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A Guide to Lovecraftian Themes in Doctor Who

How elements of the Cthulhu Mythos can be seen in the television series Doctor Who H.P. Lovecraft (1880-1937 ) was an American writer who wrote short horror and science fiction stories, mostly for magazines. He was pretty obscure in his day, but has gathered a large cult following. He is best known for a loose canon of connected stories known as the Cthulhu Mythos. I got into Lovecraft a few years ago. While I read his books, I felt a strange feeling of de ja vu. I realised that they reminded me of various Doctor Who stories. This lead me to return to my childhood enthusiasm for Doctor Who. I don't know how familiar the writers of Doctor Who were with Lovecraft's work, but there is often a striking familiarity of theme between Doctor Who and Lovecraft's horrific fiction.

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Matthew Clarke
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The New Adventure novels made very explicit references to the Cthulhu mythos, even going so far as to identify particular beings in the Whoniverse as equivalents of the Old Ones, the alien deities in Lovecraft's universe. According to the novel, Millennial Rites, the Old Ones are the Time Lord's of the universe that existed before the current universe and posess incredible power. In this knol, I will list the Lovecraftian themes in each Doctor Who story.
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The Daleks Mythos themes: Slimy Tentacled Horrors, Lost Civilizations, Unearthly Cities Lost alien civilizations are the key theme of Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness. He also liked describing strange, ethereal cities. The Daleks features the unearthly metal city of the Daleks. We only get a brief glimpse of the creature within the Dalek's metal casings, but it is clearly a typically Lovecraftian Slimy Tentacled Horror.

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The Keys of Marinus Mythos themes: Slimy Tentacled Horrors The TARDIS crew enter a city controlled by tentacled brains.

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The Web Planet Mythos themes: Slimy Tentacled Horrors, Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Lost Civilizations The animus is identified as the Old One, Lloigor in the New Adventure, All Consuming Fire. It posesses incredible power and is a Slimy Tentacled Horror. The Menoptera have abandoned Vortis, giving us a Lost Civilization.

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The Chase Mythos themes: Slimy Tentacled Horrors, Unearthly Cities, Aquatic Beings Aridus is populated by creatures that used to be aquatic when it was covered in oceans. These include Slimy Tentacled Horrors. The Mechanoids live in a strange, ethereal city made of metal.

The Time Meddler Mythos themes: Cosmic Insignificance An important element in Lovecraft's writing is the notion that mankind is insignificant in its place within the cosmos and powerless before a range of unknowable cosmic powers.

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The Dalek's Masterplan Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Mythology Katarina considers the Doctor to be a god within her mythology. She calls the Dalek's 'evil ones'. When the ancient Egyptian soldiers encounter the Daleks, they describe them as 'evil gods.'

The Celestial Toymaker Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities The Celestial Toymaker posesses godlike powers.

The Tenth Planet Mythos themes: Lost Civilizations, Cosmic Insignificance The entire earth is threatened by the return of the planet Mondas and its Cyberman inhabitants. Mondas was known on earth in the distant past.

The Underwater Menace Mythos themes: Aquatic Beings, Mythology, Lost Civilzations Features the mythical lost city of Atlantis. It also features humans that have been turned into fish people that are rather like Lovecraft's Deep Ones.

The Macra Terror Lovecraft's story The Whisperer in Darkness featured unseen crablike creatures that could disguise themselves as humans. The Macra Terror features a colony controlled by unseen (for most of the story) crablike creatures that hide behind a human image.

The Tomb of the Cybermen Mythos themes: Lost Civilizations, Ancient Evil The evil of the Cybermen is buried in a lost tomb on Telos.

The Abominable Snowman/ Web of Fear Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities The alien entity, the Great Intelligence is identified in All Consuming Fire as the Old One Yog-Sothoth, mentioned in many of Lovecraft's works.

The Ice Warriors Mythos themes: Reptilians, Lost Civilizations Like the Elder Things of At the Mountains of Madness, the reptilian Ice Warriors have been buried under ice for a long time.

The Dominators Mythos themes: Cosmic Insignificance The Dominators want to turn Dulkiss into a source of fuel, caring nothing for its inhabitants.

The Krotons

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Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic entities, Cosmic Insignificance The humanoid Gond regard the alien Krotons as gods, or at least something close to that status. The Gond are simply slaves and pawns for the Krotons.

Spearhead From Space/ Terror of the Autons Mythos themes: Slimy Tentacled Horrors, Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Cosmic Insignificance The earth is threatened by terrible forces from outer space, namely the Nestenes (and the Master in Terror of the Autons). The Nestenes are identified in All Consuming Fire as the children of Shub Niggurath, an Old One from the Cthulhu Mythos. When the Nestene appears in material form it is a tentacled creature.

Doctor Who and the Silurians Mythos themes: Reptilians, Lost Civilizations, Cosmic Insignificance Lovecraft describes a lost city of intelligent reptiles in The Nameless City. In this story, the Doctor encounters a lost reptilian civilization from prehistoric times. Humanity is threatened by the revelation that it is not the first intelligent life-form to inhabit the earth.

The Ambassadors of Death Mythos themes: Cosmic Insignificance The earth is threatened by a largely unseen and mysterious alien race.

The Claws of Axos Mythos themes: Slimy Tentacled Horrors, Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Cosmic Insignificance A strange alien race nearly destroys the earth. Although the powerful Axos creatures are Slimy Tentacled Horrors, they masquerade as angelic beings.

The Time Monster Mythos themes: Mythology, Lost Civilizations, Godlike/ Demonic Entities Features the lost civilization of Atlantis and a being from Greek mythology called Kronos.

The Daemons Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Mythology, Ancient Evil, Strange Cults Doctor Who does not get more Lovecraftian than this story. Azal is a demonic and godlike being from the ancient past. He is identified with various mythological beings. He is worshipped by Satanic cults.

The Sea Devils Mythos themes: Aquatic Beings, Lost Civilizations, Reptilians Another lost reptilian civilization from earth's prehistoric past. This lot are from under the sea.

The Three Doctors Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Slimy Tentacled Horrors Omega, once a Time Lord wields godlike power in his antimatter realm. His Gel Guards remind me of the Shoggoths in At the Mountains of Madness.

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The Time Warrior Mythos themes: Cosmic Insignificance The people of the Medieval England is unaware of its place within a vast panorama of intergalactic warfare.

Planet of the Spiders Mythos themes: Strange Cults, Godlike/ Demonic Entities A strange Buddhist cult summons up strange demonic spiders from another time and planet. The queen of these spiders is called the Great One and posesses godlike power.

Terror of the Zygons Mythos themes: Slimy Tentacled Horrors, Aquatic Beings, Mythology, Ancient Evil The presence Zygons have affected the mythology of the Loch Ness area. They are slimy aquatic creatures and can disguise themselves as humans, like the Migo in Lovecraft's Whisperer in Darkness.

Planet of Evil Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Cosmic Insignificance Features demonic beings from an antimatter universe. Material from the antimatter universe has the potential to destroy the matter universe.

Pyramids of Mars Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Beings, Strange Cults, Mythology, Ancient Evil, Cosmic Insignificance A very Lovecraftian story. Sutekh is an alien who posesses godlike powers. He regards humans as worthless and intends to destroy all life on earth. He and his fellow Osirians have entered Egyptian mythology. Sutekh is worshipped by some humans.

The Brain of Morbius Mythos themes: Ancient Evil, Strange Cults Morbius is an evil Time Lord from ancient Gallifrey. He has a cult-like following.

Seeds of Doom Mythos themes: Ancient Evil, Slimy Tentacled Beings Like the Elder Things of At the Mountains of Madness, the Krynoid is buried under ice. This story is influenced by The Thing, by John Campbell, which was probably inspired by Lovecraft's antarctic tale. Lovecraft had some vegetable monsters, his Migo are fungus creatures (despite also being crab-like) and his Elder Things have vegetable qualities.

The Masque of Mandragora Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Strange Cults, Mythology, Cosmic Insignificance The Mandragora Helix is a strange alient intelligence that takes over the cult of the ancient god Demnos. Human science in this story is shown to be utterly ignorant of the bizarre wonders of the Whoniverse.

