Doctor Who: Nest Cottage

An illustration I did depicting the Fourth Doctor as portrayed by Tom Baker in Nest Cottage. A place created by author Paul Magrs which first appeared in a series he wrote for the Fourth Doctor titled The Hornets Nest.

Ths series was the first time Tom Baker had played the part of the Doctor since his final appearance in the 1981 television episode Logopolis. Paul got the pleasure of being the first person to write for his Doctor.

The way Paul had originally described Nest Cottage to me is it was a bit like Merlin's House. A mix of the Doctor's travels. Past, present and future. So, I was sure to add a few items from the Doctor's future self such as the jackets he wore in his Fifth and Sixth incarnations as well as the question mark handled umbrella he carried in his seventh.

There's even a picture of the Doctor's first incarnation with a smaller painting of his granddaughter Susan next to him.

I even added Panda sitting next to him reading a copy of The House at Pooh Corner. Panda was a character created for Paul's Iris Wildthyme series. It's a stuffed panda who travels with Iris.

The woman glowering nearest the window would be the Doctor's landlady Mrs. Wibbsey. A bit like the Doctor's very own Mrs. Hudson who keeps an eye on the place when the Doctor is off traveling through time and space.

I also decided to create a different version of the Doctor's costume for this series. Although, this series is supposed to take place somewhere in the middle of Baker's tenure as the Doctor. Somewhere in between the Invasion of Time and The Ribos Operation which were on television between 1977 to 1978. I decided to a version of the Fourth Doctor's costume that was a cross between the one he was wearing during that period and one that he wore in his last year as the Doctor.