Doctor Who Vs. Defence of the Realm

This British political drama took its title from the

1914 Defence of the Realm Act (DORA), passed

as the UK entered the First World War.

Made at the peak of Thatcherism, the production

(hot on the heels of the BBC's Edge of Darkness

and In the Secret State) addressed contemporary

concerns, primarily the Cold War, State secrecy,

and the presence of American nuclear weapons

in the UK. Here, journalist Nick Mullen (played

by Dublin born actor Gabriel Byrne) uncovers a

government conspiracy following the resignation

and suspicious death of MP, Dennis Markham (Ian

Bannen).

Produced by the Rank Organisation and released

by Herndale Film in early 1986, the thriller was

shown on Talking Pictures TV tonight - it featured

BAFTA winner Denholm Elliott, Robbie Coltrane,

and fourteen Doctor Who cast and crew connections:

• Elliott was offered the role of Jobel in November 1984, but Clive Swift was cast in Revelation of the Daleks
• [William] Fulton [Beith] Mackay (Kingsbrook) was Dr. John Quinn in The Silurians
• Bill Paterson (Macleod) was Dr. Edwin Bracewell in Victory of the Daleks and The Pandorica Opens
• Frederick [William] Treves (Reece) was Brotadac in Meglos
• [Walter] Prentis Hancock (Longman) was Reporter in (episode 1 of) Spearhead from Space, Vaber in Planet of the Daleks, Salamar in Planet of Evil, and the Captain in The Ribos Operation
• Danny Webb (Royce) was John Jefferson in The Impossible Planet and The Satan Pit, then voiced Byron for Big Finish's The Girl Who Never Was (2007), and Ori for The Dark Husband (2008)
• James [Edward] Fleet (Ministry Man) voiced O'Reilley for Max Warp (2008), Geoff Cooper for The Entropy Composition, and Sir Jack Merrivale/Martin Ashcroft for Special Features (both 2010)
• John [Morgan] Rees (Minister) was Hardy in Frontier in Space, whilst make-up supervisor Sandra Shepherd was an artist on that story
• Hubert [Thomas Morgan] Rees (Waiter) was Chief Engineer in Fury from the Deep, Captain Ransom in The War Games, and John Stevenson in The Seeds of Doom
• Noel [Frank] Johnson (Club Member) was King Thous in The Underwater Menace, and Charles Grover MP in Invasion of the Dinosaurs
• John Cannon (Officer) was Miner in The Monster of Peladon, Elgin in The Hand of Fear, Passerby in The Talons of Weng Chiang, Trog in Underworld, Technician in The Pirate Planet, Guard in The Armageddon Factor and The Creature from the Pit, Extra in Time Flight, Helmsman in Enlightenment, and Servant in The King's Demons
• Mike Reynell (Patron) was an Exxilon in Death to the Daleks, and Kaled Scientist in Genesis of the Daleks (6)
• Roger Murray-Leach was also production designer on The Ark in Space, The Sontaran Experiment, Revenge of the Cybermen, Planet of Evil, The Seeds of Doom, The Deadly Assassin and The Talons of Weng-Chiang