The Doctor's TARDIS

* Season 62
* Season 1

**The Doctor's TARDIS** — also called **the Ship**, **the Box**, and simply **the TARDIS** — was the Doctor's primary means of transport. It was capable of travelling through space and time. The Doctor voyaged all across the universe in this vessel, from the Big Bang to the end of the universe, and from the centre of the universe to its outermost edges. The craft was also capable of travelling between parallel realities, in spite of the fact that it was not specifically designed for inter-dimensional travel. Like all other TARDIS models, the Doctor's TARDIS was controlled via a central control console.

Other Time Lords frequently characterised the Doctor's TARDIS as woefully out-of-date. Indeed, by at least the time of the Doctor's fourth incarnation, if not much earlier, the model — called a "Type 40" — had been pulled from general service on Gallifrey, and replaced by more advanced models.

The craft was prone to a number of technical faults, ranging from depleted resources to malfunctioning controls to a simple inability to arrive at the proper time or location. However, because the TARDIS was a living being, these "faults" may instead have been at least partially attributed to the manifestation of the ship's free will.

As the centuries passed and all of the Doctor's companions came and went, the Doctor's faithful TARDIS remained their constant companion. They shared an unbreakable bond, and the Doctor came to feel that in the end, it was just the Doctor and their TARDIS, travelling the universe together. The Ninth Doctor thought of her as his oldest friend. Such was this bond, that the Thirteenth Doctor would use the TARDIS, rather than any other place, even his home planet, as his final resting place.

The Doctor's TARDIS was depicted in many cultures on Earth in a variety of forms, such as being depicted as the temple of the household "gods", the Twelfth Doctor and Emma Armandio, by Lobus Caecilius's family after they were rescued from the destruction of Pompeii, being painted on a church's stained glass window after the Doctor "smote [a] demon" at a convent in the 1300s, and the Thirteenth Doctor using the power of its image to counter the influence of the Prometheans. According to the Thirteenth, the noise the TARDIS made when it appeared brought hope to anyone who heard it, no matter how lost they were, and according to the Twelfth, the reason it made its' noise is because he leaves the brakes on.

# Interior

## Console Room

### 1963-1967 original console room

When the interior of the TARDIS used by the First Doctor was first seen by Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright, it was a bright white room, with roundels on the walls and a large computer bank taking up a major part of the "back" wall. These computer banks contained the fault locator and various systems relating to navigational control. A glass wall was in front of them. (TV: *An Unearthly Child*, "The Dead Planet") One wall consisted of white hexagons with roundels implemented on them. The Doctor was known to store brandy behind one of these roundels. (TV: *Twice Upon a Time*)

The First Doctor's TARDIS was prone to random shifts in appearance. Typically, one wall of roundels appeared flat, as if they were printed on. (TV: *An Unearthly Child*) On another instance, a separate hexagonal wall was seen in the place of this. (TV: *Twice Upon a Time*) Usually, the front doors were bulky, featuring triangular points near the hinges. (TV: *An Unearthly Child*, et. al)

Susan and the Doctor had their own rooms, but only Susan's was shown. It had a desk and potted plant. (TV: *The Edge of Destruction*)

One corner of the console room featured important things such as the Time Space Visualiser and other laboratorian things such as stools and filing cabinets. (TV: *The Web Planet*, *The Chase*). Various decorations and accessories were present in the main console room, such as at least four chairs, a table, several statues and scientific spacetime objects. In another part of the console room there was a bed and sick bay (TV: *The Daleks' Master Plan*), which must have not been too far to the door to the living room and sleeping quarters, which had their own food machine and Time space visualizer. (TV: *The Edge of Destruction*). Nearby was a shower that had a waterproof radio and dark if not black tiling (TV: *The Chase*) aswell as a wardrobe room. (TV: *The Web Planet*). The console room gradually phased out, but the initial one was used from *An Unearthly Child* (1963) to *The Dominators* (1968)

### 1968-1970

Initially upon regenerating the Second Doctor retained the interior of his predecessor. However, over time he added more details to his console room, such as chests and crates (TV: *The Power of the Daleks, The Wheel in Space*), control panels (TV: *The Abominable Snowmen*), diagonal walls (TV: *The Macra Terror*), and laboratory spaces (TV: *Fury from the Deep*). But it was only late into his era that his console notably changed. The roundels were now darker than the wall themselves and the room was very dim in color. The room had also significantly shrunk and the Fault locator was missing. Most of the accessories his prior incarnation had were kept, but new ones were added like chairs. A small corridor leading down into the rest of the TARDIS was visible from the console room, and above it a small scanner. The fault locator was re-added on the fourth wall later, but the glass was missing. (TV: *The Space Pirates*). This interior was used throughout Season 6, from *The Mind Robber* (1968) to *The War Games* (1969).

