" (2013), with The Doctor's enemies converging on Trenzalore, the Papal Mainframe underwent a faith conversion into the Church of the Silence whose main belief is that "Silence will fall" to keep the Doctor from answering the oldest question in the universe "Doctor Who?" to avert a war caused by the Time Lords' return. However, a group of Silents under a splinter chapel led by Madam Kovarian wanted to completely avoid the Siege of Trenzalore by eliminating the Doctor: their attempts range from destroying reality in Series 5, which caused the events at Trenzalore, and using Melody Pond in an attempt to murder the Doctor in Series 6. The Silents still loyal to the Papal Mainframe remain and joined forces with the Doctor to fight back all the villains converging on Trenzalore.

Silurian

Main article: Silurian (Doctor Who)

Silurians are a reptilian humanoid species first seen in The Silurians (1970).

Sisterhood of Karn

Main article: The Brain of Morbius

The Sisterhood of Karn first appeared in The Brain of Morbius (1976). They are a female religion situated on the planet Karn in charge of the Elixir of Eternal Life, made from the Eternal Flame. The Elixir has remarkable healing properties, such as aiding Time Lords undergoing difficult regenerations; the Fourth Doctor was given some after brain damage in a mental duel with Morbius. Other potions that the Sisterhood brew can allow Time Lords to choose what their next incarnation will be like; they range from age, weight, strength, emotion, sex and mindset. Seeing the person he had been for all his regenerations wasn't suited to combat the terror of the Time War, the Eighth Doctor choose a potion that would turn him into a Warrior.

They first appeared in the episode The Brain of Morbius, where they had grown paranoid as a result of a past betrayal by Morbius. Since then, they had been using their mental powers to crash ships onto the planet's surface. The Eternal Flame became clogged by soot one year prior to the events of the episode, and the Sisterhood had been trying to fix it to no avail. The Doctor solves the problem, and the Sisterhood later aid him in stopping the revived Morbius. They later reappear in the 2013 mini-episode "The Night of the Doctor," where they revive a mortally wounded Eighth Doctor, and help him regenerate into his next incarnation. They make further appearances in "The Magician's Apprentice" and "Hell Bent." The Sisterhood further appears in several pieces of Doctor spin-off media, including the audio dramas Zagreus, Sisters of the Flame, and Vengeance of Morbius.

Sontaran

Main article: Sontaran

Sontarans as they appear throughout the series, on display at the Doctor Who Experience.

A Sontaran first appeared as the antagonist in the Third Doctor serial The Time Warrior (1973–74). Commander Kaagh appears in Series 2 in the story "The Last Sontaran" after the destruction of his battle fleet as well as the death of the other Sontarans on board in the Doctor Who two-parter episodes "The Sontaran Strategem" and "The Poison Sky" (2008). He returns in "Enemy of the Bane", where he sides up with Mrs Wormwood, the recurring Bane. In the end, he sacrifices himself to foil her plans of the destruction of Earth. He makes a small appearance in "The Pandorica Opens" (2010). The Sontarans remain slightly miffed that they weren't allowed to fight in the Time War.

As seen with Strax, Sontarans can't tell the difference between men and women ("Two genders is a bit further than [they] can count"), and think polite terms such as Miss or Mister are military ranks.

Stenza

Main article: The Woman Who Fell to Earth

The Stenza are a warrior race who possess sub-zero body temperatures, first seen in "The Woman Who Fell to Earth" (2018). As physical contact with any part of them can cause death from sub-zero burns, Stenza require the use of specialised suits to be able to interact safely with other lifeforms. The Stenza maintain two traditions amongst their people – a ritualistic hunt to earn the right of leadership, in which a Stenza hunts a randomly selected quarry without the use of weapons or any form of aid; and collecting a tooth from a kill to later apply to their face. The Stenza are noted for conducting ethnic cleansing on planets they conquer, as revealed in "The Ghost Monument", using the conquered populace to create weapons for their use.

Sycorax

Sycorax

Main article: The Christmas Invasion

The Sycorax first appeared in the debut Tenth Doctor story "The Christmas Invasion" (2005).

