The Master, or "Missy" (short for "Mistress") in their female incarnation, is a
recurring character
A recurring character is a fictional character, usually in a prime time TV series, who frequently appears from time to time during the series' run. Recurring characters often play major roles in more than one episode, sometimes being the main f ...
and one of the main
antagonist
An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the main enemy or rival of the protagonist and is often depicted as a villain.[science fiction television
Science fiction first appeared in television programming in the late 1930s, during what is called the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary ...](_b ...<br></span></div>s of the British <div class=)
series ''
Doctor Who
''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...
'' and its associated
spin-off works.
Multiple actors have played the Master since the character's introduction in 1971. Within the show's narrative, the change in actors and subsequent change of the character's appearance is sometimes explained as the Master taking possession of other characters' bodies or as a consequence of
regeneration, which is a biological attribute that allows Time Lords to survive fatal injuries or old age.
The Master was originally played by
Roger Delgado from 1971 until his death in 1973. The role was subsequently played by
Peter Pratt,
Geoffrey Beevers
Geoffrey Beevers (born 9 January 1941) is a British actor who has appeared in many stage and screen roles.
Early life and education
Only son of D. Beevers, Geoffrey Beevers was educated at Tonbridge School and Wadham College, Oxford, where he ...
, and
Anthony Ainley, with Ainley reprising the role regularly through the 1980s until the series’s cancellation in 1989.
Eric Roberts
Eric Anthony Roberts (born April 18, 1956) is an American actor. He has amassed more than 700 film and television credits since his debut in 1978, making him one of the most prolific English-speaking screen actors of all time.
Roberts' career ...
took on the role for the
1996 ''Doctor Who'' TV film. Since the show's revival in 2005, the Master has been portrayed by
Derek Jacobi
Sir Derek George Jacobi (; born 22 October 1938) is an English actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen as well as for his work at the Royal National Theatre, he has received numerous accolades including a Tony Award, a BAFTA Award, two ...
,
John Simm
John Ronald Simm (born 10 July 1970) is an English actor, director, and musician. He is best known for playing Sam Tyler in ''Life on Mars'', the Master in ''Doctor Who,'' and DS Roy Grace in ''Grace.'' His other television credits include '' ...
,
Michelle Gomez, and
Sacha Dhawan
Sacha Dhawan () (born 1 May 1984) is a British actor. He began his career in the ITV series '' Out of Sight'' (1997–1998), '' The Last Train'' (1999), and '' Weirdsister College'' (2001–2002). He originated the role of Akthar in the play '' ...
.
Beevers, Roberts, Jacobi, Simm, Gomez, and Dhawan have reprised the role in audio dramas produced by
Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and radio drama, audio plays (released straight to compact disc and for download in MP3 and m4b format) based, primarily, on science fiction properties. These include ''Doctor Who'' ...
. At the same time,
Alex Macqueen
Alexander Tulloch Macqueen (born 30 November 1973) is an English actor and writer. He has appeared on television, film, and radio in the UK in productions such as ''Holby City'', ''Doctor Who,'' '' Hut 33'', '' Peep Show'', ''The Thick of It'', ...
,
Gina McKee,
Mark Gatiss
Mark Gatiss (; born 17 October 1966) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer and novelist. Best known for his acting work on stage and screen as well as for co-creating television shows with Steven Moffat, he has received ...
,
James Dreyfus, and
Milo Parker portrayed incarnations unique to Big Finish.
Origins
The creative team conceived of the Master as a recurring
villain
A villain (also known as a " black hat", "bad guy" or "baddy"; The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.126 "baddy (also baddie) noun (pl. -ies) ''informal'' a villain or criminal in a book, film, etc.". the feminine form is villai ...
, first appearing in ''
Terror of the Autons'' (1971). The Master's title was deliberately chosen by producer
Barry Letts
Barry Leopold Letts (26 March 1925 – 9 October 2009) was an English actor, television director, writer and producer, best known for being the producer of ''Doctor Who'' from 1969 to 1974.
Born in Leicester, he worked as an actor in theatre, ...
and script editor
Terrance Dicks because, like the Doctor, it was a title conferred by an
academic degree
An academic degree is a qualification awarded to a student upon successful completion of a course of study in higher education, usually at a college or university. These institutions often offer degrees at various levels, usually divided into und ...
. A sketch of three "new characters" for 1971 (the other two being
Jo Grant
Josephine "Jo" Grant, later Jo Jones, is a fictional character played by Katy Manning in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Jo was introduced by Barry Letts and Terrance Dicks in the first episode of '' ...
and
Mike Yates
Unit may refer to:
General measurement
* Unit of measurement, a definite magnitude of a physical quantity, defined and adopted by convention or by law
**International System of Units (SI), modern form of the metric system
**English units, histo ...
) suggested he was conceived to be of "equal, perhaps even superior rank, to the Doctor."
Letts only had one man in mind for the role:
Roger Delgado, who had a long history of playing villains and had already made three attempts to be cast in the series. He had worked previously with Letts and was a good friend of
Jon Pertwee
John Devon Roland Pertwee (; 7 July 1919 – 20 May 1996), known professionally as Jon Pertwee, was an English actor. Born into a theatrical family, he became known as a comedy actor, playing Chief Petty Officer Pertwee (and three other roles) in ...
.
Malcolm Hulke
Malcolm Ainsworth Hulke (21 November 1924 – 6 July 1979) was a British television writer and author of the industry "bible" ''Writing for Television in the 70s''. He is remembered chiefly for his work on the science fiction series ''Doctor Wh ...
spoke of the character and his relationship with the Doctor: "There was a peculiar relationship between the Master and the Doctor: one felt that the Master wouldn't really have liked to eliminate the Doctor...you see the Doctor was the only person like him at the time in the whole universe, a renegade Time Lord and in a funny sort of way they were partners in crime."
An unrelated character also known as the
Master
Master, master's or masters may refer to:
Ranks or titles
In education:
*Master (college), head of a college
*Master's degree, a postgraduate or sometimes undergraduate degree in the specified discipline
*Schoolmaster or master, presiding office ...
, who ruled over the Land of Fiction, had previously appeared in the 1968 serial ''
The Mind Robber'' opposite the
Second Doctor
The Second Doctor is an incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor, the protagonist of the British Science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor Patrick Troughton. Out of his 1 ...
.
Aims and character
A would-be universal conqueror, the Master wants to control the universe. In ''
The Deadly Assassin
''The Deadly Assassin'' is the third serial of the Doctor Who (season 14), 14th season of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 30 October to 20 November 197 ...
'' (1976), his ambitions are described as becoming "the master of all matter".
He also had a secondary objective: to make the Doctor suffer. In ''
The Sea Devils'' (1972), the Master mentions that the "pleasure" of seeing the destruction of the human race, of which the Doctor is fond, would be "a reward in itself."
History within the show
Encounters with the Third Doctor
The Master, as played by
Roger Delgado, makes his first appearance in ''
Terror of the Autons'' (1971), where he allies with the
Nestene Consciousness to help them invade Earth. The
Third Doctor
The Third Doctor is an incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor, the protagonist of the British Science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor Jon Pertwee. Within the series' ...
(
Jon Pertwee
John Devon Roland Pertwee (; 7 July 1919 – 20 May 1996), known professionally as Jon Pertwee, was an English actor. Born into a theatrical family, he became known as a comedy actor, playing Chief Petty Officer Pertwee (and three other roles) in ...
) convinces the Master to stop this plan at the last minute, and the Master subsequently escapes, albeit with his
TARDIS
The TARDIS (; acronym for "Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space") is a fictional hybrid of a time machine and spacecraft that appears in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and its various spin-offs. While a TARDI ...
left non-functioning after the Doctor confiscates the ship's dematerialisation circuit.
Having become a main character in the show's
eighth season, the Master reappears in ''
The Mind of Evil'', where he regains his TARDIS's circuit from the Doctor after attempting to launch a nerve gas missile that would initiate
World War III
World War III, also known as the Third World War, is a hypothetical future global conflict subsequent to World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). It is widely predicted that such a war would involve all of the great powers, ...
. The Master is seen again in another incursion on Earth in ''
The Claws of Axos'', and then fails to hold
the galaxy to ransom using a doomsday weapon on the planet Uxarieus in the year 2472 in ''
Colony in Space.''
In ''
The Dæmons,'' The Master is finally captured on Earth by the organization
UNIT
Unit may refer to:
General measurement
* Unit of measurement, a definite magnitude of a physical quantity, defined and adopted by convention or by law
**International System of Units (SI), modern form of the metric system
**English units, histo ...
after
Jo Grant
Josephine "Jo" Grant, later Jo Jones, is a fictional character played by Katy Manning in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Jo was introduced by Barry Letts and Terrance Dicks in the first episode of '' ...
(
Katy Manning
Catherine Ann Manning (born 14 October 1946) is a British actress. Although she has made many appearances on both screen and stage, Manning is best known for her part as the companion Jo Grant in the BBC science fiction television series ''Doct ...
) prevents the alien Azal (
Stephen Thorne) from giving The Master his powers.
In ''
The Sea Devils'' (1972), the Master is shown to be imprisoned on an island off the coast of England. He convinces the governor of the prison, Colonel Trenchard (
Clive Morton
Clive Morton (16 March 1904 – 24 September 1975) was an English actor. Best known for playing upper class Englishmen, he made many screen appearances, especially on television.
Career
In 1955, Morton appeared in Laurence Olivier's film vers ...
), to help him steal electronics from HMS Seaspite, the nearby naval base. This allows the Master to contact the reptilian Sea Devils, the former rulers of Earth, so he can help them retake the planet from humanity. The Master convinces the Doctor to help him build machinery that would bring the Sea Devils out of their millions of years of hibernation. Still, the Doctor sabotages the device by overloading it, destroying the Sea Devil base, and preventing war between humanity and reptiles. The Master subsequently escapes in a hovercraft. The Doctor reveals in this serial that the Master was once a "very good friend" of his.
