Doctor Who: 25 time periods Thirteen and Team TARDIS should visit

“An Allegory of the Tudor Succession- The Family of Henry VIII” by an unknown artist (Photo: Yale Center for British Art [Public domain])

Tudor England

Given how many novels, films and television series have tackled the story of King Henry VIII and his six wives, it seems almost astonishing that Doctor Who has never really done a proper story about any piece of it. Sure, there are a few throwaway references here and there – supposedly Amy Pond maybe accidentally married Henry offscreen, and Rory left a phone charger in the king’s bathroom – but nothing substantial. And given how many vibrant historical figures are part of Henry’s reign, that seems… odd.

Historical people we could meet. There are dozens of interesting historical figures that would be worthy of a run-in with the Doctor: Sir Thomas More, Katherine of Aragon, Anne of Cleves, Thomas Cromwell, or even Henry himself. But it seems a waste to take Doctor Who’s first female Doctor back to sixteenth century England and not have her meet Anne Boleyn.

Henry’s second wife, and the mother of Queen Elizabeth I, was beheaded on charges of witchcraft and adultery when she couldn’t manage to give the king the son he craved. But she was a fascinating figure in her own right, who was intelligent, strong, and opinionated. Certainly someone who might like to meet a woman from the future with agency of her own and a time machine, is all I’m saying.

Potential adventures: It seems impossible to do a story about Henry VIII without either meeting most of the six wives or pointing out what a sexist monster he turned out to be. Both of those things would be worth watching, especially if the king had to take a back seat to any of those women and/or the Doctor at the same time. (Women saving Henry’s kingdom? That sounds like justice to me.)