Iris Wildthyme - History

History

A character named Iris Wildthyme first appears in one of Magrs's non-genre novels, Marked for Life. At the end of the novel, Iris Wildthyme seems to die and then become a baby in a scene reminiscent of regeneration. The infant Iris appears in later books by Magrs taking place in the same Phoenix Court setting, and an apparently adult version re-appears in the story 'Hospitality', in the collection Iris: Abroad.

Iris's first Doctor Who-connected appearance is in the short story Old Flames, where she meets the Fourth Doctor and Sarah. The Doctor already knows Iris as an "old friend", and she is seen to be travelling in a 20th century London Routemaster double-decker bus (the No. 22 to Putney Common), which is, in reality, her TARDIS.

Iris made her first full-length novel appearance in The Scarlet Empress, and went on to appear in several more short stories and novels in the BBC Books range, the most recent being Mad Dogs and Englishmen in 2002. In that year Iris started appearing as an occasional crossover character in audio plays by Big Finish Productions, where she is voiced by Katy Manning, who had previously portrayed Jo Grant, a companion of the Third Doctor, in the early 1970s; resultant from the casting of Manning in the role, imagery of the character used by Big Finish and, later, Obverse Books on packaging and covers now depicted Manning's likeness.

Iris has since been the subject of a Big Finish short story collection, Wildthyme on Top, edited by Magrs, and (as of the beginning of 2012) seven audio dramas, consisting of two "seasons" and a Christmas special. Each release of the second "season" is intended as a pastiche of a decade of televised Doctor Who, from the 1960s through to the 1990s. Three further Iris audio dramas are due for release in 2012, one of them a crossover with the out-of-copyright character Carnacki the Ghost-Finder.

In most of her solo Big Finish appearances Iris is accompanied by her companion Tom (who first appeared in Verdigris and is played on audio by Ortis Deley), her 10 inch tall sentient, stuffed Panda (played by David Benson) or both.

Iris has appeared in several short stories (by Magrs and others) published in non-licensed, charity Doctor Who story anthologies. Several of these stories are archived at the Welcome to Wildthyme website.

A short story anthology, Iris Wildthyme and the Celestial Omnibus was published in May 2009 by Obverse Books. Four further anthology volumes have been published since, including the British Fantasy Society nominated collection, Wildthyme in Purple.

A full-length novel by Magrs featuring Iris and Panda, Enter Wildthyme, was published by Snowbooks in 2011, and a sequel - Wildthyme Beyond - released in 2012.