Gallifrey

Outsiders

**Gallifrey** was the homeworld of the Time Lords. (TV: *The Time Warrior*) The literal translation of the name "Gallifrey" was "They that walk in the shadows". (TV: *Hostage*) During several time wars, the Great Houses utilitarianistically referred to it as **the Homeworld**. (TV: *Damaged Goods*)

## Location

Gallifrey was located in the constellation of Kasterborous at galactic coordinates 10-0-11-0-0/0-2 from Galactic Zero Centre. (TV: *Pyramids of Mars*, *Full Circle, Mind Games*)

## Astronomical Data

### Star system

Gallifrey was in a binary star system. The system contained five other planets, (TV: *The Invasion of Time*) among them Karn, (TV: *The Brain of Morbius*) and Polarfrey, as well as an asteroid named Kasterborous the Fibster. (TV: *Lungbarrow*)

### Satellites

One of the moons was the copper-coloured Pazithi Gallifreya, which shone so brightly it could be seen during the day. (TV: *Lungbarrow*)

## Landscape

Overall it was a much drier world than Earth. (TV: *Lungbarrow, Mind Games*) The wastelands around the Capitol were referred to as "outer Gallifrey" (TV: *The Invasion of Time*) or "the Outlands" (TV: *Mind Games*, *The Eyes of Madmen*) by the Time Lords.

The sky during the day resembled that of Earth's blue sky. (TV: *The Invasion of Time*) However, late in the evening, the sky appeared bright orange. (TV: *Mind Games*)

## Known Geographical Features

### Regions of Gallifrey

The Death Zone was an area used as a battleground in which Time Lords would watch other species fight to the death. Although these battles were stopped by Rassilon, the Death Zone remained and later became home to the Tomb of Rassilon. (TV: *The Five Doctors*)

There was also a mountainous region known as South Gallifrey. (TV: *State of Decay*) This area was sparsely populated, but noted to be the home of most influential Time Lord houses. (TV: *The Council's Reverence*)

### Mountains, Rivers and Lakes

There was a mountain of Gallifrey known as Mount Lung. There was also at least one well-known river, Cadonflood River. (TV: *Lungbarrow*)

## Relationship with the Time Lords

Renegade Time Lords who left the planet still tended to hold a distant hope or intent of someday returning to their homeworld. (TV: *An Unearthly Child*)

## History

Rassilon founded a society of Time Lords on Gallifrey, (TV: *The Deadly Assassin*) alongside Omega (TV: *The Three Doctors*) and an other. (TV: *Lungbarrow*, PROSE: *Remembrance of the Daleks*)

Rassilon brought the Eye of Harmony to Gallifrey, providing power. (TV: *The Deadly Assassin*) This gave Gallifrey a special relationship with time. (TV: *Lungbarrow*) Around this time, Rassilon and Omega began constructing work on a device known as the Mind Wrest, though it was for many years believed to have been a legend before being found by the Master. (TV: *Mind Games*)

## Settlements

A major city on Gallifrey was known as the Citadel (TV: *The Invasion of Time*) or sometimes, the Capitol. (TV: *The Deadly Assassin*)

Dronid and Karn were colonies of Gallifrey. (PROSE: *Shada*)

## Native Species

### Flora

The Third Doctor once said that there were daisies on Gallifrey. (TV: *The Time Monster*)

### Fauna

Animals native to Gallifrey included flutterwings, (TV: *The Pirate Planet*) mice, cats, (TV: *The Mark of the Rani*) and, of course, the Gallifreyans themselves.

## Behind the Scenes

* Although the planet was referenced numerous times earlier, and even seen on occasion (TV: *The War Games* and *The Three Doctors* for instance), the name Gallifrey was not uttered on screen until Jon Pertwee did so in *The Time Warrior*.
* In the original script of *The Time Warrior*, Gallifrey was scripted as "Galfrey", but was later changed.
* Even though the first on-screen mention of Gallifrey was in *The Time Warrior*, broadcast in December 1973, the word appeared in *TV Action* #126, put out for the week ending 14 July 1973. There, in the letters column, the editors responded to a question from Simon Still of Kent who asked where the Master came from. The answer? "The Master's home planet was called 'Gallifrey'." This probably doesn't mean, however, that Polystyle gets the credit for "Gallifrey". Since shooting on *The Time Warrior* wrapped on 12 June 1973, and the scripts had been completed earlier that spring, the likelihood is not that the *TV Action* originated the name, but that they were given it by the *Doctor Who* production office.
* In the 2019 television series *Good Omens*, during the scene where Crowley considers fleeing to another planet, his *Extremely Big Book of Astronomy* includes a page on Gallifrey. The caption beneath it reads "Jewel, the Shining World". This title had not been used for Gallifrey in any previous story, but had originated in the infobox of the Tardis Wiki article, whose list of alternative names began "Jewel, the Shining World of the Seven Systems", concatenating titles given for the planet in the *Return of the Daleks* comic and *Hostage*.