The Ghoul was the fourth The Blogs of Doom short story, published in 2018 in Doctor Who Magazine 522. Like other features in the series, it narrated events in the life of a minor Doctor Who TV character before and after their involvement in the Doctor's life.
In this case, the subject of writer Jonathan Morris's attention was Patsy, the "ghoul" from The Talons of Weng-Chiang. The story acted as a whirlwind tour of Doctor Who stories set in the Victorian era, ending with Patsy being killed during the events of Deep Breath.
Summary[]
1889 - Patsy recounts finding a body in the river and calling the police. A few days later she finds a giant dead rat under Blackfriars Bridge.
June, 1890 - While in the new Savoy Hotel, Patsy encounters "red knobbly fellas" being chased by "a bandy-legged bloke" with "a buzzin' pen". During the commotion, she helps herself to liver and onions. Then it begins to snow. She receives a letter from her French cousin, Madame la Goule, about some girl called Giselle being crushed by a monster in Auvers-sur-Oise.
1892 - Patsy goes to look in the bins by Darkover House and witnesses "maraudin' snowmen" in the gardens when a girl falls out of the sky.
1893 - Visiting her sister in Yorkshire, Patsy finds another floating body in the canal, with his skin all red. Later, while spending a night in jail, she's visited by "four fellas dressed up like undertakers" who give her a message for the Doctor. Patsy doesn't know any Doctors, so they move on to the "murderin' fella" in the next cell.
1898 - Patsy sees a giant dinosaur in the River Thames next to the Houses of Parliament. Then a man with half a face comes up and says she has nice skin, inviting her to dinner at Mancini's Family Restaurant. She looks forward to being served up with onions.
Characters[]
- Patsy
- Eleventh Doctor
- Clara Oswin Oswald
- Great Intelligence/Whisper Men
- Clarence DeMarco
- Half-Face Man
Worldbuilding[]
- Patsy hangs out down by the river to see what's washed up.
Notes[]
- This story dates The Talons of Weng-Chiang to 1889, and Deep Breath to 1898.
Continuity[]
- Patsy finds a floating body and a giant dead rat. (TV: The Talons of Weng-Chiang)
- She's present when the Doctor, Amy Pond, and Rory Williams battle Zygons. (TV: The Power of Three)
- Madame la Goule writes a letter about a girl being crushed by a monster. (TV: Vincent and the Doctor)
- Patsy finds a dead body with red skin. (TV: The Crimson Horror)
- While in jail, she's visited by the Whisper Men. (TV: The Name of the Doctor)
- Patsy witnesses a dinosaur and encounters a half-faced man. (TV: Deep Breath)
- Patsy remembers being a girl and seeing an enormous metal man. (TV: The Next Doctor)
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