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Vislor Turlough

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Vislor Turlough is a fictional character played by Mark Strickson in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He was a companion of the Fifth Doctor, being a regular in the programme from 1983 to 1984. Turlough appeared in 10 stories (33 episodes).

Vislor Turlough
Doctor Who character
Turlough in a promotional photograph for Doctor Who
First appearanceMawdryn Undead (1983)
Last appearanceThe Caves of Androzani (1984)
Portrayed byMark Strickson
Duration1983–1984
In-universe information
SpeciesTrion
AffiliationFifth Doctor
HomeTrion
Home era1983

Character history

When Turlough first appears in the serial Mawdryn Undead, he is a student of retired Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart[1] (himself a former companion of the Doctor) at the Brendon Public School, but it becomes apparent that he is not what he seems. He is contacted by the malevolent Black Guardian, who offers to take him home if he kills the Doctor. He also appears familiar with concepts of time travel and matter transmission. At the end of the serial, Turlough asks to accompany the Doctor. Despite Tegan and Nyssa's suspicions, the Doctor accepts Turlough as part of the TARDIS crew.

During the course of the next two serials, Terminus and Enlightenment (collectively known, together with Mawdryn Undead, as the Black Guardian Trilogy), Turlough finds himself unable to decide whether or not to carry out his assignment from the Black Guardian, but eventually rejects him in favour of loyalty to the Doctor. Although always slightly cowardly,[2] with excellent instincts of self-preservation and a streak of ruthlessness, his relationship with the Doctor and Tegan improves with time (Nyssa having departed at the end of Terminus). He is one of the few companions capable of operating many of the TARDIS's systems, being able to run a diagnostic in "The Five Doctors" and program the TARDIS to retrieve the Doctor in Planet of Fire. Initially expressing a desire to return home, he continues travelling with the Doctor and Tegan until Tegan leaves at the end of Resurrection of the Daleks.

In the next serial, Planet of Fire, it is revealed that Turlough is a junior ensign commander from the planet Trion. Following a civil war on his home planet, in which his mother was killed,[3] Turlough's family were arrested as political prisoners. His father and younger brother Malkon were exiled to the planet Sarn whilst Turlough himself was exiled to Earth, supervised by a Trion agent disguised as a solicitor in Chancery Lane. Revealed for the first time in this serial is Turlough's first name, Vislor. At the end of the serial, Turlough discovers that political prisoners are no longer mistreated on Trion and decides it is time to return home.

An image of Turlough appears during the Fifth Doctor's regeneration scene in The Caves of Androzani.

List of appearances

Television

Season 20
20th anniversary special
Season 21

Audio dramas

Doctor Who: The Monthly Adventures
Doctor Who: The Lost Stories
  • Nightmare Country
Doctor Who: The Fifth Doctor Adventures
  • Forty 1
    • Interlude: I, Kamelion
  • Forty 2
    • The Auton Infinity
  • The Dream Team
    • Interlude: Meanwhile Turlough
Doctor Who: Special Releases
Doctor Who: The Companion Chronicles
Doctor Who: Short Trips
  • Gardens of the Dead
  • The Monkey House

Novels

Make Your Own Adventure
The Companions of Doctor Who
Virgin Missing Adventures
Past Doctor Adventures

Short stories

Comics

Reception

Sean Ferrick from WhatCulture placed Vislor at #10 on his list of the "10 Most Hated Doctor Who Characters", commenting that "there seems to be a schism in the fandom on this character. He was initially introduced as a double-agent, which made it hard for people to get on board with him. Even the other companions at the time struggled to empathise and this was before his true colours were revealed. Much of his story seemed to be added as an afterthought in the show, with him being almost constantly subdued or captured. This led to a present-but-not status for this Fifth Doctor companion, something that even Big Finish has not remedied in the expanded universe. His scepticism against the 'fools rush in' mentality of so many Doctors and other companions made him stand out that bit more, though often put him at odds with the others in the TARDIS. Unfortunately, his time on-screen was all too short for a proper exploration of this rational thinker, which left him in the dust as the show moved on without him. Perhaps in the years to come, he will be reevaluated but for now, its the scrap heap for poor Vislor!"[4] However, MaryAnn Johanson from flickfilosopher called Vislor her favourite companion, saying that "Turlough was never easy to like, but he was always intriguing and frustrating, in the most interesting kind of way. He upended ideas about who could be a companion, and why: he never really seemed to like the Doctor, and indeed bullshitted his way onto the TARDIS only as a way to escape an intolerable situation, not because he was seeking adventure or excitement. And of course there’s the small detail of how he tried to kill the Doctor, more than once, at the behest of the Black Guardian, who misled Turlough about the Doctor’s nature. Turlough was smart and sarcastic, which always appeals to me, but more importantly, he was a different sort of companion, and his presence pushed the drama into new corners. I’d love to see what the new incarnation of the show would do with someone like him."[5]

Strickson has humorously commented that, not knowing what to do with him, the writers of the television series would often have the villains capture or lock him up, leading to Turlough ending up in various "states of bondage".

References

  1. ^ "Mawdryn Undead ★★★★".
  2. ^ "10 Classic Doctor Who Absurdities New Fans Won't Believe". 2 August 2014.
  3. ^ "BBC - Doctor Who - Classic Series - Companions - Vislor Turlough".
  4. ^ Ferrick, Sean. "10 Most Hated Doctor Who Characters". WhatCulture. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
  5. ^ Johanson, MaryAnn. "Doctor Who thing of the day: who is your favorite companion, and why?". flickfilosopher. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
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