11

In The Impossible Astronaut when Rory, Amy and River exit the Tardis into the Oval Office the Doctor introduces them as:

My top operatives The Legs, The Nose and Mrs. Robinson.

Amy and Rory are presumably The Legs and The Nose (either because she's often wearing short skirts or because of Rory's silly shorts). But why is River "Mrs Robinson"?

Improve this question
2
  • 3
    Too short to be an answer, but I think it's a reference to The Graduate
    – Meat Trademark
    Feb 8, 2014 at 18:29
  • Just saw this episode again the other day, River's response to the introduction is hilarious, "I hate you" as she sighs and lowers her head.
    – Wayne Weibel
    Feb 25, 2014 at 17:29

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
19

Was about to write the following myself, but as I made a search for it just to verify everything, I stumbled upon this slightly more detailed answer on the Wikipedia page for Mrs. Robinson:

The 2011 Doctor Who episode "The Impossible Astronaut" has the young-looking Eleventh Doctor introduce his middle-aged future wife River Song in 1969 to President Nixon as "Mrs. Robinson", a nod towards a hinted-at romantic relationship between the two in the Doctor's future and in River's past (due to time-travel). River's line "Hello, Benjamin" spoken in the Doctor Who episode "Let's Kill Hitler" is a quote from a line spoken by Anne Bancroft as Mrs. Robinson in The Graduate.

Improve this answer
4
  • 1
    This is what I had thought as well.
    – Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2
    Feb 8, 2014 at 18:34
  • 6
    Remember that in 1969 The Graduate would have been very recent still and fresh in people's minds.
    – Andrew Lott
    Feb 9, 2014 at 12:49
  • 1
    Probably also a play to River being 'older' than The Doctor - the actors, not necessarily the characters - and the characters constant flirtatious banter.
    – Wayne Weibel
    Feb 25, 2014 at 17:31
  • 3
    The interesting bit about this is that, when the Doctor came up with the "Mrs. Robinson" bit, he had not yet heard River's "Hello Benjamin" line... and when she came up with that line, she'd not yet heard his. They independently hit upon the same pop culture reference.
    – Kevin
    Dec 17, 2016 at 6:42
6

Second the above answer, but I believe it's also an in-joke/hint from the writers that spoilers River is Amy and Rory's daughter. In The Graduate, Benjamin is briefly and uncomfortably seduced by the mother, but ends up falling for the daughter. In Flesh and Stone, Amy has a similar, but toned down seduction scene with the Doctor, but he, like Benjamin, ends up falling for her daughter.

Improve this answer

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .