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Online Doctor Who Documentary
mikey writes "There's an online documentary called Planet of the Doctor about the influence of Doctor Who. It's put out by the CBC and it's got some decent interviews with original producers, writers, and cast as well as fans and others. So far, it's been very entertaining and informative. They've got four episodes out with another couple to come. If you're a Doctor Who fan (or even a generic Sci-Fi fan) it's worth checking out."
I am not familiar with this individual. More details, please.
No, seriously! If it's not in torrent form, I simply won't watch it :)
Thank you, this is way cool!
There goes my chances at winning the Dr. Who in UK contest. Odds don't look so good anymore with the entire Slashdot crowd signing up.
Host localhost (127.0.0.1) appears to be up
Another documentary to check out is Doctor Who Confidential broadcast by BBC 3. It is a 13 part half-hour documentary series on the Doctor, past and present. It can be viewed on the BBC web site in Real Movie format or can be found on various file sharing networks in a larger and more viewable format.
So far I have seen nothing from the BBC on releasing the series on DVD. I hope they will. It has been quite good so far. (At this date, 11 of the 13 episodes have aired.)
"Trademarks are the heraldry of the new feudalism."
Doctor who?
"If you're a Doctor Who fan (or even a generic Sci-Fi fan) it's worth checking out."
I much prefer the House-brand Sci-Fi fan. Much better packaging.
Reminder to moderators: do not moderate up Dancin Santa, he is in fact a fucking asshole.
Am I alone in being turned off by excessive commercialism? For example, the latest Star Wars offering may be entertaining, but with all the tie-ins, from Pepsi to fast foods to Saturday morning cereal advertisements aimed at children, to my formerly-favorite candy M&M's (for which I almost went to jail over once-don't ask), coupled with all the astroturfing...well the stench of desperation is turning my appetite off. And that's just one example.
I'm ready for a revolution. Tear it all down and start fresh, or at least, let the writing and acting stand on its own.
KOA
It has shown us that special effects ought to be well done instead of looking like a 2nd grade art contest.
Keep in mind it was slated to be a kid's show and was part of the kids department till 1989. In fact, I know I watched a documentary where in the 60s they had a contest who could create the most scarry monster. Strangely enough the results of turning over the design department to a bunch of 2nd grade students worked rather well and I, a Doctor Who fan, wouldn't have noticed the difference.
There is no sanctuary. There is no sanctuary. SHUT UP! There is no shut up. There is no shut up.
Not even from an alcoholic, francophilic, hypocondriac who enjoys watching men blow..
No sir, I simply wont.
Nevermind, go back to Desperate Housewives....ok? /me goes back to Desperate Housewives /me suffers emotional trama when finding out the brown sause they're talking about isn't a condiment /me sues your ass
http://www.compfused.com/filedl1/09mmfnbvbif/badid ea.wmv
-=The Dude=-
So it's OK to protect people from their mistakes?
How has Dr. Who changed the face of television?
Apart from being the longest running TV science fiction series I wouldn't know.
It shows us that British actors can only employ ironic humor.
I'm surprised that, from that side of the pond, you know what irony is. I always thought you lot thought it was like silvery but harder.
Everyone likes things and dislikes things. So you dislike Dr Who. That's your prerogative. But good public television has to suit all tastes. I am currently off of work due to a bad chest infection and I am spending most of my time in bed. Yesterday I watched a program on how Bernard Herman, the film composer, changed the face of classical composing; poets talking about other poets work; Drake's defeat of the Spanish Armada; Turner Landscapes at the National Gallery; and The Professionals which is enjoyable seventies secret agent bunkum all courtesy of free broadcasting (none of which were on the BBC).
Put on the shows to draw in the public and then the advertising sold can pay for the 'culture'.
Well put, though I'd recommend thinking twice before simply assuming that someone you disagree with must live in America.
As for longest running science fiction, I could have sworn that was Star Trek Voyager. Maybe it just felt like it was on forever.
I only said the other side of the pond. That could mean Canada or even Mexico I suppose. But when someone talks of public television I tend to think of PBS.
http://www.cbc.ca/planetofthedoctor/videos/planeto fthedoctor_partone.mov
http://www.cbc.ca/planetofthedoctor/videos/planeto fthedoctor_parttwo.mov
http://www.cbc.ca/planetofthedoctor/videos/planeto fthedoctor_9doctors.mov
http://www.cbc.ca/planetofthedoctor/videos/planeto fthedoctor_partthree.mov
http://www.cbc.ca/planetofthedoctor/videos/planeto fthedoctor_partfour.mov
Enjoy i'm sure a torrent would be a good idea.
