Vislor Turlough
| Vislor Turlough | |
|---|---|
| Doctor Who character | |
 Turlough in a promotional photograph for Doctor Who | |
| First appearance | Mawdryn Undead (1983) |
| Last appearance | The Caves of Androzani (1984) |
| Portrayed by | Mark Strickson |
| Duration | 1983–1984 |
| In-universe information | |
| Species | Trion |
| Affiliation | Fifth Doctor |
| Home | Trion |
| Home era | 1983 |
Vislor Turlough is a fictional character played by Mark Strickson in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He was a companion of the Fifth Doctor, being a regular in the programme from 1983 to 1984. Turlough is an alien from the planet Trion who seeks to kill the Fifth Doctor on orders from the antagonist known as the Black Guardian. Turlough later chooses to side with the Doctor, accompanying him until Turlough's departure from the series in the 1984 serial Planet of Fire.
Turlough was created during a script meeting with script editor Eric Saward, who liked the concept of a companion who existed to try and kill the Doctor. Strickson was cast in the role at the request of his agent, with Strickson turning down a potential role in the series Angels to appear in Doctor Who.
Turlough's role in the series was criticized by literary critic John Kenneth Muir, who believed Turlough to be underdeveloped despite Strickson's good acting performance. Other critics have been more mixed in terms of the character's execution in the series.
Character history
[edit]Turlough first appears in the serial Mawdryn Undead, where he is a student of retired Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. Turlough is an alien in exile, and after nearly dying in a car accident, is contacted by the malevolent Black Guardian, who offers to take him back to his home planet Trion if he kills the Doctor. At the end of the serial, Turlough asks to accompany the Doctor. Despite Tegan and Nyssa's suspicions, the Doctor accepts Turlough as part of the TARDIS crew.
Turlough accompanies the Doctor but fails in his attempts on his life in Terminus, proving hesitant in his attempts to kill the Doctor. In the serial Enlightenment, Turlough joins in the race to obtain the titular "Enlightenment" and sought to obtain it. He is given the choice to give the power from the Enlightenment to either the Doctor or the Black Guardian, and chooses the Doctor, freeing himself from the Black Guardian's pact. Turlough continues to accompany the Doctor following this point.
Turlough makes his final appearance in the serial Planet of Fire, where it is revealed that Turlough is a junior ensign commander from the planet Trion. Following a civil war on his home planet, in which his mother was killed, Turlough's family were arrested as political prisoners. His father and younger brother Malkon were exiled to the planet Sarn whilst Turlough himself was exiled to Earth. Turlough discovers that political prisoners are no longer treated harshly on Trion, and decides to return home. Turlough makes a brief cameo in the following serial, The Caves of Androzani, where he appears as a hallucination encouraging the Doctor not to die.
Development
[edit]The concept for Turlough was created at a script conference with script editor Eric Saward. The concept of a companion who would be working to kill the Doctor proved appealing to Saward, and so they went ahead with the idea. The character was conceived as having his duplicity known by both the audience and the other characters, including the Doctor, though the latter would pretend to be unaware of Turlough's actions until Turlough was faced with the choice to kill him. It was deemed boring for the character to hold strictly to the concept of "evil companion turned good", and thus it was decided that Turlough would continue to show hints of potential betrayal even after proving himself to the Doctor.[1] Lead actor Peter Davison remarked that it was one of producer John Nathan-Turner's attempts to give the Doctor a "companion with attitude", citing previous examples like Adric and Tegan.[2]
Strickson's agent, Jan Evans, recommended Strickson to Nathan-Turner, believing Strickson fit Turlough's character perfectly. Julia Smith, who was producing the television series Angels, contacted Nathan-Turner to tell him that a lead actor had fallen ill, and believed Strickson to be good to fill the role on Angels. Smith encouraged Nathan-Turner to cancel Strickson's audition, but Nathan-Turner went through with it, and ended up offering Strickson the role of Turlough afterward. Strickson accepted the part.[1] Strickson dyed his hair red for the role of Turlough.[3]
