Doctor Who Chronology: The 1990s

Amelia Pond, shortly after first meeting the Doctor.

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1990

February 14: On his 10th birthday, Owen Harper spends the day arguing with his mother. His mother states that, while she loves Owen, she doesn't mean she had to like him.

"Adam" (TW).

The television talent show "Stars in Their Eyes" makes its debut on Britain's ITV network. A deadly version of the show will be broadcast through the Game Station in the far future.

As mentioned in "Bad Wolf" (DW2).

John Frobisher requests that Bridget Spears work in his office.

"Children of Earth" (TW). "Ten years" after they first meet in 1980.

1991

Following a mortar attack on 10 Downing Street in London by the Irish Republican Army, retractable 3-inch steel plating is installed over the windows of the Cabinet Room.

Actual event mentioned in "World War Three" (DW2) (although, in our world, the windows were merely made of 3-inch glass).

Luke Rattigan is born.

In "The Sontaran Stratagem" (DW2) (2009), the Doctor describes Luke as an "18-year old".

Suzanne Whittaker, daughter of Angela, is born.

Suzanne is 18 years old when Angela is one of the passengers on the 200 bus in "Planet of the Dead" (DW2) (2009).

1992

Father's Day (DW2): Jackie Tyler tells her daughter Rose about her father, Pete, and how he died in 1987. After an alteration in history, the story of Pete's death changes slightly.

Although is it never stated in the episode when this flashback takes place, the shooting script apparently gives the year "1992", pointing out that Rose is "about six years old".

The Mandragora Helix is due to manifest itself on Earth at approximately this time.

"About 500 years" after "The Masque of Mandragora" (DW1) (1492).

Random Shoes (TW): Young Eugene Jones, despite being especially good at mathematics, freezes during an inter-school maths competition, causing his team to lose and disappointing his father. To help lift Eugene's spirits, his science teacher Mr. Garrett gives him an eye-like object (unknown to them, really a Dogon Sixth Eye) that fell from the sky while he was golfing. That evening, Eugene's father leaves his family; Eugene believes his losing the competition is the cause.

Eugene's narration for these flashbacks gives the year as "1992".

Maria Jackson's father Alan was an active skateborder around this time, later claiming he held the title of "King of the Concrete, Romford, 1992".

"Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane?" (SJA).

1993

Jonah Bevins is born. When 15, he will become a victim of a negative spike in Cardiff Rift activity.

"Adrift" (TW).

Battlefield (DW1) 1-4: The 7th Doctor and Ace, with the help of UNIT (including the retired Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart), battle the Morgaine le Fay of an alternate universe for possession of Excalibur, the mythical sword of King Arthur. After failing to gain possession of the sword, Morgaine threatens to unleash a nuclear weapon from a nearby missle convoy, but the Doctor convinces her that this is a dishonourable form of warfare, resulting in the death of millions of innocents, and she surrenders. She and Mordred are taken into custody by UNIT.

Exact placement is conjecture. The Doctor tells Ace that it is "a few years in your future".

A 6-year old Carys Fletcher earns her swimming badges.

"Day One" (TW).

1994

June 5: Clyde Langer is born.

Clyde is 15 in "The Mark of the Berserker" (SJA) (2009). The June 5 date is given in "Secrets of the Stars" (SJA).

June 23: Rani Chandra's friend Samual Lloyd is born.

"The Mad Woman in the Attic" (SJA).

June: The Disney-produced feature-length animated film The Lion King is released in theatres, featuring the song "The Circle of Life". In 2006, shortly after regenerating, the 10th Doctor unintentionally quotes the song while imploring the Sycorax to spare humanity.

As seen in "The Christmas Invasion" (DW2).

Chrissie and Alan Jackson are married in this year. Their daughter Maria is also born this year.

In "The Lost Boy" (SJA) (2008), Alan says that Maria is 14 years old. In "Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane?" (SJA) (also 2008), Chrissie jokes that it took her 14 years to get out of her relationship with Alan, implying they wed at this time.