Delgado's last appearance as the Master is in ''
Frontier in Space'' (1973), where he works alongside the
Dalek
The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrial race of extremely xenophobic mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by writer Terry Nation and first appeared in th ...
and
Ogron races to provoke a war between the Human and
Draconian
Draconian is an adjective meaning "of excessive severity", that derives from Draco, an Athenian law scribe under whom small offenses had heavy punishments ( Draconian laws).
Draconian may also refer to:
* Draconian (band)
Draconian is a Sw ...
Empires. The scheme fails, and the Master escapes after he shoots at the Doctor.
Delgado was slated to return in a serial called ''
The Final Game'', which would have been the
season 11 finale. However, he died in a car crash in June 1973, and the story was never produced.
A new regeneration cycle — the long-serving Master
Played by
Peter Pratt in his next appearance, the Master returns in ''
The Deadly Assassin
''The Deadly Assassin'' is the third serial of the Doctor Who (season 14), 14th season of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 30 October to 20 November 197 ...
'' (1976), opposite the
Fourth Doctor
The Fourth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Tom Baker.
Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord from ...
(
Tom Baker
Thomas Stewart Baker (born 20 January 1934) is an English actor and writer. He is best known for having played the Fourth Doctor, fourth and longest-serving incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the science fiction television ...
). Special effects makeup was applied to Pratt to give the Master a corpse-like appearance. Found by Chancellor Goth (
Bernard Horsfall) on the planet Tersurus, the Master is revealed to be in his
final regeneration and near the end of his final life. The Master attempts to gain a new regeneration cycle by using the artefacts of
Rassilon, the symbols of the President of the Council of Time Lords, to manipulate the Eye of Harmony at the cost of
Gallifrey
The Time Lords are a fictional ancient race of extraterrestrial people in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Time Lords are so named for their command of time travel technology and their non-linear perception of t ...
. However, the Doctor stops the Master, who escapes after his assumed death.
The Master later returns in ''
The Keeper of Traken
''The Keeper of Traken'' is the sixth serial of the Doctor Who (season 18), 18th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC One, BBC1 from 31 January to 21 February ...
'', the role taken over by
Geoffrey Beevers
Geoffrey Beevers (born 9 January 1941) is a British actor who has appeared in many stage and screen roles.
Early life and education
Only son of D. Beevers, Geoffrey Beevers was educated at Tonbridge School and Wadham College, Oxford, where he ...
.
Still dying, the Master came to the Traken Union to renew his life by using the empire's technological Source. Though the plot fails, the Master manages to cheat death by transferring his essence into the body of a Traken scientist named Tremas (
Anthony Ainley) and overwriting his host's mind.
The Master (Ainley, in a total of 31 episodes as the character) confronted the next three regenerations of the Doctor on and off for the rest of the classic series, still seeking to extend his life – preferably with a new set of regenerations. Subsequently, in "
The Five Doctors" (1983), the Time Lords offer the Master a new regeneration cycle in exchange for his help, though the promise was not fulfilled at the time.
The Master's final appearance in the classic series is in ''
Survival
Survival or survivorship, the act of surviving, is the propensity of something to continue existing, particularly when this is done despite conditions that might kill or destroy it. The concept can be applied to humans and other living things ...
'' (1989, the final story of the series' original 26-year run), trapped on the planet of the Cheetah People and under its influence, which drives its victims to savagery. Though the Master manages to escape the doomed planet, he ends up back on the planet prior to its destruction when he attempts to kill the
Seventh Doctor
The Seventh Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Scottish actor Sylvester McCoy.
Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-o ...
(
Sylvester McCoy
Percy James Patrick Kent-Smith (born 20 August 1943), known professionally as Sylvester McCoy, is a Scottish actor. Gaining prominence as a physical comedian, he became best known for playing the seventh incarnation of the Doctor in the long ...
).
Dalek trial and 'execution'
The Master was the primary antagonist of the 1996
''Doctor Who'' television film. He was played by American actor
Eric Roberts
Eric Anthony Roberts (born April 18, 1956) is an American actor. He has amassed more than 700 film and television credits since his debut in 1978, making him one of the most prolific English-speaking screen actors of all time.
Roberts' career ...
.
In the prologue, the Master (portrayed briefly by Gordon Tipple) is executed by the
Dalek
The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrial race of extremely xenophobic mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by writer Terry Nation and first appeared in th ...
s as a punishment for his "evil crimes". But before his apparent death, the Master requests his remains to be brought back to Gallifrey by the Seventh Doctor.
However, as posited in the novelisation of the film by
Gary Russell, the Master's self-alterations to extend his lifespan allow him to survive his execution by transferring his mind into a snake-like entity called a "morphant." This interpretation is made explicit in the first of the
Eighth Doctor Adventures novels, ''
The Eight Doctors
''The Eight Doctors'' is a BBC Books original novel written by Terrance Dicks and based on the long-running British science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was the first of the Eighth Doctor Adventure ...
'' by
Terrance Dicks, and also used in the ''
Doctor Who Magazine
''Doctor Who Magazine'' (abbreviated as ''DWM'') is a magazine devoted to the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''.
Launched in 1979 as ''Doctor Who Weekly'', the magazine became a monthly publication the following year. In ...
'' comic strip story ''The Fallen'', which states that the ''morphant'' was a shape-shifting animal native to
Skaro.
Using his morphant body to break free from the container holding his remains, the Master sabotages the Doctor's
TARDIS
The TARDIS (; acronym for "Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space") is a fictional hybrid of a time machine and spacecraft that appears in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and its various spin-offs. While a TARDI ...
console to force it to crash land in San Francisco in December 1999. From there, the Master, as the morphant, enters the body of a paramedic named Bruce to take control of him. However, the Master finds his human host to be unsustainable as the body slowly begins to degenerate, although the Master has the added abilities to spit an
acid
An acid is a molecule or ion capable of either donating a proton (i.e. Hydron, hydrogen cation, H+), known as a Brønsted–Lowry acid–base theory, Brønsted–Lowry acid, or forming a covalent bond with an electron pair, known as a Lewis ...
-like bile, both as a weapon and to mentally control victims as an alternative to his usual hypnotic abilities. The Master attempts to access the Eye of Harmony to steal the remaining regenerations of the
Eighth Doctor (
Paul McGann
Paul John McGann ( ; born 14 November 1959) is an English actor. He came to prominence for portraying Percy Toplis in the television serial '' The Monocled Mutineer'' (1986), then starred in the dark comedy '' Withnail and I'' (1987), which wa ...
), but instead is sucked into it and supposedly killed.
Professor Yana and Harold Saxon
In "
Utopia
A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...
", a scientist called Professor Yana (
Derek Jacobi
Sir Derek George Jacobi (; born 22 October 1938) is an English actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen as well as for his work at the Royal National Theatre, he has received numerous accolades including a Tony Award, a BAFTA Award, two ...
) is revealed to be the Master, disguised in biological human form to hide from the Time War. Yana overhears a conversation between the Doctor and
Jack Harkness
Captain Jack Harkness is a fictional character played by John Barrowman in ''Doctor Who'' and its spin-off series, '' Torchwood''. The character first appears in the 2005 ''Doctor Who'' episode " The Empty Child" and subsequently features in t ...
about the time vortex and time travel in general. He used the Chameleon Arch to temporarily place his Time Lord identity within a
Fob Watch. This makes Yana curious about his own fob watch and when he opens it he is reunited with the Master's consciousness. The Master is shot and regenerates into a new body (
John Simm
John Ronald Simm (born 10 July 1970) is an English actor, director, and musician. He is best known for playing Sam Tyler in ''Life on Mars'', the Master in ''Doctor Who,'' and DS Roy Grace in ''Grace.'' His other television credits include '' ...
) and steals the Doctor's
TARDIS
The TARDIS (; acronym for "Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space") is a fictional hybrid of a time machine and spacecraft that appears in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and its various spin-offs. While a TARDI ...
.
In "
The Sound of Drums," the Doctor makes his way back to Earth to find the Master has become
Prime Minister of the UK under the alias of Harold Saxon. The Master kidnaps Martha's family and conquers Earth.
In "
Last of the Time Lords", Martha spends a year working to save her family and to thwart the Master's plan to wage war against the universe. The Master himself mentions that looking into the vortex as a child made "the drumming" choose him as a "call to war" in his head. When fatally shot by his human wife, Lucy Saxon (
Alexandra Moen), the Master refuses to regenerate, knowing it will haunt the Doctor.
The Master returns in "
The End of Time" (2009–2010) when his disciples attempt a resurrection ritual using a surviving piece of the Master's body. However, Lucy sabotages the ritual, bringing the Master back as an unstable creature, hungry for human flesh and leaking electrical energy. The Master proceeds with a plot to transform the entire human race into his own clones. The Master is sent back to Gallifrey when the Time Lords are sealed away in the Time War, trapped once more.
Missy
The Master influences the Doctor's life in the
seventh series episode "
The Bells of Saint John
"The Bells of Saint John" is the sixth episode of the Doctor Who (series 7), seventh series of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. It premiered in the United Kingdom on 30 March 2013 on BBC One; the episode was the ...
", when an unseen "woman in the shop" gives
Clara Oswald the phone number to the TARDIS, initiating Clara's time as a
companion. Independent of any connection to the "woman in the shop", an unidentified woman (
Michelle Gomez) appears briefly in the
eighth series episodes "
Deep Breath" and “
Into the Dalek
"Into the Dalek" is the second episode of the Doctor Who (series 8), eighth series of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. It was written by Phil Ford (writer), Phil Ford and Steven Moffat, and directed by Ben Wheatley, ...
”, welcoming a character to the afterlife. This mystery woman, and the fact that she is the "woman in the shop", is not revealed to be the Doctor's childhood friend until "
Dark Water", when she formally introduces herself to the Doctor as a new female incarnation called "Missy", which is short for "Mistress". She reveals that she has created an "afterlife" from a
Gallifreyan Matrix Data Slice, which stores the consciousness of dead people so they can eventually be made into
Cybermen.
In "
Death in Heaven", Missy offers the Doctor control of her Cybermen army in the hopes of compromising his morality. She is defeated when her Cyber army is destroyed, and appears vaporised when shot by the posthumously cyber-converted
Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart
Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, generally referred to simply as the Brigadier, is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', created by writers Mervyn Haisman and Henry Lincoln and played by Ni ...
