The Curse of the Black Spot ( TV story ) The Curse of the Black Spot was the third episode in the sixth series of " Doctor Who " . It featured the long forgotten character Henry Avery , mentioned in the First Doctor episode " The Smugglers " , and gave an explanation as to what happened to him and his crew . The " Eye Patch Lady " also appeared again , in the second of what would become a series of brief , foreboding check - ups on Amy Pond as she travelled with the Doctor . Synopsis . The TARDIS is marooned onboard a 17th century pirate ship whose crew is being attacked by a mysterious and beautiful sea creature . Becalmed and beset by cabin fever , the pirates have numerous superstitious explanations for the Siren ' s appearance . The Eleventh Doctor has other ideas , but as his theories are disproved and every plan of escape is thwarted , he must work to win the trust of the implacable Captain Henry Avery and uncover the truth behind the pirates ' supernatural fears — and he must work quickly , for some of his friends have already fallen under the Siren ' s spell . Plot . On a becalmed ship called the " Fancy " , a man with a minor cut is brought to the captain , Henry Avery ; Avery declares that he ' s a " dead man " after discovering a black spot on the man ' s palm . The man grabs a gun and flees outside as a woman can be heard singing on the deck . A few minutes later , he can be heard screaming as the song cuts to a stop . The crew departs the cabin to investigate , with Avery remarking that the disappearance is the same as all the others . As a banging is heard below deck , a wooden grille is pushed open to reveal the Eleventh Doctor , Amy , and Rory . The trio is brought to Avery ' s cabin , where the Doctor reveals that they picked up the ship ' s distress calls ; the crew , however , insists that they made no such calls . When the Doctor compares the time travel lers to " sailors , " they are held at gunpoint by Avery and accused of being stowaways . The captain , knowing there is too little water to sustain all of them until the wind picks up , orders the Doctor and Rory to walk the plank while commanding Amy to the scullery . She is shoved below deck , where she discovers trunks of pirate garb and weaponry . As the Doctor is prepared to jump into the water , Amy reappears , brandishing a sword , frightening the crew , who do not wish to be injured . One crew member advances on her to get the sword away from her , but she puts up a fight , accidentally cutting his hand . He explains that she has killed him , prompting her to call him a " baby " for overreacting . A second fight ensues and Amy drops the sword , accidentally cutting Rory as well . Black spots appear on both of the men ' s palms , prompting Rory to ask the Doctor what ' s happening . The woman ' s voice is heard yet again , charming Rory and the wounded pirate and turning them into babbling fools . A ghostly woman bubbles up from the becalmed water and slowly advances on the crew , extending her hand to Rory and the pirate . The pirate steps forward and is instantly vaporised upon touching her . Rory also approaches her , but Amy steps between them , threatening the woman — who turns an angry red , hisses , and throws Amy across the deck . The crew hurries below deck , followed by the time travellers . Avery refers to the woman as a Siren , and says she has been taking every injured crew member , whether the wound is large or small . They all believe that the ship is cursed , which the Doctor responds to with some derision . Avery does not believe that the TARDIS is truly the Doctor ' s " ship , " and levels his pistol at him , demanding that he make it " sail " . The Doctor , however , feels that they ' re merely fighting over who ' s in charge . Another crewmember realises that a leech has bit him on the leg , and they all scramble to remove themselves from the still water as the black spot appears on the man ' s hand . All of a sudden , the Siren appears and takes the man , allowing the Doctor to deduce that she is using water as a portal ; therefore , they must make for the driest room on the ship — the armoury . Arriving there , they discover Toby , a young boy who is revealed to be Avery ' s son . The boy stowed away on his father ' s ship , wanting to meet the man his mother described as an " honourable Navy captain " before she died the previous year . However , he is very ill , and soon reveals a black spot on the palm of his hand . Because he possesses no injuries , the Doctor realises that the Siren is coming for the sick as well as the wounded . Avery and the Doctor go to the TARDIS , where Avery quickly adapts to the machine ' s extraterrestrial equipment by comparing them to the functions of his own ship . Meanwhile , the boatswain and Mulligan — the only remaining crew members — reveal their plan to leave the ship with Avery ' s treasure , thus informing Toby that his father is a pirate . Still loyal , Toby grabs a sword and cuts the boatswain ' s hand , stranding him in the armoury with the others . Mulligan , however , leaves anyway . Back in the TARDIS , the Doctor realises that the TARDIS cannot leave because it can ' t sense the plane it ' s supposed to be flying on . Abruptly , it begins to dematerialise , and with no clue as to its destination , the Doctor and Avery are forced to flee . On their way back to the armoury , the Doctor and Avery run into Mulligan , who has stolen all of Avery ' s treasure and is preparing to leave the ship . The two give chase , but Mulligan manages to lock himself in a small cabin room , where he burns his hand upon lighting a match . The Doctor and Avery listen as he is taken by the Siren . Entering the room , the Doctor and Avery realise that there is no water present , thus , the Siren doesn ' t only use water as a portal , but all reflective surfaces . Remembering that Avery gave Toby his medallion , they rush back to the armoury , where the Doctor blows air on the medallion to fog the surface . With no TARDIS , they realise they have no other option but to sit and wait for the seas to kick up again . As everyone sleeps , Amy sees the woman with the eyepatch staring at her through a hatch in the side of the ship , however , the hatch disappears . She goes to Avery ' s cabin , where the Doctor stands staring out the window , and is prepared to tell him of the woman when he interrupts her , questioning whether or not she feels as though she is being watched . Suddenly , a storm breaks , and all head to the deck to lift the sail . In the chaos , a crown falls out of Avery ' s jacket , even though the Doctor had previously ordered Avery to rid the ship of all the treasure so that they might limit the Siren ' s means of reaching them . The Siren appears , taking Toby , but the Doctor is able to throw the crown overboard before she can go after Rory . Nevertheless , Rory is knocked overboard and begins to drown . Though Amy prepares to jump in after him , the Doctor explains that Rory will die unless they let the Siren take him . He pulls the lid off a bucket of still water and orders the woman to go save him . The Doctor realises that their only means of reuniting with their loved ones is to prick their fingers and let the Siren take them as well . She appears , and they all touch her hand , instantly blacking out . They wake on the floor of an invisible alien spaceship , which the Doctor quickly deduce s is taking up the same space as the " Fancy " , lending credence to his previous belief that they were all being watched ; every window on the spaceship is a portal that leads to the " Fancy " . Amy realises that the distress signal they answered was coming from the spaceship , not the " Fancy " . As they explore , they discover the skeletons of the ship ' s crew members , with the Doctor ascertaining that they all died years ago from an Earth disease . Eventually , they discover the sick bay , where Avery ' s crew — plus Rory , Toby , and the TARDIS — are being kept , hooked up to life support machines . When Amy tries to unhook Rory , the Siren appears and puts him back to sleep . The Doctor realises that the Siren is not a demon , but a virtual doctor who has been caring for the injured crew . However , she has no means of treating them and can only put them on life support to save them . Amy again tries to help Rory , but the Siren won ' t let her near him ; it is not until Amy proclaims that he is her husband that the Siren extends her hand , with a glowing yellow ring forming around it . The Doctor orders Amy to take her hand , thus signing the contract and accepting all responsibility for Rory ' s further well - being . She does so , but they quickly realise that Rory cannot be taken off life support . In doing so , he will drown . Rory is sure that Amy can save him and instructs her on how to perform CPR . Meanwhile , the Doctor reveals to Avery that Toby has typhoid fever , and if he were to be removed from the ship , he would only have a few months left to live . Remembering that the alien spaceship needs a captain , Avery volunteers for the position so that he may continue to look after his son . Bidding Avery goodbye , the Doctor and Amy bring a choking Rory back to the TARDIS , where Amy begins to perform CPR . Though it appears futile at first , Rory eventually recovers and lovingly embraces his wife . The alien spaceship soars off into space , with Avery in the captain ' s seat and Toby and his crew at his side headed for the Dog Star . In the TARDIS , Amy and Rory say good night to the Doctor , who responds by referring to Amy as " Amelia . " Amy notes that he only does this when he ' s worried about her . The Doctor retorts that he always worries about her , leading Amy to remember his impending death and admit that the feeling is mutual . As they depart the console room , Rory reminds her that she cannot tell the Doctor about what happens at the lakeside in the future . The Doctor scans Amy for pregnancy again , with the readings still flickering between positive and negative . Home video releases . This story was released as Series 6 Part 1 with " The Impossible Astronaut " , " Day of the Moon " , " The Doctor ' s Wife " , " The Rebel Flesh " , " The Almost People " and " A Good Man Goes to War " on 11th July 2011 . The episode was later released in the complete series 6 , which included the first and second half of the series , was released on DVD and Blu Ray on the 21 November 2011 .