Rare Dalek
From time to time, the Project Dalek research team uncover interesting and rare Dalek related material. One such recent find (in February 2008) was a collection of very well preserved original negatives, still wrapped in their paper sleeves and almost completely scratch free. In all, 24 unique black and white second Movie Dalek photographs were included, none of which, as far as we know, have ever been published.
On closer scrutiny, this particular Movie Dalek, if indeed it is a Shawcraft original, was built but never actually appeared in the film. What little paperwork we have, suggests that it is a Dalek built for advertising or publicity purposes. This tied in with the source of the negatives... a retired advertising industry executive who worked with companies such as Quaker, in the 1960s.
The colour scheme struck us as highly unusual and was the cause of quite a wave of argument and debate. The true colour content of black and white images is sometimes notoriously difficult to pin down and this Dalek was no exception. Everyone seemed to have a different opinion on what colour the Dalek was. Suggestions ranged from gray, through light blue, all the way to yellow!
In the end, it became obvious that more research was required, in order to find out, once and for all, what colour this unique Dalek was. After several weeks of asking questions and writing emails, nothing more was discovered, until our original source of the black and white negatives called and announced that he'd found a single full colour transparency, which he had originally presumed either lost or destroyed. Fortunately it had survived the passing of the years hidden away in the bottom of a box of books, stored away in his loft!
He explained that the advertising campaign that the Dalek was commissioned for, was for a new line of instant powdered milk shakes, which never made it into the shops. The company in question was being hit hard by a rival who was threatening legal action due to 'copyright issues'. In the end, the entire project was shelved and the Dalek was put into storage in a film studio lock-up. If anyone knows what happened to this Dalek, please get in touch.
The one remaining colour transparency was sent over to us on the 31st March 2008, via registered mail and arrived at Project Dalek the following day. The simple card frame was yellowed and stained but the actual transparency was in fairly good condition. It was carefully mounted in the scanner frame and slid into the scanner. The final scan results were utterly amazing and not at all what we were expecting. Though absolutely recognizable as a Dalek, this prop was completely unique. All we can assume is that the colour was an essential part of the advertising brief.
To see the one and only known colour image of this truly unique Dalek... click here!
