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The United Kingdom, (often abbreviated as UK) known at various times by its formal title of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland or the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, was a European nation. It was composed of the nations of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Doctor frequently visited the United Kingdom throughout their lives. Due to this association, the UK was often the first line of defence against alien invasion. The Twelfth Doctor noted that more alien incursions had taken place in the United Kingdom than anywhere else on the planet but that he had no idea why this was the case. (PROSE: A History of Humankind [+]Loading...["A History of Humankind (novel)"])
The United Kingdom was at times referred to simply as England. (PROSE: World Game [+]Loading...["World Game (novel)"])
Geography
Location
The UK was in northern Europe with only the English Channel between itself and the mainland. (TV: The Reign of Terror [+]Loading...["The Reign of Terror (TV story)"], et al.)
Constituent nations
The United Kingdom was cited by the Countess as an example of a nation which began as "separate little kingdoms that gradually unified". (PROSE: World Game [+]Loading...["World Game (novel)"]) When it was founded in 1603, the United Kingdom consisted of England and Scotland. (PROSE: The Dying Days [+]Loading...["The Dying Days (novel)"]) It included Wales. (PROSE: World Game [+]Loading...["World Game (novel)"])
In 1879, the kingdom consisted of Great Britain and Ireland. (TV: Tooth and Claw [+]Loading...["Tooth and Claw (TV story)"]) Although, in the 20th and 21st centuries, it consisted of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. (PROSE: The Flaming Soldier [+]Loading...["The Flaming Soldier (novel)"], The Daughters of Earth [+]Loading...["The Daughters of Earth (novel)"], AUDIO: Minuet in Hell [+]Loading...["Minuet in Hell (audio story)"])
In the 3290s, the Eleventh Doctor welcomed Amy Pond aboard the Starship UK, calling it the "United Kingdom of Britain and Northern Ireland". Notably, Scotland had its own starship, separate from the rest of the kingdom. (TV: The Beast Below [+]Loading...["The Beast Below (TV story)"])
Other territories
British Overseas Territories included the Ascension Island as well as the islands of St Helena and Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic Ocean. (PROSE: The Time Traveller's Almanac [+]Loading...{"chaptname":"Everything Changes","page":"148","chaptnum":"3","1":"The Time Traveller's Almanac (reference book)"})
Climate
According to Susan Foreman, the United Kingdom was characterised by short mild winters, with London being a relatively temperate climactic zone. (PROSE: Time and Relative [+]Loading...["Time and Relative (novel)"])
The UK was known for its frequent raining. When it was raining in a Scottish car park, Amy Pond deduced that it must be Great Britain. (PROSE: Apollo 23 [+]Loading...["Apollo 23 (novel)"]) The presence of rain clouds told the Second Doctor that he, Jamie McCrimmon and Zoe Heriot had arrived in England during the summer. (TV: The Invasion [+]Loading...["The Invasion (TV story)"])
It constantly rained in Cardiff, (TV: Everything Changes [+]Loading...["Everything Changes (TV story)"], Ghost Machine [+]Loading...["Ghost Machine (TV story)"], They Keep Killing Suzie [+]Loading...["They Keep Killing Suzie (TV story)"], Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang [+]Loading...["Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang (TV story)"], Meat [+]Loading...["Meat (TV story)"], Adam [+]Loading...["Adam (TV story)"]) as well as in Colchester. (PROSE: Byzantium! [+]Loading...["Byzantium! (novel)"]) Wellington was also well-known for its rain; hard, torrential rain was in fact dubbed "Wellington rain". (PROSE: World Game [+]Loading...["World Game (novel)"])
Government
- Main article: British government
The government of the United Kingdom was led by a Prime Minister who was appointed by a democratic vote. Together, the Prime Minister and ministers formed the Cabinet. The Cabinet traditionally operated out of the Houses of Parliament. (TV: The Dalek Invasion of Earth [+]Loading...["The Dalek Invasion of Earth (TV story)"], Aliens of London [+]Loading...["Aliens of London (TV story)"]) Members of Parliament each had their own constituency where they were also empowered by a vote. (TV: Aliens of London [+]Loading...["Aliens of London (TV story)"]) By 2027, the monarchy had been restored to full power and once again ruled England, and hence the UK. (AUDIO: A Death in the Family [+]Loading...["A Death in the Family (audio story)"])
In a parallel UK the Third Doctor visited, the Republic of Great Britain was in control. (TV: Inferno [+]Loading...["Inferno (TV story)"]) In a parallel world in which Donna Noble turned right on Little Sutton Street, the UK fell into chaos and an Emergency Government acting on martial law came into power. (TV: Turn Left [+]Loading...["Turn Left (TV story)"])
Military
Military power was a significant feature of the UK's prowess. It allowed the British Empire to stretch to far off lands such as India. (TV: Tooth and Claw [+]Loading...["Tooth and Claw (TV story)"]) The British Army formed the primary ground force. Early troops were given the name Redcoats, because of the colour of their uniform. (TV: The Highlanders [+]Loading...["The Highlanders (TV story)"]) The term "Tommies" was applied to British troops during World War I and World War II. (TV: To the Last Man [+]Loading...["To the Last Man (TV story)"], Victory of the Daleks [+]Loading...["Victory of the Daleks (TV story)"])
The Royal Navy (TV: The Sea Devils [+]Loading...["The Sea Devils (TV story)"]) and Royal Air Force (TV: The Seeds of Doom [+]Loading...["The Seeds of Doom (TV story)"]) each held their own roles in the military. UNIT also acted in the defence of the UK, largely against alien threats and in association with the Doctor. (TV: The Invasion [+]Loading...["The Invasion (TV story)"], Spearhead from Space [+]Loading...["Spearhead from Space (TV story)"], The Ambassadors of Death [+]Loading...["The Ambassadors of Death (TV story)"], Terror of the Autons [+]Loading...["Terror of the Autons (TV story)"], The Mind of Evil [+]Loading...["The Mind of Evil (TV story)"], et al.)
