Stories Television Doctor Who Season 5 Serial: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 The Tomb of the Cybermen Original Story TV Soundtrack TV Soundtrack 2006 Original Story TV Soundtrack TV Soundtrack 2006 1 image Overview Episodes Characters How to Watch Reviews 11 Statistics Related Stories Quotes 7 Transcript Overview First aired Saturday, September 2, 1967 Production Code MM Written by Gerry Davis, Kit Pedler Directed by Morris Barry Runtime 100 minutes Time Travel Future Tropes (Potential Spoilers!) Base Under Siege, First TARDIS trip, Spiked Drink, Tomb, Traps Location (Potential Spoilers!) Telos Synopsis The TARDIS arrives on the planet Telos, where an Earth archaeological expedition led by Professor Parry is trying to uncover the lost tombs of the Cybermen. With a lot of help from the Doctor, the archaeologists enter the tombs. There, one of the party, Klieg, reveals himself and his business partner, Kaftan, to be planning to revive the Cybermen. Watch Watched Favourite Favourited Add Review Edit Review Log a repeat Skip Skipped Unowned Owned Owned Save to my list Saved Edit date completed Custom Date Release Date Archive (no date) Save 4 Episodes Episode 1 First aired Saturday, September 2, 1967 Runtime 25 minutes Written by Kit Pedler Gerry Davis Directed by Morris Barry UK Viewers 6 million Appreciation Index 53 Synopsis The Doctor, Jamie and Victoria arrive on Telos, where an archaeological group are exploring the Tomb of the Cybermen. But are the Cybermen as dormant as they believe? Episode 2 First aired Saturday, September 9, 1967 Runtime 25 minutes Written by Kit Pedler Gerry Davis Directed by Morris Barry UK Viewers 6.4 million Appreciation Index 52 Synopsis The archaeologists learn they are stranded on Telos and Klieg suggests they use the opportunity to explore the Cybermen's tombs. Episode 3 First aired Saturday, September 16, 1967 Runtime 25 minutes Written by Kit Pedler Gerry Davis Directed by Morris Barry UK Viewers 7.2 million Appreciation Index 49 Synopsis The Cybermen have been revived and plan to convert the archeologists into their own kind, prompting Hopper to attempt a rescue. Episode 4 First aired Saturday, September 23, 1967 Runtime 25 minutes Written by Kit Pedler Gerry Davis Directed by Morris Barry UK Viewers 7.4 million Appreciation Index 50 Synopsis Klieg attempts to do a deal with the Cybercontroller while the Doctor tries to find a way to refreeze the Cybermen permanently. Show All Episodes Characters Second Doctor Patrick Troughton Jamie McCrimmon Frazer Hines Victoria Waterfield Deborah Watling Peter Haydon First Appearance Hopper First Appearance Parry Cybermen Cybermats First Appearance Show All Characters (8) How to watch The Tomb of the Cybermen: Watch on iPlayer DVD The Tomb of the Cybermen DVD The Cybermen Collection DVD Revisitations 3 (The Tomb of the Cybermen, The Three Doctors & The Robots of Death) DVD The Monster Collection: The Cybermen VHS The Tomb of the Cybermen (VHS) Reviews Add Review Edit Review Sort: Default Date (Newest First) Date (Oldest First) Likes (High-Low) Likes (Low-High) Rating (High-Low) Rating (Low-High) Word count (High-Low) Word count (Low-High) Username (A-Z) Username (Z-A) Spoilers First Spoilers Last 11 reviews 2 May 2024 · 119 words Review by 6-and-7 6 The good: Cyber-lore! The bad: Really racist! I can't completely dismiss this story; there is some good stuff in there. The Doctor and Victoria have a beautiful and poignant conversation about loss, there are some real moments of levity, and the iconic scene of the Cybermen pushing their way out of the tombs. On the other hand, the depictions of the villains is really bad. Kaftan is named after clothes, and Toberman... oh, there's not enough time in the day to discuss why Toberman's portrayal as a strong, silent black manservant who is literally and figuratively dehumanized by the narrative is messed up. I think it's still worth watching, but it's an extremely mixed bag to say the least. 