Theory:Timeline - Nyssa

This page lists appearances of Nyssa in the order in which she experienced them. This timeline is based on observations of the Doctor Who universe and the events in each of these stories. From these observations we have attempted to build a concise timeline. It is assumed, much like their TV story counterparts, that each novel or audio series their published/numbered order is the order they occur in.

The layout of this timeline is based in part on the observations on Doctor Who Reference Guide and Doctor Who - The Complete Adventures, Lance Parkin's AHistory and other sources that allow us to make observations, such as DocOhoReviews, The History of Doctor Who, The Discontinuity Guide, Clive Banks Databank, the Big Finish forum, The Whoniverse and The Divergent Universe forum. None of these sources should be used solely as a source or considered a "true" timeline for stories.

Meeting the Fourth Doctor

 * TV: The Keeper of Traken
 * Nyssa meets the Fourth Doctor and Adric.


 * TV: Logopolis
 * Nyssa is taken from her home on Traken by the Watcher, leading to her surviving the destruction of the Traken Union. The Doctor regenerates to his next incarnation.

Joining the Fifth Doctor

 * TV: Logopolis
 * The Doctor regenerates from his previous incarnation.


 * TV: Castrovalva
 * Set immediately after Logopolis, with the Doctor's regeneration still settling.


 * AUDIO: Psychodrome
 * Set two days after Logopolis.


 * PROSE: Cold Fusion
 * Set three days after Logopolis. Doctor is still recovering from his recent regeneration.


 * PROSE: Dr. Fifth
 * The Doctor is still in need of the Zero Room, implying he is still recovering from his recent regeneration, and still has his sonic screwdriver, setting this before The Visitation.


 * COMIC: On the Planet Isopterus
 * Tegan is not concerned using the Doctor's dream-manipulating machine, setting this before Kinda.


 * PROSE: First Born
 * The Doctor still has his sonic screwdriver, setting this before The Visitation.


 * PROSE: Resonance
 * The Doctor still has his sonic screwdriver, setting this before The Visitation.


 * AUDIO: The Ingenious Gentleman Adric of Alzarius
 * The Doctor still has his sonic screwdriver, setting this before The Visitation.

Attempts to return to Heathrow

 * TV: Four to Doomsday
 * The Doctor begins trying to get the TARDIS to Heathrow Airport to return Tegan to her job as an air hostess. Nyssa collapses after a showdown with Monarch.


 * TV: Kinda
 * Set directly after Four to Doomsday, with Nyssa recuperating from her dizzy spell in the TARDIS throughout the crew's stay on Deva Loka.


 * TV: The Visitation
 * Set almost immediately after Kinda, with the Doctor reprimanding Adric for his actions, and Tegan still haunted by her possession. The Doctor's sonic screwdriver is destroyed by the Terileptil leader.


 * PROSE: The Dark River
 * Set during The Visitation: Part 4, when Adric and Nyssa are taking the TARDIS to the Squire's house.


 * PROSE: Divided Loyalties
 * The Doctor has just escaped the Great Fire of London, setting this immediately after The Visitation. The Doctor avoids landing the TARDIS on a planet because he believes it would lead to another adventure, and instead allows the TARDIS to float in space.


 * TV: God of War
 * Takes place shortly after Kinda, from the point of view of the Doctor's companions.


 * PROSE: The Immortals
 * The Doctor has recently regenerated, and Tegan is still upset about his failure to return her to Heathrow.


 * AUDIO: The Toy
 * Nyssa refers to the events of Kinda and is unsure if the Master is still alive.


 * AUDIO: The Star Men


 * AUDIO: The Contingency Club
 * The Doctor has recently lost his sonic screwdriver, setting this shortly after The Visitation.


 * AUDIO: Zaltys
 * Tegan has given up on the Doctor's ability to get her back to Heathrow, and she and Adric believe the Master is dead, setting this before Smoke and Mirrors.


 * AUDIO: Smoke and Mirrors
 * The Doctor has recently lost his sonic screwdriver, setting this shortly after The Visitation. Houdini is the first historical figure that Tegan has met since beginning her travels with the Doctor, and this is the Doctor's first encounter with the Master since Castrovalva. Nyssa believes Tegan is beginning to enjoy her travels, something Tegan implies is correct.


 * AUDIO: Kingdom of Lies
 * Tegan, after some hesitation, admits to Adric that she has begun to enjoy traveling in the TARDIS. She recalls her brief piloting of the TARDIS from Four to Doomsday.


 * AUDIO: Ghost Walk
 * Nyssa's psychic potential from Kinda is reference.


 * AUDIO: Serpent in the Silver Mask
 * Set sometime after The Visitation, with the Doctor looking for components to build a new sonic screwdriver.


