And then it was gone!

This article appeared in the Southend Evening Echo on 13th November, 1975:



"This Dalek's been zapped - by a callous thief with an eye for space monsters. The hi-jacker has stolen the model from its builders Richard Nunes (left) and Sheyne Lucock.


"The two students are pictured here recently with their space-age pal. They were proud of their version of one of the metal-clad evil-doers who plague television's zany timetraveller Doctor Who. It took them six weeks to build.


"But the mystery of its disappearance is a Whodunnit that would baffle even the Doctor. The Dalek was snatched at Imperial College, London, where 20-year old Richard, of Wyatts Drive, Thorpe Bay, is studying physics with Sheyne."


The Dalek's disappearance received wide publicity at the time. It was featured on Shaw Taylor's 'Police Five' crime show, Capital Radio's 'Police Call', and a major item on BBC 1's Blue Peter, with Lesley Judd, Peter Purvis, and John Noaks. Embarrassingly,  they even played a recording of my own 'Dalek-voice' yelling 'Exterminate! All Humans Will Be Destroyed!' live on the programme.


Once the Dalek was recovered, there was a follow-up item on Blue Peter to reassure viewers that the Dalek was safe and sound.

First Press Outing for Dalek in 1975

I recently discovered an old press clipping from the Southend Evening Echo dating back to 23rd July 1975. The article read:


Watch out - Dr. Who's greatest enemy, the Daleks, are back. Invading the streets of London, no less. But they won't be exterminating anybody. It's just a rag-week stunt by Thorpe Bay student Richard Nunes, left, and his friend Sheyne Lucock. They built a 6ft wooden and fibreglass Dalek with the intention of taking it to the Royal Albert Hall. Richard, 20, of Wyatts Drive, is studying Physics at the Imperial College. He said: "The original idea was to scare a few people in London and have a laugh. But the laugh's on us. The Dalek cost more than we bargained for - £100."

Dalek Invasion of Suffolk

Back in the mid-1970s this giant Dalek was a familiar sight in Aldeburgh, Suffolk where it trundled up and down the Saxmundham Road and made a guest appearance at the Aldeburgh Cinema for the annual town carnival. It also made forays out into the High Street to advertise the film 'Peter Pan'.

The Dalek in question was built in 1976 using plans published by the BBC in a Radio Times Dr Who Special, and using materials and components that the BBC workshops used to create their own Dalek versions - except that this one ended up rather bigger, standing a good 6 feet high!

The Dalek made its debut public appearance on the steps of the Royal Albert Hall in South Kensington just as the opening night of the Proms was ending and caused quite a stir among the concert goers as they streamed down the steps into Prince Consort Road.

This Dalek's reputation for getting into trouble started off when it was trundling along Oxford Street and stopped temporarily outside Debenham's. The commissionaire was alarmed at the huge crowd gathering around it and called the police. Minutes later a 'Black Maria' screamed to a halt alongside and what seemed like an army of uniformed officers piled out of the back and surrounded the Dalek. They then remonstrated with the Dalek that it was causing an obstruction and attempted to arrest it, much to the amusement of the assembled crowd.

However, it was the Dalek's misfortune to be solen overnight from its temporary home at Imperial College that brought it to the attention of millions when it's plight was featured on the BBC television programme 'Blue Peter', the ITV crime reporting programme 'Police Five' and a sprinkling of radio programmes and newspaper articles.