Constance Clarke
Constance Clarke was a companion of the Sixth Doctor.
A Leading WREN of the Women's Royal Naval Service during World War II, working at Bletchley Park in 1944, Constance travelled with the Doctor and, later, Flip Ramon, forming the TARDIS Gang. She preferred to be addressed as "Mrs Clarke".
Biography
Early life
Constance was born in 1909. (AUDIO: The Middle) She grew up in Nyasaland, later known as Malawi, (AUDIO: Criss-Cross) where her father owned land and employed locals as servants. (AUDIO: The Behemoth) Although her family forbade her from leaving the land through the fence, she frequently did so to explore (AUDIO: Planet of the Rani) and quite often came across mantises. (AUDIO: Quicksilver) They received zero trouble from the native inhabitants. (AUDIO: Criss-Cross)
From the age of nine, Constance learnt how to ride horses and became a skilled horsewoman. (AUDIO: Cry of the Vultriss) She had a great-uncle named Jasper, who lived alone in an expansive manor house and spent his time talking to his dog and taking potshots at rabbits. The Doctor reminded Constance of him. (AUDIO: Shield of the Jötunn) She also had a cousin who worked at the Air Transport Auxiliary during the war. (AUDIO: The End of the Beginning)
Life in England
Constance returned to London after her father tragically died of tuberculosis whilst she was a girl, which she described as a difficult time for the family. She completed her schooling and attended Somerville College at the University of Oxford where she received a first in modern languages. (AUDIO: Criss-Cross) She was able to speak German (AUDIO: Criss-Cross, The Darkened Earth) and joined the Women's Royal Naval Service.
At a young age, Constance married Sub-Lieutenant Henry Clarke of the Naval Intelligence Division (AUDIO: Criss-Cross) in a ceremony in which they both wore their uniforms and they had wilting daffodils. (AUDIO: The Behemoth) Constance believed that their marriage would be forever, (AUDIO: The Darkened Earth) but there was some strain when they found that she could not have children. (AUDIO: Quicksilver) At some point, Henry gave her a torch. (AUDIO: The Darkened Earth)
Constance began work as a Leading WREN at Bletchley Park in 1940. (AUDIO: Criss-Cross) Whilst there, she undertook an escapology course to which she paid very little attention. (AUDIO: Absolute Power, Elevation) In November 1943, Henry was posted to special duties abroad. (AUDIO: Criss-Cross) Just before he left, Constance went in his bag and found a letter indicating that he had been having an affair for some time. However, she chose not to raise the issue with him. Shortly after his departure, Constance went to work at Wavendon. (AUDIO: Quicksilver)
Travels with the Doctor
Meeting the Doctor
In 1944, Constance met the Sixth Doctor when she chastised him for overworking Sylvia Wimpole. When Major Harris came to check information on the Doctor, she asked him about her husband and if he was still alive. She accompanied the Doctor to Cambridge and asked Robbie Flint about her husband as well. She forced the Doctor to take her with him on his travels, wanting to be taken back to her duties once she decided to finish travelling as she was not a deserter. (AUDIO: Criss-Cross)
Sole companion
Further info from Shield of the Jötunn, Order of the Daleks and Absolute Power needs to be added
Looking through the TARDIS's inbox, Constance urged the Doctor to go to Teccaurora Penitentiary for the Second Rani's parole hearing and was taken by her to Miasimia Goria when she used a tachyon portal to go back in time. They arrived sixteen years later than the Rani intended thanks to the Doctor, by which time Raj Kahnu, who took a liking to Constance and built cockroach armour for her to protect her, had succeeded her as ruler. She was eventually reunited with the Doctor and the Rani was put on trial, but she escaped and Constance worried about her still being out there. (AUDIO: Planet of the Rani)
The TARDIS landed in 2029 Arizona, where Constance learnt about and was appalled at global warming, having expected future generations to take good care of the Earth after World War II. She was also surprised at the future, not finding it as bright and happy as she expected. She assisted the Doctor in defeating the Talessh. (AUDIO: Shield of the Jötunn)
Constance met the Daleks on Strellin and stabbed a Kaled mutant with a screwdriver. She was a prisoner of the Brotherhood of the Black Petal and was dressed in a cloak for the sake of modesty. (AUDIO: Order of the Daleks)
After finding the Eleven's TARDIS in the Time Vortex, the Doctor took Constance to Molaruss where she sneaked away during a tour of DuoTech and was forced by the Eleven to accompany him to help keep him and his clones, inhabited by the Three and the Six, sane. Miska became jealous of her and attempted to shatter her mind with Varma's machine, but she was saved by the Doctor, the Eleven and the Eight and left with the Doctor after the Eleven's clones were disabled. (AUDIO: One for All)
The Doctor took Constance to see the future of England, but she soon realised that they had instead arrived near a German village in World War II and came to think of the Germans differently after hearing about Peter's fear of the English and meeting his family. When Peter's house was attacked by a creature which fed on light, she tried to use her torch against it and the Doctor later supercharged it with the TARDIS. The torch caused the creature to disappear in a burst of light, but the Doctor was unable to tell Constance whether it was dead or had managed to leave Earth. (AUDIO: The Darkened Earth)
On one travel with the Doctor, she visited the Parallel Sect where she rescued Tim Hope from being run over by a train. She suggested that they should get back to the train station when she saw the remnants of the driver's cabin. The Doctor left her in the train when he went with Keith Potter to look after the passengers. After Alice Lloyd started acting strangely, Constance left with Tim to find the Doctor. Arriving at the station, she informed the Doctor that the passengers were killing each other as if was an epidemic. The Master threatened her with his Tissue Compression Eliminator. She was delighted when the Doctor defeated the Master's plans. She had Tim's coat on which contained a Relative Dimensional Stabiliser. (AUDIO: The End of the Line)
