Slashdot Mirror
Dr. Who To Come Back To The BBC
-douggy writes: "According to the BBC news site, the world's best-loved time traveller, Doctor Who, is returning to the BBC -- this time to battle evil aliens in cyberspace. This is along with an audio stream of a special 30 min. ep later in the year. It looks like there will be an air of interactivity in the show as well."
Davison, McCoy, and Troughton all three brought much more to the role than a wide-eyed stare and an infectious grin. (For that matter, so did Hartnell, the Other Baker, and McGann...)
Although Mr. Tom was certainly a reasonable follow-on to the just-as-dreadful Pertwee...
NBCi's comment on the FOX adaptation of "Ultraviolet":
... wait for it ... "East Enders: 90210".
"Howard Gordon, the producer of the American version, is reported as saying that he's after a more 'emotional' content, and wants to give the show a more 'soap opera' feel. This gives the
impression that the series will not be as moody or dark as the original UK version."
Oh dear. Now maybe I'm just partial to angst-ridden vampire movies (liked "The Addiction", hated "John Carpenter's Vampires"), but I find this quote distressing to say the least.
Next up from FOX: "The Frost Files", "Thomas the Tank Engine: World's Worst Derailments VI", and
ObDrWho: bring back Lalla Ward!
While watching one of the Tom Baker episodes recently on a very large-screen TV, I was forcefully reminded of the fact that "Dr. Who"'s special effects budget looked to be about 50p / episode, plus whatever the prop guys could scrounge out of the BBC's closets.
An audio-only version has the great advantage that the cheese-ball special effects no longer get in the way of the story. Of course, this is *only* an advantage if the writing is good, but I think the Beeb's radio version of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" demonstrates that quality sci-fi-like material can be presented well in this medium.
OTOH, perhaps the BBC could just subcontract the production design for any "Dr. Who" TV revival to World Productions. I thought they did a nifty job on "Ultraviolet" using only minimal special effects and a few sets reminiscent of USA's "La Femme Nikita" series.
Unfortunately, given the way the BBC DW novels have been written, the BBC is concidering the TV movie as canon; the TARDIS has been whacked up like that, and McGann's Doctor is officially #8 (The whole human thing, however, has been cleverly skirted by the multitude of writers). Even the DW novel series that was done by Virgin (the BBC taken the license back to them in 96) was subtly tied into the series, with a novel that took place 'right' before the movie events and explaining why the TARDIS looks as it did now), as well as one novel after the movie.
So *if* we ever get another DW show or movie, remember that the events of the FOX one already are in the BBC stone.
This audio drama most likely takes place at some point after "Survival" (the last TV episode), and before the movie itself; doubtful that the effects of that movie will be noticed here.
"Pinky, you've left the lens cap of your mind on again." - P&TB
"I can see my house from here!" - ST:
--
I noticed
--
I noticed
It's getting about time to leave everywhere
I'm thinking of starting work later just so I can see the 8am Dr. Who episode everyday... not that I don't have a bunch of them on tape (like 120?) but it's still cool to catch the broadcast.
> scantily clad women
I think Leela had to take the prize for scantily-clad, but I can't remember name of the very statuesque girl that played (with Tom Baker?) Pippin or something?
The revolution will NOT be televised.
Yeah, it's like Godzilla. I don't want Sony CGI, I want a guy in a rubber suit jumping up and down!
The revolution will NOT be televised.
There have been many Dr Who audio adventures made by Big Finish Audio Productions since 1999, sold on cassette and CD. "Death Comes to Time" was comissioned by the BBC speach network Radio 4 from Big Finish as a pilot episode for a proposed new radio series.
This pilot episode was rejected and never broadcast.
This pilot episode is now being webcast. There are still no plans to broadcast the episode on radio.
There are no official plans for a new Dr Who series on TV nor radio, nor another film, although as always with Dr Who there is plenty of speculation.
If you have digital terrestrial TV (OnDigital), cable or satellite you can catch old episodes of Doctor Who on UK Gold at 8am on Sundays (last Sunday's episode was Invisible Enemy which featured Tom Baker, leather-clad Leela and the first appearance from K9).
--
Andrew Oakley - www.aoakley.com
Yes, I am returning. I will be fighting aliens who want to corrupt the earth with bad grammer (All your base are belong to us)
(I would take this to email, but I see that you do not have an email address handy)
The best place to get information on the new Blake's Seven TV movie is by subscribing to the list over at http://www.blakes7.com
it's B7 that I've obsessively collected on video. 25 tapes at $25 a pop... worth every penny.
There has been talk about making region 2 DVDs of Blake's Seven. If those DVDs ever get made, I will purchase them.
On the subject of your username, I don't need Google to know that imipak was the delayed-kill weapon from the episode Weapon. Personally, my favorite episode was always Gambit (I used to call my music recording studio Freedon City as a homage), with Shadow (with its excellent music) and Star One being close seconds. I always felt the second season was the best season of Blake's Seven.
- Sam
The secret to enjoying Slashdot is to realize that it should not be taken too seriously.
First of all, there is the matter of special effects. When I was a kid, the low-cos special effects of Doctor Who did not bother me, because I had rnough imagination to pretend that the special effects were not so cheesy. Also, the level of expectation people had for quality special effects in the 1970s and 1980s were not the level of expectations people have today.
While computer graphics can do much to minimize the cost of special effects, it is still more expensive to do the level of special effects today's TV viewers expect than it was when Doctor Who was made in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s.
The other is that Doctor Who ran for nearly 30 years, with a wide variety of different actors playing the lead role, and a variety of producors producing the show. Needless to say, the "flavor" of Doctor Who has changed greatly over those years.
Doctor Who has many different fans: Some expect the Doctor Who of the Pertwee years, others expect the Doctor of the early Tom Baker years, and others yet expect the doctor of the late Tom Baker years.