The Rings of Akhaten (DW2): While playing with her parents, a young Clara accidentally hits the 11th Doctor in the face with a football. Clara's parent apologize and the Doctor is introduced to the young girl.

Exact placement conjectural. Clara looks to be about 5 years old.

1995

The BBC version of the game show "Wipeout" makes its debut. A deadlier version of the program will be broadcast in the far future through the Game Station.

The deadly game show is mentioned in "Bad Wolf" (DW2).

Toshiko Sato, aged 20, is recruited to work at a goverment science think tank.

According to Mary in "Greeks Bearing Gifts" (TW).

1996

The Stephen King novel The Green Mile is first published. The story includes the line "Sometimes there is absolutely no difference at all between salvation and damnation." Elton Pope will slightly misquote this when making a video blog entry in 2007.

"Love & Monsters" (DW2).

April: The Eleventh Hour (DW2): The badly damaged TARDIS, with a newly-regenerated 11th Doctor on board, crashes in the garden of the home of young Amelia Pond. Amelia mentions the crack in her bedroom wall that frightens her. Upon examination, the Doctor realises that the crack is actually a Crack in time and the message "Prisoner Zero has escaped" is being repeated on the other side of it.

The Doctor opens the Crack in order to investigate more and is confronted by a giant eyeball, apparently in charge of an alien prison. Before the Doctor seals the Crack again, Prisoner Zero escapes through it and takes up residence in Amelia's home, creating an extra door to hide behind. Before he is able to discover this, the Doctor must take the TARDIS through time before its engines can overload. He promises Amelia that he will return in five minutes and take her on a trip. After he leaves, Amelia prepares for her promised journey and eagerly awaits the TARDIS' return to her garden. However, the Doctor will unintentionally not return for another twelve years.

These scenes take place 12 years before the 2008 portions of the episode. Also, in the altered timeline from "The Big Bang" (DW2), Amy estimates that she is in 1996. When praying, young Amelia states that "it's Easter now"; Easter took place in April of that year.

April: The Angels Take Manhattan (DW2): At the adult Amy Pond's wish, a much older 11th Doctor briefly revisits Amelia, promising her that they will eventually have many wondrous adventures together.

Take place more or less immediately after "The Eleventh Hour" (DW2).

April: The Big Bang (DW2): In the altered timeline caused by the TARDIS exploding in 2010 (in which only Earth has ever existed), young Amelia Pond is lured to the National Museum by the 11th Doctor, where she makes physical contact with the Pandorica, releasing an adult Amy Pond, kept in stasis since AD 102 to recover from a fatal injury. Amy is also reunited with Rory, who, in Auton form, has been protecting the Pandorica for the past 1894 years. As the universe collapses around them, the Doctor realises that the Earth's "sun", is in fact the TARDIS exploding throughout all time. The Doctor retrieves River Song from a time loop inside the TARDIS, then enters the Pandorica and flies it into the exploding time-machine. As the Pandorica contains a "blueprint" of the original universe, and the TARDIS is existing in all times, the two machines meeting reboots the universe, restoring it to its original state. However, this also causes the Doctor to be erased from history and he begins travelling backwards along his own timestream.

During his life "rewind", the Doctor briefly stops in this time again, puts a sleeping Amelia Pond in her bed and asks her not to completely forget her "madman with a box".

Takes place simultaneously with (and a little bit after) "The Eleventh Hour" (DW2). The 1996 setting is also backed up by this taking place 1894 years after the 102 AD sections of the story.

Over the next twelve years, Amelia's insistence that her "Raggedy Doctor" is real, and will return for her, leads her family to send her to no less than four psychiatrists. She will also occasionally make her eventual boyfriend and husband Rory Williams dress up as the Doctor.

"The Eleventh Hour" (DW2).

Owen Harper, aged 16, leaves home. His mother packs his bags for him, an act that Owen considers the kindest she has done for him in years.

"Adam" (TW).

