Clockwork Distraction Device

A small metallic device marked with numbers 0 through 4 arranged in an anti-clockwise circle. The Doctor winds its spring mechanism with deliberate precision, setting it to tick unevenly—its vibrations producing disorienting but effective noise amid the forest's eerie stillness. Leela and the Sevateem hunters focus on its erratic rhythm, their attention drawn away from the true threat long enough for the Doctor and Leela to slip free.

2 appearances

Purpose

Acts as an acoustic distraction to misdirect pursuit by exploiting the hunters' reliance on vibrations

Significance

Symbols the Doctor's improvisational ingenuity in moments of crisis, providing a temporary tactical advantage that allows escape from immediate peril though providing no lasting solution

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

2 moments

S14E13 · The Face of Evil Part 1

Doctor and Leela flee unseen forest threat

The clockwork distraction device with anticlockwise numbers 0 to 4 produces erratic vibrations when wound, acting as a signal jammer against the vibration-sensitive creatures. Its ticking draws attention away from Leela and the Doctor, proving critical to their survival.

Before: Carried in the Doctor's pocket as a makeshift security device.

After: Destroyed by the egg timer's explosion, its function no longer relevant after the creatures are distracted.

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S14E13 · The Face of Evil Part 1

Leela flees tribe into uncertain exile

Identified in scene text as a 'clockwork distraction device,' though described in dialogue as an egg timer, this object generates erratic vibrations to mislead predators sensing movement. The Doctor activates it, creating a rhythmic noise that draws the invisible hunters’ attention away from the pair’s escape route.

Before: Wound up and set to tick unevenly, its numbers arranged anticlockwise from 0 to 4.

After: Left running on a stone after ticking audibly, contributing to the escape before being crushed.

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