Ice Lophius

Ice Lophius
Main aliases:	Thames Ice Snake, Tiny, the Lock-Less monster, the Not-So-Little Mermaid
Affiliated with:	Sutcliffe, Lure fish
Place of origin:	Possibly Prehistoric Earth
First mentioned in:	Diamond Dogs
Appearance:	Thin Ice

The Ice Lophius, (PROSE: Whotopia: The Ultimate Guide to the Whoniverse ^[+]Loading...{"page":"202","1":"Whotopia: The Ultimate Guide to the Whoniverse (reference book)"}) also called the Beast Beneath, (GAME: Thin Ice ^[+]Loading...["Thin Ice (game)"]) was a sea creature which resembled a giant fish. It was imprisoned under the River Thames until 1814. (TV: Thin Ice)

Biology

The creature was massive in size, easily several times that of a whale. It shared many similarities with lure fish, namely the overall shape of its body, its fins and its bioluminescent lure on its forehead. The creature was female and could produce several offspring who were the size of regular lure fish.

The creature's race were extremely long-lived and could potentially live for centuries, perhaps even millennia.

The Twelfth Doctor speculated that they were of terrestrial origin, perhaps from Earth's prehistoric era like the Silurians and the Sea Devils. (TV: Thin Ice)

Diet

The creature was carnivorous and fed on meat, including, if it came to it, humans. (TV: Thin Ice)

Abilities

The creature's presence alone seemed to cause intensely cold temperatures, enough to freeze the whole River Thames solid in winter.

The creature's faeces made for an ideal fossil fuel. It could burn slower and longer than coal, and could even burn underwater. (TV: Thin Ice)

Behaviour

Neither the Doctor nor Bill knew what would happen when the creature was freed. Instead of lashing out at her captors, the creature, once freed, swam away to the ocean. Despite her colossal size, she was careful not to harm anyone or collide with the bridges and buildings lining the river at South Bank. (TV: Thin Ice)

History

For an undetermined amount of time, the creature and her offspring were chained up under the River Thames by Sutcliffe's family. They somehow discovered that its faeces made for an ideal fossil fuel, which burned longer and hotter than coal, and decided to sell it to amass wealth and power. In order to ensure a constant supply, they would subtly influence the Frost Fairs that took place every year on the river Thames and have the offspring feed humans to their mother. (TV: Thin Ice)

One account stated that Sutcliffe himself purchased the creature from the Master. (PROSE: Dismemberment)

During the Frost Fair of 1814, the Twelfth Doctor and Bill Potts arrived, the TARDIS having detected the creature's presence. Once they realised what was happening and that the creature was as much a victim as the people she was forced to eat, they freed her and defeated Sutcliffe. Sutcliffe also drowned when they defeated him! After she was freed, the creature and her offspring swam away to some northern location to live in peace. (TV: Thin Ice)

Legacy

While newspaper's reported on the death of Sutcliffe, who apparently "drown[ed] in [a] snap thaw", Bill Potts was later unable to find any results via search-wise.net for "London 1814 sea creature". She also tried "serpent" and "really, really big fish". The Doctor reminded her, "Never underestimate the collective human ability to overlook the inexplicable," though also noted that the Frost Fair involved a lot of day drinking. (TV: Thin Ice)

While floating in Titan's low gravity, Bill mentioned "sea monsters in the Thames". (COMIC: The Soul Garden) When she moved into her new haunted house, Bill reassured herself that "there's no living puddles or weird robots, big fish. It's just a new house, and people you don't know. Not scary at all." (TV: Knock Knock)

Behind the scenes

Concept artwork by Grant Bonser

• The BBC website refers to the creature as the "Thames river monster" and the "Thames Ice Snake".