Modern Series Episode 26:
Fear Her
In 2012, London is gearing up to host the Summer Olympic Games. But in
Dame Kelly Holmes Close, a residential neighbourhood along the route of
the Olympic torch, children are vanishing in broad daylight. The Doctor
and Rose investigate, and the trail leads them to a young girl named
Chloe Webber. Her mother worries because Chloe has become withdrawn
following the recent death of her abusive father. But the Doctor
discovers that Chloe has bonded with a powerful interstellar entity
called an Isolus. Now she has the ability to trap people inside her
crayon drawings -- and anyone could be her next target.
The script originally intended to be the eleventh episode of Season
Twenty-Eight came from the pen of Stephen Fry, and was known by the
placeholder title “The
1920s”. Eventually, however, budget issues prompted the
postponement of Fry's adventure to the following year; it would
ultimately be abandoned altogether. Fortunately, executive producer
Russell T Davies had an additional story in development, with the idea
that it could be slotted into Season Twenty-Eight if necessary, and
would otherwise be available for use during Season Twenty-Nine. The
writer was Matthew Graham; this would be his first Doctor Who
script, but he had previously discussed the programme's revival with the
BBC prior to the announcement that Davies would be its new
showrunner.
Davies initially asked Graham for a budget-conscious narrative, largely
set in a single location such as a bunker. Graham was worried that the
result would be dull and, at a meeting with Davies and executive
producer Julie Gardner in late August 2005, he instead proposed a high-concept idea about an entity
draining an alien planet of its beauty. Davies was cool to this notion,
preferring an Earth setting and a less abstract storyline. Aware that
Graham had gotten his start working in children's television, Davies
asked him to consider scenarios which would appeal to his young son.
This led to a conversation about the eerie nature of old portraits,
whose eyes could seem to follow an observer. Contemplating an adventure
involving living paintings, Graham suggested that it would be even more
effective if the artwork was instead children's drawings, which often
had a surreal and disproportionate quality. He was duly commissioned on
August 31st.
The gag about the TARDIS landing the wrong way reflected
Matthew Graham's own struggles with parallel parking
Graham and Davies were both keen for the narrative to take place in a
regular neighbourhood, since they were aware that many young fans dreamt
of the TARDIS materialising on their street. The setting would be made
slightly unusual by its near-future timeframe, taking advantage of the
growing excitement for the forthcoming 2012 London Olympics. Graham
named the cul de sac after Olympic runner Dame Kelly Holmes, who held
multiple British records and won two gold medals at the 2004 Summer
Games in Athens, Greece. For the Isolus, Graham was inspired by the
spore-like realisation of the titular monsters in the 1978 version of
Invasion Of The Body Snatchers. The gag about the TARDIS landing
with its door facing the wrong way reflected Graham's own struggles with
parallel parking. The adventure was originally called “Chloe
Webber Destroys The Earth” and then “You're A Bad Girl,
Chloe Webber”, but both were rejected by Davies as being too
lengthy. Ultimately, it was decided to deviate from standard Doctor
Who convention and call the episode Fear Her.
With the development of Graham's story already well under way by the
time that “The
1920s” was dropped from Season Twenty-Eight in November,
Fear Her was an obvious choice to replace it. Although it was
intended that Fry's script would be part of the year's sixth recording
block, its loss -- and difficulties with the planned Block Four,
consisting of The Impossible Planet /
The Satan Pit -- resulted in a rearrangement of the
production schedule. Fear Her now joined The Idiot's Lantern as the revised Block
Four, directed by Euros Lyn. However, this presented a problem because
it meant that events intended to take place in late July would be
recorded during the chilly days of Winter 2006. With the production team
keen to limit the story's visual effects requirements, it wasn't
practical to digitally remove such giveaways as the actors' steaming
breath. Instead, dialogue was added to the script which explained that
the Isolus was absorbing heat in its vicinity.
