Doctor Who: The Curse of Fatal Death

Doctor Who: The Curse of Fatal Death, is a 20-minute television comedy special that premiered in 1999, marking the 30th anniversary of the long-running British science fiction television program. The special is a pastiche of James Bond films, specifically a comedy parody taking its name from Diamonds Are Forever's The Man with the Golden Gun's The Man with the Golden Gun, where the villainous character was called The Man with the Golden Gun, and the parody here was called The Curse of Fatal Death. The story takes place in the future where the Doctor (played by Paul McGann) has returned to his TARDIS, which has finally been repaired, and is eager to settle down to married life with his wife Grace Holloway (played by Daphne Ashbrook). However, fate seems to have other plans for the Doctor as the Master (played by Richard E. Grant) reappears. The Master, dressed in a white dinner jacket, a nod to his Bond-like appearance, is revealed to have had his face transplanted onto a chimpanzee's body. The chimpanzee, which appears to still retain the Master's intellect and wit, has a new face and a penchant for martinis. As the Master plots to kill the Doctor, he enlists the help of a femme fatale, a seductive and cunning woman who is the only one who seems to be aware of the true Master's plans. The Master's plan involves manipulating events to make it seem as though the world is on the brink of destruction, thereby giving him the opportunity to eliminate the Doctor once and for all. Meanwhile, the Doctor and his wife are celebrating their wedding anniversary in a luxurious setting, complete with a white Christmas tree, a champagne glass, and a dinner with fine china and crystal. However, their idyllic evening is disrupted when the Master's henchmen, dressed in their black evening attire, arrive and kidnap the Doctor. The Master reveals that he has replaced the Doctor with his chimpanzee form, which allows him to pretend to be the Doctor while still plotting against him. As the Doctor is being held captive, Grace sets out to rescue him. She discovers the truth behind the Doctor's doppelganger and teams up with the real Doctor to stop the Master's plan. The two eventually make their way to the location where the true Master has a massive nuclear missile ready to destroy the world. In a thrilling showdown, the Doctor and Grace manage to outwit the Master's henchmen and ultimately defeat him. The special ends with the Doctor and his wife embracing as the TARDIS dematerializes in the background. In a final twist, it is revealed that the chimpanzee Master has been secretly working for a mysterious woman in red, who is revealed to be the Doctor's future companion, Rose Tyler, played by Billie Piper, in a brief pre-Doomsday scene that foreshadows the events of a decade later.