Bernice Summerfield

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Doctor Who universe character


Bernice Summerfield
Affiliated with Seventh Doctor
Eighth Doctor
St. Oscar's University, Dellah
The Braxiatel Collection
Race Human
Home planet Earth
Home era 26th century
First appearance Love and War
Last appearance Ongoing
Portrayed by Lisa Bowerman (voice)

Bernice Surprise Summerfield (later Professor Bernice Summerfield or just Benny) is a fictional character originally created by author Paul Cornell as a new companion of the Seventh Doctor in Virgin Publishing's range of original full-length Doctor Who novels, the New Adventures. The New Adventures were fully-licensed novels carrying on from where the Doctor Who television series had left off, and Summerfield was introduced in Cornell's novel Love and War in 1992.

Contents

[edit] Bernice Summerfield history

A 26th century archeologist, Summerfield became a hugely popular character amongst fans of the books, and was present right up until their end in 1997. She officially stopped travelling with the Doctor in Happy Endings but returned a few times thereafter, including the last Virgin New Adventure, The Dying Days. That year, Virgin had lost the licence to publish Doctor Who fiction, which was not renewed by the BBC. However, range editors Peter Darvill-Evans and Rebecca Levene decided to continue the series with Summerfield as the new lead and without the Doctor Who name, the Doctor or any other BBC copyright characters featuring.

These Bernice-led New Adventures continued until 1999, when the Virgin fiction department closed down. The previous year, however, audio production company Big Finish Productions begun issuing full-cast, officially licensed professional audio dramas starring the character on CD, and they continue to do so. The character is played in all Big Finish's productions by actress Lisa Bowerman. After they gained the license to produce Doctor Who audio dramas in 1999, Big Finish twice featured Bernice in Doctor Who stories set during the run of the New Adventures novels.

As of 2006, Big Finish are still regularly producing Bernice Summerfield audio dramas and the company has also published various novels and short story collections featuring the character.

Bernice also appeared in several comic strips in Doctor Who Magazine, with Virgin and the magazine co-operating on her visual depiction.

[edit] Bernice Summerfield books

[edit] Doctor Who - The New Adventures

The Doctor first meets Benny in Love and War - she is a 30 year old archaeologist. She was born in 2540 and is the daughter of Admiral Isaac Douglas Summerfield - a high ranking Spacefleet officer. Her mother, Claire Summerfield, died when Daleks attacked their homeworld of Beta Caprisis, an Earth colony. She has not seen her father for many years and has spent much of her life searching for him.

At times she falsely claims to have a degree from Heidelberg University. She published an archaeological book called Down Among the Dead Men in the year 2566.

Theatre of War features the first encounter between Bernice and Irving Braxiatel (from her perspective). He later becomes a regular character in the Bernice Summerfield-only New Adventures.

In Sanctuary Bernice falls in love with Guy de Carnac, a former Knight Templar. Unfortunately he is killed later in the novel.

In Death and Diplomacy she meets her future husband Jason Kane, who she marries in the very next novel, Happy Endings. Happy Endings is set on the occasion of Bernice's wedding to Jason Kane. Bernice leaves the TARDIS after this novel having been given Time Rings by the Doctor, but she appears in certain subsequent Doctor Who novels.

In Return of the Living Dad, Bernice finally resolves the mystery of what happened to her father.

Virgin had long considered a non-Doctor Who spin-off series, but plans were moved forwards when they lost the license from the BBC. A number of preparations were made for the transition to Bernice-led New Adventures (see below). As Virgin felt Bernice would make a better lead as a single woman, her marriage to Jason Kane was split up. Thus, she appears again in Eternity Weeps, a novel which describes the breakdown of her marriage and is also focused on her more than the Doctor as a prototype for the Doctor-free novels to come. Likewise, the last New Adventure, The Dying Days, is again focused on Bernice more than the Doctor, with the Doctor absent from a substantial portion of the book. The Dying Days also features an ambiguous epilogue which can be taken to imply that the Doctor and Bernice have sex.

This same epilogue also has the Doctor indicating that Benny is his longest-serving companion, although exactly how long she travelled with the Doctor has never been firmly established.

[edit] Short Trips

Bernice also appears in a number of Doctor Who short stories set during her travels with the Doctor.

[edit] The New Adventures

Originally published monthly, the New Adventures went bimonthly after The Sword of Forever.

