Attack of the Cybermen

137^[1] – *Attack of the Cybermen*
137 – Attack of the Cybermen
Doctor Who serial
Cast
	Doctor Colin Baker – Sixth Doctor;
	Companion Nicola Bryant – Peri Brown;
	Others Maurice Colbourne – Lytton; Brian Glover – Griffiths; Terry Molloy – Russell; James Beckett – Payne; Jonathan David – Stratton; Michael Attwell – Bates; Stephen Churchett – Bill; Stephen Wale – David; Sarah Berger – Rost; Esther Freud – Threst; Sarah Greene – Varne; Faith Brown – Flast; David Banks – Cyber Leader; Michael Kilgarriff – Cyber Controller; Brian Orrell – Cyber Lieutenant; John Ainley – Cyberman;
Production
Directed by	Matthew Robinson
Written by	"Paula Moore" (see authorship)
Script editor	Eric Saward
Produced by	John Nathan-Turner
Music by	Malcolm Clarke
Production code	6T
Series	Season 22
Running time	2 episodes, 45 minutes each
First broadcast	5 January 1985
Last broadcast	12 January 1985
Chronology
← Preceded by; The Twin Dilemma	Followed by →; Vengeance on Varos
	List of episodes (1963–1989)

Attack of the Cybermen is the first serial of the 22nd season of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in two weekly parts on 5 and 12 January 1985. It was credited to the pseudonymous author "Paula Moore"; the level of contributions made by Paula Woolsey, Eric Saward and Ian Levine have been disputed. Beginning with this serial and continuing for the remainder of Season 22, episodes were 45 minutes in length (as opposed to previous episodes which were 25 minutes long); for syndication, in some markets, this serial is re-edited into four 25-minute segments.

Attack of the Cybermen has a complex plot which reiterates narratives from The Tenth Planet (1966) and The Tomb of the Cybermen (1967).^[2] Set in London in 1985 and the planet Telos in the future, in the serial the Cybermen intend to change the course of history by destroying Earth with Halley's Comet in 1985, which would prevent the destruction of the Cybermen's original home planet Mondas. In addition to its contemporary London setting, it also features several other references to the previous season's Resurrection of the Daleks, notably the return of Lytton (played by Maurice Colbourne) and his henchmen (who again masquerade as policemen), and is directed by Matthew Robinson in his second and final contribution to the series.

^ From the Doctor Who Magazine series overview, in issue 407 (pp. 26–29). The Discontinuity Guide, which counts the unbroadcast serial Shada, lists this as story number 138. Region 1 DVD releases follow The Discontinuity Guide numbering system.
^ Harmes, Marcus K. (2014). Doctor Who and the Art of Adaptation: Fifty Years of Storytelling. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1442232846. Retrieved 25 May 2020.

[1] From the Doctor Who Magazine series overview, in issue 407 (pp. 26–29). The Discontinuity Guide, which counts the unbroadcast serial Shada, lists this as story number 138. Region 1 DVD releases follow The Discontinuity Guide numbering system.

[2] Harmes, Marcus K. (2014). Doctor Who and the Art of Adaptation: Fifty Years of Storytelling. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1442232846. Retrieved 25 May 2020.

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