When the TV movie came out, many were shocked that it included a car chase scene, saying that this was not a part of Doctor Who. Of course, the John Pertwee and early Tom Baker eras had plenty of car chases (the one from Planet of the Spiders comes to mind), but there is a large group of fans who were not aware of this.
No matter what the BBC does, it will be impossible for them to make a Doctor Who that meets the expectations of what all their fans want. Even if they make an excellent TV show, and I believe they could if they threw the money at it to give it decent special effects, a lot of fans will complain, no matter how excellent it is. Look at the number of fans of Dune who complained about the excellent recent TV miniseries for an example of this.
Do I want to see Doctor Who come back? Yes. The BBC can not expect to make many long-standing fans of Doctor Who happy.
As an aside, anyone know what is happeneing with the new TV episode of Blakes' Seven that they have been talking about?
- Sam
The secret to enjoying Slashdot is to realize that it should not be taken too seriously.
Fighting Cybermen I hope.
All I want is the Tom Baker years on DVD, and maybe a boxed set of Blake's 7.
And still the Beeb drags its feet on American releases.
Come on, BBC, get with the program and make yourself some money!
Jon Acheson
All opinions expressed herein are my own, and not those of my employers, who are appalled.
am i the only one who thought that rowan atkinson did an amazing job as the dr. in that bbc dr. who parody?
sure, it was tongue-in-cheek, but i could see rowan atkinson pulling off the role of the doctor amazingly well if they ever bring back the tv series...
---
Piffle. But, as he himself once put it, "You may be a doctor, but I am The Doctor. The definite article, one might say."
There's a live version of 'Doctor Look Out' on the CD Single for Beached. I can't remember if it's the 12 minutes long version with Chime, but I don't think it's the same as on The Altogether.
The parts of Shada that were filmed were released on video(in the UK), with Tom Baker providing segues and links in parts there was no film. The Shada story is pretty similar to the first Dirk Gently novel.
I used to watch the series since Tom Baker.
I actually like the next two Doctor Whos after Tom Baker left the show.
But I was really blown off by the latest Doctor Who. I liked the "serious" Doctor Who character not some sort of clown.
It just feels like the latest series was appealing to kids. Sure, I was a young kid watching Doctor Who but I was hooked by the good story telling. The cybermen were my favorite.
Doctor Who was serious science fiction, people got killed, the episodes were continuous stories not silly 45 min-15 min wrap-up star trek episodes.
That TV movie was so sad. Just because of he's called Doctor Who doesn't mean has a "who" from Dr Seuss books. You can't have a Time Lord clown!
john
"If a show of teeth is not enough, bite
I've been a Dr. Who fan since I was 10 years old or so. I remember rushing home from school so I could catch the last 20 minutes of the half hour episode on PBS. Now that I have seen them all, I will watch it if I get home early on a Saturday night.
I think that it will be fun to have a radio drama of the show. It's great listening to the old radio shows that you can get on tape and CD's.
I love just sitting back, listening to the story, and picturing what is going on. It's so much more relaxing to hear a good story that you can see in your mind rather than having to watch on tv. TV stories seem to get lost in the visuals and forgets to put a good story in at times.
A lot of Dr Who (and Star Trek) was writen by it's fans.
The made for TV movie was NOT a fan job...
As I understand it the movie was addapted from the last book in a searies that took off from the TV searies.
The books were profesion and it was a profesional addaption.
That is the problem. Writing isn't a job of cold profesionalism but of passionet fan-ish stuff.
The 1980s saw a whole bunch of movies that relied on FX.. You can turn out FX in mass production.. great writing however isn't so easy.
On-line comics tend to have indepth storylines etc. The writer/artists are really into what they are doing. The artist for one comic however noticed the fan art is higher quality than the original strip. A lot of the best artists are self trainned anime fans not profesional writers.
I don't actually exist.
There are two good reasons for going with McCoy.
One is this is in-line with the Dr Who linage. Pick up where it left off. Tom Baker left Dr Who.
The doctors that came after Tom Baker were made into clones of Tom Baker. Preveously each Dr had his own unqiue personality tallored to the actor. Tom Baker himself was a dramatic shift from the preveous whos.
On that note. I'd like to point out that Dr. Who is for you the first Dr. Who you see.
Someone in DC comics pointed out this was the case for Superman artists. The Superman you grow up with is the one you expect. But there have been many artists each with a slightly diffrent take on his apperence.
But Dr Who transends it's actors. With a new generation of producers is Sylvester McCoy dosn't work out we'll see someone new.
I personally liked all the Doctors. Even the post Tom Bakers. It did appear they reduced the carricter to Tom Bakers take and that was a bit sad.
Also I'd like to quickly note while a lot of people keep bringing up the cheap specal effects Doctor Who uses what was available at the time. Near the end they were using some pritty spiff computer graphics.
What Doctor Who didn't do was push the edge. The BBC was just using equipment they had on hand. Dr. Who was never about flashy effects but about great story telling. But the effects were not always cheap.
It could be becouse Dr Who near the end was entering a time when FX was a big deal. Every movie or SiFi had to have advanced FX. If it was a SiFi movie they had to blast your eyeballs out with it.
The Tartus going through time image.. an old anolog FX machine.. probably cerca 1960s. While Dr Who dates back earlyer so I expect there is an older version of that.
Then there is the newer version using digital graphics.. 1980s...
A Dr Who today could use advanced make up and CGI. But the story will never rely on it.
Now I did say there were two good reasons for this.. The second?
The FOX Dr Who made for TV movie is removed from the conical Dr Who history.. much the same way the Star Trek cartoon series was removed from the Star Trek history when Rodenbury took control again.
That means the Master lives again...
As for "FanBoy writing"...
A lot of Dr Who was "FanBoy writing" So was Star Trek. The TV movie was a profesional hack job.
Writers do better when they are familure with the show and are themselfs fans of it.
The ultimate fan of any given SiFi is it's crator.
I don't actually exist.
alt.binaries.drwho
Sir, you are pedantic.
