10 Biggest Unanswered Doctor Who Mysteries

So, like, what happened to Jenny?

[@RONNIE5579]

The greatest double bluff in doctor who would be if his actual name turns out to be John Smith.

[@TheRealHiThere]

Lol that would be great

[@BritishBeachcomber]

But his real name is John Smith. He will tell me that, just five years from now...

[@1972LittleC]

Nah, it's Bob. Just Bob.

[@smalltv7478]

@@1972LittleC bobter who

[@camcramer22]

I mean Capaldi does say no one would be able to understand his name and I’m pretty sure everyone can understand John smith haha

[@SKINNYGINGERTOP]

The Doctor's real name is Spoilers, and River has been telling us the entire time.

[@alim.9801]

NOOO 😭😭😭💀💀💀

[@katebrown8629]

🤣🤣🤣🤣👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@CB-Deathwish]

Damn That's smart lol

[@Kais-Stuff]

Spoiler? Spoiler who?

[@Aldoisunhinged]

Sweetie

[@drego5]

The answer to #2 ("Why did the Doctor run away?") was literally given in Capaldi's final episode, though not answered by Capaldi, but by David-Bradley-as-Hartnell: BILL: You're the first one, yeah? Like, the original version of the Doctor. You're the one who stole the TARDIS and ran away. Why did you do it? DOCTOR: There were many pressing reasons. BILL: I don't mean what you ran away from, what were you running to? DOCTOR: That's rather a good question. There is good and there is evil. I left Gallifrey to answer a question of my own. By any analysis, evil should always win. Good is not a practical survival strategy, it requires loyalty, self-sacrifice and love. So, why does good prevail? What keeps the balance between good and evil in this appalling universe? Is there some kind of logic? Some mysterious force? BILL: Perhaps there's just a bloke. DOCTOR: A "bloke"? BILL: Yeah. Perhaps there's just some bloke, wandering around, putting everything right when it goes wrong? DOCTOR: Well, that would be a nice story, wouldn't it? But the real world is not a fairy tale. BILL: You dash around the universe trying to figure out what's holding it all together, and you really, really don't know? Everyone who's ever met you does. You're amazing, Doctor. Never forget that. Never, ever.

[@DerrisDerrison]

And that's one of the many reasons why I really like Bill Potts x

[@RedArcherLive]

@@DerrisDerrison I believe you mean "love" Bill Potts 😂

[@patrickmccurry1563]

Blech. I hate how the series went from an altruistic high tech alien to a fucking "bible" about a god.

[@AzraelThanatos]

There's also the suggestion that the TARDIS pushed him to run in the Doctor's Wife...

[@SilverScaleMA]

@@patrickmccurry1563 Actually that is kind of a thing that has been around as a possibility for a long time, the Doctor being one of the eternals or another kind of immortal. When you really look into how characters like Fenric, pretty much any of the various "Gods" that pop up, and even the other ancient Time Lords treat them is different then they interact with most mortals. Gallifrey can literally use the Matrix to rewrite the bodies and minds of everyone connected to it so making a cover story to cover up everything in the past wouldn't really be that hard for them. The only reason they generally don't do it is because it is forbidden. Honestly I have always followed the theory that the Doctor is the Other or one of the other founders of Gallifrey, also with the thought that Braxiatiel might be as well. He certainly knows a lot more about lost ancient Gallifreyian myths a legends then anyone else.

[@marquisofcarrabass]

Remember the Terrance Dicks mantra: "Continuity is whatever the production team could remember on a particular day."

[@nickdejager8873]

Sad but true and also applicable to this video (considering the aspects of some of these questions that were skipped/ignored/forgotten).

[@imperialinquisitor510]

Actually as we know the doctor can travel in time, Monty Python and the life of brian is set in the past, they spoke of a man, a mysterious man known only as... BIGGUS DICKUS!

[@alim.9801]

Uncle Terry gets it

[@triforceofcourage100]

@@nickdejager8873 like the last episode of last season also Ruth

[@TheRealUnkn0wn_289]

That's only cause they never had any good way of checking any continuity back then until the fan community grew bigger and the books came out, and then later the videos, which kater culminated in the dvds and internet so now there's no excuse not to know about the canon or continuity

[@daverhoden445]

Here's an idea. River tells Eleven that people use the word "doctor" to mean healer and wise man because of him. What if what we're hearing as "The Doctor" is actually the result of the Tardis translating his name into something we can understand?

[@dylanhodgson7605]

It doesn’t translate gallafrian (yes I can’t spell)

[@alim.9801]

@@dylanhodgson7605 omg I forgot ur right

[@dylanhodgson7605]

@@alim.9801 maybe the doctor is how we perceive a very quick name like how is you say Jimmy Carr in a Jamaican accent

[@fivish]

Doctor is his name and it is used universaly to mean healer as well as the highest accademic qualification. In the very first episode, Hartnell said his name was Doctor and Ian said Doctor who?

[@Anna-B]

I always assumed that Suzan was the Doctors actual, biological granddaughter. Like, the doctor got himself a lady, they had some babies, and their babies had babies. Including Susan.

[@granadosvm]

Do you remember that in the Hell Bent episode, he reveals to Clara, he didn't run with Rabssalon's wife, but with his daughter? It would make sense that Suzan was the second generation result of that relationship and that the tension between Rabssalon and The Doctor is exacerbated in part because they are in-laws.

[@justsome500yearoldwithsmug2]

His wife before river actually does have one appearance In the story cold fusion

[@caitie226]

Ten mentions he was a father too

[@marquisofcarrabass]

In the script for "The Five Doctors", John Nathan Turner insisted that Susan refer to the First Doctor as "Doctor", in order to minimise the implication that the Doctor has had sex (he banned Peter Davison from touching his female companions in any way forthe same reason). Dicks obliged, both in the script and his novelisation; Carole Ann Ford was furious and insisted on calling him "Grandfather" in every take.

[@eshbena]

@@marquisofcarrabass JNT was a huge....Tick.

[@antoniacosta6221]

Rich's saltiness about the Timeless Children will never stop amusing me

[@juliorimes844]

He cant even mention "timeless children"

[@Drp_br_]

You know it’s understandable right? 😂

[@Johninadelaide2022]

I loved that story

[@phil5208]

This will be rich's last episode for who culture he got made redundant a couple of months ago

[@Drp_br_]

@@phil5208 how do you know?

[@ProfArmitage218]

When Wilfred asked the Doctor who the mystery woman was, his only response was to look pointedly at Donna, Wilfred's granddaughter. I always took that to suggest that the woman was Susan, the Doctor's granddaughter.

[@Anita_sensei]

Or bigger plot twist, that woman is somehow Donna

[@Ben-fj2dh]

Reading this, for some reason I suddenly thought it could be Susan's grandmother/mother. And there's a painful history between her and the Dr.

[@obiwankenobi687]

The audience can choose whoever they want it to be, but semi officially it’s the Doctors Mother. That’s how RTD wrote it but said it’s vague enough for people to make their own minds up as well.

[@mobbs6426]

Instinctively I actually prefer the idea of it being Susan, but that also implies that after her life with her grandfather, she became a stooge for the man, at least in part. Bit of a shame really, so I'll stick with the RTD explanation

[@irottaalfurinn2539]

what if it's romana

[@Alistair-gi3bx]

I always figured River learned the doctor's name in the 24 years they spent together. It's the last canonical time they run into each other before she runs into him in the library. When she says 11's name to open the tardis, she is already dead in that point of time.

[@obiwankenobi687]

Those 24 years completely undo her tragic ending. She gets to live an amazing life, meet every single Doctor, fall in love, get married, become an archeologist and then spends 24 years settled down with her husband. The original suggestion was she’s this woman from the Doctors future who’s life is tragically cut short when she sacrifices herself to save the man she loves. But after her whole journey is shown, She has an amazing life and her dying isn’t really a tragedy, it’s more just the end of her life after a long ass longer than human lifespan filled with amazing moments. It also undoes her dying words, the last time she sees the Doctor isn’t that night on derillium, he doesn’t turn up on her doorstep. The last time she sees him is the last moment of those 24 years.

