Duke of Manhattan
The Duke of Manhattan was a title given to one of the leading figures in the city of New New York on the planet New Earth. He had the power to create legally binding contracts on behalf of the Senate.
Biography[[edit] | [edit source]]
In the year 5,000,000,023, the Tenth Doctor encountered the Duke of Manhattan in a hospital run by the Sisters of Plenitude. He was suffering from Petrifold Regression, a disease that turned its victims to stone. He claimed that he suffered this disease despite having lived a life of charity and abstinence. Due to advances in medicine made by the Sisters, they were able to cure his disease, a cure that would subsequently be lost for another thousand years following the collapse of the order.
The Duke was accompanied throughout his stay in Ward 26 by his personal assistant Frau Clovis. He celebrated his recovery with champagne and came to see the Doctor as his good luck charm. Though obviously regarded as much more important than most of the other patients in the hospital, he was willing to lend his aid in dangerous situations rather than rely on others to protect him, as he personally helped his fellow survivors barricade the doors against a horde of plague-infected new humans. (TV: New Earth [+]Loading...["New Earth (TV story)"])
The Duke of Manhattan was recalled by the Doctor when he returned to New New York 30 years later, asking if there was a way of getting through to him after an attempt to call the police failed, only to be told he couldn't make outside calls as he was on the Motorway which was completely enclosed. (TV: Gridlock [+]Loading...["Gridlock (TV story)"])
While the Doctor was travelling with Donna Noble, he was summoned by the Duke while Donna was staying at the Leisure Palace Spa on Midnight and sent on a quest to locate a puppy. The Doctor managed to send Donna a postcard explaining what had happened while he was on his way back from the quest. (PROSE: From the universe with love! [+]Loading...["From the universe with love! (short story)"])
Decrees[[edit] | [edit source]]
The senate passed several decrees regarding the Duke, including:
- Members of the public may not gaze upon the Duke without the written permission of the senate.
- No comments made by the Duke can be made public without prior clearance.
- Friendship expressed by the Duke does not form a legal contract. (TV: New Earth [+]Loading...["New Earth (TV story)"])
Behind the scenes[[edit] | [edit source]]
- The script for New Earth [+]Loading...["New Earth (TV story)"] features an ultimately omitted exchange in which Lady Cassandra, whilst in the body of Rose Tyler, blows a "sexy kiss" to the Duke of Manhattan, who giggles, to which Frau Clovis insists that "Any intimacy expressed by the Duke of Manhattan does not constitute a promise of physical interaction." In response, Cassandra quips "story of your life, sweetheart."