The Hand of Fear Mythos themes: Ancient Evil, Lost Civilizations The alien Eldrad of Kastria survived only as an apparently fossilised hand; buried for long ages on earth.

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The civilization of Kastria has been completely destroyed some time in the past.

Horror of Fang Rock Mythos themes: Slimy Tentacled Horrors, Cosmic Insignificance The jellyfishlike Rutan is typically Lovecraftian in appearance. The earth is in danger of getting caught in the crossfire of the ancient Rutan-Sontaran conflict.

Image of the Fendahl Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Ancient Evil, Slimy Tentacled Horrors, Strange Cults, Lost Civilizations, Cosmic Insignificance Another very Lovecraftian story. The Fendahl gestalt creature is almost a kind of god of death. It is worshipped by a secret cult. The planet of Fendahl was destroyed by the Time Lords in the distant past. The Fendahl played some role in the evolution of humanity.

The Ribos Operation Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Cosmic Insignificance The Doctor is given a quest by the godlike White Guardian and is warned to beware of his opposite number, the Black Guardian. The people of Ribos are utterly ignorant of the vastness of the cosmos.

The Pirate Planet Mythos themes: Cosmic Insignificance Whole worlds and their populations have been consumed by the pirate planet Xanak.

The Stones of Blood Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Mythology, Strange Cults The alien Cessair of Diplos impersonated a goddess from Celtic mythology. She is worshipped by a Druidic cult.

The Power of Kroll Mythos themes: Mythology, Slimy Tentacled Horrors, Strange Cults The giant squid, Kroll, worshipped by the Delta Magnan natives reminds me a lot of Cthulhu.

City of Death Mythos themes: Cosmic Insignificance, Mythology, Ancient Evil The alien Jaggaroth created life on earth by accident, very much like the Elder Things of At the Mountains of Madness. The Jaggaroth appears to have entered Egyptian mythology.

The Creature from the Pit Mythos themes: Slimy Tentacled Horrors The creature in the pit appears to be a Slimy Tentacled Horror, though it turns out to be friendly.

Horns of Nimon Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Strange Cults

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Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Strange Cults A gang of extradimensional entities moving from planet to planet, starting cults.

Full Circle Mythos themes: Aquatic Beings, Cosmic Insignificance The Marshmen are a bit like Lovecraft's Deep Ones. It turns out the Alzarians have evolved from the Marshmen. I can hear echoes of Shadow Over Innsmouth.

State of Decay Mythos themes: Ancient Evil, Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Strange Cults A cult of vampires worshipping the Ancient One, an evil creature that threatened the Time Lords in their dark time.

Kinda/ Snakedance Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Mythology Features a demonic being called the Mara. In Snakedance, this is shown to play a role in the mythology of the planet Manussa.

Enlightenment Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities Features godlike beings called Eternals.

Twin Dilemma Mythos themes: Slimy Tentacled Horrors, Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Mythology The slug-like Gastropods were sent by the gods, according to the mythology of Joconda.

Remembrance of the Daleks/ Silver Nemesis Mythos themes: Cosmic Insignificance The earh is caught up in vast cosmic events.

Greatest Show in the Galaxy Mythos themes: Godlike/ Demonic Entities The Gods of Ragnarok are identified as Old Ones in All-Consuming Fire. The Doctor has fought them across time and space (perhaps he means the Old Ones in general). Perhaps the Celestial Toymaker is one. The novel Conundrum states that the Land of Fiction in the Mind Robber was created by the Gods of Ragnarok.

Battlefield Mythos themes: Mythology, Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Cosmic Insignificance The earth is caught up in events from beyond this universe. The Arthurian legends are of extra-dimensional origin. Morgaine summons up a demon, The Destroyer, who eats worlds.

Curse of Fenric Mythos themes: Ancient Evil, Godlike/ Demonic Entities, Cosmic Insignificance The evil god Fenric is identified as the Mythos deity Hastur in All-Consuming Fire.

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Ace finds out that major events in her life have been manipulated by Fenric.

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