4b.01 palimpsest

8/8/2019 4b.01 Palimpsest

1/41

Doctor Who IVB Episode 1"Palimpsest"

Written by:

Daniel Harma

From a story byRobert Theggers & Dan Harma

All copyright the BBC


2/41

1 EXT. SYDNEY -- DAY

SLOW PAN across a futuristic CITY; SYDNEY, in the YEAR 3000.TALL STEEL SKYSCRAPERS, a typical science fiction city. Butits all dirt, and rust and grime.

CAPTION: SYDNEY. 3000 A.B.D.

CAPTION FADE OUT.

MUSIC: STREET OF DREAMS, GUNS N ROSES

PRAC FX: Its raining, really torrential, throwing itdown...

ENIGMA (V.O)It rained, and it rained, and itrained. On the city of Sydney, therain never stopped falling, for athousand years. And there was analchemist, a magician, a sorcerer,and he tried everything to stop it,used all his powers, and books, andspells, and stories, but still itrained. Day turned to Night, weeksto years, but still it rained.

FADE TO:

2 EXT. SYDNEY -- NIGHT

SLOW PAN continues across the city as the sun sets, and itsnight! Its not a nice place, not a place youd want to be.

ENIGMA (V.O)And so in desperation, the wizardretreated to his tower, whichstretched up into the sky, andstill it rained, and the rainthreatened to wash him away, andeverything hed done, and wash himoff the planet, and out of thehistory books. And in his fear, helooked up to the night sky...

PAN UP to NIGHT SKY, STARS TWINKLING.

ENIGMA (V.O)(more a whisper now)

And in the sky, he saw all thestars, and planets, and suns,rotating and dancing like they

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)


3/41

CONTINUED: (2) 2.

ENIGMA (V.O) (contd)always had since the birth of time,and always would, until theirdeath. And one of the stars...shone brighter than the rest... Andit came closer, and shone brighter,

and came closer, and shonebrighter, until it came down tohim, on his balcony, and it spoketo him. For it was a Timewright,and it promised him great things.It could stop the rain, restore himto glory, and offer him theimmortality he craved, and placehim amongst the stars in the sky.And all he asked was to be allowedto enter the world again, for inthe dark ages the jealous gods hadusurped him, and banished him. And

the sorcerer was greedy, and heagreed, and he allowed him in, andhe sold his soul. And I was reborn!

MUSIC STREET OF DREAMS FADE OUT

CUT TO TITLES

CUT TO:

3 INT. TV SCREEN -- DAY

The screen is a close up of an OLD STYLE TELEVISION.

On it is an old SCI-FI B MOVIE. Cliched, budget, lowquality: RUBBER ALIENS and DASHING CAPTAINS are fighting ona RED SANDED PLANET.

One of the characters is a BEAUTIFUL PRINCESS, who is beingdragged away by the rubber aliens.

Gradually, MUSIC FADE IN: LIFE ON MARS DAVID BOWIE

AS the FILM continues, we...

PULL BACK TO...

FADE TO:


4/41

3.

4 INT. FLAT - SYDNEY -- DAY.

A REAL TIP OF A FLAT.

In it, in the corner, is the TELEVISION (from Scene 3),still playing the SCI-FI B MOVIE.

The flat is littered with DIRTY CLOTHES, COFFEE MUGS,MAGAZINES, RUBBISH, CIGARETTE BUTTS...

Into the room walks FLORENCE!

And her face is the same as the BEAUTIFUL PRINCESS (scene 3,Sci-Fi B Movie)! (e.g she was the actress portrayingbeautiful princess)

But that was a few years ago, shes older, her face islined, her eyes puffy and tired. She looks sad, maybe beencrying lately?

She SEES the TV playing the film, and STRIDES over, turns itoff; she doesnt like it, reminds her off her past. Shepresses a BUTTON on the TV and it ejects an old VHS CASSETE.

As she moves around the room, not doing much, half-heartedattempt at tidying up...

FLORENCE (V.O)(bitter, or at leastmelancholy)

When I was young, I always wantedto be a filmstar. I could have beenas well. The year was... 1982. Iwas...twenty six? Id been in a fewfilms, shown at the pictures andeverything. But then... One night,I went to sleep, in my bed. I wokeup over a thousand years later. Inthe New Human Empire. InAustralia! Imagine that...everything youd lived, and loved,gone. Like that. Oh, I was sad atfirst. Sold everything I had-wasnt much. A cardboard box ofpossesions. A card from my parentssaying they loved me. Some of myvideos. Then I had nothing left sosell, but I had to survive, so Isold... Anyway I began to buildmyself a life. Met a man, John. Inthe Royal Navy. Course, thatdoesnt mean boats. Meansspaceships. But now hes been gone

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)


5/41

CONTINUED: (2) 4.

FLORENCE (V.O) (contd)for five years, flying to someplanet on the other side of thegalaxy. And Im all alone again.What do I have?

Shes walking across the flat, towards BIG FROSTED GLASSDORRS to the BALCONY.

She begins to open them, and we...

REVERSE TO: PROFILE SHOT: CU: FLORENCE as she walks onto thebalcony.

PRAC FX: Bright lights dancing on her face, red, gold, blue,green. She leans on the balcony wall, still CAMERA HOLDS onher face.

FLORENCE (V.O)(CONTD)

Im a science fiction actress. Whatuse do they have for me here?

REVEAL: Her balcony is overlooking the MASSIVE SCI-FI CITYfrom scenes 1/2.