The Torchwood Institute was formed by Queen Victoria to fight alien threats. As opposed to UNIT, Torchwood was solely based in the British Empire, and later the United Kingdom after 1924. (TV: Tooth and Claw [+]Loading...["Tooth and Claw (TV story)"], Everything Changes [+]Loading...["Everything Changes (TV story)"], AUDIO: Golden Age [+]Loading...["Golden Age (audio story)"]) Its success led to it developing an almost mythical state[additional sources needed], and it branched off into several divisions. (TV: Army of Ghosts [+]Loading...["Army of Ghosts (TV story)"], Everything Changes [+]Loading...["Everything Changes (TV story)"])
MI5 was a similar organisation. Although it was not directly created to deal with alien threats, it still did so upon occasion. It was based in Thames House, London. (TV: Children of Earth: Day Three [+]Loading...["Children of Earth: Day Three (TV story)"])
Whilst Torchwood was beyond the police and unanswerable to the government, the government had its own special division whose remit was the strange and the unusual - the Preternatural Research Bureau, or P.R.O.B.E. By 1994, the organisation was grossly understaffed and underfunded and at risk of having its funding withdrawn, suffering indifference and derision from the government and Scotland Yard. It was still operational in 2015, however. (HOMEVID: The Zero Imperative [+]Loading...["The Zero Imperative (home video)"], When to Die [+]Loading...["When to Die (home video)"])
External influence
Influence on the Doctor
The Doctor had an obsession with the United Kingdom. Most of their journeys to Earth brought them to the UK. For this reason, the Doctor had an intimate knowledge of the countries' history and had acquainted themselves with many of its historical figures. They were even a friend of the monarchy. (TV: Voyage of the Damned [+]Loading...["Voyage of the Damned (TV story)"], et al.) The Doctor took on much of the UK's culture. They frequently drank tea and even took on the accents, whether English or Scottish. (TV: An Unearthly Child [+]Loading...["An Unearthly Child (TV story)"], Time and the Rani [+]Loading...["Time and the Rani (TV story)"], Rose [+]Loading...["Rose (TV story)"], Deep Breath [+]Loading...["Deep Breath (TV story)"]) The Eighth Doctor even decided that he was British because of this attachment. (TV: Doctor Who [+]Loading...["Doctor Who (TV story)"]) When visiting other countries, it was often suggested that this incarnation was British either because of his appearance, mannerisms, accent or all three. (PROSE: History 101 [+]Loading...["History 101 (novel)"], TV: Doctor Who [+]Loading...["Doctor Who (TV story)"]) The United Kingdom was also the most common source of the Doctor's companions, with the vast majority originating from the region. (TV: An Unearthly Child [+]Loading...["An Unearthly Child (TV story)"], The Massacre [+]Loading...["The Massacre (TV story)"], The War Machines [+]Loading...["The War Machines (TV story)"], The Highlanders [+]Loading...["The Highlanders (TV story)"], The Evil of the Daleks [+]Loading...["The Evil of the Daleks (TV story)"], et al.)
The Doctor singled out England to be their favourite place, specifically during the 19th century. (PROSE: The Banquo Legacy [+]Loading...["The Banquo Legacy (novel)"]) After the Third Doctor was exiled to Earth, he lived in the UK and carried on defending the Earth by assisting UNIT in their various operations. (TV: Spearhead from Space [+]Loading...["Spearhead from Space (TV story)"])
While posing as a human, the Seventh Doctor appeared to be of British nationality, (PROSE: Human Nature [+]Loading...["Human Nature (novel)"]) and this was again the case under a similar situation where the Tenth Doctor believed he was British as he became John Smith, a teacher at Farringham School for Boys. (TV: Human Nature [+]Loading...["Human Nature (TV story)"]) In 1963, the First Doctor lived in the UK for some time, enrolling his granddaughter, Susan Foreman, in education. During this time he operated out of his TARDIS which he had stored in 76 Totter's Lane. (TV: "An Unearthly Child" [+]Part of An Unearthly Child, Loading...{"namedep":"An Unearthly Child (1)","1":"An Unearthly Child (TV story)"})
The Doctor visited the UK throughout its history, from the joining of Scotland (TV: The Highlanders [+]Loading...["The Highlanders (TV story)"]) to the region's departure from Earth aboard the Starship UK. (TV: The Beast Below [+]Loading...["The Beast Below (TV story)"]) The vast majority of these visits saw them defending the UK from alien threats, sometimes with the assistance of UNIT. (TV: The Dalek Invasion of Earth [+]Loading...["The Dalek Invasion of Earth (TV story)"], The Faceless Ones [+]Loading...["The Faceless Ones (TV story)"], The Ice Warriors [+]Loading...["The Ice Warriors (TV story)"], The Web of Fear [+]Loading...["The Web of Fear (TV story)"], The Invasion [+]Loading...["The Invasion (TV story)"], Spearhead from Space [+]Loading...["Spearhead from Space (TV story)"], et al.)