I never got to see the original Dr Who growing up in CA, USA, being born in 1981. (I have seen every single Red Dwarf though... that one ROCKS!) but i always heard about it. Geek friends, the internet.. there was always this Dr Who geek level that I felt that I never reached.
Now I can download the new BBS 2005 DR Who series and watch them. If the old ones are as interesting as the new ones, I think that I missed out on so much. I'm sure there are the purist that say the old school Dr Who is so much better. But unfortunatly i heard i can't get my hands on those, sad.
Anyway the new BBS Dr Who is very entertaining and i recomend everyone should check it out. Even if you are on this side of the pond.....
Outdoor storage sheds and pet kennels
20 years Ive tried to watch the damn thing and I couldnt, it was unbearable but I have to admit I really like this new series.
Of course, I sat through 2.5 seasons of Enterprise and all of Voyager, so I cant say that I've had anything lately to compare it too.
The latest doctor has that slightly psychotic look which makes you think that any minute hell go apeshit and rip someones heart out and I like the storylines (again, my brain has been tenderized by Star Trek and Star Wars). I tried DLing a few of the old ones and No. Absolutely not.
Then again, I like Red Dwarf, which understood better than Braga and Berman ever will that when youre in outer space, anything goes (meaning you dont have to rehash earth problems like homosexuality or racism on other worlds).
dennis
Since this is a Doctor Who discussion...
Why is the current Doctor *needy* and petty with an apparent infatuation with a 19 year old? It completely destroys the myth of the renegade Time Lord - a superior species - that I had cultivated as a teenager.
... thems some might big balls you've got my lad. Well done!
No it was not part of the childrens department until 1989. Sheesh!
File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
It has shown us that special effects ought to be well done instead of looking like a 2nd grade art contest.
The daleks aren't 2nd grade art. They are a genuine 1960's design classic.
Doctor Who Confidential cannot be released on DVD: too much unclearable music in the montages. THIS IS IN THEIR FAQ.
The BBC never deliberately trashed the archives in 1974: they thought there were copies at another site.
None of the DVDs in release (old or classic series) are from off-air broadcasts (except some easter eggs).
Maybe I'm just looking at the old series through rose coloured glasses, but I much preffered it to the new one.
The new one is far too emotional for my liking (though bear in mind I've only seen 4 episodes of it). Far too much emphasis is placed on the girl, and I really wish BBC at least attempted to hide the mutual infatuation between the two.
Also, I find much of the impact that the original series had is lost though having 45min start-to-finish episodes. One of the best things about the old series was the great cliffhangers.
Anyone else share this opinion, or am I seeing something that isn't there?
Are you a Dalek or a Cyberman or something?
direct download links for convenience.
/.'s lameness filters.
windows media:
part one
part two
part three
part four
apple quicktime:
part one
part two
part three
part four
and a pig pile of doggie poo on
Possibly because the Time Lords have been exterminated. It seems that there was a Time War in which both the Time Lords and the Daleks were wiped out; the Doctor claims that this was his doing.
For eight whole lives the Doctor was the superior being, a Time Lord from Gallifrey, impressing the hell out of the lesser humans - but he never needed them. Now, though, there's no home to go to, no Gallifrey, no Time Lords, just him and the TARDIS. No wonder he's clingy with Rose: he's got nobody else now.
Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.
It's a plugin to firefox so you can disable ad's
http://adblock.mozdev.org/
Keep in mind it was slated to be a kid's show and was part of the kids department till 1989.
Not correct - it was always produced by the BBC drama department.
And the "Design a monster" competition was run by Blue Peter, c.1968, and that WAS a kid's programme.
Get your facts right.
My web domain.
Actually, no it wasn't. The show was produced by the BBC Drama Department from 1963 to 1989 and was never part of the "kids department".
I'd have to review the documentaries, but the ones I've seen made references to kids show, kids department / educational department. I also seem to remember the same documentary spoke about much pressure regarding the use of monsters disguised as policemen saying, "you can tell children there are no such thing as monsters, but you can't tell them there are no such things as policemen".
I'd love to get my facts right but everything I've seen sugests kids and education even though it has long since evolved beyond a vehicle to visit history.
There is no sanctuary. There is no sanctuary. SHUT UP! There is no shut up. There is no shut up.
Not even from an alcoholic, francophilic, hypocondriac who enjoys watching men blow..
Chihuly doesn't blow himself anymore, no since he lost his eye. Blowing requires depth perception otherwise it could be most painful. He has a staff that does all the blowing, and for the most part he does the design.
The show was a BBC Drama output. They wouldn't have spent so much money on it if it was just a kids show.
My web domain.
