Sixth Doctor
Biography
Classic Series
The Fifth Doctor regenerated after contracting the fatal disease spectrox toxaemia on Androzani Minor, having given the only antidote to save his companion Peri. He remarked in his final moments that the regeneration felt "different", and only an act of will spurred on by hallucinations saved him from death. From these troubled beginnings sprang the Sixth Doctor, who initially suffered from several psychotic symptoms in the period directly following the regeneration. Eventually he stablised as an outwardly arrogant buffoon, but he was just as capable of compassion and violence as his predecessor.
He travelled with Peri - and sometimes the Whifferdil shapeshifter, Frobisher - until he stumbled, alone, out of the TARDIS into a space station operated by the Time Lords. Suffering from amnesia, he found himself once again on trial for interfering in the affairs of the Universe. He elected to represent himself in the trial, for which he and his prosecutor, the Valeyard, would present episodes from his life as evidence via the Matrix. Through these he learned that Peri was dead, the subject of foul experiments in brain transplantation, and that he would in his future meet Melanie Bush, a computer programmer from Pease Pottage, Essex. It was eventually revealed that the Valeyard was an evil, possible future version of the Doctor, who had falsified the Matrix evidence - including Peri's fate - with the aid of the High Council, in order to cover up a conspiracy which the Doctor had unknowingly uncovered. In return for securing the Doctor's execution, the Valeyard would have stolen the Doctor's remaining regenerations, beoming a true Time Lord in his own right.
The Doctor defeated the Valeyard and departed with Mel, causing some confusion, as he hadn't met her yet in his own timeline. It is assumed he returned her to his future self, and later met her for the first time, travelling with her until the TARDIS was caught in the Rani's energy beams, crash-landing on Lakertya. This crash landing was apparently enough to spark his regeneration into the Seventh Doctor (though see below).
Expanded Universe
In the novels and audio adventures, it is assumed that the Sixth Doctor has a great many adventures and meets other companions between the end of his trial and his end on Lakertya. He initially spends time lamenting his fate and, fearful of becoming the Valeyard, resolves to become a hermit on the planet Torrok and avoid ever meeting Mel, changing his own future. He is caught up in events there, however, and travels again with a new companion, Grant Markham. (Time of Your Life and Killing Ground, by Steve Lyons)
After parting from Grant on less than friendly terms, he travelled alone, meeting up briefly again with Frobisher, before eventually meeting Evelyn Smythe. He and Evelyn had a deep friendship, each helping the other heal their emotional problems, and when she chose to leave him he was deeply hurt; this may be why he dropped her off on Earth 10 years before she left with him, causing her a lot of trouble. (Various Big Finish audios; Instruments of Darkness, by Gary Russell) The Doctor eventually meets Mel on Earth and, when she stows away in the TARDIS, decides to accept the inevitable. (Business Unusual, by Gary Russell)
Several alternate explanations are also given for the Sixth Doctor's regeneration, which seemed unwarranted given the severity of the crash. One theory suggests that the Doctor subconsciously sacrificed his sixth self so he could be reborn as Time's Champion. The Sixth persona's anger over this is suggested as the psychological cause for the Valeyard's evil. (Love and War, by Paul Cornell) Another theory is that the Doctor had been injured or poisoned, and was already dying; the crash just finished him off. (Spiral Scratch, by Gary Russell)
Characteristics
The Sixth Doctor is probably the most consistently arrogant, and certainly the most bombastic. He almost never doubted his own ability, and considered himself greatly superior to nearly everyone he encountered. This included his companions, especially Peri, though he seemed to have mellowed during his time with Evelyn. More than his other incarnations, the Sixth Doctor could be something of a fatalist, more than once deciding he was doomed and resolving to accept his fate.
Physically, he is very tall; Mel also considered him to be overweight, and forced him to take up both a diet (consisting mainly of carrot juice) and an exercise regime, neither of which he felt he needed.
Habits and Quirks
The Sixth Doctor is very fond of cats, and always wears one of a number of cat-shaped pin or brooches in his possession. His taste in clothes is the subject of much ridicule, though it has been suggested that he wears his outlandish coat in order to distract people from noticing anything else about him.
Mysteries and Discrepancies
- Why is he so much more erratic than the other Doctors immediately following his regeneration? Is spectrox toxaemia really so severe as to provoke such a reaction in a Time Lord?
- Why does he leave with Mel at the end of his trial? Surely, even if he is taking her back to her proper place with his future self, this flouts the laws of time - right under the Time Lord's noses?
- Why did he regenerate after such a slight injury as "bumping his head on the console"? (Head Games, by Steve Lyons; see biography, above, for more.)
Quotes
- On his new face: "Ahhh...a noble brow. Clear gaze. At least it will be given a few hours sleep. A firm mouth. A face beaming with a vast intelligence. My dear child what on Earth are you complaining about? It's the most extraordinary improvement." (The Twin Dilemma)
- "My last incarnation . . . oh, I was never happy with that one. It had a sort of feckless "charm" which simply wasn't me!" (The Twin Dilemma)
- "The TARDIS, when working properly, is capable of many amazing things. Not unlike myself." (Attack of the Cybermen)
- "Planets come and go. Stars perish. Matter disperses, coalesces, forms into other patterns, other worlds. Nothing can be eternal." (The Mysterious Planet)
- His last words: "Carrot juice?! Carrot juice?!!" (The Ultimate Foe)