FX: FLYING CARS with HUMANS and ALIENS on board, SPACESHIPS,the works.

CU: FLORENCE She looks so sad.

FADE TO:


FLORENCE is walking through the city, keeping herself toherself, looking down. The air is thick and YELLOW withPOLLUTION.

She walks along, towards the harbour.

FLORENCE (V.O)But its okay now. I know what todo. I know how to get home...

FADE TO:


6/41

5.

6 EXT. SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE -- DAY

FLORENCE walks along it, slowly, sadly.

She walks to the edge, CLIMBS onto the RAILING. Oh no! Shecant!?

HER P.O.V: She looks down. Her feet, the edge of the bridge,and below that... the WATER.

CU: FLORENCE. She closes her eyes.

She looks so, so sad.

FADE OUT: LIFE ON MARS

FLORENCE(Speaking out loud; toconvince herself)

Ive got to. Theres nothing for mehere anymore.

HER P.O.V: She looks down and SEES...

From UNDER the bridge, and an ARM reaches out!! Theressomeone hanging UNDERNEATH the bridge! The arm is carryingsomething, and it thumps a BRIEFCASE down on her feet. Fromunder the bridge comes a muffled voice.

MUFFLED VOICEHold that...

And out comes a BOX OF EGGS!

MUFFLED VOICEAnd that...

And a TELESCOPE!?

CU: FLORENCE: All her depression forgotten, soooo confused!

MUFFLED VOICEAnd all of these!

A VINYL RECORD (ABBA), STRING, JELLY BABIES, A POWER DRILL

MUFFLED VOICEOhhh, there it is!

And then, with a bit of scurrying, some grunting, anotherARM appears, and pulling himself over the edge of the bridgeis...

THE DOCTOR!

(CONTINUED)


7/41

CONTINUED: (2) 6.

Clamped in his mouth is the SONIC SCREWDRIVER!

He looks up at her, standing exactly where she was, nothaving moved.

He looks at the pile of RUBBISH by her FEET.

HE FROWNS.

THE DOCTOR(trying to speak around thesonic screwdriver)

Areahhhr Zchou shgoin shto felllspe zasse za vourlt shor nossscht?

CU: FLORENCE: Frowns. What the hell...!?

FLORENCEUm... Pardon?

THE DOCTOR(Sighs, spits out the sonic)

I said are you going to help mesave the world or not?

Big cheeky grin!

And then he HEAVES himself up onto the bridge, dusts himselfdown.

THE DOCTOR(Sighs)

Oh, youre not much fun are you?Come on!!! Save the world? Defeatthe bad guys, destroy the doomsdayweapon, all in fifteen minutes?

OFF HER LOOK

THE DOCTOROh, come on, you dont get askedthat very often, do you?

CU: FLORENCE, still a bit shaken up, bit sad.

The Doctor notices

THE DOCTORWhat you doing here anyway? Bitclose to the edge, but, I dunno,lovely spot for a bit of um...spaceship spotting? Do people dothat? Birdwatching...

(CONTINUED)


8/41

CONTINUED: (3) 7.

HIS P.O.V: The smokey, polluted city

THE DOCTORPollution watching?

BEAT

THE DOCTORDont say much do ya? What were youdoing here anyway?

FLORENCEI was... I um... What am I doing?!What were you doing?

THE DOCTORBit of this, bit of that.Maintenance man, thats me. Lovelyto meet you. Im the doctor.

FLORENCEDoctor of what?

THE DOCTOR(grin)

Bridges! And um... ( he looks at theSONIC SCREWDRIVER; its blinking and whistling furiously. Looks abit worried. )

MUSIC: RUNNING WILD AIRBOURNE

THE DOCTOR...Oops. Do you want to you know,move away? Talk somewhere else?

FLORENCEWhy? Whats that thing? Whys itbeeping?

THE DOCTORIts a sonic screwdriver.

FLORENCEA....? A what screwdriver?

THE DOCTORSonic. Essential part of any bridge maintenance mans toolkit.When you sign up then um...sergeant general of ( cough ) bridgemaintenance, he gives you a lovelylittle talk, "This sonic

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)


9/41

CONTINUED: (4) 8.

THE DOCTOR (contd)screwdriver is your life. Withoutit your bridge maintenance..."( sees her expression, trailsoff...)

FLORENCEA bridge maintenance man with anAbba LP?

THE DOCTOROoh, you recognize Abba! Not manyround here do. Actually... thatsprobably not a good thing.Anyways... Why are we discussingthis?! We need to move!

The SONIC SCREWDRIVER is:

PRAC FX: Flashing, beeping, buzzing, more than ever.

FLORENCEWhy?

THE DOCTORJust, bridge stuff.... Oh allright, a bomb! Okay? Just run!

CU: FLORENCE: She believes him

FLORENCE...fair enough

They start running, the Doctor staring cross eyed at thesonic screwdriver as they do.

THE DOCTORCome on....

They DIVE off the edge of the bridge, swerving past CARS andFLYING CARS, and getting quite a lot of HOOTS from angrydrivers.

CUT TO:


By the edge of the bridge, FLORENCE and THE DOCTOR, thedoctor scratching his head desperately

(CONTINUED)


10/41

CONTINUED: (2) 9.

THE DOCTORThat bomb is going to off anyminute now! Its going to bedestroyed-

Hes speaking with his back to the bridge.

PRAC FX: THE BRIDGE EXPLODES!!!! Behind him, throwing carsinto the air, a few screams, the sound of SIRENS

THE DOCTORAnd all the people, theyll all bekilled as well...

