Seven Seventh Doctor ... Somethings

The Seventh Doctor
Portrayed by: Sylvester McCoy
Tenure: 1987-1996

Alliteration failed me at last, so I thought I'd compile Seven things about the Seventh Doctor that made him stand out.

1. This is the first Doctor not to use received pronunciation, instead opting for McCoy's natural Scottish accent. His nationality was further helped by the addition of a paisley scarf to the Doctor's ensemble. Though Turner insisted on ramping up the question marks.

2. Dark and devious Doctor seven made a departure from his other incarnations in becoming more devilish and scheming as time went on. This Doctor stands out in using his intelligence to manipulate those around him, much to his protégé Ace's adoration.

3. The original tweed bearer indeed wasn't the Eleventh Doctor, but the seventh. McCoy reprised his role in 1996 for the TV Movie to allow for a regeneration into Paul McGann, Nathan Turner is now out of the picture and the question marks are burned. The Doctor as well as getting some new more respectable clobber also gets his screwdriver back. Finally.

4. A radically new TARDIS was introduced with Doctor number seven, of course whilst most people refer to it as the Eighth Doctor's, he in fact merely inherited it from his predecessor. The new TARDIS is essentially a mobile Gothic cathedral, just to really ram home the bigger on the inside bit. Plans were originally drawn up for a new TARDIS in season 27, which did happen, but it was Christopher Eccleston that got to use it.

5. Rather than have a screaming bimbo (Mel) McCoy is soon gifted with a companion who can think for her self, and isn't merely there to make your ears bleed. The relationship between the Doctor and Ace is much more complex to those we've seen previously and is a testament to the improving script writing coming through in Who's dying years. Ace is made into a character in her own right rather than a tool to shape plot devices around.

6. The Cartmel master plan is a nickname amongst fans for the attempts to shovel mystery back into the Doctor. This can best be seen in Remembrance of the Daleks, which brings about many questions on what the Doctor is doing and hints at a huge (25 years!) story arc. All this was in vain as it turns out, as McCoy would be the last Doctor for 9 years.

7. Cartmel quite recently revealed a lot of stories in the Seventh Doctor ere were designed to give then-Prime Minister Maggie Thatcher the finger. The Happiness Patrol is a good example of this. Revolting Miners? Sounds familiar...