The Leaving of Liverpool is a famous song, of course, and now the title of TWO stories, this one in the Theta Sigma series, and one in the Marion and Kristoph story series when Marion finally leaves Liverpool and Earth to marry Kristoph and become a lady of Gallifrey. The song suits Marion’s departure more accurately, but it fitted this one, too, because Chrístõ leaves all of the friends he loves in Liverpool. He knows that it IS time that Cassie and Terry left him. Their baby needs to be born on Earth. And Sammie and Bo need to find their roots, too. Li Tuo offers both couples the chance to do that.

That part of this story is fairly straightforward, sad for Chrístõ, good for his friends who are going on to a better life than they hoped for. And it is the start of a tradition. The Doctor’s companions always leave sooner or later, mostly with high hopes and reasons to be cheerful. These four WILL be back a few times yet, but from now on their home is Liverpool in the early 21^st century.

The ‘accident’ that wrote Cassie and Terry out of 1969 and allowed them to belong to 2006 is my idea of how such breaks in causality can work without resulting in disaster.

But there is, of course, something sinister going on as well. The hooded figure in a dark room on Gallifrey, of course, is reminiscent of the traitor in Arc of Infinity who we don’t see until late in the story. Here, too, there is a traitor who isn’t revealed for several stories, and who has the death of Chrístõ as his motive.

The fortune teller on Lord Street with her seventh son of a seventh son is the sort of thing that happens on Lord Street. If it isn’t fortune tellers it is people who want to know if you’ve had an accident and would you like to claim compensation. That Chrístõ should meet a GENUINE seer there is less likely but not impossible. The revelation that he IS a seventh son of a seventh son in a rather different way than traditionally is a bit shocking. Of course, Chrístõ’s father is the seventh of the family line since the first Chrístõ de Lœngbǽrrow – one day I really must write a story that involves him, and tell his story. But Chrístõ himself is the seventh child of his mother and father because six before him died either stillborn or miscarried. At this point I had not thought of writing Marion and Kristoph, telling the story of his parents, or I might have not gone with that storyline, since it lays up an awful lot of grief for them which would have to be written about. But on the other hand, it did allow me to write a future story, Christine, which touched on that family history.

Having left Liverpool, though, Chrístõ has to come right back, because the messengers of the hooded man have arrived and there is trouble. Many people thought that Li Tuo really had been killed in this episode cliffhanger, and were quite upset. But things are often not as they seem. Remember the trailer for Doomsday “This is the story of how I died”. Sometimes we do like to play tricks on the audience.

Farewell to Prince's Landing Stage
River Mersey, fare thee well
I am bound for California
A place I know right well

Chorus:
So fare thee well, my own true love
When I return united we will be
It's not the leaving of Liverpool that's grieving me
But my darling when I think of thee

I'm bound off for California
By the way of stormy Cape Horn
And I'm bound to write you a letter, love
When I am homeward bound
Chorus:

I have signed on a Yankee Clipper ship
Davy Crockett is her name
And Burgess is the Captain of her
And they say she's a floating Hell
Chorus:

I have shipped with Burgess once before
And I think I know him well
If a man's a seaman, he can get along
If not, then he's sure in Hell
Chorus:

Farewell to lower Frederick Street
Ensign Terrace and Park Lane
For I think it will be a long, long time
Before I see you again
Chorus:

Oh the sun is on the harbour, love
And I wish I could remain
For I know it will be a long, long time
Till I see you again
Chorus: