Iris Wildthymeis afictionalcharactercreated by writerPaul Magrs,who has appeared in short stories, novels and audio dramas from numerous publishers.[1][2]She is best known fromspin-offmedia based on the long-running Britishscience fiction televisionseriesDoctor Who,where she is sometimes depicted as a renegadeTime Lord.[3]
| Iris Wildthyme | |
|---|---|
| Doctor Whocharacter | |
| First appearance | Marked for Life |
| Last appearance | Ongoing |
| Portrayed by | Katy Manning(voice) |
| In-universe information | |
| Species | Humanoid (speculated to be aTime Lord) |
| Affiliation | None |
| Home | Unknown (speculated to beGallifrey) |
| Home era | If from Gallifrey, most likely theRassilon Era |
Her stories are in theNew Wavemold, characterised by nonlinear, sometimesstream of consciousnessnarrative, intertextual references to the rest ofDoctor Whoandpopular culture,and themes ofunreliable narration.She has a playful, mischievous personality, delighting in baitingthe Doctorand getting into trouble.
History
editIris Wildthyme first appears in one of Magrs's non-genre novels,Marked for Life,[4]as a lesbian novelist who has lived for far longer than a normal lifespan.[5]At the end of the novel, Iris Wildthyme seems to die and then become a baby in a scene reminiscent ofregeneration.The infant Iris appears in later books by Magrs taking place in the same Phoenix Court setting, and an apparently adult version re-appears in the story "Hospitality", in the collectionIris: Abroad.
Iris's firstDoctor Whoappearance is in the short story "Old Flames",where she meets theFourth DoctorandSarah.The Doctoralready knows Iris as an "old friend", and she is seen to be travelling in a 20th-centuryLondonAEC Routemasterdouble-decker bus(theroute 22toPutney Common), which is, in reality, herTARDIS.[6][7]
The character was described as "a studied affront" to existingDoctor Whotexts[8]and "an ethical challenge" to some of the series' "main inconsistencies".[9]In 2011,SFXcalled Iris Wildthyme one of the 'Top 5 Spinoff Companions' and said 'her adventures (with the Doctor, and in her own line of books) are a joy'.[10]
Iris was featured at length inThe Scarlet Empress[11]andThe Blue Angel,[12]and went on to appear in several more short stories and novels in theBBC Booksrange, most recentlyMad Dogs and Englishmenin 2002.[7][13][14]
Since then the character has been the subject of a number of short story anthologies, edited by Magrs and others, published byObverse Booksand one byBig Finish Productions,[15]and two novels published bySnowbooks.[16][17]
In 2001,Philip Purser-Hallardsubmitted a proposal for a novel,Iris Wildthyme in the City of the Saved,which would have seen Iris in a hedonistic artificial world at the end of time where all people are resurrected and made immortal. It was rejected as an Iris Wildthyme novel range was considered unviable at the time. Purser-Hallard reused elements of the story in 2002'sThe Book of the War(in which Iris appears as an unnamed traveller) and 2004'sOf the City of the Saved....[18]
In 2002, the character started appearing as an occasional crossover character in audio plays byBig Finish Productions,where she is voiced byKaty Manning.[19][20]Following the casting of Manning in the role, imagery of the character used by Big Finish (and, later, Obverse Books) on packaging and covers now depicts Manning's likeness.[21]
The character has appeared as the main character in five "seasons" of audio dramas, released respectively in 2005, 2009, 2012, 2013 and 2015,[21]along with a 2009 Christmas special.[22][23]Each release of the second season is a pastiche of a decade of televisedDoctor Who,from the 1960s through to the 1990s. The 2012 releaseIris Rides Outis a crossover with the out-of-copyright characterCarnacki the Ghost-Finder.[24]
Although in some of her early appearances (includingVerdigrisandWildthyme on Top) Iris is accompanied by her companion Tom (played on audio byOrtis Deley), her usual foil in her Big Finish, Obverse Books and Snowbooks appearances is Panda, a 10-inch-tall sentient, stuffed toy (played on audio byDavid Benson).[25]
Character
editIris claims to have been raised by a House of Aunts (as opposed to Cousins), in the mountains of southernGallifrey,[26]and also that she has erased all of her records from theMatrix,explaining why the Time Lords know nothing about her. She is known to have survived the destruction of Gallifrey and the apparent retroactive wiping of the Time Lords from history that took place at the end of the novelThe Ancestor Cell.
Iris regenerates at the end ofThe Scarlet Empress(into a form resemblingJane FondainBarbarella),[6][27]and is known to have at least six other incarnations. One of these, Bianca (voiced byMaria McErlane), appears in theBig Finish Productionsaudio playThe Wormeryand is similar to the Doctor's villainousValeyardincarnation. Iris has also apparently worked forUNITas a Scientific Advisor, and for the Ministry of Incursions and Ontological Wonders (MIAOW).[27]
There is no indication of what relationship the character has with the new television series. In "The End of the World"(2005), the Doctor states that his homeworld had been destroyed and that he is the last of the Time Lords.
