Posted in: BBC, Disney+, Doctor Who, TV | Tagged: bbc, disney, doctor who, Millie Gibson, Ncuti Gatwa, russell t davies

Doctor Who: What Exactly Did The Ghostly Old Woman Say in "73 Yards"?

Everyone wonders what The Ghostly Old Woman says in Doctor Who: "73 Yards" that causes people to flee in terror - but you can work it out.

"73 Yards" has been the most talked-about episode of Doctor Who this season for a lot of reasons, but there is one question that almost every viewer keeps asking: what exactly did the Ghostly Old Woman say that scared away anyone that goes up to her? Everyone who watched the episode can't help wondering or guessing what the old woman said. Is she even saying anything? "Your mum wears combat boots." "You left the kettle on." "Let me tell you how great Brexit is." "I have COVID." It truly could be anything. This has become the biggest mystery in the series, a McGuffin that viewers are going crazy thinking about. That's the beauty of a mystery: it is endless, bottomless, and keeps you wondering forever. There is no "there" there, to quote Gertrude Stein. Russell T. Davies has gleefully said on Doctor Who Unleashed that he will never tell us. He knew we would all be asking. He likes to torture viewers that way.

We Know What the Ghostly Old Woman Said

…But we're not going to tell you. Hilary Robson, whose face we never see, played the Ghostly Old Woman in the distance, said Davies had written the lines that she spoke. They were deliberately never recorded. She wasn't just gesturing wildly or signing some kind of magical spell or signal. She was just talking. That is the mystery of why people find her terrifying. Atmospheric horror is all in the context. When was the last time Doctor Who had a supernatural mystery at the heart of a story? And if a mystery has a proper answer, then it's not a mystery; it's a puzzle. Puzzles have an end; mysteries don't.

You Can Work Out What She Said on Your Own

At the end of the episode, the old woman turns out to be an Elderly Ruby at the end of her life. She's played by a different actress from Hilary Robson. As she travels back in time, she's calling out to her young self. This time, you heard her dialogue as she reached out to Ruby. Those are the gestures she's making as she calls out. She's only ever talking to her younger self. She doesn't even acknowledge anyone who approaches her. You see that she never looks at them. So how does what she says frighten people? We already mentioned our theory: it's not what she says that scares them. It's what she is – she's a ghost, a wraith, a dead thing that shouldn't be up and standing there talking. They sense that when they get up close to her, and they react instinctively – in terror.

Sorry, Ncuti Gatwa, you're charismatic and sexy and all, but look what happens when you're not around for a whole episode. Millie Gibson carries the episode beautifully and proves she's not only a worthy companion but is a highly talented actor at her young age – she was only 18 when she shot this episode. "Blame" all of it on Russell T. Davies.

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