The Power of Kroll

"The Key to Time Story Quattro", “Kroll Out the Barrel", "Doctor Who and Swampie"

“The One with the Super Size Calamari” (USA), “Atomic Squid Monster Attacks Tokyo” (Japan)

Doctor Who visits a swamp and finds the fifth segment of the Key to Time.

*** - Obviously made in a weird parallel universe where the equation "Holmes+Madoc=Quality" does not apply.

Romanana: "Emotional Insulation is usually indic... emotional insulation is usually indicative of... emotional insulation usually means the polarity of the neutron flow has been reversed"

Director: "Mary, you're not Jon Pertwee."

Mary: "Drat. Could I sellotape the lines to Tom's forehead?"

Director: "No - his fringe will get in the way."

 Thawn: "The pants are far too soft. Once they start interfering, you can never get rid of them."

Kroll was modelled on Tom Baker's ego as it appeared to the designer in a dream.

David Hasselhoff doubled for Tom Baker in some of the external scenes as the location filming was done in his personal swamp and the BBC couldn't afford to pay him actual money.

Kroll was intended to be the biggest monster in Doctor Who history and only succeeded in remaining so because Colin Baker didn't start to put on weight until after the Twin Dilemma.

There is an outtake where John Leeson, forgetting for a moment that he was playing Dugeen rather than K9, attempts to hump Mary Tamm's leg. At least he claims he forgot...

The BBC have already put an emergency plan into place that will immediately withdraw this story from circulation if green skinned aliens ever visit Earth. Or earlier if anyone ever figures out that the Swampies are basically technicolor Africans straight from a Tarzan movie. 

It was only during the making of Kroll that the production team had the idea for the "Key To Time" arc. All references in earlier stories were either added in post production or were pure coincidence.

Science has proven that the higher the price bid on eBay, the lower the feedback rating of the seller. This suggests that Doctor Who fans will only pay big money for this story if there is a substantial doubt that they will ever receive it.

...is that you shouldn't base your economic survival on the flatulence of a sea monster.

Si Hunt

"In an attempt to achieve something called 'nirvana', Ian Devine purchased a floatation tank. Every morning, straight after breakfast, he would clamber into the contraption, close the hatch, and simply float in the warm darkness. Then, after perhaps ten minutes, his extraordinary wind would make the atmosphere unbreathable and he would have to be resuscitated by the local coastguard. They were grateful for the work (seeing as how Bendaton is a long way from the sea) but we all recognised that this couldn't go on. To that end Ian Devine purchased a length of rubber tubing which he would insert and which would carry away the excess gasses. We soon realised that this could be a potentially valuable source of fuel and, after some small technical investments, his flatulence was covering the entire cost of running the heated floatation tank. It was a truly marvellous example of what ghastly people in non-sensible suits call 'synergy'. Sadly, Miss Bobbins was doing a little dusting and her feather duster flipped an important switch. The system reversed and Ian Devine was pumped full of digestive gasses. I would like to say he flew about the room like a balloon and that we all roared but he actually ended up in hospital for nine weeks with severe internal stretching. On the plus side I took a snap of him at his most expanded and sent it to "Slimming World" magazine along with a picture of him after his hospital stay and he was awarded "Slimmer of the Month" for August. That the world didn't end in a firestorm of irony is a miracle."

One of the most extraordinary theories ever developed in Doctor Who fandomania was born in an issue of "November Rani". Gary Simons wrote an impassioned essay about research he had conducted which proved that there were in fact two writers employed by the BBC called Robert Holmes. In an effort to clarify a situation which had baffled viewers for years, he wrote "It is indisputable fact that the older Robert Holmes - hereafter referred to by his full name of Robert C Holmes - was responsible for The Krotons, The Space Pirates, The Power of Kroll, The Two Doctors and The Mysterious Planet. The younger Holmes - aka Robert G Holmes - wrote Spearhead From Space, Terror of the Autons, The Time Warrior, Ark In Space, The Deadly Assassin, The Ribos Operation, The Talons of Weng Chiang, The Sun Makers and the first half of The Ultimate Foe." The letters page of "November Rani" exploded with debate about whether Robert C Holmes or Robert G Holmes penned The Carnival of Monsters and many interesting theories were expressed. Five issues into this fascinating controversy, Richard Bignell sent them a letter explaining that the whole thing was utter rubbish and that he had Robert Holmes' original birth certificate in his archive.