(''DOCTOR WHO'' THEME)
Agh!
(JO SCREAMS)
- What is it, Jo? What's happened? - I heard him shout.
Then I saw a maggot on him. You can still see its trail.
- The egg must have hatched out. - We'll go after it.
Nancy, be careful. Find out where it's gone and come back at once.
- Who is he? - He drives Stevens around. His strong-arm man.
Will he die?
- Well, the others did. - He's getting weaker.
- I'll ring for an ambulance. - And the Brigadier.
It's disappeared. The trail stopped by the window.
Thank you, Nancy. It can't be helped.
At least we can analyse this slime.
Come on, Dicks, get a move on.
(BRIGADIER) Sergeant Benton!
- Are the charges laid? - Not yet, sir.
- Get on with it. - Right, sir.
What's going on down there?
Orders? What do you mean, orders?
I suppose if your officer ordered you to kick the Prince of Wales up the britches, you'd do it!
What about Miss Cartwright's ginger cat? At death's door, it is,
not to mention Tom the sea captain!
- Let him through. - An educated man! Thank you, Captain.
- Blowing up the pit, eh? - How did you know that?
I've got eyes, haven't I?
Yes, you have. Now perhaps you'd be good enough to be on your way.
Such courtesy.
Thank you, Captain.
Blast!
(DOCTOR) Well?
You're right. It's incredible. The DNA must be invading the foreign cells.
I know I'm a cloth-head...
- It's not your fault. - ..but I don't understand.
We're putting cells from the maggot's trail with human body cells.
Which body?
- Whose body? - Mine. Mucous membrane cells.
- Did it hurt? - (DOCTOR) Jo, really!
The maggot cells changed the structure of the human cells into their own nature.
- Rather as a virus does. - You mean your cells turned into maggot cells?
- In effect, yes. - That's what happened to those poor miners.
- (DOCTOR) Correct. - Well, what now?
- We have to get one of those maggots. - Down the mine again?
I don't like the idea much, but there's no alternative.
Old Jones says they're going to blow up the mine.
What?
- Sorry, Doctor, those are my orders. - Whose orders?
- Not that fellow from Global Chemicals? - We'll seal those things inside for good.
- Standing by, sir. - Clear the area.
Give me an hour. Give me half an hour.
At least give me a chance to talk to the wretched man.
You've exactly 32 and a half minutes.
Right.
For over a quarter of an hour, I've listened patiently to you, Doctor.
- Now it's my turn. - Mr Stevens...
Those maggots and their eggs are situated where we can observe them.
If you seal off that mine...
Please, Doctor. There is no point in going on like this. You have convinced me.
Then you don't intend to blow up the mine?
You have convinced me that you are an arrant sensation-monger, a political hothead
and a scientific charlatan.
- Giant maggots indeed! - All I'm asking for is a little more time.
- Time to spread more calumnies? More lies? - Time to find out the truth.
Time to find out if waste from your oil is causing the maggots to appear.
That's enough! I warn you,
I shall have you restrained under the Emergency Powers Act!
You have no such right.
The necessary authority was brought to me this morning.
Stella.
Ask Mr Elgin to bring in the man from the Ministry, will you?
Do you realise what my process means to the economy of this country?
Can you imagine any government allowing such...
Ah.
Come in, will you?
Doctor, may I introduce you to Mr Yates?
How do you do?
Come on, Doctor. Come on.
How much longer?
It's too late, isn't it?
In two and a half minutes, the Brigadier's going to press that button.
To do that would be criminal folly!
The Brigadier's orders and my own are quite clear.
- Does nobody act on their own around here? - I'm sorry.
Right, Benton. Stand by.
Take cover, lads. Stand by.
No, you can't!
Ten...nine...eight...
You must stop him!
..five...four...
- I can't. - You must!
..two...one...fire!
The point has become academic, it would seem.
Perhaps it's all for the best.
The best?
I think you'll find, Mr Yates,
this is the worst day's work the world has seen for many, many years.
