Doctor Who: 10 Best Historical Figures Who Have Appeared In Nu-Who

Played by Pauline Collins.

Tooth and Claw was an episode that upped the fear factor of Doctor Who. The ninja monks, the lycanthropic possession and, of course, the alien werewolf!

Queen Victoria’s presence only added to the more serious tone of the episode. Unlike most people who encounter The Doctor, she doesn’t appreciate his daredevil attitude or Rose’s immature attempts to make her say “we are not amused!” While she does honour them for saving her life, she is also eager to remove the threat that these mysterious travellers pose on her empire. The events of this episode lead to the creation of the Torchwood Institute by Queen Victoria to protect the Earth not only from alien threats but primarily from The Doctor himself.

Tooth and Claw is also a perfect example of the creatives behind Doctor Who offering a supernatural explanation to a real life mystery. In this instance they suggest that the true reason behind Prince Albert’s desires to constantly have the Koh-i-Noor diamond re-cut was because he was aware of the “werewolf’s” existence and had fashioned the diamond to be a tool in the creatures destruction.

As well as this, they also left an ambiguous question at the end of the episode which suggested that the blood condition Queen Victoria suffered from was actually a direct result of being bitten by the werewolf creature. With The Doctor implying that her unexplained diagnosis of haemophilia was simply a Victorian euphemism for the mutation into a lycanthrope.