Reg Cranfield

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PC Reg Cranfield was a policeman. On 23 November 1963, he made his rounds on Totter's Lane, complaining about the fog and the cold, when he heard a voice calling out his name. He shone his light on the fog to reveal the face of his recently-deceased father (which was actually the Shroud). The Shroud, still masquerading as Reg's father, convinced him that it was Reg's fault that he passed away, and that he felt betrayed by him leaving, causing him to go mad with grief. (PROSE: Shroud of Sorrow)

Behind the scenes

Reg's name, the setting, and the setting's description are all a reference to "An Unearthly Child", the first televised episode of Doctor Who, which opens with Reg Cranfield, playing a policeman, making his rounds through Totter's Lane on a foggy night. Indeed, he seems intended to be the same character. On the very next ‘significant’ Anniverary (the 55th), another character intended to be the same would be introduced. However, neither are explicitly stated to be such, and the two accounts are not easily reconcilable due to the different names, and the fact that Reg appears to be an actual human being whose father is deceased, while Bernard Whittam is an artificial construct created by the TARDIS whose father is ‘still alive’, or at least supposed to be, but actually is also artificial. It is just about possible to reconcile them with just enough creativity; for instance, one could assume the false backstory given to Reg/Bernard by the TARDIS initially involved a deceased father, and was realistic enough for the Shroud to feed upon, and the TARDIS rebooted his memories to throw off the attacking Shroud. However, given that any such explanation would naturally involve speculation - indeed, even accepting they are the same is technically speculation from an-universe perspective -even if obvious from a behind-the-scene one, this wiki will continue to treat all three as if they were unambiguously completely spectate characters.