I don't think we need detain you, Doctor.
No.
- And, Doctor... - Yes?
I would advise you not to come back here.
If you should be so foolish,
you would be received with considerably less courtesy.
And now, Mr Yates, we must make sure you are well looked after during your little stay.
Elgin.
- Show Mr Yates to the visitors' suite. - Thank you, Mr Stevens.
- (ELGIN) You have a case? - It's in the car.
(BOSS) Ah, Stevens. The adrenaline flowing nicely, living dangerously?
That's how you get your kicks, like the good little Nietzschean you are, right?
- I don't know what you mean. - No?
Supposing this Doctor had persuaded them to hold up the sealing of the mine?
The Brigadier is a friend of his.
It would only have been temporary.
Long enough perhaps for them to get one of these creatures.
It's not safe to ask outsiders to do our work for us.
Of course.
I'm sorry.
Don't apologise, my little superman.
Just be sure next time.
The day is coming fast.
D-Day. Der Tag.
Nothing must be allowed to stop it.
Nothing.
- (JO ) Mike Yates? Here? - Yes.
- Why didn't you tell me? - You didn't give me a chance.
- Well, what's the idea? - I'm not such a dunderhead as you think.
I don't like Stevens any more than you do.
- Then why did you blow up the mine? - Orders. I'm still a soldier, you know.
That doesn't stop me having an inside man to have a shufti round.
I take your point, Brigadier,
but there are times when I wish your devotion to duty
was a trifle more...flexible, shall we say?
I don't understand you lot. Seems to me the problem's solved.
We'll see no more of those creepy-crawlies. You mark my words.
Oh, no!
- What on earth's the matter? - In there. Horrible, it is!
Everything OK?
Keep your eyes open, just in case.
Look out, man. Get back!
- Nonsense! - It is not nonsense.
The pipe is full of them.
They must have come up from the mine. Everything that Doctor said is true.
I'm not disputing it, but there's no need to get so excited about it.
There's a simple remedy. Pump down more waste and flush 'em away.
No, we've been poisoning the mine for long enough.
Poisoning? I find your choice of words a trifle excessive.
There are three people dead, Mr Stevens!
The mine has been sealed.
Am I to understand that you propose to do nothing about this?
I see no necessity.
Then I must find somebody who will.
(CLUNKING)
Please unlock this door.
Come and sit down, Elgin.
Unlock the door.
(PIERCING HUM)
Sit down.
Don't worry.
I won't hurt you.
Sir. I thought it best to back it up a bit, being as you said they could jump.
Quite right, Benton, quite right.
(BRIGADIER) There's another lot.
They're all over the place!
Well, they're all over the place.
You mean they've tunnelled their way out?
These maggots are some sort of larvae, not the finished product.
They want to get to daylight.
- They're coming up the old shafts in the mine. - How did it happen?
Oil waste from Global Chemicals contaminated some maggots, causing an atavistic mutation.
Giant maggots? What kind of insects are they going to turn into?
That's a very good question, Jo.
Sir. Look.
Yes, I see him.
Well, I never thought I'd fire in anger at a dratted caterpillar, but...
Not a chance, Brigadier. Thick chitinous plates protecting the whole body surface.
It's armour-plated.
All right. We'll try AP bullets.
- Give him ten rounds rapid. - Sir.
Greyhound three, how's the spray working? Over.
(BENTON) They seem to thrive on it. It's the same with every pesticide we've tried.
There's only one real answer.
A biological counterstrike.
With what?
Professor Jones is working on it, but he needs more living tissue.
There's any amount of it out there.
No, wait.
I don't like it. Nobody should have to risk infection until we know we have a cure.
- We want no more deaths. - What, then?
Can you get me any oil waste from Global Chemicals?
- Simplicity itself. - Good.
(RINGS)
Yates. Ah, Lethbridge Stewart, my dear chap. What can I do for you?
Have you discovered any more about the oil formula?
