I was really upset and annoyed that I had to miss the previous screening of An Adventure in Space and Time and Episode 4 of The Celestial Toymaker (i.e. The Final Test), which was the last of the Doctor Who Appreciation Society‘s screenings at Riverside in 2023. Set for the 24th November, it coincided with a train strike and so I couldn’t make it. But I was really pleased when DWAS announced that another screening was planned because so many people were annoyed that they’d had to miss out and, deciding that I wasn’t going to miss out a second time, I booked a ticket instantly!

The previous screening had included David Bradley and Peter Purves as well as a few extra guests and thanks to my kind friend Maria she managed to grab me an autograph from David Bradley as well as one from Frances White, who had guest starred in The Myth Makers. So I was excited to see who DWAS managed to secure this time around and we weren’t let down. David Bradley’s co-stars, Claudia Grant, Jamie Glover, and Sacha Dhawan were in attendance alongside Carole Ann Ford, director Waris Hussein, and cameraman Dudley Dardby with one of the surviving extras from The Celestial Toymaker. It was a fantastic line up of guests and each time I think that DWAS can’t top the guests from the previous event, they effortlessly do.

Making my way to Hammersmith is slowly becoming second nature to me now, even if the tube can be a little confusing to us country folk! Luckily, I got there with plenty of time to spare and it was a lot of fun to see people enjoying the exhibit of photos that Riverside Studios had put up to celebrate the show’s 60th anniversary last year; there was also really amazing ’60s TARDIS model! It’s always nice to see people that I recognise from other events as well as from Twitter, and I’m pleased, too, that I’m getting better at talking to people, something I wouldn’t say I was overly confident doing.

The event kicked off with a showing of The Final Test, the fourth, final, and only surviving episode of The Celestial Toymaker. It’s a strange story, no doubt let down by the fact the previous three instalments don’t exist beyond their audio recordings and is an incredibly visual story that doesn’t lend itself to being translated into audio. It’s also strange because the Doctor isn’t really in it and while a lot of the plot revolves around Steven and Dodo surviving one final game, they don’t get a lot of screen time. Instead, whole minutes are eaten up by shots of the Trilogic Game, which is an element I’ve never understood in this story.

However as with a lot of these Riverside/DWAS screenings, it gives you a chance to see the show in a different way. I know I always mention it but it’s really interesting to see episodes of Doctor Who without any restoration work done on them, wrinkles and warping and all. Of course, the ending got a huge laugh, with the Doctor foolishly trying one of the sweets from the Toymaker’s realm. I got so into it, I was half expecting the first episode of The Gunfighters to be up next!

But instead, it was An Adventure in Space and Time which originally aired in 2013, a dramatized retelling of the origins of Doctor Who. I’ve only seen this a few times, once when it originally aired, once on a rewatch of the modern era, and then in November 2023 when they released a new version with Ncuti Gatwa appearing at the end instead of Matt Smith. Of course, in keeping with DWAS showing things as originally as possible, it was the Matt Smith version on offer here and so it’s unfortunate that no one has quickly reedited the ending so the CGI places Smith behind the TARDIS console instead of behind it!

Of course, that doesn’t spoil the enjoyment of it and I found myself laughing along with the other fans there. Another great thing about these events — alongside those held by the BFI — is that you notice how funny certain lines or scenes are and often gives you a new perspective on stories. There were a number of brilliant comedic scenes in the beginning of An Adventure in Space and Time which got lots of laughs.

Following the screening, the guests were introduced on stage with Carole Ann Ford adding commentary from the audience, mainly due I think to the lack of chairs on the main stage. Hosted by author James Goss, the guests spoke about their work on An Adventure in Space and Time. Jamie Glover and Claudia Grant talked about how they found it challenging not only having to play William Russell and Carole Ann Ford but also playing Ian and Susan. And how there was a lot more to that than people might think. They both agreed that their work with Big Finish is now a lot easier because they are playing those characters and not the actors and how happy and privileged they feel that they get to continue the adventures of the First Doctor.

They also spoke to the actors about when they met their counterparts to ask them about their time on the show in the 1960s. Claudia said that Carole Ann Ford was incredibly helpful and Carole was in high spirits too, complimenting the performance and how happy she was to see the moment William Hartnell leaves flowers in her dressing room following an argument over money. It was emotional hearing her talking about those memories and how they marked a turning point in their relationship as actors. It was also quite emotional to hear from her how vulnerable Hartnell really was. On screen and from some actors, both main and guest cast, he can come across as a little brash and angry, every bit the grouchy old man he was playing. But Carole Ann Ford described a man who was so desperate to get everything right. That was the reason he took it so seriously, especially when the BBC didn’t — he saw this as his big chance. An Adventure in Space and Time made a big point of him taking the show because it meant he didn’t have to play army personal anymore and Carole reiterated that Doctor Who was his chance to demonstrate to the world that he was a lot more than just an angry army sergeant; he was a talented actor who was the unfortunate victim of typecasting.

Of course, a lot of this is well known information but to hear it from someone who knew the man well made it a lot more emotive. She agreed that William Hartnell could be hard to work with especially as at the time they weren’t aware of him being ill, something which doesn’t show in the first series; but as the show goes on, you can see how unwell he was becoming. Waris Hussein added that he never had a problem with Hartnell — in fact, the hardest time he had was him and producer Verity Lambert trying to convince him to take on the role and he could well remember how frightened he was sat opposite him in the Chinese restaurant. Hussein was quick to reiterate that he never had an issue with Hartnell as an Indian director working for the BBC: all of the hassle he received unfortunately came from those in charge of the BBC. Indeed, it was also tough to hear him talking about how Verity Lambert would get stared at for walking down the office in a time of male producers and directors and she would wear a hat so that she could tell herself that people were staring at her hat and not at her. It’s a reminder of how far we’ve come and how far we still have to go, especially as it’s still a male dominated industry.