My doctor is known as Doctor Miller, yet he can often be referred to as Dr Miller. He doesn't get uptight about it. He just accepts that "Dr" is a common abbreviation of the word "Doctor". This extends to Doctor Who. It is a commonly accepted abbreviation. Get over it.
I more or less agree, although there are some damn good Amerian actors. Philip Seymour Hoffman could make an excellent Doctor, for example.
The BBC should resurrect Who, and spend their money on finding a great script editor, a strong writing staff and a perfectly cast Doctor and sidekick(s). I could even embrace the concept of a female Doctor, since sexuality doesn't seem to be much more than window dressing to Gallifrians. The painful TV movie whould be completely forgotten.
Helium balloons want to be free.
I can see it now...
Dr Who opens a nasty shell script, which references all the servers he secretly incorporated into his DDOs attack. Flinging an barrage of syns, acks, and errant ICMP messages at the evil aliens, slowing their terrible invasion.
After scanning their ports, and gaining anonymous ftp access, he finds their unprotected password file and runs john the ripper on it. Hours later, he finds the worlds worst password... invasion
DrWho@:~$ telnet aliensupercomputer.invasion.org
Connected to aliensupercomputer.invasion.org
Debian GNU/Linux testing/unstable aliensupercomputer
aliensupercomputer login: alienoverlord
password: *******
Don't forget to insult the intelligence of humans before you destory them!
alienoverlord@aliensupercomputer:~$ su
password: ********
aliensupercomputer:/# rm -rf /
...and thus, in the season finale, Dr Who deletes the aliens from cyberspace...
The following season, it's found that the aliens were stored in off site backups, and reloaded by script kiddies, who wanted to use them to take down their friends 1337 b0x0r!!
Don't forget "Doctorin' the Tardis" by The Timelords (an early manifestation of those whacky funsters The KLF) which, very unfortunately, went to Number 1 in the UK in 1988. It's a mixture of the Doctor Who theme and a song by fallen glam-rocker Gary Glitter.
Check out the KLF FAQ (link above) which includes lots of interesting trivia, like the fact that Jimmy Cauty of the KLF painted that Lord of the Rings poster from the seventies (for those of you old enough to remember it) and the reason why they burned a million pounds. Strange people.
Discovering that this wasn't the first post it should have been, we ran to the Tardis, whipped out the sonic screwdriver and attempted to repair the time/space problem. Failing that, I offered CmdrTaco a jellybaby...
Help achieve Liberty in your lifetime - join the Free State Project - http://www.freestateproject.org
No reliance on deus-ex-machina technology
;)
:) Made things somewhat repetitive in the writing department...
*cough* sonic screwdriver *cough*
Well, the reason K-9 malfunctioned so often was that he always knew the answer to any bloody question
deus does not exist but if he does
No problems there. I did, however see the BBC thing where they asked who should play the next doctor, and some people actually voted for Rik Mayall and/or Adrian Edmonson. Dear God. Imagine Rik fucking Mayall as the Doctor.
Actually, both of them have proved that they can play it straight - I'd love to see Ade Edmonson as the Doctor. Or even Rik Mayall. The only thing they have to do is play it straight - which goes with the territory (apart from the terrible Tom Baker days)
Simon
Coming soon - pyrogyra
In that case, how about this news?
;-)
The Sci-Fi channel will be showing the Doctor Who TV-movie (1996 - Sylvester McCoy and Paul McGann as the Doctor) on July 15th.
Just thought I'd let you know
Si
Coming soon - pyrogyra
And the movie in question was a hollywood travesty. They took the basis for the series and destroyed it with love interest and special effects. We would do well to forget this incarnation of our friend from Galafrey...
Actually, the BBC explicitly wanted the love interest - believe it or not.
Check amazon.co.uk for the book "Regeneration" by Segal & Russell.
Simon
Coming soon - pyrogyra
The only Doctor Who I know, and ever want to know, is the Tom Baker one with the long scarf and curly hair.
And the books I read as a child.
Good stuff.
The surprise isn't how often we make bad choices; the surprise is how seldom they defeat us.
Just thought I'd mention us!
Howard, floorten.com
This was at the MOMI museum, which has now shut down indefinatelf for rufurbishment. So sorry, no dalek, folks!
What, are these evil hackers from the future rooting boxen through a temporal Wingate?
How we know is more important than what we know.
Or one of the TeleTubbies, if the remotes aren't kept out of toddlers' hands.
Gotta agree...
Trivia:
1) Lalla Ward is married to Richard Dawkins
2) Paul McGann lives just around the corner from me, although I've never seen him around.
3) But I did see Trude Mostue, the Norwegian bird from "Vets in Practice", in Sainsbury's
This is along with an audio stream of a special 30 min. ep later in the year.
Wrong. This isn't along with anything: the entire episode is 30 minutes long, broadcast as six real audio files. There is only one episode, singular, and the audio stream you mention above doesn't accompany it, as the words along with imply. The audio stream (although in six parts) _is_ the episode.
It looks like there will be an air of interactivity in the show as well."
Sort of. The listeners will be able to vote on whether they want the Doctor to return. There isn't any interactivity in the show, no outcomes to be decided pertaining to the episode, but a simple vote by listeners as to the Doctor's return.
You would think that this one would be a no-brainer: do we resurrect one of the most popular SF franchises in the world?
Neopets - the best free game on the Int
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Actually, it just shows when you out-grew Doctor Who. Sylvester McCoy did an equally good job of presenting the character of the Doctor, you (and I) had just grown up enough by then to realise it. A few years earlier and you'd have been complaining (as you will often see) about the previous doctor(s) instead.
I actually know people 10 years older than me who say 'Doctor who was ok till that twat Tom Baker ruined it'.
-- A change is as good as a reboot.
BTW, that's the U.S. ScFi channel, not the British one.
:)
I guess they have too much taste to actually watch it over there. I personally found it horrible, and I am an American.