Influence on the Master
The Doctor's association drew the Master to the UK (TV: Terror of the Autons [+]Loading...["Terror of the Autons (TV story)"]) and he became trapped there following his imprisonment at Fortress Island. (TV: The Sea Devils [+]Loading...["The Sea Devils (TV story)"]) In another incarnation, he chose to run for Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He won through use of the Archangel Network. (TV: The Sound of Drums [+]Loading...["The Sound of Drums (TV story)"]) Like the Doctor, the Master visited the UK throughout its history. (TV: The Mark of the Rani [+]Loading...["The Mark of the Rani (TV story)"], et al.) Missy, the incarnation of the Master contemporary to the Twelfth Doctor, spoke with a Scottish accent as he did. (TV: Death in Heaven [+]Loading...["Death in Heaven (TV story)"])
History
Early history
The United Kingdom was formed in 1603, when King James VI of Scotland became James I of the United Kingdom, uniting the English and Scottish crowns. (PROSE: The Dying Days [+]Loading...["The Dying Days (novel)"])
The United Kingdom existed by the decade of the 1700s. (PROSE: Dismemberment [+]Loading...["Dismemberment (short story)"])
In 1714, King George I assumed the throne of the United Kingdom, ushering in the Georgian period. The reign of George I also saw the First Jacobite Uprising. (TV: The Highlanders [+]Loading...["The Highlanders (TV story)"][additional sources needed])
In 1738, the passing of the Nemesis statue possibly influenced the War of Jenkin's Ear which involved the United Kingdom. (TV: Silver Nemesis [+]Loading...["Silver Nemesis (TV story)"])
There was a Second Jacobite Uprising in 1745, in which the Second Doctor's companion Jamie McCrimmon fought for the rebels. It ended in victory for the government with the Battle of Culloden. (TV: The Highlanders [+]Loading...["The Highlanders (TV story)"])
In 1752, Faction Paradox bought from London authorities eleven days, 2 September to 14 September, that never came to pass with the reform of the Gregorian Calendar, and separated them from reality to create the Eleven-Day Empire. (PROSE: Interference - Book One [+]Loading...["Interference - Book One (novel)"])
In 1763, the passing of the Nemesis statue possibly influenced the Seven Years' War which involved the United Kingdom. (TV: Silver Nemesis [+]Loading...["Silver Nemesis (TV story)"])
19th century
In the early part of the century were the Napoleonic Wars with two Alliances at war, with the United Kingdom on one side, and France on the other. The wars ended with victory for Britain's alliance. (PROSE: World Game [+]Loading...["World Game (novel)"])
From 1811-1820 was the British Regency, a time in which the region was ruled by a prince regent as the king was unfit to do so. (AUDIO: Frostfire [+]Loading...["Frostfire (audio story)"])
William IV was the King of the United Kingdom until his death on 20 June 1837. He was succeeded by his niece, Victoria (PROSE: The Time Traveller's Almanac [+]Loading...["The Time Traveller's Almanac (reference book)"]) who ruled the United Kingdom as Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, Empress of India. Her reign, known as the Victorian era, saw Britain make huge territorial gains across the globe. (TV: The Curse of Peladon [+]Loading...["The Curse of Peladon (TV story)"], Tooth and Claw [+]Loading...["Tooth and Claw (TV story)"], Ghost Light [+]Loading...["Ghost Light (TV story)"])
On Christmas Day, 1851, the Tenth Doctor, with the help of Jackson Lake, defeated the CyberKing. (TV: The Next Doctor [+]Loading...["The Next Doctor (TV story)"])
From 1853-1856, Britain and its allies fought the Crimean War against Russia. (AUDIO: The Angel of Scutari [+]Loading...["The Angel of Scutari (audio story)"])
In 1878, Britain had an Imperial Spacefleet of three ships. However, Kamelion soon convinced Queen Victoria to end the British Space Programme and look to domestic concerns. (PROSE: Imperial Moon [+]Loading...["Imperial Moon (novel)"])
Torchwood Institute
In 1879, after an attack by the Lupine Wavelength Haemovariform, Victoria banished the Tenth Doctor from her country and formed the Torchwood Institute, as the British Empire's defence against the dark forces which the Doctor seemed to consort. (TV: Tooth and Claw [+]Loading...["Tooth and Claw (TV story)"]) For a period of over a hundred years, Torchwood had many encounters with aliens. From 1885, a third Torchwood branch located in Cardiff monitored the activity of a Space-Time Rift. (PROSE: Slow Decay [+]Loading...["Slow Decay (novel)"]) In 1899, Jack Harkness, a Time Agent from the 51st century and one of Torchwood Three's most famous employees, with a career lasting over one hundred years, joined the branch. (TV: Fragments [+]Loading...["Fragments (TV story)"])
20th century
In 1901, Edward VII succeeded Victoria and ruled until his death in 1910 when he was succeeded by George V. (TV: Inferno [+]Loading...["Inferno (TV story)"], PROSE: Revenge of the Judoon [+]Loading...["Revenge of the Judoon (novel)"])
World War I
On 28 June 1914, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary triggered a series of events that rapidly escalated into Earth's first global conflict, World War I, with the United Kingdom and its allies such as France and Russia, against the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary. Some of the battlegrounds were Passchendaele and the Somme. A million British soldiers died during the war. (TV: To the Last Man [+]Loading...["To the Last Man (TV story)"]) [additional sources needed]
Britain had an agreement with Japan, who also entered the war against Germany. (PROSE: The Time Traveller's Almanac [+]Loading...["The Time Traveller's Almanac (reference book)"])
The immortal Jack Harkness fought in the war, (TV: Utopia [+]Loading...["Utopia (TV story)"], COMIC: The Forgotten [+]Loading...["The Forgotten (comic story)"]) as did Tim Latimer and Hutchinson. (TV: The Family of Blood [+]Loading...["The Family of Blood (TV story)"]) Tommy Brockless also served, and was eventually executed in 1918, when, suffering from shell shock, he refused to return to the front lines. (TV: To the Last Man [+]Loading...["To the Last Man (TV story)"])
Several soldiers were kidnapped by the War Lords for use in their war games. (TV: The War Games [+]Loading...["The War Games (TV story)"])
The Doctor visited the war many times. (TV: Planet of Giants [+]Loading...["Planet of Giants (TV story)"], PROSE: Front Line [+]Loading...["Front Line (short story)"], COMIC: The Amateur [+]Loading...["The Amateur (comic story)"], The Forgotten [+]Loading...["The Forgotten (comic story)"], Warfreekz! [+]Loading...["Warfreekz! (comic story)"], AUDIO: Fugitives [+]Loading...["Fugitives (audio story)"], The Haunting of Malkin Place [+]Loading...["The Haunting of Malkin Place (audio story)"], Fortunes of War [+]Loading...["Fortunes of War (audio story)"])
Around the end of the war, women finally gained the right to vote. (AUDIO: The Jabari Countdown [+]Loading...["The Jabari Countdown (audio story)"])
Between the wars
In 1922, Ireland was divided into the Republic and the north. The north remained a province of the United Kingdom. (AUDIO: The Settling [+]Loading...["The Settling (audio story)"])
CIA agent Rex Matheson found a record of nine pulp fiction authors in the United Kingdom who were potentially Victor Podesta following his disappearance in 1938. (TV: The Gathering [+]Loading...["The Gathering (TV story)"])
