In Dinosaurs on a Spaceship, the Doctor does not seem to recognize Brian Williams (Rory's dad).
How is that possible?
Wasn't the Doctor at the Ponds' wedding?
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3He was at their wedding, but I don't recall enough of the episode to know how long for. He may not have met Brian then, or did but not for long enough to actually remember him - the Doctor encounters a huge number of people so likely doesn't remember anywhere near all of them.– Anthony GristSep 10, 2012 at 14:36
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2The Doctor danced with everyone at the wedding. The women were all brilliant, but the men were a bit shy.– Bob WarwickSep 10, 2012 at 17:45
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The question is of course, was Mr Williams there? Did anyone watch The Big Bang recently?– Mr ListerSep 10, 2012 at 17:52
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The actor isn't credited in the ep on IMDB: imdb.com/name/nm0931247.– Bob WarwickSep 10, 2012 at 18:20
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1@Avner The woman next to Rory is Amy's mother, which is normal. If they follow standard wedding tradition, the groom's father would be next to the bride's mother; there's an older gentleman in that seat but he looks nothing like Brian Williams. The only time you can really see his face in near the end, as the TARDIS materializes and Rory says "It's the Doctor! How did we forget the Doctor?"– KutuluMikeMay 10, 2013 at 20:44
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3 Answers
He was never specifically mentioned as being there or missing it, either way. The Doctor mentioned he danced with everybody at the wedding, including the men, so it would seem likely he would have met Brian. However, the Doctor has a track record of being a bit spacey (pardon) when it comes to these things -- not recognizing Rory, for example, when he returned at the end of Season 5. He was also caught up enough in the moment to not realize he had abducted Brian.
The actor was not credited in the episode with the wedding, as per @Bob Warwick's comment. This wouldn't preclude him from being played by a different actor, however. If he was present at the wedding, the actor would have more or less been an extra, and would not have been cast in the same way a guest star is cast.
If he was present at the wedding, the doctor simply forgot him (or never knew who he was, just that he was at the wedding). The actor was not, so Brian was either not on camera at the wedding or they changed the actor who played him (if he was present).
Brian didn't like travelling - who knows where Rory's parents lived, Brian might not have made the trip or just was busy being anxious. Also it looks like Rory's mum isn't on the scene, seeing as Brian goes away on his own, either she's dead or they're divorced, in which case his mum could've been at the weeding but his dad wasn't.
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also, I should mention, if his mum was there and divorced, if she had a new partner there may have been some rivalry, meaning that she doesn't get to sit at the top table or Brian refused to come Sep 18, 2012 at 15:43
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1Hi Elizabeth, and welcome to the site. We generally like answers to be backed up with canonical fact rather than pure speculation. Brian didn't seem to be agoraphobic, he just didn't seem to enjoy travelling, so it's a bit of a stretch to claim that he wouldn't come to his son's marriage. I can also not remember any indication of Rory's parents being divorced. So, perhaps you can add some evidence to support your answer?– bitmaskSep 22, 2012 at 6:30
He could well have been there and danced with the doctor but the doctor might not have realised who he was after all there were lots of relatives and friends there.