Yes, who would actually be entertained by something as horrible as audio-only transmission. I guess people really disliked the radio broadcast of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. ;)
I am dismayed at getting press releases for around 12 new Dr Who books being published per year. I am reasonably happy about the Audio CD's of old stories no longer watchable in video form, but I am desperately worried this is just an attempt to milk a cash cow. I hope I am wrong.
SF and Computing Book Reviews from : http://www.DiverseBooks.com
Plot #1: Fearing for the safety of the universe, the Celestial Intervention Agency sends the Doctor back in time to destroy a menace that threatens to take over the universe. The Doctor refuses to do so, however, citing that "... out of evil, something good must come. Without Bill Gates, Linus would have had no hardware to program for..."
/. back-end "Post Story" function.
...."
Plot #2: The universe keeps looping back and repeating itself. The Doctor attempts to put this right by adding a search of old stories to the
Plot #3: A new and more wonderful Doctor replaces the old one. However, many fans are heard to say, "I'm waiting until Doctor 2.5.0
Plot #4: The TARDIS crashes, and the Doctor must wait 200 years for it to fsck itself. "I really must move the old girl over to XFS...."
www.eFax.com are spammers
What I always loved about Blake's 7 is that they weren't afraid to kill main characters. In Star Trek, if the lead is in dire straights and about to die with 10 minutes left, you know they'll pull out somehow. In Blake's 7, you didn't. It adds a whole new dimension. :-)=
;-)
Of course, they were also even worse than Dr Who about every planet looking an awful lot like a certain Welsh rock quarry.
[TMB]
Tom Baker rules.
Someone you trust is one of us.
The strengths were in the characters. William Hartnell, the first Dr. Who, set the protocol ("Don't call me Doc!"). Colin Baker was Tom Baker's enemy before becoming the doctor. Casting a female as Dr. Who is a silly idea. There were female time lords at the trials of Dr. Who, and Romana, ably played by Mary Tamm and Lalla Ward, travelled with Dr. Who, who gave his name on one show as "John Smith". The companions included many capable actors and actresses, but I enjoyed two of the cameos most. Jaqueline Pearce was on briefly in a Patrick Troughton episode, and Lionel Pertwee's companion, Jean Marsh, enjoyed herself hugely as a Valkyrie queen with Sylvester McCoy. The show is British, with a British view, and would be a disaster if it was made in the USA.
I think everyone knows that Mr. Peabody & Sherman are everybody's most beloved time travelers!
-- From my Best Friend (Written to me over ICQ): "i was gonna go to a party...but i had to reinstall windows"
You're not kidding...they killed every single main character that was a 'good guy' in the last episode. I couldn't believe my eyes, but I thought it was the best ending I'd ever seen!
---- Sigs are bad for your health ----
Give a hand, not a hand-out.
As far as audio adventures go, this is nothing new, either; the BBC has licensed a company named Big Finish to produce a series of audio adventures available on CD (website here) featuring the fifth through eighth Doctors, accompanied by most of their companions. They're also in talks to bring in Tom Baker, as well as Anthony Ainley (the Master), but nothing concrete has come out of them yet.
This is news, but it implies Doctor Who has been dead. It's not; it's still alive and kicking...
Here are a few links with a bit more information about the show. It's on the official BBC drwho secion (not just the news). Aparently they already made this show for something else...
h tml . shtml
"Death Comes To Time is a half hour Doctor Who radio episode. It was made as a pilot programme for Radio Four by producer Dan Freedman."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/doctorwho/radio/index.s
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/doctorwho/news/01060606
It's a 'new' story...
You can't download a video of something release special for audio... On the other hand, there are places where one can find DW divx...
I shall say no more
a.b.drwho
and efnet #dwarchive
The other Doctors had their charms, it's true, but Tom Baker WAS The Doctor. And Douglas Adams wrote a couple of his eposides (The Pirate Planet being the one I can recall off the top of my head.) Proof enough, if you ask me.
You go get a sample of his DNA and I'll break out the Jr. Scientist's Cloning Kit.
I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?
Doctor? We thought you'd been killed by the Daleks! Again! Is there anything you need, Doctor? Perhaps a cup of tea?
I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?
just because the theme of a show might be outragous and absurd does not mean it shouldn't be brought back to televison years later. Besides doctor who the networks could bring back: The Lone Ranger- Instead of fighting Indians he can fight Arabs I Love Lucy- A reality show in which two contestants are forced to live in a small NYC apartment and experience zany adventures Amos and Andy- No longer about a clueless police officer. Now about plice brutality in southern LA.
A rabbit in the hand is worth 4 in the cage
Don't forget that "Life, The Universe, and Everything" was originally intended to be a script for a Tom Baker episode. But since it never got used, he decided to re-tool it as the third Hitchhiker book when the publishers wouldn't get off his back.
There have been plenty of audio-only Doctor Who adventures done by Big Finish Productions lately. So why aren't any of these news? Then there's both monthly book series too (the continued eighth doctor adventures, and past doctor adventures).
Does this mean he's going to back in time and lobotomise Bill Gates?
Zaphod B
Zaphod B
When duplication is outlawed, only outlaws will have
Don't give up on audio Doctor Who. Imagine if you will stories that don't have to worry about sets falling down on the actors and worlds as grand as your imgination. The licenced audio dramas that are being produced now do use the ORIGINAL actors reprising there roles. Many of them are quite entertaining and exciting to listen to. It is easier to listen to stories than it to watch or read while working or driving. Some of my recomdations for audio Doctor Who would have to the be...
The Fearmonger w/ 7th DocWhispers of Terror w/ 6th
Stones of Venice w/ 8th aka Paul McGann
plus there are others that can be found at http://www.doctorwho.co.uk
But I cannot leave without mentioning the continuing adventures of the Doctor in the novels published by BBC Books.
Zach "Rassilon" Crisman
Just to add to the argument, Tom Baker, Lalla Ward and Douglas Adams were the best Dr Who team IMAO.
Quattuor res in hoc mundo sanctae sunt: libri, liberi, libertas et liberalitas.