6-and-7 View profile Like Liked 6 29 April 2024 · 52 words Review by glass_shard 4 I kinda don't get the acclaim for this one. The setting's interesting but the character drama is a bit dull, and while I normally try to forgive problematic elements in 60s stories as being products of the time, the sexism and racism in the writing here is just too prominent to ignore. glass_shard View profile Like Liked 4 19 August 2024 · 503 words Review by 15thDoctor Spoilers 3 This review contains spoilers! Victoria: "You probably can't remember your family." The Doctor: "I can when I want to... and that's the point really. I have to really want to, to bring them back in front of my eyes, the rest of the time they sleep in my mind and I forget. And so will you - you'll find there is so much else to remember. Our lives are different to anybody else's. That's the exciting thing; nobody in the universe can do what we are doing." And that's my favourite speech in Doctor Who so far. An old and wise Doctor comforting Victoria, who is only just coming to terms with the loss of her father. Victoria is very much a return to classic "vulnerable" female companion who is told not to do anything, with The Doctor becoming a father figure. While I'll miss Polly's strength, it does allow for spine tingling and touching scenes like the one above. I have always loved Tomb of the Cybermen and on this watch through I still thought it was fantastic. The Cybermen are back and their heartlessness comes across well on screen. They are very well realised monsters. This, coupled with the traps laid throughout the base, means that there is a real sense of peril in this story. The fact it is a four part story really works in its favour. There are a few 6 part stories I can think of that wouldn't be improved by lopping off a couple of episodes. Episode 2 was the only one to drag at all, other than that the story romped along at a very enjoyable pace. I was particularly taken by the tomb is discovered by blowing a hole in the side of a mountain; the shooting range Cyberman freaking out our heroes; the initial appearance of the Cybermen breaking the film and coming out of their pods (that set is SO tall!) If I had a couple of nitpicks it would be that several people very obviously pretended to be asleep or knocked out throughout the story, often in order to deceive the team with what came across as wafer thin or unbelievable motivations. The hatch opened and closed so many times, our heroes deciding to get out of there, and then deciding to jump right back in, and then deciding to get out of there again! The constant appeal to so called "symbolic logic" was also a bit silly. The cast however are excellent. I liked the multicultural vibe they were trying to establish, but this is partly where another area story starts to fall down a little for me. It is the second story in a row (and not the second in total) where a black man was portrayed as strong and simple, in this case he was also a slave, which is uncomfortable. Women in the far flung future were also portrayed as having very little power. I hate to criticise this story though. I love it. One of the most engaging in the whole run. 15thDoctor View profile Like Liked 3 21 February 2025 · 114 words Review by greenLetterT 2 First and foremost, I enjoyed having moving images again! I liked watching real people act! Onwards: The Tomb of the Cyberman is often considered a classic serial and I do somewhat see why: the scene of the Cybermen leaving their tomb is incredibly effective and I really enjoy the Doctors' characterisation. The final cliffhanger about the fate of the Cybermen is good, but the ending of "off they pop back into their tombs" felt a bit weak. The character of Toberman (I say character, more like caricature) can't be ignored though, and the racist stereotypes that went into pretty much every part of his design (strongman, doesn't speak English, violent) make for unpleasant watching greenLetterT View profile Like Liked 2 28 July 2024 · 146 words Review by Seer 3 Very much a game of two halves. It's one of the best-looking serials of the 60s, and the regulars are on some of their finest form. The scene where the Doctor and Victoria have an honest talk about loss and grief is something