Sacha Dhawan spoke happily about meeting Hussein and being invited to his house. When he got there, he saw all the original documents that he still had for An Unearthly Child — it was amazing to hear that they still exist, even if Dhawan didn’t manage to pocket any… which he said he was tempted to do!

DWAS always get good guests and the interviews are always informative; even if it’s the same stories being told again and again, they always find a way of making it feel like it’s the first time you’ve heard it. While I decided to not get a photo with the guests, my friend Maria and I both went to the autograph tables. I decided to get Jamie Glover and Claudia Grant to sign my print with David Bradley’s autograph on it; Jamie was glad to hear about how well Adventure went down and Claudia was chatting to me about the Big Finish releases of theirs, which have gotten better and better — their historical stories are some of the best tales Big Finish has ever told.

Next up was Sacha Dhawan who I was slightly nervous to meet. I was already surprised by how short he was. Both Maria and I said we think it’s because his portrayal of the Master was so larger than life that we assumed he must be the same. But he was a delight to meet, telling me that I had a lovely name. I thanked him and asked him if taking the role of the Master was an easy “yes” or if he had to think about it first. He did say it was a very quick “yes” — he always loved the character of the Master so it was a delight to get to play the role but he was also told by his partner that he needs to work in Doctor Who because it was so fun. What also swung the role for him was getting to spend a few weeks on location in South Africa so he could get a little holiday out of it too! He was lovely to meet and was definitely the highlight of my trip.

Also delightful was Warris Hussein, who didn’t really say a lot but he was pleased when I thanked him for making something 60 years ago that means so much to so many people. He was genuinely pleased by that comment and it’s true: no one then would have thought Doctor Who was going to last beyond the first series, let alone for the next 60 years! Waris told me that we are very welcome; of all the things he worked on, he’s happy that Doctor Who is something he’s the best remembered for.

It was another great event from DWAS with a fantastic guest list. It’s always so lovely to be surrounded by people who have the same interest as you. It’s easy to strike up conversations with people there and it’s lovely to see people you recognise from social media. And of course it’s fantastic to meet the fabulous guests there too! I’m looking forward to seeing what DWAS are doing next at Riverside…

There’s been a lot of speculation about whether Disney is changing Doctor Who. The BBC sold the streaming rights for new Doctor Who to Disney, so while the BBC broadcasts the show in the UK, Disney is streaming it everywhere else.

From the outset, the main concern was that the House of Mouse would stick its venomous, corporate teeth into the program, take control away from the Beeb, enslave Russell T Davies in their basement, and force him to squeeze out Who scripts under the watchful eyes of the frozen, disembodied head of Walt Disney himself. 

Not quite.

You see, the Sony Corporation, who has a friendly relationship with Disney, owns Bad Wolf Studio, who has a friendly relationship with the BBC, and employs Russell. So this hook up was somewhat natural. An alliance that benefits everyone. 

RTD has total creative control of Doctor Who, but the show is owned by the BBC, so they’re allowed to have input. Russell works for Bad Wolf and thus Sony, so they, too, have input. Disney owns nothing but the streaming rights for the show, but since it’s streaming on their platform, they have the right to have input as well. Here’s where the worry and fear pops up. Constantly.

The fear that somehow, Disney controls everything, and strong arms everything to their liking. 

Not so. It’s very likely they have the same amount of input as Bad Wolf and the Beeb. Maybe a bit less since the Beeb owns the property.

So, if you’re worried about the Mouse making Who all “Disney-ish”, have no fear. Disney won’t be doing that.

If it happens, Russell will be the one who’s doing it.

In a recent interview in SFX magazine (and shared via Games Radar), executive producer Joel Collins refuted the “Disneyfication” claim, saying “that would only happen if it wasn’t being made by Russell. Or by somebody who wasn’t as big a fan as Russell.”

But an important point — Russell is a fan of a lot of the work Disney’s Pixar has produced and that might be part of what we’re seeing. Collins explains that RTD has been inspired by some of Disney’s output:

“Russell wanted to bring fun to it, he just wanted to bring joy into the show and challenge people in all the right ways that Russell does. But also make it fun at the right points, make it really fun, take you on a ride. So, I think that’s where the barrier to entry is removed, because adults and children alike enjoy that. And it’s not like, ‘Oh, it’s just for kids,’ or ‘It’s just for adults’ or any of this stuff.”

It might just be semantics, but even though Disney’s not injecting itself into the programme, Russell is bringing a Disney flavour to the show and shall probably continue to do so. The comments he’s made about adding more fantasy into the show going forward lends itself to this.

Another possible factor is Bigger Audience Syndrome. 

When preparing to accommodate an exponentially larger audience, it sometimes affects how the creator approaches the production of their series.

It’s at this point I have to cite a few entertainment examples from American late night television. 

Jay Leno was once the most popular and acclaimed stand up comic in the country, revered by all his peers. His act was edgy but he wasn’t foul mouthed or dirty, and mostly suitable for all audiences. But when he was controversially given The Tonight Show, he severely watered down his content to homogenize his jokes so grandmothers across the country would like and accept him. This dumbed down, bland approach worked and he received good ratings.

When David Letterman moved from the Late Night slot at NBC to the hour earlier Late Show on CBS, he felt he had to be a bit more responsible with his content, not just playing for the college crowd. So he toned down his material as well, just not anywhere nearly as bland as Leno.

The point is, the much larger audience might be factored in to these new approaches to the writing, the creative in general. Whether that’s a good or bad thing in Who’s situation remains to be seen.

The prevailing thought is that Doctor Who has now gone from just the UK to worldwide status thanks to Disney, so one can only wonder how much this bigger stage will affect how Davies moves forward with the show. 