I did, however see the BBC thing where they asked who should play the next doctor, and some people actually voted for Rik Mayall and/or Adrian Edmonson. Dear God. Imagine Rik fucking Mayall as the Doctor.
Don't suppose you have a link to this? I'd love to see the list.
If people could be nominated, I'd nominate Alan Davies (Jonathan Creek.) I'd bet he could pull of a Bakeresque doctor and he's got tall, skinny and curly down.
Some people have a way with words, and some people, um, thingy.
You can watch (record really) the show on a nightly basis from almost anywhere. I've seen it on Time Warner and Cox cable systems as well as DirecTV. It's on late at night on BBC America.
Oh, and they show it in the original 30 minute episodes, by the way. (We got whole story lines in a single blast on PBS when I was a kid.)
Some people have a way with words, and some people, um, thingy.
There is an original Dalek in the museum at the British Film Institute in London (under the south end of Waterloo Bridge).
The best part is you can get inside it, and it has a synthesizer/microphone so you can say, "exterminate, Exterminate, EXTERMINATE!!!" and you sound like the real thing.
Check it out, it only costs 10 quid to get in.
If you watch TV news, you know less about the world than if you just drank gin straight from the bottle.
And the movie in question was a hollywood travesty. They took the basis for the series and destroyed it with love interest and special effects. We would do well to forget this incarnation of our friend from Galafrey....
Working for the (other) man
It's called 'The Book of the Still' and is to be released next year.
He told me that in the book, the characters are fighting for control of a book called 'The Book of the Still', which is the one unchangeble thing in time. The 'Book of the Still' in the story is also about characters fighting for control of the 'Book of the Still', and so on...
There are also a few more surprises in the book; it sounded pretty fascinating.
I do remember Dr Who quite fondly. Sure the sets and effects were not exactly great, but it always did have some sort of a plot and a resonably good looking female lead. My personal favorites was always the Daleks - well it is the one that stick to the mind the most.
Hopefully this time if they are back they will be able to climb stairs!!!
"Old Rallydrivers never die - they just fail to book in on time"
There seems to be a really strong Tom Baker emphasis here... (Which I completely agree with!)
But the 1st and 2nd doctor are also good. I don't think many Who fans have really watched the earlier episodes though... It's kinda like 3rd, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th are not as good as Tom Baker.. so the 1st and 2nd are probably not as good too..
Which is a shame, since IMHO the 1st and 2nd are quite close to Tom Baker's doctor, and a really good watch too.
It's a shame you posted that as an Anonymous Coward. I hope no one minds, but I quoted all of your comment above. Otherwise it wouldn't get archived. You should really get an account. The ACs have really fallen into disrepute in the last year... Everyone expects ACs to just post crap...
I've been watching Doctor Who on and off since I was a kid. Usually what happens is, I watch and tape it like mad while it's on, before it goes off the air. Which it invariably does, and it's always the same story...ratings...
The First and Second Doctors had some stories that looked really good, but they were lost. A very significant portion of the First Doctor's stories and most of the Second Doctor's stories were thrown in the trash by the BBC because they felt the episodes weren't profitable. After they had their turn on the air in the U.K., the episodes were licensed abroad for broadcast in other countries. The episodes were made in the '60s and were black-and-white, but by the '70s, with the rise of colour TV, the Beeb felt that no one wanted to watch black-and-white stuff anymore. A number of them have been recovered in whole or part, but a lot of good stuff is still missing. I'd really love to see The Daleks' Master Plan, Evil of the Daleks, and the last episode of The Tenth Planet (in which the First Doctor regenerates into the Second). Also, that Katarina girl in The Daleks' Master Plan looks hot...!
Anyway, I like the Third Doctor, played by Jon Pertwee. He's a "man of action" who always gets the job done. Apparently, when asked about it, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said he liked the Third Doctor. Anyway, it would be wrong to say he's my favourite...I kind of like all the Doctors.
I've noticed that a lot of Seventh Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) fans tend to be rather insecure. They take great offence if you diss their Doctor. Further up this discussion, someone called McCoy an "annoying twat" and got summarily slapped down to "0, Troll". If I had moderator points, I'd lift that comment to 1 so it would at least get archived, so the responses to it would make sense...
The Seventh Doctor was OK, I suppose. I think it was really stupid when he looked shocked and said "You killed it," when Ace blew up a Dalek early in Remembrance of the Daleks. Otherwise, he got some really good and sophisticated stories in his last two seasons. He also got some really crappy ones in his first season. It's a shame good stuff from the '60s was trashed but crappy stuff like Delta and the Bannermen is still preserved...!
I thought a lot of the Seventh Doctor's stories weren't filmed well. They were recorded directly onto videotape, giving them a really artifical look, almost like American sitcoms.
Anyway, this Slashdot article is about to drop off the bottom of the front page, which will surely kill off most of the activity here...
About a year ago, there was a Slashdot poll: "Most Powerful Doctor" with the choices "Dr. Evil", "Dr. Dre", "Dr. No", etc., but "Dr. Who" was conspicuously absent, and there were many comments to that effect. So, with this article, I'm glad the good Doctor finally got a mention on this website.
Does anyone remember in one of the (IIRC) Peter Davidson episodes the ultra-sophisticated computer tracking device, using BBC Micro mode 2
Oh god yes. I HATED it when they installed a BBC Micro in the Tardis console. It was the time when EVERY FUCKING TV SERIES the BBC did just HAD to have a BBC Micro. Oi! BBC! No! Even worse was "Bird of Prey" with Richard Griffiths hacking into a secret computer system from his Acorn Electron...!
Hacker: A criminal who breaks into computer systems
"Information wants to be paid"
Dear God. Imagine Rik fucking Mayall as the Doctor.
Well, it could be worse... FISHY SNACKS!!!
Jump the shark moment. (Dr. Who in Cyberspace? Quick! Alter that ping packet to a legal length!)
