Editing Mission to the Unknown (section)

{{good article}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2012}}
{{Infobox Doctor Who episode
| number             = 019
| serial_name        = Mission to the Unknown
| show               = DW
| type               = episode
| image              = Mission to the Unknown.jpg
| caption            = A [[production still]] showing the [[Dalek]]s colluding with the masters of the Fifth Galaxy.{{efn|No broadcast images from the original episode exist,{{sfn|Wright|2017|p=48}} leaving only [[production still]]s and off-air audio recordings.{{sfn|Wright|2017|p=57}}}} Critics praised the costumes and set design.{{sfn|Wright|2017|p=56}}{{sfn|Howe|Walker|1998|p=106}}{{sfn|Howe|Walker|1998|pp=105–106}}
| alt                = Several aliens (mostly humanoid, some wearing helmets) stand around a table, with a Dalek at the side of the frame.
| cast               = 
* [[Barry Jackson (actor)|Barry Jackson]] – Jeff Garvey
* [[Edward de Souza]] – Marc Cory
* [[Jeremy Young]] – Gordon Lowery
* Robert Cartland – Malpha
* [[David Graham (actor)|David Graham]], [[Peter Hawkins]] – [[Dalek]] voices
* [[Robert Jewell]], [[Kevin Manser]], [[John Scott Martin]], Gerald Taylor – Dalek operators
| director           = [[Derek Martinus]]
| writer             = [[Terry Nation]]
| script_editor      = [[Donald Tosh]]
| producer           = [[Verity Lambert]]
| composer           = [[Trevor Duncan]]{{efn|[[Stock music]] sourced from a 1956 disc{{sfn|Wright|2017|p=53}}}}
| production_code    = {{hlist|DC|T/A|T Episode 5{{efn|The episode's [[Production code number|production code]] changed throughout production: "DC" around April and May 1965, "T/A" in July, and later "T Episode 5".{{sfn|Pixley|1998|p=24}}}}}}
| series             = [[Doctor Who (season 3)|Season 3]]
| length             = 25 minutes
| missing_eps        = 1 episode
| date               = {{Start date|1965|10|9|df=y}}
| preceding          = ''[[Galaxy 4]]''
| following          = ''[[The Myth Makers]]''
}}

"'''Mission to the Unknown'''"{{efn|Alternatively known as "Dalek Cutaway" or as a combination of the two titles{{sfn|Wright|2017|pp=56–57}}}} is the second [[Serial (radio and television)|serial]] of the [[Doctor Who (season 3)|third season]] of the British [[science fiction television]] series ''[[Doctor Who]]''. Written by [[Terry Nation]] and directed by [[Derek Martinus]], the single episode was broadcast on [[BBC1]] on 9 October 1965. The only standalone regular episode of the show's original run,{{efn|The 1983 feature-length anniversary [[Television special|special]] "[[The Five Doctors]]" was produced as a single episode, and later shown in a multi-episode format. Standalone episodes became standard in the show's modern run from 2005 with "[[Rose (Doctor Who episode)|Rose]]".}} it serves as an introduction to the 12-part story ''[[The Daleks' Master Plan]]''. It is notable for the complete absence of the regular cast and the [[TARDIS]]; it is the only serial in [[History of Doctor Who|the show's history]] not to feature [[The Doctor (Doctor Who)|the Doctor]] at all. The story focuses on Space Security Agent Marc Cory ([[Edward de Souza]]) and his attempts to warn Earth of the [[Dalek]]s' plan to take over the [[Solar System]].

After the show's second production block was granted an additional episode, outgoing [[story editor]] [[Dennis Spooner]] commissioned Nation to write an extra episode as a [[Cutaway (filmmaking)|cutaway]] to set up ''The Daleks' Master Plan''. Nation wrote the episode while considering a Dalek-focused [[Spin-off (media)|spin-off]]; he used film character [[Portrayal of James Bond in film|James Bond]] as inspiration for Marc Cory. "Mission to the Unknown" was produced by the same team as its predecessor, ''[[Galaxy 4]]'', in a five-week period that concluded the show's second production block; the two serials were held back to open the third season. Failing health prevented original director [[Mervyn Pinfield]] from continuing, replaced by Martinus. Production took place at the [[Television Centre, London|Television Centre]] in August 1965.

"Mission to the Unknown" received 8.3 million viewers, a drop from the previous serial. Contemporary and retrospective reviews were generally positive, with praise for the script and direction, though some viewers were confused that the [[The Myth Makers|following serial]] did not immediately continue the narrative. The [[videotape]]s of the episode were [[Lost television broadcast#Wiping|wiped]] by the [[BBC]] in July 1974, and it remains [[Doctor Who missing episodes|missing]] with no remaining footage. Usually alongside ''The Daleks' Master Plan'', "Mission to the Unknown" received print and [[audiobook]] adaptations, with off-air recordings used to construct the latter. In 2019, director Andrew Ireland and [[University of Central Lancashire]] students recreated the episode in live-action, replicating the 1960s production values.