 * COMIC: In Their Nature
 * Adric, Nyssa and Tegan are kidnapped Adam Mitchell, leading directly into Endgame.


 * COMIC: Endgame
 * The Doctor joins with his other incarnations to rescue his friends from Adam and, and assists the other Doctors in saving their companions as well.


 * COMIC: The Last Action Figure


 * TV: Black Orchid


 * COMIC: Time & Time Again
 * Set during Black Orchid: Part 1.


 * PROSE: In the TARDIS: Christmas Day


 * PROSE: The Constant Doctor


 * AUDIO: The Darkening Eye
 * The Dar Traders predict that Adric's death is coming soon, setting this shortly before Earthshock.


 * AUDIO: Iterations of I
 * The Doctor has started reading the Black Orchid book he received in Black Orchid.


 * PROSE: Hearts of Stone
 * Set immediately before Earthshock, with the Doctor and Adric upset with each other, and the gestalt mourns the upcoming loss of Adric.


 * TV: Earthshock
 * While stopping the Cybermen from destroying the Earth, Adric dies in a spaceship explosion.


 * TV: Time-Flight
 * Set immediately after Earthshock, with the TARDIS crew grieving for Adric, and Tegan failing to convince the Doctor to change history and save him. While trying to go to the Great Exhibition, the TARDIS lands at Heathrow Airport, where, after a battle with the Master, Tegan is left behind by the Doctor and Nyssa.

Lone travels with the Doctor

 * PROSE: Empire of Death
 * Set immediately after Time-Flight. Nyssa still has her latent psychic powers, setting this before Primeval.


 * PROSE: Long Term
 * Nyssa does not accompany the Doctor; she remains in the TARDIS, still mourning Adric.


 * PROSE: Suspension and Disbelief
 * The Doctor is still mourning Adric's death, setting this shortly after Earthshock.


 * PROSE: Artificial Intelligence
 * The Doctor mentions his visit to the school in Long Term as occurring "not long ago". He is also still bitter about Adric's untimely death.


 * PROSE: Tip of the Tongue
 * The Doctor has recently lost Adric and Tegan.


 * PROSE: Past Reckoning
 * Nyssa knows very little of the history of Earth, and suggests they look up Tegan once they're back on Earth.


 * PROSE: The Parliament of Rats
 * Nyssa refers to the Doctor's recent regeneration.


 * PROSE: The Eternity Contract


 * PROSE: Lonely Days
 * Nyssa recalls Tegan recently returning to Heathrow Airport after Adric's death.


 * AUDIO: The Land of the Dead
 * Tegan has recently departed the TARDIS during a brief return to Heathrow Airport in 1982.


 * AUDIO: Winter for the Adept
 * Nyssa mentions the recent events from The Land of the Dead.


 * AUDIO: The Mutant Phase
 * Nyssa refers to the events of The Land of the Dead.


 * AUDIO: Circular Time: Spring


 * AUDIO: The Deep


 * AUDIO: Primeval


 * AUDIO: Spare Parts


 * AUDIO: Creatures of Beauty
 * Nyssa mentions visiting Alaska, as she did in The Land of the Dead.


 * AUDIO: Circular Time: Summer


 * PROSE: Confabula
 * Nyssa recalls the events of Spare Parts.


 * PROSE: Not So Much a Programme, More a Way of Life
 * Nyssa recalls visiting Heathrow Airport in 1982, and deeply misses Tegan.


 * AUDIO: The Game


 * PROSE: The 57th


 * PROSE: Saturn


 * PROSE: The Church of Saint Sebastian


 * AUDIO: Circular Time: Autumn


 * Nyssa undertakes a solo expedition to 13th century Rhodes, and the Doctor goes on some solo adventures. (AUDIO: Renaissance of the Daleks)

Troubles with Thomas Brewster

 * AUDIO: Renaissance of the Daleks
 * The Doctor and Nyssa reunite and resume traveling together.


 * AUDIO: Return to the Web Planet
 * Set immediately after Renaissance of the Daleks.


 * AUDIO: The Haunting of Thomas Brewster


 * AUDIO: The Three Companions


 * AUDIO: The Boy That Time Forgot
 * Set five months after The Haunting of Thomas Brewster.


 * AUDIO: Time Reef
 * Set soon after The Boy That Time Forgot with the Doctor and Nyssa recovering the parts of the TARDIS that Brewster sold.


 * AUDIO: A Perfect World
 * Brewster leaves the Doctor and Nyssa's company, staying in London, 2008.

Further travels with the Doctor

 * AUDIO: Castle of Fear
 * The Doctor mentions Sir Justin of Wells from The Tides of Time.


 * AUDIO: The Eternal Summer
 * Follows directly on from Castle of Fear.