If you count all the Star Trek series as one, they (barely) beat Dr. Who in terms of seasons produced (3 seasons of the original, 7 seasons of TNG, 7 seasons of DS9, 7 seasons of Voyager and 4 seasons of Enterprise).
Of course that doesn't make it the longest running, since TNG, DS9 and Voyager overlapped, but then add 10 movies and the animated series...
Yesterday I watched a program on how Bernard Herman, the film composer, changed the face of classical composing; poets talking about other poets work; Drake's defeat of the Spanish Armada; Turner Landscapes at the National Gallery; and The Professionals which is enjoyable seventies secret agent bunkum all courtesy of free broadcasting
I must live in a different country, cause yesterday I saw on tv an endless repetition of home renovation shows, auctions and daily politics - while probably on channel 4 there was a reality show on.
The top 5% of the BBC output is brilliant - but the daily shows are sandwich turds for pensioners..
Peter Davison, Colin Baker and Sylvester Macoy never had any decent scripts to work with
Not true; Peter Davison had The Caves of Androzani which I've heard is considered one of, if not *the* best Doctor Who stories by fans. I'm no diehard fan, and I came to the same conclusion myself (bought it after early-1990s repeat, in turn after good memories of the original transmissions).
Sylvester McCoy's era I had some bad memories of... I've heard he's a really good actor hobbled by some less than brilliant scripts. I rented Remembrance of the Daleks, and remembered why I was unhappy with the show towards the end. Since I hadn't seen his stuff (with one exception) since its original transmission, I assumed it was because I was growing up; but 'Remembrance' *does* have bad dialogue, *really* poor (and now dated) music, and if anything looks cheaper than the early-80s shows I grew up with (yeah, Peter Davison was 'my' canonical Doctor if anyone was). It used one of those plasma balls as a prop- even then, I'd seen the things on sale in high-street shops and it really stuck in my mind in a negative manner. Overall, it *felt* like watching a children's show.
But... I remember enjoying 'Survival' a lot at the time (this is before I realised the show had been cancelled; because of that, it never stuck in my head as the "last story shown"- I just enjoyed it).
More importantly, I recently rented Ghost Light. Although I don't remember much of this from the original transmission (for some reason), it turns out to be pretty good. Pretty hard to understand on first viewing (the DVD extras explain a lot, although they shouldn't have to), partly because it was cut from 4 to 3 episodes. But it's creative and well-made; for all its flaws, it's way better than 'Remembrance of the Daleks'. McCoy's Doctor is more interesting (less comical and darker) here. Notably, this was also part of the final series.
Well, I've heard Doctor Who was getting better again towards the end, and I can believe it...
WRT John Nathan-Turner; *he* wanted out of the show, and the BBC forced him to stay. It's now out in the open that Michael Grade (then controller of BBC1) hated the show, and the fact it was being shown against 'Coronation Street' (very high viewing figures) suggests they wanted it to fail.
As I said, I'm prepared to believe the fans when they said it improved in the final series; given good faith within the BBC, and a larger budget, it may have survived and prospered. I won't claim that JNT was perfect, but my hunch is that it was convenient for the BBC to have him in place when they wanted to axe the show.
"Slashdot - News and Chat Sites Deviant". (Click "homepage" link above for details).
WRT the special effects on the old series, bear in mind that the televisions were much worse then. Try watching them on an analogue grainy black and white 14-inch telly and the Daemons look pretty darn good...
The show was a BBC Drama output. They wouldn't have spent so much money on it if it was just a kids show.
It had a budget? Part of it's charm was the ultra cheap special effects. In the early days it had it's moments as in Marco Polo, and others where they seemed to be penny pinching as in Edge of Destruction aka inside the space shop.
Perhaps it's my foreign perspective observing that you lot have much more in the way of respect for children and are less prone to be condescending, and have television dedicated to the teething market. I don't see it unreasonable to put money into a kids show. Yes I see it as having a higher budget than Captain Pugwash for example, which I believe had a voice that sounded very much like Peter Hawkins as a Dalek. Do correct me if i'm wrong on that point.
I could be wrong... I think i'm remembering this from Dimensions in Time, but i'm not positive... but to me it's still looking like a production for kids that evolved over a short time to a drama less than education.
There is no sanctuary. There is no sanctuary. SHUT UP! There is no shut up. There is no shut up.
Avec Le Dalek.
Actually from 9.30 am on Channel 4 its quite good at the moment. The add UK History, ITV 3 and Men and Motors (TT week - double plus good) and there's some okay watching for a poorly person.
But that's not one program is it. It would be like saying that SG-1 and Atlantis is one program.