He trails off, noticing Florence...

CU: FLORENCE: Shocked!

THE DOCTOR(not turning around)

Oh no, it cant be. Not yet. When Iturn around, that bridge will stillbe there, standing just like allthe postcards! Nice, pretty, a fewflying cars, okay?! The bombdefinitely will not have gone offyet!

He turns round

THE DOCTOROh nooooo. Not my day is it?

FLORENCEListen! Police barge sirens!

THE DOCTOR(bit down)

Yup. Theyll be here any minute,shut off the area. Probably lookingfor mysterious strangers who arenton the census. Probably dresseddifferently, carrying strange alientechnology thats a potentialweapon. Behaving in a strange way,or have been seen acting oddly nearthe bridge. ( Doesnt get it ) Well,I hope they find them.

FLORENCEUm.... Doctor?

(CONTINUED)


11/41

CONTINUED: (3) 10.

THE DOCTOR(distracted)

Mmmm?

FLORENCESo we start running then?

THE DOCTORRunning?

FLORENCEMysterious stranger acting oddly onthe bridge carrying alientechnology? Im guessing youre noton the census.

THE DOCTOR(oops)

Gooooood point. Where do we go?Anywhere good?

FLORENCETheres a place I know....

MUSIC RUNNING WILD FADE OUT

FADE TO:

8 EXT. TAVERN -- DAY

The DOCTOR and FLORENCE outside a TAVERN, old school, aswingy sign with a name on The boars head, mock tudorfacade, the works.

The Doctor looks slightly puzzled.

THE DOCTORA Bar?

FLORENCENice place, you get all sorts.

THE DOCTORDid you just come here so I could

buy you a drink?FLORENCE

Nah, you dont look like the sortof person who carries money withthem.

The Doctor raises his eyebrows, then nods, slowly, littlesmile. He likes her.

(CONTINUED)


12/41

CONTINUED: (2) 11.

FLORENCECome on!?

Shes inside. He follows.

CUT TO:

9 INT. TAVERN -- DAY

Inside, lots of MOOD LIGHTING, CONVEYOR BELTS with DRINKSon, lots of ALIEN SPECIES, HOLOGRAPHIC GAMES, the lot...

THE DOCTOROoh, very Mos Eisley.

FLORENCEMore Star Wars really, isnt it?

The Doctor notices this, raises his eyes.

FLORENCE(To the BARMAN)

Two of the Super Supernovas please.

He complies, handing them the two drinks which areCONSTANTLY CHANGING COLOUR.

THE DOCTORLovely jubbly, thanks!

He starts drinking, biiiiiiig gulp.

Florence looks at him.

The BARMAN looks at him.

Florence coughs.

THE DOCTORYes? Oh... Oh right, money!

He rummages in his pockets....

Out comes A GREEN ORGANIC COIN which begins to crawl away, ADIAMOND, some coins that look remarkably like BUBBLES frombubblebath which begin to float away, A SQUARE COIN, Alittle ROBOTIC MAN.

The Doctor frowns.

(CONTINUED)


13/41

CONTINUED: (2) 12.

THE DOCTORDo you take cheques?

Florence watches, laughing.

THE DOCTOR

Ooh, no, I know!

The ABBA LP!

THE DOCTORHere you go!

And he hands it over. The Barman is astounded- its worth afortune!

BARMANReally? For me?

THE DOCTORGo for it!

The barman shuffles off, carrying his prize. The Doctor, abit embarrased, turns to Florence, whose still laughing.

THE DOCTOROi! You can stop laughing. The girlfrom the year three thousand, whoknows what star wars is, and startrek, and recognizes ABBA. Who areyou?

FLORENCEIm Florence. Florence Watson. And.( she looks up, maybe hoping for theDoctor to say something, but hesits watching intently )Im from1982. Well. I was. I was 22. Andthen I woke up, and I was here,with a cardboard box of things. Howdoes that happen? I thought it wasthe gods, playing a trick on me. Iwas so bitter, so angry. Theylooked down, at me, with a career,and.... I was going to be anactress. I was in some films. Andthen, I ended up here. I spent somany night in this tavern, till 4or 5 in the morning. How does thathappen?

(CONTINUED)


14/41

CONTINUED: (3) 13.

THE DOCTORI dunno. Sorry. But I might be ableto help you with that.

FLORENCEHow!

THE DOCTOR(conspiratorial whisper)

Ive got a time machine!

FLORENCE(half belives him)

No. Way.

THE DOCTORYes. Promise. Ill show you.

FLORENCE(so disheartened)

If thats true then...

THE DOCTORIt is. But first, the bomb.

FLORENCEWho was it?

THE DOCTORMmmmm.... The bomb was really quiteadvanced, so there must have beensome... offworld help.

FLORENCEYou saw the bomb?

THE DOCTORYup, when I was under...

A SHADOW falls over the bar, someone behind them.

THE DOCTOR(spinning around)

Ahh, that will be the police comingbecause Im sitting near to aterrorist attack talking loudlyabout bombs, time machines, andacting like a mysterious offworldstranger?

There are THREE MEN, all swathed from head to toe in BLACKROBES, long, ankle length.

(CONTINUED)


15/41

CONTINUED: (4) 14.

THE DOCTORAlthough.... You dont look muchlike plods?

Beat.

THE DOCTORSooooo, second guess, youre thesinister people in robes watchingus, and now youre going to take usto your leader? Cos we know toomuch? Cos I know that your the cultof shadows?

