Trivia / Doctor Who S22 E1 "Attack of the Cybermen"

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• Ability over Appearance: The role of Griffiths was written as a Cockney, but had to be rewritten when Yorkshireman Brian Glover was cast.
• Alan Smithee: This serial's credited writer is "Paula Moore", which disguises an extremely complicated story as to who exactly wrote it, the specifics of which have never been nailed down. The generally accepted version of events is that script editor Eric Saward wrote it, with input from the series' unofficial continuity advisor Ian Levine, and that Moore (whose real name was actually Paula Woolsey) had little to no input and was only used by Saward as a front (to avoid him being credited as script editor on his own work, which would have been a contravention of BBC guidelines, and Levine's agreement with the production office stipulated he would not receive any credited role).
• Cast the Runner-Up:
  • Trevor Raymond was originally cast as Statton, but he suffered a broken arm and had to drop out of the production. He was replaced by Jonathan David, who had been hired to play the Cyber Lieutenant. David, in turn, was replaced by Brian Orrell, while Orrell's original role as a Cyberman was taken by John Ainley.
  • Brian Glover was considered for Russell before being cast as Griffiths.
• Edited for Syndication: Like the rest of the season, this serial was edited from two 45-minute into four 25-minute episodes for some airings. The new cliffhangers use an abrupt fade to black to transition into the credits, enforcing their What Cliffhanger status.
  • Syndication Episode One ends as the Doctor and Peri climb down into the sewer. This anti-climatic cliffhanger is made more awkward because the music from the original Episode One (now Episode Two) cliffhanger can still be heard over the start of the credits.
  • Syndication Episode Three ends after Varne announces "For Mondas to survive, Earth must be destroyed."
• Half-Remembered Homage: The story was conceived as a stealth sequel/remake for "The Tomb of the Cybermen", along with wrapping up longstanding loose ends from "The Tenth Planet" and "The Invasion". At the time, "The Tomb of the Cybermen" was presumed as permanently lost (though thankfully, it was recovered in full in the early '90s). And "The Invasion" and "The Tenth Planet" both were missing episodes, making it impossible to rerun the incomplete serials. "Attack of the Cybermen", as such, was the producers' attempt to "recreate" the lost classic that was "Tomb of the Cybermen". And wrap up long-forgotten plot threads from "Tenth Planet" (what exactly is the homeworld of the Cybermen?) and "The Invasion" (what happened to the Cybermen that were not destroyed in that story?).
• The Other Darrin: The regular Cyber Lieutenant actor, Mark Hardy, was unavailable for this story and was replaced by Brian Orrell (although given they're Cybermen it's less noticeable than other instances of this trope).
• The Other Marty: Per commentary on the DVD, Koo Stark was in publicity stills with Colin Baker prior to filming. She was supposed to play the Cryon Varne but, much like Richard Kiel with Chewbacca, backed out when the scope of the costume and makeup came to light.
• Refitted for Sequel: The brief shot of a Cyber-converted arm made of prosthetic rods derives from an idea originally proposed for "The Tenth Planet" (to which this story is a direct sequel), where the Cybermen would have transparent sleeves revealing rods and lights underneath.
• Role Reprise: An amusing example of this is with Michael Kilgarriff as the Cyber-Controller; originally appearing in "The Tomb of the Cybermen" (though voiced by another actor), Kilgarriff reprised the role in both body and voice.
• Running the Asylum: Possibly, given the claim by Ian Levine that he had co-written the serial. Eric Saward also applies whenever Cybermen are involved. His insistence that Cybermen are totally awesome has actually ticked off many a writer, including Terrance Dicks during the writing of "The Five Doctors".
• Self-Adaptation: Eric Saward, generally reported as the serial's main writer, also penned the novelization.
• Spared by the Cut: Griffiths was initially killed at the closing minutes of part one, but because part two ended up underrunning, his character was kept alive and expanded.
• What Could Have Been:
  • In the original script, it was revealed that a colony of Cryons is living inside Halley's Comet. Lytton's job was to convince the Cybermen to use the comet as the agent of the Earth's destruction in order to lure the Cyber Controller there, where he would be ambushed by the Cryons. This scheme is uncovered by the Cybermen, who then turn against Lytton.
  • The Cybermen on Telos were to be dressed in blue overalls and globe-shaped helmets, to imply the hostility of the planet's surface. However, it was found that these additions made the monsters look ridiculous, and they were dropped.
  • Donald Pleasence turned down the role of Griffiths.
  • BRIAN BLESSED!!!!!, Bernard Hill and Edward Woodward were considered for Russell.
• Working Title: Return to Telos and The Cold War.
• You Look Familiar:
  • Terry Molloy winds up in a non-Davros role as Russell.
  • Michael Attwell (Bates) was Isbur in "The Ice Warriors".

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