.
Missy returns in "
The Magician's Apprentice"/"
The Witch's Familiar" (2015), revealed to have faked her demise using a teleporter powered by the energy of the Cyberman laser weapon that shot her.
In the
tenth series episode "
Extremis
"Extremis" is a six-issue story arc from the comic book series ''Iron Man (comic book), Iron Man'' (vol. 4), published in issues one through six in 2005 and 2006 by Marvel Comics. It was written by Warren Ellis and illustrated by Adi Granov. ' ...
", it is revealed that the Doctor is keeping Missy in the well appointed Vault, having spared her from execution but vowing to keep her locked away for one thousand years. In "
The Lie of the Land", the Doctor's crew visits Missy in the Vault to gain intelligence on the Monks. Her demeanour seems little changed, and she has low regard for human life, but in the episode's
coda, she sheds remorseful tears for all the millions of deaths she has caused. In "
Empress of Mars," she returns the Doctor's TARDIS to Mars to rescue the Doctor and Bill. In "
The Eaters of Light," she has been released from her cage by the Doctor to run repairs on his TARDIS, which is isomorphically locked so that she cannot pilot it.
The Doctor attempts to test Missy's reformation in the tenth series finale "
World Enough and Time"/"
The Doctor Falls" by sending Missy, Bill, and
Nardole (
Matt Lucas
Matthew Richard Lucas (born 5 March 1974) is an English actor, comedian, writer and television host. He is best known for his work with David Walliams on the BBC sketch comedy series ''Little Britain (TV series), Little Britain'' (2003–2006) ...
) on a rescue mission aboard a spaceship experiencing
time dilation
Time dilation is the difference in elapsed time as measured by two clocks, either because of a relative velocity between them (special relativity), or a difference in gravitational potential between their locations (general relativity). When unsp ...
near a black hole. However, the Master (John Simm) is aboard the ship and has initiated the Cybermen's genesis. Missy's loyalties are torn between the Doctor and her old self. After initially betraying the Doctor, she later stands alongside him against a Cyberman army, stabbing her past self causing the Master to regenerate. Enraged at Missy becoming the Doctor's ally, the Master shoots Missy with his laser screwdriver, ostensibly disabling her ability to regenerate and killing her.
Spy Master and Grigori Rasputin
During "
Spyfall" the
Thirteenth Doctor
The Thirteenth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. She is played by Jodie Whittaker, the first woman to portray the character, in three series, five specials and a ...
seeks out a former
MI6
The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...
agent known as 'O' (
Sacha Dhawan
Sacha Dhawan () (born 1 May 1984) is a British actor. He began his career in the ITV series '' Out of Sight'' (1997–1998), '' The Last Train'' (1999), and '' Weirdsister College'' (2001–2002). He originated the role of Akthar in the play '' ...
) who reveals himself as a new incarnation of the Master during the cliffhanger, having killed the real O and assumed his identity. In "
The Timeless Children", the Master takes the Doctor into the ruins of Gallifrey, and reveals how the Time Lords secretly acquired the power to regenerate by harvesting the DNA of the Timeless Child, who is revealed to be the Doctor, who lived throughout Gallifrey's civilisation and had her memory wiped on at least one occasion.
The Master attempts to kill the Lone Cyberman and persuades the Cyberium, an AI containing all Cyberman knowledge and history, to use his body as a host. Using the Cyberium, the Master creates a new Cyberman race with regenerative abilities from dead Time Lords. The Doctor fails to defeat the Master using the "Death Particle", which can destroy all organic life on a planet. Ko Sharmus, the Boundary guardian, blames himself for the new Cyberman race as he was responsible for hiding the Cyberium and failed. As the Doctor escapes, Ko Sharmus sacrifices himself by detonating the Death Particle, ostensibly killing the Master and his army of Cyber Masters.
After a hint in "
The Vanquishers
"The Vanquishers", prefixed frequently with either "Chapter Six" or "''Flux''", is the sixth and final episode of the Doctor Who (series 13), thirteenth series of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'', and of the six-epi ...
" (2021), Dhawan's Master returned in "
The Power of the Doctor
"The Power of the Doctor" is the third and final story of Doctor Who specials (2022), three special episodes that follow the Doctor Who series 13, thirteenth series of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. The episode ...
" (2022), Jodie Whittaker's final episode as the Thirteenth Doctor. In the episode, the Master, having survived the Death Particle, becomes
Grigori Rasputin
Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin ( – ) was a Russian Mysticism, mystic and faith healer. He is best known for having befriended the imperial family of Nicholas II of Russia, Nicholas II, the last Emperor of all the Russias, Emperor of Russia, th ...
in 1916 Russia and allies with his Cybermasters and the
Dalek
The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrial race of extremely xenophobic mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by writer Terry Nation and first appeared in th ...
s. After baiting
UNIT
Unit may refer to:
General measurement
* Unit of measurement, a definite magnitude of a physical quantity, defined and adopted by convention or by law
**International System of Units (SI), modern form of the metric system
**English units, histo ...
by defacing famous paintings, he and his allies capture the Doctor, whom he takes back to 1916. He reveals his plan to turn the Earth into a foundry for the Cybermen and Daleks, and uses the energy of a captured being called a Qurunx to forcibly regenerate the Doctor into him.
The Master, now possessing the Doctor's body and TARDIS, intends to tarnish her name by using it as a force for terror, and begins to enact his plan. However, companion
Yasmin "Yaz" Khan shoves him out of the TARDIS, and uses a failsafe holographic AI of the Doctor to help former companions
Tegan Jovanka and
Ace stop the Cybermen and the Daleks while she recaptures the Master, using the Master's own equipment and the energies of the Time Lord/Cyberman hybrids to reverse the regeneration, returning the Doctor to her thirteenth body. After the restored Doctor and her various allies stop the Cybermen and Daleks, she frees the Qurunx and has it destroy the Master's planet with an energy beam. In his weakened, original body, the Master aims the beam at the Doctor (triggering
her next regeneration) before collapsing near his own TARDIS. Yaz manages to rescue the Doctor, but the Master is left behind on the imploding planet, seemingly perishing along with it.
Trapped by the Toymaker
In the 2023 special "
The Giggle," the Toymaker tells the
Fourteenth Doctor
The Fourteenth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor and the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' for the 2023 specials. He is portrayed by Scottish actor David Tennant, who previously portrayed the Ten ...
that the Master is one of several beings that he has won games against. The Toymaker reveals that having won a game against the Master as he was "begging for his life", he had trapped him inside a golden tooth for all eternity. Later, when the Fourteenth and
Fifteenth Doctors banish the Toymaker from existence, the tooth is left on the floor and picked up by someone unknown.
Characteristics
Intelligence and attitude
The Master and the Doctor are shown to have similar levels of intelligence, and were classmates at the Time Lord Academy on Gallifrey, where the Master outperformed the Doctor.
A similar connection between the two was also referenced in "
The End of Time" in which the Master reminisces with the
Tenth Doctor
The Tenth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is played by David Tennant in three series and nine specials. The character has also appeared in other ''Docto ...
about his father's estates on Gallifrey and his childhood with the Doctor before saying "look at us now".
In the 2007 episode "
Utopia
A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...
", the Tenth Doctor calls the transformed and disguised Master a genius and shows admiration for his intellect before discovering his true identity.
The Tenth Doctor further expresses admiration for the Master's intellect in "The End of Time" by calling him "stone cold brilliant" and yet states that the Master could be more if he would just give up his desire for domination.
The
Twelfth Doctor
The Twelfth Doctor is an incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor, the protagonist of the British Science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Scottish actor Peter Capaldi in three ...
states that Missy is "the one person almost as smart as me" ("
The Lie of the Land").
Delgado's portrayal of the Master was that of a suave and charming psychopathic individual, able to be polite and murderous at almost the same time. His design is an homage to the classic
Svengali
Svengali () is a character in the novel ''Trilby'' which was first published in 1894 by George du Maurier. Svengali is a Jewish man who seduces, dominates and exploits Trilby, a young half-Irish girl, and makes her into a famous singer.
Defini ...
character: a black
Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru (14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat, and statesman who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20th century. Nehru was a prin ...
outfit with a beard and moustache. This version of the Master, like his opponent the Third Doctor, possessed considerable fighting skills; at one point in the episode ''
The Sea Devils'', the Master and the Doctor engage in a swordfight. Also like the Doctor, the Master enjoyed using various scientific gadgets, devices, and weapons in his schemes, with the most prominent being a weapon called the Tissue Compression Eliminator (or TCE for short), that kills anyone it's used on by compressing their body to the size of a toy doll. In ''
The Mind of Evil'', he not only creates the "Keller machine" to drain evil impulses from the minds of anyone subjected to it, but also makes use of a mind control device (that can also be used to amplify the effects of the Keller machine, as he demonstrates on the Doctor).
In the portrayals of the Master on his last regeneration (first by Peter Pratt in ''
The Deadly Assassin
''The Deadly Assassin'' is the third serial of the Doctor Who (season 14), 14th season of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 30 October to 20 November 197 ...
'', then by Geoffrey Beevers in ''
The Keeper of Traken
''The Keeper of Traken'' is the sixth serial of the Doctor Who (season 18), 18th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC One, BBC1 from 31 January to 21 February ...
''), he is shown to still retain his scientific intelligence and deviousness despite being in a extreme state of physical decay. However, the trauma his body has been put through has driven him insane as he obsessively attempts to find a way to obtain a new cycle of regenerations without regard to what the cost might be.
When Anthony Ainley takes over as the Master (in ''
The Keeper of Traken
''The Keeper of Traken'' is the sixth serial of the Doctor Who (season 18), 18th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC One, BBC1 from 31 January to 21 February ...