[@MorganSaph]

​@@obiwankenobi687 Exactly how does living with the Doctor for 24 years make her death any less tragic? She ultimately dies to saving a man who doesn't even know who she is, who won't love her for another like 1-2 centuries (from his perspective). Also, what do you mean "at the end of her life"? Did you forget the part where she was made similar to a timelord? Thus she possesses the lifespan of a timelord, and regeneration abilities (lost due to using like 8-9 lives to ressurrect the Doctor) which is estimated to be 1000 years, 10x that of a normal human.

[@obiwankenobi687]

@@MorganSaph nothing here makes that tragic. It was tragic before all of Moffats tinkering and her final speech doesn’t even make sense anymore. ‘The last time i saw you, the real you, the future you I mean. You turned up on my doorstep with a new haircut and a suit, you took me to dariullum to see the singing towers. The towers sang and you cried. You wouldn’t tell me why but I suppose you knew it was time… Well no, he doesn’t turn up on her doorstep at all. It turns out it’s just a figure of speech. Nobody takes the time to communicate in metaphor on their death bed. The story is no longer true either. The last time she sees him isn’t their 5 minute chat where the towers sing and he cries, it’s whatever the final moment of their 24 years together was. Nobody talks like that either. Regardless of whether ‘technically the single night is 24 years long’. Nobody talks like that. If I move into a house with someone and drop milk on the floor on day one then have 24 years together with someone before going our separate ways. I don’t then recount that experience by saying ‘the last time I saw you, I spilt milk on the floor’ because. Well…that’s not true is it as there’s 24 years extra on top of that where more things clearly happen. I’m sorry but it’s made sooooo much less tragic in husbands of riversong. She has such a long, happy life. And then being surprised and shocked that ten doesn’t know who she is when 12 flat out tells her that Darillium is the last time they’re ever going to see each other (properly). So why the shock?

[@emmiannon1266]

"i didnt leave gallifrey becasue i was bored, that was a lie, that was always a lie.... I left because I was scared ok?" 12th doctor, heaven sent

[@ryanhasproblems]

Scared of what though?

[@kitwhite2640]

@@ryanhasproblems the great scism, the one that made the Master mad.

[@calumbishop7082]

Moffat tries to make it in ‘Hell Bent’ that he was scared that he was the hybrid. It’s worth noting at the end of Moffat’s run he retcons this in ‘Twice upon a time’ by giving a different reason why the Doctor left.

[@emmiannon1266]

@@ryanhasproblems I always assumed he was scared oh what the timelords were becoming

[@MrPaulmorris7777]

Crap writing.

[@missalexislilly]

I for one would love to see even more of river song I think she's just brilliant I'd definitely watch a full spin off of her adventures

[@missalexislilly]

@Kimberly Tini Noble I regularly go back and binge every episode she's in

[@BearWith_You]

While Im not a fan of Eleven's personality per se, he simply has the best episodes. I love Amy, Rory and River. They're all amazing

[@lokisgodhi]

Doctor Who spin -offs are kind of a mixed bag. The Sarah Jane Adventures clearly were the most successful. I wish they had figured out a way to continue it after Elisabeth Sladen's death. Torchwood always seemed like they weren't willing to put enough money into making it, as well as killing off far too many characters. Class was a bit too PC and preachy. As well as them annoyingly cancelling it, leaving it on a massive cliffhanger just when it got interesting. K9 & Company was interesting but stillborn. I would have enjoyed a Riversong series. Also one based on Clara & the Me character. One based on the Paternoster trio would have been welcome. Maybe a combination of those six together would have worked. A series based on the Alternate 10 and Rose Tyler's adventures would have been interesting. Same with one based on Mickey Smith and Martha Jones would have also. A UNIT show starring Kate Stewart would have been interesting.

[@electrobob992]

As we know is technically isn't dead. She's a part of the library, all that would be needed is some inorganic enemy of the doctor to find out about his wife, make a trip to the library, then download the contents of it. Thus holding his wife hostage, only for.. Her cleverness to be too much. I.e River takes over this robotic threat from the inside of their code. Then later she would manage to get a more River looking form, after finding one of those robot mechs from that Hitler episode. Without miniature people in it.

[@GoddessOfWhim2003]

i don't want to know the Doctor's name, it's perfectly fine with me never knowing

[@GoddessOfWhim2003]

@Alexander Wilson hehe

[@HedeccaTamer]

This will not stop Chibnall

[@FrenkTheJoy]

There's nothing they could give as the doctor's name that would be satisfying to the audience.

[@Cpost2010]

@@FrenkTheJoy not necessarily true. Maybe he has the same last name as The Master or something? It would have to be something real crazy for people to drop their jaws over

[@Penscreen]

Neither do I! I'm so fed up that today's World just wanting EVERYTHING explained. Mystery is dead!

[@danielgertler5976]

the master is coming back to life all the time, it's fine, I've just stopped questioning it. He visited a lazarus pit or something and put missy's body in there and that drove her insane again or something.

[@total2blue]

Orson Pink actually was Danny Pink's grandson. However, due to a small change the Doctor made in the timeline, the timeline got changed enough that Danny got hit by car, thus wiping out the future that Orson Pink came from. You know, A big ball of wibbly wobbly, timey wimey stuff.

[@worldwatcher1969]

I think Missy engineered the hit and run.

[@stevearmstrong9213]

The fourth Doctor told Sarah Jane that his name can't be pronounced by humans.

[@patrickmccurry1563]

Out of all the versions, the fourth was the most unapologetic of liars. Even if false, he would have said that.

[@imperialinquisitor510]

Actually as we know the doctor can travel in time, Monty Python and the life of brian is set in the past, they spoke of a man, a mysterious man known only as... BIGGUS DICKUS!

[@warrynfullagar745]

Rule 1 when traveling with the Doctor.

[@Jadyra]

Rule number one. The Doctor lies.

[@brianartillery]

The lost Timelord, Drax, who was at school with The Doctor, calls him 'Thete', which is short for 'Theta Sigma', which was his nomenclature when at school. (The Armaggeddon Factor, 1979).

[@BrandonJPearce]

The valeyard is one that still hasn’t been addressed yet. The great intelligence name dropped the valeyard, but other than that we haven’t had much mentioned about him since the original series. In the comics 10 and 11 thought that 12 was potentially the valeyard, but this was clearly not the case.

[@Soron661]

could've been near to it if they didn't tame the 12th doctor in season 10 and during season 9.

[@DavidBeddard]

My personal head canon is that The Great Intelligence escaped Clara in The Doctor's personal timestream by possessing the Metacrisis Doctor in Pete's World and going on to become The Valeyard. After all, the Metacrisis Doctor was an offshoot between The Doctor's twelfth and final regenerations who was full or war and rage...

[@pengy897]

The valeyard was supposed to be between the Doctor's 12th and final incarnation, so possibly the 10 could have been the valeyard somehow, this would fit in very well with time lord Victorious.

[@tycol322]

@@pengy897 problem is that given both the new regeneration cycle given in "the time of the doctor" and the fact the doctor has unlimited regenerations being the timeless child then at what point are we counting the twelfth doctor? I mean number 12 could come all the way from the Tecteun days before timelords were really even a thing meaning the valeyard could be inserted literally anywhere in the doctors timeline and still fit "between his twelfth and final incarnation"

[@KRYMauL]

@@tycol322 The Doctor is the Other that doesn't actually mean much

[@desirabledevelopment8918]

Rich: How did the Master survive? Me: uhhh..... Could you be more specific? Rich shows Sachan Dhawan. Me: Ohhhhh.... That time...

[@katarinabrunk8698]

Lol true

[@aquatishd968]

That thumbnail got my attention instantly

[@qq-zh7gg]

Same

[@RONNIE5579]

David and his wife / the doctor and his daughter.

[@scoshicahoon2037]

In the Doctor’s daughter the Doctor tells Donna that he has been a father (not referring to Jenny).

[@aaronbrawlstars4496]

Riversong can’t be the mum because they haven’t met yet

[@GrimmShadowsII]

Thats a reference to Susan his first companion who was his granddaughter, which dates back to the very first episode.

[@TheRealUnkn0wn_289]

Yes and he mentions then and in another episode that he had a family and children as in multiple children, do we all just conveniently forget all this?

[@gabrielleauclair254]

So the doctor had a family before? I've not watched the older episodes. Would that mean that when he "killed" all the other time lords, he killed them too?