World War II
On 1 September 1939, Nazi Germany invaded Poland which caused Britain, France and Russia to declare war. The Seventh Doctor ensured Hitler would fail to prevent the British evacuation of Dunkirk, thus ensuring Britain would remain in the war. (PROSE: Timewyrm: Exodus [+]Loading...["Timewyrm: Exodus (novel)"])
In 1940 and 1941 Germany bombed Great Britain, an event known as the London Blitz. (PROSE: Illegal Alien [+]Loading...["Illegal Alien (novel)"], TV: The Empty Child [+]Loading...["The Empty Child (TV story)"]/The Doctor Dances [+]Loading...["The Doctor Dances (TV story)"]) The Royal Air Force carried out its own systematic bombings of Germany. (PROSE: The Turing Test [+]Loading...["The Turing Test (novel)"])
During World War II, when it appeared that the United Kingdom would be invaded by Nazi Germany, four citadels were built under the surface of London. They were intended to allow the British government to continue operations if the worst happened. After the war, the citadels were maintained due to the threat posed by the Soviet Union in the Cold War. (AUDIO: The Fifth Citadel [+]Loading...["The Fifth Citadel (audio story)"])
During this period, Edwin Bracewell approached a desperate Winston Churchill, offering what to all appearances were robotic war machines of a futuristic design that Churchill could use first to fend off Luftwaffe air raids on London and later, in mass numbers, take the war to Germany. Churchill summoned the Eleventh Doctor and Amy Pond to view the new weapon. The Doctor realised immediately that the "Ironsides" that Bracewell had "created" were actually a resurfacing of the Daleks, who had used themselves as bait to get the Doctor to aid in the creation of the Progenitor Daleks. A small number of Spitfire fighters were briefly upgraded with Dalek technology to fight a Dalek saucer, but all tech was subsequently removed by the Doctor to prevent wide-scale tampering with history. The Daleks attempted to destroy Earth with a powerful explosive in their android, Edwin Bracewell, but the Doctor and Amy defused it. The new Daleks then escaped to rebuild their race. (TV: Victory of the Daleks [+]Loading...["Victory of the Daleks (TV story)"])
The Ninth Doctor and Rose Tyler, with the help of pre-Torchwood Jack Harkness, stopped the Empty Child Plague from infecting the world. (TV: The Empty Child [+]Loading...["The Empty Child (TV story)"]/The Doctor Dances [+]Loading...["The Doctor Dances (TV story)"])
From 1940 to 1945, the Channel Islands were occupied by German forces. (PROSE: Just War [+]Loading...["Just War (novel)"])
In 1943, Fenric was working with his Haemovores at Maiden's Point. Russia and Britain, while nominally allies, were plotting against each other in preparation for post-war conflicts . (TV: The Curse of Fenric [+]Loading...["The Curse of Fenric (TV story)"])
Mid-20th century
In the 1950s, hours of television broadcast in the United Kingdom were strictly limited by the British government, and each evening's broadcasts from Alexandra Palace ended between 10.30 and 11pm with the National Anthem. (PROSE: The Time Traveller's Almanac [+]Loading...["The Time Traveller's Almanac (reference book)"])
In 1953, Elizabeth II was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom. She reigned well into the early 21st century. (TV: Voyage of the Damned [+]Loading...["Voyage of the Damned (TV story)"], The Idiot's Lantern [+]Loading...["The Idiot's Lantern (TV story)"])
During the Cold War, the United States of America, China and Russia gave their nuclear destructor codes to the UK. (TV: Robot [+]Loading...["Robot (TV story)"])
"The Metaltron", a Dalek survivor of the Last Great Time War, fell through time and landed on the Ascension Island sometime in the 1960s; (PROSE: The Time Traveller's Almanac [+]Loading...{"chaptname":"Everything Changes","page":"148","chaptnum":"3","1":"The Time Traveller's Almanac (reference book)"}) either in 1961 (PROSE: The Secret Lives of Monsters [+]Loading...{"chaptname":"The Daleks","page":"53","chaptnum":"2","1":"The Secret Lives of Monsters (short story)"}) or 1962. (AUDIO: The Dalek Transaction [+]Loading...["The Dalek Transaction (audio story)"]) It burnt within its crater for three days. (TV: Dalek [+]Loading...["Dalek (TV story)"], PROSE: The Time Traveller's Almanac [+]Loading...{"chaptname":"Everything Changes","page":"148","chaptnum":"3","1":"The Time Traveller's Almanac (reference book)"}, The Secret Lives of Monsters [+]Loading...{"chaptname":"The Daleks","page":"53","chaptnum":"2","1":"The Secret Lives of Monsters (short story)"}) Insane and screaming, (TV: Dalek [+]Loading...["Dalek (TV story)"]) the Dalek was recovered by the military (PROSE: The Time Traveller's Almanac [+]Loading...{"chaptname":"Everything Changes","page":"148","chaptnum":"3","1":"The Time Traveller's Almanac (reference book)"}) before it was passed through several private collections in the 20th and 21st centuries. (TV: Dalek [+]Loading...["Dalek (TV story)"], PROSE: The Time Traveller's Almanac [+]Loading...{"chaptname":"Everything Changes","page":"148","chaptnum":"3","1":"The Time Traveller's Almanac (reference book)"})
In late 1963, a Russian spy ring aided by a double agent from MI6, operated in London. (TV: The Cambridge Spy [+]Loading...["The Cambridge Spy (TV story)"])
From 29 to 30 November of the same year, Shoreditch became the site of the end of the Dalek Civil War between Davros' Imperial Daleks and Renegade Daleks loyal to the Supreme Dalek. Both sides were fought by the Seventh Doctor, aided by the human Intrusion Counter-Measures Group. The Renegade forces (bar the Supreme) were destroyed by the Imperials, while they in turn were tricked and destroyed by the Hand of Omega. After leaving Earth, the Doctor then taunted the Supreme Dalek into self-destruction. (TV: Remembrance of the Daleks [+]Loading...["Remembrance of the Daleks (TV story)"])
The Conservative Party was in office during the early 1960s. Harold Macmillan served as Prime Minister until his resignation in 1963. He was succeeded by Sir Alec Douglas-Home. (AUDIO: The Pelage Project [+]Loading...["The Pelage Project (audio story)"])
In 1964, the Conservative Party was defeated by the Labour Party in the UK general election and the latter's leader Harold Wilson became Prime Minister. In the immediate aftermath of the election, General Peters led a military coup against Wilson's government. However, it was defeated by the Intrusion Countermeasures Group. (AUDIO: State of Emergency [+]Loading...["State of Emergency (audio story)"])
In 1965, the British government was secretly contacted by an alien race dubbed the 456, who demanded a dozen children in exchange for an anti-virus for an influenza outbreak that would otherwise kill millions. Jack Harkness of the Torchwood Institute delivered a busload of children from an orphanage in Scotland. The children were delivered, bar one, the anti-virus was provided, and the flu outbreak was quelled. (TV: Children of Earth: Day Four [+]Loading...["Children of Earth: Day Four (TV story)"])
UNIT era
Around the late 1960s or early 1970s, Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart played an instrumental role in the creation of the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce.
