Spencer Pemberton

Spencer Pemberton
Species:	Human
Job:	Second Lieutenant, Colonel
Affiliated with:	Parachute Regiment
First mentioned in:	The Web of Fear
First appearance:	The Ambush!
Appearances:	PROSE: On His Majesty's National Service

Spencer Pemberton was an officer who was instrumental in instilling in Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart a desire to become an officer. He became known to those under his command as "Old Spence". (PROSE: The Ambush!)

Biography

In 1951, Pemberton was a second lieutenant in the Parachute Regiment, 3rd Battalion during the Korean War. He met a young signalman, Alistair Lethbridge-Stewart, during his imprisonment by the Chinese. After their escape, Pemberton mentored Lethrbidge-Stewart, and nurtured a desire in him to become an officer. (PROSE: On His Majesty's National Service)

By the late 1960s, he and Lethbridge-Stewart were firm friends, and when the Special Forces Support Group (1 PARA) were sent in to deal with the London Event, Colonel Pemberton requested Lethbridge-Stewart's help — he was promptly brought in from Libya. (PROSE: The Ambush!, The Forgotten Son) Pemberton died at the hands of a Robot Yeti. Captain Knight served under him for some time, and considered him a good commanding officer. (TV: The Web of Fear) In an alternative timeline, Pemberton never died and continued to lead the fight against the Great Intelligence, but was convinced to put time right by Tess, a manifested form of the TARDIS. He saved Lethbridge-Stewart at Tooting Bec, and felt time resetting itself as he faded away into nothing. (PROSE: Legacies) His body was interred in the mortuary of St Mark's Hospital in Kenton during the clear up after the London Event, alongside other soldiers such as Captain Knight and Staff Sergeant Arnold, and later buried with full honours. (PROSE: The Forgotten Son) Lethbridge-Stewart visited Pemberton's wife, Joan, and their adult son, David, to inform them of Pemberton's death, wishing it had been him who had died instead. (PROSE: Legacies)

Legacy

Lethbridge-Stewart spoke at Pemberton's funeral. (PROSE: The Contented Mind)

Pemberton's descendants continued to be important, with close ties to the Lethbridge-Stewart family. By the year 5.5/Apple/26 Dorcas Lethebridge-Stuart (nee Pemburton) was one of the founders of New Earth, while her husband, Ezekiel Spens Lethebridge-Stuart was the President of the National Trust. (PROSE: Legacies)

Behind the scenes

The character was only referenced on TV in The Web of Fear, and was named after script editor Victor Pemberton.

His full name was given in The Ambush!, and author Andy Frankham-Allen stated on his blog, "As a tribute to Pemberton's life-partner I christened the character with the full name of Spencer David Pemberton (Victor's partner was actor/producer David Spenser, who died in July 2013)."