[@NonMeusNomen]

The day they tell us the Doctor's name will be the day Doctor Who truly jumps the shark.

[@markoconnor7163]

That day was in 1972 apparently.

[@TheRealUnkn0wn_289]

😂😂 as if they haven't already jumped the shark, you are all delusional

[@MrStarfighter14]

I have a two-part question. When did Jack Harkness lose his head and become the face of BOE and when did he lose his time-manipulator?

[@joshuakarr-BibleMan]

The Face of Boe was billions of years old. Jack probably morphed from the one state ro the other over the course of a very long time. I thought his vortex manipulator was broken before he hitched a ride on the outside of the TARDIS that one time.

[@robforasm]

It was supposed to be during A Good Man Goes To War but because of filming constraints with Torchwood John could not make it so the idea was scrapped. Him becoming Boe now is what RTD considers "The Joke" and is yet to be chronicled.(Hope it will be now that RTD is back because we do not even know Jack's real name) It was not even till the COVID watch parties did RTD ever come out and say they were the same.

[@mekkiepoo]

For the Doctor's family, I always just assumed that he lost them in the Time War... never occured to me to try and squeeze them into the future show. Wouldn't even want to.

[@NathanRussell-Thompson]

I think this just proves the timeless child dosent fit with older stories, and therefore technically isn't cannon.

[@robertsalgado9862]

What if Jenny ends up being the timeless child in a future regeneration. Making the doctor responsible for their own creation in an endless causality loop.

[@RogueHinfernus]

1-For what we know, she can't regenarate. 2-As we know, when the timelord did regenerate, they don't get a child body except if they already have a child body

[@CentralNexusPrime]

That would explain the Doctor’s fascination with Earth and humanity. Humans MUST survive to be the spark behind the creation of the Time Lords. No humans and everything the Time Lords ever done would cease to be. Maybe on some instinctive level , the Doctor has recognized their importance without understanding why...

[@daneck100]

At that point , I have to agree with Start Trek,s Kirk "Time travel gives me a headache !"

[@segevstormlord3713]

@@RogueHinfernus, I dunno, I think a great next incarnation for the Doctor would have the Doctor pulling hair down in front of eyes and exclaiming gleefully, "Hey! Finally! Ginger!" and then clearing throat at hearing the voice that said taht. "Hm. Still a girl, though." Then looking down and grasping below the camera. "...NOT a girl. What?" Finally looking in the mirror. "...I'm a _kid?_" Trouble would be finding a child actor (even a young teen actor) who could play the Doctor well.

[@peterward2275]

Wouldn't put it past today's writers

[@thomasnieswandt8805]

Spoilers..... Sashas Master does not come after Missy. Spoilers Missy is followed by "The Lumiat" (played by Gina McKee) Missy was unable to regenerate propperly, after beeing shot by John Simm. So when the Cybership exploded, Missy tried a forbidden, secret Timelord ritual to focus her last remaining Character "bits" into a pile of regeneration energy. At this point, on the Doctors side, all that was left, was good. So She created the "good" Master/Misstress, calling herself Lumiat and was like a good Valeyard. Also...Susan had multiple adventures with the Doctor in Big Finish. Some even written by former show writers. She clearly IS their biological granddaughter. She and David had a Son Alex. Who didnt like his great granddad that much.

[@hgwells1899]

Big Finish is great. But not canon. Susan Who? A story yet to be told

[@thomasnieswandt8805]

@@hgwells1899 Well to me and many many more it is. Since "night of the Doctor", by mentioning the 8th Doctor Big Finish companions, Moffatt canonised Big Finish. He said something like "you can choose what you take from it" Well...there is no bad story and all of the Doctors are great. Specialy Colin Baker, it improved so much of the 6th Doctor. Also Big Finish is the reason, why Paul McGann and Sir John Hurt share my alltime no. 2 spot in my Doctors ranking, they are just wow. But if its not for you, fine :)

[@hgwells1899]

@@thomasnieswandt8805 "not canon" and personal headcanon are two different things! As someone who counts the War Doctor boxsets as John Hurts final "season," with the Day of the Doctor as it's finale... with Forged in Fire on pre-order... and The Trial of the Valeyard in my top 5 6th Doctor stories, with his testimony about "shadow houses" being part of my Time Lord history and Lore... I understand the difference between canon and headcanon just fine, thanks ;)

[@DavidBeddard]

@@hgwells1899 I take the view that everything in Big Finish definitely happened to The Doctor, but changes in the timeline mean that they didn't necessarily happen to anyone else involved or at all as far as the rest of the universe/history is concerned. The Doctor's personal history and objective continuity are not the same (which is how The Doctor can remember Rory after he was erased from time). I also use this excuse to explain continuity errors in TV canon; we're following The Doctor while history changes around them. The Time Lords stopped maintaining the Web of Time after the the Last Great Time War. Wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey!

[@Soron661]

@@DavidBeddard makes sense to me. also allows events from the comics to be canon, as well.... even if they're never mentioned on tv. I prefer the 13th doctor comics over the 11th and 12th seasons, tbh. they weren't all about sending messages, too slow, and whatnot. also, the 10th doctor appearing in it made it infinitely more appealing.

[@NimrodClover]

The whole "Doctor's Name" thing is a cute modern question but much like the "secret" recipe for Coke, it has already been presented in the show and only because it has become a thing more recently has it been made into a mystery. You see, because there have been so many cross-references and blending of plot points it is easy to forget that what was at one time just a mundane thing, like the recipe for Coke, the Doctor's name was at one time simple displayed in the show. (Using the goofy script circles of the Time Lords) Before anyone says, "But those squiggles are just random props" realize that a super-fan developed a syntax and writing system a few seasons back that actually uses these circles to make that writing. It was then worked into the show (most notably in the icons on the interior of the TARDIS under doctor no. 12) that way other super fans could see hidden text or inside jokes as well as in displays in the show that were part of the plot. Using that key to the scrip one can go back to much earlier episodes and translate (what were actually random squiggles) and get the English equivalent. The is one episode where the Doctor is inducted into the high counsel of the Time Lords and each has a position within the chamber with their names in the circle squiggle, The Doctor takes his position with his nameplate clearly visible. Thus we can read his name and have a canonical translation. The Doctors name translates as something akin to "SKIZHEMLIKR" - No, we have never heard The Doctor's name in the show, but we have read it. Just like the recipe for Coke was (right when it came out) printed in a housekeeping magazine. Someone simply had to dig for it under a remedy for sore throat.

[@pelinoregeryon6593]

So *schism licker* then? 🤔 obviously he acquired his name in time school when like a five year old is want to do with a battery to feel the tingle he licked the sample time rift being used as a teaching aid 😏 .. That could be a humorous troll or a real thing from you up there for all I know, either way deserves a 👍

[@DavidJohnson-ep6jk]

The Doctor told River Song his name just before he died and River used her regenerations to bring him back.

[@kstormgeistgem461]

i thought it was the episode where the Doctor (still Matt Smith) "married" her in "The Wedding of River Song"??? or did he die-OH... never mind. i remember now. Doctor Who is very hard on those of us entering senility. XD;;

[@minissa2009]

I thought in Forest of the Dead, the implication was that he would share it when they married (or maybe on the wedding night, more to the point).

[@pamcarr4003]

Hi, do you know the season and episode of this Dr Who? With River song bringing back the Dr? I'm new to the Who-niverse and would love to see that episode! Thank you in advance for your time. 💜 🎸 Pam

[@earthborn1968]

I thought he might have told her when they spent the 27 years on that one planet. Which was their last night together before she went back in time and died in the library.

[@minissa2009]

@@pamcarr4003 She brings him back in the episode "Let's Kill Hitler" in Matt Smith's second {I think} season. It's a great episode and *spoilers*. Although they keep meeting out of order, I think it makes the most sense to watch the River Song episodes in the order they were broadcast {then maybe re-watch them, maybe in chronological order with respect to River's time line}. Warning: her time line is not entirely consistent and has some gaping holes, but she's one of the best characters Moffatt ever created and one of the best in the Whoniverse. I live for the day someone writes the story of the Doctor getting her and her team out of the save buffer in the Library.

