| 171 – "The Girl in the Fireplace" | |||
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| Doctor Who episode | |||
| Cast | |||
Others
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| Production | |||
| Directed by | Euros Lyn | ||
| Written by | Steven Moffat | ||
| Script editor | Helen Raynor | ||
| Produced by | Phil Collinson | ||
| Executive producer(s) | Russell T Davies Julie Gardner | ||
| Music by | Murray Gold | ||
| Production code | 2.4 | ||
| Series | Series 2 | ||
| Running time | 45 minutes | ||
| First broadcast | 6 May 2006 | ||
| Chronology | |||
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"The Girl in the Fireplace" is the fourth episode of the second series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 6 May 2006. Written by Steven Moffat and directed by Euros Lyn, the episode is inspired by Audrey Niffenegger's novel The Time Traveler's Wife.
The episode is set in France throughout the 18th century. In the episode, repair androids from a spaceship from the 51st century create time windows to stalk Madame de Pompadour (Sophia Myles) throughout her life. They seek to remove her brain as a replacement part for their spaceship at a particular point in her life as they believe her to be compatible with the ship.
The programme's executive producer Russell T Davies, who conceived the idea while researching for Casanova, described the episode as a love story for the show's protagonist the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant). The episode was filmed in England and Wales in October 2005. The Girl in the Fireplace was well received by most critics, was nominated for a Nebula Award and won the 2007 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form.