Doctor Who Flux: 10 Huge Questions After War Of The Sontarans
8. How True To Life Was Mary Seacole?
For the episode to work effectively, the historical figure
of Mary Seacole had to be as true to life as possible. We are left in no doubt
that this Mary represents the one in our universe, just like the Rosa Parks of series
11. The Doctor wants to rid the Earth of the opportunistic time meddling Sontarans
in order to restore history as we know it. Seacole is a significant figure in the
Crimean war, and regardless of the overall efficacy of her methods, there can
be no doubt that she saved lives and provided respite to those in need.
As the Doctor tells Dan, Mary is supposed to be there, doing exactly the same thing, only with Russians and not Sontarans as the enemy. While for nearly 100 years after her death, the true achievements of Seacole were forgotten, she is now remembered as an important social entrepreneur in the field of medicine. Despite the efforts of certain contemporary British politicians, and an ongoing debate about the relative achievements of Seacole and Nightingale, she is still taught as part of the UK school curriculum.
A statue of Seacole at St Thomas’s hospital in London calls
her a ‘pioneer’, the same word used by the Doctor. The British Hotel is based
on a true story and she did indeed build the facility from salvage. Having been
denied employment, she took it upon herself to treat the sick and wounded and
yes, despite criticism by many patriots, she tended to injured Russians as well
as the allied troops.