Where season 13 saw the comeback of much-loved monsters the Sontarans and the Weeping Angels, this upcoming episode is travelling even further back into Who history, with the return of the Sea Devils.<\/p>\n
Ahead of the episode\u2019s release the official BBC synopsis promises a \u201cswashbuckling special adventure\u201d in which \u201cterrifying forces lurk beneath the ocean\u201d \u2013 and having got our first look at the new and improved versions of these \u201cterrifying forces\u201d, it\u2019s as good a time as any to look back at their origins, and explore why their return is so important now.<\/p>
Who are the Sea Devils in Doctor Who?<\/strong><\/h2>\nThe retro villains first appeared, stomping out of the water, in 1972 in a story simply entitled The Sea Devils<\/a>. The species was dreamed up by writer Malcolm Hulke who wanted to create an aquatic version of his earlier creation, the Silurians (their land-based cousins who had made their Doctor Who debut two years prior).<\/p>\nFor backstory, both foes were the previous inhabitants of planet Earth before their fear of a natural catastrophe drove them into hibernation. Now, whenever they return, they are usually looking to reclaim their ownership of the planet.<\/p>\n
In their first adventure, the Sea Devils come up against the Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee), companion Jo Grant (Katy Manning) and the Royal Navy, with canny producer Barry Letts roping in actual members of the Navy to take part in the filming.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we\u2019d had to pay, it would have cost us thousands of pounds, but in fact, it cost us nothing,\u201d said Letts. \u201cIt was good propaganda.\u201d<\/p>\n
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<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div> Jon Pertwee faces off with an original Sea Devil<\/span><\/figcaption> BBC<\/i><\/span><\/div>\nThe Sea Devils were destroyed, but it was not long before they returned for a brief appearance \u2013 in 1973\u2019s Frontier in Space<\/a>, Jo hallucinates one of the creatures when she is exposed to hypnosis.<\/p>\nIt would be over 10 years before we saw them again. Sadly, when they did return in 1984 with the shiny new paint job, it would be in a story widely regarded as one of Doctor Who\u2019s worst\u2026<\/p>\n
For backstory, both foes were the previous inhabitants of planet Earth before their fear of a natural catastrophe drove them into hibernation. Now, whenever they return, they are usually looking to reclaim their ownership of the planet.<\/p>\n
In their first adventure, the Sea Devils come up against the Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee), companion Jo Grant (Katy Manning) and the Royal Navy, with canny producer Barry Letts roping in actual members of the Navy to take part in the filming.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we\u2019d had to pay, it would have cost us thousands of pounds, but in fact, it cost us nothing,\u201d said Letts. \u201cIt was good propaganda.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"""\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2021\/12\/doctor-who-sea-devils-0eb5130.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413"\" "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>The Sea Devils were destroyed, but it was not long before they returned for a brief appearance \u2013 in 1973\u2019s Frontier in Space<\/a>, Jo hallucinates one of the creatures when she is exposed to hypnosis.<\/p>\n It would be over 10 years before we saw them again. Sadly, when they did return in 1984 with the shiny new paint job, it would be in a story widely regarded as one of Doctor Who\u2019s worst\u2026<\/p>\n