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Starship UK was aspace ship built to carry and house the population of theUnited Kingdom whenEarth was threatened bysolar flares in the29th century.

Geography and society[[edit] |[edit source]]

The whole of the United Kingdom ofEngland,Wales andNorthern Ireland — but notScotland, who had wantedtheir own ship — was converted from an island nation intoStarship UK. It was divided into huge blocks and sections named after the nation's counties, such asSurrey andDevon. The image of theUnion Flag was placed on the ship. Transport was provided by "Vators" (elevators), modelled on the oldLondon Underground. Citizens made their way around on bikes. Markets and schools existed. Order was maintained by theSmilers andWinders, if anyone broke the rules they got sent below the starship and devoured by the star whale. (TV:The Beast Below)

Technology[[edit] |[edit source]]

Starship UK lacked any kind of engine and relied entirely on the star whale for its ability to travel through space. Like any starship, it had airlocks and sealed environments. Rapid transport from one deck to another was provided by Vators manufactured by Vatorverse. Its system was modelled after the London Underground.

Most, if not all the technology inside the ship was clockwork, such as wind-up street lamps, and functioned thanks to the Winders, who used the keys on their necks to reporter the machines. Old phones, bicycles, clockwork robots, televisions and firearms existed and were still in use by people even three hundred years into Starship UK’s journey. (TV:The Beast Below)

History[[edit] |[edit source]]

When Earth was threatened bysolar flares, the United Kingdom could not build a ship to escape. When thelast star whale came to help, thehumans captured it and built a ship around it. The creature had volunteered for this, but the humans did not know and enslaved it unnecessarily, torturing it with an electrical device in theTower of London dungeon to keep it moving. (TV:The Beast Below) Starship UK was to be followed by theSS Lucy Gray, which had a course plotted behind it before it was changed by theEleventh Doctor to avoid collision withthe Moon which had changed position since Starship UK's departure. (GAME:Evacuation Earth)

A view of the skyscrapers. (TV:The Beast Below)

The head of state wasQueenElizabeth X, also known as "Liz Ten." Unable to stand such cruel treatment to another creature to save her people, she left orders for the government to continue running things as they were; she then erased all memory of the Star Whale from her mind. If she ever discovered the truth again, she would be brought to the Tower of London to choose to erase her memory or release the Star Whale. Liz Ten's cycle of learning and forgetting the truth continued in a ten year cycle for over 300 years, due to having her "body clock" slowed to the point she didn't age for centuries. Every five years, adults woulds be allowed to vote whether or not to free the Star Whale; those who protested were feed to the Whale, but it refused to eat children considered to have no value. (TV:The Beast Below)

In the32nd century, the cycle was finally interrupted by the arrival of theEleventh Doctor andAmy Pond. While the Queen believed she was being marginalised by her government and was unaware of things, she had instigated the capture of the star whale and continually chose to forget — having her mind wiped every time she found out; the government was still following her original orders. Amy resolved matters by making the Queen to press the button marked "Abdicate" rather than "Forget". This released the star whale. The star whale did not abandonStarship UK because it had volunteered to move the ship. With the star whale no longer tortured, the ship moved faster. As the Doctor and Amy left, acrack in time appeared on the hull ofStarship UK. (TV:The Beast Below)

In the starship, there was aRoyal Collection, in whichRiver Song stoleThe Pandorica Opens, whichLiz Ten held her at gunpoint. River showed Liz the painting, which wasthe TARDIS exploding, so she let her go. (TV:The Pandorica Opens)

Starship UK never returned to Earth. (AUDIO:Last Words^[+]Loading...["Last Words (audio story)"])

Behind the scenes[[edit] |[edit source]]

• According toThe Brilliant Book 2011, a book that containsnon-narrative based information, the government had suspended democratic elections in "this time of upheaval" and continued dictatorial rule for centuries after. However, the citizens were allowed to vote every five years (REF:The Brilliant Book 2011) on whether to protest the treatment of the star whale or forget about it. Those who protested were fed to the star whale. The star whale wouldn't eatchildren, so they were sent to work in theTower of London.