The Doctor ' s Wife ( TV story ) The Doctor ' s Wife was the fourth episode in the sixth series of " Doctor Who " . It was notable for being the first episode of the series to be written by famed fantasy and comic book writer , Neil Gaiman . Such was the notability of Gaiman writing an episode of " Doctor Who " that he was given some of the privileges of a head writer — he wrote the production diary section in " Doctor Who Magazine " and hosted " Doctor Who Confidential " . The story received an exceptional amount of pre - broadcast hype in part because of the length of time it had to wait to be released . Originally scheduled as a part of series 5 , it was not produced until the 2011 series , and rumours of Gaiman being recruited to write an episode for Steven Moffat dated back as early as 2008 when then - incoming showrunner was preparing to take over from Russell T Davies . Like " Love & Monsters " and " Utopia " before it , " The Doctor ' s Wife " was significant for its connection to a " Blue Peter " competition . Teenager Susannah Leah ' s winning design for a TARDIS console was prominently featured in this episode , and subsequently turned into a Character Options action figure set . Narratively , " Wife " was important because it depicted the Doctor ' s TARDIS in human form , and offered revelations about the relationship of the two time travellers . It was also the first episode of BBC Wales " Doctor Who " to extensively feature the corridors of the TARDIS — a setting common to several stories of the 1963 version of the show . It also contained the first appearance of the Ood in the Steven Moffat era , and was thus the first time that Russell T Davies was formally credited as their creator . It also marked the first time that an Ood has been shown with another eye colour besides red . " Wife " would win the show ' s first Hugo award not won by a showrunner when it received the 2012 Dramatic Presentation , Short Form Award . The story was further remarkable for its unmistakable similarity to " Nineveh ! " , an obscure Seventh Doctor comic story from the pages of " The Incredible Hulk Presents " . In this story , the Doctor finally vents all his frustration at the TARDIS for it ' s inability to get him where he wishes to go , which usually ends up causing one of his adventures . However , the TARDIS is also finally able to tell it ' s side of the story ; it wished to leave Gallifrey as much as the Doctor , so it allowed him to steal her . As for it ' s seemingly faulty navigation , the TARDIS takes the Doctor where he is " needed " most . The story is also notable for introducing the concept that Time Lords could change gender during a regeneration . The Doctor mentions how his old friend the Corsair had at least two female incarnations , Series 8 introduced the first female incarnation of the Master on screen , Series 9 saw The General regenerate into a female incarnation and " Twice Upon a Time " actually depicted the regeneration of the Twelfth Doctor into the female Thirteenth Doctor . Synopsis . The Eleventh Doctor receives a message from an old Time Lord friend . The message brings him , Rory Williams and Amy Pond to another universe where they meet an alien who eats TARDIS es . Plot . In another universe , a woman named Idris is led down a corridor by Auntie , with Idris admitting that she is afraid of what ' s about to happen to her . Auntie tells her that she is right to be afraid , as it will hurt , but that her actions will serve a greater purpose . Uncle tells Idris that he wishes he was the one , but then darkly laughs that he isn ' t . She asks what will happen , to which Auntie explaines : Nephew will drain Idris of her mind and soul , leaving her empty until her new soul comes . A green - eyed Ood brings her onto a platform and drains her mind and soul in preparation for the arrival of a Time Lord . In the main universe , the Eleventh Doctor ' s TARDIS is floating in deep space ; regardless of this , however , there is a knock at the door , thoroughly puzzling Amy and Rory . The Doctor , confused and intrigued , opens the door to find a small white cube , which flies into the TARDIS and whizzes about wildly before he is finally able to catch it . When Amy and Rory wonder what it is , the Doctor excitedly responds that he has mail . The Doctor begins flipping levers in a hurry . Amy and Rory demand to know what is going on . The Doctor refers to the object as a hypercube — a form of communication for Time Lords . This one is from the Doctor ' s old friend , the Corsair , a Time Lord he knew across several incarnations , at least two female . and comes from outside the universe . They follow the signal , deleting the TARDIS rooms for fuel , and succeed in breaking the barriers of their universe , landing on an unfamiliar planet in a bubble universe . Upon landing , the TARDIS loses total power ; the Doctor worriedly explains that the matrix — the heart and soul of the TARDIS — has completely vanished . He then wonders where it could have gone . Elsewhere , Idris awakens with the sound of the TARDIS whooshing coming from her as golden light emanates from her mouth and hands . Auntie and Uncle watch as Idris looks at her glowing hands . Elsewhere , the time travel lers step out of the TARDIS to find that they ' ve landed on a planetoid junkyard . Optimistically , the Doctor observes that the yard is full of rift energy , and so the TARDIS should refuel . They are spotted by Idris , who kisses , then bites the Doctor , calling him her " thief " while speaking madly . She is closely followed by Auntie and Uncle ; all make their apologies for Idris , explaining that she is insane . However , Idris says she is not insane and tries saying something , but then tries kissing the Doctor again . She is stopped from doing so . Idris tells the Doctor that " the little boxes will make you angry " and tells Amy what petrichor means . Auntie tells Idris to get some sleep and she agrees , saying she will look for an " off switch " . She then faints . Uncle then says sadly that Idris has died , but Rory examines her and says she hasn ' t . Uncle then asks Nephew to take Idris somewhere she cannot bite others . The Doctor and his companion s turn around to see the green - eyed Ood . Amy is shocked , but the Doctor calms her and explains what Nephew is . The Doctor tries talking with Nephew , but finds that his translation sphere is broken . As a gesture of goodwill , the Doctor fixes the device ; upon activating , it plays a series of interwoven distress messages from various Time Lords . The Doctor demands Auntie and Uncle tell him who else is there , but they say it ' s just the four of them and the House . The travellers are confused ; Auntie explains that the world that they ' re on is House . She then asks if they want to meet him . The Doctor agrees , taking Amy and Rory with him into a cavern , led by Auntie and Uncle while Nephew takes Idris away . Inside the cavern , Auntie shows the travellers a vent cover that the Doctor immediately examines . He then tells his companions the asteroid is sentient . Nephew joins them as Auntie explains that the four of them breathe House ' s air , eat his food , live on his " back " and " smell its armpits " as Amy points out by how the air smells . House then take control of the three natives , greeting the travellers — specifically the Doctor as a Time Lord . The Doctor then asks House if there are other Time Lords on him , but House says though there have been many TARDIS es in the past , none are there now . The Doctor then tells House that he is the last Time Lord and his TARDIS is the last as well . House only says it ' s a pity as the Time Lords were kind . House offers the Doctor , Amy , and Rory free rein for as long as they ' d like , giving them the opportunity to explore . As the travellers leave , Auntie , Uncle and Nephew look on with worried faces . In the meantime , Idris has awoken and begins babbling random lines and gibberish . She then realises the Doctor isn ' t there and calls out for her " thief " . Nearby , the Doctor hears her and tells his companions that he knows House is lying because of what he heard on Nephew ' s translator . However , Amy points out even if there are other Time Lords , the Doctor will have to explain his annihilation of the rest of their species to them ; he wants to be forgiven . Wondering what the Doctor needs to help in his search , Amy is instructed to retrieve the sonic screwdriver from his spare coat . Amy gives him her phone to keep in touch and leaves Rory to look after him . However , Rory follows Amy on the Doctor ' s orders . He believes the Doctor will be okay , but Amy thinks different — the Doctor might get emotional and make mistakes . They enter the TARDIS as a green smoke begins swirling out of the ground and around it . Amy calls the Doctor , asking him where he said the sonic screwdriver was and is told to have a long look for it ; the Doctor actually has it with him and locks the TARDIS with it . He then traces the distress signals to a cupboard . He is dismissive of the idea of all the Time Lords being in a cupboard , but is soon prompted to open it when the voices calling for help continue . Inside the cupboard , the Doctor discovers the horrific truth : the Ood ' s translation sphere was picking up a series of hypercubes , all transmitting similar distress signals from Time Lords that are now long dead . Auntie and Uncle — at House ' s behest — released the hypercube as a means of luring the Doctor to the asteroid . Distraught , the Doctor turns on them and deduce s that House has been " repairing " them with bits and pieces of the Time Lords who have landed here . Angered , he tells them to run . Back in the TARDIS , Amy and Rory realise that the Doctor has lied to them and call him . The Doctor says that he lied and is sorry , but then wonders how Idris knew finding the hypercubes could have made him angry . He tells his companions to stay still and hangs up . Amy realises the Doctor " is " emotional , which is very bad . A green glow comes from outside the windows , prompting Rory to agree with her , at least with the part about their predicament being bad . The Doctor confronts Idris ; he wonders how she could have possibly known , leading her to reveal that she is , in fact , the TARDIS — on landing , House removed the TARDIS matrix and implanted it in her body . While the Doctor ' s reluctant to believe her , he comes to realise it ' s true when she explains that she " borrowed " him because she wanted to see the universe , and he was the only Time Lord that was mad enough . He releases her from the cage in which she has been imprisoned and , with her help , deduce s that the House " eats TARDISes " by feeding on the Rift energy bursting from them ; but because he can ' t " eat " a TARDIS without blowing a hole in the universe , the House removed the matrix and placed it inside Idris with the hope that it would die off on its own , far away from the console room . Realising that Amy and Rory are in danger , the Doctor rushes outside . He calls them , telling them to " get the hell out of there ! " Amy tells the Doctor that he locked the doors , but the Doctor has unlocked them with the sonic ; House has begun possessing the TARDIS instead of eating it and is keeping it locked . The Doctor reaches the TARDIS and tries opening it manually and by snapping his fingers , but is unsuccessful . Inside , the Cloister Bell rings as a green glow fills the console room ; the TARDIS vanishes from the asteroid . The Doctor is left dumbstruck by these events ; he has no idea what to do , which causes him to smile in joy . He then slaps himself to get back on task of following after House to save his companions . Inside the control room , the House reveals his presence and explains that he will kill Amy and Rory unless they can defend why they should live ; Rory claims House needs entertainment , which is why Auntie and Uncle lived on his old home — he likes to make other suffer . Hearing this , House simply tells them to entertain him then , ordering