K is for... Karela

 

The cruel and sadistic Madam Karela was deputy to Lady Adrasta, one of the rulers of the planet Chloris.

Adrasta had gained her status through ownership of a monopoly of metals. These were in short supply on Chloris, and Adrasta had imprisoned an ambassador from the planet Tythonus to preserve her monopoly. The ambassador - Erato - had hoped to trade metals for supplies of chlorophyll, of which the jungle planet had an abundance.

Karela was fiercely loyal to Adrasta, and would offer to kill anyone who threatened her. However, after her mistress' death, Karela attempted to seize power for herself. She killed the leader of a band of metal thieves to obtain control over their stash, and to prevent Erato from completing his mission she stole a control component from his spaceship.

The Doctor had K9 disintegrate the thieves' metal stockpile to force Karela to return the component. Presumably the new regime on Chloris will have locked her up, as she could never have been trusted not to try and seize power again.

Played by: Eileen Way. Appearances: The Creature from the Pit (1979).

• Way appeared in the very first story of the series as the "Old Mother". On that occasion she bet William Hartnell that the series would not last a year. The two never saw each other again, so Hartnell never did get his winnings.
• Way also featured in the second of the Peter Cushing / Dalek films - Daleks: Invasion Earth 2150AD. She was the older of the two women living near the mine workings who betray Tyler and Susan to the Daleks.