L is for... Laszlo

Laszlo was the handsome young boyfriend of off-Broadway star Tallulah - a singer-dancer at the Majestic Theatre in Manhattan. One evening he went to investigate strange sounds back stage and was abducted by a human-pig hybrid. These creatures were the work of the Cult of Skaro - the elite Dalek unit which the Doctor had defeated at the Battle of Canary Wharf. They had fled the 21st Century using an emergency temporal shift, ending up in the New York of 1931.

A number of people had been abducted by the Daleks. A small number were turned into the human-pig hybrids, whilst many more had their minds wiped as part of an experiment to create human-Dalek hybrids. Laszlo was turned into a pig-man, but the process was not completed and he retained his original mind and personality. He remained in love with Tallulah, and would leave a flower for her in her dressing room every night, even though he could never be with her again.

He elected to join forces with the Doctor and Martha Jones, and was reunited with Tallulah, who accepted him as he was. His condition led to him having a shortened life-span, and after helping defeat the Daleks he was dying. The Doctor used Dalek technology to stabilise his condition. He could not undo the process, but he and Tallulah would find shelter in the Hooverville homeless camp in Central Park.

Played by: Ryan Carnes. Appearances: Daleks in Manhattan / Evolution of the Daleks (2007).

• Unfortunately, in being chosen to be turned into a pig-man, Laszlo is identified as being of low intelligence.
• It is very odd that the Doctor could not take Laszlo to a planet where he could be fully restored, or where he could live in peace with other animal-humanoids. New Earth if full of them, for instance. Hooverville would have been closed down only a few years after the events of this story, so it is hardly providing any long-term shelter for him.
• Ryan Carnes was well known at the time for his role as Justin in Desperate Housewives. He later became a regular on General Hospital.