Timeline

A timeline was a method of ordering chronology, creating a history for an individual, place, event, etc.

Term

The term "timeline" was sometimes used interchangeably with other temporal terminology like "time stream." (AUDIO: Reborn) On two occasions, the Seventh Doctor pondered that Daleks would think twice before doing something to alter the timeline (TV: Remembrance of the Daleks) and the timestream. (PROSE: Transit) The Eighth Doctor later stated that Time Roaches couldn't be let out of the time vortex into the timeline. (AUDIO: Foreshadowing)

Sometimes reference would be made to "the timelines," multiple rather than singular. The Master and the Daleks manipulated and shifted the timelines to conquer Earth in 1921 (AUDIO: Master of the Daleks) and the Sanukuma described the Last Great Time War as being raged across the timelines, (AUDIO: The Rulers of the Universe) the effects of the war affecting the timelines. (AUDIO: The Starship of Theseus, One Life) During the war, the Daleks developed the annihilator weapon which could erase a whole species without affecting the timelines, meaning they would still be remembered even though they'd never existed. (AUDIO: Legion of the Lost)

When dealing with the interference of the Star Men, the Fifth Doctor mentioned that they were damaging the "timeline," the "timelines," and that they had inserted themselves into "this reality's timestream." (AUDIO: The Star Men)

Physics

Centring on what the Time Lords called the "primary timeline," (AUDIO: Reborn) alternate timelines could diverge, which if left unchecked, would end the real universe millions of years before it was meant to due to there being only a finite amount of matter and energy in the uni-verse. (PROSE: Blood Heat)

Missy told the Twelfth Doctor she'd been up and down his timeline, meeting people who'd died for him. (TV: Death in Heaven)

Universal history

The timeline of the universe spanned billions of years. However, most of the Doctor's involvement seemed to be in what was sometimes called the Humanian Era, that part of history which encompassed human existence. As a result, the Doctor's TARDIS was most often seen between the time humans first evolved through to about the 82nd century. Occasionally, the Doctor went further than the 100th century, into what might be called the "far future".

The Doctor was known to have visited, or at least been affected by, people and places in the following broad divisions of time as measured by at least one human dating system:

• Pre-universe
• Dark Times
• Distant past
• BC years
• Far future
• After-universe

However, their travels were usually known to have occurred at much more specific times. The Doctor and their companions were active in the following Earth centuries:

• 1st century
• 2nd century
• 3rd century
• 4th century
• 5th century
• 6th century
• 7th century
• 8th century
• 9th century
• 10th century
• 11th century
• 12th century
• 13th century
• 14th century
• 15th century
• 16th century
• 17th century
• 18th century
• 19th century
• 20th century
• 21st century
• 22nd century
• 23rd century
• 24th century
• 25th century
• 26th century
• 27th century
• 28th century
• 29th century
• 30th century
• 31st century
• 32nd century
• 33rd century
• 34th century
• 35th century
• 36th century
• 37th century
• 38th century
• 39th century
• 40th century
• 41st century
• 42nd century
• 43rd century
• 44th century
• 45th century
• 46th century
• 47th century
• 48th century
• 49th century
• 50th century
• 51st century
• 52nd century
• 53rd century
• 54th century
• 55th century
• 56th century
• 57th century
• 58th century
• 59th century
• 60th century
• 61st century
• 62nd century
• 63rd century
• 64th century
• 66th century
• 67th century
• 68th century
• 71st century
• 73rd century
• 74th century
• 77th century
• 78th century
• 79th century
• 82nd century
• 87th century
• 90th century
• 91st century
• 95th century
• 100th century
• 101st century
• 102nd century
• 108th century
• 109th century
• 121st century
• 150th century
• 162nd century
• 171st century
• 208th century
• 220th century
• 347th century
• 367th century
• 372nd century
• 423rd century
• 453rd century
• 455th century
• 501st century
• 2000th century
• 2001st century
• 2501st century
• 100th century
• 101st century
• 102nd century
• 108th century
• 109th century
• 10th century
• 11th century
• 120th century
• 121st century
• 12th century
• 13th century
• 14th century
• 150th century
• 15th century
• 162nd century
• 16th century
• 171st century
• 17th century
• 18th century
• 19th century
• 1st century
• 2000th century
• 2001st century
• 208th century
• 20th century
• 21st century
• 22nd century
• 23rd century
• 24th century
• 2501st century
• 25th century
• 26th century
• 27th century
• 28th century
• 29th century
• 2nd century
• 30th century
• 31st century
• 32nd century
• 33rd century
• 347th century
• 34th century
• 35th century
• 367th century
• 36th century
• 372nd century
• 37th century
• 38th century
• 392nd century
• 39th century
• 3rd century
• 40th century
• 41st century
• 423rd century
• 42nd century
• 43rd century
• 44th century
• 453rd century
• 455th century
• 45th century
• 46th century
• 47th century
• 48th century
• 49th century
• 4th century
• 50th century
• 51st century
• 52nd century
• 53rd century
• 54th century
• 55th century
• 57th century
• 58th century
• 59th century
• 5th century
• 60th century
• 61st century
• 62nd century
• 63rd century
• 64th century
• 66th century
• 67th century
• 68th century
• 6th century
• 71st century
• 73rd century
• 74th century
• 77th century
• 78th century
• 79th century
• 7th century
• 82nd century
• 85th century
• 87th century
• 8th century
• 90th century
• 91st century
• 95th century
• 9th century