Episode 11

Turn Left

Episode Location: Shan Shen/Earth, London/Leeds
Aliens/Enemies: Time beetle?
New Characters: Rose, Wilf
Gadgets Used: Unknown
Episode Objective: To get the beetle off Donna's back and save the universe?

The Chino planet of Shan Shen seems like a great place to visit... that is, until a Fortune Teller tempts Donna with a free reading. In an incense-laced chamber, this mysterious and cryptic figure starts delving into Donna's past. Searching for something very significant... a single event. And what's that thing scuttling away in the curtains behind Donna's back...?

Donna's entire world collapses, but there's no sign of the Doctor. Instead, she finds help from a mysterious blonde woman – a traveller from a parallel universe. But, as Donna and Rose Tyler combine forces, are they too late to save the whole of creation from the approaching darkness?

The thing on Donna's back is a Time Beetle, and through a throwaway line from the Doctor at the end of the episode, its vaguely related to the Trickster. The Trickster himself is never shown, and you don't need to know anything about him in order to understand or enjoy the episode.

Anyway, this beetle leads to us seeing an alternative timeline where Donna never goes for her job interview at H.C Clements, and therefore doesn't meet the Doctor.

This time line is all about making decisions: which way to turn... left or right...

Its set in an apocalyptic world where refugees are sent to Leeds for safety. It contains the words "Leeds", "photocopy", "spanish", "telescope" and "raffle ticket"

(Click for larger image)

And as we know, Rose is back!
"Rose has changed. She's hardened. She's sad and lonely, but also bolshy and single-minded..."

She's also trying very very hard to save the universe. But, according to DWM, we shouldn't automatically assume that Rose is on Donna's side, at least to begin with.

WILF: They're going out!...

"Oh my God. The stars are going out!"

Set Reports/Scenes
The below reports of filming, are from people on the DWF, so thankee to them. (Brian_Damage, Scooty, Simon Watkins, IanB, Kelmo, and of course Xoanon!)

Well, lets start at the beginning, since thats a very good place to start.
Right! Shan Shen! Fortune Teller! Strange poisoned drinks?! Time Beetles!

According to a synopsis, Shan Shen is "all flags, pagodas and local colour. The TARDIS twosome are having a right old laugh, messing around on the open-air, ramshackle market stalls."


But that's until Donna goes to see a fortune teller...


FORTUNE TELLER
But was there ever a choice? This job of yours, what led you there?
CU Donna, she flinches -
Whoosh! FLASHBACK, but to a new scene, the next scene, sc.3, glimpsed images, the car, her mum
CUT BACK TO DONNA; transfixed by the Fortune Teller's stare
DONNA
There was a choice. Six months before. Cos the agency offered me a contract as H.C Clements...
Whoosh! White flashback -

Beetle-vision!

1st Report of Filming
A group of people, including Donna, stand outside a pub, it has boarded windows but with some Christmas decorations. They're dressed quite fancy, maybe for a party?









All look into the sky and see something that is clearly shocking - there is speculation that its the Racnoss ship (backed up by facts from RTD)

Donna's friends watch the skies then begin to panic and run, except for one, who stares at Donna as she looks up at the sky. Donna asks her what she is looking at:

"There is something on your back, Donna!"

2nd Report of filming
The scene consisted of some Police barriers, a cordoned off area with Police barrier tape, a number of ambulances, lots of flashing blue lights etc, plus also a couple of army vehicles, some officers in uniform and some troops.


Is that commander Harris right there? Why yes it is! Wonder why he's back? It is because in this timeline the Sontarans haven't attacked yet? Or have they but it didn't involve UNIT, but Torchwood instead? Thats the rumors I've heard.



So there you go, the Doctor died while facing the Racnoss because Donna wasn't there to pull him away from the destruction and whatnot.



And, from what I've heard, there are certain things that Rose can't say while she is in other universes and whatnot... from looking at that wee clip, can we assume she can't say her name? What will happen if she does?


3rd Report of filming
Images, video and sightings of Rose running out of an ally. Flashing strobe lights appear to have preceded each scene featuring her arrival... so some sort of portal between this world and alternate earth that Rose jumps through?

Video
Donna is walking up the road. There are flashes of light and Rose appears, hurting past her. Donna is wearing smarter, more contemporary clothes than in the earlier shots, so it could be assumed that this it from a different episode than the earlier shooting....



Also, someone commented on what they thought was the dialog that followed this scene:

Donna: Oh God, are you alright, what was that, bloomin' fireworks or something?
Rose: I don't know. I keep hearing sounds but I cant hear where its coming from
Donna: look! Now I'm doing it! (does some strange arm movements)
Rose: I came out of nowhere. I was there, now I'm here!










