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The Hungry Earth

209a – "The Hungry Earth"
Doctor Who episode
HungryEarththumb.jpg
Alaya talks to the Doctor. This episode featured redesigned Silurians, the reception of which was mixed.
Cast
Others
Production
Directed by Ashley Way
Written by Chris Chibnall
Script editor Lindsey Alford
Produced by Peter Bennett
Executive producer(s) Steven Moffat
Piers Wenger
Beth Willis
Incidental music composer Murray Gold
Production code 1.8
Series Series 5
Length 1st of 2-part story, 45 minutes
Originally broadcast 22 May 2010
Chronology
← Preceded by Followed by →
"Amy's Choice" "Cold Blood"
List of Doctor Who serials

"The Hungry Earth" is the eighth episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 22 May 2010 on BBC One. It was written by Chris Chibnall, who had previously written for Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. It is the first episode of a two-part story, the second episode being "Cold Blood", and features the return of the Silurians, a reptile-like humanoid race last seen in 1984's Warriors of the Deep.

In the episode, the Doctor—a time travelling alien played by Matt Smith—and his companions Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) and Rory Williams (Arthur Darvill) land in Wales in 2020, where a drilling operation headed by Nasreen Chaudhry (Meera Syal) is drilling deep into the earth and disrupting a civilisation of Silurians who dwell beneath the earth. The Silurians cause holes to open in the earth, one of which consumes Amy. The Doctor and Rory capture one Silurian, Alaya (Neve McIntosh), and the Doctor instructs Rory and a local family to not harm Alaya, as it could spark a war. He then takes Nasreen in the TARDIS to the Silurian civilisation to rescue Amy and a local boy.

Executive producers Steven Moffat and Piers Wenger contacted Chibnall and asked him to write a two-part episode involving Silurians and a drill. Moffat wished to redesign the Silurians and worked together with Chibnall to create the idea of distinguishing prosthetics for their faces. Being in the fourth production block of the series, the episode was filmed in October and November 2009, with location filming in Llanwynno, Wales. McIntosh then returned in the series as a recurrent actress, portraying Madame Vastra, another Silurian character. The episode was watched by 6.49 million viewers on BBC One and BBC HD and received mixed reviews from critics. While some praised the horror, some noted that the story was very simplistic, and critics disagreed about the redesigned Silurians.


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Wikipedia

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