Theory:Timeline - Eighth Doctor

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This page lists appearances of the Eighth Doctor in the order in which he experienced them. This timeline is based upon observations of the Doctor Who universe and the events that occur during each of these stories. From these observations we have attempted to build a concise timeline. It is assumed, much like its TV story counterparts that for each novel or audio series their published/numbered order is the order they occur in. This does not apply to short stories which are often ambiguous about their placement. There are also many gaps between stories.

The layout of this timeline is in part based on the observations on Doctor Who Reference Guide and Doctor Who - The Complete Adventures, as well as Lance Parkin's AHistory and other sources that allow us to make observations. None of these sources should be used solely as a source or considered a "true" timeline for stories.

The Eighth Doctor's timeline presents certain issues to construct a concise timeline as there are only a few "gaps" between stories in which to insert certain series of adventures which occur. Also due to certain events, such as the (first) destruction of Gallifrey in The Ancestor Cell certain story series must take place at certain points.

Limiting factors

Gallifrey

Anything involving Gallifrey must take place either before PROSE: The Ancestor Cell (when Gallifrey is destroyed the first time related to the War), additionally anything involving Romana II, must take place before PROSE: The Shadows of Avalon (as this is the first novel to mention Romana's third incarnation).

Alternatively anything involving Gallifrey must take place after PROSE: The Gallifrey Chronicles, following this story the Doctor regains his memory (which he lost following events in The Ancestor Cell) and it is implied in the novel he goes on to restore Gallifrey.

Because of this stories featuring the Doctor travelling with Charlotte Pollard and involve meeting Romana II when she is president it is likely these stories take place before The Shadows of Avalon when she has regenerated.

Series basics

The Eighth Doctor's stories can very roughly be sorted into series based on medium / series

  • The BBC Eighth Doctor Adventures - Sam Jones, Sam and Fitz Kreiner, Fitz and Compassion, Fitz and Anji Kapoor, Fitz, Anji Trix, Fitz and Trix
  • The Radio Times comics - Stacy and Ssard
  • DWM comic stories - Izzy, Destrii
  • Big Finish audio stories - Charlotte Pollard, Lucie Miller, Mary Shelley, Tamsin Drew, Molly O'Sullivan
  • Short Trips
  • Anything else

Timeline

The Eight Doctors continues directly on from the TVM, with the Doctor referencing events that happened and there is narrative flow between these two stories linking them together.
At the end of this story the Doctor drops Sam off at a Greenpeace rally. According to Vampire Science he has adventures for 3 years.
The Doctor is coming to terms with the actions of his previous incarnation.
Near the beginning of this incarnation as the Doctor was still thinking about Grace prior to returning to meet her.
The Doctor mentions that he is new to this incarnation.
Set before The Ethereal.
The Doctor is described as looking young and remembers his past.
In Transmission Ends the Doctor says that he met Bazima again quite recently.
In Transmission Ends the events of this story are fresh in the Doctor's mind.
The Doctor has his seventh self's umbrella in Transmission Ends, as he gives said umbrella to Benny in The Dying Days this has to take place before that novel.

Here the Doctor states he has a new head

The Doctor has all his memories and his travelling alone. He is horrified by a threat that had the power to destroy the Time Lords, suggesting that this takes place before The Ancestor Cell
The Radio Times stories must take place before Placebo Effect as that novel is a sequel to these stories.
Benny's Story must take place after The Dying Days as it is when the Doctor and Bernice first meet.
Takes place before the Doctor travels with Charley, because the Doctor has moved the Juror from history by that point.
Stories involving Gemma and Samson occur prior to Storm Warning, and are therefore placed prior to the Doctor's involvement. Their stories also include elements of Terror Firma in flashback form.
Shada features Romana as president and has no references to the Anti-Time phenomena that is present in stories post Invaders from Mars. Romana compliments the Doctor's "new body" in the prelude, implying this is the first time she's seen the Eighth Doctor.
The Doctor, Romana and K9 have just returned from an adventure away from Gallifrey, as there is no mention of Charley or any other companion, placement after Shada is likely.
Leads directly into Storm Warning.
Letting Go likely takes place close to Storm Warning as the memory of people dying on board the R101 is still fresh in Charley's mind.
Charley still has a black eye and bruising from events in Minuet in Hell.
Faithful Friends: Part 3 features the Brigadier, placing this after Minuet in Hell.
C'rizz has never been to Earth before, so before Salva Mea and Other Lives. Leads into Before Midnight.

Charley and C'rizz have only recently left the Doctor in this story.

