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Dr. Who for dummies

From the TARDIS:

the wooden console was a "secondary" deck for the Tardis controls.

This is indeed correct, though it might be best placed under the heading It Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time. The Secondary Control Room only appeared in Season 14, and was a by-product of the Phillip Hinchcliffe 'Gothic' era of the programme. Up until this point, the Control Room and console had all been gleaming white with lots of flashing lights, as was appropriate for a ship as advanced as the TARDIS. However, with the advent of Tom Baker's decidedly 'Bohemian' Doctor, the decision was made to re-design the console room to have something of a 'Jules Verne' feel to it. Hence, the result that we see in stories of this period consists of wood panelling and brass fittings. It is interesting to note that the same effect was sought in the Paul McGann TV movie, though on a much grander scale. Again, this reflected the fact that the Eighth Doctor's costume, albeit stolen fancy dress, was that of a mid-Victorian gentleman.

In the end, the Secondary Control Room only appeared for a short space of time. After production ended on Season 14, the set was put into storage. Then, if my memory serves, the walls warped due to them being made of genuine wood veneer. Thus, the set became unusable and was too expensive to replace. So, the the original Control Room and console reappeared the following season.

It is also worth noting that set damage was the same reason for the one and only appearance of the Control Room in Season 26. At the start of 'Battlefield', there is the exchange at the TARDIS console between the Doctor and Ace, regarding the source of a distress signal picked up by the ship. The Doctor tells Ace that the Control Room is in semi-darkness as he is busy working. In fact, the dim lighting was used to conceal the fact that the walls had been damaged and that photographic blow-ups were used instead.

Most viewers will be aware that, until 'The Five Doctors' in 1983, there were several different versions of the console and Control Room. I gather that, at least during the Hartnell era, some attempt was made to maintain consistency as regards the correct use of each switch or dial. In fact, I rather believe that William Hartnell himself was something of a stickler for this sort of thing. Being an actor of the old school, he was convinced that such matters were important if the show's believability was to be maintained.

For the Twentieth Anniversary, John Nathan-Turner persuaded the powers-that-be at the BBC to commission a new and more spectacular console. This was agreed on the grounds that the previous model was ready to collapse, and that a well-built replacement would soon pay for itself through constant re-use in future seasons. The result as unveiled in 'The Five Doctors' was certainly stunning, consisting largely of keyboards and computer monitors. Meanwhile, the crystalline Time Rotor had been inspired by the 'Space City' seen at the conclusion of the previous season's story 'Enlightenment'.

Thus it was that, from November 1983 onwards, the console and Control Room remained pretty much unchanged until the series ended in 1989. However, whether the final console was an improvement is debatable. At times, it looked just a bit TOO smart and shiny, and seemed to ignore the fact that the Doctor's ship was an obsolete Type-40. In this context, the old 'steam-radio' version of the console would have been more appropriate.

Those who are interested in this area may also want to refer to Steve Cambden's book 'The Doctor's Effects'. This consists of contributions by a large number of the BBC Visual Effects staff who worked on the show during its run, and at times is quite eye-opening. I would just add that I am NOT Steve Cambden, by the way! However, if you're looking in, Steve, I was the guy dressed as the Fourth Doctor who bought the tape of 'Nightmare of Eden' and the chunk of Mandrel costume from you in Milton Keynes last September!

-------------
'We are not of this race. We are not of this Earth. We are wanderers in the fourth dimension of space and time'

'Doctor Who' - The Pilot Episode
 
Yep, that was funny. The TARDIS materialised as a pipe organ, right in the middle of a disused mechanics workshop! It even had the Doctor {Colin Baker} playing the organ.
 
It seems almost impossible to me that people can never have seen an episode of Dr Who! For me, and so many other Britons, it was a weekly staple of teatime telly!

I used to love that show! In fact, that was probably the beginning of my sci-fi obsessive roots!
 
I saw my first Dr. Who episode in college. My first reaction was: this is crap.

/forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif eh, so maybe the Buffy fans will win me over eventually. The Dr. Who fans eventually did. I now wish my local PBS station would show it. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
 
I first saw it when I was about 10 (Tom Baker was the current Doctor) and was an instant fan. I liked it because it was so much cooler than Star Trek. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
 
The only Dr Who thing I've seen was the 1996 movie with Paul McGann. I have no idea how well that fit in with the whole Dr Who universe and the spirit of the show, but I quite enjoyed that one.

I'd be interested in giving it a try if it were on TV but sadly, it's not - not on any channels I get, anyway. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
 
Possible spoilers from the 1996 Dr. Who movie and one episode of Dr. Who.

SPOILERS:










Is that the movie where the doctor actually breaks the main Timelord rule by going back in time to save someone's life?

A lot of fans complained about that, IIRC. In the series with the 5th doctor a character dies and another of the doctor's companions has a fierce argument with him about it. She wants him to go back in time and save the boy. The doctor absolutely refuses to do this. It's about the only rule I think the doctor never broke. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

Until that silly movie, that is.
 
The boy was Adric, who died at the end of "Earthshock". And as majority opinion goes among DW fans, his demise did not come a moment too soon. (I believe it was Tegan that wanted to go back and save him). And from what I gather, the actor who played the part was not well liked on the set either.

The '96 TVM is often debated among fans due to its "canonicity" to the series. While it brings a lot of elements from the original show, it also contradicts points of the established mythology (ie the Doctor being part human for one). But the main complaint is usually with the American involvement in the production for some reason.

Either way, I liked it. It would have been a great way to bring back the show.
 
Adric was freakin annoying.

Tegan had nice legs.

Turlough was a great dramatic character.

Nyssa was pretty.

Peri was my alltime favorite sidekick.
 
I liked Romana II the best. And also the wild warrior (I fear I have forgotten her name).

The actor who played Turlough was very good with that part, though. He was (is?) an excellent dramatic actor. All of Dr. Who is a bit over-the-top.

Af for Adric, ah but he had a badge for mathematical excellence! /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif Much like Wesley in Star Trek TNG, right when they got me to liking the character, they got rid of him. /forums/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif

Oh, and for earlier doctors, wouldn't you have to say that Jamie was a great companion? /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif Man, I loved those shows. I think I still have War Games on tape, but doubt it would play in the VCR very well anymore.
 
The warrior woman was my favorite too. Wasn't she called Leeta? There were of course two Romanas. Wasn't Tom Baker married to one? I can't remember the name of Baker's first companion, with long, brown hair, but I liked her a lot too. Yeah, Peri was nice too. She had the biggest chest. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif I've got all the Tom Bakers , and many others, on tape. Haven't watched them in years. Maybe it's time to check out the Daleks again... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
The warrior woman's name was Leela.
Tom Baker was married to Lala Ward who played Romana II.
Tom Baker's first companion was Sarah Jane Smith.
I found Peri to be more anyoing than Adric.
 
Thanks for the info, Xzyl. Leela, well, I was close /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif. Personally, I would rather be anoyed by Peri than Adric any day! Although he was a good actor, I found Turlogh to be by far the most annoying, and the Dr.'s failure to see him for and treat him as the traitor he was, was just unbeliveable.
 
Yes, Leela. I knew it couldn't be Lyta but I kept thinking Lyta (for obvious reasons /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif).

Yes, the Turlough thing was definitely not the doctor at his best. I think I kind of know where the authors were hoping to go with that, but I don't think it ever came off too well. First they tried to make Turlough evil. Then IIRC they tried to make you sympathetic to why he was being forced to be a traitor.

It would have been more interesting to have just kept him evil. /forums/images/graemlins/devil.gif
 
I think Kamelion deserves the worst companion honour. Really bad idea, really bad execution. The only story where he was the least bit interesting was "Planet of Fire". A very close second would have to be Mel. Way too bubbly.
 
Who is/was Kamelion? I think I did hear of some of the last season Dr Who eps not being shown when I was in New Mexico. But I thought I did eventually see all of the DR. Who eps (or almost all of them) thanks to a friend in another state.

I don't remember a Kamelion. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
There was a weird robot or something, wasn't there.

Never mind. PD doctor episode, right? Sorry, it has been over a decade since I've seen that ep. Actually, more like a decade and 5 years or so. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

I forgot. Chameleon is a vague memory for me at best.
 
I don't remember Chamelion either, but I do remember K-9, the robot dog. I dug K-9. I actually have a phono cartridge made by Linn Hi-Fi called K-9 by the company, since it looks like him.
 
Oh, every Dr W fan knows K9! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

No, Kameleon was a robot/chameleon character IIRC. Peter Davidson doctor. Maybe Sylvester McCoy. I just don't remember, sorry. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif
 

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