Although, considering that over the past six decades, Who has been sold and distributed to dozens of countries, and the 50th anniversary special was simultaneously broadcast in 91 countries, there’s no question that the world is well aware of Doctor Who. Or should be anyway.

Yet somehow, it being streamed through Disney+ has it allegedly reaching an even bigger audience. 

By all accounts, going forward with “Season 1” (Series 1/Series 14/Season 40 – your choice), we are going to see this new direction incorporating more fantasy along with our science fiction, as it streams worldwide. 

And it is slated to be lighter and have “more fun and joy” thrown into it, and it might indeed feel more like Disney in some ways. But let’s be clear for the record — the main force behind that is not going be Disney.

That will be Russell T Davies.

Doctor Who is popular. Whether we quibble about ratings or moan about the latest TARDIS team, Doctor Who really is popular. Everyone can name a Dalek. Most people know who the current Doctor is. Viewers old or new likely have a favourite Doctor or Doctors, though fans rarely admit to this. And it’s screened all over the world, more often than not being available on one of the largest streaming platforms ever. So: Doctor Who is popular, and with popularity comes media attention, and with media attention comes controversy.

The current controversy is over the latest companion, Ruby Sunday, played by Millie Gibson. She’s barely got her feet in the door before the press has pulled her apart; no sooner had a potential new companion been spotted filming were there rumours not just that Gibson had left Doctor Who, but that she’d been actively “dropped” by the production team.

And it’s simply nasty.

First and foremost, we should acknowledge that this is what companions do: they leave, more so than the Doctors. With filming taking place for Series 15 before Series 14 has even aired, it’s no great shock that we see another actress shooting next to Ncuti Gatwa despite Ruby Sunday only having one adventure screened so far (though it was on Christmas Day, a high-profile slot, for sure). Why are we so surprised that Millie might have left already? After all, if they’d shot, say, Doctor Who Series 4 before they’d even screened Series 3, the tabloids would no doubt be inciting controversy about Freema Agyeman leaving already — or perhaps being “dropped” in the same way the rumour mill has turned against Millie.

And Gibson will still be in her fair share of stories. By my count, she’s in eight this coming series, has already been in The Church on Ruby Road, plus next year’s Christmas special; there’s talk she’s in three of Series 15’s eight episodes. That would make 13 episodes in total, i.e. a full series under the old Russell T Davies model.

Right now, we simply don’t know the terms under which Gibson signed up for Doctor Who. We’ve had a few years of companions staying longer than perhaps expected — Amy and Rory, Clara, Ryan and Graham, and especially Yaz — but interspersed with them are shorter-lived companions like Bill and Nardole, or Dan, the latter of whom only appeared in eight-and-a-bit episodes (The Power of the Doctor feels more like a cameo, doesn’t it?). So why is the media picking on Millie so much?

There are certainly elements who will blame misogyny. That may be the case. Similarly, it could be her age and comparative inexperience in the industry, making her, for want of a better term, easy pickings. I’m not too sure about the misogyny angle, but it’s simple to argue that’s a factor. That would only be backed up by social media’s obsession with imagining her as something of a spoilt youngster who doesn’t like night shoots — an idea that seems to have come from nowhere, given Millie has worked on Coronation Street since she was a kid. Sure, maybe she doesn’t like night shoots. That’s fair enough. Not liking a particular part of a job doesn’t mean she should be cast in a negative light. (Heck, I’m pretty sure all of us have a part of our jobs we’re not entirely enamoured about.)

Her youth might also play a part. The “spoilt brat” angle is always appealing for the media, and it’s a miracle more youngsters thrown into the spotlight aren’t even further warped by their experiences. Imagine being Millie, an enthusiastic 19-year-old taking on an acting role and embracing it so completely… only for your face to be splashed on front covers and journalists tearing you apart. I’m not sure anyone deserves that. At the end of the day, Doctor Who is a job; her personal life isn’t ours or the press’ to pick to bits. We are not vultures, but if we must take on such a persona, it might be better to fashion ourselves as the ones who sing “we’re your friends” at the end of The Jungle Book.

I’m not one of those “#bekind” folk you see on Twitter (or X or whatever), not least because those people tend to be the ones who cast the first stone and that’s pretty abhorrent, but they do have a point sometimes: it’d help if people approached a situation with compassion and understanding.

So why hasn’t the BBC or Russell T Davies announced Millie’s departure yet? It’s a fair question. It might be because this is all a bit… awkward. Normally, we have an interim period, where one companion announces they’re leaving, then we have weeks or months to wait before the new incumbent is revealed. This time, that ship has well and truly sailed. Releasing a press release about Gibson leaving and Varada Sethu being cast will nonetheless sound harsh, as if the former has been dropped, despite what the truth is. They might also be worried about a situation similar to what happened with Ninth Doctor actor, Christopher Eccleston, whose departure was announced — in a regrettable fashion, resulting in the BBC having to apologise later on and admit they’d not consulted him about the announcement beforehand — after just one episode of his tenure had aired (as with Gibson).

There is, of course, one more potential reason we’re overlooking: that she’s not left. These rumours started in The Mirror and that newspaper is normally pretty spot-on. But what if, like Martha Jones, played by the aforementioned Freema Agyeman, Ruby’s story isn’t done yet? She could still pop up in Doctor Who again, or, like Martha in Torchwood, be in a spin-off; maybe that much-speculated UNIT versus Sea Devils one, The War Between The Land And The Sea?

Whatever happens, I maintain that Millie Gibson is being treated very unfairly by the press and by some sections of fandom.

And we’re The Doctor Who Companion, so come on, readers: let’s give our full support to our Doctor Who companion.

