Theory:Doctor Who television discontinuity and plot holes/Voyage of the Damned


 * How is it that there are humans on board the ship but they have no idea about earth or the fact that it has there ancestors! i mean no where in the episode does it state that the ship can travel through time?
 * They look human just like Time Lords do, doesn't mean they actually are.


 * Max was afraid of witneses, who can survive a crash like that?
 * If the people hadn't been killed off, some could have gotten to the lifepods'.


 * The Doctor later explains that the Hosts flew him up to the flight deck because with Max dead the androids were programmed to obey the next highest figure of authority, The Doctor. However the Doctor had just been acknowledged by their previous master as a stowaway and a criminal, and there was still at least one crewmember alive (Frame).
 * He was the highest authority in the vicinity, and his instruction could have been to take him to the ship's present commanding officer, Frame -- which they did. The Doctor also called himself Capricon's "apprentice" while in the presence of the Hosts, which Capricon did not have the presence of mind to deny.


 * After the Doctor says, "Take me to your leader", he remarks on how he's always wanted to say that sentence, even though his ninth incarnation said it in TV: Aliens of London, as had his fourth incarnation.
 * He wanted to say it in his current incarnation, remembering that each new incarnation is a "new man" and has new urges and cravings.


 * Although the evacuation of London renders the Doctor's concern moot, the question is left unanswered as to how Bannakaffalatta was expected to remain incognito during the shore party excursion to Earth. It doesn't appear that Mr. Copper expected the evacuation to have taken place, given that he expected the passengers to go shopping upon arrival.
 * The crew of the liner were woefully misinformed about much on Earth, so clearly did not realize that Bannakaffalatta's appearance would cause a stir. The Doctor does specifically mention this likeihood. They were just lucky the place was deserted.


 * When the Doctor tries to warn the fellow passengers by grabbing the microphone the singer was using, it is branded Magpie electricals; why would a Sto microphone be branded Magpie Electricals?
 * It's established in dialogue that Slade's tuxedo is "a genuine Earth antique", ergo it came from Earth. That means the microphone likely was obtained during a previous visit. Other episodes, most notably TV: The Idiot's Lantern, established that Magpie is a genuine company.


 * The opening collision between the TARDIS and the ship raises several questions: Why would a space-going vessel have a foghorn? How could a vessel in space expel a life preserver (and why would one even be needed?) And how was the captain of the ship not aware that it had not only collided with another craft, but had briefly embedded itself within it?
 * The foghorn and life preserver make the ship seem authentic, and more realistic like the Titanic itself. Perhaps the vessel is designed to enter the atmosphere of a planet, and thus the foghorn would be used. As for the captain being strangely unaware - only Midshipman Frame knew about the meteors and the Captain was after all under orders to crash the Titanic so maybe he did know about the crash but thought that (if anything) that it would only damage the ship more and make it crash faster. Other possibilities might include the TARDIS' perception filter kicking in or the impact not being noticeable due to the wooden shell of the TARDIS not being large or strong.


 * Rickston Slade is seen using a mobile phone (or something similar) both before and after the crash, why couldn't he have used it to send an SOS, the survivors didn't need to get to the Main Deck at all.
 * The DVD release of the story includes deleted scenes in which it is stated that Slade's phone is not working, presumably due to its signal being blocked since afterwards it is again functional.
 * Since the teleports ran off the Titanic's power, it's likely that any mobile communications were also linked to the ship's transmitters; it's unlikely that Slade's 'vone' had the capabilities of a superphone, that it would be able to call all the way to the Cassavalian belt. Therefore, when the ship's power went down, so would the Slade's bars.


 * Related to the above, the Doctor is seen using a telephone on the bridge to contact Buckingham Palace. Couldn't Frame have been instructed relay the message?
 * As indicated in the episode, the Doctor only called the Palace when he realised the Titanic was on a collision course with the building.


 * Why was there an English flag in the room where the TARDIS landed?
 * The spaceship was a replica based upon the aliens' interpretation of Earth history and vessels. It might not have been appropriate, but given how many other errors are made by the aliens (Christmas story, etc.) it's not surprising.
 * Sorry to be pedantic, but it's a Union Flag which is the flag of the United Kingdom. The English flag is a red cross on a white background.


 * The Doctor claims that he is 903 years old. This contradicts TV: Time and the Rani, in which the Doctor's age is given as 953.
 * This issue is also raised by similar references going back to TV: Aliens of London. It remains officially unexplained. Although Steven Moffat has famously said that "he doesn't know what age he is" the last three incarnations seem very insistent on the early 900s - so Moffat's comments could refer to the earlier incarnations being unaware. He could have established it since then and begun counting.


 * When Mr Copper is talking about Great Britain in the final scene, why doesn't the Doctor correct him that the country is actually called the United Kingdom, especially considering that Mr Copper actually referred to the country as the UK earlier in the episode?
 * Because it allowed Russell T Davies to include the audience-pleasing statement "Only Britain is great" and because Copper had just made an error by attributing the "Great" name to the wrong part of the planet.
 * Great Britain is acceptable as well. The difference between Great Britain and the United Kingdom is that the UK consists of both Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Great Britain is the island that contains England, Scotland and Wales.


 * The Doctor explained that the exchange rate from credits to pounds is 50 million to 1 million, respectively. This means that Foon Van Hoff's 5000 credit debt is only 100 pounds, or $147. How is it that they'll never be able to pay off 100 pounds?
 * We don't know the wages for workers in robot mills of Sto. And it may explain why Copper is so excited about having so much money.
 * Perhaps Foon does not understand the value of a credit and thinks that she has incurred a much larger debt than she actually has. This explains why Morvin is unconcerned about the bill and laughs (he is probably joking about having to work 20 years to pay off the debt). Also, it's possible that the credits in whatever nation/planet/etc. that the Van Hoffs live in are not the same currency that Copper uses, or that the Doctor makes an error in his conversion - which would mean that the value of 50 million that he gives to Copper is much more than it is actually worth.
 * Fewer credits may buy less on Sto. The standard for currency on Earth may likewise be worth significantly less on Sto. Many people in the world today earn so little that 100 pounds would be a long haul for them to pay off.