The Sycorax appear to be skinless humanoids wearing mantles of bone, usually keeping their features concealed under helmets. They are proficient in the use of weapons like swords and whips, the latter which can deliver an energy discharge that disintegrates the flesh of its target. Their language is called Sycoraxic. The Sycorax also appear to have technology that is either disguised or treated as magic, referring to "curses" and the Doctor's regenerative abilities as "witchcraft". The Sycorax leader referred to an "armada" that they could use to take Earth by force if their blood control plan failed. They also appear to have a martial society, with traditions of honourable combat, yet they have no qualms about killing prisoners.

In The Doctor Who Files books, the name of the Sycorax homeworld is given as "Sycorax". It is unclear if this is another name for the Fire Trap. Furthermore, after the destruction of the Fire Trap, the Sycorax spread further through the galaxy, and like humans are one of three species that continually survive and adapt, even unto the End of the Universe.

The name Sycorax is used in William Shakespeare's play The Tempest. Shakespeare's Sycorax has died before the play begins; she is described as a witch who was the mother of the beast Caliban. The Shakespearean name is referenced in the third series episode "The Shakespeare Code" when the Doctor finds a horse's skull in The Globe's prop cupboard. He comments that it "Reminds [him] too much of the Sycorax". Shakespeare remarks he likes the sound of the word, obviously then going on to use it in The Tempest.

The Sycorax also make a brief appearance in "The Pandorica Opens" (2010) as part of The Alliance formed to trap the Doctor. Later, in "The Name of the Doctor" (2013), the Great Intelligence mentions them as one of those that left the Doctor blood-soaked. A Sycorax appears as a prisoner alongside the Doctor in "Revolution of the Daleks" (2021).

In issue #1 of the IDW published Doctor Who comic book, a Sycorax is collecting near-extinct species to use with shape-shifters for expensive hunts. The Sycorax race also make a return in the Tenth Doctor comic strip "The Widow's Curse", in Doctor Who Magazine #395. The DWM comic story is the first appearance of female Sycorax, who seem to operate separately from the males.

In the audio series Classic Doctors, New Monsters, the Seventh Doctor faces the Sycorax in the audio "Harvest of the Sycorax", where he has to stop their efforts to take control of a space station that contains blood samples taken from virtually the entire human race of the far future.

T

Terileptil

Main article: The Visitation (Doctor Who)

The Terileptils appeared in the Fifth Doctor serial The Visitation (1982). They are a reptilian humanoid species. They cannot survive long without breathing soliton gas, which is highly combustible when combined with oxygen. As an advanced society, they enjoy a heightened appreciation of both aesthetics and warfare and have been known to employ bejewelled androids. Criminal punishment in Terileptil society includes life imprisonment working in tinclavic mines on the planet Raaga, often with substandard medical care.

In 1666, a group of Terileptil prison escapees hidden near London attempted to use a genetically enhanced version of the Black Plague to destroy humanity. The destruction of their lab in Pudding Lane caused the Great Fire of London.

Thal

See also: The Daleks, Planet of the Daleks, and Genesis of the Daleks

The Thals are a race of peaceful, blond humanoids first seen in The Daleks (1963-64) who, together with the Daleks, are natives of the planet Skaro. Once a warlike species, a nuclear conflict with the Daleks, which nearly wiped out all life on their home planet, led them to develop a pacifist, agrarian society.

Time Lord

Main article: Time Lord

See also: The Doctor (Doctor Who) and The Master (Doctor Who)

Time Lord costumes on display at the Doctor Who Experience.

The Time Lords are a race of humanoid aliens to which the Doctor, among other characters, belongs. Time Lords have the ability to regenerate when mortally wounded. This process creates for them an entirely new body and results in major changes in personality, but retains the Time Lord's memories and identity. It is suggested in The Power of the Daleks (1966) that some detectable feature is retained, as the Daleks are immediately able to recognize the Second Doctor, even though he has just regenerated. During "The Time of the Doctor" (2013), it was confirmed by the Eleventh Doctor that a Time-Lord, naturally, is only allowed 12 regenerations, resulting in 13 different incarnations. In the same episode, the Doctor saves Clara's life by sending her home to her own time, but in protest she clings to the TARDIS through the Time Vortex on its return. Upon arriving 300 years later, she finds a visibly aged Doctor, proving that Time Lords experience natural physical changes during each lifespan between regenerations. In the episode "A Good Man Goes to War" (2011), it is suggested this ability evolved due to the Time Lord race's long-term exposure to the untempered schism.

