{"id":6877,"date":"2021-11-07T20:15:47","date_gmt":"2021-11-07T19:15:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1492411"},"modified":"2021-11-07T20:43:25","modified_gmt":"2021-11-07T19:43:25","slug":"doctor-whos-war-of-the-sontarans-featured-nod-to-a-classic-jon-pertwee-serial","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/doctor-whos-war-of-the-sontarans-featured-nod-to-a-classic-jon-pertwee-serial\/","title":{"rendered":"Doctor Who\u2019s War of the Sontarans featured nod to a classic Jon Pertwee serial"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Morgan Jeffery\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Sunday, 07 November 2021 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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Last week\u2019s Doctor Who<\/a> series 13 premiere was peppered with plenty of nods back to the series\u2019 past<\/a> and while the latest episode, War of the Sontarans<\/a>, wasn\u2019t quite as Easter egg-heavy, it did feature one fan-pleasing reference to a classic Jon Pertwee story from 1973\/74.<\/p>\n

Unsurprisingly, it was one of the Doctor\u2019s previous encounters with the Sontaran race that got a shout-out \u2013 the very first clash between the Time Lord and the fearsome warrior race, in fact.<\/p>\n

Aired as the opening story to Doctor Who\u2019s 11th season between 15th December 1973 and 5th January 1974, The Time Warrior<\/a> was written by Robert Holmes and saw the Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) and new companion Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) travel back in time to the Middle Ages.<\/p>\n

Back in 13th century England, the pair faced off against Linx (Kevin Lindsay), a Sontaran who\u2019d decided to claim Earth for his empire after crash-landing on the planet. The alien was finally felled by \u2013 you guessed it \u2013 a blow to his probic vent, with the archer Hal (Jeremy Bulloch) firing an arrow straight at Linx\u2019s weak spot.<\/p>

Following the story\u2019s broadcast, the Sontarans went on to become one of Doctor Who\u2019s most popular recurring foes, later taking on the Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker) in 1975\u2019s The Sontaran Experiment<\/a>, invading Gallifrey in 1978\u2019s The Invasion of Time<\/a>, taking on two versions of their Time Lord nemesis in 1985\u2019s The Two Doctors<\/a>, and making their new Who debut in 2008\u2019s The Sontaran Stratagem\/The Poison Sky<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But the OG Sontaran, Linx, hasn\u2019t been forgotten \u2013 and is directly referenced in Flux: Chapter 2 \u2013 War of the Sontarans, some 48 years on from the character\u2019s sole television appearance.<\/p>\n

As the Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) takes a Sontaran commander (Jonathan Watson) to task for invading Earth and changing the planet\u2019s history to boot \u2013 with the Sontarans having replaced Russia in opposing the United Kingdom in the Crimean War \u2013 said Sontaran reminds her that his race have a long and storied humanity with humanity, going all the way back to Linx\u2019s arrival.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis planet has defied us ever since the great Commander Linx first staked his claim on the ground of its feeble soil,\u201d he growls.<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s a fleeting reference but a pleasing one for long-time Doctor Who fans, not to mention a way of paying tribute to late Linx actor Kevin Lindsay.<\/p>\n

Born in Bendigo, Victoria in Australia, Lindsay came to Britain in 1959 and took on a series of roles in classic Doctor Who \u2013 including that of Cho-Je in Jon Pertwee\u2019s final story, 1974\u2019s Planet of the Spiders<\/a>. But it was for playing Linx \u2013 and later Sontaran Field Major Styre in The Sontaran Experiment \u2013 that he\u2019s best remembered.<\/p>\n

Lindsay passed away in 1975, nine days after his 51st birthday, but his original portrayal of Linx remains the definitive Sontaran performance aped by all who\u2019ve followed in his footsteps \u2013 from the harsh snarl of the voice to the creatures\u2019 habit of sticking their tongue out.<\/p>\n

With Doctor Who: Flux telling one serialised story over six weeks, it remains to be seen if upcoming instalments will offer up any more\u00a0linx <\/em>(sorry!) to the show\u2019s past.<\/p>\n

Read more about Doctor Who:<\/strong><\/p>\n