Penelope Creighton-Ward
Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward, (COMIC: Duel of the Daleks et al.) better known as simply Lady Penelope, (PROSE: Titan Declares War!, et al.) was a fashionable and adventurous 21st century socialite.
Biography
By 1997, Lady Creighton-Ward lived not far from the Seventh Doctor's house on Allen Road. Consequently, Bernice Summerfield had often seen her being driven around the Kent countryside, and identified her readily when she was among the celebrities observing the Mars 97 mission at the National Space Museum. (PROSE: The Dying Days)
A report from an anonymous source once suggested that one of Lady Penelope's undercover agents had been kidnapped by the mysterious underworld figure Mr Steelman after his car was forced off the road. (PROSE: Titan Declares War!)
In April 2026, Lady Penelope signed up as one of TV 21's overseas correspondents with her first major news story set to appear in the following week's issue. Soon afterwards, the British government denied all knowledge of Penelope's presence in Bereznik and further stated she was in no way affiliated with them (COMIC: Duel of the Daleks) when she was arrested by the Bereznik Army on suspicion of murdering Toboisk, the head of the Bereznik Secret Police. (PROSE: Zodiac's Rescue Bid!) The Bereznik government subsequently declared Penelope a renegade, offering a reward of 100,000 crownins, £20,000, for her capture, dead or alive. (COMIC: Duel of the Daleks) Later, an English woman believed to be Lady Penelope led an attack on the Bereznik castle prison of Kirov that was thought by TV 21 to be either a general revolt or an attempt to force the release of Professor Laryak. (PROSE: Fireball Mystery Flight!)
Shortly after her return from Bereznik, Lady Penelope made a sudden departure for Unity City by Fireflash Airliner. It was believed by TV 21's editor that she may have gone to investigate the assassination of the Astran Kaplan. (PROSE: Kaplan Assassinated!) Indeed, she had deduced, with the help of Parker, that the assassin must have been the gambler Count Lugosti. After tracking him down to a casino, she forced him to confess, and left him tied up in an alley for Steve Zodiac to find, after send him in an anonymous tip-off over the phone. (COMIC: Lady Penelope)
Penelope, now TV 21's special reporter in Paris, was arrested and jailed on suspicion on placing explosives in a demolition area. (PROSE: XL5 Collision Course!) Explosions had also occurred at the National Bank. (COMIC: The Amaryll Challenge)
Shortly after the release of Dr. Who and the Daleks (PROSE: Lady Penelope Investigates the stars of the Sensational new film Dr. Who and the Daleks!) in 2026, (PROSE: Peaceful Thals Ambushed!) Lady Penelope decided to investigate, and meet up with, the film's stars. She also tried to arrange for the Doctor himself to attend the gathering, but he was unavailable, with Penelope speculating that he was busy actually fighting the Daleks. (PROSE: Lady Penelope Investigates the stars of the Sensational new film Dr. Who and the Daleks!)
Agent J. Gray of the Universal Secret Service discovered "by secret detection" that Lady Penelope had applied for a job as a part owner of an emergency rescue service. Agent Twenty One confirmed that Penelope would be joining the Tracy brothers and "their fantastic crafts" in Thunderbirds later in the year. (PROSE: J. Gray)
In November 2026, Penelope and Parker travelled to the Isle of Arran in search of a valuable ruby. While on the island, she pursued a mysterious man who used the call sign "Hawk" and aimed to locate the ruby's hiding place first. The Hawk made several attacks on Penelope and Parker and, at some point, her vehicle Fab One was damaged beyond use, later being repaired. (PROSE: FAB1 Back in Action!)
A mystery phone call to the TV 21 offices revealed that Lady Penelope had received an invisible ray torch. World scientists were said to be excited by the discovery, as was the Hood. (COMIC: The Menace of the Monstrons)
Behind the scenes
Lady Penelope is a major character in the Thunderbirds franchise and had her own comic strip in TV Century 21 running concurrently to The Daleks.
Within Thunderbirds, Lady Creighton-Ward was a woman in her 20s in the series' "present day" of the 2060s. She is used as such in the numerous minor crossovers between the DWU and Thunderbirds which occurred in the pages of TV Century 21. Consequently, her having a house on 1997 Earth in The Dying Days is a minor continuity error.