With the assistance of the Second Doctor, they defeated the Cyberman invasion of London. (TV: The Invasion [+]Loading...["The Invasion (TV story)"])
During the 1970s, the Irish Republican Army was active in the United Kingdom, including England and Northern Ireland.
In 1971, the UK fought the Cod War with Iceland. (PROSE: Who Killed Kennedy [+]Loading...["Who Killed Kennedy (novel)"])
Sometime later, the newly regenerated Third Doctor returned to Earth, forced into exile by the Time Lords. He helped UNIT defeat the Nestene Consciousness and its Auton servants' attack on Earth. During the next few years, the Doctor mainly stayed on Earth as UNIT's scientific advisor. (TV: Spearhead from Space [+]Loading...["Spearhead from Space (TV story)"])
According to one account, the British Space Programme later sent a manned mission to Mars. However, they lost contact with the craft for seven months. (TV: The Ambassadors of Death [+]Loading...["The Ambassadors of Death (TV story)"]) According to another account, the Tenth Doctor claimed that the colonists who founded Bowie Base One in July 2058 were the "very first humans on Mars". (TV: The Waters of Mars [+]Loading...["The Waters of Mars (TV story)"])
After this, Lethbridge-Stewart and the Third Doctor faced many threats from the Doctor's old friend, the Master. Facing a return from the Autons; (TV: Terror of the Autons [+]Loading...["Terror of the Autons (TV story)"]) the Keller Machine disrupting the World Peace Conference almost causing World War III; (TV: The Mind of Evil [+]Loading...["The Mind of Evil (TV story)"]) an attempted Axon invasion; (TV: The Claws of Axos [+]Loading...["The Claws of Axos (TV story)"]) and the rise of Azal. (TV: The Dæmons [+]Loading...["The Dæmons (TV story)"])
The Second World Peace Conference was later threatened by Daleks from an alternate timeline where they ruled Earth in the 22nd century. (TV: Day of the Daleks [+]Loading...["Day of the Daleks (TV story)"])
In later years, Harold Wilson's position seemed untenable after the failures of the Wenley Moor nuclear research facility in October 1969 and the Inferno Project in February 1970 were publicised by James Stevens in his "Bad Science" series of articles.
Wilson called a general election for June 1970. The Labour Party lost and the Conservative leader Edward Heath became Prime Minister. Political observers speculated that the publication of the book version of "Bad Science" had coincided not-so-incidentally with the election. (PROSE: Who Killed Kennedy [+]Loading...["Who Killed Kennedy (novel)"])
By 1976, Labour was once again in government with Callaghan as Prime Minister. (AUDIO: The Oseidon Adventure [+]Loading...["The Oseidon Adventure (audio story)"]) He served in that position until 1979, when he was succeeded by the Conservative Margaret Thatcher. (TV: Tooth and Claw [+]Loading...["Tooth and Claw (TV story)"])
In June 1982, the United Kingdom achieved a victory in the Falklands War against Argentina. Argentine troops fled the British Task Force. (COMIC: The Infinite Astronaut [+]Loading...["The Infinite Astronaut (comic story)"])
On 9 June 1983, Labour lost the general election in a landslide to the ruling Conservative Party. (AUDIO: Rat Trap [+]Loading...["Rat Trap (audio story)"]) The party was still out of office in 1987 while Thatcher remained Prime Minister. (TV: Father's Day [+]Loading...["Father's Day (TV story)"])
In October 1987, there were three million people unemployed in the UK. (AUDIO: We Are The Daleks [+]Loading...["We Are The Daleks (audio story)"])
Late 20th century
In May 1997, Queen Elizabeth was temporarily deposed by the Ice Lord Xznaal in the Ice Warrior invasion of Earth. The invasion was later defeated by the Eighth Doctor and Elizabeth was restored to the throne. Her recoronation, the only recoronation in the history of the United Kingdom, was held on 23 November that year. Future historians would count the recoronation as the first moment of the New New Elizabethan Age, when British art and literature entered a brief, but prolific resurgence. (PROSE: The Dying Days [+]Loading...["The Dying Days (novel)"])
21st century
Early 21st century
In 2001, the Eighth Doctor defeated an invasion of Earth by Cybermen from the future. (COMIC: The Flood [+]Loading...["The Flood (comic story)"])
In 2002, as the United Kingdom headed for a general election, Sherilyn Harper's far-right New Britannia Party threatened to hold the balance of power in a volatile political climate. Several assassination attempts were made against Harper, first by unknown gunmen and then by a terrorist organisation called United Front — which also firebombed some district NBP offices in the southeast. These assassination attempts were later discovered to have been staged by the NBP itself. As the crisis deepened, riots broke out in London just before polling day. (AUDIO: The Fearmonger [+]Loading...["The Fearmonger (audio story)"])
During the first half of the 2000s, the UK branch of UNIT faced the serious threat of the Internal Counter-Intelligence Service. (AUDIO: The Coup [+]Loading...["The Coup (audio story)"], Time Heals [+]Loading...["Time Heals (audio story)"], The Longest Night [+]Loading...["The Longest Night (audio story)"], The Wasting [+]Loading...["The Wasting (audio story)"])
In March 2005, the Nestene Consciousness again invaded Earth using Autons. The invasion was foiled by Rose Tyler after she knocked a vial of anti-plastic into the Consciousness. (TV: Rose [+]Loading...["Rose (TV story)"]) Yvonne Hartman saw Charles and Camilla as an upcoming fad. (AUDIO: One Rule [+]Loading...["One Rule (audio story)"], TV: The Girl in the Fireplace [+]Loading...["The Girl in the Fireplace (TV story)"], The Empty Planet [+]Loading...["The Empty Planet (TV story)"])