When the new, 2005 era of Doctor Who arrived, ushered in by old/new showrunner Russell T Davies, I enjoyed Christopher Eccleston’s portrayal of a very damaged and vulnerable Time Lord. No. 9 was not your typical incarnation, but before we could even settle in, he was gone, replaced by some bloke with new teeth. 

Very quickly, I found I preferred this Tenth incarnation though, as David Tennant brought a different energy, goofiness, and a volcanic anger to the table, with a tiny bit of Tom Baker in the performance. Tennant had grown up on ‘70s and ‘80s Who, and it showed. Turns out, knowing the history of the show inside out added a different dimension to playing the part.

But Matt Smith upended the game board. By coming in so young, he’d known very little of the history. After landing the part, he did his homework — as you should –, fell in love with Patrick Troughton’s portrayal of the Second Doctor — as you do — and added a bit of him into his own performance. By approaching the role from a completely different angle, I found that, once again, I enjoyed this incarnation even more than the last. Surely, this better than the last, better than the last trend couldn’t last? And yet…

Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor came in bold, blunt, and unapologetic. He was 2,000 years old. He was once known as the Doctor of War, and he owned it. He wasn’t here to play games, and if something wasn’t important or interesting to him, he’d delete it from his brain. When formulating plans against enemies, he often kept his cards close to his vest, often ruffling the feathers of everyone around him, who wondered if he was either a monster or an idiot. Clara Oswald didn’t realise how easy she had it with the Eleventh Doctor. He put her up on a large pedestal. The Twelfth made her carry it around on her back.

Capaldi’s Doctor was critical and accountable. Everyone including him had to be held to a higher standard, and he was unafraid to throw anyone and everyone into the deep end. He didn’t suffer fools at all. Nor banter. He had no problem making the hard decisions, but if the safety of your planet was hanging in the balance and a decision had to be made, whether it dealt with your moon cracking open, or a leviathan in the Thames, he referred to you, boss.

His visual acuity or lack thereof was one of this Doctor’s more distinctive characteristics. Initially, he could see no real visual difference between Clara and Strax. He thought the very act of changing your coat disguises one completely. He didn’t necessarily see what’s on the outside of a person, just what’s on the inside, if he actually took the time to really look at you. So even if you couldn’t see him, he could see you. He could certainly see Clara and had great affection for her:

“Do you think I care for you so little that betraying me would make a difference?”

He got so excited when there was something he simply didn’t know! He wanted to revel in that moment of ignorance because it was so rare. After 2,000 years, he’d pretty much seen and done it all. But he tried to do better. He wondered if he was a “good man”, but was happy to realise he was neither good nor bad — just an idiot, who tried to keep doing his best.

Capaldi’s first series was a joy, because the Doctor was mostly the opposite. A refreshing grump, who had to battle quasi-living machines, a good Dalek, Robin Hood (with a spoon), and prove the existence of a theoretical species. He also initiated a Time Heist, went under deep cover as a janitor (different coat), discovered the moon is actually an egg, had to unravel a mummy murder mystery, battle one-dimensional aliens, and figure out what’s up with all the trees. All the while, Clara was right there with him, and, frankly, usually looking fantastic. 

But then there was the uncomfortability. Danny Pink. Clara demanding the Doctor solve the moon problem for her. Fighting. Anger. More Danny Pink. The sands shifting under the viewers’ feet, as we fell out of our comfort zone. Fans weren’t really used to the show taking those type of risks, but Moffat didn’t shy away. The squabbling between Danny and the Doctor, with Clara in the middle. The Doctor making no effort to hide his dislike for soldiers to a man like Danny, who’d been suffering from his own PTSD. Clara, whose lying and risk taking — her addiction — were an ever growing problem. 

And the season culminated in the return of the Master, albeit regenerated into female form, played by Michelle Gomez as Missy. Unlike the unhinged John Simm incarnation before her, or the Sasha Dhawan rabid dog version after, Gomez played an intense, erratic, eccentric, and funny version of the villainous Time Lady. And in Last Christmas, we saw a suspenseful, meticulously crafted tale involving Santa Claus and Dream Crabs. It’s fun, it’s horror, it’s Christmas, it’s Doctor Who. 

After a disappointing showing in Series 7B, Jenna Coleman was considering leaving the show after Series 8. But the chemistry with her new Doctor and story changed everything, urging her to stay on, and I’m ever so glad she did. 

Going into Series 9, when the Doctor received his Confession Dial (a last will and testament), he partied like it was 1099, but he knew something was coming. With Danny gone (hey, he stayed dead!), there was less and less to keep Clara grounded in the regular world, and she dove even deeper into her adventures with the Doctor — again, her addiction. She couldn’t help herself, but as we moved through the stories, she helped the Doctor with flash cards so as to brush up on better words and reactions in social situations dealing with a crisis.

Capaldi is an accomplished guitarist and has a lot of fun with the axe through Series 9. Of course, an older guy playing guitar — heaven forfend, some people couldn’t get behind something that crazy (!), but certain Doctors had various real life interests, like Jon Pertwee had gadgets and vehicles, or yes, Sylvester McCoy had the spoons. The guitar wasn’t that much of a stretch.

Speaking of crazy, some people couldn’t accept the idea of sonic sunglasses. I myself loved it, and they made just as much sense, if not more so than a sonic screwdriver. At least with the glasses, you had a visual component to work with, in addition to all the million other uses of the sonic. Fans in this day and age: stubborn and intolerant about a wearable tech upgrade? Oh, sometimes, I just shake my head. 

But taking on Davros, the Fisher King, Lady Me, Zygons, or even that nefarious sleep dust you might wake up with in the corner of your eyes… they all failed to match the insidious evil of the Time Lords themselves and their little Confession Dial/torture chamber. Although I wasn’t quite sold on the sudden urgency of the threat of the Hybrid, Heaven Sent was not only truly one of the best hours of the Capaldi era, but of all Doctor Who EVER. Face the Raven, and Heaven Sent/ Hell Bent were really an amazing three part experience. Keeping a secret to protect Clara for 4.5 billion years because…

“I had a duty of care.”