them to run — which they do without much persuasion . Back on the asteroid , the Doctor tells Idris that the TARDIS has been hijacked just as Auntie and Uncle walk up to them . Auntie explains it ' s time for them to " pop off " , but Uncle is against it — without House around , they lack the source of their life . They then die , albeit comically . Idris tells the Doctor they have to go where she landed , but stops from a pain in her side , Idris only has a short time left to live . The Doctor then asks his TARDIS if it has a name of its own and Idris tells him he named her " Sexy " , much to his embarrassment . Remembering that they are in a " TARDIS junkyard , " the Doctor and Idris decide to construct a TARDIS control console from the remnants of other models , though Idris rebukes the Doctor briefly when she reminds him that the so - called " junkyard " is in fact filled with the corpses of her sisters . Elsewhere , as they run through the TARDIS corridors , Amy and Rory must contend with House ' s mind games ; first , he separates them , then seemingly places Rory in a faster time stream than Amy whereby he ages and dies in a matter of minutes , devastating her . However , the true Rory unites with her soon afterwards . The Doctor and Idris bond while constructing the new console , though initially the Doctor is confrontational , accusing the TARDIS of acting like his mother and not being very reliable . Idris informs the Doctor although she has not always taken him where he ' s wanted to go , she ' s always taken him where he ' s " needed " . The Doctor expresses the desire to talk to her even when she ' s " inside the box , " but she states that it ' s impossible . Moments later , she nearly collapses and informs the Doctor that her body is deteriorating rapidly . They successfully launch the console and pursue the TARDIS through the vortex , thanks to Idris giving some of matrix to the console . Because House has raised the TARDIS ' exterior shields , the Doctor orders Idris to send Amy a telepathic message , directing her to one of the old control rooms ; she mistakes Rory for " the pretty one " and sends him the message instead . On their way to the console room , House continues to play with Amy ' s mind , turning off the lights so that she can ' t see . As Rory goes ahead , Amy is confronted by Nephew , who has been brought aboard to do House ' s bidding . The couple flees to the old control room only to find the doors locked ; Idris sends Rory another telepathic message to give him the password . Amy , remembering the TARDIS interface is telepathic , mentally visualises all four of the words ( remembering Idris ' seemingly random reference to the definition for " petrichor " ) , and they succeed in entering the control room that was used by the Doctor ' s ninth and tenth incarnations . They manage to lower the shields just as the " invading matrix " materialises . House is able to enter the room . House is annoyed that they lowered the shields , hoping they could have been his servants along with Nephew , but decides they are too much trouble ; Nephew is ordered to kill them . The makeshift console then materialises , atomising the Ood . The Doctor reunites with Amy and Rory , introducing them to Idris , whose body is failing . Realising how little time they have left , the Doctor engages the House , explaining that he will need the Doctor ' s help re - entering the larger universe . He suggests that House delete 30 % of the TARDIS rooms for extra fuel . The House agrees , firstly deleting the room in which they all stand . However , instead of dying , they find themselves in the main control room , where the Doctor reveals the emergency failsafe the House failed to consider : all living things present in deleted rooms are automatically transported to the main control room . House sees no reason to delay killing the Doctor and his friends now that they have reached the main universe , leading the Doctor and Amy to enthusiastically congratulate him for defeating them ; however , the Doctor is merely buying time , watching as Idris dies just after whispering something in Rory ' s ear . The Doctor reminds House of his plan — to trap the matrix in a mortal body , where it would die off safely far away from the control room ; however , this plan has failed , and the matrix has been released into the console room . Upon entering the console , the matrix quickly overrides House and the entity screams in pain as it is consumed . The matrix has one last conversation with the Doctor , projecting itself as Idris ' s form into the room . She remembers the sad word she ' d forgotten all along — " alive " — which the Doctor insists isn ' t sad until it ' s over . She also tells him the one thing she never got to say to him : " Hello . " The Doctor pleads that he doesn ' t want her to go , but she disappears in a burst of light , whispering , " I love you " , before vanishing entirely . The heartbroken Doctor tearfully begins to work the console as Amy and Rory look on . The Doctor works underneath the console platform , placing a firewall around the matrix to prevent it from being removed again . Rory admits to the Doctor that , before she died , Idris whispered , " The only water in the forest is the river , " which she believed they ' d need to know one day . Amy asks if the TARDIS will be able to speak again , but the Doctor says no due to " spacey - wacey " reasons . As their bedroom was one of the ones deleted , the Doctor constructs them another but is disappointed that the two go for a double bed instead of a bunk bed like they had before . As the two head off the Doctor , now with a new appreciation of the TARDIS and his relationship with her , speaks to the console and tells her they can head wherever she wants . . . the Eye of Orion for some peace and relaxation or to wherever the TARDIS thinks he needs to go . One of the levers moves of its accord making the Doctor gleeful as he goes heading into another adventure with his oldest companion leading the way as always .