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Doctor Who does history lessons better than any other show.
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00:00From sexy fish vampires to flesh-eating shadows, there is no denying that
00:05the Doctor has encountered some truly incredible creatures in Doctor Who.
00:10While it is always exciting to see which new creature will be appearing each week, it's
00:14equally just as-
00:15It's always exciting and also very moving when we see the Doctor and particularly the companions
00:19in-
00:20Well, with that in mind then, I'm Ellie with Who.
00:25Here with the 10 best historical figures who have appeared in New Who.
00:30Number 10, Madame de Pompadour.
00:33Now, Series 2's The Girl in the Fireplace.
00:35Is a perfect example of the Doctor accidentally stumbling into history when he-
00:40somehow manages to place himself into the life of a young Renette Croissant.
00:44Now, it is really-
00:45Entertaining when you see the Doctor suddenly discover that he's just encountered someone
00:49significant and-
00:50Of course, this episode adds that extra layer of comedy by him only realising that after-
00:55he's just snogged her.
00:56Although there is no written rule, it is a common known law-
01:00in the Doctor Who universe that history is not to be tampered with, and accidentally-
01:05becoming the love obsession of the future mistress to the King of France just seems a little
01:09bit risky on-
01:10in the course of history.
01:11His unintentional intrusion actually eliminates a far greater-
01:15threat on the timeline of Madame de Pompadour, and it means that the Doctor can do what he does best-
01:20which is stop the baddies from destroying history.
01:23Now, Doctor Who has a really clever way-
01:25of being both entertaining but also educational, and those windows into the different-
01:30stages of Madame de Pompadour's life mean that this episode not only calls for an epic-
01:35shot of the Doctor smashing through a mirror on horseback, but it also offers an-
01:40almost- accurate biography on Madame de Pompadour's life.
01:43Number 9, William-
01:45Even when the Doctor just simply intends to impress his new companion-
01:50with a quick trip to the past, he somehow manages to sniff out trouble while meeting Shakespeare-
01:55wasn't a complete accident, fighting off the Carrionites definitely wasn't part of the original-
02:00plan.
02:01Now, what's really interesting about this episode is that the Doctor and Martha use their knowledge of-
02:05history to figure out that something's not right.
02:07The works of Shakespeare are famous throughout the world, throughout-
02:10history, so when there's a random play that doesn't exist in the future, that obviously raises some questions.
02:15Also interesting about this episode is the subtle touches upon a long-standing-
02:20myth that Shakespeare was actually bisexual.
02:22Now, they explore this through his attitude-
02:25towards both Martha and the Doctor, and even the Doctor remarks-
02:30that 57 academics just punched the air in response to his flirtatious remarks towards-
02:35him.
02:36It is sometimes easy to forget that this is simply a fictional answer to a real life-
02:40mystery, and yet somehow you still feel like you're satisfied regardless.
02:44As it so happens-
02:45Shakespeare isn't the only historical figure to appear in this episode, but we'll get to that-
02:50one later.
02:51Number 8.
02:52Charles Dickens.
02:53Charles Dickens was the first historical-
02:55figure to appear in the 2005 reboot.
02:58We'd already seen the Doctor and Rose travel-
03:00literally to the end of the world, but this was the first time that Christopher Eccleston's
03:05ninth-
03:05Doctor ventured into the past.
03:07Now, like the Shakespeare code had a fitting theme-
03:10for its titular playwright, The Unquiet Dead aptly followed the most appropriate-
03:15Dickens theme of ghosts.
03:17But while we're still on the subject of Shakespeare, one-
03:20of the clever adjustments that Mark Gatiss made to the script here is taking the common phrase-
03:25of what the Dickens, but having Charles Dickens himself say what the Shakespeare, and it's-
03:30just simple changes like this that make these characters seem so much more realistic-
03:35even though there are ghosts and zombies and a possessed maid.
03:38But it is Doctor Who, so you have to have a little bit of-
03:40Charles Dickens did then reappear in The Wedding of Rivers Song, but this time his purpose was-
03:45to highlight the displacement of time, having Charles Dickens sat on BBC News-
03:50talking about his new book about ghosts and Christmas and the past and the present and the future-
03:55but the story of A Christmas Carol is so appropriate and fitting for that episode-
04:00which is essentially the Doctor and River getting their glimpse at Christmas future-
04:05if they didn't fix the paradox, showing them what could happen if they didn't change-
04:10things.
04:11Number 7, Nikola Tesla.
04:13Nikola Tesla appeared in the series 12-
04:15episode Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror and this episode really put a focus on how-
04:20the success and significance of these historical figures could attract the attention of-
04:25of other alien races throughout time and space.
04:28Now in this instance it was the Queen-
04:30of Skithra who had sought out the engineering genius of Nikola Tesla to help fix her sh-
04:35ship.
04:36But probably more significant in this episode is the exploration of the-
04:40the rivalry between Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison and the reality of his legacy.
