K is for... Ko Sharmus

 

An old man who lived on a remote planet at the time of the Cyber-Wars. This planet was also home to a space-time anomaly - a portal to another dimension. Human survivors of the conflict would make their way to the planet and be sent to safety through the portal. Ko Sharmus acted as its guardian.

The Cybermen relied upon a metallic artificial intelligence, known as the Cyberium, for their strategy. It acted like a living history computer. It fell into the hands of the human resistance forces, and Ko Sharmus, one of their generals, helped send it back in time to Earth in 1816, hoping that the Cybermen would never be able to find it.

However, a partly converted Cyberman named Ashad did find it, hidden in the body of poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. In order to save his life, the Doctor allowed Ashad to get the Cyberium and return to the future. She and her companions were forced to follow, and so came into contact with Ko Sharmus.

Unfortunately, Ashad was following them, and so discovered the location of the portal. The Doctor was shocked to discover that it seemed to lead to Gallifrey, and had already been found by the Master.

Ko Sharmus and Ryan Sinclair attempted to hold back the Cybermen until everyone else had escaped through the portal and then they followed.

Ashad had a powerful weapon which could destroy all organic matter, intent on making the Cybermen purely robotic creatures. The Master destroyed him without triggering the weapon, then turned the bodies of the Time Lords into Cybermen loyal to him - Cyber Masters. The Doctor was going to sacrifice herself to operate Ashad's weapon, but Ko Sharmus took her place.

Played by: Ian McElhinney. Appearances: Ascension of the Cybermen / The Timeless Children (2020).

• McElhinney is probably best known for his long-running role as Barristan Selmy in Game of Thrones.
• He has also appeared in the Star Wars universe, as Rebel Alliance General Dodonna in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story; and featured in the Superman origins series Krypton as Kal-El's great-grandfather.