In March 2006, the Passameer-Day Slitheen killed the Prime Minister and also murdered several government officials whom they used as disguises. They crashed their own ship into the Thames (TV: Aliens of London [+]Loading...["Aliens of London (TV story)"]) to convince the world there was an alien threat so they would be given the codes for nuclear weapons by the United Nations, which they would then use to destroy Earth and then sell its remains for starship fuel. This plot was foiled when Mickey Smith fired a Harpoon missile at 10 Downing Street, where the Slitheen awaited the nuclear codes. (TV: World War Three [+]Loading...["World War Three (TV story)"]) A surviving Slitheen, posing as Mayor of Cardiff, exploited the Cardiff rift and advocated a plan for a proposed nuclear power plant called Blaidd Drwg. Secretly, she wanted to cause an "accident" at Blaidd Drwg. This disaster, located so near the rift, would destroy Earth and allow her to use the tribophysical waveform macro-kinetic extrapolator to escape the planet. Blon was captured by the Ninth Doctor, and her contingency plan of using an alien power source to blow up the world was also foiled when the heart of the TARDIS opened up, regressing Blon into an egg, and the TARDIS absorbed the rift energy. (TV: Boom Town [+]Loading...["Boom Town (TV story)"])
After the Slitheen plot of March, Harriet Jones soon became Prime Minister, but the newly regenerated Tenth Doctor plunged her career into downfall on Christmas Day after she destroyed a Sycorax ship fleeing Earth after an attempted invasion. (TV: The Christmas Invasion [+]Loading...["The Christmas Invasion (TV story)"]) In the period of government paralysis (TV: Love & Monsters [+]Loading...["Love & Monsters (TV story)"]) that followed, the Saxon Master became popular with the government and the people. (TV: The Sound of Drums [+]Loading...["The Sound of Drums (TV story)"])
In 2007, Torchwood One caused ghosts to appear across Earth. These were revealed to be Cybermen from a parallel universe. (TV: Army of Ghosts [+]Loading...["Army of Ghosts (TV story)"]) The Cult of Skaro, having survived the Last Great Time War, also arrived and fought the Cybermen. Dalek Sec then released millions of Dalek prisoners from the Genesis Ark, causing a catastrophic battle across London resulting in many deaths and the near-destruction of the Torchwood Institute. (TV: Doomsday [+]Loading...["Doomsday (TV story)"])
On Christmas Eve, the Empress of the Racnoss' Webstar briefly attacked London. After the Tenth Doctor drowned her children, Harold Saxon ordered the Webstar destroyed. (TV: The Runaway Bride [+]Loading...["The Runaway Bride (TV story)"])
Torchwood Three in Cardiff under Jack Harkness was forced to operate on its own in the 2000s,[nb 1] facing many threats in Cardiff throughout the next few years. (TV: Everything Changes [+]Loading...["Everything Changes (TV story)"], Day One [+]Loading...["Day One (TV story)"], Ghost Machine [+]Loading...["Ghost Machine (TV story)"], Cyberwoman [+]Loading...["Cyberwoman (TV story)"], et al.)
During the fourth quarter of the 2000s, the United Kingdom, along with most of the world, suffered from an economic recession. (TV: Planet of the Dead [+]Loading...["Planet of the Dead (TV story)"], The End of Time [+]Loading...["The End of Time (TV story)"], TV: The Gathering [+]Loading...["The Gathering (TV story)"])
In the 2000s,[nb 2] Harold Saxon continued his campaign for Prime Minister. He was given high support after the Royal Hope Hospital's disappearance and reappearance. (TV: Smith and Jones [+]Loading...["Smith and Jones (TV story)"]) A few days later, he was elected Prime Minister. He presented the Toclafane to the public, saying they were peaceful aliens offering friendship with Earth. However this turned out to be an invasion and the Toclafane ruled over Earth for a year. This year was then negated by Martha Jones and Jack Harkness. (TV: The Sound of Drums [+]Loading...["The Sound of Drums (TV story)"]/Last of the Time Lords [+]Loading...["Last of the Time Lords (TV story)"])
In the 2000s,[nb 3] Sarah Jane Smith formed a group of friends including her adopted son. Based in 13 Bannerman Road, they fought many alien threats for the next few years in Ealing. (TV: Invasion of the Bane [+]Loading...["Invasion of the Bane (TV story)"], Revenge of the Slitheen [+]Loading...["Revenge of the Slitheen (TV story)"], Warriors of Kudlak [+]Loading...["Warriors of Kudlak (TV story)"], Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane? [+]Loading...["Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane? (TV story)"], et al.)
In the 2000s,[nb 4] Miss Foster, exploiting the serious weight problems in the United Kingdom, created Adipose Industries, using the Adipose pill so it would kill humans and replace them with Adipose. However, due to the intervention of the Tenth Doctor and Donna Noble, only one human was killed and merely 10,000 Adipose were born in the March of the Adipose. (TV: Partners in Crime [+]Loading...["Partners in Crime (TV story)"])
The UK branch of UNIT fought the Sontarans' invasion when ATMOS caused gases to poison the world. (TV: The Sontaran Stratagem [+]Loading...["The Sontaran Stratagem (TV story)"]/The Poison Sky [+]Loading...["The Poison Sky (TV story)"])
Following the relocation of Earth to the Medusa Cascade by the Daleks, Torchwood Three in Cardiff and Mr Smith in Ealing allied together to use the Earth's phones and the Rift to bring the Tenth Doctor into the temporal pocket in the Medusa Cascade. (TV: The Stolen Earth [+]Loading...["The Stolen Earth (TV story)"]) They later helped use the Rift to allow the TARDIS to pilot the Earth home. (TV: Journey's End [+]Loading...["Journey's End (TV story)"])
