Psychic paper

Psychic paper
Place of origin:	Celestial Intervention Agency
Appearances:	DW: The End of the World DW: The Long Game DW: The Empty Child PDA: World Game DW: New Earth DW: Tooth and Claw DW: The Idiot's Lantern DW: Fear Her DW: Army of Ghosts DW: The Shakespeare Code DW: Evolution of the Daleks DW: Partners in Crime DW: Planet of the Ood DW: Silence in the Library DW: Midnight DW: Planet of the Dead DWM: The First

Psychic paper was a blank, white card that had special properties. When shown to a person, it could usually induce them to see whatever the user wished them to see printed on it.

Users

The Doctor was given psychic paper while employed as an agent by the Time Lords' covert organisation, the Celestial Intervention Agency, the CIA having developed the technology. (PDA: World Game)

The Doctor, in both his ninth and tenth incarnations, habitually carried it, as did Captain Jack Harkness when Rose Tyler and the Doctor first met him in World War II London. Jack said that the paper was a new technology put into use by the Time Agency which had employed him. (DW: The Empty Child)

Properties

Usually, it showed what the holder of the paper wanted the person reading the paper to see (DW: The End of the World), or vice-versa (DW: The Idiot's Lantern). It could even be used to open doors in place of a keycard (DW: Army of Ghosts), and the Doctor once used it in lieu of an Oyster card to pay before boarding a bus in London. (DW: Planet of the Dead)

In the hands of an untrained user the paper was prone to displaying facts they subconsciously wanted the reader to be aware of, often leading to embarrassment. (DW: The Empty Child)

Members of the Torchwood Institute received basic psychic training and as a result were rendered immune to the effects of the paper. (DW: Army of Ghosts)

Individuals with powerfully creative minds also seemed to be immune to the effect of the paper, although the Doctor appeared to believe this only occurred in truly exceptional cases. (DW: The Shakespeare Code)

Apart from its usual function of subterfuge, the paper could receive messages from the Face of Boe and Professor River Song, to the Doctor's surprise. (DW: New Earth and Silence in the Library)

Resistance to psychic paper

Not everyone falls for the psychic paper. People, or groups, known to be immune to its illusions include:

• Torchwood One personnel (DW: Army of Ghosts)
  • Due to psychic training. It is not known if this extends to other branches of Torchwood, including Torchwood Three.
• William Shakespeare (DW: The Shakespeare Code)
  • Apparently due to Shakespeare's incredible mind.
• Ernest Shackleton (DWM: The First)
  • Shackleton states that such "mentalism" tricks don't work on him. The Doctor surmises it's due to the explorer's driven and determined nature.