Ray Cusick, the man who designed the Daleks for Doctor Who, has died at the age of 84, his family has announced.
He was born in London and first planned to be a civil engineer, but after serving in the army became an art teacher, before taking a job with Granada Television. He then moved to the BBC as a staff designer, where he worked on a brand new television series called Doctor Who. He was asked to design the monsters for the new show’s second story, The Daleks, and came up with what is now one of the most famous and iconic designs in the history of television. The Daleks became an overnight sensation, ensuring the fledgling show continued, and ushering in the era of Dalekmania!
As a staff designer he was unable to profit from his iconic design, it was writer Terry Nation who became rich from the Daleks, and for many years Cusick’s contribution was not properly acknowledged.
Cusick also worked on several other Doctor Who serials, The Edge of Destruction, The Keys of Marinus, The Sensorites, Planet of Giants, The Rescue, The Chase, and the epic twelve part adventure, The Daleks’ Master Plan.
Outside of Doctor Who, he worked on a variety of BBC shows including Out of The Unknown, Dr Finlay’s Casebook, The Pallisers, The Duchess of Duke Street, Rentaghost, When The Boat Comes In and Play For Today.
After retiring Cusick enjoyed his hobbies, and in recent years appeared alongside his iconic creations on Doctor Who Confidential and recorded commentaries and made contributions to the BBC Doctor Who classic series DVD’s.
Cusick had been suffering from a short illness. He leaves two daughters and seven grandchildren.