### Colony in Space console room

Initially, the Third Doctor's console room was square-shaped, and featured classic stereotypical roundels on the walls. The console was isolated in the center of the room, and in the far corner of the room there is a secondary console on the wall. A strange grey object stands near the door, but other than that the room is empty. Its' lighting was also dim in color. At one point, the Third Doctor revealed he could move the walls and change the size of the room from miniscule to gargantuan. (TV: Colony in Space).

### The Time Monster console room

The Third Doctor briefly changed the walls of the console room, adding concave "bowl" shaped structures over the regular roundels, with edges that jutted out from the wall, and featuring shallower, non-backlit roundels for the half-roundels at the tops and bottoms of the walls. One of the roundels served as a replacement for the scanner, a picture appearing in its centre. The room also had a cupboard and a hat stand inside of it, and allegedly the cupboard was full of more salad bowls. After this "spot of redecoration", the Master mocked the Doctor by making his time rotor look like a salad fork. Angered by this mockery, the Doctor broke all the roundels and replaced them with the backlit ones. Jo later admitted she liked the salad bowls. (TV: *The Time Monster*). The Third Doctor's console room reverted to this version for "a week" after picking up Sarah Jane Smith, but they didn't get to spend much time in it as this is when the Third Doctor took part in the Battle of Ranskoor av Kolos aswell as him being kidnapped by The Rani. (TV: Trust Me On This!, The Seventeen Doctors)

### 1973-1975

The Third Doctor's new console room was larger, and returned the fault locator on the back wall. A corridor to more rooms in the TARDIS was seen, as well as a pullout bed. The lighting was also improved, although it was still dim. The room also appeared to be much taller, with a lining at the top of the walls indicating skylights. There, also, allegedly, was a bench. (TV: The Three Doctors).

### 1975-1976 "flat walls" console room

The Fourth Doctor's new console room was much larger, several walls added, but removed the Fault locator. The console was now grey in color, and several of the roundels in the walls were not backlit, and they were very shallow, the depth removed. There was a blue lining around the entrance to the TARDIS console room, and another route outside. It was allegedly very tall, with a scanner above the main console. There was also a chair installed at one point. It was possible to make the room more dim. (TV: *Planet of Evil*, *Pyramids of Mars*)

### Secondary TARDIS console room

The main console room at one point stopped working when it lost power, which prompted the Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith to find the secondary console room hidden within the TARDIS corridors. Sarah Jane discovered it. It was square-shaped and victorian in style, with a brown floor and wood paneling on the walls. On each wall were 12 roundels, and large pillars in each corner. In the center of the room was a raised platform where the small console was. The panels were folded out and consisted of only buttons. A few of the hexagon panels were only storage or desks. There was no center Time Rotor, but a pull-out handmirror was installed. The main entrance to the room had three stairwells, one leading directly to the console and the other two to lower parts of the room. It was the first TARDIS interior to be "multi-level". Through the main door led to the outside through a black room. The door that leads to the rest of the TARDIS is stained glass, and directly across from the large scanner, a flat screen that opened like an eye, also made of wood. Next to it was a table and chair, and across from that was a cedar chest. (TV: *The Masque of Mandragora*). The TARDIS was used for a short period from *The Masque of Mandragora* (1976) to *The Horror of Fang Rock* (1977).

### 1976-1980 "small" interior

After the Fourth Doctor and Leela returned to the main console room following some "refurbishment", they began to use a markedly different console room. The walls of this room were a light shade of grey, and the roundels were significantly shallower, with a yellowish-beige design mimicking the ones found within the secondary console room. Corrugated grey columns were placed in various corners of the room, and the monitor was changed to a large, flat screen beneath an aperture that opened similarly to an eye, resting between the exit and the door leading further in. (TV: *The Invisible Enemy*). The room was small, and often dim or dark in its' lighting. However, there was enough room for a chess table, a charging pod for K9, and a dining table within the main console room.