Sharp intake of breath

THE DOCTORThought so.

Theyre led off.

THE DOCTORCome on Florence, there going totake us to their secret meeting!

Hes really happy, loving it.

CUT TO:

10 INT. TAVERN - MEETING ROOM -- DAY

They are led to a nice, typical, cliched, meeting room underthe tavern. A long TABLE with MEN IN CLOAKS around it.

THE DOCTOR waves.

THE DOCTORHello!

To florence

THE DOCTORSay hello nicely Florence!

FLORENCEHello nicely.

She gives a little wave.

ALL THE MEN are watching them, curiously.

(CONTINUED)


16/41

CONTINUED: (2) 15.

THE DOCTORDont mind us, well just sit andwatch. Watch while you plan anotherattack. An attack on innocentpeople, killing millions, for youown bitter little ends. Because

people died there. I wouldnt minda little game like this, you alldressing up and meeting underTaverns, but people are dead. So,you know. Ill have to stop you.

CUT TO:

11 INT. TAVERN - MEETING ROOM -- DAY

Some time has passed.

THE DOCTOR and FLORENCE are tied to chairs with ropes.

THE DOCTORAh. That didnt work so well. Illhold off the dramatic proclamationsin future.

Beat.

They ignore him.

THE DOCTORWell? Arent you going to questionme? Find out what I know?

Beat.

THE DOCTOR...Fine. So, what we doing herethen? Waiting for someone? Issomeone important coming?

FLORENCESomeone important coming and theydidnt warn me? I mean look at whatIm wearing! And no make up, notdone my hair, oooh, this is soembarrassing!

One MAN in cloaks, robes, etc, shuffles slightly. This istheir LEADER

(CONTINUED)


17/41

CONTINUED: (2) 16.

THE LEADERCouldnt you have gagged them aswell? Do they never stop?

FLORENCE...I recognize that voice...

THE DOCTORProbably. Most likely all of thislot are wealthy, rich, famous. Wanta bit of a change at the weekends.

FLORENCELike blowing up bridges? So whatare they? Who?

THE DOCTORSort of children who go roundpulling the wings of butterflies,and shining the sun at ants with amagnifying glass, chopping worms intwo to see if they regenerate, andmaking bonfires with their sistersteddy bear and- oh hello!

Because, in the center of the room;

FX: A PULSING, STROBING BALL OF LIGHT, about a meter indiameter, growing then shrinking, wrapping around, andfolding itself into various shapes.

THE DOCTORI guess this is who weve beenwaiting for.

But the SINISTER MEN seem as surprised as he is, beginscrambling away, scraping chairs on the floor, standing up.

All except their leader, who sits there unmoved.

THE LEADERDo not be afraid, do not run. Thisis the source of our power. This ishow we have been supplied with allthat we have needed to carry outout campaign. He is a friend. Hecame down from the stars to us,seeking people of equal intellectto his own.

Gradually they sit down, nervously.

(CONTINUED)


18/41

CONTINUED: (3) 17.

FX: And suddenly the LIGHT folds itself into the shape of aMAN, medium height and build. For a minute, the light formsthe outline of a man, GLOWING, and pulsing, before fadingdown to leave a man standing there; ENIGMA. His face isbland, featureless, unmemorable, and he is dressed all inwhite: white suit, shoes.

One SINISTER MAN never sat down, but edged away. Now hesfleeing, running to the door.

SINISTER MANWhat is that? What have you done!

He turns and flees yet...

Without even moving, apparently not even noticing,

FX: a BEAM OF WHITE LIGHT (similar to that when Enigmaarrived) streaks away from Enigmas hand, and knocks overthe FLEEING sinister man. DEAD.

His hood falls back to reveal...

Hes a MUTANT, with GREENY-YELLOWY scales randomly inpatches over his face, and long CLAWS!

THE DOCTOR(quietly, to Florence. Doesntwant attention)

Ooh, thats different.

FLORENCEWhat is he?

THE DOCTORDunno. Poweful though. Heschanneling that power directly fromthe Time vortex.

He looks at her.

THE DOCTORIm guessing you didnt get that.

FLORENCENope.

THE DOCTORYeah, well-

Enigma TURNS, looks at him.

(CONTINUED)


19/41

CONTINUED: (4) 18.

THE DOCTORHello!

ENIGMADoctor. Again. This is fastbecoming a habbit, no? Albeit an

unpleasant, predictable, and ratherboring one. Although,... you look alittle tied up at the moment( starts to laugh ) How wonderful! Iassume these delightful fellows areresponsible? In that case, I ameven more endebtted to them.

THE DOCTORUm... have we met?

ENIGMAMore than once. Are you saying youcant remember?

THE DOCTORB-List, cliched, camp villans witha thing for long words and tightsuits? Ive met a few, but yourenot ringing any bells. Oh, why isit this whole thing feels like abad bond movie?

ENIGMADoctor, I can assure you, youwouldnt forget me. ( he noticesFlorence ) Oh, but this is Florence!Ah, then this is before youve metme in your timeline. How curiouslyquaint. What an interesting idea.

THE DOCTORWell, I get around-

ENIGMAStop talking. Bored now. Dowhatever you normally do, run away.

Adresses SINISTER MEN

ENIGMAGentlement, please, remove yourhoods. Were amongst friends here.

All do, except for Leader, who remains hooded. Enigmanotices but says nothing.

(CONTINUED)


20/41

CONTINUED: (5) 19.

