Goth Opera was the first novel in the Virgin Missing Adventures series. Written by Paul Cornell, it featured the Fifth Doctor, Tegan Jovanka and Nyssa. It built on the narrative in the novel Blood Harvest, which was deliberately crafted to build interest in this novel.
Publisher's summary
- "The time of humanity on this world has come to an end. The long night is starting. The age of the undead is upon us."
Manchester, 1993. The vampires of Great Britain have received a message: the long-awaited arrival of their evil messiah is imminent. It's time for a recruitment drive.
On holiday in Tasmania with Tegan and the Fifth Doctor, Nyssa is attacked by a demonic child. She escapes unharmed — except for two small wounds in her neck.
Why are the descendants of the Great Vampire so desperate to obtain the blood of a Time Lord? And what is their connection to a forbidden ancient Gallifreyan cult?
Plot
to be added
Characters
Worldbuilding
The Doctor
- The Doctor is a contributor to the Wisden cricket magazine.
- The Doctor brushes up on his batting skills in the cricket nets.
- The Doctor uses his cricket bag.
- The Doctor also uses a bowling machine.
Individuals
Gallifrey
- Romana II's political rise on Gallifrey is chronicled here.
- The Doctor and Ruath were classmates at the Prydonian Academy on Gallifrey with the Monk.
Notes
- In the original cover artwork for the novel, there was much more blood on Nyssa's clothes. This was considered too graphic a cover image by W H Smith, the UK's largest book retailer, so the image was altered to be less graphic before publication.[1]
- The plot for the novel was originally developed from an unproduced comic strip for Doctor Who Magazine, which would have featured the Fourth Doctor in a fight against Dracula. Cornell revised the story to use the Fifth Doctor for this novel. (REF: I, Who)
- Paul Cornell once called the experiencing of writing this novel "most unpleasant", but did not elaborate.[2] He later called the book obvious pastiche.
- The back cover indicates this story takes place between the television stories Snakedance and Mawdryn Undead.
- In one line, Ruath lists the Doctor's fellow students at the Time Lord Academy under Borusa to have later become "scoundrels": "Mortimus, the Rani, that idiot Magnus… and you, Doctor". This context makes it clear that "Magnus" here refers to the Master, as it would be unthinkable for such a list not to include the Master. This followed the implication and original intent of Flashback, which featured a "Magnus" who lived on Gallifrey with the First Doctor prior to the latter's departure. However, to avoid conflict with The Dark Path's contention that the Master's original name was instead Koschei, Gary Russell later claimed in Divided Loyalties that Magnus was a different Time Lord.
Continuity
- Tegan is still recovering from her second battle against the Mara on Manussa. (TV: Snakedance [+]Christopher Bailey, Doctor Who season 20 (BBC1, 1983).)
- Following Adric's death, the Doctor swears that he will not allow another of his companions to die during his current incarnation. (TV: Earthshock [+]Eric Saward, Doctor Who season 19 (BBC1|BBC1]], 1982).)
- The Doctor refers to the Xeraphins. (TV: Time-Flight [+]Peter Grimwade, Doctor Who season 19 (BBC1, 1982).)
- Ruath was introduced meeting Romana in Blood Harvest, a passage which reappears in this novel.
- Tracking the journeys of the Fifth Doctor, Ruath notes that he has travelled to a deserted planet, (TV: Castrovalva [+]Christopher H. Bidmead, Doctor Who season 19 (BBC1, 1982).) Monarch's ship in deep space in 1981, (TV: Four to Doomsday [+]Terence Dudley, Doctor Who season 19 (BBC1, 1982).) Deva Loka, (TV: Kinda [+]Christopher Bailey, Doctor Who season 19 (BBC1, 1982).) Earth on several occasions, (TV: The Visitation [+]Eric Saward, Doctor Who season 19 (BBC1, 1982)., PROSE: The Immortals [+]Simon Guerrier, Short Trips: Past Tense (Short Trips, 2004)., First Born [+]Lizzie Hopley, Short Trips: The Centenarian (Short Trips short stories, 2006)., AUDIO: Smoke and Mirrors [+]Steve Lyons, Destiny of the Doctor (Big Finish Productions, 2013)., TV: Earthshock [+]Eric Saward, Doctor Who season 19 (BBC1|BBC1]], 1982)., Time-Flight [+]Peter Grimwade, Doctor Who season 19 (BBC1, 1982)., Arc of Infinity [+]Johnny Byrne, Doctor Who season 20 (BBC1, 1983).) Gallifrey (TV: Arc of Infinity [+]Johnny Byrne, Doctor Who season 20 (BBC1, 1983).) and Manussa. (TV: Snakedance [+]Christopher Bailey, Doctor Who season 20 (BBC1, 1983).)
- Ruath sees a point in the future in which Gallifrey does not exist. (PROSE: The Ancestor Cell [+]Peter Anghelides and Stephen Cole, BBC Eighth Doctor Adventures (BBC Books, 2000).)
- Ruath takes Yarven to the time stream/possible future of the Haemovores. (TV: The Curse of Fenric [+]Ian Briggs, Doctor Who season 26 (BBC1, 1989).)
- Romana refers to the Minyans. (TV: Underworld [+]Bob Baker and Dave Martin, Doctor Who season 15 (BBC1, 1978).)
- Ruath traps Romana in a Miniscope containing Drashigs. (TV: Carnival of Monsters [+]Robert Holmes, Doctor Who season 10 (BBC1, 1973).)
- Melanie Bush is no longer travelling with Sabalom Glitz aboard the Nosferatu II. (TV: Dragonfire [+]Ian Briggs, adapted from Seventh Doctor Audition Tapes (Andrew Cartmel), Doctor Who season 24 (BBC1, 1987).; PROSE: Head Games [+]Steve Lyons, Virgin New Adventures (Virgin Books, 1995).)
- Flavia complains about the decor of the presidential suite. (TV: The Invasion of Time [+]David Agnew, Doctor Who season 15 (BBC1, 1978).)
- The Black Guardian and the White Guardian play chess on Gallifrey. (TV: Enlightenment [+]Barbara Clegg, Doctor Who season 20 (BBC1, 1983).)
- The Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan would visit Manchester again in August 1819. (AUDIO: The Peterloo Massacre [+]Error: Code 2 - no data stored in variables, cache or SMW.)
- The Doctor has encountered vampires before in TV: State of Decay [+]Terrance Dicks, Doctor Who season 18 (BBC1, 1980).. He would encounter vampires again in TV: The Vampires of Venice [+]Toby Whithouse, Doctor Who series 5 (BBC One, 2010)..