She found the planet Triketha beautiful when they landed on the planet. She helped Edwin to investigate the Toraxians and learnt that Edwin had footage of the TARDIS, but not where they had landed. She then helped to protect the colony when the insects attacked. She was told that a strange man had abducted Edwin's son, but was optimistic that the Doctor didn't know about it. Having learnt the truth about Tarlos, she told him not to worry too much about it. The Toraxian captured her. (AUDIO: Colony of Fear)
Constance and the Doctor returned to Molaruss after receiving a signal and were immediately arrested, with Constance being taken by Miska to her house and breathing in Elevations which created several other personalities in her mind. Miska deadlocked her in the house, but she was reminded of her escapology training by another personality and reunited with the Doctor after escaping through a vent, helping him defeat the Eleven. Afterwards, Constance was restored and she said goodbye to her outgoing "Connie" personality. (AUDIO: Elevation)
A Brudvahkian yak spat on Constance during their travels, which the Doctor found amusing. On Teymah, Constance agreed to help Lyam Yce's expedition with translating the language of the Teymahrians using her cryptographic skills. (AUDIO: Absolute Power)
With the Doctor and Flip
After asking to be returned to 1944, Constance read a telegraph telling her that Henry was lost in action. In Vienna, Constance found that Henry had married Ana Cook, who was pregnant with his child. She expressed her anger with him and, after defeating the Zerith, left with the Doctor and his former companion Flip Ramon. To their respective irritation, they called one another "Connie" and "Philippa". (AUDIO: Quicksilver)
Constance, the Doctor and Flip landed in Bath in 1756, where she was sickened by the slave trade and the treatment of women and convinced Sarah of her worth. She later went to search for Flip after she was abducted by Titus Craven. (AUDIO: The Behemoth)
On her thirty-fifth birthday, the TARDIS landed on Formicia, where Constance was separated from the Doctor and Flip and sent to the Middle, which reminded her of Bletchley. From the office, she managed to save Flip from a drone and send a message to the Doctor. (AUDIO: The Middle)
In a duplicate body
Constance and Flip both decided that they wanted to return home to their times. They landed in Abbey Marston, where she died. The Doctor burnt her body with the Static inside whilst her mind survived in a duplicate. In the duplicate, Constance left with the Doctor and Flip after the Static was defeated. (AUDIO: Static)
In her new body, Constance felt unusual and no longer wished to return to 1944 until she felt better. The trio landed on Cygia-Rema where Constance and Flip first encountered the Ice Warriors. Upon helping defeat Vextyr, they remained on the planet for three months to assist the rebuilding effort before leaving in the TARDIS. (AUDIO: Cry of the Vultriss)
Constance visited France in July 1944 with the Doctor and Flip. Despite having already been informed of the outcome of the war by the Doctor, she was excited to visit its end and discover the details behind the Allies' victory. She had a falling out with Flip over the corporal punishment used by the French against perceived traitors, which Constance felt was justified. The Doctor, Flip and Constance stopped Lucien from taking revenge on all those he thought had harmed France throughout the war. (AUDIO: Scorched Earth)
She helped the Doctor to track a Somnifax to the Earth. The Doctor tasked her to look after H. P. Lovecraft as she was the closest to his time whilst he and Flip went into his mind. After explaining the situation to Lovecraft, he made a slip from him. She chastised him for his disrespect of Calypso Jonze. She worked out that the breaches between the fictional and real world was happening in places with significance to Lovecraft. (AUDIO: The Lovecraft Invasion)
After taking Flip to a hospital to recover, the Doctor and Constance explored the surrounding city when it came under attack from the Freebooters. Using Calypso Jonze's ship to get to the Freebooter's ship they planned to sabotage it whilst the Doctor talked to El Zeddo. She was oblivious to Jonze's romantic interest in her. The Doctor and Constance were then abducted by Vakrass before they could return to Flip. She found the Eighth Doctor very handsome when they met. She went to help the Doctors with the help of Vislor Turlough and Charlotte Pollard by entering the device. (AUDIO: The End of the Beginning)
Personality
Given that she was married, when the Doctor introduced her to others as "Constance," she was quick to correct the Doctor to a more formal "Mrs Clarke." (AUDIO: The End of the Line) However, she allowed Lyam Yce, Florrie Solomon and Ammar Elkady to address her by her first name. (AUDIO: Absolute Power) She initially was annoyed when Flip Jackson called her "Connie" but she eventually developed a tolerance to it, (AUDIO: Quicksilver) and even came to like it. (AUDIO: Scorched Earth)
Constance proved capable of great courage and compassion, ready to act to undo wrongs and help those in need. (AUDIO: Order of the Daleks, The End of the Line, Planet of the Rani, The Behemoth) However, being a denizen of the era on the tail end of the second world war, Constance felt no need to disguise her acceptance of punishment to those the masses considered to be a traitor, as was demonstrated by her opinion on the public shaming of Clementine, earning her the ire of Flip, albeit temporarily. (AUDIO: Scorched Earth)
Although Constance was far from the sort to make a fuss about her birthday, she was calm about growing old and was looking forward to retiring, learning a new language and writing her memoirs. (AUDIO: The Middle)
Skills
Constance could play the piano (AUDIO: The Behemoth) and was a skilled horse-rider. (AUDIO: Cry of the Vultriss)
Constance proved a capable cryptographic such as being able to get the language of foreigners. (AUDIO: Absolute Power)
Behind the scenes
Constance first appeared in The End of the Line as an existing companion of the Sixth Doctor. Due to the release date of The Sixth Doctor: The Last Adventure being changed from September 2015 to August 2015, The End of the Line was released before the character's introductory story. [1]
Footnotes
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