What is the plural of 'Silent'?

[Awesome Wells]

Just what is the plural for the Merrick-faced alien bastards who can erase themselves from your memory -- Silents or Silence? I've seen both used several times on PS over the weekend (on one occasion, in the same post) and I can't work it out.

The BBC website goes with Silence; and 'Silents' sounds like a Russian meerkat telling you to be quiet. Is there an official line from Grand Moff Steven? Is anyone bovved?

What do you think?

[Jason Thompson]

For my money, Silence refers to the entire race, and Silents refers to a specific group of individuals in a scene. Therefore, the Silence are infiltrating Earth, and there were however many Silents in the control room.

[Awesome Wells]

I see what you mean: like Human/Humans/Humanity, it's Silent/Silents/Silence, right?

[Jason Thompson]

That's about it, yes.

[Paul Clement]

I prefer Silence to Silents.

[Jon Masters]

Given the unanswered questions I'm listing, I wonder if we've been thrown a red herring in that the Silence (as in The Big Bang and DotM "SILENCE MUST FALL" ) is actually different from The Silents (the alien race) ......

[Andrew Curnow]

I think you may have something there Jon - the creatures are Silents, but they may not be the same as Silence. (In the Library?)

[Awesome Wells]

I have been wondering - although that wasn't the point of this rather silly poll; it was just to put in that crap meerkat gag that keeps getting edited out of my reviews - about the Silents and Silence; after all, why would they say (as the one who got shot did to the Doctor) "Silence will fall" if they were talking about themselves? It's a bit like saying, "Hi, we're the Daleks. We're not going to win. Sorry for bothering you."

But if the Silence isn't, as Jason suggests, the umbrella term for the Silents as a race, WHAT THE HELL IS IT?

*head explodes*

[Andrew Curnow]

Maybe it's deliberately ambiguous - after all, you could say 'the Roman Empire will fall' or you could say 'it's six o'clock at night, soon darkness will fall' and have quite different meanings.

[Rob McCow]

I reckon they are known collectively as 'The Silence' and that each individual is known as 'One of The Silence', or 'A Silence'.

Alternatively, they could be a race of people all cloned from a man named 'Simon Lenn'. Thus, 'Silence Will Fall' is actually 'Si Lenns will fall' and they are all called the 'Si Lenns'. Individually, they should each be called 'A Simon'. It's a knowing wink to the number of Simons in Doctor Who fandom!

[Awesome Wells]

"Sil-ent" could be an abbreviation for "Sil Entertainment"....

Of course! They worked for the Mentors' TV channel before becoming evil memory-shredding gits. It's all so clear to me now.

[SiHart]

I think it's just Silence. Singular and Plural as a name myself.

[Perry Vale]

They used to be called "Joy" though, perhaps Silence is their married name?

[Rob McCow]

Perhaps the girl in the spacesuit was called Joy.

[Ian Lethbridge-Stewart]

What was the question again?

[J.R. Southall]

I've a feeling Silence Will Fall isn't "fall" as in "fall from favour". More like as in "night will fall" as in will appear and there's nothing you can do to stop it.

I think a plural of individual Silents should be known as such (as mentioned upthread), whereas the Silence is the force of what's controlling them. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I'm guessing at a more powerful force behind the Silents we've seen so far; after all, they were a bit crap for a huge story arc like that to rest upon.

[Paul Monk]

What do you call a group of Silents?

And how many Silents does it take to change a light bulb?

[Dirk Gently]

And how many Silents does it take to change a light bulb?

I forgot.

[Llordllama]

I keep hearing "Psi-lance will fall" - which I assumed indicated someone was in danger of knocking over some expensive equipment in Justice Dept's Grand Hall and encubement for a 10 stretch as a result.

[Junkyard]

I reckon they are known collectively as 'The Silence' and that each individual is known as 'One of The Silence', or 'A Silence'.

Alternatively, they could be a race of people all cloned from a man named 'Simon Lenn'. Thus, 'Silence Will Fall' is actually 'Si Lenns will fall' and they are all called the 'Si Lenns'. Individually, they should each be called 'A Simon'. It's a knowing wink to the number of Simons in Doctor Who fandom!

There are more than you dream of, Rob

[Perry Vale]

I sort of expected the answer we got last night.

So, just who are the race of suited people then? Back to square one, they used to be called "Joy".

[MinaHarker]

I after all, why would they say (as the one who got shot did to the Doctor) "Silence will fall" if they were talking about themselves? It's a bit like saying, "Hi, we're the Daleks. We're not going to win. Sorry for bothering you."

They believe it is their destiny, even if they don't like it? Asking for help? A warning, because the universe will be worse without them doing whatever they do behind the scenes?

I still think there is the possibility of what I said a few months ago...

No, I think they will be back.

There is also an idea floating round my head that it's less "The silence will fall" and more "The silents will fall".