On Christmas Day,{{see [[Aliens from London dating controvery.}} the Saxon Master was captured by soldiers working for Joshua Naismith so that the Master could help him use the Immortality Gate. He was taken to Naismith's residence in southern England. There, he used the Immortality Gate to duplicate his appearance and personality into every person in the world. This was reverted when the White-Point Star was destroyed. (TV: The End of Time [+]Loading...["The End of Time (TV story)"])
By 2010, the Torchwood Institute ceased to function, though a revival group operated in Swansea and Cowbridge for a time in 2011. (TV: Children of Earth: Day Five [+]Loading...["Children of Earth: Day Five (TV story)"], The Categories of Life [+]Loading...["The Categories of Life (TV story)"], The Middle Men [+]Loading...["The Middle Men (TV story)"], The Gathering [+]Loading...["The Gathering (TV story)"])
In March 2017, the United Kingdom triggered Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty of the European Union. (PROSE: Time Lapse [+]Loading...["Time Lapse (short story)"]) This resulted in Brexit, the United Kingdom's official withdrawal from the European Union. (PROSE: Lucy Wilson and the Bledoe Cadets [+]Loading...["Lucy Wilson and the Bledoe Cadets (novel)"])
In early 2020, Gloucester was briefly placed under lockdown working on behalf of Gallifreyans pursuing the Fugitive Doctor. (TV: Fugitive of the Judoon [+]Loading...["Fugitive of the Judoon (TV story)"])
In January 2021, Prime Minster Jo Patterson was killed by the Daleks shortly before the beginning of the 2021 Dalek civil war. (TV: Revolution of the Daleks [+]Loading...["Revolution of the Daleks (TV story)"]) On 31 October, the Sontarans launched an invasion of Earth centring on Liverpool, (TV: The Halloween Apocalypse [+]Loading...["The Halloween Apocalypse (TV story)"]) waging a Temporal Offensive back through history as the Flux threatened the universe. Though this invasion was erased, (TV: War of the Sontarans [+]Loading...["War of the Sontarans (TV story)"]) the Sontarans returned to briefly occupy Earth on 5 December as a means for their Flux Offensive before leaving. (TV: The Vanquishers [+]Loading...["The Vanquishers (TV story)"]) 31 December saw the Thirteenth Doctor handle a small-scale Dalek incursion targeted at her in Manchester. (TV: Eve of the Daleks [+]Loading...["Eve of the Daleks (TV story)"])
At one point, Lucifer returned to Earth, arriving in a location he called "Kingdom United"; he recorded a video on a street about his hunt for his friend Lilith. (WC: Mission: Find Lilith [+]Loading...["Mission: Find Lilith (webcast)"])
On 24 May 2027, it was reported that the government was conducting further Mars research. By this time, the King was the head of state. (AUDIO: A Death in the Family [+]Loading...["A Death in the Family (audio story)"]) The Tenth Doctor was aware that Elizabeth II was eventually followed by Charles III and Camilla, who were themselves followed by King William V. (PROSE: Revenge of the Judoon [+]Loading...["Revenge of the Judoon (novel)"], Winner Takes All [+]Loading...["Winner Takes All (novel)"])
Late 21st century
Sometime before 2050, Lomax, a Korven from the future, hijacked the British government. MI5 and MI6 were turned into the brutal, totalitarian government agency known as the Department. Lomax needed an ally on Earth and recruited Thorne, who was implanted with Meron DNA as the Korven aided them in their war against the Jixen. (TV: The Eclipse of the Korven [+]Loading...["The Eclipse of the Korven (TV story)"])
In 2048, Inspector June Turner approved the decision to replace all human law enforcement officers with Cyborgs, resulting in the CCPC. (TV: The Last Precinct [+]Loading...["The Last Precinct (TV story)"])
In 2050, a King was head of state. (TV: Oroborus [+]Loading...["Oroborus (TV story)"]) K9 Mark I arrived in Gryffen Manor battling four Jixen. He later self-destructed and regenerated into a brand new model. He later made several friends, saving the Earth many times. (TV: Regeneration [+]Loading...["Regeneration (TV story)"])
When one of the last surviving Aeolians arrived on Earth, she tried to call out to her mate. This caused severe storms across Britain and threatened the whole world. She was found by the Department which attacked her but Starkey was able to play to her mate, who arrived. The Aeolian couple departed. (TV: Aeolian [+]Loading...["Aeolian (TV story)"])
Britain was involved in the Bowie Base One colony on Mars, the first off-world human colony. It was captained by Adelaide Brooke. Margaret Cain was also British. The Tenth Doctor claimed that the founding of the base in July 2058 was made up of the "very first humans on Mars", although according to an obituary of Adelaide, a three-person team including Adelaide landed on Mars when Adelaide was 42, in the year 2041.
Adelaide inspired her granddaughter, Susie Fontana Brooke, to captain the first human visit to an extrasolar location, Proxima Centauri, (TV: The Waters of Mars [+]Loading...["The Waters of Mars (TV story)"]) leading to humanity's Break-out into space at the end of the 21st century. (PROSE: Prelude Deceit [+]Loading...["Prelude Deceit (short story)"])
22nd century
In 2157, Earth was beset by meteorites that carried a plague. This plague was carried across the globe and, when the Earth was sufficiently weak, the Daleks invaded and conquered the planet. While most countries had their populations destroyed, the people of the UK were largely enslaved.
