427 – Doomwatch – Invasion

What starts as an innocent day measuring nitrites ends with a full scale invasion. Ben and Eugene discuss Invasion. Episode Synopsis:  Hardcastle and Ridge are in Yorkshire for a bit of nitrate measurement in the caves.  They’ve employed two local lads, Dave and Reggie, to do the cave diving to collect water samples and have supplied them with some top-quality underwater gear for their work.  While a storm brews outside, the boys go underwater and never come back up. The entire village is called out to search for them and, although the villagers are concerned, the boys have a reputation and have “gone lost” before in the caves and turned up on their own later.  Hardcastle and Ridge are very concerned, though, as they sent them into the caves and feel responsible. [expand title=”More…” swaptitle=”Less” tag=”strong”] A survey of the geology and topography of the area suggests that there might be more openings to the cave further on, in a property known as Wendsdale Grange, which is an old manor house, now abandoned, with electric fences, copious “keep out” signs and an armed military presence keeping everyone out. Greated with military stonewalling, Ridge learns nothing about the facility, save that the soldiers are wearing unusual boots and carry shotguns rather than rifles.  His call to the Minister’s Parliamentary Secretary are put off – Ridge doesn’t need to know what’s going on in top-secret Wendsdale Grange. Back at the pub, they learn from a local that the house stands as it once did, complete with furniture and strange silver men walking the balconies. With Quist out of the country, Ridge decides to do a little breaking and entering.  He doesn’t get far before he’s caught.  Quist is called back and before the Parliamentary Secretary.  After some persuading, Quist is filled in.  During and after the war, the house was used to develop germ warfare.  Five years ago, an accident occurred and the house was contaminated.  The project was shut down and the entire area was closed off.  Now, the military are enforcing a strict quarantine, patrolling the grounds, keeping people out and killing all animals that get onto the property.  Everything killed is tested, and the entire area is constantly being monitored by scientists.  Their precautions have proven adequate, so far.  Quist demands to see inside the house himself and he and his team are allowed in. Meanwhile, the boys have turned up.  They decided that, while they had that fancy equipment, they could do a little extra exploring and they’ve turned up unharmed, and begin going on with their lives. In the pub, Hardcastle notices a bottle that has been opened oddly.  He saw one like it back at the Grange, and, he surmises, if that bottle had been opened years ago if would have had a layer of mold, but it didn’t.  Ridge also sees a local girl carrying some baubles that look like the chandelier at the grange.  She says the boys gave it to her. They return to the Grange and inspect the bottle and the chandelier.  They also see that two antique dueling pistols are missing from the wall.  Searching the basement, they find a loose flagstone, leading to a well that, no doubt, leads to the caves.  It’s clear.  The boys have been holed up in the Grange, unaware that it is contaminated with the highly contagious killer bug, and they have stolen the pistols to sell.  The search is on, but they have left town to see an antiques dealer. Quist and the military have no recourse. While there is an inoculation to prevent the loss of human life, the village must be evacuated, the families sent away, the livestock, animals and pets must be put down and burned and the exclusion zone expanded to include the village – a ghost town which will never be inhabited again. The only good news, the boys never reached the antiques dealer, and fell ill before they could stop at a fun fair, potentially infecting hundreds of others. [/expand]