Settings: Brittanicus Base (The Ice Warriors)

The next story takes us to a future Earth in the grip of the perils of climate change, if not quite the sort we might be concerned about today. It is, perhaps, most notable for introducing the most-used “monster” of the classic era after the Daleks and Cybermen. Taken on its own merits, it used to be thought of as a middling, if unexceptional, story, but has tended to become less popular with younger audiences, probably because not much happens for four out of the six episodes. For the purposes of this blog, however, it’s significant that the first episode consists largely of an exposition dump, which allows us to say a surprising amount about the setting.

Where & When

The story is set somewhere in Britain several centuries into the future, as a new Ice Age is starting. No date is given on screen; we’re told that “five thousand years” of history are at risk from the ice, but it’s unclear what this is counting from. Pre-publicity for the story suggested it took place around 3,000 AD, but more recent fan theories go for 5,000.

Settings: Det-Sen (The Abominable Snowmen)

With The Abominable Snowmen, we have the first self-contained historical to feature a science fiction ‘monster’, rather than a rival time traveller. The historical elements are, however, relatively minor, due in part to the remote location, which means that the story could almost be contemporary. Traditionally regarded as a middling serial, younger fans have been more critical, although this may be less true now that an animation is available for the missing episodes. Either way, it is, perhaps, better remembered for introducing a threat that recurs in a more popular story later in the season than it is in its own right. Nonetheless, the setting is exotic and, for a historical, surprisingly adaptable to some SF settings, so let’s take a look.

Where & When

The story is set in the Himalayan Mountains of southern Tibet. No specific date is given in the serial, but The Web of Fear later states that it took place in 1935. The animation has plenty of snow on the ground, which may suggest either winter or spring, depending on the altitude.

Settings: Telos (Tomb of the Cybermen)

Season five kicks off with a Cyberman story, cementing the intention of using them as the main villains from here on, instead of the Daleks. It’s widely regarded as one of the better Second Doctor stories and perhaps the single best Cyberman story of the classic era, and it has the obvious advantage of being the earliest Troughton story fully available in its original form. For our purposes here, however, it’s worth noting that little of the appeal has to do with the setting. Having said which, the story does involve exploring and negotiating the traps and monsters in an underground tomb, something that’s not entirely foreign to certain RPGs…

Where & When

Although no specific date is given in the story, it’s stated to be set approximately five hundred years after the events of The Moonbase. Depending on whether Parry is rounding up or down, and how far we want to adjust for the known dates of future Cyberman stories, this places the story somewhere between the late 25th and mid-26th centuries, with most fan theories leaning towards the later date. This is probably shortly before the founding of the original Earth Empire.

It takes place on the planet Telos, a few weeks' travel from Earth. Given the date, this most likely places it in our own galaxy (although one of the audios will later contradict this), but in the relatively unexplored fringes beyond the edge of human colonisation, perhaps even on the opposite side of the galactic nucleus from Earth.

Settings: The Evil of the Daleks

The season finale of season four is arguably the first such serial to actually feel like a season finale. It’s one of the more popular Second Doctor stories, despite all but one episode being missing – albeit they are now animated. From the perspective of these posts, however, it’s very much not an exploratory story, and there’s relatively little to say about the setting. But still, we can work with the basics that we have.

Where & When

The story has three distinct settings. It starts off in southern England on the 20th July 1966, immediately after the events of The Faceless Ones. The main section, however, takes place on the 2nd and 3rd June 1866, at an English country house, with all of the action being confined to the building and its grounds.

Settings: Gatwick Airport (The Faceless Ones)

With The Faceless Ones, we return to present-day Earth, and the setting of a modern airport. Like everything else in season 4, most of the story is missing, although both the surviving and missing episodes have been animated for some time, making it readily available. It’s generally regarded as a middling episode, with some praising the mystery elements, and others finding it too long for its plot at six parts, as well as cutting out two of the three companions. But few people seem to actively dislike it, and an airport is, if nothing else, at least different from what we’ve seen so far.

(This series of posts will take a break after this, taking the companion departure, rather than the season finale, as a good place to do so. I’ll be back in a few months with Evil of the Daleks.) 

Where & When

The story is set on the 20th July 1966, with a minor plot point revolving around the fact that this was also the final day of the earlier serial The War Machines. The Earth-based sections are set entirely on the grounds of Gatwick Airport in London, although there is also a brief journey to near-Earth orbit.

Settings: The Macra Terror

The fourth season moves back outside the solar system for its fourth base-under-siege story. This is another serial that’s entirely missing in its original form, although it has been animated and so is more available than some of the others. Its reception ranges from middling to good, and the existence of the animation has likely increased that in recent years. For our purposes, an issue is the similarity of the setting to that of Power of the Daleks, but there are at least some significant differences to explore.

Where & When

The story is set on an unnamed human colony world at an unspecified point in the future. The colony is stated to be “centuries” old, which places the earliest possible date at around 2300, while we also know that it must be significantly earlier than Gridlock – but that’s a vast range. Fan theories tend to place it early on, before the foundation of the original Earth Empire, and thus somewhere in the 24th to 26th centuries.

Settings: The Moonbase

The first of four Cyberman stories in the Second Doctor’s three-season run, this is not the most highly regarded, but it’s no means unpopular either, a solid example of its type. For our purposes, however, what’s interesting is that it attempts to take a hard sci-fi tone, something we don’t often see on the show. It’s also the first time we’ve visited a world other than Earth that actually exists, so that it’s possible to make some concrete statements about it.

Where & When

The story takes place in and around the eponymous base, an unnamed international station located on the Moon. The year is given as 2070, which later stories will confirm is at a time when mankind has expanded through at least the inner solar system (Waters of Mars is set in 2059), but has yet to develop faster-than-light travel.