Marion’s First Planet, begins with a nice bit of scene setting and some information about Kristoph’s background. He is from a family of four children, with an older sister and a younger brother and sister. There is no particular reason why I decided to make him a part of such a large family, except possibly the fact that I come from a family of two brothers and two sisters and that seems to me as the ‘normal’ state of affairs for a family. My sister definitely isn’t a nun, though. And neither of my brothers is a politician.

Anyway, on to Marion’s first planet, and it seemed obvious to me that the most benign planet in the universe is the Eye of Orion. This is the place featured in the Doctor Who story The Five Doctors, where the air feels like Earth after a rainstorm because of the positive ions in the atmosphere. It is a place that just cries out for expansion. I did a Ten story that also features the planet, which had a bit more of an adventure going on. For Marion and Kristoph it didn’t need very much going on. All it really needed was a picnic, a sunset, and some stargazing. The idea that both Earth’s star and Gallifreys can be seen from the Eye of Orion is something that seemed important to note - seeing both from a third planet perspective.

The other important thing about this story, is Marion snuggling up in a shared sleeping bag with Kristoph. This is another notch up in their relationship. They’ve ‘slept’ together now, even if they were fully clothed.