ALL OF THEM are MUTANTS, some more animal than human, somewith scales, or serpents tales.

Florence raises her eyes.

CU: Florence. A little scared.

THE DOCTORWowweee! Guesing youre not allfamous or rich then, with faceslike that.

One of them spits, hisses.

SINISTER MAN #2We are outcasts from society! Theyreject us because of theirobsession with perfection!

THE DOCTORAnd there we go, this cliched jamesbond movie now has mutated villainsand a title, the Obsession withPerfection. Makes more sense thatQuantam of Solace though.

SINISTER MAN #2The humans do not understand us.Not yet.

ENIGMA(interrupting)

Do you want to run away, break theropes, or use the sonic screwdriverto construct an ingenious escapeplan?

THE DOCTORYou really have met me before! Inmy future!

ENIGMA(sighs)

Quite doctor. I seem to have allthe bad luck, time lord.

FLORENCETime Lord? He told me he was abridge maintanance man.

They ignore her.

(CONTINUED)


21/41

CONTINUED: (6) 20.

ENIGMANow, you two, go!

And all of a sudden,

CUT TO:


THE DOCTOR and FLORENCE find themselves in the middle of astreet! No noise, no flash, just suddenly there.

The Doctor whistles.

THE DOCTORImpressive.

Florence is terrified, her hands are shaking; shes not in agood way.

She fumbles for a CIGARETTE, tries to light it. The Doctornotices.

THE DOCTOROi, dont smoke! Its bad for you!

He knocks it out her hands.

Then, realizing, he looks her in the eyes.

THE DOCTORAre you okay with this? You can gohome if you want.

FLORENCENo I cant. Home is a thousandyears away.

THE DOCTOR(Remembering)

Okay. Well, then Ill just have todo what I always do!

FLORENCEWhich is?

THE DOCTORSave the world!

Beat.

(CONTINUED)


22/41

CONTINUED: (2) 21.

THE DOCTORDo you want to help?

FLORENCEThat... person... he said, he saidthat... something about me, he knew

me, so it looks like I come withyou, help you. But, if he knew me,from the future, doesnt that meanI cant die? We know we win,because otherwise he couldnt knowme!

THE DOCTORTime can be changed. Like apalimpsest, overwritten, rubbedout, replaced, redrawn. Your storycould be changed, as eaily asanything.

This scares her a bit.

FLORENCEDont care, Im still coming.

THE DOCTORBrilliant!

FLORENCESo um... how do we save the world?

THE DOCTORThats... a good question. Gotanywhere we can go?

FLORENCEMy flat, its not far...

FADE TO:

13 INT. FLAT - SYDNEY -- DAY.

Moment of silence, still a tip.

Then...

BANG! The door flies open, and THE DOCTOR and FLORENCEenter, the doctor still talking furiously...

THE DOCTORSooooo.... theyve still got moreplans, bigger plans. They want to

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)


23/41

CONTINUED: (2) 22.

THE DOCTOR (contd)bring down this society, I guess,they normally do. Soooo, its goingto be big. Something on a bigscale, everyone will have one, so,what do we have here?

He looks around.

His P.O.V: HEAPS OF CLOTHES, BOXES piled up, FOOD CARTONS,knee deep with stuff.

THE DOCTORAah, looking for something in herewont be easy. Okaaay. New idea.And-

Suddenly, gets an idea. Looks stunned

THE DOCTORDid you say.... your name wasFlorence Watson? Like, Watson!

FLORENCEYes, why? Something wrong?

THE DOCTORAww, no, something brilliant ! Ivealways wanted to say this. So,Watson, any ideas?

FLORENCEYou know what Sherlock, No sh-

THE DOCTORLanguage!

FLORENCESorry nana, Ill stop smoking andIll mind my tongue!

THE DOCTOR(looks a bit miffed)

Good! But, anything happenedrecently? Any big stuff, anyparcels, anything been given to thewhole country? Whole planet?

THE DOCTORThere will be something thateveryone has, think...

(CONTINUED)


24/41

CONTINUED: (3) 23.

FLORENCENoooo, not really. Cant think ofanything. I mean Im not sure ifIm the best person to ask, but...

The Doctor isnt listening, hes scanning the room with theSONIC SCREWDRIVER

FLORENCEYou wont find anything, theyrenot in the habit of giving outpresents

PRAC FX: the sonic screwdriver.... beeepbeepbeep!!!!

Hes examinable something on the heap of rubbish, clothes...

THE DOCTORThen whats this?

Hes holding something up, a SYRINGE, squinting at it, in aplastic SPECIMEN BAG

FLORENCEOh, that, you really are fromanother planet arent you? Everyonehad of those-

Realising...

FLORENCEOh god. No way. Is that alien?

THE DOCTORYup. Mono-filament needle. Ithought we would be looking for, idunno, radios, clocks, strangepipes, sat navs, but this isworse... whatever it is... theyveinjected it into your body! Whatwas the syringe for?

FLORENCEA bit back... Some new virus...Susporco virus, apparently it was

highly contagious, could wipe out athird of the population of Earth...Every citys governor was told thatthey had to give the vaccine toeveryone, to inject yourself. Theysaid theyd rushed the virus out,but it had been fully tested, itwas safe?

(CONTINUED)


25/41

CONTINUED: (4) 24.

THE DOCTORLike I said, the cult of shadows,the mutants, they must have peoplein high positions... created thewhole story of the virus, thendistributed the vaccine.

FLORENCEAnd what is the vaccine? What havethey injected into my body?