'', the Master possesses the body of the noble Tremas, who was played by Ainley throughout the story), his portrayal showed the Master as almost singularly obsessed with humiliating and destroying the Doctor; while possessing the same level of intelligence and cunning that his previous incarnations had, the Ainley version of the character often had a much shorter temper, flying into a rage more often than the cool, suave version that Delgado portrayed. Ainley's Master was also much more outwardly villainous, at times murdering people (usually with his familiar TCE) not because they jeopardized his schemes, but simply because he enjoyed killing (often accompanying these deaths with his trademark sinister low and throaty chuckle). Nearly all of the schemes of this particular incarnation revolve around setting a trap to lure the Doctor into; as an example, near the beginning of ''
The Mark of the Rani'', the Master is shown to be hiding out in a field disguised as a scarecrow, for no apparent reason other than to wait for the Doctor to show up. During the same story,
the Rani (a fellow villainous Time Lord that the Master strongarms into assisting him) remarked that the Master would "get dizzy if he tried to walk in a straight line", a reference to the Master's often convoluted and complicated schemes he devised in order to trap the Doctor. Ainley's portrayal of the Master is notable for being the only incarnation of the character to have met and interacted with every one of the Doctor's incarnations during the show's run in the 1980s, having met the First, Second and Third Doctors during "
The Five Doctors", as well as being one of the primary antagonists of the Fifth Doctor throughout his run (starting with ''
Castrovalva'' and last encountering him in ''
Planet of Fire''), and having encountered the Fourth Doctor (''
Logopolis''), Sixth Doctor (''
The Mark of the Rani'', as well as turning up during the events of ''
The Trial of a Time Lord''), and Seventh Doctor (''
Survival
Survival or survivorship, the act of surviving, is the propensity of something to continue existing, particularly when this is done despite conditions that might kill or destroy it. The concept can be applied to humans and other living things ...
'', which was the final time Ainley played the Master during the original series' run, as well as the final story of the original series overall).
Though only appearing onscreen as the Master for a brief time during the events of "
Utopia
A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...
", Derek Jacobi's portrayal of the Master shows him as still possessing the evil nature of his predecessors (just prior to opening the fob watch that was secretly his biodata module, the Master heard voices of his past selves, including dialogue from Roger Delgado as well as Anthony Ainley's sinister chuckle). Transformed from the kindly Professor Yana after opening the fob watch, the Master rages at Chantho for not ever asking him about his fob watch, angrily blaming her for leaving him trapped in his secret identity; wielding a high voltage electric cable, the Master tells Chantho who he really is just before murdering her. Even after being shot by the dying Chantho, the Master snarls that he was killed by "an insect...a girl" before deciding to regenerate into a "young and strong" body like that of the Doctor's.
Aspects of Simm's portrayal of the Master parallel David Tennant's Doctor, primarily in his ability to make light of tense situations and his rather quirky and hyperactive personality. According to the producers, this was done to make the Master more threatening to the Doctor by having him take one of his opponent's greatest strengths,
as well as making the parallels between the two characters more distinctive. This rationale is written into dialogue by the Master in "
Utopia
A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...
," in which he explicitly states, as he is regenerating, that if the Doctor can be young and strong, then so can he.
Michelle Gomez maintained Simm's portrayal of the character, specifically the psychopathic behaviour and inappropriate emotional responses to certain situations. She also portrayed the original traditions of ruthless, murderous behaviour and grandiose, Machiavellian criminal intelligence that have been consistent throughout all incarnations. However, she also displayed a much more coquettish manner, with her new female identity allowing her to fully express aspects of the Master's ambiguous bond with the Doctor (as previously explored by Simm's incarnation in "The Sound of Drums"). While determined to torment and corrupt the Doctor with moral temptation while inflicting pain and death to humanity, she frequently referred to him as her "boyfriend" or "friend" and appeared to desire his acquiescence and company ultimately. She is also well aware that she is even more dangerously psychopathic than before, describing herself as "bananas" to
UNIT
Unit may refer to:
General measurement
* Unit of measurement, a definite magnitude of a physical quantity, defined and adopted by convention or by law
**International System of Units (SI), modern form of the metric system
**English units, histo ...
agent
Osgood right before killing her ("
Death in Heaven"). However, when circumstances result in Missy being kept in a vault and monitored by the Doctor after an averted execution, Missy actually comes to show signs of remorse for what she had done in the past, to the point that she prepares to side with the Doctor over her own past incarnation ("
The Doctor Falls").
Dhawan's Master returns to the Master's love of evil for the sake of being evil, proclaiming at one point that he kills because he's good at it and asking why he should ever stop. Where Missy's actions were based around a twisted attraction to the Doctor, Dhawan's Master destroys Gallifrey simply because he cannot bring himself to accept a discovery that suggests Time Lord society owes regeneration and other secrets of its past to the child that became the Doctor. He perceives this as creating a twisted link between the Doctor and himself.
Mental abilities
Both the Doctor and the Master have been shown to be skilled hypnotists, although the Master's capacity to dominate—even by stare and voice alone—has been shown to be far more pronounced. In ''
Logopolis,'' the Doctor said of the Master, "He's a Time Lord. In many ways, we have the same mind." The Master is often able to anticipate the Doctor's moves, as seen in stories such as ''
Castrovalva'', ''
The Keeper of Traken
''The Keeper of Traken'' is the sixth serial of the Doctor Who (season 18), 18th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC One, BBC1 from 31 January to 21 February ...
'', ''
Time-Flight'', and ''
The King's Demons'', where he plans elaborate traps for the Doctor, only revealing his presence at the key moment.
In ''
The Deadly Assassin
''The Deadly Assassin'' is the third serial of the Doctor Who (season 14), 14th season of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 30 October to 20 November 197 ...
'', the Master was able to send a false premonition as a telepathic message to the Doctor, but it is unclear whether he performed this through innate psychic ability, or was aided technologically.
In "The End of Time," the Master uses a kind of psychic technique, previously used by the Doctor to read the minds of others, allowing the Doctor to hear the constant 'drumming' inside the Master's mind.
TARDIS
In the original series, the Master's TARDISes have had fully functioning
chameleon circuit
The TARDIS (; acronym for "Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space") is a fictional hybrid of a time machine and spacecraft that appears in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and its various spin-offs. While a TARDI ...
s, having appeared as various things, including a
horsebox,
a spaceship,
a
fir
Firs are evergreen coniferous trees belonging to the genus ''Abies'' () in the family Pinaceae. There are approximately 48–65 extant species, found on mountains throughout much of North and Central America, Eurasia, and North Africa. The genu ...
tree,
a
computer bank, a
grandfather clock
A grandfather clock (also a longcase clock, tall-case clock, grandfather's clock, hall clock or floor clock) is a tall, freestanding, weight-driven pendulum clock, with the pendulum held inside the tower or waist of the case. Clocks of this styl ...
,
a fluted architectural
column
A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member ...
,
an
iron maiden
Iron Maiden are an English Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris (musician), Steve Harris. Although fluid in the early years of the band, the line-up for most ...
,
a
fireplace
A fireplace or hearth is a structure made of brick, stone or metal designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are used for the relaxing ambiance they create and for heating a room. Modern fireplaces vary in heat efficiency, depending on the design.
...
,
a
British Airways
British Airways plc (BA) is the flag carrier of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London, England, near its main Airline hub, hub at Heathrow Airport.
The airline is the second largest UK-based carrier, based on fleet size and pass ...
jet,
a cottage
and a triangular column.
Of the Master's TARDISes seen in ''The Keeper of Traken'', one appears as the calcified, statue-like
Melkur, able to move and even walk; the other appears as a grandfather clock. The Melkur TARDIS is destroyed.
At one point in ''
Logopolis'', the Master's TARDIS even appears as a
police box
A police box is a public telephone kiosk or callbox for the use of members of the police, or for members of the public to contact the police. It was used in some countries, most widely in the United Kingdom throughout the 20th century from th ...
, like the Doctor's.
Missy uses a vortex manipulator rather than a TARDIS in series nine. She used a pair of them which were linked to one another, to transport herself and
Clara Oswald to the Doctor's 'farewell party' in medieval
Essex
Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...
("The Magician's Apprentice"). They are destroyed in "
The Witch's Familiar" when, to avoid being killed by
Daleks
The Daleks ( ) are a fictional extraterrestrials in fiction, extraterrestrial race of extremely xenophobic mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They were conceived by writer Terry Na ...
, they channel energy from the Daleks' weapons to teleport them away, looking as if they were exterminated.
In ''
The Doctor Falls'', the Master acquired a TARDIS before leaving Gallifrey but burnt out its dematerialisation circuit while attempting to get away from a black hole too fast. His future incarnation Missy provides him with a spare, and the Master can fix his TARDIS and depart.
In "
Spyfall, Part 1", the disguised Master lives in an outback shack which he later reveals to be his TARDIS. In Part 2, he is shown flying this TARDIS to London in 1834 and Paris in 1943. The Thirteenth Doctor later steals it from him to return to the present after being trapped in the past without her TARDIS. This is the first time since the show's revival that the Master's TARDIS interior is shown on screen and is noted to be the same size on the inside.
Handheld weaponry
The Master's weapon of choice in the original show's run was the "tissue compression eliminator," which shrinks its target to doll-like proportions, killing them in the process. Its appearance is similar to that of the Doctor's tool, the
sonic screwdriver.
Despite his own fondness for the weapon,
Russell T Davies
Stephen Russell Davies ( ; born 27 April 1963), known professionally as Russell T Davies, is a Welsh screenwriter and television producer. He is best known for being the original showrunner and head writer of the revival of the BBC sci-fi seri ...
decided against bringing it back for the Master's reappearance in "
The Sound of Drums" because the Master had too many new "tricks" to use against the Doctor.
During the course of "
The Sound of Drums," the Master unveils a new handheld weapon: a laser screwdriver. The device functions as a powerful laser weapon, capable of killing with a single shot. It also carries the ability to age victims rapidly using a miniaturised version of the genetic manipulator developed by
Professor Lazarus ("
The Lazarus Experiment"). The screwdriver is
biometrically secured so that only the Master can use it.
In "
The Doctor Falls," the Master uses a laser screwdriver again to battle the Cybermen. After being stabbed by Missy, the Master shoots her with the laser screwdriver at "full blast," which he said would prevent her regeneration and kill her permanently.