04:45now obviously the real Nikola Tesla didn't fight aliens but-
04:50he did dedicate his life to a vision that was never truly realised or appreciated-
04:55in his lifetime.
04:56And the hope and optimism that's portrayed by actor Goran-
05:00his snitch-
05:01I think that's how you say his name.
05:02It's a very hard name to say but-
05:04the hope and optimism-
05:05that he portrays just makes it so much more heartbreaking when we as an audience know-
05:10that he never got the recognition that he deserved.
05:13And actually this is emulation-
05:15stated in Yaz's disappointment that his heroic efforts within this episode had no-
05:20positive impact on his future.
05:23And this man fundamentally ch-
05:25changed the way we live and yet never knew how successful he actually was-
05:30in his endeavours.
05:31Now also the casting here of Goran Visnitch was absolutely-
05:35perfect because Nikola Tesla, who although Serbian by blood, was actually-
05:40born and raised in what would become Croatia, which is where Goran Visnitch is also-
05:45from.
05:46And it's just little attentions to detail like this that just show how much research-
05:50and effort went into telling this historical story.
05:54Number 6-
05:55We-
05:55Winston Churchill
05:56When Winston Churchill made his on-screen debut in series-
06:005-5's victory of the Daleks, he seemed to already have an established acquaintance and-
06:05friendship with the Doctor.
06:06Now while this was the first time we'd seen it on-screen, there are several publications-
06:10documenting encounters between the pair dating back to 1986.
06:14Now because of this-
06:15pre-existing relationship, it meant that this episode could explore a completely different-
06:20dynamic between the Doctor and a historical figure, rather than being fearful or-
06:25showing disbelief, Winston Churchill kind of had the confidence here to utilise his-
06:30friend and try and gain the upper hand, use his foreknowledge of the future and history-
06:35to try and win the Second World War faster.
06:37Now of course the Doctor maintains that-
06:39There are-
06:40There are certain points in history that have to be fixed and cannot be interfered with.
06:45Apparently the Daleks didn't get that memo.
06:47Winston Churchill appeared a few more times throughout series 5-
06:50and 6.
06:51First to just emphasise the vast number of people who are connected to and-
06:55rely on the Doctor in the Pandorica Opens.
06:58And then again alongside-
07:00Charles Dickens in The Wedding of River Song to just highlight that topsy-turvy displacement
07:04of time.
07:05Now-
07:05The inclusion of Winston Churchill here and Hitler in Let's Kill Hitler managed to-
07:10educate the targeted younger audience on those significant figures during WWII-
07:15without branching into anything more sinister or unsuitable for the-
07:20younger audience.
07:21Just highlighting that there is a history lesson here but it's also for children.
07:25arriba-
07:26number 5-
07:27time.
07:28Number 5-
07:29Queen Victoria.
07:302-
07:30Claw is an episode that really upped the fear factor of Doctor Who. You have the
07:35ninja monks, the lycanthropic possession, and of course the alien werewolf. And Queen Victoria
07:40presence only really adds to that serious tone of the episode. Unlike most people who encounter
07:45the Doctor, she really doesn't appreciate his daredevil energy and she really doesn't appreciate
07:50Rose's immature attempts to get her to say, we are not amused. Now while she does
07:55one of them for saving her life, she is also very eager to eliminate this threat on her
07:59empire.
08:00So much so, that the events of this episode actually result in Queen Victoria's
08:05idea establishing the Torchwood Institute, to protect the earth not only from aliens,
08:10but also, primarily, from the Doctor himself. Now this episode is also really-
08:15a really good example of the Doctor Who creatives giving a supernatural explanation for-
08:20a real-life mystery. And in this instance, it's the suggestion that Prince Albert's
08:25obsession with having the Koh-I-Noor diamond re-cut and re-size is because he knew-
08:30of the existence of this werewolf and was going to use the diamond as a tool-
08:35to destroy it. It also offers a rather ambiguous question surrounding-
08:40the real-life blood condition that Queen Victoria suffered from suggesting-
08:45that it was actually the result of being bitten by a werewolf, with the Doctor saying that-
08:50this unexplained haemophilia diagnosis was actually just a Victorian-
08:55euphemism for lycanthropic mutation.
08:58Number 4. Rosa Parks
09:00Series 11's episode Rosa explored a different side to the Doctor's moral-
09:05compass. Of course, it didn't come without its hardship and heartbreak, but it really was a point-
09:10a convenient predicament to portray. So often we see the Doctor helping historical figures-
09:15to overcome obstacles or alien anomalies in their timeline, but in this-
09:20instance, the obstacle was 100% human and yet integral to-
09:25to the progression of humanity. What started as simply an effort to stop the-
09:30time travelling criminal Crasko from preventing the Montgomery bus boycott led to the Doctor-
09:35Yazz, Ryan and Graham becoming vital parts in Rosa Parks' story.