Time Lords exhibit various other superhuman abilities, including certain mental powers, and resistance to otherwise harmful effects such as extreme cold and radiation. They possess a binary vascular system (two hearts), and therefore a faster heart rate, as well as a cooler internal body temperature. The Doctor would later claim that Time Lords came before humans did in "The Beast Below" (2010).

The first Time Lord to appear other than the Doctor and his granddaughter Susan Foreman is the Monk, in the 1965 serial The Time Meddler, however his race is not confirmed. The term itself is not used until The War Games (1969), when the race as a whole is introduced.

As of the 2005 revival series, the Time Lords are essentially extinct, apart from the Doctor, as they have been destroyed by him during the Time War. However, "The Day of the Doctor" (2013) shows that this was a ruse; the Time Lords are still alive in pocket universe, where all of the Doctors put them to save them from destruction.

Tivolian

Main article: The God Complex

The Tivolians appeared in "The God Complex" (2011). They are a cowardly rodent-faced race that live on Tivoli, the most invaded planet in the galaxy. As a result, they have designed their cities to be comfortable for invading armies and their national anthem is "Glory To <Insert Name Here>". They are known for surrendering as soon as possible, and actually enjoy being conquered. As a result of the natives' cowardly attitudes, the planet Tivoli has lasted longer than any of the greater civilizations. They do not assert their own opinions often, just wishing to be ordered around or enslaved, as seen in the case of Gibbis and Albar Prentis. The Twelfth Doctor says that Tivolians wouldn't say "Boo" to a goose—they'd be more likely to give the goose their car keys and bank account information. Among the list of those who ruled the Tivolians are the Fisher King and the "glorious Arcateenians".

V

Varga Plant

Main article: Mission to the Unknown

The Varga Plants appeared in the First Doctor episode "Mission to the Unknown" and the serial The Daleks' Master Plan (1965–66). They were created by Terry Nation.

Varga Plants grew naturally on the Daleks' homeworld, Skaro, and when the Daleks set up a base on the planet Kembel they brought some Varga plants with them to act as sentries in the jungle surrounding their base. They were suited to this as they could move around freely by dragging themselves along with their roots.

Varga plants resemble cacti; they are covered in fur and thorns. Anyone pricked by a Varga thorn will be consumed by the urge to kill, while simultaneously becoming a Varga plant themself. This grisly fate befell astronauts Jeff Garvey and Gordon Lowery, and their commander, Marc Cory, was forced to kill them.

Vashta Nerada

Main articles: Silence in the Library and Forest of the Dead

A victim of the Vashta Nerada as it appears on display at the Doctor Who Experience.

Vashta Nerada (literally: the shadows that melt the flesh) are first encountered in "Silence in the Library" (2008). They are microscopic swarm creatures which, when present in a high enough concentration, are indistinguishable from shadows, and use this to their advantage in approaching and attacking prey. They are described as the "piranhas of the air", able to strip their victims to the bone in an instant in high enough densities. The Tenth Doctor says that almost every planet in the universe has some, including Earth, and claims that they can be seen as the specks of dust visible in bright light. He states they are the reason most sentient creatures have an instinctual fear of the dark. On most planets, however, Vashta Nerada exist in relatively low concentrations, feeding primarily on carrion, with attacks on people being comparatively rare. In the episode "Silence in the Library", an unusually high concentration of Vashta Nerada had completely overrun the 51st-century "Library", resulting in the apparent death of everyone inside at the time.

Vashta Nerada normally live in forested areas, and reproduce by means of microscopic spores which can lie dormant in wood pulp. In the episode "Forest of the Dead", this is revealed to be the reason for their unusual prevalence in The Library, as it is made known that the books and The Library itself was constructed of wood from the Vashta Nerada's native forest feeding grounds. Individually, Vashta Nerada are non-sentient, but if a large enough concentration come together, they can form a group mind of human-level intelligence capable of communication.