### 1980-1983 "revamped" interior

After the adventure with Professor Chronotis, he assisted the Doctor in repairing the TARDIS' chameleon circuit. While he was unable to fully repair it, he did significantly revamp the Console room. It was now much larger, the lights worked better, and the console was secured to the floor. The walls were also farther away from the console, and consisted of more cylindrical pillars. The room was greatly expanded and there was even enough space for the Fault locator. The Fifth Doctor continued to use this design. On orders from the Black Guardian, Vislor Turlough later damaged the Heart of the TARDIS enough to the point of the TARDIS nearly falling apart, (TV: *Terminus*) leaving the room darker for some time until repairs were done. (TV: *Enlightenment*)

### 1983-1989 "Streamlined" interior

After the TARDIS suffered damage in the Death Zone, the interior was completely refurbished, giving the control room a sleeker, more high-tech appearance. The columns were now rectangular rather than cylindrical, and the roundelled walls now deeper inset. Although the console was more high-tech, a very fancy looking Time Rotor with glass crystal lining was installed. (TV: *The Five Doctors*) Following his regeneration, (TV: *The Caves of Androzani*) it would be used by his next two incarnations, the Sixth and Seventh Doctors. (TV: *The Twin Dilemma*, *Time and the Rani*). The Seventh Doctor once installed a coat rack, aswell as a bench and a bed in the console room, and changed the lighting to a darker color. (TV: *Death on the Battle of Flinchwood Run*)

### 1990-1994 "Raised" interior

When the TARDIS interior finally returned in the story "Earth Aid" it had been significantly revamped. The TARDIS was still hexagonal in shape, but was no longer attached to the floor, instead the Time Rotor contained within a glass tube connected it to the ceiling. The room was also slightly bigger, with two corridors to the main TARDIS doors and one to the corridors. There was a scanner on the wall, as usual, however the roundels around it seemed to be much smaller than the previous ones. The ceiling also had eight windows of sorts, and in the center a spherical object connecting to the Time Rotor. (TV: *Earth Aid*). At times, the TARDIS interior could be made brighter and more yellow in color (TV: *Earth Aid, Lungbarrow, Drax and Kyre: Enemies of the Second Universe, Devils of the Deep, Night Thoughts, Voyage of the Mayflower, Transit, Return to Timelash, Never Eat your Pet Turtle, Lesrenadi, Dimensions in Time*) but other times it could be dark and a sort of crimson-purple color. (TV: *Earth Aid, Avatar, The Escape of the Second Death, Hand of Neptune, Blood and Iron, The Red Day, The World Before Time, War for Earth, Ultimatum of the Bannermen*). Sometimes furniture was added, like a bench (TV: *The Beginning of Doomsday, Army of Tyrants*) or a chair (TV: *Voyage of the Mayflower, Lesrenadi*) and even a harpsichord (TV: *Time Breaker)*.

### 1994-1997 "Victorian" interior

Accounts differed over how and why this version of the control room was created or came in use. Although the Eighth Doctor claimed that it was the "second" control room after a spot of remodeling, many accounts suggested that it was physically the same room as the white control room used by previous incarnations of the Doctor, but had been altered for a variety of conflicting reasons. Its comparatively vast interior was significantly larger than any that had come before or after. In this version, the console itself was not the sole focus of the room, but merely one of its many features. A vast bureau almost entirely covered one wall, its huge drawers filled with various objects the Doctor wished to retain. Surrounding the console itself were several metal half-arches, covered in circular holes resembling roundels. Clocks of all description — but mostly mechanical ones — littered various nooks and crannies. Far from the evenly lit, mostly white interior of the past, this control room had multiple light sources and an abundance of wooden surfaces, which allowed the Doctor to create a sense of warmth and even opulent comfort. At least a portion of the Doctor's books were in another alcove, forming a sort of *en suite* library. (TV: *The Silver Turk*). Furniture, usually anathema to the Doctor's control rooms, was found in abundance here. Indeed, there was a large area immediately adjacent larger than the console area itself, which had several comfortable chairs, lamps, an ottoman — all of which conspired to give this control room the appearance of a cosy living room. Above it all was a scanner the size of the entire ceiling. The Doctor could flip a switch on his console and reveal astronomical phenomena on a grand scale. (TV: *The Silver Turk, The Ankhari, Murdered Gods, The Yellow Yacht Mystery, The Absent Author, Goodbye to a World,* *Doctor Who, Eyes of a Madman, Return of the Meddler, Master World, The Queen of the Universe, Zagreus, Rescue, Goodnight*). Through a hallway led to the dungeon-esque Cloister room (TV: *Doctor Who?*), Millie's homely bedroom (TV: *Five Times*, *Murdered Gods*) and a playroom for Millie. (TV: *Five Times*). This version of the console was used by the Eighth Doctor and the Ninth Doctor until the Ninth Doctor regenerated into the Tenth.

