Portal:Doctor Who
The Doctor Who Portal
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterrestrial being called the Doctor, part of a humanoid species called Time Lords. The Doctor travels in the universe and in time using a time travelling spaceship called the TARDIS, which externally appears as a British police box. While travelling, the Doctor works to save lives and liberate oppressed peoples by combating foes. The Doctor often travels with companions.
Beginning with William Hartnell, fourteen actors have headlined the series as the Doctor; as of 2024[update], Ncuti Gatwa leads the series as the Fifteenth Doctor. The transition from one actor to another is written into the plot of the series with the concept of regeneration into a new incarnation, a plot device in which, when a Time Lord is fatally injured, their cells regenerate and they are reincarnated, into a different body with mannerisms and behaviour, but the same memories, explaining each actor's distinct portrayal, as they all represent different stages in the life of the Doctor and, together, they form a single lifetime with a single narrative. The time-travelling nature of the plot means that different incarnations of the Doctor occasionally meet. In 2017, Jodie Whittaker, as the Thirteenth Doctor, became the first woman to be cast in the lead role.
The series is a significant part of popular culture in Britain and elsewhere; it has gained a cult following. It has influenced generations of British television professionals, many of whom grew up watching the series. Fans of the series are sometimes referred to as Whovians. The series has been listed in Guinness World Records as the longest-running science-fiction television series in the world, as well as the "most successful" science-fiction series of all time, based on its overall broadcast ratings, DVD and book sales. (Full article...)
Recognized quality articles
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"Voyage of the Damned" is an episode of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who. First broadcast on BBC One on 25 December 2007, it is the third Doctor Who Christmas special since the show's revival in 2005. The episode was written by Russell T Davies and directed by James Strong.
In the episode, the alien businessman Max Capricorn (George Costigan) seeks revenge on his company after it votes him out. He sets a starship replica of the RMS Titanic on a collision course with Earth to frame the board of directors for killing the humans on Earth. The episode features the only performance in Doctor Who by the Australian singer and actress Kylie Minogue, who plays the waitress Astrid Peth. Davies described her casting as a "very exceptional case", having written the part of Astrid specifically for Minogue. (Full article...) -
"Meat" is the fourth episode of the second series of British science fiction television series Torchwood, which was first broadcast on BBC Two on 6 February 2008. It was written by Catherine Tregenna, who had previously written episodes for the first series of the show, directed by Colin Teague and produced by Richard Stokes. The episode featured the five initial series regulars John Barrowman, Eve Myles, Burn Gorman, Naoko Mori and Gareth David Lloyd plus recurring actor Kai Owen in a central role.
Torchwood initially depicts a small team of alien-hunters known as Torchwood, based in Cardiff. In the premiere episode of the first series Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles) is introduced as a newcomer to the organisation who keeps her job secret from boyfriend Rhys Williams (Kai Owen). The episode "Meat" depicts the two aspects of Gwen's double life coming into conflict as Rhys finds himself caught up in Torchwood's investigation into a corrupt meat trade stemming from human exploitation of a stranded benevolent alien. Rhys helps Torchwood in their attempts to apprehend the human villains of the episode and his bravery makes Gwen realise that she should no longer keep secrets from him. (Full article...) -
"Cold War" is the eighth episode of the seventh series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It first aired on BBC One on 13 April 2013, and was written by Mark Gatiss and directed by Douglas Mackinnon.
In the episode, alien time traveller the Doctor (Matt Smith) and his companion Clara Oswald (Jenna-Louise Coleman) land on a Soviet submarine in 1983 during the Cold War, where the Ice Warrior Grand Marshal Skaldak breaks loose and plots revenge against humanity. (Full article...) -
David Mark Joseph Morrissey (born 21 June 1964) is an English actor and filmmaker. Noted for the meticulous preparation and research he undertakes for each role, he has been described by the British Film Institute as one of the most versatile English actors of his generation.
