It’s remarkable to think about a show lasting two or three seasons these days on television, so it’s almost unreal when a television show lasts fifty. In a day and age where shows like Firefly and Arrested Development have issues staying on the air and are shuffled around and subsequently canceled it’s hard to believe that a show that started when many of our parents weren’t born is still going strong, in fact, these days even stronger. This Easter weekend, Doctor Who returns to finish out its seventh series and celebrate it’s 50th anniversary.
Doctor Who first aired on November 23, 1963, initially envisioned as a family friendly and educational show, using time travel to teach kids about science and history. The show developed into something more though, more or less dropping the history aspect for the science-fiction aspect. Eventually a gallery of villains were created, some everlasting (Daleks, Cybermen, The Master), some a mere joke (Slitheen), numerous companions came and went, and the show went through eleven Doctors. The stories ranged from meeting Vincent Van Gogh to meeting Marco Polo with thirty-one seasons of further adventures.
The BBC was responsible for producing the first twenty-six seasons, lasting until 1989, when they claimed that the show would return for another season, but nothing appeared. There was an attempt to introduce it in America in 1996 with a movie that served as a pilot for a new series, but it failed to take off. The show remained dormant until 2005 when the BBC and Russell T. Davies brought the show back in a direct continuation of the original show.
Fifty years of Doctor Who in some form, be it the show, radio plays, books, comics, a movie, spoofs, spinoffs, and much more is incredibly impressive. The closest show America has to that level is Star Trek, which is three years shy of its own 50th anniversary. For whatever reason though, Doctor Who never quite caught on here in America until the show was restarted in 2005 and then it took a few more years before it started to become a mainstream thing.
How has this show maintained its longevity when actors get old and/or decide to move on? Regeneration. This is a science-fiction show after all. The regeneration concept came about when the first Doctor, William Hartnell was leaving the show in 1966 due to illness. To keep the show going, a new Doctor, played by Patrick Troughton, was brought in. So it went when an actor felt they were done, a regeneration would occur and a new Doctor would appear. Overall there have been eleven Doctors with Matt Smith playing the current 11th Doctor.
Being the Doctor and traveling all around time and space can be a bit lonely so the Doctor brings companions with him. The companions are the viewers way into the events in the show and there have been lots of them over 50 years. In the beginning it was Susan, the Doctor’s granddaughter and a history teacher and a science teacher. Some of the fan favorites have been Sarah Jane Smith, Rose Tyler, and more recently Amy Pond and her husband Rory Williams.
Who is the Doctor? He’s just simply, The Doctor. His name is not Doctor Who and his true name is not known by anyone except by the character River Song. The Doctor is from a planet named Gallifrey and is the “last” surviving member of an alien race named the Time Lords. Named as such because they developed time travel, which is done via the TARDIS, which stands for Time and Relative Dimensions in Space. TARDIS’s can take the shape of whatever they want, but in the Doctor’s case, the TARDIS is stuck in the shape of a 1960s Police Box. On the inside, it’s bigger (a running joke “it’s bigger on the inside!!”) with potentially an infinite amount of rooms housed inside. Though the viewer is mostly shown the control room, there is a pool somewhere in there.
The Doctor by default abhors guns, instead using his Sonic Screwdriver. Each Sonic Screwdriver is unique to the specific Doctor, if you can tell which Doctor is which by their Sonic Screwdriver that might win you some geek points. He travels around space and time and while he always claims to not interfere with the past, he usually does. There are specific events in which he cannot change, like to kill Hitler for example.
For all the talk of science-fiction the show still has to reach a general audience and the companions help make the Doctor seem a bit more human rather his alien heritage. The various writers across the fifty years have given each incarnation of the Doctor his own style and personality, from the first Doctors stern attitude to the 11th Doctors childlike whimsy, while remaining a master manipulator. Current show runner and writer, Steven Moffat puts it best; “The beauty of ‘Doctor Who’ is its incredible flexibility, anchored by this iconic simplicity,” Moffat says. “All the things that work against a show’s longevity work for us. If people get tired of the Doctor, he regenerates. We bring in new companions before anyone can get bored. We can do any sort of episode we want anywhere we want in space and time. And you don’t have to have watched the show from the beginning to enjoy it.”
For years it wasn’t uncommon to find people cosplaying as the Doctor or his various companions, but it has become more than just a Comic Con or secret nerd thing. Doctor Who merchandise and fandom is found virtually everywhere now, the Matt Smith incarnation ironically made bow tie’s cool again (though Fez’s are still a bit dodgy). One can buy a Sonic Screwdriver pen, or a blue TARDIS dress. And want to have an epic battle at dinner? Buy the TARDIS/Dalek salt and pepper shakers. There’s Doctor Who Monopoly, drinking games, fan fiction, Doctor Who conventions, fan made series, and more. Fans are referred to as Whovians, a nickname dating back to the 80s, and meeting any one of the cast members is akin to meeting any other celebrity. For some meeting David Tennant (generally one of the more beloved Doctors) is cooler than meeting Johnny Depp.
In 1963 when the show first aired, the creators couldn’t have imagined that their historical, science based educational program would’ve lasted as long as it has. Fifty years is a long time and to succeed like Doctor Who has is an amazing feat. It appears that Moffat and crew are ramping up for an exciting anniversary year. Rumors have cropped up of all remaining Doctors on screen together, though many have said they weren’t involved, it remains to be seen. Classic episodes are available on Netflix, though from all comments it’s horribly botched, missing entire seasons. Classic Who is also available on DVD though many episodes/seasons are missing thanks to the BBC wiping or taping over the original tapes back in the 60s and 70s. The current run from 2005 to series 6 is available on Netflix as well, with the first half of series 7 available on iTunes or Amazon, or on BBC America. While 50 years of television might seem like a lot, it’s not too overwhelming. For a good starting point start at series 5, when Matt Smith took over and enjoy it from there, or go back to 2005 with the 9th Doctor and suffer through some early silliness. And, of course, you could always go back to the beginning. Whichever you chose it’s a rewarding show. After all, there’s a reason it’s lasted as long as it has.