Doctor Who Logo 'The Happiness Patrol'
(3 Parts)
Story Code '7L'

by Graeme Curry
The Doctor

The Doctor and Ace arrive at an Earth colony on the planet of Terra Alpha, where the Time Lord wishes to investigate rumours that something evil is at work. They learn from Trevor Sigma, a census taker from Galactic Central, that the population has been mysteriously vanishing. The colony is ruled by the dictator, Helen A and her companion, Joseph C, who force the inhabitants to be in a constant state of happiness, by penalty of death. Insurrectionists - those not happy - are either shot by a squad of female soldiers known as the Happiness Patrol, or boiled to death in molten confectionary by a robotic creature called the Kandy Man, a creation of the scientist Gilbert M. Ace befriends Susie Q, a young and disillusioned patroller, while the Doctor meets Earl Sigma, a holidaying medical student and a fan of blues music, who is now stuck on the planet. After escaping an encounter with the Kandy Man, the Doctor and Earl meet the original natives of Terra Alpha, the pipe people, who have been driven out from their homes by the settlers and who now live under the city. When Helen A learns that they have all joined together to organise a revolt, she sends her vicious pet Sigorax, Fifi, into the pipes to kill them. Ace uses her homemade Nitro 9 explosive to deal with Fifi, but she is then captured by the patrol, and, together with Susie Q, sentenced to execution by boiling candy. The Doctor visits Helen A and the Kandy Man; by threatening the robot with lemonade, which can destroy its body, he forces Kandy Man to divert the flow of candy that will kill Ace and Susie Q. Helen A orders the Patrol to kill everyone, but they pretend to be happy, thwarting her plan. Fifi, now recovered, chases the Doctor's party into the pipes, but a note from Earl's harmonica sets up a resonation that causes a cave in, killing the creature. Realising that Helen A can be beaten, riots break out amongst the population. The Doctor confronts the Kandy Man, who flees into the tunnels only to be engulfed in molten candy and destroyed. Helen A now plans to leave the planet, but her shuttle is instead taken by Gilbert M and Joseph C. She attempts to flee the city, but when she meets the Doctor and Ace, she sees the dead Fifi, and breaks down in tears. Their task completed, the Doctor and Ace leave the populace to rebuild their world.

Sylvester McCoy (The Doctor), Sophie Aldred (Ace), Sheila Hancock (Helen A), Ronald Fraser (Joseph C), Georgine Hale (Daisy K), Rachel Bell (Priscilla P), Harold Innocent (Gilbert M), John Normington (Trevor Sigma), Lesley Dunlop (Susan Q), Richard D. Sharp (Earl Sigma), Tim Barker (Harold V), Jonathan Burn (Silas P), David John Pope (Kandy Man), Mary Healey (Killjoy), Tim Scott (Forum Doorman); Steve Swinscoe, Mark Carroll (Snipers); Philip Neve (Wences), Ryan Freedman (Wulfric), Annie Hulley (Newscaster)

Produced by John Nathan-Turner
Directed by Chris Clough


TX:
Part 1 - 2nd November, 1988 @ 7.35pm - 8.00pm
Part 2 - 9th November, 1988 @ 7.35pm - 8.00pm
Part 3 - 16th November, 1988 @ 7.35pm - 8.00pm

Notes:
*Featuring the Seventh Doctor and Ace

*Working title: 'The Crooked Smile'