The Doctor sees Benny at the Braxiatel collection. This could be placed anywhere after The Dying Days and Benny's Story as the Doctor has met Peter before, and Bernice does not return to 'conventional' archaeological work following Death and the Daleks (which ...Be Forgot follows).
The Doctor has memories of his past regenerations and is travelling alone placing this either before The Ancestor Cell or after The Gallifrey Chronicles.
The final chapter of The Bodysnatchers see the Doctor returning to see Litefoot, this is an older Doctor who changes the subject when Sam Jones is mentioned, this chapter likely takes place elsewhere in the Doctor's timeline.
At the end of this novel the Doctor, having been tortured departs to get a new coat from New Sydney, possibly leaving another "gap" where he could be having adventures away from Sam.
Sam notes that the TARDIS is always going wrong, this could lead into War of the Daleks where the Doctor is conducting major repairs on the TARDIS.
Alien Bodies features a chapter with the Third Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith.
Alien Bodies is the first novel to feature the War affecting the "past".
Sam is younger acting in this story, likely placing it before she (briefly) leaves the Doctor.
Sam Jones departs the Doctor here and the Doctor spends the next 3 novels searching for her, though as evidenced by Legacy of the Daleks gets distracted.
The Doctor spends an amount of time in a temporal orbit constructing a cure for Sam's radiation poisoning.
As this story opens the Doctor has been stuck on Earth for several months.
The Doctor visits IM Foreman alone framing this story.
The Doctor refers to Romana being President of Gallifrey and to the Etra Prime Incident. The Doctor's eyes change colour, showing that his biodata has been altered by Faction Paradox as shown in Alien Bodies and Unnatural History.
Only Fitz and the Doctor appear in this story, as the Doctor places Compassion on Earth for some months, Growing Higher likely takes place when they pair are not travelling with the Doctor.
Compassion has been on Earth for some time, the Doctor having placed her there.
The Doctor's TARDIS is 'destroyed' here, prompting the creation of Compassion as a TARDIS.
From The Fall of Yquatine to The Ancestor Cell the Doctor and Fitz are travelling within Compassion.
The Doctor is left on Earth with practically no memory, he spends about 100 years on Earth, waiting for Fitz.
This period of stories is a period of time the Doctor spends without his memory trapped on Earth.
Fitz rejoins the Doctor.
The Doctor refers to having a single heartbeat and an "angel full of compassion" that saved him once. Placing Fallen Gods after The Blue Angel and after The Adventuress of Henrietta Street where Sabbath removed the Doctor's second heart.
The Doctor has a single heart in Notre Dame du Temps, placing it before Camera Obscura.
The Doctor regains his second heart at the end of Camera Obscura.

Adventures with Lucie Miller are placed after The Gallifrey Chronicles as there are no direct references to Romana being president

The Doctor mentions the events of The Bodysnatchers, placing the EDA range before this story.
The Doctor mistakenly calls Lucie, Izzy, placing the DWM comic strips before this story.
The Great War picks up immediately after To The Death
The Doctor regains his memories from before The Burning of Gallifrey and the events prior to its destruction.


This is the Doctor's last visit to Edward, therefore it is set after Dear John. The Master escapes from the TARDIS, therefore it must be set after The Gallifrey Chronicles where the Master still resides in the Eye of Harmony. The Doctor has memory of his other lives therefore a placement after The Gallifrey Chronicles is also more likely. The Doctor's comment that he thought the Master had been destroyed by the interior of the TARDIS shows that this story must take place before The Fallen.
The Eighth Doctor has knowledge of his past selves and of the Daleks, placing this before PROSE: The Ancestor Cell or after The Gallifrey Chronicles.
Given the representation of Gallifrey described in previous stories the DWM comic stories likely take place following The Gallifrey Chronicles.
The Doctor identifies himself as a Time Lord from Gallifrey, placing this either before The Ancestor Cell or after The Gallifrey Chronicles. He also has full control over the TARDIS, meaning that the story is set further into the timeline where the Doctor has more control over the TARDIS.
Given that none of the adventures with Lucie Miller make reference to Romana being president, placing these adventures following The Gallifrey Chronicles seems to make more sense, given there is an active Time Lord society which is not bogged down by the Second War in Heaven.
These following stories feature the Doctor being older and nearing the end of his eighth incarnation.
The Doctor is world weary

The Doctor's hair is beginning to grey.

The Doctor has flecks of grey in his hair and his body is "wearing thin" and has "little fight left in it".

The Doctor is aware that soon he will regenerate.

The Doctor knows that he is going to regenerate soon, but says that he must do something first, something which involves the Daleks (Hinting at the Time War).


The Doctor is working with the Time Lords and possesses the Ninth Doctor's sonic screwdriver.

Set during the Time War

The Doctor regenerates.

Unplaced

These stories are unplaced, they either do not currently have enough information in the narrative to suggest a placement in the timeline or have information such as companion but not enough to suggest where it might take place between other more established stories.

Charley seems comfortable with the Doctor and his methods, placing it closer to Neverland.
Sometime after The Shadows of Avalon as the Doctor states in that story that he hasn't been Merlin yet.
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