[@Eroxi3]

Regarding Jenny, she didn’t regenerate. The “light” coming out of her mouth is from the “source” giving her life the same way it gives the planet life. She died right as it was released so she was able to be revived. As for her story after coming back to life, I think Moffat said in an interview that she probably crashed into a moon or something so ;-; thanks Steven

[@dylanhodgson7605]

Probably not definitely

[@deanhodsfry5019]

How about the woman in end of time being Jenny after regenerating several times

[@electrobob992]

Well now that we know how the timeless child regeneration can be gifted... It's quite possible she did regenerate.

[@ScaryBaldMan]

I never want the Doctor's true name revealed. Ever. In classic Who, his name never mattered. In New-Who, it mattered too much. So now there is nothing they could give us that would ever satisfy. Like the Timeless Child, I think it would just end up ruining things.

[@hgwells1899]

Yes, all that "oldest question in plain sight" shenanigans was... questionable. About as unsubtle, indiscreet and downright cringe as putting actual question-marks all over his "costume" in the JNT era's. Or, put another way: "I'm the Doctor." "Doctor who?" "Just 'the Doctor'..." "Yeh, but - Doctor who?" "...Doesn't matter..." "But you've literally drawn attention to it! It's like saying, I'm Mister - but don't ask me, Mr Who? Just 'Mister,' though, that's a red flag right there." "Hey, that's MISTER Mister, to you-" "Look, if you're going to make up a name, at least make one up that doesn't draw attention to it being a secret identity. Something simple, like, idk, 'John Smith' or something..." "Dr John Smith?! Who'd believe that?" "Better than 'Doctor - blank.' " "... 'kaaay. Then... what about... Mr Blank?" "Omfg! And what's with all the question marks, anyway?" "It's The Question That Must Never Be Answered... " "Then why are YOU asking it?? Okay, here's an answer for you: Get. The blank. Outta here" ;) (Nerdy erm "comedy" bs aside, I think Chibnall has done what Moffat never had the balls to do - answered the question but still left us a mystery. I'm not saying he did it well or that it was satisfying, but as long as he doesn't reveal where the child is from, why she was left at the portal for Tecteun to find, as long as that mystery is not solved (yet) then we still have a Who? For a future showrunner to attempt to answer. Because, from The War Games on - and particularly in modern Doctor Who - we have learned more about the Doctor's origins, childhood, history, homeplanet, and motives than we ever needed to. The show needed an injection of mystery about this character. And we got it, wether we were ready for it or not)

[@TheJTMcDaniel]

In the oldest episodes, there was a strong suggestion that he never revealed his name mostly because it was unpronounceable by a human, even if simple enough for a Gallifreyan. Sort of like trying say Van Gogh correctly if you're not Dutch. I don't think that sound exists in any other language.

[@hgwells1899]

@@TheJTMcDaniel yes, as simple as that. Coincidentally, at my school, we had a new kid arrive, Pieter, from Holland. The teacher had a hard time with his surname, which began with 'B.' So he literally became Peter Blank throughout his time at senior school and I thought about that as I wrote that regrettable bit above. Hell of a coincidence you mentioning Dutch - must be something about that language - hence unpronouncable, misunderstood information getting labelled as "double-dutch." Like the Doctor's real name ;)

[@obiwankenobi687]

@@hgwells1899 one of Moffats over the top statements that he thinks is a lot more cleverer than it actually is. The oldest question in the universe? Is it though? Do enough people even care about the Doctor for this to be a thing? Then there was the cringe ‘the next words you hear will change your life forever’ or something like that from dark water. Then the ‘there’s a sound you’ve learned not to hear that you’ve been living with every day of your life…your heartbeat. (Paraphrasing). He loves these big grandiose statements that are just there to sound impressive. But then just result in cringe inducing drivel like the Dalek Parliment spinning around chanting ‘Doctor who?’ and just letting three intruders escape in a police box because they’re too busy being cringe. Or the awkward whispered version of ‘Doctor who?’ From time of the Doctor.

[@hgwells1899]

@@obiwankenobi687 I loved it when the First Doctor dropped in a subtle, "Eh, Doctor who, what's he talkin' about?" in An Unearthly Child, in response to being referred to as Doctor Foreman by Ian Chesterfield - er, Chesterton. And tbf it always raises a smile from me whenever the show title gets a literal name drop, subtly or otherwise. But another cringe Moffat pronouncement is River Songs, "Doctor. The word for Healer and Wise Man throughout the Universe - we get that word from you," omfg really?? When people criticise the current Chibnall era for alledgedly turning the Doctor into The Special One, Space Jesus etc, I think on Moffats overblown version of the Legend That Is Doctor Who... I mean, it's cool in theory but cringe af in reality. And don't get me started on other inserts-to-canon triggers like the TARDIS always taking him where he "needed to go," like it's some kind of "Herbie Goes Wibbly Wobbly," or for that matter, it's making that sound because he always "leaves the handbrake on." Space Jesus wept. Kids pick up on all this word-play shenanigans and run with it, quote it like it's lore... but... maybe that's just how headcanon becomes literal canon, over time? Maybe we should all just go with the flow. It's there now, all this Oldest Question malarky, sigh. As persistent and undeniable, perhaps - Timeless, even - as any other retcon ;)

[@krinkdink7904]

I was led to beleive that Jenny was going to be in a spin off after sarah jane adventures ended but nothing ever come of it.

[@theevildalek5425]

Can I just say, I’m so happy to see Rich again after so long. It is him and his personality & wit which makes this channel much more then something like WatchMojo and I was worried for a while that he had left. So Rich, it’s great to see you again! ❤️

[@pickupchangetoe]

I'm afraid to say I _have_ left! This is an old video.

[@theevildalek5425]

@@pickupchangetoe NOOOO!!! You were the best thing about Who Culture! That’s such a shame, your reviews were so honest & witty and you were so open with your opinions and to us, the Viewers. This probably means that my requests for a Top 10 Missing Episodes video will be forgotten...Darn. 💔 Oh well, everything ends eventually I guess. Will you be doing anything else Who related by yourself or is this the end of Who Rich?

[@harrymaguire274]

Daddy rich has came back from the dead.

[@underdogjourney203]

Is it still considered canon that the Doctor is half-human on his mother's side? If so, then I think we have a problem...

[@GrimmShadowsII]

I personally always thought that was a joke the way he was smirking when he said it.

[@underdogjourney203]

@@GrimmShadowsII Right. I'm sure that would be a good way to excuse that issue. I just hope the new show runner will find a way to fix the canonical issues...

[@adamcarlson2192]

It's considered canon that he SAID that...

[@TheRealUnkn0wn_289]

No it was the faulty chameleon arch that he tried to use to disguise himself as human from the master

[@woozleproductions9760]

I believe that in series 13, Ahsoka Tano will show up and reveal that the Doctor is called Grogu.

[@themightyginger7524]

Haha jokes on you I was already wearing a fez! Edit: In the Day of the Doctor novelisation there was a woman on Gallifrey who was there when he stole The Moment who had known him all her life. Maybe the woman there is her?

[@DavidBeddard]

Oh god, The Woman was Clara 🤦‍♂️😨

[@DneilB007]

The only way that anyone could literally know anyone for their entire life would be if they were that person. So maybe she was the Doctor?

[@RandomNPC001]

Both the actresses that play Clara and River are absolutely drop dead gorgeous! 😍😎😍😎😍😎

[@alim.9801]

ALEX KINGSTON'S HAAIIIRRRRR 😭😭😭😍😍😍😍

[@ThistleBlue]

The mystery woman was the doctors mother, or rather adoptive parent as of The Timeless Children

[@aliasjester8812]

or could the lady be Romana?

[@TheRealUnkn0wn_289]

Possibly mother not the other garbage

[@jameskuyper]

I guarantee that no matter how long Dr. Who runs, it will continue to generate new mysteries faster than it resolves old ones.

[@LibertyBridgeProductions]

Danny doesn’t need to be related to Clara to make Orson. Cuz he’s from down Danny’s time stream not Clara’s cuz she was thinking of him.

[@ColdPizzaGD]

The reason that The Doctor ran away is supposedly a cause of "The Untempered Schism". In the book "A Brief History of The Time Lords" it talks about how there was three groups of people, people who were inspired, people who went insane (like The Master), and people who ran away (like The Doctor).

