Originally conceived in 1966, by Dr Kit Pedler and Gerry Davis, Doctor Who‘s Cybermen were born out of fears around advancements in medical science.
With transplant surgery in its infancy, it is easy to see how they made the leap to considering a future where something more machine than man would come about. It was only logical, after all.
Since their debut we have seen them take on most of the Doctors in one form or another. Over the decades, the look of the Cybermen has continually changed, from human hands, though blank faceplates to silver jumpsuits, but always the core design remains the same. In the show’s modern era, there has been uniformity so far with the Cybus art deco style iteration.
Here CultBox takes a look at some of the most memorable Cyber appearances…
‘Tomb of the Cybermen’
Opening Doctor Who’s fifth season, ‘Tomb’ offered chills for the Second Doctor, travelling with Jamie and the newly joined Victoria. The trio join a misguided archaeological expedition on the icy planet of Telos in the far future, where the threat of the Cybermen is nothing but a distant memory.
The tale introduces a hierarchy with the CyberController as well as the creeping menace of the Cybermats. With evocative music and some great set design, the story was lost until the early 1990s.
Its return was a cause of great excitement and a prompt VHS release where its status as a classic was confirmed.
‘Earthshock’
The Cybermen burst back onto the scene after rest of seven years with a new look, a surprise reveal and shock ending. The Fifth Doctor and his crew encounter a pair of androids in a cave system on 26th century Earth, guarding a bomb. Helping to defuse it, little does the Doctor know that he is interfering with a plan by some of his age-old enemies.
The reveal that the machines were in the employ of the Cybermen came as a true shock as studio filming had happened in secrecy and producer JNT politely refused a Radio Times cover.
‘Earthshock’ was the debut for actor David Bank’s Cyberleader, who would keep returning in one form or another through throughout the 1980s. His decidedly emotional take on the role involved a lot of fist clenching, repeated exclamations of “Excellent!” and some great debate with the Doctor.
Planning to destroy the Earth, his Cyber army only actually manage to wipe out the dinosaurs and trim the TARDIS crew compliment by one.
‘The Invasion’
This late Troughton era story showcased a Cyber invasion of modern day Earth and is responsible for one of the show’s most iconic images; that of the Cybermen coming down the steps outside St. Paul’s Cathedral.
The Doctor, Jamie and Zoe arrive as the Cyber-threat is poised to take hold through their human pawn Tobias Vaughn. As the head of International Electromatix, Vaughn has a sinister corporate setup and products in every home capable of mesmerising the human race.
As an action adventure, this eight-part story showed the way for the Third Doctor’s Earth-bound years and formally introduced his friends at UNIT. With a couple of episodes missing from the archive, this was the first story to benefit from animated reconstructions on the DVD release.
‘The Tenth Planet’
The first Cyber story was also William Hartnell’s last regular appearance, with the TARDIS bringing the First Doctor, Ben and Polly to an Antarctic space-tracking base in 1986.
The tenth planet in question was Mondas, Earth’s lost twin that had slipped from the solar system and drifted out into deep space. From it came the original Cybermen, cloth faced with visible fleshy components, individual names and high-pitched, modem-like voices.
With the fourth episode lost, save for the Hartnell to Troughton transition, the story will be completed again with an animated release this year.
‘The Pandorica Opens’
As part of the alien alliance against the Doctor, the Cybermen played a part in the Pandorica trap and left a sentry in wait at Stonehenge. While their impact might have diminished with familiarity since ‘Rise of the Cybermen’, this appearance did much to redeem the fear factor in a relatively brief sequence.
Menacing scenes occur in the Under Henge as a damaged cyber suit targets Amy to be its new inhabitant. Immobilising the Doctor with an electric shock, a snapping severed cyber helmet writhes on tentacle-like cables before snagging her with a tranquilliser dart.
Then the suit itself stalks her before finally being felled by a certain Roman Centurion.
Honourable Mention: ‘Spare Parts’
The TARDIS brings the Fifth Doctor and Nyssa to lost planet of Mondas, where the desperate entombed inhabitants have gone to extraordinary lengths to survive. They have replaced body parts with cybernetic implants and conditioned workers to survive up on the surface of the planet.
This superbly tragic tale by Marc Platt, writer of ‘Ghost Light’, shows the dark and desperate beginnings of the Cyber race in our universe and was used as a launching pad for the ideas that became ‘Rise of the Cybermen’ /’ The Age of Steel’ on television.
With authentic early Cyber voices, it might just be the best Cyber story we have never seen!
What’s your favourite Cybermen story? Let us know below…