### 1997-2004 "Throwback" interior

After the Ninth Doctor's regeneration ravaged the Console, the interior was now a curved room with roundels and multiple walkways dominating the area; the roundels provided most of the light in the room, and could change colour from white to orange, green, purple or blue. Similar to the interiors used by the Eighth, Eleventh and Fourteenth Doctors, the TARDIS had multiple levels, now accessed by ramps rather than stairs, and many doors leading deeper into the ship. The console remained in the centre of the room, and appeared to be a mix of built-in controls and spare parts. The time rotor once again connected to the ceiling, and contained an intricate internal mechanism, with a blue light inside that rose while the ship was in flight. One panel of the console housed a coffee maker. (TV: *The Final Day of the Universe*). The scanner had returned to being a screen, albeit smaller than previous scanners, attached to the console via an arm that could rotate around the console, and had several buttons included (TV: *Washington's War*). This control room also had a wheelchair ramp that folded out from the bottom of the TARDIS doors, making this control room wheelchair accessible when Anders Hausner injured his legs. (TV: *Awaiting Orders*, *The Power of Axos*, *Jaws of the Manticore*, *Plot of the Zygons*). The angle of the floor just inside the door could be adjusted, which the Doctor used to fling his enemies out of the room multiple times. (TV: *Rage of the Cybermen*, *Awaiting Orders*, *Strength of the Cybermen*) however, it once broke after he attempted to use it too many times within a certain amount of time, causing his death. (TV: *Tyranny of the Daleks*). The lights of the TARDIS interior could be changed to cyan, green, purple and orange, but they alternated in a gradient when the TARDIS took off. (TV: *The Final Day of the Universe* - *Tyranny of the Daleks*)

### 2004-2014 "Bigger on the inside" interior

The new TARDIS console provided the Doctor with a new sonic screwdriver, as the previous one had been destroyed. The Eleventh Doctor completely revamped the TARDIS because the previous one was "so bright and empty" and reminded him of a hospital. Changes to the control room included a new hexagonal console with instruments resembling a typewriter, a telegraph, a gramophone, a set of hot and cold taps, and a view-screen made by Magpie Electricals. A larger, circular, secondary view screen was set into one of the walls. (TV: *Timecore, The End of the World, Empire of the Cybermen, The Fall of the Citadel, The Venetian Vampires, Pompeii!, The War to End All Wars, Vincent and the Doctor, Pipe Dreams, The Sontaran Stratagem, 42, Treachery of the TARDIS, The 25-Hour Day, Hide, The Day of the Doctor, Who Killed Kennedy?, Due Rent*). There were fewer roundels on the walls than in the past, and an area located underneath the main console which housed the Heart of the TARDIS. This version also possessed an actual phone on the console, through which people could call the Doctor. (TV: *Sundown, Daleks!, House of Horrors, Veil of the Past, A Night at the Inn, Hide, Due Rent, A Doctor Calls*). There was also a swing located under the glass floor the Doctor or anyone else could sit on to help with maintenance. (TV: *The End of the World, Sundown, The Fate of War, The Fall of the Citadel, The Devil of Midia, Vincent and the Doctor, The Day of the Doctor, American Hood*). The railings originally were rectangular barred and black in colour, (TV: *Timecore*) but later became round barred and gold. (TV: *Fracture*, et al.) It had at least four floors: a lower section for maintenance, a middle section where the entrance was, the raised console room level, and the gallery. (TV: *Timecore*). Unlike its immediate predecessor, this console room had three visible exits to the rest of the TARDIS; two on the lower levels and one via a set of stairs. (TV: *Timecore* - *A Doctor Calls*). This TARDIS interior was used by far the longest, lasting through the eras of the Eleventh, Twelfth and Thirteenth Doctor's from 2004 to 2014.