[@desiv1170]

Did you say that something obviously couldn't have been, because it happened two series later? In an show about time travel? Where the Doctor has met himself from the future multiple times?

[@willhughes4670]

The 13th Doctor’s arc ruins most of the lore and cannon that was set up in the rest of the show. I know people like it but I honestly think it should be retconned or undone.

[@GrimmShadowsII]

Actually I'm pretty sure the majority of people don't like it that's why Chris is leaving already after only 3 years as showrunner. He just seems to show no respect for the series or the lore.

[@obiwankenobi687]

It doesn’t though. It doesn’t actually contradict anything

[@GrimmShadowsII]

@@obiwankenobi687 Yes it does. Just look at the 11th last episode. He was an old man falling apart, even needing a cane even more then 1 ever did, so he should of regenerated by the time of the episode if he had any regenerations left. Timelords regenerate automatically when their bodies take too much damage, they can only stop it with effort but why would he be making that effort if he didn't know another regeneration was coming. ONE episode shows how the timeless child completely ignores lore.

[@obiwankenobi687]

@@GrimmShadowsII but he didn’t have any regenerations left. They reset the timeless child back to a baby, that baby grows into William Hartnell who then enters the academy, becomes a time lord and gets the exact same 12 regen limit as everyone else. Everything else still runs as normal exactly the same. So in time of the Doctor he genuinely did need extra regenerations from the time lords

[@GrimmShadowsII]

@@obiwankenobi687 ok I will admit I didn't see Timeless children as the writing was so bad I only made it halfway through Jodie's second season, and maybe barely through through her first.

[@Notthatguy97]

The doctor when they die be like: “my name is John smith”

[@LifeEquity]

Maybe that’s his real name 😂😂😂

[@ZlothZloth]

"My name is Doctor Ooooo" Of course, he was just groaning in pain and gives his real name a minute later, but most fans miss it because they destroyed their TV set.

[@goetkemj]

"Doctor Who" needs to pull a "Dallas." Get Capaldi back for one episode, right before he regenerates, and have everything that has happened under Chibnall be framed as some sort of "bad dream" or "vision." Then have a proper regeneration and move on with a new show runner. Will it happen? No. Should it? Probably.

[@MrJackfaire]

Translation, "I didn't like it and fuck all of you that did"

[@parox703f3]

@@MrJackfaire dude like 99% of fans hate the current show runner and the 13th doctors run

[@MrJackfaire]

@@parox703f3 Actually highly doubtful but people who like things don't around shutting down people who don't like them whereas haters always declare themselves the majority

[@parox703f3]

@@MrJackfaire I have heard great things about every doctor. Even the worst episodes for the 9th - 12th most fans would say had good parts but I have not heard a single good thing about the new doctor and the current writing. Almost every doctor who fan hates the current show runner

[@MrJackfaire]

@@parox703f3 then meet new people I have heard plenty of people talk about loving the current stuff.

[@declanhugors]

*The biggest question I have is* when the Doctor calls his companion while he's in a different point in time, how does the call choose when to activate for the receiver? For example, if the Doctor is in 1939 and calls his companion to ask how it's going who we see is in the present day, how does the call choose when to ring? The call was made about 80 years ago so why does the phone line connect with the companion at that specific time? The only thing that connects these moments is OUR PERSPECTIVE of them but we are usually irrelevant in the story so that's what my big question is.

[@Newt.--.Jaeden]

Wibbly Wobbly, Timey Wimey.

[@declanhugors]

@@Newt.--.Jaeden Haha that's my fav line

[@jojomonteh4544]

Recieves when convenient.

[@alexojeda9048]

Maybe he punches in a time code, like a country code. That would be the most straightforward answer but this IS Doctor Who so who an I kidding, that'll never work.

[@declanhugors]

@@alexojeda9048 Ok that's a good answer that he needs to set a time. But he's awfully good at it

[@nickdejager8873]

I want to know what happened to Amy and Rory. But that's most me being salty about how daft the 'end' they got was.

[@Cheezsoup]

Basically they were 'taken' back 80years (I think it was) to New York. The TARDIS couldn't go there as there were already too many disruptions to the time lines there (plot device). Amy became a writer, they lived happily together until death.

[@kit9638]

The original ending they couldn't shoot revealed they adopted a child at some point, and their grandchild delivers a letter to Rory's dad telling him about their life. I think the scene was released with voice acting as a storyboard and the grandson was mentioned in the lonely assassins game.

[@obiwankenobi687]

@@Cheezsoup but then he manages to land in New York as 12. There’s no reason whatsoever why he couldn’t just park in New York the very next year or just park somewhere near and get a taxi over to see them. It made zero sense. And it was mainly due to Moffat wanting another happy ending for his companions where instead of dying they live a happy life together. It would have made more sense if they died jumping off the building. Saying that however I do really like that episode and their farewell. It just doesn’t make any sense

[@Cheezsoup]

@@obiwankenobi687 There you go you see, looking for sense in a programme about a time traveling alien.

[@obiwankenobi687]

@@Cheezsoup but there is sense in this program about a time traveling alien. Stuff that happens makes sense in terms of the logic and rules they’ve set out in the universe. Within that universe however, this specific aspect does not make any sense

[@hmiles650]

Orsin pink was from an alternative timeline where both Danny and Clara survive

[@Richard_Jones]

I am quoting from another poster (marquisdecarabass) but it perfectly aligns with my opinion about Doctor Who plotholes: Remember the Terrance Dicks mantra: "Continuity is whatever the production team could remember on a particular day"

[@garyzimmerman62]

Kind of off track but I have always wondered this (ok, for the last several,decades....). Can a child Time Lord regenerate into an adult and vice versa... we have seen older Doctors regenerate into younger and younger into older but what about prepubescent?

[@alim.9801]

DUDE IVE WONDERED THIS TOO AND YOURE THE 1ST PERSON IVE SEEN ACTUALLY TALK ABOUT THIS!!!

[@bidoof6226]

And for jenny coming back it looked like the steam that gave the planet life again

[@peterlewerin4213]

Yep. It's really true that Doctor Who and Star Trek are friendly.

[@wavewingman5993]

Orson Pink bothers me so much, because the episodes where Orson appears and the episode where Danny dies were written for the same season, meaning they must have been aware of what a huge plot hole it was, and seemingly didn't bother trying to resolve it.

[@segevstormlord3713]

Am I the only one who thinks that just ignoring The Timeless Children and assuming that the Master was wrong, lying, or has the wrong person would be the best way to go forward, given how much of the Whoniverse history it not just warps but utterly breaks?

[@VisualEscapes469]

The Master always turns up again, even when she has been deaded by her previous incarnation, that would seem to me that the Master is the Timeless Child and can regenerate indefinitely. A being of that age and having been used and abused by the Timelords and also providing them with the genetics to allow the Timelords to regenerate 12 times would eventually Hate the Timelords, go mad and evil. QED the Timeless Child is the Master

[@geoffroi-le-Hook]

Orson was descended from Danny's brother Rupert whom we met (and thought was Danny at the time)

[@tigeress321]

But there was a nod in that episode that Rupert was Danny’s original name

[@geoffroi-le-Hook]

@@tigeress321 He knew the name ... but was it his ?

[@bigidiot7346]

@@geoffroi-le-Hook no but he said he wanted to change his name bcs didn't like rupert

[@elizabethgrosvenor153]

Why would his brother be in a children's home by himself (and not with Danny)? Danny was in the children's home and he used to be called Rupert.

[@DarkKen87]

"Don't die... do doink" Possible life motto

[@katharineobrien5890]

my own guess is that Doctor told River his name in 'Lets kill Hitler' when he was about to die from the poison and just before she saves him. He whispers something to her to tell River Song and she replies "I'm sure she already knows". But this is just my own guess

[@nohandlenotme]

I think the Doctor ran to afterwards save Gallfrey, he knew he couldn't stop the war.

[@rjmcallister1888]

Jenny (Georgia Tennant) has been revived in several Big Finish audios. Georgia decided to be more of a behind-the-scenes person, marrying David Tennant and having a batch of little ones. And if she has the Doctor's DNA, the end of her episode indicates she can regenerate.

[@electrobob992]

Especially with the Timeless child plot. Heck if some timelord can get the ability to regenerate from a simple blood sample, it's quite possible that a clone would as well. Besides he did regenerate from a hand before so...

