Doctor Who

The Power of the Daleks - S4-E3

Revealing mistake: The Daleks that appear in this and other Doctor Who stories were rather expensive, so some ingenuity was required to make the small number available look like they were more than they were. Tricks employed in "The Power of the Daleks" included making four Daleks look like an army by having them circle around the set a few times (note the delay between the fourth Dalek exiting and the "fifth" Dalek entering), and the blatant use of photographic blow-ups in place of "real" Daleks.

The Tomb of the Cybermen - S5-E1

Revealing mistake: During the fight scene between Toberman and the Cybercontroller, the Cybercontroller uses a very visible harness to lift Toberman over his head, and the wires attached to the harness Toberman is wearing are also very visible. When Toberman, in return, lifts the Cybercontroller above HIS head, it is obvious that what Toberman is lifting is an empty costume, with no-one inside it.

The Invasion - S6-E3

Revealing mistake: The Cyberman that falls from the roof in the final episode is obviously an empty costume. (This is another example of a mistake being repeated from an earlier episode. See the earlier story "The Tomb of the Cybermen" for a note about the same 'revealing' mistake happening).

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The War Games - S6-E7

Revealing mistake: Episode 6, while in the barn Von Weich asks Moor (played by David Troughton, son of Patrick, who plays The Doctor) to retrieve the monocle in his pocket. Then, when Von Weich continues with his plan, in his closeups we can see a vertical piece of mesh tape over the actor's right eye. (00:13:05)

Super Grover

Inferno - S7-E4

Revealing mistake: In episode 5, when the Doctor kills the Primord with the fire extinguisher, he says 'he's dead this time' but the Primord is breathing. (00:07:10)

Daz

Inferno - S7-E4

Revealing mistake: In episode 3, when the Doctor is squaring off against the drooling madman, the madman is inside the perimeter railings. When the soldiers shoot him and he 'falls', however, he has moved outside the railings, enabling the stuntman to jump safely. (00:10:40)

Daz

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Inferno - S7-E4

Revealing mistake: In episode 6, when the Brigade Leader shoots the Primord Stahlmann, he falls down but no bullet holes are made in his costume. Thanks to Producer Barry Letts for spotting this one on the DVD commentary. (00:17:00)

Daz

Inferno - S7-E4

Revealing mistake: In episode 6, during the generally poor fight sequence between the Brigade Leader and Greg Sutton, Greg's first punch to the face misses the Brigade Leader by miles. (00:19:10)

Daz

Planet of the Spiders - S11-E5

Plot hole: At the climax of episode 2, the Doctor is about to catch Lupton when the latter simply teleports to safety. So why didn't he do that in the first place, before engaging in a 15-minute chase?

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The Doctor: This is a situation that requires tact and finesse. Fortunately, I am blessed with both.

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The Chase - S2-E8

Trivia: Such was the popularity of Doctor Who in Britain in the mid-1960s that even the Beatles wanted to make an appearance in the show. So a scene was written into "The Chase" to allow them to appear. The idea had been devised of including a scene on the Time and Space Visualiser depicting a Beatles fiftieth-anniversary concert in 2015, with the Fab Four dressed up as old men. John, Paul, George, and Ringo themselves were interested in the proposition, but it was vetoed by their manager, Brian Epstein. It was then thought that an appearance by the Beatles on Top of the Pops might be used instead, but no such footage was available. Fortunately, the Beatles were scheduled to perform "Ticket to Ride" at Riverside Studios in Hammersmith on April 10th, 1965, and that footage was used instead.

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Earthshock - S19-E6

Question: In Earthshock, season 19, at the end of episode 3, the Cyber Leader views his troops marching down the corridor. Each column is headed by a Cyber Leader. Is this a mistake, or is there more than one Cyber Leader allowed per army?

Answer: In 'The Five Doctors', three separate Cyberleaders are definitely used. So it's likely that Cyberleaders are like unit commanders, of which a fair-sized army might have several.

Daria Sigma

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