The fourth episode of Doctor Who: The Adventure Games, "Shadows of the Vashta Nerada", features them as the leading villain when a temporal rift draws a swarm of Vashta Nerada to an underwater base that is being visited by the Eleventh Doctor and Amy Pond.

The Vashta Nerada appear in the second volume of the Big Finish Productions audio Classic Doctors, New Monsters; "Night of the Vashta Nerada" sees the Fourth Doctor visiting a theme park that has unleashed the local Vashta Nerada after the planet's forests were torn down to allow the park to be constructed, and "Day of the Vashta Nerada" pits the Eighth Doctor against genetically-altered Vashta Nerada that have been created as a new weapon in the Time War

Voord

Main article: Voord

The Voord are a race of amphibious humanoids introduced in the First Doctor serial The Keys of Marinus (1964). The Voord attempted to work with their leader, Yartek, to gain the Keys of Marinus in order to obtain the Conscience of Marinus, which they seek to use for their antagonistic purposes. The Voord are thwarted when Yartek takes a fake key, resulting in his death. The Voord were created by Terry Nation, who had also created the Daleks, with costume designer Daphne Dare creating the visual design for the creatures. The Voord were portrayed by actors Martin Cort, Peter Stenson and Gordon Wales, while Yartek was portrayed by Stephen Dartnell.

The Voord appeared in spin-off media. In the comic The World Shapers, the Voord are revealed to have evolved into Cybermen, with Marinus becoming the Cybermen's home planet of Mondas. The events of the comic strip were later referenced in "The Doctor Falls" (2017), where the Twelfth Doctor refers to Marinus as one of the planets the Cybermen originated from. They later appeared in the audio drama Domain of the Voord, in which the First Doctor and his companions fight against an invading group of Voord on a spaceship known as the Hydra. The Voord later re-appeared in the Titan Comics strip Four Doctors. It is revealed in the comic that the Voord fought in the Time War, causing the species to evolve into a more powerful, muscular state. An alternate Twelfth Doctor, following his betrayal by Clara Oswald in "Dark Water" (2014) allied with these hyper-evolved Voord, who hid themselves in a pocket universe to escape the vengeance of the Time Lords, who they feared would remove the hyper-evolved state of their species. The Tenth Doctor ends up being forced to regress the Voord back to their pre-Time War state in order to defeat the alternate Twelfth Doctor.

W

Weeping Angel

Main article: Weeping Angel

The Weeping Angels first appeared in "Blink" (2007).

Y

Yeti

Main article: Yeti (Doctor Who)

The first are the Yeti, who appear in The Abominable Snowmen and The Web of Fear. Another Yeti later appeared in "The Five Doctors." The Yeti were an effort of the production team to find recurring antagonists to replace the Daleks, who at the time were written out of the series.

Z

Zarbi

Main article: The Web Planet

The Zarbi appeared in The Web Planet (1965), and are an ant-like insectoid species, with some characteristics associated with beetles, from the planet Vortis, which were controlled by the power of the Animus. The Zarbi possessed little intelligence and fell under the Animus's control, becoming the animus's foot-soldiers. They had sentient weapons known as Larvae Guns (or Venom Grubs) which they used to enforce their will. They returned to normal after the defeat of the Animus, and returned to a peaceful existence with the other inhabitants of Vortis.

The Zarbi were named by the wife of writer Bill Strutton. Set and effects designer John Wood used descriptions by Strutton to sketch designs for the Zarbi, with Wood wanting the Zarbi to be realistic whilst also hiding the human element. Four costumes were constructed, with producer Verity Lambert loving the design, though many other crew members were more hesitant about the feasibility of the Zarbi. The outfits were modelled on actor Robert Jewell, and took around thirty minutes to put on. Jewell, Kevin Manser, John Scott Martin, and Gerald Taylor portrayed the Zarbi on-screen. A special trailer for The Web Planet, featured the Zarbi at the BBC Television Centre before being shown to their dressing rooms, was aired prior to the episode's airing, with the trailer being made to take "the curse out of the Zarbi" for younger viewers of the episode. The Zarbi were planned to re-appear in a brief cameo in the 2024 episode "The Legend of Ruby Sunday," though this was scrapped.

