Death of An Oldblood starts with an idyllic morning for Marion, doing what she likes to do most – teaching the children at the Caretaker school on the Lœngbærrow Estate. But as the title suggests, this is the calm before the storm. The model of the Dawn Treader is forgotten as Marion is escorted home by Chancellery Guards. Even her chauffer is carrying a gun. Something is terribly wrong.

Killing off Lady Ravenswode wasn’t a hard choice. She wasn’t a nice woman. As a victim of a vicious murderer she served a purpose. It couldn’t be Lady Oakdaene, who isn’t nice, either, because she has to be the mother of Rõgæn Koschei Oakdaene, known as Epsilon, and later The Master. Her death is part of an angst ridden story in the Theta Sigma series. So Lady Ravenswode it had to be.

The Sons of Gellovia, of course, hark back to a character first mentioned in an Unfinished Business story, Dark Matrix. Lissandro Harpaindrix Gellovia was one of the notorious characters frozen in Shada’s cryogenic prison whose ghost caused trouble for the Ninth and Tenth Doctors in a dual Doctor story. He has come up a few more times in conversation and may well do again. His dark doings are notorious in Gallifreyan society – at least the version of it that I invented. That a cult has gathered around his legend and would go to the extent of murdering a woman and threatening others to get their leader freed is not too far fetched. Humans have committed atrocities for far less reason. Why should Time Lords be immune to such lunacy? Certainly the few times we have seen Gallifrey on Doctor Who there are individuals with base reasons for committing murder.

The gathering of De Lœngbærrow women at Mount Lœng House is a reminder of some tensions within that family. Orianna is still a snob who resents Marion’s presence. She is probably grieving most since Lady Ravenswode IS one of her friends, but it doesn’t excuse her behaviour. Renita, as usual, is quietly gracious. Aineytta is charming, Thedera practical. Marion is thrown into it all as usual, feeling not quite a part of the group, but connected to them all the same.

The scene is set for part two of this story.