THE DOCTORWeeeellllll, could be anything,could be nothing...

FLORENCEDoctor, you know dont you. Tellme!

THE DOCTORTheyre mutants. They said that wedont understand them. Yet. How doyou understand something...?

FLORENCE(understanding)

Become them...

THE DOCTORAn alien virus. It will causeeveryone to... to mutate. Likethem. There will have to be atrigger, a signal to activate it.And then, in every person inSyndey.. or Australia... maybe theworld...

FLORENCEBut... It- It wont kill us?

THE DOCTORNot if it was introduced gradually,but this... when they trigger thesignal, it will start, so quickly,it will overload the bodies immunesystems. Itll kill just fine.

Hes angry.

FLORENCEBut theres hope, right? We justhave to find the... the signal, thetrigger?

(CONTINUED)


26/41

CONTINUED: (5) 25.

THE DOCTOROf course theres hope. Theresalways hope, because youre human.You never, ever, stop hoping. Isometimes wonder what would happenif humans stopped hoping, and

thinking, and dreaming, and sailingacross the stars, and then Iremembered... itd...

FLORENCEItd what?

THE DOCTOROi, Watson, stop asking questions.Lets go get some answers instead,and... Oh!

Hes noticed the OLD TELEVISION with VHS CASSETTES by it. Heruns over, looking interested, excited, pops it into theplayer, has a look.

The SCI-FI B MOVIE starts, featuring FLORENCE as theprincess.

THE DOCTOROooh look, its you!!

He looks at Florence, then at the TV, then at Florence, thenthe TV again.

THE DOCTOROh, no, theyve got it all wrong,what kind of shaceship is that, itlooks like its made of a ping-pongball, I mean thats a bit budget!

FLORENCE(almost apologetically)

I know, I was presing for a magicdoor, or a bubble, like a glassbubble thing, but they couldntafford it.

THE DOCTORAnd Wobbly-sets! This is rubbish!

He turns it off again, pops the casette in his pocket.

THE DOCTORLets go save the world!

And, dragging Florence along by the hand he RUNS out.


27/41

26.

FADE TO:


A little side street, narrow, cobblestones, between TWO

SKYSCRAPERS.

And, parked in the corner...

The TARDIS!!

THE DOCTORThere she is, little piece ofGallifrey!

FLORENCEGallifrey?

THE DOCTORLong story its my planet. Or itwas, anyway. Terrible day for penpushers right round the dimensions.All that paperwork!

FLORENCESo whats that then?

THE DOCTORMy spaceship. Tardis, this isFlorence, Florence, this is theTardis.

FLORENCEThats your spaceship? Bit rubbishyinit? I mean, you said that we werebudget for using pin-pong balls,but that...!

THE DOCTORBit rubbishy? Bit rubbishy!? ( helooks at the Tardis, pats her abit) Now youve offended her, shesupset. Say sorry!

FLORENCEYou want me to apologise to thepolice box?

THE DOCTORYup.

(CONTINUED)


28/41

CONTINUED: (2) 27.

FLORENCESorry police box.

THE DOCTORShe has a name....

FLORENCE(sighing)Im sorry, TARDIS.

THE DOCTORThats better! Now come on!

He unlocks the door, enters. She follows, curiously...

Their voices float out...

FLORENCEYou dont see many like that...

PAN TO:

15 INT. TARDIS -- DAY

The DOCTOR making adjustments to the SCANNER, FLORENCEhaving a good look around.

THE DOCTORWere looking for something,transimitting a singal, across thewhole city.

FLORENCEWhat like a radio?

THE DOCTORGood point. Something thats onlybeen transmitting a signal for anhour max. Like um.... That.

FX: The scanner shows a TALL WING SHAPED building, halffunction, half sculpture.

THE DOCTORThats the one!

FLORENCEOoh, that the Queens Tower! Itsten minutes on foot, how long do wehave?

(CONTINUED)


29/41

CONTINUED: (2) 28.

THE DOCTORAbout five. Maybe well use theTARDIS.

Beat.

THE DOCTORYou know, the signal isnt over alarge area, I could take you away,in here, to another time, or place,safe, deal with this lot, pick youup?

FLORENCENope. You cant offer that choiceto everyone in Sydney, so thatwouldnt be fair. Im staying.

THE DOCTORBrilliant! Lets go!

And the TIME ROTOR starts up, the engines grinding, roaring.

THE DOCTORFlorence Watson, welcome onboard!

FLORENCEThanks, but it cant compare withthe ping-pong ball spaceship, canit?

THE DOCTOR(laughing)

Weve all got our own ping-pongball spaceship somewhere inside us.

FLORENCEWheres yours?

THE DOCTORMines a lovely little planetcalled Earth. In the year 1982.Ill show you. Youd like it!

They both laugh, and then....

THUMPPPPPP-CLANNNNNNG!!!!

THE DOCTORWere there! Come on...

(CONTINUED)


30/41

CONTINUED: (3) 29.

FLORENCEWere there?

THE DOCTORYup. Hope so. I dont normally getit wrong.

He THROWS open the doors, and...

Theyre there!

On a flat platform, near the top of the BUILDING describedearlier, on the scanner.

CUT TO:

16 EXT. PLATFORM -- DAY

They STRIDE OUT, FLORENCE looking all around, THE DOCTORlooking at the sky.

Above them is a TALL ARIAL thing.

FLORENCEUm... thats it? Just, that?