Morrissey made his screen acting debut in the drama series One Summer (1983) at the age of 18, and subsequently receiving training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art before performing with the Royal Shakespeare Company and National Theatre for four years. Standing 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) tall with an easily identifiable voice, he was often typecast as authority figures such as policemen and soldiers throughout the 1990s, breaking this trend with his roles as Bradley Headstone in Our Mutual Friend (1998) and Christopher Finzi in Hilary and Jackie (1998). He then appeared in Some Voices (2000) and Captain Corelli's Mandolin (2001) before playing the critically acclaimed roles of Stephen Collins in State of Play (2003) and Gordon Brown in The Deal (2003). The former earned him a Best Actor nomination at the British Academy Television Awards, while the latter won him a Best Actor award from the Royal Television Society. He also played Jackson Lake, a man suffering from amnesia who believed he was The Doctor, in the Doctor Who Christmas special "The Next Doctor" (2008). (Full article...) -
Captain Jack Harkness is a fictional character played by John Barrowman in Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. The character first appears in the 2005 Doctor Who episode "The Empty Child" and subsequently features in the remaining episodes of the first series (2005) as a companion to the series' protagonist, the Doctor. Subsequent to this, Jack became the central character in the adult-themed Torchwood, which aired from 2006 to 2011. Barrowman reprised the role for appearances in Doctor Who in its third, fourth, and twelfth series, as well as specials "The End of Time", and "Revolution of the Daleks".
In contrast to The Doctor, Jack is more of a conventional action hero, as well as outwardly flirtatious and capable of acts which The Doctor would view as less than noble. In the programme's narrative, Jack begins as a time traveller and con man from the 51st century, who comes to travel with the Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) and his companion Rose Tyler (Billie Piper). As a consequence of his death and resurrection in the Series 1 finale, "The Parting of the Ways", Jack becomes immortal and is stranded on 19th-century Earth. There he becomes a member of Torchwood, a British organization dedicated to combating alien threats. He spends over a century waiting to reunite with the Doctor, over which time he becomes the leader of the Torchwood branch in Cardiff. He later reunites with the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant) and Thirteenth Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) for further stints on Doctor Who. Aspects of the character's backstory—both prior to meeting the Doctor, and during his many decades living on Earth—are gradually revealed over Torchwood (and to a lesser extent, Doctor Who) through the use of flashback scenes and expository dialogue. (Full article...) -
"Army of Ghosts" is the twelfth and penultimate episode in the second series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who which was first broadcast on BBC One on 1 July 2006. It is the first episode of a two-part story; the concluding episode, "Doomsday", was first broadcast on 8 July.
The episode is set in London, some time after the events of the 2006 episode "Love & Monsters". In the episode, the Cybermen come to Earth from a parallel world by following a spherical ship through an interdimensional breach. The Torchwood Institute intends to open this breach further for use as an energy source. (Full article...) -
"A Town Called Mercy" is the third episode of the seventh series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, transmitted on BBC One in the United Kingdom on 15 September 2012. It was written by Toby Whithouse and directed by Saul Metzstein.
The episode featured alien time traveller the Doctor (Matt Smith) and his companions Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) and Rory Williams (Arthur Darvill) visiting the Wild West, where they encounter a town which is cut off from the rest of the frontier until they hand over Kahler-Jex, an alien doctor, to a cyborg called the Gunslinger. However, the Gunslinger is a product of experiments by Jex to win a civil war on his planet, and the Doctor is unsure of what is the right thing to do. (Full article...) -
Prom 13: Doctor Who Prom was a concert showcasing incidental music from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, along with classical music, performed on 27 July 2008 in the Royal Albert Hall in London as part of the BBC's annual Proms series of concerts. The Doctor Who Prom was the thirteenth concert in the 2008 Proms season, and was intended to introduce young children to the Proms.
The Doctor Who Prom showcased the work of Murray Gold, who has composed the incidental music for Doctor Who since its return in 2005. Other classical pieces were also played. The concert was conducted by Ben Foster and Stephen Bell, and performed by the BBC Philharmonic. It was presented by actress Freema Agyeman, who played companion Martha Jones on Doctor Who. Other Doctor Who actors and performers dressed as Doctor Who monsters also made appearances on stage and in the audience. The concert included video montages of scenes from Doctor Who and a specially filmed "mini-episode" of Doctor Who called "Music of the Spheres", which was presented on a screen above the orchestra and included live interactive elements. (Full article...) -
"The Girl in the Fireplace" is the fourth episode of the second series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 6 May 2006. Written by Steven Moffat and directed by Euros Lyn, the episode is inspired by Audrey Niffenegger's novel The Time Traveler's Wife.