### 2014-2021 "Neon" interior

Due to the violent nature of the Thirteenth Doctor's regeneration and the resultant damage to the TARDIS, it required time to repair itself, dispensing its' more whimsical control room in favour of a seemingly smaller control room, containing a console with more literal input devices and instrumentation, as well as a pair of secondary consoles on the railing of the main platform. The room was stark and mechanical, covered in tones of teal and aqua, and an overall cold mood. (TV: *The Rising Sun*). However, in the very next episode the Fourteenth Doctor proceeded to upgrade the console room by adding several items to it, including a reclining chair, bookshelves, candles, chalkboards, an additional staircase to the upper level and circular lights around the lower balcony. She also changed the lighting of the time rotor and room from its original aqua to orange, creating an ambient glow that added warmth to the room. Overall, he gave the once empty and stark control room a homelike sense of decor, provision, and sophistication. Landinia Fersa initially believed it to be a "really posh kitchen" where everything was stainless steal. (TV: *Can You Hear Me?*). Similarly, the First Doctor dissaproved of the space, calling it a "restaurant for the French". (TV: *Twice Upon a Time*). Gallifreyan markings on the ceiling and above the time rotor, hexagonal roundels on the lower console level, and Gallifreyan markings on the top level. Several tiny lights went around the walls of the room in a straight line, flashing sections at a time. The console featured two screens, and what seemed to be a radar on one face. There were two additional consoles around the edge of the main level. It was also much darker than the previous iteration. Except for the time rotor, all lights could be turned off when the Doctor was not inside. There were three levels: an upper balcony, which looked down over the console and had doorways off of it, the landing, which housed the console, seating, and main doors (TV: *The Rising Sun*), and the lower level, which had several compartments, one of which contained clothing. The Fifteenth Doctor assembled her new attire from the clothes held in this compartment. (TV: *The Guardian Angels*). There were four doorways to other sections of the TARDIS, two on the upper level either side of the main doors, and two on the lower level. One of the compartments under the console contained a ladder leading to a lower part of the TARDIS whilst one of the roundels on the lower section of the wall opened to reveal a passageway that led to the engine room at the centre of the TARDIS. (TV: *Central Spirals*). This console room initially lacked a hatstand, a factor which even the Doctor hadn't noticed until asked about it by Willis. (TV: Nobody to Cry). This was rectified shortly after. (TV: *Empress of Mars*). The console eventually sustained heavy damage following the Fifteenth Doctor's explosive regeneration, scattering sparks from various control surfaces, and even allowing a portion of the central console to separate from the time rotor. It "reset itself" into its' next interior.

### 2021 "coral" interior

The control room, after the Sixteenth Doctor was born, had been changed to its "coral" theme. This was an organic design. The walls were now golden, with smaller, hexagonal impressions replacing the larger orange and blue roundels of the previous console room. This iteration of the console had apparently been available as early as the era of the Seventh Doctor, who disliked it, considering it worse than the "leopard skin" version. (TV: *Trust Me On This!*) This control room was inherited by the Sixteenth Doctor. (TV: *Reborn Again*) The Fifteenth Doctor believed that the Sixteenth Doctor had to be in his "grunge phase" (TV: *The Seventeen Doctors*)

The console room consisted of a circular area, with a red-tiled ramp leading from the doors to a hexagonal platform. On the platform was a second, circular platform. There was also a set of jump seats situated on the other side of the platform, but were occasionally moved. (TV: *Bedknobs and Doorsticks*, *Daleks in Italy*) The control room had a doorway to a spiral staircase that led to the TARDIS laundry room and wardrobe, aswell as other rooms. (TV: *Forever Winters in Narnia*)

The Doctor and companions would recline in the jump seats frequently. The entire room was supported by six coral pillars arranged in a hexagonal pattern that met with the top of the time rotor at the room's ceiling. There were also several black wires connecting to the time rotor. Under the main platform were storage areas large enough for the Doctor to enter himself to retrieve items, (TV: *The Catacombs of Dak, The Tombs of Ybwen*) though some were packed to just below the top. (TV: *Love, the Doctor, Napoleon, Searching for the Crystal Cave*) It was also dim, illuminated by the glow of green or cyan light from the time rotor column in the centre of the room and the lights in the hexagons on the walls. (TV: *Attack of the True Knot* - *Survivors of the Flux*) However, the glow was later made less noticeable as the Doctor used the other lights. (TV: *Daleks in Italy* - *Return to Skaro*).