Wednesday 23 November 2011

Portmantwho

Today is the 48th anniversary of the first broadcast of Doctor Who.

A while ago and with too much time on my hands I came up with a game that uses the titles of Doctor Who stories. I called it Portmantwho, which is probably the cleverest thing about it.

The idea is to link multiple (preferably unconnected) stories of Doctor Who and its spinoffs by name alone, with the end of one name being the beginning of the next. Then come up with a story synopsis of your newly created mongrel moniker. It's more difficult to explain than it is to play.

Here are some examples:

William Hartnell and Tom Baker star in this tale inspired by The Manchurian Candidate set near Manchuria. The Master frames one or more of the Doctors for the murder of Kublai Khan in…


The Deadly Assassin At Peking

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Guerrillas from the future come back to 2011 to prevent a future dominated by the Daleks by accidentally creating it in the past. You heard me. Captain Jack Harkness returns to Earth and his arm hurts. The Daleks scream "EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!", but no one dies in…


Miracle Day Of The Daleks

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The TARDIS visits the planets Florana, Metebelis III and Barcelona while the Doctor and his companions aren't looking, only to return just in time to pick them up at the end of their story in…


A Holiday For The Doctor's Wife

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Luke Smith and Clyde Langer are recruited to fight in a war by the Martians, meanwhile the Second Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith investigate their disappearance in…


The Ice Warriors Of Kudlak

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Fleeing the Movellan war the Daleks use a time corridor to New York City, Rodney Bewes can't stand the confusion in his mind, while Tegan, Turlough and Tallulah (three l's and an h) run up and sewer tunnels and it takes the combined efforts of the Fifth and Tenth Doctors to get them off the planet in…


Resurrection Of The Daleks In Manhattan

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The apocalypse ends with a tautology in…


The End Of The World's End

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A whistle blowing documentary showing the true story of the Sixth and Seventh Doctors run-ins with the enigmatic Rani starring Kate O’Mara as The Rani as Melanie Bush as Bonnie Langford in…


Real Time And The Rani

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Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without Amy Pond turning into a terrifying wooden doll and a visit from a threatening landlord in…


The Chimes Of Midnight Terrors

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Feel free to play along...

8 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Very creative! As I'm not a Dr. Who fan, I'd rather suck at that game. (Which might be a good thing for someone who is a fan!)

Sarah Williams said...

Ian, Barbara and Susan all face the guillotine whilst dressed in kilts in 'The Reign of Terror of the Zygons'?

Dave said...

Alex, Thanks. That is the one colossal flaw in the game's construction.

Sarah, I like it. Either that or Napoleon was a Zygon all along...

Anonymous said...

What's an appropriate musical accompaniment to a post-regenerative vacation for the fifth Doctor?

"Castrovalva Holiday for the Doctor in Distress."

When the vacation resort at Port Reeve unexpectedly folded, a spokesman for the travel agency said he was sorry that holidaymakers had been trapped, but was responding to urgent requests to "bring them back now". He admitted: "I quite understand that people won't take less."

Workers rejected claims that resort founder The Master still had them under contract. "That man is evil," said Shardovan. "He says he made us. But we are free."

Anonymous said...

The Taranium Core was where it all started to go wrong for the Daleks' Irving Allen tribute.

"The Seeds of Death to the Daleks' Master Planet of Giants."

Anonymous said...

#portmantwho
Tracy-Ann Oberman and William Ash are Enlightenment and Persuasion in Graeme Harper's Davison tribute:

"42 Doomsday."

Sarah Williams said...

The Zarbi invade Metabelis III in 'Web Planet of The Spiders' #portmantwho

Dave said...

Peter, what a fantastic trio of stories. Feel free to pitch them to Steven Moffat and/or Big Finish...

Sarah, eight legs versus six legs, but who will win?