I'd really like to see Michael Palin as the Doctor, but I know that will never happen.
psmylie's dictionary: Godzillion (noun) Any number large enough to destroy Tokyo
Ughh NO!
Clearly putting this on the album was a mistake.
Some things that are good live should be kept there.. I cringe everytime I hear that Dr? track.
Apart from that Orbital at Homelands two weeks ago has been the highlight of my year so far. They were ace.
I might be a little younger than you (24yrs) but that show used to scare the hell out of me! I think that the reason my parents let me watch it in the eighties is only because it was being replayed on PBS. I remember I would watch Sesame Street, then the Electric Company. Since Dr. Who was on immediately following, I often got to watch that before dinner as well. In retrospect, I can't believe my parents allowed this day in and day out, due to the fact that I always came to the dinner table fairly freaked out and concerned about the future of the English countryside.
Does anyone remember in one of the (IIRC) Peter Davidson episodes the ultra-sophisticated computer tracking device, using BBC Micro mode 2?
Probably about £2300 in today's terms, I'm not sure though.
Ick! OMG, I'd forgotten that!
There are only two typical aliens:
1. People in a country that are from a foreign country (doesn't apply to cyberspace).
2. People born/bred in outerspace (e.g. Zaphod Beeblebrox, Ford Prefect).
I guess that since Ford Prefect tapped into the phone network from a star near Beetulgues, it's feasible that one might tap into the WWW from there.
Bringing irony to the Slash-masses
RE: the TARDIS has been whacked up like that, That's actually true to the spirit of said series: remember the series with the mahogany panelled control room with the brass console? The only reason they went back to that swingin' sixties thing is the set was improperly stored, and it warped.
RE: and McGann's Doctor is officially #8 (The
No problems there. I did, however see the BBC thing where they asked who should play the next doctor, and some people actually voted for Rik Mayall and/or Adrian Edmonson. Dear God. Imagine Rik fucking Mayall as the Doctor.
"Oh! Oh! Ow! Vat Dalek shot me wight up my bottom! Wight! Hands up, who likes me. Damn! Oh! Wight! I'm gonna kill myself! Oh, damn. I'd have to do that fouw mowe times. Oh well. Eddie, whewe awe we off to then? (rubs hands)... No we awe NOT going to planet MALIBU!" Christ.
--- Jump!! Fire!! Bullet time!! - Lego version of the Matrix
Too bad - I'd love to know where.
--- Jump!! Fire!! Bullet time!! - Lego version of the Matrix
I would, if I could get the financing, like to find out exactly who has the licensing deal to do "Who" (or find out how much Ma Beeb wants for it) - and cull some of the brightest writers out there for a new series.
WANTED: Scripts for 30+ year old Sci-Fi franchise. Pluses: engaging drama, relevant issues being discussed in the episodes, a flair for reducing scientific principles to comprehensible statements, excellent characterisation. No reliance on deus-ex-machina technology, complex sets and/or expensive special effects or the use of violence/gunplay to solve problems (apart from defensive strategies). If you are potato-shaped and balding and can and do sing "The Lumberjack song" at great volumes at inappropriate times, please disregard this notice. Folks wearing Hawaiian shirts to the interview will be shot.
--- Jump!! Fire!! Bullet time!! - Lego version of the Matrix
Yup. Gruber's cameo was done right. (He was Nyder, right?)
Richard Briers' wasn't. "Oh, look at me, haw haw, I'm the baddie. Look at my hitler moustache oh haw haw, just doing it for the grandkids you know, oh haw haw... wouldn't Felicity Kendall have made a good companion..."
--- Jump!! Fire!! Bullet time!! - Lego version of the Matrix
RE: The only problem with American Money is that the people with the money will want a say in the final product and we'll just get the same old shit.
Fish called Wanda? That was American money without the interference... besides, you can hold up the ratings and the finished product of Fox's first attempt... and then talk about the ratings of the series.
RE: BTW You're right about Brain of Morbius - that's the best Dr Who ever. All those Gothic ones are pretty good, but Brain of Morbius is by far and away the best.
Genesis of the Daleks was by far the best... creepy as hell, with allusions to warnings about fascism, blindly trusting scientists with an agenda, eugenics etc. but the Goth ones have the most special place in my heart. When I saw Gallifrey for the first time in the Deadly Assassin, a cross between a church, university convocation and a parliament, I was blown away - they'd come up with exactly the kind of environment gung-ho academics hate and try to leave.
--- Jump!! Fire!! Bullet time!! - Lego version of the Matrix
(or the ones they used to have)
- Decent writing
- Engaging characters
- Mixture of Baroque/High Victorian charm and high-tech
- Some clever sci-fi/horror hybrids
What they need to get rid of is:
- "fanboy" writing (dear God - let us forget the TV movie! The horror! The horror!)
- Overacting (RADA's finest, at their worst.)
- Reducing people to set pieces
- low budgets (they should remake it with Fox money)
- cameos where the people are demonstrating it's a cameo (e.g. that Richard Briers twit in a Hitler Moustache doing his usual set piece)
Let's face it - there was nothing engaging about the final series nor the TV movie. It was an attempt to do a more action oriented piece without the money. I'd take Tom Baker in a pirate shirt taking someone on in a dimly lit fencing duel in the Phillip Hinchcliffe era, than someone taking out a Dalek with a magic softball bat.
The show had atmosphere and tension and a curious interplay with high tech themed High Victorian Gothic/60s modernist and a main character who was Old World in style but McGyver and the Lone Gunmen when it came down to it. When they started dressing up the doctor in bright tartans and playing the same old "kill the menacing alien" routine, it was over. Where was the Green Death of the 90s? The Brain of Morbius of the 80s?
I think the USA and the BEEB should reconsider a merger, cause Who in its heyday was a GREAT show. They should do the Fish Called Wanda and do it American Money, British writing and acting, not American acting and writing, British money.