THE DOCTOR(looks baffled)

Yes, spose so, this must be theirbase. We just want to be nice andquiet.

FLORENCESo, take it down?

THE DOCTOROkay. Feels odd, this, no-one outtrying to stop us, no-one shoutingand firing guns.

And he approaches the base of the arial, begins to try anddeactivate it with the SONIC SCREWDRIVER, working it at thebolts.

THE DOCTORThis is... ( grunting ) a nice changefrom... usual...

Beat.

Florence shivers, hugs herself. Its chily.

(CONTINUED)


31/41

CONTINUED: (2) 30.

FLORENCEIs it working?

THE DOCTORThats the odd thing. Its undoing,one bolt at a time, and whentheyre all out, the arial comes

down, and thats it. Why?

FLORENCEWell, the time... Its been fiveminutes...

And then, suddenly, she slips, looses her footing, and sheson the floor.

THE DOCTORAre you okay?

FLORENCEYep, Im....fine...

Then, she begins to SHUDDER, rocking from side to side.

She gasps, begins to sweat.

THE DOCTORFlorence!

Hes torn... Hes got to get this down, hes got to go andsee if shes okay.

THE DOCTORFlorence!

FLORENCEIts..... fine..... just carryon.... saving the world...

THE DOCTORYou wont die, I promise.

FLORENCEI know...

Then she SPASMS suddenly.

CU: The doctor, looking concerned.

THE DOCTORDone it! Yes!

And the arials DISPLAY PANEL (readouts, etc) goes BLANK.

(CONTINUED)


32/41


33/41

CONTINUED: (2) 32.

CU: Florence;

FX: her forehead begins to crackle, and bubble, likeplastic, and slowly, scales begin to force their waythrough, green, reptilian scales emerging on her forehead!

Slowly she opens her eyes, horrified. Touches her facegently; recoils at the SCALES. So scared!

Slowly she stands up.

And, swinging from side to side- still really sick- exitsthe TARDIS...

CUT TO:

18 EXT. PLATFORM -- DAY

FLORENCE emerges, clutching her face, shivering.

THE DOCTOR is half way up the aerial, clutching something.

SOUND FX/PRAC FX: The wind is HOWLING, ROARING in theirears, face, because theyre so high up.

FLORENCEDoctor, what are you doing?

THE DOCTORGet back in the TARDIS! Its notsafe!

FLORENCEI know! Its not safe in the TARDISeither though is it? How long do Ihave?

THE DOCTORFive minutes maybe. But only aboutthree minutes until I do somethingbrilliant!

FLORENCEWhich is?

THE DOCTORThe signal is coming from every aerial in the city. I cant stopit!

(CONTINUED)


34/41

CONTINUED: (2) 33.

FLORENCEThen...?

THE DOCTORI just have to... hide it!

CU: The Doctor, wincing, grunting, reaches into his pocketfor...

FLORENCES B-MOVIE SCI-FI FILM CASSETTE!

CLINGING onto the aerial with one hand, he reaches into hisPOCKET for the SONIC SCREWDRIVER,

PRAC FX: buzzes it at the cassette, at the aerial, unclips afew wires (nice and easy!) and plugs it in.

Beat.

Then...

From some unseen, invisible speakers, so loud, across thewhole city....

The SOUNDS of the FILM, played loud.

FLORENCEWhat have you done?

THE DOCTORIts going to drown out thefrequency theyre transmiting. Itsacross every frequency, everyaerial in the country!

FLORENCEGod, thats embarassing...

Over the speakers...

CLICHED MOVIE ALIENI will never surrender, Zorg!

DASHING MOVIE CAPTINThen I... Ill have to stop you!

BEAUTTIFUL MOVIE PRINESSOh nooo! Dont fight, please!

CU: Florence... winces. But... something else...

Slowly, slowly....

(CONTINUED)


35/41

CONTINUED: (3) 34.

FX: THE SCALES roll away, FADING into normal skin! Shesback!

CU: FLORENCE

FLORENCE

I wish Id died, this is soembrassing.

The Doctor jumps down.

THE DOCTORWell, all good? Stopped baddiesnasty plan, now we fly away, not achance theyll try and stop us,have their revenge is there?

SOUNDS FX: Footsteps: lots of footsteps....

THE DOCTOROr not. Shame.

THE LEADER and ENIGMA as well as some SINISTER PEOPLE getcloser, much closer, shouting, angry....

The Doctor pretends to ignore them.

The MOVIE continues to play, loud, over the speakers....

THE DOCTORIs this really embarassingFlorence?

FLORENCEYes, very!

THE DOCTORWell, I suppose, I could... stopit?

FLORENCEHow??

THE DOCTORLike this!

He aims the sonic screwdriver at the AERIAL, and theCASETTE, 60 feet up, and...

ZEEEEEEEEPPPPPP!!!!!!

Great big EXPLOOOOOOOSION NOISE!

(CONTINUED)


36/41

CONTINUED: (4) 35.

THE DOCTORWhoopsie, looks like I broke it! Ahwell, never mind, better run costheres gonna be a great big explosion! Itll destroy the wholebuilding!

FLORENCERun?

THE DOCTORYou got it!

THE LEADERDoctor, you ahve stopped us! Ruinedeverything! You will not escape!

THE DOCTORNahh, I will, question is, willyou?

Stands up, angry

THE DOCTORYouve killed people today. Lots ofpeople. Im not going to sit,playing along to your little gamesof dress up. Im going. Florencesis going. Im giving you ONCEchance to live. Take it.

And he turns his back, slowly walks away with florence,towards the TARDIS.

The Leader seems to understand, backs down.

Enigma however, looks angry.

ENIGMANot this time!

CUT TO:

19 INT. TARDIS -- DAY

FLORENCE and THE DOCTOR enter.

The Doctor begins setting the controls.

FLORENCESo its going to blow up? Will itkill them?

(CONTINUED)


37/41

CONTINUED: (2) 36.

THE DOCTORCourse not! Its not going to blowup, that would be vandalism. Idnever do that! Its messy!

FLORENCE

You were bluffing?

THE DOCTORThis citys had enough deathalready today.

Then, from outside a:

BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!

HUGEEEEEEEEE EXPLOSION!

CU: THE DOCTOR. Confused.

Oops.

The Doctor and FLorence both run towards the DOORS, peerthrough the windows...

THEIR P.O.V: The Building is ON FIRE! Theres a GREAT BIGSHATTERED HOLE in the side, metal ripped apart, FLAMESeverywhere!

The leader is nowhere to be seen- he got away- but Enigma isa few yards from the Tardis, clawing, and trying to crawlcloser, his face ANGRY, EVIL, covered in hate.

FLORENCECant we do anything?

THE DOCTORNope. I dont know what he was....but he knows me. He was likenothing Ive ever seen before....powerful, he harnessed the rawpower of the time vortex! Thatsimpossible!

FLORENCEBut youll see him again? In yourfuture?

THE DOCTORMaybe. Time can change.Overwritting itself, in flux, likea palimpsest.

(CONTINUED)


38/41

CONTINUED: (3) 37.

FLORENCEYeah.... (Doesnt get it) I didntmention it earlier, but the wholebigger on the inside that the outthing.... thats a good groove yougot going.

CU: THE DOCTOR: He grins. He likes her.

THE DOCTORLets see whats happening downthere?

FADE TO:


The SUN is SETTING, red light, casting LONG SHADOWS over thecity.

MUSIC: SAINT IS A SINNER TOO by SLASH

THE DOCTOR and FLORENCE sit, in silence, by the RUINS ofSYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE, dangling their legs over the side,above the water.

Theyre not saying much, just sitting there, enjoying eachothers company.

Beat.

After a long time...

THE DOCTOR(conversationally)

You know you could... come with me?

FLORENCEWhere?

THE DOCTORExactly. Thats it. Where?Everywhere, that has been, or willbe, might be, could be, should be.We could sit and watch the slowturn of the anvil of galaxies, atthe edge of the universe, where allthe stars and planets that havedied, slowly sink to the bottom oftime, and of existence, and fall ofthe edge of the universe in anexplosion of colour! Red, Green,

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)


39/41

CONTINUED: (2) 38.

THE DOCTOR (contd)Blue, White, Yellow, Orange, CosmicLatte, Frume...

FLORENCEFrume?

THE DOCTORA colour. A colour that no personon earth has ever seen. Except...you can.

FLORENCEFrume. Frume. Good name.

THE DOCTORGreat name. Even better colour.Just you wait and see.

Florence smiles. Lies back.

FLORENCEI will.

Pause.

FLORENCEWho was that? The Leader of the...that group? Ive heard his voicebefore...

THE DOCTORI dunno.... Could be anyone richand unpopular...

REVERSE TO: Behind then, on the front of a building....

A HUGE DIGITAL BILLBOARD/POSTER of...

A man, with a fairly plain face, and underneath, aslogan....

Vote Jon Visagelux for a second term as president of Syndey! He sucessfully predicted the Susporco virus !

It carries on displaying slogans...THE DOCTOR

...Could be anyone.... Lets go.

They stand up, slowly, and, hand in hand, walk towards theTARDIS, parked a few metres away, and enter...

SOUND FX: The wheezing, groaning sounds, and...

(CONTINUED)


40/41

CONTINUED: (3) 39.

FX: It FADES AWAY...

Beat.

PULL BACK TO:

21 INT. TV SCREEN -- DAY

A LARGE SCREEN, showing the TARDIS fading away, and theDoctor and Florence.

It over and over again cuts to close ups of their faces,little lines zipp out of their faces, trailing across thescreen....

PULL BACK TO:

22 INT. OFFICE - SYDNEY -- DAY.

THE TV SCREEN is on the wall.

The room is DARK, full of SHADOWS.

THE LEADER (O.O.V)Pause. Rewind. Play.

The screen does...

And REVERSE to REVEAL, watching the screen....

THE PRESIDENT OF SYNDEY! (Jon visagelux!) sitting there, butwhen he speaks, its with the voice of the leader. Althoughhis hood is off, he wears the ROBES that he wore as theleader.

THE LEADER/THE PRESIDENT OF SYDENYDamn them. Damn them.

Behind him, some movement, in the DARK of the room. Someonesteps forwards.

ENIGMARelax, Jon. Well meet them again.Trust me.

Enigma! He survived!

CUT TO:


41/41

40.

23 EXT. SPACE -- DAY

The TARDIS hangs in space, by a FEW PLANETS, a SUPERNOVA,the works, typical space vista...

ENIGMA (V.O)

And the Jester made his escape, andhe was confident he had doneenough, and he blocked from hismind the murders on his behalf, thedeaths he had caused, and ran. Ranlike a coward. But he was a fool.Because they would meet again, hisfriend, him, his foe. And thattime, one of them would die!

CUT TO: END TITLES: END OF EPISODE 4B.1

4b.01 palimpsest

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