In "
Dark Water"/"
Death in Heaven," Missy uses a small hand-held device, about the size of a large mobile phone, which allows her to control her technology and scan her surroundings remotely. It also contains a weapon that she uses to disintegrate Dr. Chang, Osgood, and Seb.
In "
The Magician's Apprentice," Missy uses a newer, upgraded version of this device which appears to be more powerful. It allowed her to control airborne planes after she had frozen them in time and simultaneously disintegrate several UNIT guards.
Missy's parasol is revealed to be a disguised sonic/laser device in "The Doctor Falls." She uses it to defend against an attacking Cyberman. A more unusual feature, demonstrated in "Death in Heaven," allows her to travel through the air like
Mary Poppins Mary Poppins may refer to:
* Mary Poppins (character), a nanny with magical powers
* Mary Poppins (franchise), based on the fictional nanny
** Mary Poppins (book series), ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fanta ...
.
Missy says her brooch contains a Gallifreyan Dark Star alloy pin, given to her by the Doctor which she uses to pierce a Dalek's armoured shell. In "The Doctor Falls," Missy uses a small blade concealed in her sleeve to stab her own past self, triggering his off-screen regeneration.
In "Spyfall," the Tissue Compression Eliminator returns as the Master, having regained his manic state, reveals he used it to steal the identity of an ally of the Doctor. He also used it to bring the Doctor to his mercy by threatening to use it on people in 1834. In "
The Timeless Children," the Master threatens the Doctor's human friends with it to get her to return to Gallifrey with him and later kills Ashad, the Lone Cyberman, with the Tissue Compression Eliminator. The Master used it again in "The Power of the Doctor," revealing that the Tissue Compression Eliminator could work in reverse and unleashing a Cyberman army, including Ashad, encapsulated in a single miniaturised Cyberman.
In other media
The Master has featured in numerous
''Doctor Who'' spin-offs. One of the most notable of these other appearances is
David A. McIntee's "Master trilogy" of novels comprising ''
The Dark Path'' and ''First Frontier'' in the
Virgin Publishing
Virgin Books is a British book publisher 90% owned by the publishing group Random House, and 10% owned by Virgin Group, the company originally set up by Richard Branson as a record company.
History
Virgin established its book publishing arm ...
lines and ''
The Face of the Enemy'' for
BBC Books
BBC Books (also formerly known as BBC Consumer Publishing and BBC Publishing) is an imprint majority-owned and managed by Penguin Random House through its Ebury Publishing division. The minority shareholder is BBC Studios, the commercial subsidia ...
, and the ''Doctor Who'' audio dramas produced by
Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and radio drama, audio plays (released straight to compact disc and for download in MP3 and m4b format) based, primarily, on science fiction properties. These include ''Doctor Who'' ...
, in which various actors have reprised the role from the TV series or played original versions of the Master.
Novels
The Master's past with the Doctor is explored in ''
The Dark Path'', which reveals that his name before taking the alias of the Master is
Koschei, when he encounters the
Second Doctor
The Second Doctor is an incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor, the protagonist of the British Science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor Patrick Troughton. Out of his 1 ...
during their travels. Although initially a somewhat anti-heroic version of the Doctor, willing to murder to save the day but generally still trying to do the right, Koschei turns to evil and becomes the Master after he discovers that his companion and lover Ailla is an undercover agent of the
Celestial Intervention Agency sent to spy on him. During the course of the novel, Ailla is shot and killed. Koschei, not knowing that she is a Time Lord and will simply regenerate, completes a time-based weapon to benefit the anti-alien efforts of soldiers from Earth's Empire in an attempt to bring her back. The weapon is used to destroy the planet Teriliptus and its inhabitants. When Ailla turns up alive, the knowledge that he has destroyed a planet for nothing, coupled with the revelation of Ailla's betrayal, proves too much. Koschei resolves to bring his own order to the universe at the expense of
free will
Free will is generally understood as the capacity or ability of people to (a) choice, choose between different possible courses of Action (philosophy), action, (b) exercise control over their actions in a way that is necessary for moral respon ...
and becoming its Master. Thanks to the Doctor reprogramming his weapon, Koschei is trapped in a
black hole
A black hole is a massive, compact astronomical object so dense that its gravity prevents anything from escaping, even light. Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity predicts that a sufficiently compact mass will form a black hole. Th ...
at the end of the novel, with it being left uncertain how he will escape. The cover art of ''The Dark Path'' depicts Koschei as being already the same regeneration as the Delgado-era Master.
''
The Face of the Enemy'' centres around the Delgado-era Master, but includes a cameo by a Koschei from an alternate timeline (specifically, the timeline the Third Doctor visited in ''
Inferno'') who never became the Master. This version of Koschei is a loyal Time Lord who was stranded on the alternate Earth after that universe's version of ''
The Web of Fear'' destroyed his TARDIS. He is subsequently captured and forced to work for the fascist rulers, who keep him alive in agony using
life support
Life support comprises the treatments and techniques performed in an emergency in order to support life after the failure of one or more vital organs. Healthcare providers and emergency medical technicians are generally certified to perform bas ...
systems. When the Master, crossing over from the other universe, learns of this, he ends his counterpart's life in a rare moment of compassion.
''
Last of the Gaderene'' by
Mark Gatiss
Mark Gatiss (; born 17 October 1966) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer and novelist. Best known for his acting work on stage and screen as well as for co-creating television shows with Steven Moffat, he has received ...
and ''
Deadly Reunion'' by
Terrance Dicks and
Barry Letts
Barry Leopold Letts (26 March 1925 – 9 October 2009) was an English actor, television director, writer and producer, best known for being the producer of ''Doctor Who'' from 1969 to 1974.
Born in Leicester, he worked as an actor in theatre, ...
are both close homages to the Delgado/Pertwee stories. In ''Last of the Gaderene'', the Master, disguised as Police Inspector Lemaitre, assists an alien race called the Gaderene to invade Earth, starting with a small village. In ''Deadly Reunion'', he attempts to control powerful forces through a cult, but finds himself at the mercy of a godlike alien. The Delgado Master also appears in ''
Verdigris
Verdigris () is a common name for any of a variety of somewhat toxic copper salt (chemistry), salts of acetic acid, which range in colour from green to a blue-green, bluish-green depending on their chemical composition.H. Kühn, Verdigris and Cop ...
'' by
Paul Magrs, a more parodic take on the Pertwee era. The eponymous
genie
GEnie (General Electric Network for Information Exchange) was an online service provider, online service created by a General Electric business, GEIS (now GXS Inc., GXS), that ran from 1985 through the end of 1999. In 1994, GEnie claimed around ...
spends much of the novel impersonating the Master, who is in fact controlling him: the real Master appears in the novel's epilogue, buying a Chinese
takeaway.
The reason the Master is so emaciated when he appears in ''
The Deadly Assassin
''The Deadly Assassin'' is the third serial of the Doctor Who (season 14), 14th season of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 30 October to 20 November 197 ...
'' is explored in
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...
's novel ''
Legacy of the Daleks'', in which he attempts to capture the Doctor's granddaughter
Susan Foreman
Susan Foreman (also known as Susan Campbell in spin-off media) is a fictional character in the British science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. The granddaughter of the Doctor and original Companion (Docto ...
, resulting in an out-of-sequence encounter with the
Eighth Doctor when the Doctor receives a telepathic cry of distress from Susan and attempts to trace it back to before its origin. The Master is badly burned when she attacks him in self-defence and takes possession of his TARDIS. After Susan escapes, the dying Master is eventually found by Chancellor Goth on the planet Tersurus, which leads directly into the events of ''The Deadly Assassin''.
The Ainley-era Master appears in the novel ''
The Quantum Archangel'' by
Craig Hinton, a direct sequel to ''The Time Monster''. In this novel, he poses as a Serbian businessman called
Gospodar (prompting the
Sixth Doctor
The Sixth Doctor is an incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor, the protagonist of the British Science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Colin Baker. Although his televisual t ...
to wonder if he's "running out of languages") while attempting to subvert the power of the higher dimensions to turn himself into a god. However, it to be revealed that this plan was actually the result of the machinations of the Chronovore/Eternal hybrid Kronos trying to trick the Master into punishing the Chronovores for his lifetime of imprisonment, with one of the Master's pawns being transformed into the titular Quantum Archangel when she absorbs the higher-dimensional energy as the Master tests his equipment. As the novel concludes, the Master briefly regresses to his crippled and burned form while the Doctor absorbs more of the excess energy to delay the Quantum Archangel on her level, but the story ends with the Master having restored himself to physical health with a boost of the last dregs of higher-dimensional power (although he is apparently subsequently attacked by a group of chronovores).
''First Frontier'' shows the Master (apparently the Ainley version) finally acquiring a new body, who according to McIntee is based on the cinema persona of
Basil Rathbone
Philip St. John Basil Rathbone MC (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967) was an Anglo-South African actor. He rose to prominence in the United Kingdom as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in more than 70 films, primarily costume drama ...
, using nanites provided by the alien race known as the Tzun in exchange for his help in setting up their 'invasion' of Earth. This incarnation reappears in ''
Happy Endings'' by
Paul Cornell
Paul Douglas Cornell (born 18 July 1967) is a British writer. He has worked in television drama and ''Doctor Who'' fiction, being the creator of one of the Doctor's spin-off companions, Bernice Summerfield.
Other British television dramas f ...
, Virgin Publishing's celebratory fiftieth
Virgin New Adventures
The ''Virgin New Adventures'' (NA series, or NAs) are a series of novels from Virgin Publishing based on the British Science fiction on television, science-fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. They continued the story of the Doctor from th ...
novel, once again trying to restore his ability to regenerate, suggesting that the Tzun nanites failed to sustain him long-term.
Before the end of the
Virgin Missing Adventures series, the Delgado version of the Master appears in the novel ''
Who Killed Kennedy'', depicting him setting up a complex plan to manipulate a journalist to bother UNIT by convincing him that they are part of a corrupt conspiracy. The novel, while published by Virgin, was not considered part of the Missing Adventures series.