The principal location for Fear Her was Page Drive, in the
Tremorfa area of Cardiff. It posed as Dame Kelly Holmes Close, while
many scenes in the Webber home were filmed at a residence there. Cast
and crew worked on Page Drive from January 24th to 27th, and then
returned after the weekend on the 30th and 31st. Part of January 27th
was spent elsewhere in Cardiff. At the Millennium Stadium, Lyn recorded
the Doctor's run up the steps of the Olympic Stadium, as well as shots
of its empty interior. Furthermore, footage of the torchbearer jogging
through the streets of London was recorded on Gorsedd Gardens Road.
Originally, Lyn had hoped to cast Holmes herself in this role -- taking
his cue from Graham's script -- but she was unavailable due to her
commitments to the reality series Dancing On Ice.
January 31st also saw the episode's TARDISode recorded on Page
Drive. Writer Gareth Roberts imagined a Crimewatch-style report
on the children's disappearances -- but done in a more sensationalistic,
American style which he imagined would have become increasingly common
on British television by 2012. Great difficulty was encountered in
finding a suitable name for the faux programme which would avoid any
trademark issues. Ultimately, Roberts opted for CrimeCrackers
because its rights were already owned by the BBC, and permission could
be obtained for its use. The fifty-four-second TARDISode
concluded with a shot of the drawing of Chloe's father.
Four days at the regular Doctor Who studio space of Unit Q2 in
Newport then followed, from February 1st to 4th. Material in Chloe's
bedroom was recorded throughout, while the two middle days also saw
cameras rolling on the standing TARDIS set, and Lyn additionally
captured footage of the stairs and landing in the Webber house on the
3rd. For Chloe's drawings, some of the images were developed with the
assistance of production buyer Joelle Rumbelow's eleven-year-old sister,
Indigo.
Lyn's team was at work in several Cardiff locations on February 6th.
Alongside further sequences on Page Drive, the TARDIS materialised at
Chapman's Removals & Storage Yard, while the Doctor lit the Olympic
flame at St Albans Rugby Club. This left only various pick-up shots to
be completed, the first of which was the pod landing in the Olympic
torch, filmed on Blenheim Road in Cardiff on February 10th. The
remaining inserts were taped at Unit Q2: Chloe drawing her pictures on
February 15th, with art student Tinate Bilal standing in for Abisola
Agbaje; the cat entering the box on the 22nd; and finally the TARDIS
scanner on the 23rd.
The corresponding TARDISode was made available on June 17th. A
week later, with the World Cup continuing to disrupt the BBC's
schedules, Fear Her was preceded by Just For Laughs and a
news update. Doctor Who led directly into Match Of The Day
Live, featuring a knockout stage contest between Argentina and
Mexico.
- Doctor Who Magazine Special Edition #14, 9th November 2006,
“Episode 11: Fear Her” by Andrew Pixley, Panini Publishing
Ltd.
- Doctor Who: The Complete History #53, 2016, “Story 176:
Fear Her”, edited by Mark Wright, Hachette Partworks Ltd.
- Doctor Who: The Inside Story by Gary Russell (2006), BBC
Books.