[@mattcraft3896]

@@electrobob992 building off that. consider if you will, that Jenny(the doctors "daughter") is actually the doctor him/herself. Both the start and end of the episode she's born it's made clear that the tardis was "pulled" or "Forced" to that point creating a paradox. Furthermore when tectaoon first meets the timeless child there's a black hole looking phenomenon over head. what if Jenny after regenerating into a small child(perhaps to experience that part of life) falls through time becoming the "timeless child?

[@geo4win601]

"We know The Doctors name is one word" THEIR NAMES JEFF

[@eshbena]

The Master has escaped death WAY more than three times. In the Classic series alone, he was 'killed' at least five times. I mean, how did he escape the planet of the Cheetah people? How did he escape being dumped into the Eye of Harmony? What about the numismiton gas in the volcano that the fifth Doctor left him to 'die' in? It goes on and on. How the Master manages to keep surviving could be a series all of its own.

[@Lazerblade95]

i thought in early who episodes the doctor had a grandaughter who was confirmed to be biological, so they had to be a father at one point.

[@peterlewerin4213]

Susan was prominent from the start and they referred to each other as grandfather and grandchild. But that was a scriptwriter's trick to avoid their relationship seeming suspect. The writers never wanted to explore that. Partially, I believe, because that changes the Doctor's origin from running away from Gallifrey to running away from Gallifrey, a wife, and at least one child, whose daughter he has now misplaced somewhere in the universe.

[@KeltoiMagus]

The Dr.'s daughter needs to come back soon.

[@tycol322]

"Hello dad... Mum... Mumdad... Dadmum? What do I call you?"

[@Nimmers1234]

The question about why the doctor left galifray is answered during Patrick Troughtons tenure saying he was bored of the laws of the timelords so left to explore the universe and couldn't help breaking the laws of the timelords by getting involved with other species

[@michalpeer5248]

If we function under the assumption that Susan is the Doctor's biological granddaughter, then maybe the woman in The End of Time isn't his mother but rather his child, Susan's mother...

[@dylanhodgson7605]

Or hear me out a future doctor

[@GrimmShadowsII]

Actually the theory is that it's Romana but in reference to one of the novels where her incarnation looks like the Doctor's mother

[@jetfire1153red]

I know Davros said that Dalek Caan busted into the time war but how did that get Davros out of the time war? I mean on screen we've only seen the emergency temporal shift carry one.

[@obiwankenobi687]

I don’t see it as being a big deal, I just imagine he plopped his plunger to Davros’s head and they both teleported off out of there. There’s nothing that says it just carries one, we’ve only ever seen single Daleks do it because there just hasn’t been a scenario where they’ve needed to show a Dalek doing it whilst connected to something or someone else

[@ronalddiberto4161]

You are forgetting that we already know the name of the Doctor. As it was revealed during the Best Doctor, Tom Baker's series. Where his name is spoken as, "Theta Sigma". and "Thete" in The Armageddon Factor episode.

[@declanhugors]

Let's forget about that episode

[@dylanlarge11]

They don't watch Classic Who though Ronaldo.

[@DavidBeddard]

I thought that was just his Academy nickname among his friends, not his real name. I can't remember if that was mentioned in TV canon or whether that's a retcon carried out in a novel published while the show was off air in the 1990s. I think I read it on the TARDIS wiki years ago...

[@dylanlarge11]

@@DavidBeddard No it is actual name. 'Thete' or 'Thetes' was his nickname at the Academy.

[@timidwolf]

In The Happiness Patrol he claims 'Theta Sigma' (not 'Thete') was his nickname. The production team at the time wanted to return the mystery of the Doctor's past and so they retconned the name out.

[@dannyalloy6232]

River also tells Clara that she made him tell her his name. Capaldi also mentions that "nobody would even understand it anyway" in that speach he gave before he was going to regenerate.

[@familyhelpdeskhelpdesk270]

The whole Chibnall era is one huge plot hole, the biggest question being why, oh why did the beeb ever think his appopintment was a good idea? The failure to make use of the Doctor's daughter is also a huge mystery. We could have had a female timelord heading a series without buggering up the whole arc!!

[@mihaelabanu1091]

I've got a better mistery for ya that has tormented my mind for ages: Who the hell is BENJAMIN?

[@scarybitch9433]

8:28 There is a theory that when she flew into the sky, the ship blew up with her in it. (Technical issues)

[@declanhugors]

Lol that would be hilarious but it would be more subtle if Jenny then regenerated into Susan or maybe RIVER SONG..

[@hgwells1899]

@@declanhugors c'mon. We all know that in real life the Doctor married the Doctor's Daughter. But in-universe? That's a retcon too far ;)

[@TheJTMcDaniel]

@@declanhugors River would be interesting, but we know who she is, so no chance of that. A simpler reason may just be that, while she does have some sort of semi-regenerative healing powers, she's flying around in an ordinary spaceship that can only travel in space but not time and the Doctor hasn't returned to her era since she was created so he's just not around for her to find. He may even be deliberately staying away from that time period because, believing she died, he feels it would be painful to visit there, er, uh, then.

[@sofyacab]

Twice upon a time, the Doctor left to answer a question about good and evil

[@patricko1563]

The Daleks couldn't do it, the Cybermen couldn't do it, even the Master couldn't do it... what finally kills the Doctor? The Wokeness

[@stevensheath8992]

They have wasted so much potential by not bringing back Jenny or the Doctor bumping into another regeneration of Susan.

[@declanhugors]

What if Jenny REGENERATES into Susan???

[@stevensheath8992]

@@declanhugorsSusan is his granddaughter, so I couldn’t see that working. Could see her being Jenny’s daughter though!

[@TheRealUnkn0wn_289]

@@stevensheath8992How that makes no sense and it's stupid

[@TheRealUnkn0wn_289]

Twice upon a time should have had susan in it

[@pjlightning1995]

You missed two. If the Doctor's childhood was now millenia earlier, with many regenerations before William Hartnell, who was the boy sobbing in the barn in Listen? That, supposedly, was the doctor as a child, and the barn part of his childhood home. And how did he and the master grow up together as children, (as mentioned once or twice) if the Doctor's childhood was millennia earlier before the Timelords ven developed regenerative abilities?

[@william...1]

simple. the timeless child (including morbius doctors) all came before ruth. ruth is then captured by the faction and biologically changed so that she only has 12 regenerations. she is forced to start her first regeneration as a young boy. this is the boy in the barn who grows up to be hartnell. think of it as like two pieces of the doctors life: pre ruth and post ruth

[@totaltherapytraining]

@@william...1 I think I remember something about the Master being one of the children who was first made a Timelord using the same technology as the one they learned from the Doctor when she (then) was a child, so they could have grown up together. It would also explain why he went mad too as if he was one of the first, then they may not have got the procedure quite right at that time. The scism could have been the vision they get when they are genetically altered.

[@ZlothZloth]

I presume the Time Lords wipe memory, then force another regeneration that results in a toddler. (Or maybe that's how they wipe memories?) I expect the Doctor has been a child many, many times.

[@pjlightning1995]

@@ZlothZloth None of the last 12 regenerations resulted in a toddler. They did a forced regeneration on Patrick Troughton and the new doctor was not a child.

[@ZlothZloth]

@@pjlightning1995 So? If it doesn't rain for 12 days, does that mean it never has and never will? A sports team loses 12 times in a row means they have never and will never win a game?

[@sofyacab]

I think it was Darrilium where River discovers his name, maybe on the last moments toghether

[@jadey1422]

I was wondering recently when he told River his name too. All I can think of, unless they bring her back, is that during their last night on Darilium (sp?) he knew that she knew his name. He knew that his younger self had no reason to trust her and she had to get his attention. So he told her. Bit underwhelming maybe, and wish it had been addressed.

