Cult Spy Icon: Elton Pope ('Doctor Who')

How could we possibly resist worshipping a man who has a romantic relationship with a paving slab? Taking centre stage in the Doctor Who episode 'Love & Monsters', a story that barely featured the titular Time Lord, was the mild-mannered Elton Pope.

It's hardly surprising that fans of the show would lap up his endeavours, for in many ways he was us. His obsession with The Doctor helped to define him, affirm his identity and bring him into contact with like-minded folks. Through flashbacks of past adventures, we shared in the wonder that Elton felt when witnessing the time traveller in action.

Significantly, we also felt his sadness at not being the hero himself and rather a passive observer. Then there was the fact that his mother died shortly after the mysterious Doctor first visited his house when he was a child.

However, did The Doctor ever help coin an acronym as catchy as LINDA? By setting up the London Investigation 'N' Detection Agency, the ELO-loving Elton met his beloved Ursula and formed a bond so close that he even knocked back the advances of Jackie Tyler. Come on Elton, surely it's every fanboy's dream to have a bit of Rose's mum?

The poor lad did his best to save his fellow LINDA members from the wrath of villainous Victor Kennedy, otherwise known as the Abzorbaloff. Yet his girlfriend was soon absorbed into the alien and ultimately into the pavement. This was no obstacle for the kind Elton though, who seemed to enjoy a vibrant love life with his slab once The Doctor used his sonic screwdriver to free Ursula's living remains from the rest of the pavement.

Elton's video diary entries were often poignant and allowed the socially awkward man a window to the outside world, much like many use blogs to convey and express their feelings. We'll leave you with the words of the great man himself:

"When you're a kid, they tell you it's all... grow up, get a job, get married, get a house, have a kid, and that's it. But the truth is, the world is so much stranger than that. It's so much darker. And so much madder. And so much better..."