Created by Terry Nation (
Blake’s 7 ) and designed by Raymond Cusick,
the Daleks first appeared December, 21, 1963 — alongside the First Doctor, as played by William Hartnell — making them almost as old as
Doctor Who itself, which began one month earlier, on November, 23.
Since then, they have gone on to appear alongside every incarnation of the Doctor, on television, audio, stage and film, and remain as popular as ever. On TV alone, the Daleks have appeared in 24 full
Doctor Who adventures, as well as having been referenced in many others.
However, it was thought that the Daleks — who first originated from the planet Skaro — would
not appear during the 2014 run of episodes. However, the
Daily Star claims that they will feature in one of the episodes currently in production.
Golden Nemesis: Return of the Daleks
As part of
Doctor Who ’s 50th-anniversary celebrations, the
Daleks took centre stage in 2012’s
Asylum of the Daleks, with Matt Smith as the Doctor, and twice in 2013, in
The Day of the Doctor — which starred Smith, David Tennant and John Hurt as three different incarnations of the Doctor — and in Smith’s swansong as the Doctor, in
The Time of the Doctor. All three stories were written by Doctor Who’s current showrunner, Steven Moffat. They also appeared in last year's
The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot, which was scripted by Peter Davison, and Mark Gatiss's
An Adventure in Space and Time, which saw David Bradley recreate the First Doctor.
Earlier this month, the Daleks came out top of a poll conducted by
Doctor Who Adventures (
DWA) magazine.
Kasterborous reports that the Daleks won hands (or suckers!) down, taking 55% of the vote, beating the Cybermen (17%), Weeping Angels (14%), Sontarans (10%) and Silence (4%).
“It’s official. Daleks rule! Well done to all the Daleks throughout time and space for coming first in our poll,”
DWA editor
Moray Laing said of the result. “They must be delighted with the result! It’s great to know that these unstoppable creatures continue to scare and enthrall children in 2014 as much as they did when they first appeared all those years ago. Thanks to our readers for voting!”
Already this year, the film director Ben Wheatly (
Sightseers) has been busy
filming two episodes of
Doctor Who. Whether one of them is the next Dalek installment, however, has not been confirmed.
