The Sun Makers
Encyclopedia
Cast notes
- Michael Keating also appeared in the audio play The Twilight KingdomThe Twilight KingdomThe Twilight Kingdom is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
as Major Koth and in Year of the PigYear of the PigYear of the Pig is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.-Plot:...
as Inspector Chardalot. See also List of guest appearances in Doctor Who. - Louise Jameson stated in the DVD commentary of the story and on the commentary for The Talons of Weng-ChiangThe Talons of Weng-ChiangThe Talons of Weng-Chiang is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in six weekly parts from 26 February to 2 April 1977.-Synopsis:...
that The Sun MakersThe Sun Makers-Cast notes:*Michael Keating also appeared in the audio play The Twilight Kingdom as Major Koth and in Year of the Pig as Inspector Chardalot...
was her favourite serial.
Outside references
- Robert Holmes intended the serial to be a satire of his own experiences with the Inland RevenueInland RevenueThe Inland Revenue was, until April 2005, a department of the British Government responsible for the collection of direct taxation, including income tax, national insurance contributions, capital gains tax, inheritance tax, corporation tax, petroleum revenue tax and stamp duty...
services. However, much of the political content was toned down by order of producer Graham Williams, who feared it would be controversial among viewers. Many of the letters and numbers used to denote the labyrinth of corridors in the city, for example P45, allude to well-known tax and Governmental forms. The actor who played the Gatherer had deep bushy eyebrows, very reminiscent of the then-Chancellor of the ExchequerChancellor of the ExchequerThe Chancellor of the Exchequer is the title held by the British Cabinet minister who is responsible for all economic and financial matters. Often simply called the Chancellor, the office-holder controls HM Treasury and plays a role akin to the posts of Minister of Finance or Secretary of the...
, Denis HealeyDenis HealeyDenis Winston Healey, Baron Healey CH, MBE, PC is a British Labour politician, who served as Secretary of State for Defence from 1964 to 1970 and Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1974 to 1979.-Early life:...
. However, Holmes presented the villains of the piece as working for a private corporation rather than a government. - Near the end of Part Two, when prompted by Mandrel for a story, the Doctor begins, "Once upon a time, there were three sisters ..." mirroring the same story he started telling Sarah Jane Smith near the end of Part Three in The Android InvasionThe Android InvasionThe Android Invasion is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 22 November to 13 December 1975. It marks the last appearance of UNIT Character Sergeant Benton...
. - The Doctor refers to Galileo GalileiGalileo GalileiGalileo Galilei , was an Italian physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher who played a major role in the Scientific Revolution. His achievements include improvements to the telescope and consequent astronomical observations and support for Copernicanism...
in passing, saying "Galileo will be pleased." - When one of the rebels rhetorically asks the Doctor, "What have we got to lose?" he replies, "Only your claims!" This is a playful paraphrase of the famous sloganWorkers of the world, unite!The political slogan Workers of the world, unite! is one of the most famous rallying cries of communism, found in The Communist Manifesto , by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels...
derived from the last lines of The Communist ManifestoThe Communist ManifestoThe Communist Manifesto, originally titled Manifesto of the Communist Party is a short 1848 publication written by the German Marxist political theorists Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. It has since been recognized as one of the world's most influential political manuscripts. Commissioned by the...
. - K-9 refers to PlutoPlutoPluto, formal designation 134340 Pluto, is the second-most-massive known dwarf planet in the Solar System and the tenth-most-massive body observed directly orbiting the Sun...
as "the ninth planetPlanetA planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...
." It was regarded as such at the time the programme was written and broadcast; in 2006, Pluto lost that distinction when it was downgraded to the status of dwarf planetDwarf planetA dwarf planet, as defined by the International Astronomical Union , is a celestial body orbiting the Sun that is massive enough to be spherical as a result of its own gravity but has not cleared its neighboring region of planetesimals and is not a satellite...
. - In this episode, Leela and the Doctor are identified as "terrorists." In real life, Leela's character was partially based on Palestinian terrorist Leila KhaledLeila KhaledLeila Khaled is a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine . She is currently a member of the Palestinian National Council...
.
In print
A novelisation of this serial, written by Terrance DicksTerrance Dicks
Terrance Dicks is an English writer, best known for his work in television and for writing a large number of popular children's books during the 1970s and 80s.- Early career :...
, was published by Target Books
Target Books
Target Books was a British publishing imprint, established in 1973 by Universal-Tandem Publishing Co Ltd, a paperback publishing company. The imprint was established as a children's imprint to complement the adult Tandem imprint, and became well known for their highly successful range of...
in November 1982. Dicks chose to tone down the scene in which revolutionaries cheer as they hurl one of their former oppressors from a roof, reducing the apparent horror so that the rebels concerned feel that their actions have gone "a bit too far".
VHS and DVD releases
- This story was released on VHSVHSThe Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
in July 2001. - The Sun Makers was released on region 2 DVD 1 on August 2011.