Although one of the scariest Daleks we’ve seen on screen in years, it turns out the tinpot terror of Doctor Who New Year special Resolution had an absolute rubbish codename during filming: Kevin.
That’s right, to keep the return of Skaro’s deadly alien species a secret from fans, it turns out that showrunner Chris Chibnall christened the Reconnaissance Dalek with the name Kevin when he was writing the script. Which, let’s face it, doesn’t sound too scary. Especially if you say it in a Dalek voice.
Turns out killer Kev caused quite the confusion for actor Nikesh Patel, who played Mitch in the episode.
“I got a call from my agent saying they’d love you to be in the Doctor Who Special. I asked them to send me through a script and it was a cracking read, but also a confusing read,” he told Doctor Who Magazine.
“It was a really tense horror thriller, but this buried, ancient tentacled evil was only referred to by a codename! As someone who’s not a die-hard Who fan, I thought, ‘That’s a step too far, surely?’”
“In the read-through, Jodie [Whittaker] stuck with the codename”, he said with a laugh. “Although with hindsight she did it with a wry smile.”
And while revealing the codename was indeed Kevin on Twitter, Charlotte Ritchie – who played Lin in Resolution – suggested the moniker took the fright out of the alien.
To our minds, however, handing a ridiculous moniker to any terrifying Who monster is a fantastic way to dial down its scary. Petrified by a Weeping Angel? Name it Gary. Having nightmares about a Cyberman? Call it Moe. Hunted down by, say, a tooth-faced Stenza in Sheffield? Wave hello to Tim Shaw. We’ve got the feeling it’s exactly something The Doctor would do.