 * AUDIO: Plague of the Daleks


 * PROSE: Curiosity


 * PROSE: God Send Me Well to Keep


 * PROSE: Tweaker


 * AUDIO: The Demons of Red Lodge


 * AUDIO: The Entropy Composition
 * Nyssa is still thinking about her happy childhood on Traken, as she was The Demons of Red Lodge.


 * AUDIO: Doing Time


 * AUDIO: Special Features
 * The Doctor refers to the events of The Demons of Red Lodge.


 * AUDIO: Seven to One


 * AUDIO: My Brother's Keeper
 * Nyssa mentions the prisons of Folly from Doing Time.


 * AUDIO: The Interplanetarian


 * AUDIO: Smuggling Tales


 * AUDIO: 1963: Fanfare for the Common Men


 * AUDIO: The Light at the End


 * AUDIO: Moonflesh
 * After the TARDIS door is left open due to a malfunctioning latch, Hannah Bartholemew stows aboard the TARDIS as it takes off.


 * AUDIO: Tomb Ship
 * The Doctor finds out about Hannah stowing aboard the TARDIS, setting this immediately after Moonflesh.


 * AUDIO: Masquerade
 * On the SORDIDE Delta space station, Hannah is left in a robot-like state after being purged of all emotions. She decides to stay on the station instead of going with the Doctor.


 * GAME: The First Adventure
 * The Doctor is in his first outfit, and traveling with an unidentified companion, presumably Nyssa.


 * AUDIO: Alien Heart
 * The Doctor and Nyssa are captured by the Daleks, and transported to Mojax, where numerous duplicates of them are created, leading directly into Dalek Soul.


 * AUDIO: Dalek Soul
 * It has been five years since the Daleks captured the Doctor and Nyssa on Traxana.


 * AUDIO: The Second Oldest Question


 * AUDIO: Downward Spiral

Tegan returns

 * TV: Arc of Infinity
 * During a scuffle with Omega, the Doctor and Nyssa are reunited with Tegan, who rejoins them in the TARDIS.


 * AUDIO: The Waters of Amsterdam


 * AUDIO: The Elite
 * The Doctor, Tegan and Nyssa have just left Amsterdam.


 * AUDIO: Hexagora
 * The Doctor, Tegan and Nyssa holiday in Brisbane for several days to recover from the events of The Elite.


 * AUDIO: Secrets of Telos
 * Takes place shortly after the events of Arc of Infinity, from the point of view of the Doctor's companions.


 * PROSE: Fear of the Dark
 * Tegan is having dreams of snakes, setting this before Snakedance. The opening scene places these events the day after Tegan re-joined the TARDIS crew in Arc of Infinity, with the Doctor checking to see if the Time Lords have installed a tracking device on his TARDIS.


 * AUDIO: The Children of Seth
 * References are made to the recent events of The Elite and Hexagora.


 * PROSE: Danger Down Below
 * PROSE: The God Machine
 * PROSE: The Armageddon Chrysalis
 * PROSE: The Haven
 * PROSE: The Penalty
 * PROSE: Night Flight to Nowhere
 * Tegan returns to Heathrow Airport to meet a friend, suggesting that she has been back with the Doctor for a while. In fact, the Doctor Who Annual 1983 stories features the Doctor traveling with Nyssa and Tegan without Adric, but with Tegan still dressed as an air stewardess. Presumably, as hinted in The Elite, she is wearing her old suit due to her inability to find other clothes.


 * PROSE: Lackaday Express
 * The Doctor and Tegan are having an old argument about Adric's death and the Doctor's refusal to go back in time and save him.


 * PROSE: The Sands of Time
 * Tegan mentions being in Amsterdam, setting this after Arc of Infinity. Preventing Adric's death is still being discussed by Tegan and the Doctor.


 * PROSE: Zeta Major
 * Set between Arc of Infinity and Snakedance. Both Nyssa and Tegan are still thinking about Adric's death.


 * PROSE: Wake
 * The TARDIS crew go to the Necropolitan to properly mourn the death of Adric.


 * PROSE: Soul Mate
 * Tegan is skeptical that a dream could manifest itself physically, setting this before Snakedance.


 * PROSE: No Exit


 * PROSE: Goths and Robbers
 * Authorial intent places this between Arc of Infinity and Snakedance.


 * AUDIO: The Lions of Trafalgar
 * The last time Tegan saw the Doctor climbed something of great height was in Logopolis.


 * AUDIO: The King of the Dead


 * AUDIO: The Mistpuddle Murders

Marc joins

 * AUDIO: Tartarus
 * Tegan and Nyssa can't remember the last time that the Doctor mentioned Adric, with Nyssa concluding that he is struggling to come to terms with his death. Marc joins the Doctor, Tegan and Nyssa after being freed from slavery by Cicero.