That was pretty much the ultimate. Even after decades as a Who fan, my love for the show had never been stronger. Clara and Me might still be out there somewhere. No, Clara couldn’t stay dead, but honestly, when the story is good, I don’t care what they do.

Now, it was my impression that at this point, Steven Moffat had done his time for five seasons over six years, and he was considering moving on. But right then, the Beeb was bereft of a replacement, so Moffat was going to be sticking around — we’d be getting a conclusion to River Song’s story, a gap year, then Moffat’s take on Superman. What came next was unexpected.

Steven Moffat basically rebooted the show as a perfect jumping on spot for new viewers, and once again delivered an all new and different season to what had gone before, yet still very Doctor Who. 

When we come back to the Doctor, we find out that he’d been teaching at university for half a century, keeping his best frenemy in a vault below, and had re-assembled his man-servant, Nardole. The Doctor then took an interest in young Bill Potts, who asked a lot of good questions. 

Much like when the Tenth Doctor took on Donna Noble as a companion, Bill represented real people, not an “Impossible Girl” or some glamorous supermodel. This new trio was quite lovely, with one of the more compelling sets of interpersonal dynamics.

Bill really kept the Doctor honest. From pointing out that the initials of TARDIS don’t really make sense, to angrily confronting him about just how much death he’s had a hand in during his 2,000 years, and how he could possibly calmly move on.

“I don’t have the luxury of outrage.”

Opposing more killer robots, god-like water creatures, unscrupulous millionaires, alien monks, future corporations, blindness, Ice Warriors, other-dimensional carnivores, Mondasian Cybermen, and Missy and the Master, the Doctor had his hands full as he neared his end. Finally, he had a one-on-one with his first incarnation, convincing each other the importance of continuing the fight. A brilliant season to end Capaldi’s run.

Of course, going in, there was some very mild outrage, with some thinking the show was getting all “woke”, and “forcing” it on the viewers. I, of course, disagree, as I think Moffat introduced topics and handled things pretty well. Could he have handled it better? Maybe. But in the end, when it came to bringing Doctor Who into the 21st Century, I think both Davies and Moffat at least did a good job, without constantly hitting us over the head with preachy messages. But then again, they’re two of the finest writers the show’s ever had, and even slightly addressing certain topics can be a powder keg where some are never satisfied. I myself, though, found Bill to be a triumph. Nardole too, for that matter.

(I also found it very interesting that at the end of The Doctor Falls, in the TARDIS, the Twelfth Doctor is on the edge of regeneration, and mentally sees not only past companions from his era, but all the new eras. Almost as if it were the end of Doctor Who itself, or at least the entire new era, from 2005 through 2017. Curious.)

I think the Capaldi era might even age better than any of the other new Doctor’s. He presented a flavour of the classic version mixed with the new. After all, he was 5 years old when he watched An Unearthly Child when it was first aired, back in 1963. He’d been there from the beginning, so he brought a unique perspective when playing the role. Arguably, no one was more in tune with the show, and his incarnation had quite the journey through three seasons and four specials.

For all these reasons and more, Peter Capaldi is my favorite new era Doctor.

As some of us are apt to do, in this age of computers and smartphones, I was recently ripping my quite sizable audiobook CD collection onto the Apple Books app. Within all the Big Finish, BBC Audios, AudioGo etcetera, I picked up the 2017 release of Jon Culshaw reading Terrance Dicks’ Target novelisation of Genesis of the Daleks. It’s always been one of my favourite stories, but I then wondered if Genesis is the story that has had more releases, in varying formats than any other Doctor Who. Of course, most Classic Who stories have been released in several, but Genesis seems to have had more than its fair share.

Generally, a classic Doctor Who story would have followed a general set of releases: Target novelisation, VHS, DVD, audiobook, and possibly a soundtrack. Latterly, we can add Blu-ray to that list.

Now, just to be pedantic, I haven’t included Target reprints as all Target books were reprinted, but I have included differing versions of audios if there was something different or noteworthy about it. If I may…

1. Target Novelisation — 1976

Of course, the first release was Terrance Dicks’ Target novelisation. A striking cover by Chris Achilleos and a wonderful read: this was the first book that I ever read from cover to cover in one day (aged about 15). Not having yet seen the television version, my only previous experience was the BBC Records’ release. This opened the story more than what I was familiar with and I just couldn’t put it down.

2. BBC Records and Tapes — 1979

Alerted to this release by the cartoon-strip advert in Doctor Who Weekly, I saved up some of my paper-round money and went to Readings Records in Clapham Junction.

Wonderful; the nearest thing we had to an out-of-date repeat. A couple of years later, I even found the tape cassette version (I’m not counting the tape as an extra release as all BBC records were released as a dual format).

I never understood why BBC Records didn’t do any more Doctor Who releases of adapted stories at that time. Having said that, I can’t think of any other vinyl drama release at all making this quite unique; lots of comedy or theme tune compilations, but no drama (The Archers, maybe?).

Tom Baker and the BBC revisited this narration style in the early 1990s with the Missing Stories range of cassette tapes with the stories The Power of the Daleks and The Evil of the Daleks.

3. BBC Radio Collection: Slipback — 1988

The 1979 audio edit of Genesis was re-released along with the Radio 4 transmitted Sixth Doctor story, Slipback. Unlike the old BBC Records and Tapes’ days, BBC Radio/Audio Collections were nearly always a double tape package. This leads to suspicion that Genesis was added as a filler as Slipback wasn’t long enough to fill two tapes.

Although Slipback was the radio programme and the most recently transmitted, at the time of this release, it was Genesis that hogged the cover. Daleks always sell, but the cover wasn’t particularly inspired.

4. BBC Video VHS — 1991

The Beeb waited eight years, since the first video release of Revenge of the Cybermen, to release Genesis on video. It was also double packaged with The Sontaran Experiment. Not too much of a problem, but the photographs on the spine of the video box did spoil the shelf display a tad.

5. BBC Radio Collection: Exploration Earth — 2001

Another BBC Radio Collection release, this time sharing with the 1976 school’s radio drama, Exploration Earth. Just like Slipback, this version of Genesis is the same as the original BBC Records’ version.

Collectors would have bought this because it was the first time that Exploration Earth was commercially available, but, to be fair, this is noteworthy as this was the first time that the audio edit of Genesis of the Daleks was released on CD.

6. BBC DVD — 2006

Genesis on DVD was released 15 years after the VHS version, minus the Sontarans, but this time packed with extras and much restoration/correction work carried out by Steve Roberts’ Restoration Team.

7. Doctor Who DVD Files No. 31 — 2010

A second DVD release for Genesis was during the run of the Doctor Who DVD Files part works magazine. I don’t know anyone who collected these, but I would say it was quite ambitious to release a DVD set of Doctor Who seeing as most fans would have been collecting the BBC DVDs anyway. I have included this in the list as it wasn’t strictly a BBC title.

8. Daily Telegraph/BBC Audio — 2010

The BBC Radio Collection release from 2001 was re-packaged and released on a single CD, as a giveaway from the Daily Telegraph, during a series of Doctor Who giveaways which included Slipback, Exploration Earth, and Mission to the Unknown. I did wrestle with the notion that this didn’t count as it doesn’t offer anything new, but it was the first time that Genesis was available on a single CD and not as a support for another story.

9. AudioGo — 2011

Only a year after the Daily Telegraph release, AudioGo re-released the audio version, but this time digitally remastered. At the same time, other ’70s BBC albums were re-released; Doctor Who Sound Effects included.

What was particularly nice about this version was that it included the original ’70s artwork and the CD itself was printed to look like a vinyl record. For anyone that had (or in my case still has) the original vinyl, this was a must.

This was also available as a digital download for the first time.

10. Record Store Day — 2016

Released as part of Record Store Day 2016 – a celebration of independent record shops – this was a vinyl re-release of the 1979 package right down to the original sleeve and record label. On the face of it, this was a simple re-release of the original from 1979, but this was not a BBC issue, this being from Demon Records. Oh, and the vinyl was blue.

11. BBC Audio/Audible — 2017

The release that prompted this article: the audiobook. Here we have an unabridged reading, by Jon Culshaw, of the 1976 novelisation by Terrance Dicks and using the same Chris Achilleos cover artwork as the original novel. Book to audiobook in 41 years!

12. Season 12 Blu-ray Box Set — 2018

Packaged within the first Blu-ray season box set was an up-scaled version to High Definition. This also contained the omnibus version which has never been released before. All we need at some point is the Doctor Who and the Monsters edit from 1982 to complete the set.

13. Tom Baker Vinyl Boxset — 2023

And to bring us bang up to date, Demon records have released Genesis as part of a limited-edition vinyl boxset. The inclusion of the Tom Baker-narrated State of Decay audiobook is a nice touch as this hasn’t seen any kind of release since around 1985.

That’s 13 releases of versions of Genesis of the Daleks. Have I missed any? But it’s highly unlikely that any other version of a Doctor Who story is going to receive as many individual releases as this. Or does anyone beg to differ? Was there anything I’ve included that shouldn’t be in the list? Answers in the comments section…

The only other story that could get near is The Power of the Daleks. I think it comes close, due to two versions of the soundtrack (narrations by Tom Baker and Frazer Hines), a black and white DVD and colour Blu-ray of the original animation, and a second animated version, but I believe that Genesis of the Daleks still wins the title. However, if the original episodes of Power ever turn up, that could contend.

But I ask the original question: how many copies of Genesis of the Daleks do we actually need…?

Happy New Year from everyone at the Doctor Who Companion!

A new year, a new Doctor, a new companion, a new TARDIS… The world of Doctor Who — or The Whoniverse as it’s now called — is certainly expanding, as the show and the franchise bounds over its 60th anniversary and heads forward into an uncertain but nonetheless exciting future.

So what does 2024 hold for Doctor Who? We know at least that we have Series 14 coming up, comprised of 8 episodes, followed by a festive special, likely on Christmas Day 2024. Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor will continue to unravel the mysteries of his new companion, Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson), not to mention her neighbour, Mrs Flood (Anita Dobson). Their first adventure together, The Church on Ruby Road, is even being turned into a Target novelisation, as are the three 60th anniversary stories, The Star Beast, Wild Blue Yonder, and The Giggle, which featured David Tennant’s Fourteenth Doctor and Catherine Tate as Donna Noble.

We expect more Target adaptations to be forthcoming — perhaps even of Series 14 soon after broadcast, though that is pure speculation at this stage.

Big Finish and BBC Audio have many titles lined up for 2024, with audio stories for all the Doctors. Similarly, expect lots of new books from the likes of Candy Jar and Obverse Books. And there’ll be conventions galore, including the Bedford Who Charity Con, organised by our very own Simon!

We’ll likely see more episodes of behind-the-scenes show, Doctor Who Unleashed, accompanying each installment of Series 14. And are we going to start calling it “Doctor Who Series 1″? Don’t hold your breath…

So how are you feeling about the new year, DWC readers? Got any special plans? And what are you most looking forward to in 2024?

Personally speaking, I’m in an odd place with Doctor Who. After loving it for so long, I feel quite distanced from it, and while I’d hoped Tennant and Tate’s return, with showrunner Russell T Davies, would pull me back in, that hasn’t happened. Instead, I’ve found myself annoyed at decisions made seemingly just to annoy fans and casual viewers alike. It seems a bit pointless. I remain hopeful that things will change; certainly Ncuti and Millie are magnetic enough. So we shall see.

