Comments on: 5 Ways Doctor Who Made a Difference

By: Damian

Damian — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 23:13:06 +0000

“Wonderfully fun read.
By the way, did you know that Douglas Adams wrote for Doctor Who?
posted by Bryan on 10-8-2008 at 6:14 pm”

Life, The Universe and Everything was created from a rejected Doctor Who script.

What’s more, the serial Shada (only partly filmed due to Industrial Action and never finished) became a story for Adams’ other hero, Dirk Gently – Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency

By: Calli Arcale

Calli Arcale — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 22:09:30 +0000

Tom Baker had the role the longest in terms of number of years spent performing it. For span of years from first to last appearance, Sylvester McCoy wins, because of the long hiatus between his last starring appearance in 1989 (the serial “Survival”) and his guest appearance on the American made-for-TV movie in 1996. For number of actual stories, interestingly enough, David Tennant wins, despite the fact that his seasons are just half-seasons. This is because the new series has abandoned the old serial format, and apart from the occasional two-parter (and rare three-parter), the stories are completed in a single episode of 45 minutes, which means more actual stories get done in a season.

But there’s one other way of counting a Doctor’s tenure: not number of stories or number of years from first appearance to last appearance but amount of time from the first time he appears until the time his successor appears, which is particularly useful if a regeneration scene is not filmed. If you figure it this way, the longest-serving Doctor is actually Paul McGann, who first appeared as the Doctor on May 12, 1996. It was his *only* televised appearance as the Doctor, as the Fox network opted not to treat the movie as a pilot and instead just let it go. (How much did they not care? They can’t even be bothered to let it be released on DVD in the US, where they retain exclusive distribution rights.) There was no more “official” Doctor Who produced until the new series was launched by BBC Wales in 2005, starring Christopher Eccleston. No regeneration scene was filmed; the 9th Doctor appears already regenerated and apparently recovered from the experience. Eccleston’s first appearance was March 26, 2005. This means Paul McGann’s tenure lasted almost nine years — and four months longer than Sylvester McCoy’s. So the briefest Doctor could also be considered the longest Doctor.

In general, however, Tom Baker is typically regarded as the longest-serving Doctor, having put in seven seasons as the title character, more than anyone else.

By: Mama9cats

Mama9cats — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 17:11:40 +0000

No one compares to Tom Baker! I think he may have also been in the role the longest…

By: Karl

Karl — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 09:13:00 +0000

The Doctor is awesome!!!! I’ve heard the news that the Doctor will be *ahem* “regenerate” in 2010 & they’re going to replace David Tennant. All other sci-fi shows will cower at the face of Doctor Who!!!!! HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!! But Star-Trek is still a classic, duh.

By: reece

reece — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 13:52:00 +0000

me and cam are fans of dr who.

By: Jeff

Jeff — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 05:16:00 +0000

I love Dr.Who, but, living in America, I don’t know of any one else who watches it. I stumbled upon it one nite on the BBC and i can’t stop watching it, the slightly lower budget special effects add to the show, making it a cultish awesome sci-fi.

By: kaffyr

kaffyr — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 19:17:00 +0000

Always glad to see Who mentioned anywhere in print or otherwise; I’ve loved it since 1963 or ‘64, the point at which the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation picked it up from the BBC. I remember being absolutely fascinated with the Daleks, and impressed beyond fear with their voices. In fact, they were the first characters with which I experienced the terror of something unseen, yet horrifically different.

By: dj_salinger

dj_salinger — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 23:57:00 +0000

Brooklynperson:
It’s interesting that you see Tom Baker in David Tennants portrayal of the Doctor as he (Tennant) has stated that “his” Doctor was always Peter Davison.
If you watch “Time Crash”, last years Children In Need special, you will see the two of them together!

By: Brooklynperson

Brooklynperson — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 17:08:00 +0000

“Who” doesn’t love the Doctor?

I’ve been a Whovian in the “catch as catch can” fashion, being an American, since I was 7. To me, Tom Baker is the Doctor; the definite article, you might say, though I’ve enjoyed the last few years of the show as well. Tennant is very handsome, indeed, and a good Doctor. I can see where he takes a lot of his cues from Tom Baker’s portrayal. I’m glad Tennant’s a fan and not just some young actor guy looking to make his big break.

By: Celeste M.

Celeste M. — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 10:06:00 +0000

This post is made of so much win.