Doctor Who deals with Adric’s death in emotional new Peter Davison scene
The scene is part of a re-edited version of season 19 serial Earthshock for Tales of the TARDIS.
An emotional new Doctor Who scene released as part of Tales of the TARDIS has seen the Fifth Doctor (Peter Davison) address the death of his former companion Adric – who was played by Matthew Waterhouse between 1980 and 1982.
The scene plays at the end of a specially re-edited version of the season 19 serial Earthshock, which ended with Adric dying in a huge explosion after he failed to prevent a Cyberman-controlled freighter from colliding with Earth.
In the new scene, The Doctor and Tegan (Janet Fielding) discuss the death, with the Time Lord saying, "he was so..." before Tegan cuts in.
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"Oh he was a nightmare," she says, with the Doctor then adding: "He was daft, and silly, and sulky and... he was just a kid."
After Tegan tells him that "he loved you" the Doctor then replies that he realises that now, before they talk about how they never looked back to reflect on Adric's death, instead sailing on and having more adventures.
They come to the conclusion that being in the memory TARDIS was like therapy, and the Doctor says: "I think it's done me good, and telling the story keeps me alive."
He then smiles and asks Tegan to tell him some everyday things about her life, telling her that "memories of an ordinary life is one of the most shining things of all".
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And so she begins to tell him about her life as an environmental campaigner, and how the advice he gave her during their time together has helped her achieve great things.
Earlier in 2023, Waterhouse revealed how his additional reaction to Adric being killed off had not been positive.
“[Peter Davison's script] was on the table up in the café at the Acton rehearsal rooms,” he told SFX Magazine. “I was sitting there having a cup of tea and I flicked it open.
"My first thought was, 'Oh god, that's very final.' I didn't like it at all. Later, I realised how interesting it was, and how good it was."
Doctor Who: Tales of the TARDIS is streaming now on BBC iPlayer. Doctor Who is available to stream on BBC iPlayer. Classic episodes are available on BritBox – you can sign up for a 7-day free trial here.
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Authors
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.
