The TV MOVIE Sonic Prop

THE SONIC SCREWDRIVER PROP HISTORY (part 2)  

Right, next up…

The 8th Doctor’s Sonic Screwdriver. Based heavily on the design of the Pertwee-Davison prop, this version had a sharper bullet tip, a shorter 'magnet' end (both painted red), a brass ring in the lower section, and a flat bottom. It also, with a twist, could be shorted as a section sunk in on itself. But hey, you know all that... and the point of this blog is to reveal what you don't  know!

I really like this Sonic. All in all, it’s a good riff on the original, adding something new but keeping the flavour of what has gone before. ‎Some of the high end metal prop replicas you can buy are superb, the craftsmanship exceptional in some cases. So, here;s a few pictures of screen accurate replicas of the TV MOVIE Sonic, right?

Replica 8th Doctor Sonic Screwdrivers

Another TV MOVIE Sonic Screwdriver replica & TARDIS key

WRONG! 

Yep that right, those replicas are wrong and not screen accurate. Once again, like the 2nd Doctors WAR GAMES Sonic, we are only seeing what we want to see. It's not helped that each replica was copied off another copy and not from the original and that's why all the replicas ever produced of this version have got it wrong. How? Well, more of that later (ah, I do like a good cliffhanger), as what I want to do 1st is have a quick look at the history of the prop and once again blow some more of those fan myths away. Not only that, but I'll also reveal a bit of shenanigans that was at work a few years ago that started me off on this particular quest.‎ So let's kick off and bust a few 'facts' along the way. 

The 8th Doctors Sonic Screwdriver at the DWE

Back in 2012 I went to the original Doctor Who Experience in London and there, in a display case, was a set of Sonic Screwdriver replicas as used by Doctor's 3, 4, 5 & 8. Each of them were labelled as 'replicas'. All fine and dandy… until The Exhibition moved to Cardiff a few months later. 

Yes, it appeared that some Time Lord magic had been at work as during their trip from London to Cardiff all the Sonic Screwdriver replicas mysteriously bore the label 'original'. Obviously smelling something wasn't right about that and the multiple versions of the Sonic prop. I contacted the Brand Protection Team, who to be honest were at first dismissive and certainly not very forthcoming with information regarding the change of the labeling (but more details on that and my correspondence with them re the 3-5th Doctor's Sonic Screwdrivers 's in a future blog). 

NIGHT OF THE DOCTOR

Whatever the reason, whatever the story, it was all about to change for the 8th Doctors Sonic Screwdriver prop… In 2013 Paul McGann's incarnation of the Time Lord was seen in publicity photos and of course in THE NIGHT OF THE DOCTOR, brandishing a sonic screwdriver that looked very much like the one he was given to use in the TV MOVIE. 

Publicity Photo of McGann as the 8th Doctor

I doubted the one seen in THE NIGHT OF THE DOCTOR was the original Sonic Screwdriver, as used in the TV MOVIE. I personally suspected it was the replica seen at the DWE, the one that had been mysteriously upgraded to 'original'. That said, if the replica had of been used in the minisode then it, like the 10^th Doctor MFX Sonic Screwdriver replica in DAY OF THE DOCTOR, could now claim the 'Original Prop' status by de-fault. This was finally confirmed by The Brand Protection Team in 2013 when I contacted them once again re the legitimacy of their Sonic props. However, despite repeatedly asking, an explanation was never given of how that 8th Doctors Sonic Screwdriver became labelled as ‘original’ a whole year before the actual minisode was filmed. A mystery and quite impossible, unless someone had 2^nd sight, or a Time Machine! I wasn't satisfied and so my investigations continued. Slowly, as I researched the history of the prop, information would fall into place that would confirm that the Sonic Screwdriver showcased at the DWE could never claim to be one used in the TV MOVIE...