The episode is set in France throughout the 18th century. In the episode, repair androids from a spaceship from the 51st century create time windows to stalk Madame de Pompadour (Sophia Myles) throughout her life. They seek to remove her brain as a replacement part for their spaceship at a particular point in her life as they believe her to be compatible with the ship. (Full article...) -
Sydney Cecil Newman OC (April 1, 1917 – October 30, 1997) was a Canadian film and television producer, who played a pioneering role in British television drama from the late 1950s to the late 1960s. After his return to Canada in 1970, Newman was appointed acting director of the Broadcast Programs Branch for the Canadian Radio and Television Commission (CRTC) and then head of the National Film Board of Canada (NFB). He also occupied senior positions at the Canadian Film Development Corporation and Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and acted as an advisor to the Secretary of State.
During his time in Britain in the 1950s and 1960s, he worked first with ABC Weekend TV, before moving across to the BBC in 1962, holding the role of Head of Drama with both organisations. During this phase of his career, he created the spy-fi series The Avengers and co-created the science-fiction series Doctor Who, as well as overseeing the production of groundbreaking social realist drama series such as Armchair Theatre and The Wednesday Play. (Full article...) -
"The Giggle" is the third and final of the 60th anniversary specials of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who, written by Russell T Davies, directed by Chanya Button and broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 9 December 2023. It features the final regular appearances of David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor and Catherine Tate as Donna Noble, introduces Ncuti Gatwa as the Fifteenth Doctor and guest stars Neil Patrick Harris as the Toymaker, a character last seen in The Celestial Toymaker (1966). The episode also features the return of Jemma Redgrave and Bonnie Langford as UNIT commander Kate Lethbridge-Stewart and Mel Bush, respectively.
Set directly after the events of "Wild Blue Yonder", the episode sees the Doctor, Donna and UNIT confronting the return of the Doctor's old enemy, the Toymaker, who is behind a series of signals in a form of a "giggle" being transmitted, causing the human race to go insane over their opinions. (Full article...) -
The tenth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who premiered on 15 April 2017 and concluded on 1 July 2017 with twelve episodes, after it was formally announced in July 2015. The series is led by head writer and executive producer Steven Moffat, alongside executive producer Brian Minchin. It is the third and final series overseen by the two as executive producers, as well as Moffat's sixth and final series as head writer. This series is the tenth to air following the programme's revival in 2005 and is the thirty-sixth season overall.
Preceded by a Christmas special in December 2016, "The Return of Doctor Mysterio", the series is the third and final series starring Peter Capaldi as the Twelfth Doctor, an incarnation of the Doctor, an alien Time Lord who travels through time and space in his TARDIS, which appears to be a British police box on the outside; Capaldi announced in January 2017 that he would be stepping down from the role after the tenth series. The series introduces Pearl Mackie as Bill Potts, and also features Matt Lucas as Nardole. Michelle Gomez and John Simm return as their respective incarnations of the Master. The main story arc for the first half of the series revolves around the Doctor and Nardole occupying themselves at a university while they guard an underground vault containing Missy. Missy later travels with the team in the TARDIS, and eventually partners with her previous incarnation as they battle a Cyberman onslaught. (Full article...) -
"Dinosaurs on a Spaceship" is the second episode of the seventh series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who. It first aired on BBC One in the UK on 8 September 2012 and on BBC America on the same date in the United States. It was written by Chris Chibnall and directed by Saul Metzstein.
The episode features alien time traveller the Doctor (Matt Smith) and his companions Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) and Rory Williams (Arthur Darvill) accompanied by Rory's father, Brian (Mark Williams), Queen Nefertiti (Riann Steele), and John Riddell, a British big-game hunter (Rupert Graves). The group lands on a large spaceship that contains dinosaurs and discover that it is a Silurian ark, though the Silurians have been murdered by Solomon (David Bradley), a black market trader who is intent on finding something of value. (Full article...) -
"Adrift" is the eleventh episode of the second series of the British science fiction television series Torchwood, which was first broadcast on BBC Three on 19 March 2008, and repeated on BBC Two one week later. The episode was written by series one and two head writer Chris Chibnall, directed by Mark Everest and produced by Sophie Fante and Richard Stokes. The episode featured the five initial series regulars John Barrowman, Eve Myles, Burn Gorman, Naoko Mori and Gareth David Lloyd plus recurring actors Kai Owen and Tom Price.