If you want to play the same game, what about the two (three?) Dr Who movies and the radio series.
I'd forgotten that... oh for a mod point...
-- it's ridiculous how many people misspell ridiculous... (damn, damn, damn...)
Daleks are now so collectable that people are actually stealing them...
rt
been playing with your Travesty generator too long?
I've seen a-whole-lot (all of Doctor's #3,4,5,6, some of #7, just a little bit of #1&2) of the old series, it was one of my favorite things growing up. The Doctor was my hero. (seriously) I have a large stack of Doctor Who on VHS tapes recorded at LP speed in the next room.
:-) This is also one of the reasons why some people only liked some of the Doctor's--sometimes the series moved in a direction that those people didn't like anymore. (I personally feel the very first ever adventure, An Unearthly Child, goes downhill rapidly after the first 30-40 min--and the stuff before that is all just clunky exposition, but I happen to feel it's fascinating, intriguing clunky exposition so that's why I like it.) These things happen.
:-)
:-)
:-) Have fun.
The old adventures were originally broadcast as 3-4 30 minute episodes. They had the tradional cliff hangers and all that. I saw mine on PBS KCPT channel 19 and they'd been edited together into 90 - 120 min movies, so I didn't get to see them in quite the way they were originally intended to be seen.
The old series is a lot different than the new one (but it's also sort of the same). But it makes sense that the new series would be different--the series was always reinventing itself even way back when. This is at least partly due to its having been on for so damn long. Look at when the series started, then look at today's date and meditate on how much things have changed from then to now. When you fire up some old 1st or 2nd Doctor episode, truly you are looking back in time.
Yeah, the old series was cool. It was also very B-movie in some ways, sometimes had bad dialogue, often had some bad acting, and almost always had lame (or as they say in the Red Dwarf commentary track "pony") special effects and sets. But, of course, I still love the hell out of it because it's what I grew up with.
Whether or not the old series is right for you is something you'll have to figure out for yourself. (DVDs of some adventures available through Netflix or amazon.com, etc) Try not to judge the thing based on just one adventure with one Doctor--give it some time.If you find that you just can't get into it, don't feel bad. You've still got the new series. I also like the new series, so that means I get to have both.
As for making sense of the old series, the overview provided by jd (1658) will probably be quite helpful. And, oh yeah, in case no one else has mentioned it there's this
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/doctorwho/classic.shtml
note that is also has an episode guide, links to the Doctor Who books, links to the radio plays, and... and basically enough Doctor Who related stuff to keep you busy for the forseeable future.
I'd now like to finish pretentiously with a few choice Doctor quotes:
"Anyone even remotely interesting is mad in one way or another."
"Oh and did I mention it also travels in time?"
"Oh so you're my replacements? A dandy and a clown."
"Better leave him on simmer."
"Why can't people be nice to each other--just for a change? I mean I'm an alien and you don't want to throw me into a swamp do you? You do."
"Wait, watch, and learn."
"`Twas brillig and the slithy toves did gyre and gimble in the wabe'"
"Unless... I reverse the polarity of the neutron flow..."
Furry cows moo and decompress.
Millions of people have, and now again do watch it. Now while popularity isn't necessarily quality, it clearly is not "unwatchable".
I don't think it has changed the face of television, very little has. It has entertained millions of people for generations though, which is pretty good going.
I definately remember reading stuff on the BBC site about how in the begining they at least got some funding from the education departement by including stuff that was considered eductaional.
I think at one point they got funding from light entertainment too.
So you have this time *lord* and his street urchin friend? Is there some kind of upstairs downstairs thing going on here?
I watched Doctor Who on a 14-inch black and white telly until 1983, you insensitive clod!
Actually, that might not be true; I think it was more like a 12-inch model.
"Slashdot - News and Chat Sites Deviant". (Click "homepage" link above for details).
You're being ironic there, aren't you?
When somebody describes something as ironic that clearly is not, it's clear that person doesn't understand what irony is. So the *true* irony here is that mark-t can *be* ironic, even though he doesn't know what irony is.
After watching the CBC documentary, Verity Lambert (the first producer) states that she was asked to create Doctor Who through the BBC drama department. I assume that since she produced the show, she'd know what department she was in. Watch the doc... she talks about the drama vs. kids issue.
lol. Thanks for your wish of a mod point :D
I should have used a better title I guess....
WRT the special effects on the old series, bear in mind that the televisions were much worse then. Try watching them on an analogue grainy black and white 14-inch telly and the Daemons look pretty darn good...