Another version of the Master appears in ''
The Infinity Doctors'' (also by Parkin), where he is known as the Magistrate and is, once again, the Doctor's friend, although when this takes place in continuity is unclear. Parkin has stated that the novel can fit into continuity and that its incarnation of the Master is based on
Richard E. Grant.
During the
Faction Paradox arc that runs through the Eighth Doctor Adventures, a character known as the War King is featured, which is implied to be a future incarnation of the Master. The character is also referenced in ''
The Book of the War'', published by
Mad Norwegian Press when the ''Faction Paradox'' stories spun off into their own continuity. Later Faction Paradox stories confirm the Magistrate is the younger version of the War King, which had been implied in ''
The Taking of Planet 5''.
Alastair Reynolds
Alastair Preston Reynolds (born 13 March 1966) is a Welsh science fiction author. He specialises in hard science fiction and space opera.
Early life
Reynolds was born in Wales and spent his early years in Cornwall before moving back to Wales, ...
' novel ''
Harvest of Time'', published in 2013, features the Roger Delgado incarnation, set after his capture at the end of ''
The Dæmons'' and before he escapes from prison in ''
The Sea Devils''. In the course of the novel, the Master is nearly erased from history by an ancient race known as the Sild, who have captured multiple incarnations of the Master to create a complex temporal manipulator by linking the Masters in a neural network, but the Doctor and the Master track the Sild to their origin, allowing the Master to take control of the Sild's network and turn it against them before his other selves rebel against his control, forcing him to allow the other Masters to escape.
Comic strips
The ''
Doctor Who Magazine
''Doctor Who Magazine'' (abbreviated as ''DWM'') is a magazine devoted to the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''.
Launched in 1979 as ''Doctor Who Weekly'', the magazine became a monthly publication the following year. In ...
'' (DWM) 1992 Winter Special comic ''Flashback'' shows a young Master (here called "Magnus") and Doctor on Gallifrey. The Master plans to use a living entity to harness Arton Energy, only for the Doctor to thwart his plans.
The Master returns in a new body and guise, that of a street preacher, in the previously mentioned the ''DWM'' comic strip story ''The Fallen'', although the Doctor does not recognise him.
The Master reveals himself a few stories later, in ''The Glorious Dead''. The Master had survived the events of the television movie by encountering a cosmic being named Esterath in the time vortex. Esterath controls the Glory, the focal point of the Omniversal spectrum which underlies all existence. The Master's scheme to take control of the Glory fails, and he is banished to parts unknown (see
Kroton).
In ''Character Assassin'' in ''DWM'' No. 311, the Delgado Master visits the
Land of Fiction and steals part of the technology behind it, wiping out several nineteenth century fictional villains as he goes. He can also be seen in the following comic strips set during the Pertwee era:
* "The Glen of Sleeping" by Gerry Haylock and Dick O'Neill (''
TV Action 107–111'')
* "Fogbound" by Frank Langford (''Doctor Who Holiday Special 1973'')
* "The Time Thief" by Steve Livesey (''Doctor Who Annual 1974'')
* "The Man in the Ion Mask" by Brian Williamson and
Dan Abnett
Daniel P. Abnett ( ; born 12 October 1965) is an English comic book writer and novelist. He has been a frequent collaborator with fellow writer Andy Lanning, and has worked on books for both Marvel Comics, and their UK imprint, Marvel UK, since ...
(''
Doctor Who Magazine
''Doctor Who Magazine'' (abbreviated as ''DWM'') is a magazine devoted to the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''.
Launched in 1979 as ''Doctor Who Weekly'', the magazine became a monthly publication the following year. In ...
Winter Special 1991'')
In the IDW publication ''Prisoners of Time'', a 12-issue series to celebrate the 50th anniversary of ''
Doctor Who
''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...
'', the Master (drawn based on Ainley's portrayal) plays a major part. He is the villain in issues 6 and 7, attempting to trap the Sixth Doctor in an
Auton-staffed asylum and encountering the Seventh as he attempts to drain the energy from a pair of higher-dimensional beings. The Ainley Master is revealed to have teamed up with the
Ninth Doctor's disgraced ex-companion
Adam Mitchell, who is traveling through time kidnapping the Doctor's companions as revenge, the Master having presented himself as another 'victim' of the Doctor rather than the villain he truly is. His role in the plan after Adam abducts
Clara Oswald culminates in an out-of-sequence encounter with the
Eleventh Doctor
The Eleventh Doctor is an incarnation (otherwise known as regeneration) of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is played by Matt Smith in three series as well as five specials. As wi ...
, the Doctor observing that it has been a pleasantly long time since he saw this version of the Master. However, when the Eleventh Doctor manages to summon his previous ten selves to Adam's fortress to rescue their companions when Adam threatens to kill them all, the Master reveals that his true plan is to channel his stolen chronal energies through the Doctors' combined
TARDIS
The TARDIS (; acronym for "Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space") is a fictional hybrid of a time machine and spacecraft that appears in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and its various spin-offs. While a TARDI ...
es, thus destroying the Universe. Horrified at the Master's evil scale and encouraged to take action by Rose and the Ninth, Tenth, and Eleventh Doctors, Adam stands up to the Master, sacrificing himself to disable the Master's equipment. The Master escapes, noting that he enjoyed the chance to cause further chaos, but his plan has been thwarted. This is the only story in any medium in which the Ninth and Eleventh Doctors encounter the Master.
2017 sees the return of Delgado's incarnation in ''Doorway to Hell'', a ''Doctor Who Magazine'' comic strip printed in DWM #508–511, set after the events of ''Frontier in Space'' from the Master's perspective. This depicts an out-of-sequence encounter between Delgado's Master and the
Twelfth Doctor
The Twelfth Doctor is an incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor, the protagonist of the British Science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Scottish actor Peter Capaldi in three ...
in the year 1973, with the Master initially assuming that the Twelfth Doctor is the Fourth who regenerated after an explosion in the TARDIS that left the Doctor trapped on Earth in this time, until the Doctor informs his foe that he is from far in the Master's future. At the story's conclusion the critically wounded Master regenerates inside his TARDIS after the Doctor and the human family he has been living with deflects an attack with the "artron energy" the family absorbed while the Doctor's TARDIS was healing in their garden.
Titan Comics published a series of comics which included a Master who was a contemporary of the
War Doctor. This Master has the appearance of a young boy. In his final appearance, he regenerated into the Derek Jacobi incarnation seen in
"Utopia".
Audio plays
The Master has made regular appearances in various
audio plays produced by
Big Finish.
Geoffrey Beevers
Geoffrey Beevers (born 9 January 1941) is a British actor who has appeared in many stage and screen roles.
Early life and education
Only son of D. Beevers, Geoffrey Beevers was educated at Tonbridge School and Wadham College, Oxford, where he ...
,
Derek Jacobi
Sir Derek George Jacobi (; born 22 October 1938) is an English actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen as well as for his work at the Royal National Theatre, he has received numerous accolades including a Tony Award, a BAFTA Award, two ...
,
Michelle Gomez,
Eric Roberts
Eric Anthony Roberts (born April 18, 1956) is an American actor. He has amassed more than 700 film and television credits since his debut in 1978, making him one of the most prolific English-speaking screen actors of all time.
Roberts' career ...
,
John Simm
John Ronald Simm (born 10 July 1970) is an English actor, director, and musician. He is best known for playing Sam Tyler in ''Life on Mars'', the Master in ''Doctor Who,'' and DS Roy Grace in ''Grace.'' His other television credits include '' ...
and
Sacha Dhawan
Sacha Dhawan () (born 1 May 1984) is a British actor. He began his career in the ITV series '' Out of Sight'' (1997–1998), '' The Last Train'' (1999), and '' Weirdsister College'' (2001–2002). He originated the role of Akthar in the play '' ...
have all reprised the role from the television series, while
Mark Gatiss
Mark Gatiss (; born 17 October 1966) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer and novelist. Best known for his acting work on stage and screen as well as for co-creating television shows with Steven Moffat, he has received ...
,
Alex Macqueen
Alexander Tulloch Macqueen (born 30 November 1973) is an English actor and writer. He has appeared on television, film, and radio in the UK in productions such as ''Holby City'', ''Doctor Who,'' '' Hut 33'', '' Peep Show'', ''The Thick of It'', ...
,
Gina McKee,
James Dreyfus and
Milo Parker portray versions of the Master original to Big Finish.
Jon Culshaw
Jonathan Peter Culshaw (born 2 June 1968) is an English actor, comedian and Impressionist (entertainment), impressionist. He is best known for his work on the radio comedy ''Dead Ringers (comedy), Dead Ringers'' since 2000.
Culshaw has voiced ...
has performed as the
Roger Delgado and
Anthony Ainley incarnations of the Master.
The Master's first audio appearance comes in the
monthly range story ''
Dust Breeding
''Doctor Who: The Monthly Adventures'', formerly subtitled as the ''Main Range'', is a series that consists of full-cast audio dramas based on the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who''. They are produced by Big Finish Prod ...
'', where Geoffrey Beevers reprises the role for the first time since 1981. At some point after ''
Survival
Survival or survivorship, the act of surviving, is the propensity of something to continue existing, particularly when this is done despite conditions that might kill or destroy it. The concept can be applied to humans and other living things ...
'', the Master's Trakenite body is damaged and he returns to his walking corpse state once again. Narratively, most audio appearances by Beevers as The Master take place after this story (with the exception of ''The Fourth Doctor Adventures''), as this incarnation becomes the default form the Master reverts to once inhabited bodies (such as the Ainley and Roberts versions) are destroyed.
In ''
Master
Master, master's or masters may refer to:
Ranks or titles
In education:
*Master (college), head of a college
*Master's degree, a postgraduate or sometimes undergraduate degree in the specified discipline
*Schoolmaster or master, presiding office ...
'', the origin of the Master and the Doctor's enmity is explored with flashbacks to their shared childhood and an ongoing plot involving the
Seventh Doctor
The Seventh Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Scottish actor Sylvester McCoy.
Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-o ...