--- Jump!! Fire!! Bullet time!! - Lego version of the Matrix
Yes, to all, Tom Baker would have been a great thing. But this could also be a great thing too. Sylvester McCoy was the Doctor in one of the best episodes (Silver Nemesis) ever. I love old time radio and know the Hitchhikers guide from memory, if this is done right it could be just as good. Lets give it a chance.
Great people don't need people to complete them, great people complete other people. -- Matthew Pawlikowski.
Besides, he's one of the most difficult actors around. He repeatedly changes his mind, or just fails to turn up for recording.
Well, your fingers weave quick minarets; Speak in secret alphabets;
std::disclaimer<std::legalese> sig=new std::disclaimer; sig->dump(); delete sig;
We can only hope that the BBC will begin to realize the assets that they are wasting away. How much time, effort, and financial resources does it take to build up such a great and long story line as Doctor Who? Not to mention the fan base. I first so Doctor Who in 1985. When I travel out of town, the first thing that I look for in my hotel room is a television guide, a PBS station, and is Doctor Who on the telly.
Reversing the Polarity of the Neutron Flow, yours truly, vistas.
Monday is looking up...
+++ UGUCAUCGUAUUUCU
Have Fun.
I am very glad to see this. That it is a 30 minute audio file is not the point. It represents a real chance for the good Doctor to come back. Watch it, support it, and let the BBC know that you support it, and if enough people do that, he may indeed come back, to TV, where he belongs.
The one quibble I had was with the following statement:
> Doctor Who is the longest running science-
> fiction series in the world.
Sorry, Doctor Who is the longest running science fiction *TV* series in the world. Godzilla probably holds the movies series record, beating out Doctor Who by nine years. His first movie was in 1954. His most recent movie in American theaters was August 2000. His most recent movie in Japan was December 2000. His next movie in Japan (alongside Mothra, King Ghidora, and Baragon) is this December. Heck, even Mothra first appeared in 1961, two years before Doctor Who. The old girl is celebrating her 40th birthday this July. Actually, Mothra and the Doctor would get along fine. Both are big on protecting the Earth from evil space monsters.
Mothra 1961-2001: Her heart can reach!
No, actually you're older than me ( 23 ) =).
But yes, I used to watch it on PBS too, likely for the same reasons, it came on about the time other shows I liked was on - but despite the fact that it often really disturbed me, it was always one of my favourites - although some of the scenes still haunt me today - like when the Doctor's young assistant with the black hair was captured by the Master and trapped to some weird geodesic jungle-gym like thing somewhere in the twisted maze of the tardis. Ooooh - I have irrational fears of jungle gyms to this day.
There are a thousand forms of subversion, but few can equal the convenience and immediacy of a cream pie -Noel Godin
I really would love to see how the pull off more of their fine tradition of cheesy special effects.
I don't know about anyone else, but I watched Dr. Who as a small kid, and was really scared by lots of it. Mostly I think it was scary because the props and special effects were so bad. You'd see some monster that was just a guy dressed in green garbage bags, but you KNEW that it was just a guy in green garbage bags. I used to sit in front of the TV at my grandmother's eating french fries going: "oh geez! that's a guy shambling around in cut up green garbage bags trying to take over the universe! That's really freaking me out!"
Ahh - the memories...
There are a thousand forms of subversion, but few can equal the convenience and immediacy of a cream pie -Noel Godin
Listeners to the audio webcast will have the chance to vote to resurrect the show. I still enjoy watching the Tom Baker repeats on BBC-America. Yeah the special effects are cheezy and it always reminds me of a English take on Godzilla. The shows were lots of fun, with dry humor, drama, action and not lets forget some scantily clad women!
I suspect Adams may have written the first scene of "Destiny of the Daleks" too - Very silly stuff.
"Anybody remotely interesting is mad, in some way or another" - Doctor Who
Actually, I have it on good authority that the budget per episode at the beginning of Hartnell's time as Dr Who was £2300 per episode. But that included EVERYTHING - script writer, actors' fees, music, sets, costumes, studio staff, the lot. Probably at the end of the day there would have been about fifty quid left over for special effects..
- which would explain why the Daleks' first great defeat was represented (I'm lead to believe) by someone lighting a sparkler and putting it in front of the camera!
"Anybody remotely interesting is mad, in some way or another" - Doctor Who
Nah, I promise 2300 1960s pounds, according to "Doctor Who - The Handbook: The First Doctor" by Howe, Stammers and Walker.
"Anybody remotely interesting is mad, in some way or another" - Doctor Who
The script for Douglas Adams' "missing" Dr Who adventure "Shada" can be found at:
h tm l
http://www.bw.edu/~jcurtis/Scripts/Shada/intro.
Go have a look if you want to see some early Adams stuff - much funnier than your average episode of "Dr Who".
"Anybody remotely interesting is mad, in some way or another" - Doctor Who
>As an aside, anyone know what is happeneing with the new TV episode
>of Blakes' Seven that they have been talking about?
I don't know about a new TV episode; AFAIK the movie is about curently in pre?) production, starring Paul Darrow as Avon... set five years PGP (p[ost Gauda Prime.) Dr WHo I can take or leave (although I gre up withit); it's B7 that I've obsessively collected on video. 25 tapes at $25 a pop... worth every penny. I'm a fan, does it show? ;) (google for my username for further evidence...)
Some random B7 resources from my bookmarks:
http://ernie.bgsu.edu/~sclerc/Blakes7.html
http://www.horizon.org.uk/
http://lcw.simplenet.com/b7lib.html
For the benefit of anyone unfortunate enough to miss out on on B7, it absolutely rocks, being a cheesy low-budget BBC take on Star Trek - except the Federation are an evil repressive authoritarian state and the good guys are outlaws on the run - and they all argue/distrust/betray each other. A refreshingly cynical worldview...
--
"I'm not downloaded, I'm just loaded and down"
And Peri the Poosy Galore... Tom & Peri, the ultimate team-up that never happened.
"Exterminate!" -- The original "Resistance is Futile!"