 * AUDIO: Interstitial
 * Marc has only just joined the TARDIS crew, seeing outer space and sliding doors for the first time, setting this shortly after Tartarus.


 * AUDIO: Feast of Fear


 * AUDIO: Warzone
 * Marc is partially cyber-converted by the Cybermen, and the Doctor vows not to allow them to take another friend from him after Adric, leading directly into Conversion.


 * AUDIO: Conversion
 * The Doctor manages to save Marc's mind from cyber-conversion. He drops Tegan, Nyssa and Marc off on Callanna to recover from recent events. He decides that he should take a break from his companions for a while, so that he can have a chance to think.


 * AUDIO: Madquake


 * AUDIO: The Lost Resort
 * Follows on from Madquake.


 * AUDIO: The Perils of Nellie Bly


 * AUDIO: Nightmare of the Daleks

After Marc

 * PROSE: Men of the Earth
 * Tegan sets the TARDIS on cause to Manussa, leading directly into Snakedance.


 * TV: Snakedance
 * Tegan has only recently re-joined the TARDIS team.


 * COMIC: Blood Invocation
 * Cliffhanger ending leads directly into Goth Opera.


 * PROSE: Goth Opera
 * Tegan is still recovering from her possession by the Mara, setting this immediately after Snakedance. The Doctor has not seen the Master since Time-Flight.


 * AUDIO: Aquitaine


 * AUDIO: The Peterloo Massacre
 * Tegan and Nyssa visit Manchester, setting this after their very first visit to Manchester in Goth Opera.


 * TV: Mawdryn Undead
 * Tegan is still worried about the Mara returning, setting this shortly after Snakedance. Under orders from the Black Guardian, Turlough joins the Doctor in his travels so he may kill him for the Black Guardian.


 * AUDIO: Gardens of the Dead
 * Turlough has only just joined the TARDIS crew, setting this immediately after Mawdryn Undead.


 * COMIC: Ophiuchus


 * TV: Terminus
 * Nyssa decides to stay on Terminus to help treat the Lazar victims.

After the Doctor

 * AUDIO: The Darkening Eye
 * Nyssa tells a Lazar about her encounter with the Dar Traders. She has not yet been able to cure the disease.


 * AUDIO: The Five Companions


 * PROSE: Asylum
 * It has been some years for Nyssa since she has seen the Doctor. She is not seen to have any family.


 * AUDIO: Circular Time: Winter
 * Nyssa assists the Fifth Doctor in his regeneration to his next incarnation. She is married with a daughter.

Reunited with the Doctor

 * AUDIO: Cobwebs
 * Set two days after Nyssa initially left the TARDIS in Terminus.


 * AUDIO: The Whispering Forest
 * Ending leads directly into The Cradle of the Snake.


 * AUDIO: The Cradle of the Snake


 * AUDIO: Heroes of Sontar
 * Tegan mentions the Mara being purged from her system, setting this shortly after The Cradle of the Snake.


 * AUDIO: Kiss of Death


 * AUDIO: Rat Trap


 * AUDIO: The Emerald Tiger
 * Nyssa's appearance is reverted to that of her younger self at the time that she left the TARDIS crew.


 * AUDIO: The Jupiter Conjunction
 * The Doctor refers to Nyssa's recent rejuvenation from The Emerald Tiger.


 * AUDIO: The Monkey House
 * Authorial intent places this between The Jupiter Conjunction and The Butcher of Brisbane.


 * AUDIO: The Butcher of Brisbane


 * AUDIO: Eldrad Must Die!


 * AUDIO: The Lady of Mercia
 * Turlough refers to Dr. Sa Yy Findecker from The Butcher of Brisbane.


 * AUDIO: Prisoners of Fate


 * AUDIO: Mistfall
 * Drawn off-course, the TARDIS passes through a CVE into E-Space, trapping the Doctor and his companions there.


 * AUDIO: Equilibrium


 * AUDIO: The Entropy Plague
 * Nyssa chooses to stay in E-Space to power a portal back to N-Space for the TARDIS. Her rejuvenation is reversed after becoming infected with entropy. After spending ten years in E-Space, Nyssa discovers that a new star has formed, signifying new life in the supposedly dying universe.

Providing aid in the Time War

 * Somehow, Nyssa returns to N-Space and becomes involved in the Time War. Perhaps with the help of the Tharils who according to Lion Hearts were allies of the Time Lords during the conflict.


 * AUDIO: A Heart on Both Sides
 * Commanding the medical ship Traken, Nyssa provides assistance to those caught up in the Last Great Time War. She works for a number of months with a Dr Foster.


 * AUDIO: The Orphan
 * Nyssa does not have any family.

After the War

 * WC: Farewell, Sarah Jane
 * Nyssa attends the funeral of Sarah Jane, and is described as being in a couple with Tegan, both of whom live in Australia.