The Zarbi later re-appeared in several spin-off stories. The comic story On the Web Planet, published in TV Comic, depicted the First Doctor and his grandchildren John and Gillian discovering that the Zarbi had once again turned against the Menoptera, another species that inhabited Vortis. They later discovered that the Zarbi were actually devices piloted by an alien species known as the Skirkons, who had enslaved the real Zarbi as well as the Menoptera. The First Doctor managed to free all the races and defeated the Skirkons. A short story published in the Doctor Who Annual 1966, titled The Lair of Zarbi Supremo, depicted a mutation, which causes a Zarbi to mutate into the Zarbi Supremo. The Supremo takes control of the rest of its kind and turns Vortis into a rogue planet, sending it to invade Earth. The First Doctor is able to kill the Supremo and free the Zarbi from their subjugation. A later comic, published by Titan Comics, titled Unnatural Selection, depicted the re-formation of the Animus, who is sent to the London Underground with the help of Adam Mitchell. The Animus used the Zarbi as its minions once more until the First Doctor's companion Ian Chesterton hit the Animus with a train, defeating it. The First Doctor then returned the freed Zarbi home.

Zygon

A Zygon as it appears in Terror of the Zygons, on display at the Doctor Who Experience.

The Zygons are shape-shifting aliens first encountered in Terror of the Zygons (1975). In the episode, the Zygon home world had been destroyed, and they attempted to conquer the Earth in order to claim it as their new home world. They later re-appeared in the fiftieth anniversary special "The Day of the Doctor," (2013) where they attempted to conquer the planet once more. It is implied that their home planet was destroyed in the Time War. The Zygons and humans negotiate a treaty, leading to Zygons living among humans on Earth. In "The Zygon Invasion" and "The Zygon Inversion," (2015) a splinter group of Zygons is unhappy with having to hide away among humans, and attempt to change the status quo so they can live in their natural forms. The Twelfth Doctor is able to negotiate with the splinter group's leader, Bonnie, and come to a peaceful solution. The Zygons in Terror of the Zygons were portrayed by actors Keith Ashley and Ronald Gough, while the Zygons in "Day of the Doctor" were portrayed by actors Aidan Cook and Paul Kasey, with Nicholas Briggs providing their voice.

The Zygons appear in comic story "Skywatch-7," which depicted a UNIT team encountering a single Zygon at a remote base. The Eighth Doctor encountered the Zygons in the spin-off novel The Bodysnatchers by Mark Morris, where the Zygons' home plant was destroyed by an arachnid alien race called the Xaranti. The Doctor was able to defeat the invading Zygons by poisoning their milk supply. The Zygons appear again in the New Series Adventures novel Sting of the Zygons by Stephen Cole, which depicts the Zygons attempting to set up a royal funeral in order to shapeshift into various royals. They are stopped by the Tenth Doctor and Martha Jones. They later appeared in several Big Finish audio dramas, including The Zygon Who Fell to Earth, Death in Blackpool, and Zygon Hunt. They also appear in the BBV Productions audio dramas Homeland, Absolution, and The Barnacled Baby. An unofficial erotic spin-off film produced by BBV Productions, known as Zygon: When Being You Just Isn't Enough, was produced in 2005.

The Zygons were conceived by writer Robert Banks Stewart, and designed by James Acheson as part of a collaboration with John Friedlander. Then director Douglas Camfield also influenced the final appearance. They were designed to resemble "oversized embryos." The Zygons were initially planned to be able to "sting" their victims, akin to jellyfish, but this concept was not elaborated on in the episode and hard to notice in the final story. Tenth and Fourteenth Doctor actor David Tennant has stated that the Zygons are his favourite villains in the series. A new species of parasitic wasp, first described in 2019, was named Choeras zygon in reference to the Zygons.

The Zygons in Terror of the Zygons additionally brought with them a creature known as the Skarasen, which had resided in Loch Ness for so long that it had become known as the Loch Ness Monster. The Zygons fed on the milk it produced, which is why they brought it with them. The Skarasen was filmed using a puppet hung by wires, with other scenes depicting the Skarasen being filmed in stop motion.

External links

• The Bumper Book of Doctor Who Monsters, Villains & Alien Species
• "Every Doctor Who villain since 1963". The Guardian. 16 July 2010.

External links

• www.example.com