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Original Transmission
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Date |
24th Jun 2006 |
Time |
7.02pm |
Duration |
43'52" |
Viewers (more) |
7.1m (20th) |
Appreciation |
83% |
Cast
The Doctor |
David Tennant (bio) |
Rose Tyler |
Billie Piper (bio) |
Trish |
Nina Sosanya |
Chloe |
Abisola Agbaje |
Maeve |
Edna Doré |
Tom's Dad |
Tim Faraday |
Kel |
Abdul Salis |
Driver |
Richard Nichols |
Neighbour |
Erica Eirian |
Policeman |
Stephen Marzella |
Commentator |
Huw Edwards |
Crew
Written by |
Matthew Graham (bio) |
Directed by |
Euros Lyn (bio) |
|
Producer |
Phil Collinson |
1st Assistant Director |
Peter Bennett |
2nd Assistant Director |
Steffan Morris |
3rd Assistant Director |
Lynsey Muir |
Location Managers |
Gareth Lloyd |
Gareth Skelding |
Unit Manager |
Rhys Griffiths |
Production Co-ordinator |
Jess van Niekerk |
Production/Script Secretary |
Claire Roberts |
Production Runner |
Victoria Wheel |
A/Production Accountants |
Debi Griffiths |
Kath Blackman |
Bonnie Clissold |
Continuity |
Non Eleri Hughes |
Script Editor |
Simon Winstone |
Focus Puller |
Steve Rees |
Grip |
John Robinson |
Boom Operator |
Jeff Welch |
Gaffer |
Mark Hutchings |
Best Boy |
Peter Chester |
Electricians |
Chris Davies |
Clive Johnson |
Camera Assistant |
Penny Shipton |
Stunt Co-ordinator |
Dave Forman |
Supervising Art Director |
Stephen Nicholas |
Art Dept Production Manager |
Jonathan Marquand Allison |
Standby Art Director |
Lee Gammon |
A/Supervising Art Director |
James North |
Design Assistants |
Peter McKinstry |
Al Roberts |
Standby Props |
Phill Shellard |
Matthew North |
Standby Carpenter |
Silas Williams |
Standby Rigger |
Bryan Griffiths |
Standby Scenic Artist |
Louise Bohling |
Set Decorator |
David Morison |
Property Master |
Adrian Anscombe |
Production Buyer |
Joelle Rumbelow |
Assistant Props Master |
Paul Aitken |
Props Chargehand |
Phil Lyons |
Props Storeman |
Stuart Wooddisse |
Practical Electrician |
Albert James |
Art Department Driver |
Patrick Deacy |
Specialist Prop Maker |
Mark Cordory |
Prop Maker |
Penny Howarth |
Construction Manager |
Matthew Hywel-Davies |
Construction Chargehand |
Allen Jones |
Storyboard Artist |
Shaun Williams |
Graphics |
BBC Wales Graphics |
Costume Supervisor |
Anna Lau |
Costume Assistants |
Lindsay Bonaccorsi |
Kirsty Wilkinson |
Make-Up Artists |
Anwen Davies |
Steve Smith |
Moira Thomson |
Special Effects Co-ordinator |
Ben Ashmore |
Special Effects Supervisors |
Paul Kelly |
Mike Crowley |
Special Effects Technicians |
Danny Hargreaves |
Richard Magrin |
Casting Associate |
Andy Brierley |
Assistant Editor |
Ceres Doyle |
Post Production Supervisors |
Chris Blatchford |
Samantha Hall |
Post Production Co-ordinator |
Marie Brown |
On Line Editor |
Matthew Clarke |
Colourist |
Mick Vincent |
3D Artists |
Chris Petts |
Jean Yves Audouard |
Paul Burton |
Jean-Claude Deguara |
Nicolas Hernandez |
Will Pryor |
Matthew McKinney |
Neil Roche |
Chris Tucker |
Mark Wallman |
2D Artists |
Sara Bennett |
David Bowman |
Melissa Butler-Adams |
Joseph Courtis |
Bronwyn Edwards |
Michael Harrison |
Simon C Holden |
Russell Horth |
Visual Effects Co-ordinator |
Kim Phelan |
Digital Matte Painter |
Alex Fort |
Dubbing Mixer |
Tim Ricketts |
Sound Editors |
Paul McFadden |
Doug Sinclair |
Sound FX Editor |
Paul Jefferies |
Finance Manager |
Richard Pugsley |
With thanks to |
the BBC National Orchestra of Wales |
Original Theme Music |
Ron Grainer |
Casting Director |
Andy Pryor CDG |
Production Accountant |
Endaf Emyr Williams |
Sound Recordist |
Simon Fraser |
Costume Designer |
Louise Page |
Make-Up Designer |
Sheelagh Wells |
Music |
Murray Gold |
Visual Effects |
The Mill |
Visual FX Producer |
Will Cohen |
Visual FX Supervisor |
Dave Houghton |
Special Effects |
Any Effects |
Editor |
Crispin Green |
Production Designer |
Edward Thomas |
Director of Photography |
Rory Taylor |
Production Manager |
Marcus Prince |
Executive Producers |
Russell T Davies (bio) |
Julie Gardner |
Working Titles
Chloe Webber Destroys The Earth |
You're A Bad Girl, Chloe Webber |
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