The epicentre of this invasion was Bedfordshire, a county in England. There, the Daleks planned to drill through the ground to the Earth's core. The First Doctor and his companions thwarted the Dalek plan and helped the inhabitants of Bedfordshire stage a revolution against their conquerors. Soon enough, the humans were once again in control. (TV: The Dalek Invasion of Earth [+]Loading...["The Dalek Invasion of Earth (TV story)"])
23rd century
London was flooded when sea levels rose due to global warming. (GAME: TARDIS [+]Loading...["TARDIS (video game)"]) The city was visited in this state by Eleventh Doctor and Amy Pond, who repelled an incursion of Vashta Nerada. (GAME: Shadows of the Vashta Nerada [+]Loading...["Shadows of the Vashta Nerada (video game)"])
In 2268, democracy ended in the United Kingdom. (AUDIO: Antidote to Oblivion [+]Loading...["Antidote to Oblivion (audio story)"])
24th century
In 2382, the Sixth Doctor and Flip Jackson visited London. (AUDIO: Antidote to Oblivion [+]Loading...["Antidote to Oblivion (audio story)"])
According to Captain Maitland, London ceased to exist by the 24th century. (TV: "Strangers in Space" [+]Part of The Sensorites, Loading...{"namedep":"Strangers in Space (1)","1":"The Sensorites (TV story)"})
25th century
In 2415, London absorbed Nutchurch. (PROSE: The English Way of Death [+]Loading...["The English Way of Death (novel)"])
26th century
In 2595, Bernice Summerfield visited London. (PROSE: The Sword of Forever [+]Loading...["The Sword of Forever (novel)"])
28th century
By the 28th century, London, and the whole lower half of England was incorporated in a very large city called Central City. (TV: "Strangers in Space" [+]Part of The Sensorites, Loading...{"namedep":"Strangers in Space (1)","1":"The Sensorites (TV story)"})
In 2789, the Eleventh Doctor, Amy and Rory visited London. (PROSE: Paradox Lost [+]Loading...["Paradox Lost (novel)"])
29th century
By the 29th century, the United Kingdom — with the exception of Scotland, who wanted their own ship — abandoned Earth for a spaceship, Starship UK. (TV: The Beast Below [+]Loading...["The Beast Below (TV story)"])
38th century
In December 3738, the Tenth Doctor and Martha fought the Klytode in London. (COMIC: A Klytode Christmas [+]Loading...["A Klytode Christmas (comic story)"])
40th century
In the year 4000, London, still known as Central City, served as the apparent capital of Earth. (TV: The Daleks' Master Plan [+]Loading...["The Daleks' Master Plan (TV story)"])
41st century
In January 4039, the Tenth Doctor fought the Graxnix in London. (COMIC: Hotel Historia [+]Loading...["Hotel Historia (comic story)"])
Alternative timelines
In the Game of Napoleon and Wellington, the United Kingdom was among the nations which were conquered by France and thus incorporated into Napoléon Bonaparte's World Empire. When the Empire collapsed upon Napoleon's death, the conquered countries split up into separate mini-states, discreetly encouraged by the Players. "Revert[ing] to type", the United Kingdom split into the three separate kingdoms of England, Scotland and Wales, any two of them usually at war with the third. (PROSE: World Game [+]Loading...["World Game (novel)"])
In an alternative timeline in which Adolf Hitler did not lose the power of the Timewyrm, Nazi Germany had conquered the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe by 1941. After visiting the occupied London in May 1951 in this timeline, the Seventh Doctor and Ace prevented this from coming to pass. (PROSE: Timewyrm: Exodus [+]Loading...["Timewyrm: Exodus (novel)"])
In another alternative timeline created by the Elder Gods in the hope of destroying Earth, World War III broke out on 9 November 1989 between the United States and its allies, including the United Kingdom, on the one hand, and the Soviet Union on the other hand. Given that nuclear weapons were used by both sides, hundreds of millions of people were killed in the conflict. This timeline was ultimately negated by the Seventh Doctor. (AUDIO: Protect and Survive [+]Loading...["Protect and Survive (audio story)"])
Behind the scenes
Name
Often in the series, the term Great Britain (which is the island upon which England, Scotland and Wales are situated) will be used to refer to the United Kingdom as a whole, ignoring Northern Ireland. This is a common practice in real life.
Only twice in the BBC Wales era has the full name of the UK been mentioned, this being The Beast Below — which implies Northern Ireland will still be part of the UK in the 29th century — and the more contemporary Children of Earth: Day Three.
Doctor Who and the UK
Doctor Who is critically linked to the UK as its homeland. For this reason, the show has often orientated itself around the history and interests of the region.
As a result of this connection, Doctor Who was occasionally embroiled in the region's politics. This was apparent during Sylvester McCoy's tenure where it was often suggested that the show aimed to overthrow Margaret Thatcher's government. McCoy himself once said:
The idea of bringing politics into Doctor Who was deliberate, but we had to do it very quietly and certainly didn't shout about it.
In the same tabloid, both Andrew Cartmel and Sophie Aldred also claimed this was the case. The BBC, however, denied the allegations, firmly stating they had always been impartial from a political view.[1]
Ratings
Ratings in the UK have varied over Doctor Who's history. The Hartnell era drew consistently high viewing figures, primarily because of the "Dalekmania" period, but not restricted to stories featuring them. Patrick Troughton's final season had notably low ratings but the show was saved thanks to the popularity of the show in colour. Tom Baker saw the ratings go from strength to strength, peaking at sixteen million during the ITV strike.[2]
The Davison era saw above average ratings, but the show had one of the smallest budgets. Following this, particularly after the postponement of season 23, Doctor Who ratings in the UK fell dramatically. The McCoy era saw it fall to three million.[3] Upon its return in 2005, Doctor Who held up viewing figures, securing itself a future on television. While the Ncuti Gatwa era later on had an average of four million viewers during its first season in 2024 (compared to an average of eight million for the 2023 David Tennant specials), this was in the context of declining ratings for "virtually everything" on British TV compared to the mid-2010s, with all but one episode of Gatwa's first season landing in the top 20 most watched episodes of the week,[4] and head writer Russell T Davies and a BBC spokesperson declaring it to be successful with the under-16 and 16-34 demographics.[5]
Story settings
Many stories have been set in the United Kingdom, starting with the Shoreditch, London setting of An Unearthly Child (identified as Shoreditch in Remembrance of the Daleks). Setting aside the many unspecified locations, almost every region of the country has been used as a setting. However, no television story has ever been set in Northern Ireland.
BBC Classic Doctor Who website
An article on the BBC Classic Doctor Who website, "Party Politics", notes that the Prime Minister of the UK in The Green Death (airdate 1973) is called "Jeremy". It claims that due to the various alien invasions of the late 1960s, the 1970 general election produced a hung parliament. It says that in the early 1970s, a coalition government is led by Jeremy Thorpe. However, after the events involving Global Chemicals, the government's involvement in the "Axonite scandal" and the "Operation Golden Age fiasco", this government collapsed in 1973 and was succeeded by the Labour government under Shirley Williams. [6]
Missions to Mars
The British space programme's Mars Probe manned missions are ignored by the Doctor Who television story The Waters of Mars, which referred to the human colony founded in 2058 as being made up of the "very first humans on Mars". Further complicating matters, an on-screen obituary in The Waters of Mars mentions that the captain of the Bowie Base One colony, Adelaide Brooke, along with two other unidentified astronauts, had already landed on Mars when Adelaide was 42 in the year 2041.
Footnotes
Citations
- ↑ http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/tv_and_radio/article7026314.ece
- ↑ City of Death (TV story)#Ratings
- ↑ Battlefield (TV story)#Ratings
- ↑ DWM 606, "Public Image", p. 7.
- ↑ Melissa Parker (29 June 2024). Doctor Who's ratings are a success for Russell T Davies in a way that's crucial to its future. Radio Times. Retrieved on 17 July 2024.
- ↑ Party politics. BBC - Doctor Who Classic Episode Guide. Retrieved on 23 July 2013.