Attempting to pin down the exact details of Iris's history is problematic because such details are not only kept deliberately vague by Magrs and other writers, but also because the accounts of her adventures may not be reliable, in whole or in part.[27][28]For example, some of her claimed exploits bear a remarkable similarity to those of the Doctor's, and some have suggested that it is the Doctor's adventures that areplagiarisedfrom Iris's life, rather than the other way around.[27]
Her TARDIS is a double-decker red London bus, the number 22 to Putney Common.[6]In contrast with other TARDISes, hers is slightly smaller on the inside, a fact attributed to the fact that her TARDIS was dying when she found it. She also claims to have stolen the TARDIS, and to be on the run from her "mysterious superiors".
Iris has also argued that her adventures are more "true" than the Doctor's recollections because she writes them in her diaries while the Doctor does not. Magrs has explicitly stated that Iris "knows — of course she knows — that she's a very deliberate parody ofDoctor Who.That's why she loves him so. "[27]Inpostmoderniststyle, Iris is portrayed as playfully aware that she is a character in a television programme (or a series of books and audio dramas spun off from a television programme).[29]Even more so than the Doctor's TARDIS, Iris's bus is a device for moving her between fictional genres and even texts. In the context of theDoctor Whouniverse, all this may be explained by Iris's claim in the novelThe Blue Angelthat she is from the Obverse, a surrealparallel universewith radically different physical laws.[26][28]More recently in both Big Finish audios and Obverse Books short stories, she has claimed to come from The Clockworks, a planet in the Obverse, ruled over by a race not unlike the Time Lords.[26]
List of appearances
editPhoenix Courtnovels by Paul Magrs
edit- Marked for Life(Vintage Books1995)
- Does It Show?(Vintage Books 1997)
- Could It Be Magic?(Vintage Books 1998)
BBCDoctor Whonovels
edit- The Scarlet Empressby Paul Magrs (1998)
- The Blue Angelby Paul Magrs and Jeremy Hoad (1999)
- Verdigrisby Paul Magrs (2000)
- Mad Dogs and Englishmenby Paul Magrs (2002)
Snowbooks novels
edit- Enter Wildthymeby Paul Magrs (Snowbooks, 2011)
- Wildthyme Beyondby Paul Magrs (Snowbooks, 2012)
- From Wildthyme with Loveby Paul Magrs (Snowbooks, 2013)
The New Adventures of Iris Wildthyme
edit- Iris Wildthyme and the Polythene Terror(Obverse Books, 2019)
- Mother, Maiden, Crone(Obverse Books, 2020)
Short stories by Paul Magrs
edit- "Old Flames" inShort Trips(BBC Books1998, edStephen Cole)
- "Femme Fatale" inMore Short Trips(BBC Books 1999, ed Stephen Cole)
- "Entertaining Mr O" inPerfect Timing(1999, edMark PhippenandHelen Fayle)
- "Bafflement and Devotion" inDoctor Who Magazine(essay with fictional elements)[27]
- "Being an Extract from 'The Amazing Adventures of Iris Wildthyme on Neptune'" inTales of the Solar System(2000, edD Paul Griggs)
- "In the Sixties" inWalking in Eternity(2001, edJulian Eales), reprinted inTwelve Stories(Salt Publishing,2009)
- "Suitors, Inc." inShort Trips: Seven Deadly Sins(Big Finish Productions2005, edDavid Bailey)
- "The Dreadful Flap" inIris Wildthyme and the Celestial Omnibus(Obverse Books2009, ed Paul Magrs &Stuart Douglas)
- "The Delightful Bag" inThe Panda Book of Horror(Obverse Books 2009, ed Stuart Douglas & Paul Magrs)
- "Hospitality" inIris: Abroad(Obverse Books 2009, ed Stuart Douglas & Paul Magrs)
- "Hang onto Yourself" inLady Stardust(Obverse Books 2012, ed Art Critic Panda)
- "The Ninnies on Putney Common" inFifteen(also known asIris:Fifteen,Obverse Books, 2013, ed. Stuart Douglas,ISBN978-1909031159)
Short story anthologies
edit- Wildthyme on Toped Paul Magrs (Big Finish Productions 2005)
- Iris Wildthyme and the Celestial Omnibuseds Paul Magrs andStuart Douglas(Obverse Books,2009)
- The Panda Book of Horroreds Stuart Douglas and Paul Magrs (Obverse Books, 2009)
- Iris: Abroadeds Paul Magrs and Stuart Douglas (Obverse Books, 2010)
- Wildthyme in Purpleeds Stuart Douglas and Cody Quijano-Schell (Obverse Books, 2011)
- Lady Stardusted Art Critic Panda (Obverse Books, 2012)
- Fifteened Stuart Douglas (Obverse Books, 2013)
- Iris Wildthyme of MarsedPhilip Purser-Hallard(Obverse Books, 2014)