09:40And that moment where they are forced to stay seated on the bus in-
09:45order to ensure that Rosa Parks gets arrested is one of those rare occasions where the-
09:50Doctor has to allow or even cause something awful to happen in order to-
09:55to maintain the future. Now of course we have seen other moments of moral questioning in Doctor-
10:00who in episodes such as the fires of Pompeii and the waters of Mars. Moments where-
10:05the Doctor really must adhere to those laws of a fixed point in time and you-
10:10use that as their justification for not helping.
10:12Number 3, Agatha Christie.
10:14The uni-
10:15Unicorn and the Wasp is another example of the Doctor Who creatives offering a timey-
10:20explanation for a real-life historical mystery. And in this instance-
10:25it offers an explanation to the 10 day disappearance of Agatha Christie in-
10:301926. The episode plays out in the style of an Agatha Christie murder mystery which-
10:35subsequently turns out to be more than just a coincidence. Lady Edison, a big fan of Agatha Christie-
10:40Agatha Christie's novels, had unknowingly filled the mind of her long-lost son with the notion of-
10:45murder mysteries through a necklace which linked the pair telepathically. The power of Agatha Christie-
10:50Agatha Christie's writings was so strong that they became embedded within the psyche of this-
10:55newly transformed Vesta form alongside his true identity and resulted-
11:00in his fictional misconception of the world. Agatha determines that the only way to stop the giant-
11:05wasp-like creature from killing people was to lure it away and drown it by throwing the telepathic-
11:10checklist into Silent Pool Lake. But her own connection to the jewel and the Vesta form-
11:15resulted in her losing consciousness and being taken to a hotel by the doctor and Donna-
11:20waking up 10 days later with total amnesia about the events. Now of course the real-
11:25explanation as to the amnesia and the disappearance is still a mystery but we have-
11:30here an example of Doctor Who creatives going, you know what, I'm gonna put my own supernatural spin-
11:35action on this story. Number 2, Elizabeth the First. When Elizabeth the First
11:40entered the Globe Theatre in the Shakespeare Code she was not only aware of who the Doctor was-
11:45but she seemed to be extremely agitated by his presence. Now at the-
11:50time both the Doctor and the audience were very confused about why she hated him so-
11:55much. And in the subsequent series between then and 2013's The Day of the Doctor-
12:00there were several hints made that the Doctor was actually married to Elizabeth the First. He both-
12:05posts about his nuptials to Ood Sigma in the End of Time. Liz 10 teases him about his-
12:10less-than-virtuous activities with the so-called Virgin Queen in the Beast below and he mentions-
12:15in the Wedding of River Song that Elizabeth the First is still waiting on a glade to elope with him.
12:20Now the events of The Day of the Doctor would eventually confirm these boastful remarks to be-
12:25the truth. The proposal was supposed to just unveil a Zygon but he unintentionally became-
12:30the fiance to Elizabeth the first and he did fulfill his promise in a private ceremony-
12:35witnessed by the Eleventh Doctor, the War Doctor and Clara Oswald as well. He then-
12:40promised, but he would be right back. Judging by her animosity towards him almost-
12:4540 years later? I'm going to go out on a limb here and say he did not come right back.
12:50Number 1. Vincent van Gogh. Vincent and the Doctor is equally one of the-
12:55most heartbreaking and heartwarming episodes of the Matt Smith era.
12:59Now unlike-
13:00In most encounters with historical figures, the Doctor purposely sought out Vincent-
13:05rather than just stumbling across him. Now similarly to Sensing Trouble when Shakespeare-
13:10mentions a play that doesn't exist in the future, the Doctor and Amy notice a suspicious creature-
13:15working in the background of one of his paintings that shouldn't be there. Now the exploration of-
13:20Vincent's depression in this episode is particularly beautiful. Rather than suggest that the-
13:25Faeus creature is the cause of Vincent's troubled life. It instead suggests that-
13:30His alternative views on life are what give him the power to see things that-
13:35others can't. The whole premise of the storyline is just this beautiful metaphor-
13:40for the inner demons of depression and how they very much do-
13:45exist, despite the fact that they appear invisible or non-existent to the naked eye. It-
13:50even goes as far as to explore how people trying to help can make the day that much better but-
13:55can also make it much worse. And this is one of those very rare occasions where the Doctor actually-
14:00breaks his own rules and shows Vincent his future legacy. That moment-
14:05where Bill Nighy is delivering his beautiful monologue about the importance of Van Gogh's work-
14:10and Vincent himself is standing there, becoming completely overwhelmed by what he's-
14:15hearing and what he's seeing is arguably one of the most-
14:20the most beautiful and greatest scenes in Doctor Who. And that concludes our list.
14:25Honestly, we couldn't cover every historical figure that has appeared in Doctor Who since 2000-
14:30but if you think we've missed one that's really important then do let us know in the comments below.
14:35And while you're there, don't forget to like and subscribe and tap that notification bell. Make sure-
14:40you head over to Twitter and follow us there at Whoculture and Instagram as well. And-
14:45and I can be found across various social medias just by searching Ellie Littlechild. I've been Ellie with Who-
14:50and in the words of Riversong herself, goodbye, sweeties.
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