The Daleks /ˈdɑːlɛks/ are a fictional extraterrestrial race of mutants principally portrayed in the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who. The Daleks were conceived by science-fiction writer Terry Nation and first appeared in the 1963 Doctor Who serial The Daleks, in the shells designed by Raymond Cusick.Within the programme narrative, Daleks are an extraterrestrial race of cyborgs created by the scientist Davros during the final years of a thousand-year war against the Thals.