A gonk was a 1960s toy, described by Susan Foreman as "stuffed Humpty Dumpty-like things, huge eggheads with exaggerated faces and tiny limbs". Upon first seeing one, the First Doctor expressed its impracticality as a species, before being informed that it was simply a toy:
Does this represent an actual earthly lifeform? Arms stick out where the ears should be. Where would a digestive system be located in this giant skull, do you think? The legs wouldn't support the weight of the head. No, it's most impractical. It'd never survive.
Six-year-old Malcolm's favourite toy was his gonk, whom he named Cowboy Gonk. The gonk had "a black moustache, a tiny Stetson and holsters around its jowls." His most precious object, he offered it to the Doctor on 2 April 1963 in hope that he would save humanity from the Cold. Pleased, the old man called it "a feat of imagination" and decided that humanity was worth saving, at the very least for its originality. This led to him sending the Cold to Pluto, where it could live without disturbing humanity.
Within two days of this incident, Malcolm had a new gonk — Spaceman Gonk — although Cowboy Gonk still remained his favourite. (PROSE: Time and Relative)
When she was a child, Jo Grant had "an army of gonks and trolls" but even then found dolls creepy. (AUDIO: The Doll of Death)
Sometime in the early 21st century, the Cathedral gift shop stocked Knight themed pencil gonks. (PROSE: Iris Wildthyme and the Unholy Ghost)
Zelda once referred to Yung-Star as a "gurgling gonk". (WC: Unexpected Christmas Presence [+]Andrew T Smith, 2014.)
During November 2023, (PROSE: The Star Beast [+]Gary Russell, adapted from The Star Beast (Russell T Davies), Target novelisations (Target Books, 2024).) Rose Noble was selling stuffed toys over the the internet, with her main customer being a woman who, according to Donna Noble, was "obsessed with Gonks." (TV: The Star Beast [+]Russell T Davies, adapted from Doctor Who and the Star Beast (Pat Mills and John Wagner), Doctor Who 2023 specials (BBC One and Disney+, 2023).)