The New Adventures continued with Bernice generally in the leading role. Oh No It Isn't! provides the set-up for subsequent stories, with Bernice becoming Professor of Archaeology at St Oscar's University on the planet Dellah. She has now put her failed marriage to Jason Kane behind her. Oh No It Isn't! also re-introduces the People, a highly advanced alien race from the Doctor Who New Adventures. In Ghost Devices, we meet Clarence (named after the angel in It's a Wonderful Life). Clarence appears in the form of an angel, but is an artificial intelligence from the People who is eventually (in Tears of the Oracle) revealed to be a character from The Also People. In Dragons' Wrath, Bernice meets Irving Braxiatel for the first time (from his perspective). Beyond the Sun introduces another recurring character, Emile Mars-Smith. Emile, Clarence and the People appear in a number of subsequent New Adventures, while Braxiatel appears in both further New Adventures and Benny stories from Big Finish.

Where Angels Fear starts the Gods arc, a loose overarching story that finishes in Twilight of the Gods. Along the way, Dellah is destroyed and Bernice is uprooted and loses her memory. Twilight of the Gods finishes with a new set-up for subsequent stories involving Bernice, Emile and others, but this was not used as Virgin stopped publishing the series.

As well as continuing the New Adventures after losing the Doctor Who license, Virgin also continued with their Decalog series. These had been Doctor Who short story anthologies, but Decalog 5: Wonders featured a Benny short story (The Judgement of Solomon) by Lawrence Miles alongside other shorts not set in the New Adventures continuity.

[edit] Big Finish paperback novels

Big Finish licensed the character of Bernice Summerfield from Paul Cornell, Irving Braxiatel from Justin Richards and Jason Kane from Dave Stone, but other elements of the Virgin New Adventures' fictional universe were not obtained. Instead, Gary Russell, Jac Rayner and Cornell developed a new background and character ensemble, introduced in the anthology The Dead Men Diaries and developed in the initial run of paperbacks.

The most notable development in Big Finish's paperback novels was Bernice's pregnancy and the birth of her son in The Glass Prison.

The paperback novels proved uneconomic and Big Finish stopped publishing them, subsequently re-launching their Benny books in hardback with the anthology A Life of Surprises.

[edit] Big Finish hardcover novels

[edit] Big Finish novellas

  • A Life In Pieces — a collection of three novellas in one book
  • Parallel Lives — a collection of three novellas in one book
  • Old Friends — a collection of three novellas in one book
  • Nobody's Children — a collection of three novellas in one book
  • The Vampire Curse — a collection of three novellas in one book

[edit] Big Finish anthologies

[edit] Bernice Summerfield audio plays

[edit] Season 1

# Title Author Adapted by Released
1.1 Oh No It Isn't! Paul Cornell Jacqueline Rayner September, 1998
1.2 Beyond the Sun Matt Jones Matt Jones September, 1998
1.3 Walking to Babylon Kate Orman Jacqueline Rayner November, 1998
1.4 Birthright Nigel Robinson Jacqueline Rayner February, 1999
1.5 Just War Lance Parkin Jacqueline Rayner August, 1999
1.6 Dragons' Wrath Justin Richards Jacqueline Rayner September, 2000

The first season of Bernice Summerfield audio plays are all adaptations of New Adventures novels originally published by Virgin Publishing. Each of the plays spans two CDs, except for Dragon's Wrath, which was issued on a single CD.

The plays deviate from the original novels, in terms of plot and characters, to varying degrees. This is particularly evident with the productions of Birthright and Just War, both of which were originally Doctor Who novels. These changes were necessary because, at the time of their production, Big Finish Productions weren't licensed to produce Doctor Who audio plays.

Actor and photographer Lisa Bowerman was cast in the role of Bernice Summerfield. Bowerman had previously appeared in the Doctor Who story Survival (1989). The first series also co-starred Stephen Fewell as Jason Kane. A variety of actors familiar to Doctor Who fans played guest roles in many of the plays, including Colin Baker, Sophie Aldred, Nicholas Courtney, Elisabeth Sladen, Anneke Wills and Richard Franklin.