4th Report of filming
The Evacuation to Leeds.

From speculation, the evacuation comes about because the spaceship Titanic crashes into Buckingham palace, causes a nuclear explosion, and wipes out the south of England.

These scenes are apparently quite harsh ... "and when they Government starts shipping off any non British citizens to 'labour camps' its a real moment."

Oh dear...

At some point in the episode, admidst all this death and destruction, there is a BBC news 24 report about the Royal Hope Hospital.
You see Morganstern (the medical student from Smith & Jones) being interviewed, and he says that Martha is dead.

They also recover Sarah-Jane's body and they have a short eulogy for her. During this, they mention that Maria, Luke and Clyde died with her too.

Anyway, back to the evacuees.

So, there were reports of some soldiers near a Land Rover, parked outside across the road. They definitely were not UNIT soldiers but some sort of regulars.

(Credit for the far left & right photos goes to Xoanon. Thanks!)

The streets were set up to make the houses look boarded up with corrugated iron. There were posters on the corrugated iron, the walls, houses, etc - they were stating things like:
"National Rehousing Scheme - Making New Homes"
"Got a room spare? - The spare room for the relief effort"
"Use Water Sparingly - Drink Only Government"










It appears that the population is being relocated. Donna and her family is among several other families allocated a house share in Leeds. Houses are boarded up, litter piled high in the street, Posters exhorting water restriction and help with the rehousing effort are everywhere.



The Noble family are shown to one house owned by a balding Asian guy who enthusiastically welcomes them, telling them how there is "plenty of room" in his house.









(Credit for the photo on the left goes to Xoanon. Thanks!)

Later, the landlord is removed to an army lorry with many others, leaving Donna and her granddad behind, Donna runs after the lorry shouting "where are you taking them!?" as her Gramps looks on.


In a different scene, a soldier is shooting into the back of his land rover outside the noble house, smoke is everywhere: Wilf emerges shouting at the soldier to stop firing
"Turn the gas off - are you stupid!?"









(Credit for these photos goes to Xoanon. Thanks!)

Wilf confronts the soldiers and tells him that in his day he would have been court-marshaled. At some point during all this, Donna shouts at someone and calls her "Vera Duckworth" before being told:
"It may be the end of the world, but shouting at it won't help!"

And then a soldier catches sight of something on Donna...

"Turn around! Show me your back!"

Now, is the soldier shocked because there's nothing there? Or because he can see the beetle and we cant?

Cower at the terrifying plastic beetle!

Either way, once Donna turns round everything goes still and quiet. Donna then walks slowly down the street, with her mum shouting from the safety of the doorway
"where are you going? Its not safe on the streets at night!"

At the end of the street, bright flashes of light are seen. Donna walks around the corner looking glum, and sees Rose standing opposite.


She does not look surprised. Almost resignedly she says "Hello". Rose replies in a similar fashion. They both seem down, browbeaten, almost defeated...


And I think around this time, or even a different time, Rose and Donna sit down and have a nice chat somewhere. Well, obviously its not nice since the world is ending, but you get the idea.

There seem to be trees behind Donna, so maybe they're in a park?

"Who are you?"

Well apparently Donna might not every find this out.. rumors are that Rose can't say certain words due to her traveling across the void or some such malarkey, so she never actually tells Donna her name...

"None of this was meant to happen..."

"I was like you"

And then I suppose Rose talks about her old attitude and how similar it was to Donna's, that is, before she met a man who changed everything, aka the Doctor. But I suppose Donna wont know what she's talking about really...

"I've been pulled across from a different universe,
because every single other universe is in danger..."

"Its coming Donna...
Coming from across the stars.
And nothing can stop it."

"What is?!"

" The darkness..."

"What am I supposed to do?!"

"You're gonna die"

Donna: I'm nothing special. I'm a temp! I'm not even that! I'm nothing.
Rose: Donna Noble, you're the most important woman in the whole of creation.

And apparently, as well as Martha, Sarah-Jane, and those children getting a mention, we also hear of Torchwood. "As the Atmos gas is ablaze in the sky, Rose mentions that Gwen Cooper and Ianto Jones have just given their lives to save the world and nobody will ever know..."

5th Report of filming:
And, as we know UNIT is involved in the evacuation, but perhaps they've got more of an involvement than we thought.


Well, by the looks of it, they're recovered the TARDIS at any rate. It seems to be dark inside, like there is only the shell of the ship remaining. Perhaps this is because the Doctor is now dead?

Oh, and that woman is apparently called Capt. Magambo, in case you were curious.


