Alonso Frame
Alonso Frame was a midshipman on board the spaceship Titanic from the planet Sto.
Biography
The voyage aboard the Titanic was Alonso's first trip out. He turned down the chance to have a drink with his fellow crew members when Captain Hardaker told them to go and have one. Alonso then noticed that a meteor storm was heading toward the ship while the shields were down. Because they could destroy the ship, he tried to raise the shields and prevent the collision. The Captain, who was orchestrating the ship's destruction, shot him before he could do so. The meteors smashed into the ship, killing the captain and leaving Alonso badly injured.
Alonso helped prevent the Titanic from crashing into the Earth, by following the Tenth Doctor's orders to keep the engines running. He was trapped in the bridge when the Heavenly Host appeared and tried to kill him; he put a deadlock seal on the door so they could not get in, but this meant he could not get out. After the defeat of Max Capricorn, the Doctor used the Heavenly Host to smash his way into the deadlocked room.
The Doctor was excited to hear Midshipman Frame's full name as it afforded him an opportunity to say "allons-y Alonso", something he had wanted to say for some time (TV: Army of Ghosts). The Doctor and Alonso worked together trying to stop the Titanic from crashing into London and Buckingham Palace. When they were back in space, the Doctor and Mr Copper left the ship for Earth, leaving Alonso to deal with the aftermath of the Titanic disaster. (TV: Voyage of the Damned)
Some time later, Alonso was in a nightclub for many species and approached the bar. He was surprised when Jack Harkness addressed him by his name, leading him to believe that Harkness was psychic. The Doctor had just sent Jack a note with Alonso's name as a hint. As Jack began to flirt with Alonso, the Doctor departed. (TV: The End of Time)
Personality
Alonso Frame was a man who was devoted to his duty and was determined to keep the people on the Titanic safe. He attempted to raise the Titanic's shields despite the Captain pointing a gun at him and shooting him. Alonso survived the injury and ignored it as he attempted to prevent the Titanic from crashing into Earth. (TV: Voyage of the Damned)
Alonso flirted with Captain Jack Harkness showing that he was, at the very least, not strictly heterosexual. (TV: The End of Time)
Behind the scenes
- Frame was set to return as a Shadow Proclamation soldier in TV: The Stolen Earth / Journey's End, assisting the Doctor before being exterminated while fighting the Daleks. Tovey declined the role due to other work commitments. (The Writer's Tale)
- Though it did not come to pass, John Barrowman had theorised that it would have been a good idea for Alonso to reappear in Torchwood series four. [1]
- In his book The Writer's Tale, Russell T Davies indicated that actor Russell Tovey was one of his personal candidates for playing the Eleventh Doctor.
- Frame being the only bridge officer to survive the spaceship Titanic is a possible allusion to Second Officer Charles Lightoller, who was the only senior officer to survive the Titanic sinking in 1912.