Paul replying re the 8th Doctor Sonic prop

The following year I discovered that Paul Salamoff owned an original TV MOVIE Sonic. If that was the case had he sold it on and the new owner lent it to the DWE to be used in THE NIGHT OF THE DOCTOR? Or, had he himself granted the loan? I found out Paul was on twitter so, I decided to ask him direct. (see correspondence opposite)

Paul also confirmed that he still had the prop and that it was safely with him in America. All was good so far, but after sitting on it for a while, and still hearing various myths about the TV MOVIE Sonic's, I decided I should find out more, especially as he said he owned 'one' of the props. I re-read the tweet and of course, he also mentioned that he was sure there were a number made for the shoot. Hmm, how many I wondered and was one of them wooden as popular myth would have it? Realising that my question had now raised a few more that I now wanted answered, there was only one thing to do. I needed to find out how many were made. The next step, of course was to contact Philip Segal, the producer of the TV MOVIE. If anyone was going to know it would be him. So, it was back on twitter again...

Philip was equally as helpful and gave me the answer I was looking for (see below). ‎It was also interesting that he corrected another 'fan fact', without prompting. For years the accepted knowledge was that the TV MOVIE production company styled their version of the Sonic on a model advertised in the Trekker 800 magazine. Not so then, as Philip said it was an actual bought item from Trekker 800, modified ‎to suit the production companies requirements. Another popular rumour was the production company had one a metal hero and a wooden 'stunt' prop. Again, thanks to Philips answer, another 'fact' blown out of the water. Its strange how things become fan-fact but never questioned. 

So, there you have it… Only two Sonic Screwdriver props were made/adapted for the production and both still in the US. One owned by producer Philip Segal, the other by Paul Salamoff and contrary to fan belief there was ‎no wooden stunt prop made at all. SORTED! 

Well, sort of… because as there were only two metal ones made and both of them were still in America, what was the one at the Cardiff DWE? Well, putting it bluntly, it had been a fake and someone was up to no good claiming it was original before 2013, when it clearly wasn’t. It didn't help matters that the labeling after the minisode was misleading. Its should have read 'Original - as seen in Night Of The Doctor''. That said, it still didn't clear up the mystery as to why the Cardiff DWE decided to change its labeling. It makes me wonder what false documentation were they willing to swallow? Why hadn't they checked the legitimacy of the prop as I had. It is so easy, but laziness, or at worse dishonesty, prevailed.

And that seemed to be that, two original props in the USA from the TV MOVIE, and one non-related-replica-turned-original in the UK. All my questions (apart from why the prop at the DWE was labelled original before the minisode had been filmed) had been answered. There seemed to be nothing else to know about this particular prop... until that is in July 2016, when the 8th Doctor's Sonic revealed a secret. A secret had been sitting there, just waiting to be discovered and, as with the 2nd Dr's WAR GAMES Sonic Screwdriver, it was hidden in plain sight. 

Let me explain....

In 2016, while watching the TV MOVIE, another member of a props group I used to be in, John Paul Gervais, noticed a detail not picked up before. This can be seen very briefly in the scene where Lee examines the contents of the bag he stole from the hospital. Before I say what it is, have a look at the picture right. This is an actual still grab from the TV MOVIE. Found it yet? No? Then look again. If you've spotted it, I bet you are asking yourself why, like everyone else, did you not spot it before? It's odd isn't it as once its seen it cannot be unseen. For all those still none the wiser, look at the side of the prop, and there it is, a greenish button or switch. 

To check that this was not a trick of the light, or a half-eaten jelly baby that had attached itself to the prop, I decided once again to contact producer Philip Segal about it. (see below) 

Yep, its true and straight from the Producers mouth, or should I say fingers! The 8th Doctor's TV MOVIE Sonic Screwdriver had a switch that had gone undetected and un-mentioned for 20 years. Incredible! Now this means that all the superbly detailed metal replicas, the plastic CO toys, even that infamous replica at the DWE (as used in NIGHT OF THE DOCTOR) are all inaccurate. They are certainly not screen accurate because they are all without the activation switch that was used, and can be seen, in THE TV MOVIE. For me, it is also the final 100% proof I was looking for that the DWE 8th Doctors Sonic Screwdriver was not the Movie prop that it was originally claiming to be.

The DWE 8th Doctor Sonic. Note the absence of the pop-up switch

But what about the other Sonic Screwdriver props featured at The Experience that also claimed that they were 'original'? Have no fear, as mentioned earlier, I will be covering those in a future blog.

Once again, thanks for reading. Please feel free to tweet, email or post a link to this blog to those you think will be interested. Also don't forget to message me with any questions or leave feedback below. 

Until next time...