[edit] Season 2

# Title Author Released
2.1 The Secret of Cassandra David Bailey December 18, 2000
2.2 The Stone's Lament Mike Tucker May 8, 2001
2.3 The Extinction Event Lance Parkin July 9, 2001
2.4 The Skymines of Karthos David Bailey September 3, 2001

For the second season of Bernice Summerfield audio plays, Big Finish Productions experimented by developing ongoing character arcs that alternated between two different mediums — the audio plays and novels. Fans who did not collect the novels were initially confused to discover that Benny was pregnant during the final audio play of the season, The Skymines of Karthos. The pregnancy was explained in the novel The Squire's Crystal by Jacqueline Rayner.

The run of plays from the second season onwards take part in what has become known as the Collection continuity, as they are set primarily on the Braxiatel Collection, a combined museum and university located on the planetoid KS-159. A number of regular characters are introduced for the first time, most notably Irving Braxiatel. First referenced in the 1979 Doctor Who story City of Death (written by Douglas Adams and Graham Williams), Braxiatel first appeared in person in the New Adventures novel Theatre of War.

[edit] Season 3

# Title Author Released
3.1 The Greatest Shop in the Galaxy Paul Ebbs February 25, 2002
3.2 The Green-Eyed Monsters Dave Stone June 20, 2002
3.3 The Dance of the Dead Stephen Cole October 24, 2002
3.4 The Mirror Effect Stewart Sheargold March, 2003

Whereas the previous seasons had focused primarily on the character of Bernice Summerfield, Big Finish used the third season as an opportunity to introduce an ensemble feel to the productions. This is most evident in The Green-Eyed Monsters and The Mirror Effect where the characters Jason Kane, Adrian Wall and Irving Braxiatel are significantly developed. The latter, in particular, suggests that Braxiatel has a darker, more mysterious past than the audience has previously been led to believe.

The other two plays that comprise the third season focus more specifically on Bernice. The Greatest Shop in the Galaxy remains the most light-hearted play of the season, while The Dance of the Dead reintroduces the Ice Warriors from Doctor Who.

While not officially part of the third season (at least as far as the numbering is concerned), the Bernice Summerfield audio play The Plague Herds of Excelis (the fourth play in Big Finish's Excelis series; the first three plays fall under the Doctor Who umbrella) takes place between The Green-Eyed Monsters and The Dance of the Dead. Chronologically, the short story anthology A Life of Surprises also falls within this gap.

[edit] Season 4

# Title Author Released
4.1 The Bellotron Incident Mike Tucker April, 2003
4.2 The Draconian Rage Trevor Baxendale August, 2003
4.3 The Poison Seas David Bailey September, 2003
4.4 Death and the Daleks Paul Cornell January, 2004

The fourth season was unofficially dubbed the "classic Who monsters" season, with each play featuring an alien adversary that previously appeared in the Doctor Who television series. The Bellotron Incident predominantly features the Rutan Host (their major enemies, the Sontarans, are also referred to but don't actually appear), The Draconian Rage features the Draconians, The Poison Seas casts a more sympathetic light on the Sea Devils, while Death and the Daleks (the first double CD release in the series since Just War) sees the first appearance of the Daleks within the Bernice Summerfield series. Prior to its release, Death and the Daleks was entitled The Axis of Evil to keep the appearance of the Daleks a secret.

Big Finish also published an anthology of short stories, entitled Life During Wartime, that was specially written as a prelude to the Death and the Daleks audio play. Paul Cornell, the anthology's editor, described Life During Wartime as "a novel written by multiple authors". Each of the collection's stories are told in chronological order, detailing events that occur when the Collection is occupied by a powerful alien force. The anthology ends on a cliff-hanger that is resolved in Death and the Daleks.

[edit] Season 5

# Title Author Released
5.1 The Grel Escape Jacqueline Rayner July, 2004
5.2 The Bone of Contention Simon A. Forward August, 2004
5.3 The Relics of Jegg-Sau Stephen Cole November, 2004
5.4 The Masquerade of Death Stewart Sheargold March, 2005

The previous season's tradition of using classic monsters continues into the fifth season, with the Grel (previously heard in Oh No It Isn't!) returning in The Grel Escape, a knowing pastiche of The Chase. The Bone of Contention features the Galyari, who appeared in the Doctor Who audio play The Sandman, while the title and plot of The Relics of Jegg-Sau was inspired by a 1970s Doctor Who licensed jigsaw puzzle that depicted a scene with giant robots identical to the one that appeared in Robot.

