The Coup

UNIT #0

Released: 9 December 2004

Listened: 3/20/23

This story was released through Doctor Who Magazine, and was intended as a teaser to the UNIT series proper. In that, it succeeds quite well, for a 20-minute story. UNIT is in the process of standing down, to be replaced by ICIS, an organization with the same remit, but answerable to the British government, not the UN. We get plenty of chances to see that ICIS isn’t very nice, as they “put down” a group of Silurians, and then torture a journalist who was covering the event. We’re introduced to Colonel Emily Chaudhry, apparently UNIT’s liaison officer with the government and the press, and someone who trusts Sir Alistair implicitly. Colonel Brimmicombe-Wood (a version of whom had appeared in “Sympathy for the Devil”) is mentioned, but doesn’t appear. Sir Alistair is officially retired, and he’s supposed to give a bland speech handing over responsibility from UNIT to ICIS, but without saying what either group does, because Secrets Act. Instead, he introduces a Silurian who’s been trying to broker peace, which presumably ICIS had been trying to stop. We’ve got the basic conflict, we’ve got tagonists both pro- and an-, and we’ve got a link into the classic series. Not bad for 20 minutes.