The link is just one recent example of the wild entertainment it it to follow fan conjecture going off the rails from the most spurious of information. So it went like this:

1. Ahead of “Wild blue yonder” one of the announced bit parts was played by Susan Twist. Fans be like “Holy shit, there’ll be a TWIST involving SUSAN!”

2. Turns out there was no such storyline in the episode, and Susan Twist is an actual actress who just happens to have the name. Fans quiet down until

3. Susan Twist emerges again in “The church on Ruby Road” as a contemporary concert goer. Fans: “She requested an odd song from the same era that her previous (possibly unrelated) part was from. TIME TRAVELER!”

4. In background footage from the “Imagine…” portrait of Russell T Davies, a framed, fake magazine cover captioned “Susan Triad” seems to feature Susan Twist again. Needless to say, this sparks even more speculation.

I’m not condescending to the people who engage with Who like this, after all RTD is actively teasing fans with snippets of advance information. I just want to let you know that I’m enjoying your fan labour from the sideline. With no new Doctor Who on screen for 4-5 months, I’m lapping it up 🙂

In fact, my own theory is that “Susan Triad” means Susan returns in a coming season as three distinct regenerations — and that we’ve seen two of them already this December:

• Susan Twist in several centuries-spanning cameos;
• Anita Dobson as “Mrs Flood”;
• and finally, obviously, Carol Anne Ford returning for a (last?) appearance as the Doctor’s long lost granddaughter.

Oh no, I’ve been Stockholm syndrome’d. I’m part of the game now!