that is very rare in the Classic series, but oh so welcome. This is among the most iconic outings for the Cybermen, ever, their sneakiness and villainy following up on The Moonbase. The opening acts are tense and well-paced. Then along come episodes three and four, and the pacing seems to go haywire. It also goes without saying that there is some seriously racist crap in this story, especially in the way Tobermann is written. It makes it rather hard to enjoy. On balance, I'd still call it a good story, but it could have been great if it had avoided these things. Seer View profile Like Liked 3 Show All Reviews (11) Open in new window Statistics AVG. Rating636 members 4.00 / 5 Member Statistics Watched 1084 Favourited 178 Reviewed 11 Saved 4 Skipped 2 Related Stories The Fourth Doctor Adventures S4 • Episode 8 Return to Telos Rating: 2.58 Story Skipped Audio Drama Reviews(3) More Actions View Sets Close Related Sets Set of Stories: The Fourth Doctor Adventures Add Review Edit Review Skip Skipped Unowned Owned Save to my list Saved Forty 1 Secrets of Telos Rating: 3.53 Story Skipped Audio Drama Reviews(3) More Actions View Sets Close Related Sets Set of Stories: The Fifth Doctor Adventures Add Review Edit Review Skip Skipped Unowned Owned Save to my list Saved Video Games LEGO Dimensions Rating: 4.19 Story Skipped Video Game Reviews(4) More Actions View Sets Close Related Sets Set of Stories: Video Games Add Review Edit Review Skip Skipped Unowned Owned Save to my list Saved Other adaptations of this story: We define an adaptation as a recreation of a similar story but on a different medium or with different characters. Target Collection Doctor Who and the Tomb of the Cybermen Rating: 3.56 Story Skipped Book Reviews(1) More Actions View Sets Close Related Sets Set of Stories: Target Collection Add Review Edit Review Skip Skipped Unowned Owned Save to my list Saved Other variations of this story We define a variation as another way of experiencing the exact same story - like an autiobook, a reconstruction or an omnibus edition. BBC Audio Soundtracks The Tomb of the Cybermen (BBC Audio Soundtrack) Rating: 3.71 Story Skipped Soundtrack Reviews(1) More Actions View Sets Close Related Sets Set of Stories: BBC Audio Soundtracks Add Review Edit Review Skip Skipped Unowned Owned Save to my list Saved BBC Audio Soundtracks The Tomb of the Cybermen (BBC Audio Soundtrack) (2006) Rating: 3.50 Story Skipped Soundtrack Reviews(1) More Actions View Sets Close Related Sets Set of Stories: BBC Audio Soundtracks Add Review Edit Review Skip Skipped Unowned Owned Save to my list Saved Quotes Add Quote Link to Quote Favourite DOCTOR: Our lives are different to anybody else’s. That’s the exciting thing. There’s nobody in the universe can do what we’re doing. — The Tomb of the Cybermen Show All Quotes (7) Open in new window Transcript Needs checking Episode One [TARDIS] (The Doctor and Victoria enter.) DOCTOR: There we are. Well, what do you think?VICTORIA: I don't know. I can't believe it. It's so big. Where are we?DOCTOR: Oh, it's the TARDIS. It's my home. At least, it has been for a considerable number of years.VICTORIA: What are all these knobs?DOCTOR: What, these?JAMIE: Instruments. These are for controlling our flight.VICTORIA: Flight?JAMIE: Well, yes. You see, we travel around in here through time and space.DOCTOR: Oh no, no, no, no. Don't laugh. It's true. Your father and Maxtible were working on the same problem, but I have perfected a rather special model, which enables me to travel through the universe of time.VICTORIA: How can you? I mean, if what you say is true then you must be, er, well, how old?DOCTOR: Well, if we count in Earth terms, I suppose I must be about four hundred, yes, about four hundred and fifty years old. Yes, well, quite. Now, I think Victoria might find that dress a little impracticable if she's going to join us in our adventures. Jamie, show her where she can find some new ones, will you?JAMIE: Aye, right. This way, Victoria. Try to give us a smooth take off, Doctor? We don't want to frighten her. (Jamie leaves.) Show Full Transcript Open in new window