As ever, the DWC will be here every step of the way, with all the latest news, plus reviews, features, fiction, and more. So do stay tuned, won’t you?

Sometimes, I think certain Doctor Who showrunners feel they have to “one up” their predecessors. 

Bear with me — this leads somewhere. 

Russell T. Davies started the new era of Who, and oversaw two Doctors, four series, 52 regular episodes, and eight specials over five years. During this time, his two Doctors aged five years total.

Steven Moffat took over and introduced two new Doctors, added an extra “hidden” one, oversaw six series, 75 regular episodes, and nine specials, including the 50th anniversary over 8 years. During this time, the Eleventh Doctor aged over 1,100 years, and the Twelfth stuck around for 4 1/2 billion years. He was more or less repeating a tortuous exercise over and over, but still, 4.5 billion. In the words of Ron Burgundy, “That escalated quickly”. 

It was Chris Chibnall who then took over. During his era, he introduced two Doctors, but one was also an extra “hidden” one. He oversaw three series, 26 regular episodes, and five specials over five years. But during this time, even though his Doctor aged in real time, he made her untold billions of years old, older than Gallifrey even, declared the Doctor predates Gallifrey, didn’t even come from this universe, and can never die, she’ll just keep regenerating. 

Side note: In fact, the chief reason Chibnall concocted the Timeless Child story was when he was 5 years old, he watched The Brain of Morbius and when the production crew had a laugh by showing their faces during a montage of past Doctor faces, li’l Chibs took it literally, as if they were more old faces of the Doctor. Not to be undone, when recounting the story of the child Doctor billions of years ago, he showed a bunch of extra child faces as crazy scientist Tecteun kept killing child after child to make them regenerate. He showed more faces than those shown in The Brain of Morbius. That’ll show ’em, Chris!

Now, Russell is back in the big chair. But he doesn’t seem to want to top anyone… does he? Of course, you might ask how would that even be possible? 

Well, Russ: I’m here to help.

It’s simple, it’s big, and it’s all right there in front of you. Regeneration energy.

You know how the regeneration energy has really gotten crazy out of hand? With Eccleston, it was a huge fireworks display. With Tennant (the first time), he destroyed the inside of his own TARDIS. Smith took out an entire orbiting Dalek fleet! So it’s on record that regenerative energy is wildly unpredictable and the energy levels can fluctuate exponentially. Okay.

Since Russell has kindly backed up Chibs on the Timeless Child setting, we know that the Doctor has been around forever. Longer than Gallifrey and its inhabitants, and they’re some of the longest lived races in the history of the universe. 

So how old is the Doctor? We have no clue. Where did the Doctor come from? Dunno. 

Here we go.

The Doctor’s not from this universe… perhaps that’s because the Doctor created it.

Leaving that other universe… a child, adrift amongst the nothing. Terrified. Dying. A trauma intense enough to trigger the very first regeneration. But oh, it’s one to remember. 

A regenerative explosion the size we could scarcely dream of, with unimaginable power that not only regenerates the child to enable it to survive, but continues to do so in the vacuum of space, over and over, bigger and bigger until the energy cascades outward in a blaze of creation.

The Eleventh Doctor was responsible for the second Big Bang, but little did he know he created the first as well, just trying to survive.

So the Doctor didn’t just come to this universe; he kickstarted it!

Check… and mate. 

No charge, Russell, but I will consult in future for a fee. 

And let’s face it, fans — the leap from the Timeless Child to this is a hop, skip, and a jump, compared to what Chibnall pulled. So let’s go “all in” and stake the claim that this really is a “Whoniverse”.

“The clock on the mantle is broken: it is time. Doctor? Doctor?!”

An iconic line eloquently bellowed into a grandiose fireplace amidst a chorus of screams and panic. You could be forgiven for thinking that The Girl in the Fireplace is just a filler episode, a standard period piece with something spooky weaving itself into the narrative of our planet’s history, an episode that gives Mickey an adventure outside of a London, something fun and Who-y from the wonderful Steven Moffat.

Which it is!

What it also is, however, is one of the best standalone Doctor Who episodes of the modern era that doesn’t rely on established narratives, monsters, or conflicts.

The sets, the scoring, the script, and the sass flood this episode with charm and class, successfully juggling seamless squabbling between a squadron of repair droids, two present-day Londoners, several French aristocrats, and the Doctor without breaking stride on the episodes rhythm: the slow path to catastrophe.

The obvious monsters here were the aforementioned repair droids: clockwork contraptions that had mutilated the crew of their own spaceship to use their ‘parts’ for repairs after sustaining heavy damage. Obviously suffering some damage to their context protocols, the droids believe that they need the 37 year old brain of Madame de Pompadour to finish repairs on their ship, therefore they had to ‘punch a hole through the universe’ several times over with time doorways to 18th Century France. Why? Because they are ‘the same’ as her.

Side note, this is exactly why we should be terrified of AI logic.

Though misguided in their intentions, the clockwork droids were persistent and efficient. The smashing of the clocks, the hiding in plain sight (despite looking terrifying), and the magnificent Murray Gold score all contribute to what makes the clockwork droids such an iconic and convincing antagonist. Like death itself, their dispassionate presence is just function, impossible to reason with and as patient as needs be. Just ticking over, watching, waiting. They rob the Doctor of his words, his most powerful weapon.

Unable to talk his way through to these monsters then, the Doctor ends up having to ride Arthur the horse through a mirror in order to sever the links for the clockwork droids’ time windows and seemingly trap himself in the past with them, essentially robbing them of their function. Great sentence.

Reflecting on his predicament afterwards, we observe a different Doctor. Stranded, resigned to his fate, there is a pace absent from his demeanour now. Throughout the episode, the interactions between Madame de Pompadour and the Doctor have been, for good reason, frantic. Though still able to get a few flirtatious lines in here and there, their relationship has primarily been about unravelling a mystery, survival and protection, but now he sees kinship. He sees time.

Time turns out to be the less obvious monster.

Boooo, lame answer.

I know, but time robs the Doctor of his heart(s), his most vulnerable point.

Explored extensively throughout this season, the Doctor’s ability to wander in and out of people’s lives has lasting effects, ripples that turn to waves left in his wake. ‘The oncoming storm’ will eventually pass but the devastation they leave is often scarring to those it touches. A phenomena most intimately articulated by Madame de Pompadour when she refuses to wish the Doctor good luck as he leaves. She knows ‘you can’t have the Doctor without the monsters’, and now the monsters are gone and the Doctor won’t come back, despite his promises.

I love this episode because not only does it look great, sound great, and feature tremendous performances from everyone involved, but because it leaves you with an emotionally compelling and lasting impression of the Doctor’s profound loneliness.

Also there is a horse called Arthur. Pretty neat.

Just before Christmas, we set you 35 fiendish questions all about Doctor Who. We hope you had time to jot down your answers in between scoffing down the festive lunch, opening presents, and enjoying Ncuti Gatwa’s first full episode as the Fifteenth Doctor.

Because below, we have all the actual answers.

There’s still time to go back to the quiz and note down what you think. So without further ado, here are the…

Answers to The Doctor Who Companion 2023 Christmas Quiz!

1. She is converted into a Cyberman.

2. Bill Potts.

3. Antony Coburn’s original name for the TARDIS, in an early draft script of An Unearthly Child.

4. The Terileptil leader in The Visitation.

5. The TV Movie.

6. Betsy.

7. Pyramids of Mars.

8. The Fifth Doctor, as revealed in The Caves of Androzani.

9. He wears a stick of celery, which turns purple if the gases are present. He then eats the celery. (If nothing else, he’s sure it’s good for his teeth.)

10. The Master in The Power of the Doctor.

11. i. 140 years old.

ii. 125 years old.

12. No explanation is given on screen – it was a continuity mistake!

13. A Tharil in Warriors’ Gate.

14. The.

15. Amy Pond, Clara Oswald, and Bill Potts.

16. i. The Time Machine.

ii. War of the Worlds.

17. Brigade Leader.

18. Liz’s hair is dark brown or black in the parallel universe but blonde in ours.

19. All played by Pat Gorman.

20. A Zarbi.

21. A juke box.

22. The Fifteenth Doctor (as seen in The Giggle).

23. Jackie Tyler’s dog in the parallel universe (Rise of the Cybermen)

24. Clara and Joey.

25. The Empty Child.

26. Spider (or spiders).

27. Gamble with Time by David Fisher.

28. Paisley born David Tennant found the double “o” sound hard to reproduce when he was speaking the Doctor’s East London accent. Davies also gave him the testing line “Judoon platoon upon the moon” in Smith and Jones.

29. The Daleks (in, respectively, Victory of the Daleks and Dalek).

30. The Power of Three. Not technically Doctor Who, but half a point if you said Downtime.

31. By having them hanged, not shot.

32. Ray guns in the Dalek movies could only be realised by passing the printed film through an optical printer and adding the rays. This would have resulted in a deterioration of picture quality every time the Daleks fired their guns, so a practical effect was adopted instead.

33. i. The Invisible Enemy.

ii. The Sontaran Experiment.

iii. The Face of Evil.

iv. Battlefield.

v. Survival.

34. a – Noah watches as his arm is transformed into a Wirrn (Doctor Who and the Ark in Space)

b – Rose encounters the Autons in the Henrik basement (Doctor Who – Rose)

c – Sarah encounters a Zygon for the first time (Doctor Who and the Loch Ness Monster)

d – The Draconian prince (Doctor Who and the Space War)

e – Barbara attempts to escape from the Zarbi (Doctor Who and the Zarbi)

f – The Cybermen march towards the humans’ base on the South Pole (Doctor Who and the Tenth Planet)

g – Dr Quinn meets Okdel, leader of the Silurians (Doctor Who and the Silurians/ Doctor Who and the Cave Monsters)

35. Three! I have seen three!

How did you do? Let us know in the comments section below!

Merry Christmas from everyone here at the Doctor Who Companion!

We hope you’re having a wonderful Christmas Day, and are getting excited about The Church on Ruby Road, Ncuti Gatwa’s first full episode as the Fifteenth Doctor, coming later today.

But if you’re looking for something to read over the festivities, we’ve got you covered — with The Doctor Who Companion Annual 2024!

It’s completely free to download and includes a range of features, reviews, and short stories, all exclusive to the DWC, and completely free. All you have to do is download the PDF.

To download the Doctor Who Companion Annual 2024, just click here!

This is the fourth DWC Annual, filled with goodies. As far as we know, we’re the only Doctor Who site to give readers an annual treat like this, and we’re pretty chuffed about that. There are features new and old, short stories written just for this annual, and reviews round-ups of this year’s episodes, The Star Beast, Wild Blue Yonder, and The Giggle, as well as The Daleks in Colour, rounding off Doctor Who‘s 60th anniversary year. Our short stories, featuring the Sixth, Eleventh, and Fourteenth Doctors, are celebratory affairs too, and the bookending ones both ring in the new year. But you don’t have to save them for then: you can dig in right now!

Click here to download the free PDF.

The PDF should simply open up in a new browser tab.

Stay tuned to the DWC across the festivities for more features, reviews, and news, as well as our traditional poll after The Church on Ruby Road tonight…!

Have a great Christmas, folks.