The episode begins with the alien hunter Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles) being called in to investigate a missing person case by her former colleague in the police Andy Davidson (Tom Price). When bereaved mother Nikki Bevan (Ruth Jones) starts a support group for missing people, Gwen realises the problem is widespread. She pursues the investigation against the wishes of her boss Jack Harkness (John Barrowman) and is able to track Nikki's son to an isolation facility. It is revealed that Nikki's son Jonah (Robert Pugh and Oliver Ferriman), like the other missing individuals around Cardiff, was taken by the space-time rift and returned physically and mentally scarred. After realising she cannot have a relationship with her son, Nikki implores Gwen not to reveal the truth to any other bereaved relative. (Full article...) -
The Space Museum is the seventh serial of the second season in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by Glyn Jones and directed by Mervyn Pinfield, it was broadcast on BBC1 in four weekly parts from 24 April to 15 May 1965. In the serial, the First Doctor (William Hartnell) and his travelling companions Ian Chesterton (William Russell), Barbara Wright (Jacqueline Hill), and Vicki (Maureen O'Brien) arrive in a Space Museum on the planet Xeros, where they seek to change their fate after seeing themselves turned into museum exhibits in the future. They also become entangled in a conflict between the militaristic Moroks who run the museum, and the servile indigenous Xerons who work for them.
Jones was not familiar with the show or science fiction when asked to develop the storyline. Story editor Dennis Spooner edited out much of the humour from the original script as he felt that it was more intellectual; Jones was unhappy with the changes. Pinfield and the production crew hoped that The Space Museum could be made cheaply to offset more expensive serials, using a small cast and limited sets. Pinfield also used stock music recordings for the incidental score. The Space Museum received mixed reviews, with praise directed at its opening episode and the performances of Hartnell and O'Brien, but criticism of the remaining episodes, the formulaic nature of the story, and the performances of the supporting cast. The story was later novelised and released on VHS and DVD. (Full article...)
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Selected story
Marco Polo is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in 7 weekly parts from February 22 to April 4, 1964. Although audio tracks and still photographs of the story exist, none of the footage of this serial has survived. This is the first "pure historical" Doctor Who story, in that there are no science fictional elements other than the fact that the Doctor and his companions have travelled to the past.
The TARDIS lands in Central Asia in 1289, where the First Doctor and his companions fall in with Marco Polo as his caravan makes its way along the fabled Silk Road from the Pamir Plateau, across the treacherous Gobi Desert and over the Himalayas to end up in Peking at the height of its imperial power.
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Did you know (auto-generated)
- ... that William Hartnell was the only original Doctor Who cast member who remained by the end of the second season?
- ... that David Tennant filmed a Doctor Who mini-episode on his birthday?
- ... that the Beep the Meep puppet created for "The Star Beast" took six people to operate?
- ... that three-quarters of Doctor Who's longest story are missing?
- ... that The Romans was the first Doctor Who serial with a humorous tone?
- ... that during the filming of the Doctor Who episode "Boom" some takes lasted up to seven minutes?
Selected quote
| “ | Look at me. No plans, no backup, no weapons worth a damn. Oh, and something else I don't have: anything to lose. So, if you're sitting up there with your silly little spaceships and your silly little guns and you've any plans on taking the Pandorica tonight; just remember who's standing in your way. Remember every black day I ever stopped you and then, and then, do the smart thing. Let somebody else try first. | ” |
| — Eleventh Doctor, The Pandorica Opens | ||
Events
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 29 August 2022 | Another SMTV Live crossover episode |
| 1 January 2022 | 2022 specials |
| December 2021 | Big Finish audio play The Year of Martha Jones [1] |
| February 2022 | Second volume of the Big Finish audio play The Lone Centurion [2] |
| May 2022 | Series 2 of the audio play Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor Adventures |
More did you know?
- ... that the assassination of John F. Kennedy overshadowed the launch of the first season of Doctor Who?
- ... that the TARDIS's Fast Return Switch featured in the Doctor Who serial The Edge of Destruction appeared to have a label written in felt-tip pen?
- ... that the antagonists of the indie horror video game Five Nights at Freddy's drew comparisons to Chuck E. Cheese's and Weeping Angels (pictured)?
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