The Little Things (short story): Difference between revisions

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{{title|''{{PAGENAME}}''}}
{{title dab away}}
{{Infobox Short Story|
{{real world}}
story name=The Little Things|
{{Infobox Story SMW
series=[[Short Trips (series)|Short Trips]]|
|series=[[Short Trips (series)#In print|Short Trips short stories]]
doctor=[[Fourth Doctor]]|
|doctor = Fourth Doctor
companions=[[Romana]], [[K-9]]|
|featuring= First Doctor
year=|
|featuring2= Susan Foreman
writer=[[Paul Beardsley]]|
|companions = [[K9 Mark II]], [[Romana II]]
publication=[[Short Trips: A Christmas Treasury]]|
|setting=[[St Albans]], [[England]], [[16 December]] [[1996]] and [[17 December]] [[1997]]
previous story=[[Every Day]]|
|writer = Paul Beardsley
next story=[[UNIT Christmas Parties: Christmas Truce]]|
|anthology = Short Trips: A Christmas Treasury
|}}
|release date = 30 December 2004
|prev = Every Day (short story)
|next=UNIT Christmas Parties: Christmas Truce (short story)
}}'''''The Little Things''''' was the thirteenth short story in the [[Short Trips (series)|Short Trips]] anthology ''[[Short Trips: A Christmas Treasury]]''. It was written by [[Paul Beardsley]]. It featured the [[Fourth Doctor]], [[First Doctor]], [[Romana II]], [[K9 Mark II]] and [[Susan Foreman]].


==Summary==
== Summary ==
''to be added''
The [[Fourth Doctor]] receives a message that [[The Doctor's TARDIS|the TARDIS]] [[shell room]] is full. This is strange because he never uses it. He checks the exterior of the TARDIS — still a [[police box]]. He and [[Romana II|Romana]] check the shell room and discover that the last shape the TARDIS took before becoming a police box was a [[post box]]. Inside is a Christmas card; someone thought the fake post box was a real one.
 
The Doctor decides that it is important that this card, which is now about four hundred years old, be delivered to its intended recipient, [[Helen Thompson]], who the Doctor remembers became a noted biologist. Since the card is too old, they will have to make a facsimile.
 
The Doctor remembers that in his [[First Doctor|first incarnation]], he and [[Susan Foreman|his granddaughter]] visited 1990s Britain, with the TARDIS disguised as a post box. He gets K9 to confirm the date based on a comet that the Doctor remembers. The Doctor and Romana head for 1996 and shop for a card. The Doctor uses a [[chrono-historical stress gauge]] to determine the timeline deviation, which is 1.377. After they post the card and the mail is collected, the reading climbs to 1.401. They retrieve the card, after having to avoid police scrutiny, and K9 confirms that there was also a comet in 1997 Britain, so they head there. After posting the card, the gauge jumps to 27.999. Romana notices that the Doctor had dropped another letter, so they repost it, and the reading returns to 1.377. Romana reads the instructions for the stress gauge and performs a hard reset, and the gauge now reads zero. Suddenly the Doctor remembers that the famous biologist is actually named [[Helen Thomson]], ''without'' a "p".


==Characters==
Helen Thopmson receives a Christmas card. She is old and lonely, with all of her friends and family having died, but receiving a card from someone she worked with forty years ago means a lot to her.
*[[Fourth Doctor]]
*[[Romana]]
*[[K-9]]


==References==
== Characters ==
''to be added''
* [[Fourth Doctor]]
* [[Romana II]]
* [[K9 Mark II]]
* [[First Doctor]]
* [[Susan Foreman]]
* [[Helen Thompson]]


==Notes==
== Worldbuilding ==
''to be added''
* [[Comet]] [[Hyakutake]] was visible in Britain from [[March]] to [[June]] of [[1996]]. Comet [[Hale-Bopp]] was visible in [[April]] 1997.


==Continuity==
== Notes ==
''to be added''
''to be added''


==[[Fourth Doctor - Timeline|Timeline]]==
== Continuity ==
*This story occurs after [[ST]]: ''[[Special Occasions: 2. Do You Love Anyone Enough?]]''
* Before the First Doctor and Susan settled down in [[Shoreditch]] in [[1963]], they took a brief trip to [[St Albans]] on [[17 December]] [[1997]] to ensure that the [[United Kingdom]] would remain safe during and after the [[1960s]]. ([[COMIC]]: ''[[Operation Proteus (comic story)|Operation Proteus]]'', [[PROSE]]: ''[[Time and Relative (novel)|Time and Relative]]'', [[TV]]: ''[[An Unearthly Child (TV story)|An Unearthly Child]]'')
*This story occurs before [[ST]]: ''[[Special Occasions: 3. Better Watch Out, Better Take Care]]''
* The First Doctor mentions to Susan that [[England]] now has a decimal currency system. ([[TV]]: ''[[An Unearthly Child (TV story)|An Unearthly Child]]'')


==External links==
{{ST prose}}
''to be added''
{{TitleSort}}


{{prose stub}}
[[Category:Fourth Doctor short stories]]
[[Category:Fourth Doctor short stories]]
[[Category:K9 short stories]]
[[Category:K9 short stories]]
[[Category:Short Trips: A Christmas Treasury short stories]]
[[Category:Stories set at Christmas]]
[[Category:Stories set in London]]
[[Category:Stories set in 1996]]
[[Category:Stories set in 1997]]
[[Category:First Doctor short stories]]
[[Category:Multi-Doctor short stories]]
[[Category:Romana II short stories]]

Latest revision as of 20:12, 15 February 2024

RealWorld.png

The Little Things was the thirteenth short story in the Short Trips anthology Short Trips: A Christmas Treasury. It was written by Paul Beardsley. It featured the Fourth Doctor, First Doctor, Romana II, K9 Mark II and Susan Foreman.

Summary[[edit] | [edit source]]

The Fourth Doctor receives a message that the TARDIS shell room is full. This is strange because he never uses it. He checks the exterior of the TARDIS — still a police box. He and Romana check the shell room and discover that the last shape the TARDIS took before becoming a police box was a post box. Inside is a Christmas card; someone thought the fake post box was a real one.

The Doctor decides that it is important that this card, which is now about four hundred years old, be delivered to its intended recipient, Helen Thompson, who the Doctor remembers became a noted biologist. Since the card is too old, they will have to make a facsimile.

The Doctor remembers that in his first incarnation, he and his granddaughter visited 1990s Britain, with the TARDIS disguised as a post box. He gets K9 to confirm the date based on a comet that the Doctor remembers. The Doctor and Romana head for 1996 and shop for a card. The Doctor uses a chrono-historical stress gauge to determine the timeline deviation, which is 1.377. After they post the card and the mail is collected, the reading climbs to 1.401. They retrieve the card, after having to avoid police scrutiny, and K9 confirms that there was also a comet in 1997 Britain, so they head there. After posting the card, the gauge jumps to 27.999. Romana notices that the Doctor had dropped another letter, so they repost it, and the reading returns to 1.377. Romana reads the instructions for the stress gauge and performs a hard reset, and the gauge now reads zero. Suddenly the Doctor remembers that the famous biologist is actually named Helen Thomson, without a "p".

Helen Thopmson receives a Christmas card. She is old and lonely, with all of her friends and family having died, but receiving a card from someone she worked with forty years ago means a lot to her.

Characters[[edit] | [edit source]]

Worldbuilding[[edit] | [edit source]]

Notes[[edit] | [edit source]]

to be added

Continuity[[edit] | [edit source]]