And it looks like Rose is in league with them, both working out how to save the universe and whatnot.


I'm assuming that they know some detail or other - maybe about the Doctor, or UNIT, or the coming darkness, the end of the universe, that sort of thing. Or maybe about how to get the thing off Donna's back and restore everything to normal?


And from these pictures, it looks like that may be the case. Apparently Donna's wiry coat, and the mirrors we can see here are set up to show Donna the beetle/spider on her back.

"Powering up!"

Although this looks like the big finale moment, I suspect it might not be... perhaps its just Donna realizing what she has to do for the first time. That seems to make sense as otherwise I can't fit the next set report in anywhere!

I really don't know where this scene fits into it all to be honest. It seems almost out of place... unless its at the very very end

6th Report of Filming
Donna runs down a street wearing the coat of wires and metal detonator-type things. She's also wearing a band on her wrist - what sort of looks like a vortex manipulator. She runs down the street to the camera, stops out of breath, and looks at a silver watch-like contraption on her wrist, and continues on her way.











As she runs down the street in a hurry, a blue van appears. It screeches to a stop but hits Donna in the process.

Rose appears and kneels next to Donna - witnesses confirm seeing "a big scene filmed in front of the van, with Donna lying on the ground and Rose Piper kneeling down looking after her"


Perhaps this is the only way Donna can fix everything? Through sacrificing herself and somehow destroying the beetle and whatnot. Maybe she knew the van was going to come round the corner at that exact time, and she was trying to get there in order to be hit?

I dunno, just speculating here.

But apparently the alternate Donna does sacrifices herself in order to fix the time lines/ destroy the beetle thing/save the day, and her dying words to Rose are "Bad Wolf"

And I don't know if this is at the start or the end, but it seems better fitted for the end, but according to a review

"Donna tells the Doctor something. It's set up that she's going to tell him something, but when she actually did, and it was so entirely not what I was expecting, it was the biggest twist I can ever remember in Who."

Rumors/Speculation

• Rose is head of parallel Torchwood
• The episode ends with Rose coming back into our world through some Torchwoody stuff, just as a Dalek/Davros attack begins. Hence RTD saying they would "top" the Master's reveal at the end of "Utopia".
• The Titanic causes an nuclear explosion wiping out the south of England – Donna is evacuated to Leeds
• America is wiped out by the Adipose

And as usual, DigitalSpy step up in their brilliance and give us some tasty spoilerness. Obviously 2 are red herrings, but lord knows which they are.

The original and full post can be seen here

• The true mastermind of the ill fate that happens to Donna in this episode will be familiar to fans of one of the Doctor Who spinoff shows.
  There is a throwaway line at the end of the episode that relates the Time Beetle to the Trickster (from SJA)
  

• Oliver Morgenstern from 'Smith And Jones' is back and in fine form.
  Yup, he appears on a news report saying Martha Jones is dead
  

• Donna suggests that footage of a Titanic replica spaceship flying towards Buckingham Palace is actually from a sequel to the famous Leonardo DiCaprio/Kate Winslet film.
  Possibly, rumors are that the evacuation to Leeds is because of the Titanic crashing into Buckingham and wiping out South England.
  

• There's a Wayne's World moment where Donna and Wilf sing Queen's 'Bohemian Rhapsody'.
  There's a possible hint to this happening in the Fear Forcast, as one of the boys begins to sing.
  

• Rose Tyler tells Donna that The Darkness is coming. Donna tells her that she saw them live in 2004 and they only had one good song.
  Don't know about Donna's snappy reply, but Rose definitely talks of the coming dark.
  

• Donna insults someone by calling them Vera Duckworth.
  From set reports, yup, this is true.
  

• Mr Chaudhary's wandering hands cause Donna some consternation.
  Possibly, don't really know anything about the character.
  

• Rose tells Donna two vital words to pass onto The Doctor. The first one is a name of an old enemy last seen in an escape pod. The second is "lives".
  This apparently happens at the end of the Stolen Earth... old enemy in space pod be Davros, and the second one be about a certain other Time Lord who is still alive.
  

• Donna has a beetle on her back and soon Wilf finds antlers on his head too.
  Well, Donna definitely has a beetle on her back. Tis a time beetle that she picked up in a carnival on Shan Shen.

And, here are the usual quotes and whatnot. The full article can be seen here and is well worth a read.

"It's like there's something I can't see."
"This stapler says '***'."
"I think you should leave me alone."
"You're not going to make the world any better by shouting at it."
"Why won't you tell me **** **** (your name?)"
"England for the English."

One more thing...
Something BIG is coming.