Mr Dalek Dies
- Publication: The Mirror
- Date: 1997-03-12
- Author: David Thompson
- Page:
- Language: English
Dr Who writer scared millions
THE man who created the Daleks in TV's Doctor Who has died, aged 66.
Scriptwriter Terry Nation's robotic aliens scared and enthralled millions of youngsters with their death rays and a battle cry of EX-TER-MIN-ATE.
They first appeared in a 1963 episode called The Dead Planet with William Hartnell as the first Time Lord.
They then became part of national life as the BBC programme took off.
Nation, who had suffered from emphysema for a number of years, died at home in Los Angeles on Sunday.
He was born in Cardiff and worked as a comedian, later turning his hand to scriptwriting.
He said of his creation: "I certainly didn't set out to frighten children with the Daleks."
And he once joked he was responsible for putting "Exterminate" into the vocabulary of three-year-olds.
Nation, who owned the rights to the Dalek, penned six episodes of Dr Who.
He also wrote plays, adaptations and sci fi, as well as scripts for Terry Scott, Stanley Baxter, Tony Hancock. and the Goon Show.
5 THINGS YOU DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT ROBOTS
(1) NAME was taken from an encyclopaedia marked DAL-EK.
(2) IN early shows the front of the gun was a rubber sink plunger.
(3) THEY come from the planet Scaro.
(4) THEY "live" part of the Dalek is a slimy green being about the size of a brain.
(5) THE Supreme Dalek is golden.
Caption: TAKING PLUNGE: Nation with one of Daleks
Spelling correction: Skaro
Disclaimer: These citations are created on-the-fly using primitive parsing techniques. You should double-check all citations. Send feedback to whovian@cuttingsarchive.org
- APA 6th ed.: Thompson, David (1997-03-12). Mr Dalek Dies. The Mirror .
- MLA 7th ed.: Thompson, David. "Mr Dalek Dies." The Mirror [add city] 1997-03-12. Print.
- Chicago 15th ed.: Thompson, David. "Mr Dalek Dies." The Mirror, edition, sec., 1997-03-12
- Turabian: Thompson, David. "Mr Dalek Dies." The Mirror, 1997-03-12, section, edition.
- Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=Mr Dalek Dies | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Mr_Dalek_Dies | work=The Mirror | pages= | date=1997-03-12 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=26 April 2025 }}</ref>
- Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=Mr Dalek Dies | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Mr_Dalek_Dies | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=26 April 2025}}</ref>