(
Sylvester McCoy
Percy James Patrick Kent-Smith (born 20 August 1943), known professionally as Sylvester McCoy, is a Scottish actor. Gaining prominence as a physical comedian, he became best known for playing the seventh incarnation of the Doctor in the long ...
) attempting to reconcile with his old nemesis.
Unbound
As part of the ''
Doctor Who Unbound'' range, an alternate-universe Master voiced by Mark Gatiss appears in the Big Finish audio play ''
Sympathy for the Devil
"Sympathy for the Devil" is a song by English rock band the Rolling Stones. The song was written by Mick Jagger and credited to the Jagger–Richards partnership. It is the opening track on the band's 1968 Studio album, album ''Beggars Banquet ...
'' opposite an alternate
Third Doctor
The Third Doctor is an incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor, the protagonist of the British Science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor Jon Pertwee. Within the series' ...
—now voiced by
David Warner. Gatiss' version of the Master later appears in Big Finish's ''
The New Adventures of Bernice Summerfield'' range, opposite Warner's Doctor, when
Bernice Summerfield is temporarily pulled into the ''Unbound'' universe. He later escapes to Benny's universe and returns in volume four of ''
The War Master'' series.
Another alternate version of the Master, played by Beevers, appears alongside an alternate Doctor played by
Colin Baker
Colin Charles Baker (born 8 June 1943) is an English actor. He played Paul Merroney in the BBC television drama series ''The Brothers (1972 TV series), The Brothers'' from 1974 to 1976 and the Sixth Doctor, sixth incarnation of The Doctor (Do ...
in the ''
Doctor Who Unbound'' duology ''Doctor of War''.
The Fourth Doctor Adventures
Beevers also made appearances The Master in several releases in ''
The Fourth Doctor Adventures
In 2012, Big Finish Productions began producing audio dramas featuring ''Doctor Who''s fourth Doctor, as portrayed by Tom Baker. Baker had previously declined to feature in any Big Finish releases, but after recording a trilogy of full cast au ...
'' range, reuniting with
Tom Baker
Thomas Stewart Baker (born 20 January 1934) is an English actor and writer. He is best known for having played the Fourth Doctor, fourth and longest-serving incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the science fiction television ...
as the
Fourth Doctor
The Fourth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Tom Baker.
Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord from ...
, between May 2012 and April 2015.
The Eighth Doctor Adventures
Alex Macqueen
Alexander Tulloch Macqueen (born 30 November 1973) is an English actor and writer. He has appeared on television, film, and radio in the UK in productions such as ''Holby City'', ''Doctor Who,'' '' Hut 33'', '' Peep Show'', ''The Thick of It'', ...
plays a new incarnation of the Master in the
Seventh Doctor
The Seventh Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Scottish actor Sylvester McCoy.
Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-o ...
release ''
UNIT: Dominion'' masquerading as a future version of the Doctor before his true identity is revealed. He goes on to become a recurring antagonist in the
Eighth Doctor's ''
Dark Eyes'' series where it is explained that the Time Lords resurrected the Master to fight in an approaching conflict, implied to be the
Time War. The events surrounding the Master's resurrection were depicted in the ''Ravenous'' series five years later.
Beevers, Jacobi, Roberts, and Gomez appeared in the fourth volume of the
Eighth Doctor series ''
Ravenous'' in October 2019. In ''Planet of Dust'', the Doctor and his companions encounter the Burnt Master (Beevers) on the planet Parrak, who reveals he has once again returned to his emaciated corpse form following his time in the body of Bruce (Roberts) and is subsequently killed by the Ravenous.
In ''Day of the Master'', the Eighth Doctor reunites with the Bruce Master, while his companions
Liv Chenka and
Helen Sinclair are confronted by the War Master (Jacobi) and Missy (Gomez) respectively. The Burnt Master is resurrected and granted a new regeneration cycle, with the implication that he regenerates into the Alex Macqueen incarnation.
The War Master
In December 2017, Derek Jacobi reprised his role as the Master for ''
The War Master'', an ongoing series of audios set during the
Time War, having originally appeared in the 2007 episode
"Utopia". The first series ends with the Master using a chameleon arch to turn himself into an infant human, setting up the events of "Utopia". Subsequent series occur earlier in the War Master's life and depict him getting involved with various battles in the Time War, sometimes at the behest of the
Time Lords and sometimes for his own ends.
Mark Gatiss
Mark Gatiss (; born 17 October 1966) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, director, producer and novelist. Best known for his acting work on stage and screen as well as for co-creating television shows with Steven Moffat, he has received ...
made a guest appearance as the alternate-universe Master in series four and
Paul McGann
Paul John McGann ( ; born 14 November 1959) is an English actor. He came to prominence for portraying Percy Toplis in the television serial '' The Monocled Mutineer'' (1986), then starred in the dark comedy '' Withnail and I'' (1987), which wa ...
briefly plays the Master in series five. In the tenth volume—''Rogue Encounters''—Jacobi plays Professor Yana, the Master's human alter-ego seen in
"Utopia".
Jacobi has also appeared as the War Master in several other Big Finish ranges, including ''
UNIT: Cyber-Reality'', the first volume of ''
Gallifrey: Time War'' and the ''
Dark Gallifrey'' series.
Missy
Like Jacobi, Michelle Gomez also performs her incarnation of the Master (renamed Missy) for an ongoing audio series. ''
Missy'' premiered in February 2019 and featured
The Monk played by
Rufus Hound.
The second series introduces a character known as The Lumiat – revealed to be the next incarnation of The Master, the immediate successor to Missy – played by
Gina McKee. It is explained that, after her "poetic" death at the hands of her predecessor, Missy used an Elysian field to rebuild her body at a cellular level, triggering a regeneration. Motivated by her recent attempt at redemption, she used the field to remove all negative aspects of her personality from her reconstructed body and became a benevolent force in the universe, adopting the title Lumiat. Missy encounters the Lumiat trying to undo some of her evil deeds.
In the third series, Gomez and Hound were joined by
Gemma Whelan as the
Meddling Nun – another incarnation of the Monk. A fourth volume was released in May 2024.
Gomez also returned for a story in Big Finish's ''
The Eighth of March'' range, which saw Missy stranded in Earth's past and threatening a young
Amy Pond (
Caitlin Blackwood). Marking the 60th anniversary of ''Doctor Who'', Gomez and McKee reprised their roles as Missy and The Lumiat respectively in separate stories of the ''
Once and Future'' series. Gomez appears in ''The Martian Invasion of Planetoid 50'' and McKee in ''Time Lord Immemorial''.
Master!
Following his return in ''The Diary of River Song'' and ''Masterful'', Roberts reprised his role as the Master again in March 2021 for a three-part special release entitled ''
Master!'', featuring
Chase Masterson as
Vienna Salvatore. Following the events of ''Ravenous'', the Master is freed from the vortex by a scientist named Lila Kreeg (
Laura Aikman). Masterson and Roberts returned for a second series—''Nemesis Express''—released in October 2022 and a third—''Planet Doom''—in February 2024.
Call Me Master
At Big Finish Day 2022, it was announced that
Sacha Dhawan
Sacha Dhawan () (born 1 May 1984) is a British actor. He began his career in the ITV series '' Out of Sight'' (1997–1998), '' The Last Train'' (1999), and '' Weirdsister College'' (2001–2002). He originated the role of Akthar in the play '' ...
would reprise the role of The Master from the television series for a new audio series, ''
Call Me Master''. The first volume debuted in February 2025 with a second volume to follow in September.
Anniversary Appearances
Beevers plays The Master as the main antagonist in ''
The Light at the End'', a special release celebrating Doctor Who's fiftieth anniverary.
To mark forty-five years since the Master's first appearance, Big Finish released a trilogy of stories featuring the Geoffrey Beevers and Alex Macqueen incarnations of the Master in 2016. ''And You Will Obey Me'' features the Beevers Master encountering the
Fifth Doctor
The Fifth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Peter Davison.
Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord ...
, while ''Vampire of the Mind'' pits the
Sixth Doctor
The Sixth Doctor is an incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor, the protagonist of the British Science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Colin Baker. Although his televisual t ...
against Macqueen's Master. Both Masters come together in the final story of the trilogy – ''The Two Masters'' - opposite the
Seventh Doctor
The Seventh Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He is portrayed by Scottish actor Sylvester McCoy.
Within the series' narrative, the Doctor is a centuries-o ...
.
In January 2021, to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the Master's first television appearance, Big Finish released ''
Masterful'', a three-part special written by
James Goss uniting every living television and audio incarnation of the Master (other than
Sacha Dhawan
Sacha Dhawan () (born 1 May 1984) is a British actor. He began his career in the ITV series '' Out of Sight'' (1997–1998), '' The Last Train'' (1999), and '' Weirdsister College'' (2001–2002). He originated the role of Akthar in the play '' ...
due to licensing). It saw
John Simm
John Ronald Simm (born 10 July 1970) is an English actor, director, and musician. He is best known for playing Sam Tyler in ''Life on Mars'', the Master in ''Doctor Who,'' and DS Roy Grace in ''Grace.'' His other television credits include '' ...
reprise his role as the Harold Saxon version of the Master for the first time on audio and introduced
Milo Parker as a young incarnation of the Master. Beevers, Gatiss, Jacobi, Macqueen, Roberts, and Gomez all reprised their roles. Gina McKee makes a cameo appearance as the Lumiat,
Katy Manning
Catherine Ann Manning (born 14 October 1946) is a British actress. Although she has made many appearances on both screen and stage, Manning is best known for her part as the companion Jo Grant in the BBC science fiction television series ''Doct ...
appears as
Jo Grant
Josephine "Jo" Grant, later Jo Jones, is a fictional character played by Katy Manning in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Jo was introduced by Barry Letts and Terrance Dicks in the first episode of '' ...
and Jon Culshaw voices Kamelion impersonating the Ainley Master. The special edition release included an original audiobook ''Terror of the Master'' written by
Trevor Baxendale, narrated by Jon Culshaw and featuring the Delgado Master and the
Third Doctor
The Third Doctor is an incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor, the protagonist of the British Science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor Jon Pertwee. Within the series' ...
