The Taint was the nineteenth novel in theBBC Eighth Doctor Adventures series. It was written byMichael Collier, released1 February1999, featured theEighth Doctor andSam Jones and introducedFitz Kreiner.

Publisher's summary[[edit] |[edit source]]

The TARDIS has finally broughtthe Doctor andSam back toEarth — and straight into danger.

It is1963. Six very different people have been gathered together for study byparapsychologistCharles Roley in his stately home outsideLondon. All of them claim to have been possessed by the devil, and all have shared similar delusions — they describe the same bizarre "death cave" riddled with demons.

Roley's experiments are having a gradual yet terrifying effect on his subjects, and the Doctor and Sam discover the connections between those tainted with the madness are more disturbing than anyone could guess.

For the Doctor, too, has seen the cave they describe — on a dead world, billions of years ago.

Chapter titles[[edit] |[edit source]]

• 1.1: Muriel Kreiner Tells Dreams Down the Phone (1963)
• 2.1
• 2.2
• 2.3
• 2.4
• 3.1: Lucy and the Watcher Angels (1951)
• 3.2
• 3.3
• 3.4
• 3.5
• 3.6
• 4.1: Captain Watson on Deliverance Day (1944)
• 4.2
• 4.3
• 4.4
• 4.5
• 4.6
• 5.1: Russell, Confined Spaces and the Dark (1946-63)
• 5.2
• 5.3
• 5.4
• 5.5
• 6.1: Taylor, the Golden Man and the Strange Portals (1963)
• 6.2
• 6.3
• 6.4
• 6.5
• 6.6
• 6.66
• Epilogue

Plot[[edit] |[edit source]]

to be added

Characters[[edit] |[edit source]]

• Eighth Doctor
• Sam Jones
• Fitz Kreiner
• DrCharles Roley
• Quentin Roley
• Azoth
• The Beast
• Davydd Watson
• Elijah Watson
• Lucy Branch
• Maria Bulwell
• Muriel Kreiner
• Neville Fitzwilliam Tarr
• Oscar Austen
• Peter Taylor
• Russell Waller

Worldbuilding[[edit] |[edit source]]

• The Doctor and Sam visitWest Wycombe.

Botany[[edit] |[edit source]]

• The Doctor meets Fitz while buying a dyingbegonia, tries to haggle for a lower price and eventually succeeds.

Culture[[edit] |[edit source]]

• The Doctor plays "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" on arecorder; Fitz responds by playing "Please, Please Me", which the Doctor calls "rubbish".
• Fitz is a fan ofJ. R. R. Tolkien.
• Sam mentionsScooby Doo.

Individuals[[edit] |[edit source]]

• After regaining consciousness, Sam considers asking, "Anyone get the number of thatDalek?"
• Fitz pretends to beFrench until he's called out by the Doctor.
• Fitz playsguitar at Molly's.

Notes[[edit] |[edit source]]

• While the cover reads justThe Taint, the book's title page calls itDoctor Who and the Taint.

Continuity[[edit] |[edit source]]

• The Doctor says that he spent quite some time in1963. (TV:An Unearthly Child)
• The events ofPROSE:Alien Bodies andUnnatural History are mentioned.
• Sam worries that the Bel micro-organisms changed her in some way. (PROSE:Beltempest)
• Sam recallsJanus Prime (PROSE:The Janus Conjunction) andProxima II. (PROSE:The Face-Eater)
• The Doctor mentions the2150s Dalek invasion of Earth. (TV:The Dalek Invasion of Earth)
• The Doctor mentions encountering theWaro. (PROSE:The Devil Goblins from Neptune)

External links[[edit] |[edit source]]

• The Taint at theDoctor Who Reference Guide
• The Discontinuity Guide to:The Taint atThe Whoniverse
• The Cloister Library:The Taint