Joseph Merrick
Joseph Merrick, often called Joe, John or the Elephant Man, was a 19th century performer renowned for his physical deformities.
Biography[[edit] | [edit source]]
Merrick was born in 1862. Due to early 20th century belief in the theory of maternal impression, it was widely thought that his appearance was caused by an elephant who had startled his mother during her pregnancy.
In his childhood, he was friends with Fu Manchu's son, who gave him the nickname "John" after an elephant they knew. Merrick later became famous as a freak show performer; (PROSE: The Beasthouse) at one point while touring northern England in Diodati's Circus, he ran away with Brenda. (PROSE: Fellowship of Ink)
After time travel technology became widely available in the form of Dr Barnardo's Patented Chrono-Ambulatory Tunnel, Merrick became a regular guest on 1970s talk shows, such as Blue Peter, where he caused John Noakes to slip on the wet floor, and Parkinson, where he reunited with Fu Manchu's son and, after becoming irritated by Johnny Morris, stabbed the host in the face.
In the 1980s Merrick became an environmentalist activist against the ivory trade. In 1983 he underwent plastic surgery to graft a trunk onto his face. He died in 1890 of a cocaine overdose during a photoshoot for GQ magazine. (PROSE: The Beasthouse)
References[[edit] | [edit source]]
Claiming to Queen Victoria that he had purchased the "feral child" Rose Tyler in old London Town, the Tenth Doctor added that it was either her or the Elephant Man. (TV: Tooth and Claw)
Bernice Summerfield, upon seeing the Eighth Doctor's TARDIS laboratory, half-expected to see the Elephant Man come lumbering out. (PROSE: The Dying Days)
After being injured, Sam Jones' forehead was so swollen she felt like the Elephant Man. (PROSE: Longest Day)
From what Ace had heard of Hexen Bridge, she had expected to at least see extra limbs and Elephant Man deformities, not normal-looking people. (PROSE: The Hollow Men)
Patrick Mullen wondered if his hospital room was the same one the Elephant Man had. (PROSE: Loving the Alien)
Private Michaels believed that the transformed Captain Hertford would be a bigger draw than the Elephant Man. (AUDIO: The Bloodless Soldier)
Behind the scenes[[edit] | [edit source]]
Joseph Merrick was played by John Hurt in the 1980 film The Elephant Man. The cover of The Land of the Dead shows an adapted image of Joseph's skull.
