Directed by Euros Lyn
Script by Russel T Davies
45 minutes 2005
Christopher Eccleston plays the Doctor
Billie Piper plays Rose
Zoë Wanamaker voices Cassandra
Country of finance: UK
Nationality of director: Welsh
Location of story: a spacestation
Filming location: Cardiff
Channel: BBC Wales
Synopsis
The Doctor takes Rose billions of years into the future to witness the end of the Earth as the Sun expands and destroys it. Observation is from a space station, and the guests are the super-rich. One of the guests is Cassandra, who has had 708 operations and is now just a stretched face. She is described as the last Earthling (which of course ignores the two minions who move her frame and frequently moisturize her).
Cassandra is also the bad guy. She releases robot insects which destroy the station's protections so that all will die and she will make a killing having bet against the other guests on the stock exchange. She teleports out at the last minute, but is brought back by the Doctor.Incidentally, Casandra who uses makeup and mentions various ex-husbands is obviously to be taken as female, started out as boy. This makes her one of the more rococo specimens of the old film favourite, the transy killer.
Trivia
Zoë Wanamaker was unable to be in Cardiff when the episode was filmed. Cassandra was originally voiced by Eve Myles, and Zo's voice added later.
Of course referring to this series as number 1 is high revisionism. The original season 1 of Dr Who was back in 1963.
Hi, i just wanted to say I really enjoy your blog and do appreiciate how much research you put into this. I feel as if you are compiling a gender who's rather who like an encyclopedia. Thank you so much - I love reading it xxx Tillie
ReplyDeleteExcellent episode! I know this is about gender stuff, but I just had to chime in and mention how much I enjoy Dr. Who! :)
ReplyDeleteSeriously though, excellent work. I can see that I will thoroughly enjoy reading back through your older posts.
Take care, and thanks for your efforts!
Kate
The Doctor is from the planet Gallifrey and we have been told nothing about the sex/gender system on Gallifrey. I think there has been no discussion about the Doctors preference for male Earth bodies. He has had at least 11 of them so far, and never a female body. This largely goes without comment, but is actually rather strange when you think about it.
ReplyDeleteInterestingly, I saw this episode just last night, and Cassandra's statement about once being a boy blew right past me!
ReplyDeleteAs for the Doctor, I remember once hearing some speculation that River Song might possibly have been his final incarnation.
I don't remember her saying this. I'm not sure this makes her "transgender".
ReplyDeleteI carefully put a screengrab image with subtitles, but you don't remember it. Therefore it didn't happen. Yeah, right!!
DeleteOf course she is not transgender. She is from a future century when the social constructions are quite different.