10 Worst Doctor Who Prosthetics Ever
9. Tree People - The Mark Of The Rani (1985)
Now we’re talking. This gaffe comes courtesy of the sixth doctor and the introduction of an intriguing new threat, the Rani.
The plot focuses on the Master and the Rani battling it out for the position of who gets to be the Doctor’s nemesis. The village locals of Killingworth are being driven to violent outbursts by the experiments of the Rani, who eventually forms an uneasy alliance with the Master in an attempt to finally bring the Doctor down. Sounds like a solid episode so far - that is until the story reaches the forest of Redfern Dell.
The Rani has planted landmines but these are no ordinary explosives. Instead, they turn people into the very trees of the forest, a fate that falls on poor Luke Ward. When Peri is about to suffer the same fate, tree Luke grabs her and prevents her from stepping on the mine.
The costume for the tree is pretty poor; the ‘branch’ that reaches out to grab Peri is just an arm with a brown shirt on. Surely it wouldn’t have blown the budget to add a bit more cardboard around the arms to create a slightly more convincing branch?