The Chase (DW1) 4: The 1st Doctor, Barbara, Ian and Vicki, fleeing from the Daleks across time and space, land in the "Frankenstein's House of Horrors" haunted house exhibit at the 1996 Festival of Ghana. When the Daleks arrive, several of them are destroyed by the monstrous exhibits. In the confusion, the Doctor, Barbara and Ian accidentally leave without Vicki, who instead stows away on the Dalek time-machine.

The date is given on the sign on the haunted house's door.

An alien ship of unidentified origin falls to Earth. Techology from this ship will be adapted by the Torchwood organization into a powerful weapon, able to blast an alien vessel out of the sky.

Ten years before "The Christmas Invasion" (DW2).

The Slitheen family member who goes by the name of "Carl" during the Slitheen's 2008 attempt to destroy Earth is born.

The child is 12 at the time of "Revenge of the Slitheen" (SJA) (2008).

1997

March: The BBC children's program Teletubbies premieres. When under the guise of Harold Saxon in 2008, the Master will watch the program in wonder, marvelling at the idea of the characters having televisions in their stomachs.

As seen in "The Sound of Drums" (DW2).

Jackie Tyler's father passes away when his heart gives out.

"Ten years" before "Army of Ghosts" (DW2) (2007).

Torchwood shoots down a Jathaa sunglider over the Shetland Islands. The organization then salvages the vessel and begins to reverse-engineer it.

"Ten years" before "Army of Ghosts" (DW2) (2007).

When she is 10 years old, Carys Fletcher's mother dies in a car crash.

"Day One" (TW).

September: The garden makeover program "Ground Force" debuts on the BBC. A deadly version of the show will be broadcast through the Game Station in the far future.

As mentioned in "Bad Wolf" (DW2).

1998

An armistice is reached between the Uvodni and Malakh Empires, ending the long Ghost Wars. A message is sent out recalling all Uvodni war vessels. However, General Kudlak's ship's battle computer, "the Mistress", unable to accept the concept of peace, hides this message from the General, allowing him to believe the war continues.

"Ten years" before "Warriors of Kudlak" (SJA) (2008).

Clara Oswald, aged 9, takes ownership of her mother's copy of the book 101 Places to See.

Her age is seen written in the book in "The Rings of Akhaten (DW2)".

December: Rose Tyler, aged 12, receives a red bicycle for Christmas. The Doctor may be involved.

The Doctor implies his involvement in "The Doctor Dances" (DW2).

1999

October 4: Steven Carter is born to Joe Carter and his wife Alice Sangster, in reality Melissa Moretti, Jack Harkness' daughter.

"Children of Earth" (TW).

December 30-31: Doctor Who (TVM): The 7th Doctor is given the responsibility of transporting the apparent remains of the Master, executed by the Daleks, back to Gallifrey. However, the Master's essence survives as a snake-like creature that forces the TARDIS off course, leading to an emergency landing in San Fransicso. The Doctor is shot, caught in the crossfire of a local gang war. When operated on by Dr. Grace Holloway, he "dies" and regenerates into his 8th incarnation. Meanwhile, the Master takes possession of the body of Bruce, an ambulance driver.

In an attempt to gain control of both the Doctor's body and his ship, the Master opens the TARDIS' link to the Eye of Harmony on Gallifrey, endangering Earth. With the help of Grace and gang member Chang Lee, the Doctor regains control of the TARDIS and, travelling backwards in time, reabsorbs the Eye's energies, saving Earth. The Master falls into the Eye, apparently absorbed by the TARDIS.

A caption first gives the years as "1999", with later character dialogue giving the specific date as December 30. The story concludes on New Year's Day.

December 31: Fragments (TW): After dealing with a "Millennium Bug", Jack Harkness returns to the Torchwood Three Hub to find that current team leader Alex has murdered the rest of the team. Alex holds a locket that has given him a vision of the future, driving him mad.

Alex then commits suicide, but not before leaving Torchwood Three to a horrified Jack as a "reward for a century of service".

A caption gives the date as "New Year's Eve, 1999". Due to time zone differences, this entire scene takes place during Doctor Who (TVM), even the moments after midnight on January 1, 2000, London time.

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