No... No, everyone's being most helpful.
Can you get a sample of the oil waste?
Of course not, Brigadier. If ever I want anything,
there's always somebody right at my elbow to lend a hand.
I see. So you've got nothing.
- Let me talk to him. - Hold on a minute.
Captain Yates, the Doctor here. I'll try to get in there myself.
Naturally, I have the utmost confidence in the security.
In fact, they've doubled it up since the problem arose.
Nobody could get in.
I see. Well, keep a lookout for me anyway, will you?
Yes, of course. Goodbye.
These military types. Always worrying about something, aren't they?
You've set yourself quite a task. They're pretty efficient up there.
Yes. Yes, I know.
Where's the other bloke?
(WELSH ACCENT) Poor boyo's taken very sick. Something he ate, his mam said.
Who are you, then?
I'm his da. They told me I was too old to take over, they did,
but I've been doing this milk round 53 years, wet or fine, didn't I?
There's life in the old dog yet!
I was saying to Rosie up at the Red Dragon... A fine strapping girl...
I haven't time to listen to you blathering. Get on in.
Thank you.
(JO ) When I joined UNIT, the Brigadier said this was going to be my job -
holding test tubes for the Doctor and telling him how brilliant he was!
- I never got around to it, though! - A pretty dull job.
I don't know. I'm rather enjoying this.
Aye. So am I.
When all this business is over, I was wondering if you'd...
- You've ruined the lot! - Sorry!
- All wasted! - What was that stuff?
Dried fungus. My hybrid. I'll have to start again.
- You won't... - Leave it!
- I shudder to think what might happen! - I'm sorry.
- (WAILING ALARM) - Phase three alert
in central security areaI
Intruder believed to be in main block, dressed as milkman.
Apprehend and detain.
- Cliff... - Mm?
- What you really need is a maggot, isn't it? - First things first.
OK. What shall I do?
Keep me company. Make some coffee.
- Like a dutiful tea girl? - Fine.
- With a frilly cap and an apron? - Perfect.
- How about a nice cup of arsenic? - Fine. Whatever you've got.
Thanks.
What's all the fuss?
Some milkman wandering about where he shouldn't be. They'll find him.
- OK? - Yes.
I've forgotten my attaché case. I'll join you downstairs.
If you say one word...
I like your handbag.
Do you? Well, watch out I don't slosh you with it!
- Where can we talk? - In my office.
- Hello. Looking for the Doctor? - Er...
Er... Yes.
He's not here. He's gone over to the complex.
Oh, well, I'll take a look around while I'm here.
Sorry. Brigadier's orders. It's too dangerous up there,
all those things popping out of the ground all over the place.
- All right. - See you later, then. Bye.
What have you found out?
Global Chemicals IS behind the trouble at the pit.
- What about the waste? - It's like stealing the Crown Jewels.
- Could you get the formula? - We could try.
Everything important is on the top floor.
There's a special lift at the end of the block.
It works with a key, but only the director's got one.
Well done. This could prove absolutely vital.
One other thing. The director isn't the real boss.
- He works for someone else. - Who?
Whoever lives on the top floor.
- Mr Yates, we were looking for you. - You wanted your attaché case.
- Yes, here it is. I'm ready now. - Good.
How's the old man, Doris?
(MUMBLES IN A HIGH VOICE)
(SIGHS)
That's it. Of course!
Jo, we can cure it!
Jo?
''Gone to get you a maggot.''
Silly young fool. She'll get herself killed!
- It won't be long now. - Reinforcements, sir?
Yes. I've been onto the RAF.
They'll be flying a low-level strike with HE grenades in just seven minutes.
In ten minutes' time, there'll be nothing left alive in the area.
(BOSS) How kind of you to drop in, DoctorI
I've been looking forward to having a little chat with you.
Who are you?
Where are you?
(BOSS LAUGHS)
I should have thought you'd have guessed.
I am the Boss.
I'm all around you.
Exactly.
I am the computer.