Aboard The SS Isle of Capri is one of the first stories I wrote set aboard this fantastic ship. It isn’t my invention. It came from the pen of my friend Prue Thomason of Brisbane, who invented the SS Isle of Capri in one of her own Ninth Doctor stories. Prue passed away early in 2009, so these stories all stand as a memorial to her imagination and powers of description. The individually designed rooms were all her idea. So was the wonderful ballroom that features in this story.

The Vulpesi with their lilac tails are Prue’s invention, too. They are fantastic characters that I have made use of now along with the SS Isle of Capri in several stories. There is scope, after all, for all of my different characters to visit this wonderful ship.

The idea that the security isn’t quite what it ought to be is a sort of running feature through most of the stories. Here, it is a bit of comic relief as Lily and Marion are treated to a visit from the ‘entertainment’.

The serious part of this story involves Lord Oakdaene, whose behaviour is clearly unbecoming a Time Lord. It is the first time that Marion learns Li Tuo’s secret – he is the brother of Lord Oakdaene. This was first revealed, of course, in the Theta Sigma story ‘Time is the Fire’ when Li Tuo died and his secrets became known to Chrístõ. For those reading the stories as they were written and posted, Time Is The Fire came first by several weeks. But for people reading the stories new, they sometimes come to this one before the Theta Sigma story, and are thus not surprised by the revelation in Time Is The Fire. It doesn’t really matter. The two sets of stories are intertwined and there is no right or wrong way to read them. Some come to Marion and Kristoph first, some Theta Sigma. Either way, hopefully, the rich tapestry of Gallifreyan life weaves itself satisfactorily.