. This story was given a standalone re-release in March 2023.
Other Appearances
The Companion Chronicles release, ''
Mastermind
Mastermind, Master Mind or The Mastermind may refer to:
Fictional characters
* Mastermind (Jason Wyngarde), a fictional supervillain in Marvel Comics, a title also held by his daughters:
** Martinique Jason, the first daughter and successor of the ...
'' explores how the Master survived his apparent demise in the
1996 television movie and regained access to his TARDIS.
For the
Lost Stories range, Big Finish adapted the cancelled
season 23 television story ''The Hollows of Time''. The Master was set to appear in the original television script, disguised as a character called Professor Stream. However, licensing restrictions prevented Big Finish from using the Master so the true identity of Professor Stream (played by David Garfield) was left ambiguous.
In May 2018, it was announced that the fifth series of ''
The Diary of River Song'' would feature the title character,
River Song, encountering four incarnations of the Master. As well as Beevers and Jacobi returning, this release saw
Eric Roberts
Eric Anthony Roberts (born April 18, 1956) is an American actor. He has amassed more than 700 film and television credits since his debut in 1978, making him one of the most prolific English-speaking screen actors of all time.
Roberts' career ...
and
Michelle Gomez make their
Big Finish debuts as their incarnations of the Master.
As part of the ''
Time Lord Victorious'' multi-platform storyline, a pair of
Short Trips stories introduced the
Roger Delgado and
Anthony Ainley incarnations of the Master to
Big Finish – ''Master Thief'' by Fio Trethewey and ''Lesser Evils'' by
Simon Guerrier
Simon Guerrier (born June 1976) is a British science fiction author and dramatist, closely associated with the fictional universe of ''Doctor Who'' and its Doctor Who spin-offs, spinoffs. Although he has written three ''Doctor Who'' novels, fo ...
were released in October 2020 with
Jon Culshaw
Jonathan Peter Culshaw (born 2 June 1968) is an English actor, comedian and Impressionist (entertainment), impressionist. He is best known for his work on the radio comedy ''Dead Ringers (comedy), Dead Ringers'' since 2000.
Culshaw has voiced ...
serving as narrator and voicing both incarnations of the Master.
Chris Finney plays a character named Keith Potter in the story ''The End of the Line'' from the audio anthology ''
The Sixth Doctor: The Last Adventure'', later revealed to be an avatar under the control of the Master.
James Dreyfus portrays an early incarnation of the Master opposite
David Bradley as the First Doctor in ''
Doctor Who: The First Doctor Adventures''. Dreyfus also appears in the
Second Doctor
The Second Doctor is an incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor, the protagonist of the British Science fiction on television, science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor Patrick Troughton. Out of his 1 ...
audio ''The Home Guard'', the Fourth Doctor audio ''Solo'' and the Seventh Doctor audio ''The Psychic Circus''.
The Master, played again by Geoffrey Beevers, makes a cameo appearance in series 10 of the ''
Doctor Who
''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...
'' spin-off ''
Jago & Litefoot'', and later featured as the main villain for the eleventh series.
=Dark Gallifrey
=
Premiering in April 2024, Big Finish's ''
Dark Gallifrey'' series follows various Time Lord villains from the Doctor Who universe on missions to discover the fabled Dark Gallifrey, a corrupted version of the Time Lord home-world lost in the multiverse. Each three-part series in the range is centered around a different character and its second, third and fourth series star Derek Jacobi, Michelle Gomez and Eric Roberts respectively as their incarnations of The Master.
Short stories
Eric Saward
Eric Saward (; born 9 December 1944) is a British radio scriptwriter who worked as a screenwriter and script editor on the BBC's science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' from 1982 to 1986. He wrote the stories '' The Visitation'' (1982), ...
included Anthony Ainley's incarnation of the Master in his short story, "Birth of a Renegade," in the ''Doctor Who 20th Anniversary Special'' one-off magazine, published by ''
Radio Times
''Radio Times'' is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in September 1923 by John Reith, then general manage ...
'' (and in the United States by
Starlog
''Starlog'' was an American monthly science fiction magazine that was created in 1976 and focused primarily on ''Star Trek'' at its inception. Kerry O'Quinn and Norman Jacobs were its creators and it was published by Starlog Group, Inc. in Aug ...
Press) in 1983.
In "The Feast of the Stone," a short story by
Cavan Scott and Mark Wright that follows on from the
Scream of the Shalka, the story pivots around the nature of the android version of the Master, his reality as an extension of the reality of the TARDIS, and his relationship with the Doctor.
The Master is seen to escape the Eye of Harmony in the short story "Forgotten" by
Joseph Lidster
Joseph Lidster is an English playwright and screenwriter, best known for his work on the ''Doctor Who'' spin-off series ''Torchwood'' and '' The Sarah Jane Adventures''.
Biography
He started his career writing ''Doctor Who'' audio plays for Big ...
, published in ''
Short Trips: The Centenarian''. The story ends with him left in 1906 in possession of a human male's body.
Martha Jones' year long journey across a Master-controlled planet Earth is detailed in the short story collection ''
The Story of Martha'', which was released on 26 December 2008.
In the ''Doctor Who'' short eBook ''The Spear of Destiny'' by
Marcus Sedgwick, featuring the Third Doctor, the Master disguises himself as a Viking called Frey (Old Norse for Master) and tries to take the
Spear of Destiny.
Webcasts
In 2003, an android version of the character (resembling the Delgado version of the Master and voiced by
Derek Jacobi
Sir Derek George Jacobi (; born 22 October 1938) is an English actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen as well as for his work at the Royal National Theatre, he has received numerous accolades including a Tony Award, a BAFTA Award, two ...
) appeared in the animated webcast ''
Scream of the Shalka''. This version of the Master exists as a companion to the Doctor, albeit a slightly sinister one. Exactly why the Doctor created an android duplicate of the Master is not stated, but it is revealed the Master was faced with the choice of permanent death or one last chance at life on a leash to make amends for the harm he had caused over the years. This version's Master possesses weak psychic abilities, and is able to pilot the Doctor's TARDIS but physically unable to leave the ship.
To promote the audio series ''
Master!'',
Eric Roberts
Eric Anthony Roberts (born April 18, 1956) is an American actor. He has amassed more than 700 film and television credits since his debut in 1978, making him one of the most prolific English-speaking screen actors of all time.
Roberts' career ...
reprised the role of the Master onscreen for the first time since 1996 in a series of video prequels posted to social media by
Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and radio drama, audio plays (released straight to compact disc and for download in MP3 and m4b format) based, primarily, on science fiction properties. These include ''Doctor Who'' ...
; starting with a
Halloween
Halloween, or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve), is a celebration geography of Halloween, observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christianity, Western Christian f ...
-themed video in November 2020 and subsequent Christmas and
Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring a Christian martyrs, martyr named Saint Valentine, Valentine, and ...
messages. In the final message, the Master is heard calling out to "Lila," a character from the audio series that the Master manipulates into granting his freedom from the vortex.
Audio book
* ''The Killing Stone'' (
BBV Audio, read by
Richard Franklin)
Computer game
* ''
Doctor Who: Destiny of the Doctors'', played by Ainley. This was his last performance as the Master before his death.
* ''
Lego Dimensions'', featuring a
Lego
Lego (, ; ; stylised as LEGO) is a line of plastic construction toys manufactured by the Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. Lego consists of variously coloured interlocking plastic bricks made of acrylonitri ...
version of Missy voiced by Gomez.
Role playing game
The
''Doctor Who'' role-playing game published by
FASA
FASA Corporation was an American publisher of role-playing games, wargaming, wargames and board games between 1980 and 2001, after which they closed publishing operations for several years, becoming an IP holding company under the name FASA In ...
in 1985 has two modules outlining the Master's personal history, a timeline of his activities, and an inventory of much of the equipment he has obtained during his travels. Most notably, the modules identify the
Meddling Monk as an alias the Master has used in his early attempts to alter the history of Earth.
Board game
The 1980
board game
A board game is a type of tabletop game that involves small objects () that are placed and moved in particular ways on a specially designed patterned game board, potentially including other components, e.g. dice. The earliest known uses of the ...
''
Doctor Who: The Game of Time & Space'' features information on the characters within the game.
Of note, it states that "The Monk,"
The War Chief and the Master are all the same person.
Parody
In the 1999
Comic Relief
Comic Relief is a British charity, founded in 1986 by the comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Sir Lenny Henry in response to the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. The concept of Comic Relief was to get British comedians to make t ...
sketch ''
The Curse of Fatal Death'', the Master was played by
Jonathan Pryce
Sir Jonathan Pryce (born John Price; 1 June 1947) is a Welsh actor. He is known for his performances on stage and in film and television. He has received numerous awards, including two Tony Awards and two Laurence Olivier Awards as well as nom ...
.
Stage
Alex Macqueen
Alexander Tulloch Macqueen (born 30 November 1973) is an English actor and writer. He has appeared on television, film, and radio in the UK in productions such as ''Holby City'', ''Doctor Who,'' '' Hut 33'', '' Peep Show'', ''The Thick of It'', ...
appeared as The Master on stage for a live recording of the Big Finish audio play ''The Stuff of Legend'', written by Robert Valentine. Four performances took place over Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th September 2024 at
Cadogan Hall
Cadogan Hall is a 950-seat capacity concert hall in Sloane Terrace in Chelsea, London, Chelsea in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England.
The resident music ensemble at Cadogan Hall is the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra ( ...
in London. A version of the story recorded in studio was released on the day of the first performance and a "live" version, combining recordings from all four performances, was released in December 2024.
List of appearances
The actors who have played the role of the Master in the series and the dates of their first and last televised appearances in the role are:
Notes
See also
*
List of ''Doctor Who'' villains
*
List of television programs where multiple actors played one character
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Master, The
Television characters introduced in 1971
Time Lords
Recurring characters in Doctor Who
Extraterrestrial supervillains
Television supervillains
Fictional dictators
Fictional hypnotists
Fictional mass murderers
Fictional prime ministers of the United Kingdom
Male characters in television
Female characters in television