Speak for your self, I can assure you that in America televisions are just as bad as they were then. During the early 80s my only access to Doctor Who was when I was visiting my Aunt in Philly, and the only way to tune it in was using a 12inch B&W with a coat hanger arial as the local cable company didn't carry that particular PBS. And I have to say a spotty B&W coat hanger arial disused spair guest TV didn't improve the quality of the visual effects. On this issue I can not agree.
Also Dæmons was part of the Jon Pertwee era which was first shown in color. I can't remember if the color version of this was lost, or if it was re-colored based on the NTSC version.
There is no sanctuary. There is no sanctuary. SHUT UP! There is no shut up. There is no shut up.
After watching the CBC documentary, Verity Lambert (the first producer) states that she was asked to create Doctor Who through the BBC drama department. I assume that since she produced the show, she'd know what department she was in.
You would think. Bureaucracies are funny things though with departments that are not necessarily divided by obvious borders. You notice this when playing phone tag and if you say it in a firm enough way, you can convience someone they are responcible for an entirely different department and stop passing the buck.
But I will watch your link, followed up by Dimensions in Time. It will either help to resolve my confusion on the issue, or serve to add to it.
There is no sanctuary. There is no sanctuary. SHUT UP! There is no shut up. There is no shut up.
The biggest problem with a Doctor Who Confidential DVD release would be licensing all the pop music they use. While it's fine and dandy for broadcast within Britain (Due to BBC licensing deals), a home video release would require more licensing with a different department.
Happiness is relative, Based upon the way we live.
I definately remember reading stuff on the BBC site about how in the begining they at least got some funding from the education departement by including stuff that was considered eductaional. Sounds like the same sort of scam The Young Ones used to pull. By getting some band or other to perform halfway through every episode, they got money as a variety show, rather than a comedy. It seemed rather odd to have Motorhead play a gig at random in the living room of a grotty student house, or Madness finishing their set down the pub just as the gang arrived, but there you go...
Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.
Also Dæmons
:) ) was shown in the early 1990s.
"I'm big and clever! I know how to type that 'æ' symbol properly. Neh neh neh neh-neh neh!" (^_^)
was part of the Jon Pertwee era which was first shown in color. I can't remember if the color version of this was lost, or if it was re-colored based on the NTSC version.
I remember this, because there was some publicity at the time 'The Daemons' (er... I mean 'The Dæmons'
Basically, they had a decent quality black-and-white film transfer *and* some low-quality colour VHS tapes recorded from an American TV transmission in the late 1970s (IIRC). They used the NTSC colour VHSs to colourise the black-and-white film (the eye's colour resolution being much lower than that for detail).
There were various problems, such as the two pictures not being exactly the same size; they used a video-effects machine to stretch one to the same shape.
You can read more on this at the Restoration Team website.
"Slashdot - News and Chat Sites Deviant". (Click "homepage" link above for details).
"I'm big and clever! I know how to type that 'æ' symbol properly. Neh neh neh neh-neh neh!" (^_^)
Or I checked an episode list to make sure we were talking about early Pertwee "The Dæmons" rather than some other episode titled "Daemons" or some such, copy and pasted the correct 'æ". For example one could say "Robot" the first Tom Baker Episode, or The Robots of Death a later Tom Baker with Lela onboard. So no points for being clever but a few points for being accurate. I half recall the title sequence using the "æ" character so it seemed important. And it makes it easier to look it up on wiki that way...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_D%E6mons
Basically, they had a decent quality black-and-white film transfer *and* some low-quality colour VHS tapes recorded from an American TV transmission in the late 1970s (IIRC). They used the NTSC colour VHSs to colourise the black-and-white film (the eye's colour resolution being much lower than that for detail).
Did they actually use bad VHS editions, rather than Umatic, 3/4 r2r, or 1inch (EBC B/C) tape? I remember that my local pbs station (KBTC) as well as copies I got from KWHO showed the early Pertwees in color in the mid/late 1980s, but after 1989 their new editions were B&W. Other Who fans found it unbelieveable that I could have seen "Spearhead From Space" in colour as it simply didn't exist according to the BBC. The only fan copies I was aware of were from an an early front loading VCR which were only playable on it as it chewed up the tracking segment on the tape.
I would think they would have asked for the broadcast tapes, which I doubt were VHS, back to do a copy... unless all those were lost in which case they would have had to use VHS copies fans made from the broadcast post 1980 when it became a consumer standard. I don't know how popular VHS was between 1976 and 1980 before it became a home standard, but U-matic was the choice option of studios and would have been around when Pertwee was still playing the doctor. But you could be right, for all I know they could have found a fan with off the air copies and used them.
There is no sanctuary. There is no sanctuary. SHUT UP! There is no shut up. There is no shut up.