I am for the complete Trantorization of Earth.
> The Doctor could not destroy the Daleks as it would make him no better than they were.
And killing Hitler makes you no better than Hitler.
These pseudo-moralities derive from not wanting to show the hero doing the proper thing (kind of like the good guys shooting down the bad guys' plane, said bad guys just trying to murder them, and whew! The bad guys parachutted safely out! Whew!
I am for the complete Trantorization of Earth.
Well first I was going to suggest the following poll:
the best Doctor is:
- Tom Baker
- Tom Baker
- Tom Baker
- Tom Baker
- CowboyTomBaker
But since you all already seem to grant that he was the pinnacle of Whohood, I'll just point out his site.Nice comparison. Ultraviolet was flawed, but mature, proficiently made and extremely courageous, more so than anything the BBC has done in recent years. I'd be delighted to see a Who revival done to those standards (only with a little less angst and ennui please).
Coincidentally, 1998 brought us both Ultraviolet and the BBC's "Invasion: Earth", which ranks as one of my biggest disappointments ever. The cliched script and one dimensional characters were bad enough, but add to that miserable locations, a shoestring budget and shoddy effects, and a "To be continued" ending that never was, and you have a truly horrid piece of SF. The worst part was that the BBC were inordinately proud of the effects: "Look! We've discovered computers!". It was all very embarrasing. IIRC, 1998 was also the year of Red Dwarf 8. The less said about that, the better.
Franky, the best thing that the BBC could do with Who is to sell the IP, lock stock and barrel, to a production outfit that will actually use it. The Ultraviolet lot would be an interesting choice.
If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
This Howard Gordon, the sometime producer of Angel, Buffy and X Files?
Let's hope he aims closer to X Files than the other two, hey? Thanks for the tip.
If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
That confirms my worst fears. I'm glad I've got all of UV on video.
Bring back Mary Tamm!
"What are we going to do tonight, Bill?"
www.lucernesys.comHorizon: Calendar-based personal finance
Warning! Danger! There are rumors of an american re-make of Utraviolet. If they screw it up as badly as they screwed up "Cracker' we're in for some real pain.
BTW, Jack Davenport, who starred in "Ultraviolet", was just in "Coupling", a BBC sitcom that's airing on BBC America. Funniest thing I've seen in years.
"What are we going to do tonight, Bill?"
www.lucernesys.comHorizon: Calendar-based personal finance
"Does this mean he's going to back in time and lobotomise Bill Gates?"
In "Genesis of the Daleks", The Doctor could not destroy the Daleks as it would make him no better than they were.
However, I am sure that he could justify killing Gates, because Bill is *way* more evil than the Daleks.
Unfortunately Bill is probably like Davros, and very difficult to kill...
*** Where are we going? And what's with this handbasket?
When Dirk Gentley's Holistic Detective Agency was published, I really enjoyed the novel.
However, when I viewed "Shada", I was really disappointed. DGHDA's plot was not very similar in some respects to Shada. Okay, it was still Douglas' own work so it is not as if he plagarized, but still...
Re-using code is a virtue among programmers, but I am not sure it is a virtue among writers.
*** Where are we going? And what's with this handbasket?
And have The Doctor be played by Christfor Walken!!! YES!!!
I guess the audio only will save us from realizing how old the Doctor and Ace have become as of lately.
Who wants to whip up a midi?
*..dum da dumm... oooo eeee ooooo...*
Kinda "BOFH"ish isnt it?
-- "It's tough to run with both feet stuck in your mouth" - Zoe's evil side
There was a Blake's 7 radio-only episode a few years back on BBC done in a similar vein. It was, of course, excellent listening.
There's something really neat about science fiction on radio; if you remember the Radio4 version of Foundation or the original Hitchhiker's Guide you know what i mean.
Now what would be cool would be a season of Star Trek: TNG episodes on radio. Just think: a million unused scripts, virtually no production costs compared to TV, and finally, believable alien races.
I saw it live in Worcester, when they toured with Crystal Method and Low Fi Allstars - it was definitly one of the high points of my life. Unfortunately all the bootlegs I've heard are poor quality, or they have annoying fans cheering over the music, so I was very happy that they put out a studio version. Nothing beats seeing it live though!
I was standing toward the left door, where pieces of the roof fell down. You might have noticed they cleared away a small area during the show. Anyways I haven't seen them come back since then. If anyone wants to go see a show sometime in Worcester or Boston, maybe we could get a regional /. club going.
'Remembrance of the Daleks'
... in a 7th Doctor episode. It looked so stupid, I think it helped get the show off the air in the first place!
The title of the television programme is Doctor Who. Not Dr. Who. Not Dr Who. Not Doctor Who? Not Dr Who?
The name of the lead character, played by a number of very fine actors, is The Doctor. Not Doctor Who, Dr. Who, Dr Who, Dr Who?, or any other choice of abbreviations you wish you use.
Call me silly. Call me stupid. It's just another example of the decline of linguistic accuracy, both in everyday society and on the Internet.
And I reserve the right to hate it.
Remove the caps and hold to a mirror.
There have been several audio adventures and a large number of books (some of them quite good) created recently from the Dr. Who mythos.
Thus 30 minutes of audio broadcast over the internet, using two actors who dearly loved their roles but (let's face it) probably came pretty cheap does not represent an impressive financial commitment by the BBC.
I'm ready to take the poll right now. My vote: BRING DOCTOR WHO BACK! And make it Paul McGann while you're at it.. thanks.
A small contribution to Dr. Who on the internet: Daleks! Applet
....is that hiding behind the sofa will have no effect.
The months are just too short. I can count the number of days on one hand.
We need to get our Dr. Who fix. Bring back Tom Baker and do a multiple-Doctor episode!
Someone get Speilberg on the phone to do the movie correctly this time!
Remember, Slashdot does not have a -1 disagree moderation, and no, troll, flamebait, and overrated are not substitutes.
NO, William Hartnell is!!