 * In what way is Cardiff the nearest centre of gravity?
 * The Doctor was referring to Earth. There is no indication given anywhere in the episode to suggest that the TARDIS landed in Cardiff, or even Great Britain, though one could imagine the TARDIS might have the UK as a default destination.


 * If Host have the strength of 10 why does one struggle to strangle Morvin.
 * Morvin's heavy-set build might have made it difficult for the Host to grab his neck. It was also damaged.


 * Just before the meteoroids are about to hit, the alert system says "Red Alert" despite the Doctor saying in TV: The Empty Child that mauve is the universally recognised color for danger (except on Earth).
 * As just stated, Earth uses red alert, so the replication uses "red".


 * Midshipman Frame says meteors are coming yet the meteors do not have tails as is shown, further if they are comets as indicted by the tails the tails should not move with a change in direction as the tail always moves away from the sun regardless of direction of travel.
 * The ship is in the outer part of Earth's atmosphere, so a tail/streak is reasonable.


 * The "official explanation" (as described in The Writer's Tale) is that they were meteoroids, not meteors (and Frame mixed them up exactly as RTD had in the first draft), and what we saw were flaming trails that were something to do with the ship's shields, not comet tails.


 * The ship's oxygen shield have been shown to extend beyond the ship, thus explaining the meteors flaming as they approach the ship. They should not have been flaming when they were approaching the earth, however, because the Titanic is sufficiently far enough away from Earth (judging by the footage) to be clear of any sufficiently thick atmosphere.


 * The Titanic crashed through the interior of the TARDIS. If the outside of the TARDIS is smaller what would it have looked like when a much larger ship was "inside" it?
 * Well think about it this way, the ship smashes through and it digs in but since its bigger on the inside so more of the ship gets in


 * When hitting the Hosts' rings the Doctor gets hit in the arm, he doesn't respond until 1 or 2 seconds later
 * That's clearly a production error, not a plot discontinuity.


 * Since the Titanic is shaped like a boat, Couldn't The Doctor have instructed frame to fly the ship into the sea, therefore allowing it to float until they are rescued?
 * Even though the Titanic is shaped like a ship on the outside, the inside is built to function as a spaceship, which means structurally, it would probably sink if it went into the sea instead of float.
 * Steering in space is only possible with propulsion, and Midshipman Frame was using all the ship's power to keep it in orbit i.e. thrusting away from the earth. Aiming the ship would have given them less time safe in orbit, therefore it wouldn't have occurred to him.


 * RTD effectively said the same thing in an interview (I think in DWM?), something like, "Sure, it'd land, and then, without the antigrav, it'd sink like a stone, or like a big spaceship made of gold. Or did you think they make spaceships out of wood?"


 * When the co-pilot gets shot in the stomach at the beginning of the episode, why is he all better at the end?
 * He's hardly all better. but being shot and being killed are rather different.
 * Captain Hardaker was old, and there is little no no indication he was a good shot even if he were younger. He was also reluctant to shoot Frame. It's likely he, whether intentionally or not, missed anything vital but injured Frame enough to incapacitate him.


 * Why would a starship on the Earth orbit outside the atmosphere require engines to stay on that orbit?
 * Orbits decay over time, due to gravitational influence.


 * the Doctor says "the TARDIS is programmed to lock onto the nearest centre of gravity, which is earth". But, technically everything has some gravitational pull, albeit many things have such littlep pull it isnt noticed.
 * You just answered your own question. The TARDIS would lock on to the nearest significant centre of gravity.


 * as the Titanic turns to face earth, it creaks, but the entire thing moves, not just some parts
 * As there is no sound in space, it was likely just to build effect. There were probably a multitude of objects creaking on board the ship.


 * When the Doctor shouted into the mic "Get to the lifebo—" and a Host puts its metal hand over his mouth, why would there be lifeboats in the first place? The crew, passengers and stowaways might as well have jumped out the freaking ship. There would be no air and lifeboats are on water. What gives?
 * Lifeboat, lifepod. Same difference.
 * Since it’s a “faithful recreation” of the Titanic, the lifepods might have been modelled after lifeboats like the original, or at least they would have been labelled as such.


 * Why is the Doctor concerned with the Tardis flying away ? He can clearly command the Tardis to jump to him.
 * Are you referring to what he did in The Witch’s Familiar? Because that wasn’t him summoning the TARDIS, that was him giving a signal for it to rematerialise. It never changed place, it just wasn’t visible or physically interactable before then.
 * How can he summon it? He's got nothing on him that can do that.


 * Why is it earlier in the episode, when the host throw their halo at people, it kills them in one shot, but later when the Doctor and the others get hit by the halos, it only seems to cause them mild pain?
 * We only properly see the Host kill one person with a halo, and that was a direct hit to the neck of a guy trapped underneath some rubble. Out of the main group, the only hits are on the Doctor's arm and Mr Copper's leg, both of which are clearly extremely painful but not vital points.


 * Why was Wilf out selling papers on Christmas day when places like that would be closed? (Turn Left confirms that was, indeed, what he was doing)


 * It was Christmas Eve night, and Wilf may be continuing with his work to show his resilience and the 'carry on regardless' attitude that him and the Queen both have. Some smaller shops are open for Christmas sometimes, and with Sylvia and Donna at home, who Turn Left shows are frequently at loggerheads, Wilf might just have wanted a break.