The Masquerade of Death brings the fifth season to a close in a suitably dark and surreal fashion.

[edit] Season 6

# Title Author Released
6.1 The Heart's Desire David Bailey & Neil Corry June, 2005
6.2 The Kingdom of the Blind Jacqueline Rayner July, 2005
6.3 The Lost Museum Simon Guerrier September, 2005
6.4 The Goddess Quandary Andy Russell February, 2006
6.5 The Crystal of Cantus Joseph Lidster June, 2006

By the end of The Crystal of Cantus, the true dark and manipulative nature of Braxiatel was revealed and he left the Collection. Its future is now uncertain, with the Draconians claiming they own the planetoid it is based on.

[edit] Season 7

# Title Author Released
7.1 The Tartarus Gate Stewart Sheargold July, 2006
7.2 Timeless Passages Daniel O'Mahony August, 2006
7.3 The Worst Thing in the World Dave Stone September, 2006
7.4 Summer of Love Simon Guerrier October, 2006
7.5 The Oracle of Delphi Scott Handcock November, 2006
7.6 The Empire State Eddie Robson December, 2006

The seventh season follows the staff of the Collection as they attempt to keep things running smoothly in Braxiatel's absence. Collected Works and Old Friends, two books published during this season's run, also develop the running plots that planetoid KS-159 is under threat from the Draconians and Mim, and that the Collection itself is falling apart literally as well as figuratively without Braxiatel at its helm.

[edit] Season 8

# Title Author Released
8.1 The Tub Full of Cats Daniel O'Mahony February, 2007
8.2 The Judas Gift Nick Wallace April, 2007
8.3 Freedom of Information Eddie Robson June, 2007
8.4 The End of the World Dave Stone September, 2007
8.5 The Final Amendment Joseph Lidster October, 2007
8.6 The Wake Simon Guerrier January, 2008

In the eighth season, Braxiatel returns to the Collection, which is threatened by crossfire and politics in the war between the Draconians and Mim. The war comes to an unexpected conclusion shortly after his return, and several regular characters pay a heavy price for realising too late that Braxiatel himself is the real threat. The season ends with Benny cutting her ties to the Collection and Braxiatel, and going on the run with her son Peter. The books The Two Jasons and Nobody's Children also fit into this season's arc.

[edit] Season 9

# Title Author Released
9.1 Beyond the Sea Eddie Robson June, 2008
9.2 The Adolescence of Time Lawrence Miles July, 2008
9.3 The Adventure of the Diogenes Damsel Jim Smith August, 2008
9.4 The Diet of Worms Matthew Sweet September, 2008

[edit] Miscellaneous

Title Author Released
Buried Treasures Jacqueline Rayner & Paul Cornell August, 1999
The Shadow of the Scourge Paul Cornell October, 2000
The Plague Herds of Excelis Stephen Cole July 1, 2002
The Dark Flame Trevor Baxendale March, 2003
Silver Lining Colin Brake 2004

Both The Shadow of the Scourge and The Dark Flame were part of Big Finish's ongoing Doctor Who line. Based in the continuity of the Virgin New Adventures, both feature Lisa Bowerman as Bernice alongside Sylvester McCoy as the Doctor and Sophie Aldred as Ace. The Plague Herds of Excelis was the epilogue to the three part Excelis cycle of Doctor Who audios, and features Iris Wildthyme, a recurring character in the Doctor Who BBC novels and Big Finish audio plays. Silver Lining was an exclusive audio drama featuring the Cybermen that came free with Doctor Who Magazine issue 351.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Companions of the Seventh Doctor (New Adventures)
Novels 1 - 8 9 10 - 12 13 - 35 36 - 38 39 - 42 43 44 - 48 49 50 51 - 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60
Companions ← Ace Ace Ace Ace Ace Ace
Bernice Bernice Bernice Bernice
(←) Mel Jason Jason Jason Jason
Roz
Chris
v • d • e
Companions of the Eighth Doctor (Novels)
Series NA Eighth Doctor Adventures
Novels 61 1 - 9 10 11 - 18 19 - 24 25 - 26 27 - 36 41 42 - 59 60 61 62 - 65 66 67 68 - 72 73
Companions Bernice Sam Susan Sam → Miranda Anji Miranda Anji
Fitz Fitz
Compassion Trix Trix