- The Perennial Miss WildthymeedDale Smith(Obverse Books, 2015)
- A Clockwork Irised Stuart Douglas,George Mann,and Paul Magrs (Obverse Books, 2017)
- Wild Thymes on the 22ed Stewart Sheargold (Obverse Books, 2019)
- Locked in Spaceed Stewart Sheargold (Obverse Books, 2023)
Novelette anthologies
edit- Ms Wildthyme and Friends Investigate(Obverse Books, 2010)
Big Finish audio plays
edit- Excelis Dawnsby Paul Magrs (2002)
- The Plague Herds of Excelisby Stephen Cole (2002)
- The Wormeryby Stephen Cole and Paul Magrs (2003)
- Wildthyme at Largeby Paul Magrs (2005)
- The Devil in Ms Wildthymeby Stephen Cole (2005)
- The Sound of FearbyMark Michalowski(2009)
- Land of Wonderby Paul Magrs (2009)
- The Two IrisesbySimon Guerrier(2009)
- The Panda Invasionby Mark Magrs (2009)
- The Claws of SantabyCavan Scott&Mark Wright(2009)
- Find and Replaceby Paul Magrs (2010)
- The Iris Wildthyme Appreciation Societyby Cavan Scott (2012)
- Iris Rides OutbyGuy Adams(2012)
- Midwinter MurdersbyGeorge Mann(2012)
- Whatever Happened to Iris Wildthyme?by Cavan Scott & Mark Wright (2013)
- Iris at the Ocheby Mark Wright (2013)
- A Lift in Timeby David Bailey (2013)
- The Elixir of Doomby Paul Magrs (2014)
- Wildthyme Reloaded(2015)
- Comeback of the ScorchiesbyJames Goss
- Dark Sideby Nick Campbell
- Oracle of the Supermarketby Roy Gill
- Murder At The Abbeyby Mark B. Oliver
- The Slots of Gizaby Hamish Steele
- High Spiritsby Cavan Scott
- An Extraterrestrial Werewolf in BelgiumbyScott Handcock
- Looking for a Friendby Paul Magrs
- Muse of Fireby Paul Magrs (2018)
References
edit- ^Book NewsArchived2013-07-05 at theWayback Machine,Starburst, March 2012
- ^The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction,eds John Clute, David Langford, Peter Nicholls and Graham Sleight
- ^"Canonicity Matters" inTime and Relative Dissertations in Space: Critical Perspectives on Doctor Who,Lance Parkin, pp.246, 257, Manchester University Press, 2007
- ^Wildthyme at Large
- ^"Hypothetical Hills", inTerritories of Desire in Queer Culture: Refiguring Contemporary Boundaries,James Knowles, pp.133, 140
- ^abcPearson, Lars(1999).I, Who: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who Novels(1st ed.). Des Moines, Iowa:Mad Norwegian Press.ISBN0-9673746-0-X.
- ^abParkin, Lance;Lars Pearson(2007).AHistory: An Unauthorized History of theDoctor Whouniverse(2nd ed.). Des Moines, Iowa:Mad Norwegian Press.ISBN978-0-9759446-6-0.
- ^Britton, Piers,TARDISbound: Navigating the Universes of Doctor Who,IB Tauris, p.200
- ^Britton, Piers,TARDISbound: Navigating the Universes of Doctor Who,IB Tauris p.201
- ^SFX - The Ultimate Dr Who Top Fives,SFX, November 2011
- ^"Shelf Life", Dave Owen, Doctor Who Magazine No. 269, August 1998
- ^"Shelf Life", Dave Owen, Doctor Who Magazine No. 282, August 1999
- ^"Preview: Mad Dogs and Englishmen", Paul Magrs, Doctor Who Magazine No. 312, January 2002
- ^"The DWM Review", Doctor Who Magazine No. 314, February 2002
- ^Big Finish - Wildthyme on Top
- ^Snowbooks - Enter Wildthyme!Archived2013-06-15 at theWayback Machine
- ^Snowbooks - Wildthyme Beyond!Archived2013-08-25 at theWayback Machine
- ^Purser-Hallard, Philip(2001)."Iris Wildthyme in the City of the Saved - Rejected Novel Proposal".infinitarian.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk.Archived fromthe originalon 18 December 2014.Retrieved26 November2014.
- ^Katy Manning CV
- ^Sandifer, pp. 274–275
- ^abBig Finish - Iris Wildthyme
- ^The Claws of Santa
- ^Katy Manning News and EventArchived2013-07-07 atarchive.today
- ^"Series 3 Box Set".Big Finish Productions.August 2012.Retrieved31 May2013.
- ^"Soho Stories", Clayton Littlewood, Polarimagazine, Feb 2010
- ^abcParkin, Lance;Pearson, Lars(2012).AHistory: An Unauthorized History of the Doctor Who Universe(3rd ed.). Des Moines, IA: Mad Norwegian Press. pp. 710–711.ISBN978-193523411-1.
- ^abcdefMagrs, Paul(5 April 2000). "Bafflement and devotion".Doctor Who Magazine(289).Panini:26–29.
- ^abPearson, Lars(2001).I, Who 2: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who novels and audios.New Orleans: Mad Norwegian Press. pp. 117–120.ISBN1-57032-900-1.
- ^Sandifer, Elizabeth (2013).TARDIS Eruditorum: An Unofficial Critical History of Doctor Who, Volume 3: Jon Pertwee.Danbury, Connecticut: Eruditorum Press. pp. 218–225.ISBN9781484030233.