[@imsquiddly6836]

“I hope you’re writing this stuff down Chibnall” Chibnall: *looks down at list labeled “previous showrunners’ legacies I haven’t spit on yet” *

[@thetimelordfat-torious2269]

Spit on more like lit on fire

[@peterlewerin4213]

Oh give it a rest sometime

[@Wolf359inc]

OK. My thoughts on the Timeless Child, which I repost wherever I feel it is needed. Might seem a bit random, but it does address, and answer, a couple of points in this video. Now, this is long, but bear with me, please... :) THE TIMELESS CHILD: MY TAKE If we take the story of the Timeless Child at face value, as related by the Master, it is possible to fit the story into continuity without ruining it. We can assume that the existence of the being who would become known as “The Doctor” was kept a secret from the general populace. Indeed, their existence, and ability, may only have been known to the higher ups in the CIA, and perhaps, eventually, Rassilon. This being may even be “the Other”, one of three people who founded modern Time Lord society, along with Rassilon, and Omega. We know Rassilon is power hungry - we know what happened to Omega, so it is not beyond the realm of possibility that Rassilon wanted to get rid of the Other, to be the sole ruler of the society. But Rassilon would not want to lose the source of the Time Lords’ ability to regenerate, which brings us to… The being who would become the Doctor regenerated into a baby, either through choice, or coercion, probably by the CIA and had their mind wiped. This being is a baby version of the William Hartnell Doctor. He was placed with a normal Gallifreyan family, who knew nothing about his special regeneration ability. As far as the family knew, the baby was a brand new Gallifreyan child, with no past, and was raised as such. Therefore, they, and anyone who knew him, assumed the Doctor was a normal Gallifreyan child. The Doctor goes to the academy, and is eventually made a Time Lord. For whatever reasons, the Doctor steals a TARDIS, and flees Gallifrey with his granddaughter, Susan. He believes himself to be a Time Lord, in his first body. This changes nothing presented in the show. William Hartnell remains as the first actor to portray the Doctor, and is, for all intents and purposes, the first person to be called “The Doctor”. BUT WHAT ABOUT THE RUTH DOCTOR? WHERE DOES SHE FIT IN IN ALL OF THIS? There is a theory that, as part of his punishment at the end of the Classic story “The War Games”, the second Doctor spent some time working as a secret agent for the CIA. This is heavily alluded to in the Classic Who story, “The Two Doctors”, from the Colin Baker era. We know that the CIA likes to wipe the minds of their operatives, and if we assume what I have written above regarding the Timeless Child is possible, then the Doctor may have spent quite a long time working for the CIA, and may have regenerated many times during this period. The Doctor eventually regenerates into who we know as “the Ruth Doctor”. The Ruth Doctor rebels against the CIA, and becomes a fugitive, as seen in the episode “The Fugitive of the Judoon”. The CIA eventually captures the Ruth Doctor, decides she is no longer a valuable asset, and mind-wipes her memories of her time spent working for them - as far as she knows, the last thing that happened to her was being punished by the Time Lords, for her role in “The War Games”. In order to support this mind wipe, the Doctor is forced to regenerate, once again, and her appearance changes to that of John Pertwee. To support this fallacy, he is dressed in Patrick Troughton’s Doctor’s clothes, shoved into the TARDIS, and materialises on Earth. The door opens, and John Pertwee falls out. Cue the events of “Spearhead from Space”. Remember, we never see a physical transformation of Troughton to Pertwee - we see Troughton in the process of regenerating, then we cut to Pertwee falling out of the TARDIS. There is nothing to say that this is the strict course of events, and any amount of time could have passed between the two things happening. The upshot of this is that the Doctor believes that his John Pertwee appearance is his second regeneration, of a standard regeneration cycle. BUT WHAT ABOUT THE REGENERATION ENERGY SENT TO HIM BY THE TIME LORDS? As previously noted above, the Doctor’s unique regeneration ability was a closely guarded secret. By the time of Matt Smith’s Doctor, it is highly unlikely that anyone would still be alive who knew about it. So, when Clara begged the Time Lords to help the Doctor, they sent regeneration energy through to him, even though it was not needed (though all concerned were not aware of this). When the Doctor regenerated, this energy was expelled as a destructive force, which took care of the entire Dalek force, on the planet, and orbiting nearby. The Doctor even states, as he is regenerating, that, “it feels like it’s gunna be a big one!). ADDENDUM - WHO IS THE WOMAN AT THE END OF TIME? During the events of “The End of Time”, Wilf interacts with an unknown woman, and the Doctor sees the same woman behind Rassilon, which gives him pause. Who is she? As explained by RTD, he intended for her to be the Doctor’s mother. If we take the revelations of the Timeless Child into consideration, it is now entirely possible that she is… still his mother. As per what I have written above, at the start of this document, the being who would become the Doctor is adopted into a normal Gallifreyan family. The woman in the End of Time is the Doctor’s adoptive mother, who is, in every way that counts, his real mother, as any adoptive parent will tell you. CONCLUSION All the above is theory, of course. But it goes to show that “The Timeless Child” arc can be incorporated into the canon, without changing what has gone before. Personally, I like the idea, though not the way it was implemented. In a show with almost sixty years of history, it is good to see they are both trying to add some mystique back into the character, and address the perceived problem with the “twelve regenerations per cycle” limit. This was fine, in the Classic series, as thirteen actors to play one character over the course of the show would have been considered sufficient. No-one could have expected the show to have such longevity, though, so this limit needed to be addressed. If you feel I have failed to address something , please let me know in the comments. Cheers

[@neptune04]

That is actually a good theory.

[@CritterKeeper01]

That pretty much matches what I've been going by. I thought it was pretty clear in the episodes as aired that the Doctor must have been mind wiped and adopted out as a normal baby. The Series 6B theory is one I had heard before, and was what I saw Ruth as before the Timeless Child part was explained. Nothing in the Timeless Child exposition contradicts it, and it explains her TARDIS and going by "the Doctor".

[@Wolf359inc]

@@neptune04 thanks. I put quite a bit into it, as I have far too much time on my hands at the moment... :)

[@garycullen7390]

JUST READ JEFF BREWER'S THOUGHTS AND IT'S GOOD TO SEE SOMEONE OTHER THAN MYSELF NOT COMPLAINING ABOUT CHIBNALL BUT ACTUALLY UNDERSTANDING THAT NO CONTINUITY HAS BEEN CHANGED AND THAT THE WHOLE IDEA WAS TO REINTRODUCE SOME MYSTERY INTO THE SERIES

[@Wolf359inc]

@@garycullen7390 please don’t misunderstand me - I believe Chibnall’s run has been terrible, but I will give him credit for trying to bring mystery back to the Doctor. I love the Doctor being female, but the stories have, by and large, been awful. But I continue to watch, because any new Who is better than no new Who...

[@douglasburck1611]

Could the master's eugenics experiments have resulted in multiple timelines and multable master's exhisting at once?

[@Squicx]

I actually have a theory that Sacha Dwans master is actually the 11th Doctor’s master that never was on screen. Before Missy and after John Simms master

[@patrickmccurry1563]

I could have sworn the first time we see the Master in the original series, it was stated that he had run out of regenerations. That would leave a lot of incarnations never seen on screen.

[@dylanhodgson7605]

@@patrickmccurry1563 didn’t he steal some from the doctor at one point?

[@LainK1978]

@@dylanhodgson7605 he was given more by the high council during the war.

[@roamingnurses8785]

Jenny could be the timelord that he recognises - so not his mum, but his daughter...

[@alim.9801]

OMG TRUE

[@TPOTP]

I have to admit, I don't really want to find out the answer to any of these questions. I have always loved the mystery surrounding the doctor. The important thing was never who they were or where they came from. What mattered was the choices they make and who they decide to be. Part of it is in the title. Doctor who? Even the name of the show is a question, and not knowing things has always been a big part of the show. That's one of the (many) reasons I hate the timeless child twist. It's answering questions that don't need answering. It was never important what happened in the doctors past, just what they wanted to be in the future. In my humble opinion, the question "Doctor Who?" was never asking "who are you" but instead "who do you want to become"

[@LainK1978]

Rassellion literally did NOT come from within the time bubble that the Doctor created. The End of Time takes place at the same time as the Day of the Doctor. The Timelord Dalek war was time locked by the High Council. Thus they unlocked it.

[@chuckasualty]

The Doctor did tell Osgood that his name is Bazel (guessing on the spelling here) in the The Zygon Invasion/Inversion episodes.

[@Ailumer]

It's Basil and it's just one of his chosen names, like John Smith.

[@alim.9801]

@@Ailumer could that be a reference to Basil Rathbone??

