Alien Species
Giant Spiders

A human colony ship landed on the planet Metebilis 3 bringing with it some spiders, who found their way into the mountains where they were bathed in the blue light from the planet's crystals; they grew to gigantic size. Under the rule of the Great One they enslaved the local hguman population.

The humans were ruled savagely. The giant Spiders, or Eight Legs as they insisted on being called, punished any dissidents with death. Both the Doctor and Sarah were caught by the Eight Legs. Anyone sentenced to death was bound and left in the larder where the Eight Legs would eventually devour them.

On an earlier visit the Doctor had taken a blue crystal from the planet, and the Great One required it in order to achieve great power. In order to do this she ordered spiders to go to Earth to retrieve the crystal. The spiders were able to do this by attaching themselves to a human's back. The host could then communicate, and think, with the spider.

The Great One finally obtained the crystal, and was destroyed, along with the spiders, when the power proved to be too much.

Television adventures featuring Giant Spiders:

Planet of the Spiders

---