Strickson primarily enjoyed his time on the show, citing the filming of the episode Enlightenment as a favorite. He disliked the filming of the episode Terminus due to its atmosphere and because the amount of crawling Strickson had to do resulted in his costume's trousers becoming worn out.[3] According to Davison, Turlough proved problematic, as the writers were unsure of how long they should have Turlough attempt to kill the Doctor for. Due to disagreements, Turlough was frequently held prisoner for several episodes at a time to sidestep the issue entirely.[2]
Turlough's role was very political, and his exile and backstory in relation to his home planet Trion acted as an allegory for what was going on in Poland during the period of the Iron Curtain. According to Strickson, Turlough was very "socialist - an interplanetary thinker - a freedom fighter." Many of the character's political speeches were cut.[3] By the time of his departure from the series, Turlough's character had evolved into a trustworthy figure for the Doctor, though Turlough still acted out for his own interests on occasion.[3] According to Strickson, he decided to leave the series due to Davison also leaving at the same time.[3]
Reception
[edit]Literary critic John Kenneth Muir criticized Turlough as being an ineffectual character, stating that while introduced as a big deal in his debut episode, he was frequently portrayed as incompetent. He believed that after the resolution of the Black Guardian plot-line, Turlough lost a purpose in the series, as he could not act as the leading hero (Which was the Doctor's role) and many of the action elements of the series did not require a second male lead. Muir believed Turlough to be one of the series' most underdeveloped elements, and a failure of his initial role. Muir, despite his criticism, praised Strickson's performance, and found Turlough's ending in Planet of Fire to be "satisfactory".[4] Andrew Blair, writing for Den of Geek, highlighted Turlough's departure, stating that while Turlough was undeveloped after his appearance in Enlightenment, the departure was well-written. Blair also highlighted how Planet of Fire allowed Turlough to use intelligence, unlike his other appearances.[5]
Fantasy Empire described Turlough as being a reliable character in the series, being a strong character who could function individually of the Doctor. They felt that his reunion with his species in Planet of Fire made the character appear gullible, unlike his prior characterization.[3] The book Who is Who? found the Doctor's role in taking on Turlough to be an attempt by the Doctor to make up for the death of Adric earlier in the series. Author Kevin S. Decker found Turlough's choice in Enlightenment to betray the Black Guardian in favor of the Doctor to be a culmination of the Turlough's growth at the hands of the Doctor, with Turlough accepting his responsibility for his actions and making an authentic choice of his own accord.[6] Tanya Huff, writing in the book Queers Dig Time Lords, described Turlough's tendency to keep secrets, as well as the character's intensity, to appear akin to a romantic partner for the Fifth Doctor, which Huff cited as laying the ground for the eventual debut of Jack Harkness, the show's first openly bisexual character.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Nathan-Turner, John (1986). Doctor Who: The Companions. Piccadilly Press. pp. 42–43. ISBN 978-0946826629.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ a b Davison, Peter (2017). Is There Life Outside the Box?: An Actor Despairs. John Blake. pp. 235–236. ISBN 978-1786061126.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ a b c d e f "Fantasy Empire 17". Fantasy Empire. No. 17. May 1985. pp. 20–21.
- ^ Kenneth Muir, John (19 October 2007). A Critical History of Doctor Who on Television. McFarland Publishing. pp. 340–341. ISBN 978-0786437160.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ Blair, Andrew (7 January 2021). "Doctor Who: Ranking Every Single Companion Departure". Den of Geek. Retrieved 26 December 2024.
- ^ Decker, Kevin S. (3 September 2013). Who is Who?: The Philosophy of Doctor Who. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-0-85773-439-6.
- ^ Huff, Tanya (4 June 2013). Queers Dig Time Lords. Mad Norwegian Press. p. 86. ISBN 978-1935234142.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
External links
[edit]- Vislor Turlough on Tardis Wiki, the Doctor Who Wiki
- Vislor Turlough on the BBC's Doctor Who website