[@Ailumer]

@@alim.9801 I've never heard of him so i don't know.

[@pileofhazelnuts]

How long was 12 at that university? It's never really clarified when he went there, whether it was directly after Clara or not, and it's never clarified how long he was there (aside from bills theories). In the comics it explains what he does during this time, but it's never really fully gone through.

[@declanhugors]

I mean since he had more regenerations to use he wouldn't visibly age so he could have been there for 100 years/since the very beginning at the university? He could have been there for as long as he wanted

[@pileofhazelnuts]

@@declanhugors I think the only time he really aged was world enough and time, but that's only shown in his hair (which actually goes much fluffier due to the excess energy in his body). Considering he actually used regeneration energy in the magicians apprentice/witches familiar, and possibly in other times as well, it could be a slight age only shown in the hair. And since it gets fluffy, he's aged a bit. But you're right.

[@Pathadar]

As far as the Master I was thinking that he hated what Missy had become so much that when he regenerated (after being shot by Missy) he rejected that regeneration in that moment, and made a new body.

[@maxtitan4669]

It would make more sense if the timeless child was the Master, it would explain his insanity and his ability to escape death so easily. At this point, it's really just bad writing that just does not make any sense to the story and lore.

[@latenightcoffeeshop7112]

Theory, The Doctor is actually Techteyun (or however that’s spelt) and the Master is the Timeless Child. Which would cause the Doctor to question their own morals.

[@elizabethgrosvenor153]

Oh yes, please make it so!!

[@CaptainJack2048]

Clara has a TARDIS.... she might have gone back (at some point) to re-visit Danny when he was alive. One thing led to another, since the earlier Clara happened to be off running around with the Doctor. Clara, realizing what a bad idea that was, left with Danny being none the wiser. Clara only later found out that she was pregnant, and there was a whole series worth of shenanigans leading to Orson.

[@artiste9379]

That's good

[@galactus414]

Problem is that Clara is not aging or anything. When she was brought back there was a full point made about how her heart wasn't even beating. She is literally a frozen, conscious snapshot of her at that moment. The biological process for childbirth would not be able to even occur.

[@CaptainJack2048]

@@galactus414 I suspect that if they did want to make it canon, they'd figure out a way to do it. Nothing as complicated as transcribing Clara's DNA and getting River Song to be host mother with a reincarnation of Sarah Jane Smith to act as doula (I may or may not have written a spec script, not sayin' 😋).

[@baird329]

I figure there will always be more questions than answers. That is part of what keeps the show interesting. The books might answer a question and an episode flies in the face of that answer. That is part of the Whoverses charm.

[@johngelnaw1243]

Personally, the best thing they could do for Doctor Who is retcon the Timeless Child subplot out of existence. Doubt it will happen but it wouldn't be hard to do-- wouldn't be the first time the Timelords put out propaganda instead of the truth.

[@andrewphillips-hird3761]

I reckon the Doctor told River his name in Let's Kill Hitler when he dies. He whispers something to her and she replies "well I'm sure she knows that", obviously we're meant to believe he's telling her that he loves her or something but I think it's something like "tell River my name is [name]". The response would fit.

[@MartinInBC]

Hmmm, maybe the Doctor's name quite by coincidence is 'Adolf'.

[@scarybitch9433]

Well the only person who does know the doctors name is River Song, anyway.

[@hgwells1899]

The Doctor did nothing wrong. Is what I heard somewhere, anyway

[@cyogenic1052]

RICH IS BACK!!!

[@bryanabbott6169]

Is he, or is this an older presentation WhatCulture had yet to release?

[@cyogenic1052]

@@bryanabbott6169 That is true but I can hope

[@henryg4377]

@@bryanabbott6169 this was already released on WhatCulture

[@katiefincher2433]

So one thing to remember about the doctor's name is that it was more or less set up in the first series, many of the books, a few of the radio plays, etc, as being "The Other"-- as Rassilon, Omega, and The Other. The current magic baby plot in no way contradicts this, as The Other's origins themselves are entirely unknown. The reason its so secret is because if anyone found out and they had access to Galifreyan times before the eye of harmony and the untempered schism were set up (doubtful anyone does, but you never know- the cult of pythia had its tendrils in all kinds of places), they could instantly delete not only every moment of the doctor's history, but every moment of the doctor's history on every timeline, in every universe, permanently. This would not only eliminate The Doctor, but also all timelords as well as Galifrey itself. Seems pretty straightforward. I still hope they see that arc through.

[@joshuacurphey3242]

Okay, just to reply to these: 10. Following Danny unfortunately being killed, I have heard of thoughts that maybe Orson was some distant relative of Danny (like you speculated, the grandson of a sibling of Danny) 9. The incarnation of The Master as played by Sacha Dhawan is from somewhere around his “Harold Saxon” (as played by John Simm) and Missy (as played by Michelle Gomez) incarnations. 8. The Doctor told River his name in Let’s Kill Hitler. 7. The Doctor’s name actually being ”Doctor Who” does actually sound quite weird, and the fact that we don't know it adds to a bit of the show’s mystery. 6. The woman in The End of Time was definitely the (or a) mother of The Doctor. 5. Jenny (The Doctor’s Daughter) was apparently revived thanks to the Source, and not because she regenerated. Also, Jenny Flint (like Jenny) has had some off-screen stories of her own. These mentioned that she was a match girl from Victorian England that was attacked by a Chinese gang called the Tongs, until she was rescued by Madame Vastra and the Ninth Doctor. 4. I would say The Doctor has his own family. 3. There are off-screen stories released that have stated that Susan had since remained on Earth in the 22nd century and reunited with The Doctor, as well as that she had a son named Alex (who was human), but unfortunately lost him to a Dalek attack and later was recruited to fight in the Time War against the Daleks. 2. I’m kinda thinking The Doctor left Gallifrey maybe because he was bored, but he has also stated that he has disliked that the Time Lords have such great powers and didn't use them for any good (all about their “non-intervention policy). 1. Yeah, this seems a bit confusing.

[@mrmeerkathead6871]

What if the unfrozen Gallifrey was in a parallel universe and everything from there is in a parallel universe. That could mean that the whole timeless children is not true in the actual universe.

[@realbadger]

According to the "last" Patrick Troughton serial "The War Games," there's a shot indicating the Doctor as the trial defendant, listing him as a mathematical formula. "The Timeless Child" is a non-canon fever-dream by a "show runner" who clearly hates the series and loathes its can base. Of course the Tenth Doctor was a father; Susan was his granddaughter, even Eleventh Doctor referenced her in "Ring of Azkaban" (sp?). "Chibnal, answers please" should have been "Chibnal, resign; just... go away..."

[@declanhugors]

Yes but him resigning would have answered our questions

[@DrWhoFanJ]

The episode you mean towards the end is “The Rings of Akhaten”. More seriously, what universe are you occupying where you can legitimately think a canonical part of the show is somehow “non-canonical”‽ And Chris Chibnall does not in any way “hate the series” or “loathe its fanbase”. The only people loathing anyone are you idiots of the vocal minority who have merely shifted your misogyny at a female Doctor onto the writing! Goodbye, you utter imbecile! 😡😡😡😡

[@declanhugors]

@@DrWhoFanJ Read my other comment

[@DrWhoFanJ]

@@declanhugors I did read it; I didn’t get it.

[@electrobob992]

3:09 funny thing that was revealed in an official audio drama. Basically while she couldn't normally regenerate, she happened to have an Elysian Field on her personal. Which was an outlawed piece of timelord technique that completely breaks down the body and regenerates it with a full set of lives to boot. With the added ability to change things about the person it's used on. Which missy used to make the resulting regeneration have only kindness. No snide evil. But resulted in memory loss for the most part. She in this new form, took the title "The Lumiat". Basically the Valeyard of the master from what I was told. Would end up building a tardis to escape the ship, went through time doing what she could to prevent her past self from being evil. Tries to make Missy good, only for Missy to kill her much like the previous regeneration did to missy.

[@glitterizedrainbow2311]

There is reference to the doctor having kids. The tenth doctor did say to Rose that he was a dad once.

[@artiste9379]

LOL love your vids and hunches on doctor who btw my fav 3 doctors are Tom Baker, David tennant and Matt Smith