The long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who has developed a large fan base over the years. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Science fiction first appeared on Television during the Golden age of science fiction, first in Britain (UK and then in the United States Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC.
Doctor Who fans are sometimes referred to as Whovians, most often by the press. The usage was more common among fans in the United States during the 1980s, when the Doctor Who Fan Club of America (pronounced by members as Dwifca - now defunct) published the Whovian Times as its newsletter.
The earliest known use of 'Whovian', outside of the 'Whovian Times', is from Flaming Carrot Comics issue number 19 (circa 1988), when Flaming Carrot leads a combined group of Trekkies and Dr. Flaming Carrot Comics is a Surrealist Comic book by Bob Burden originally published by Aardvark-Vanaheim, then by Renegade Trekkie (or Trekker) is a term used to describe a fan of all or part of the Star Trek Fictional universe. Whovians into rebellion - note the now deprecated usage of 'Dr. '.
Contents |
Fan organisations
Doctor Who fans have had a formally recognised organisation — the Doctor Who Appreciation Society (or DWAS) — since the late 70s. The Doctor Who Appreciation Society (DWAS is the principal organisation for fans of the television series Doctor Who. It has thousands of members.
Many Doctor Who conventions are held worldwide. For many years, the largest was Panopticon, run by Dominitemporal Services. The first Panopticon was held in 1977, and the last in 2003. More recently, the Regenerations convention in Wales has had great success. In North America, the largest Doctor Who convention is Gallifrey One in Los Angeles, run by Shaun Lyon of Outpost Gallifrey. Outpost Gallifrey was a popular fan Website for the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Another popular American convention is ChicagoTARDIS.
The Doctor Who Club of Australia was founded in the mid-1970s to galvanise resistance to the decision of the Australian Broadcasting Commission to cease broadcasting the programme (and was ultimately successful in having the decision overturned). The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly abbreviated to the 'ABC' is Australia's national public broadcaster. In the 1980s, some US fans staged "Save Doctor Who" publicity campaigns, trying to urge their local television stations to keep airing the show.
Canada's Doctor Who Information Network (DWIN) is North America's oldest run Doctor Who fan club clocking in at 27 years as of 2007. Currently run out of Toronto, Ontario this not-for-profit organization is devoted to the celebration and promotion of 'Doctor Who' and its Fandom.
The Doctor Who Information Network (DWIN) was founded in 1980 and continues to serve fans in Canada, the USA and other countries around the world. It was one of the first Doctor Who clubs in North America, and is the longest running Doctor Who club on the continent. DWIN publishes an award winning bimonthly fanzine entitled Enlightenment, organized fan events and conventions, and supports the monthly Toronto Tavern fan gatherings.
The New Zealand Doctor Who Fan Club (NZDWFC) was founded in 1988. The New Zealand Doctor Who Fan Club (or NZDWFC) New Zealand 's national Doctor Who fan club was founded in January 1988 in Christchurch They publish a fanzine, Time Space Visualiser (TSV), twice-yearly.
Smaller, more regional but well-established fan clubs also found a part in Doctor Who fandom such as The Unearthly Children, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, DWNY (Doctor Who New York) and the Prydonians of Princeton (NJ). Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous
Fanzines
Perhaps the first form of organised fan activity was around fanzines - unofficial, homemade magazines celebrating the series. A fanzine (see also Zine) is a nonprofessional publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre for the pleasure Generally these were typed, with hand-drawn illustrations, with the occasional photograph, and were usually photocopied or duplicated in small quantities. A photocopier (or copier is a machine that makes Paper copies of documents and other visual images quickly and cheaply One of the first "'zines" was TARDIS, around which the DWAS was organised. The TARDIS ( T ime A nd R elative D imension(s I n S pace is a time machine and Spacecraft in the Other zines from the first decade of fandom included Gallifrey, Oracle, Skaro, Shada and Frontier Worlds.
When video recording was in its infancy, much of the content of the first fanzines was devoted to documenting plots and characters. The success of Marvel's Doctor Who Weekly (later Doctor Who Magazine - DWM), providing a professional source of reference, meant that fanzines began to move to concentrate more on opinion - fan reviews of stories, debate, and letters. Marvel Comics is an American comic book company owned by Marvel Publishing Inc Doctor Who Magazine (abbreviated as DWM) is a Magazine devoted to the long-running British Science fiction television In these pre-internet times, most fanzines had active letters pages, which were the main conduit for debate around Doctor Who, especially with geographical spread of so many fans. The need to find new, original content meant that fanzines began to look closer at the series, subjecting stories and characters to ever-deeper analysis. Nerdish to some, for many this was one of the key aspects of fanzines, providing detail and discussion unavailable through more "official" channels.
As technology developed, so did fanzines. A move from photocopying to offset litho printing in the early 1980s allowed the bigger selling fanzines to improve print quality, although lower-circulation titles continued to use photocopying for many years after this. A photocopier (or copier is a machine that makes Paper copies of documents and other visual images quickly and cheaply Bath-based Skaro was one of the first fanzines to be professionally typeset, but by 1990 desktop publishing allowed most editors to do their own typesetting, with some achieving professional results. Desktop publishing (also known as DTP) combines a Personal computer and WYSIWYG page layout Software to create Publication Documents
The mid 1980s has been described by some fans as "the golden age of A5 fanzines", as this period saw an explosion of activity, particularly in the UK. Although the enthusiasm of some editors could not be matched by their resources and many fanzines failed to see a second issue, some of the most popular zines appeared then, including Queen Bat, Star Begotten, Paradise Lost, Spectrox, the Black and White Guardian, Cygnus Alpha, Five Hundred Eyes, Eye Of Horus (in print between 1983-85 and online since 2004) and Purple Haze (edited by Steve O'Brien, later of SFX Magazine).
Format seemed to play a disproportionate role in how a fanzine was perceived, with divisions appearing between the cheaper-looking A5 fanzines and the glossier, more professional A4 "pro-zines" such as The Frame and Private Who. A series Paper in the A series format has a 1\sqrt{2} aspect ratio although this is rounded to the nearest millimetre A series Paper in the A series format has a 1\sqrt{2} aspect ratio although this is rounded to the nearest millimetre The news-zine DWB (later Dreamwatch) managed to straddle this divide, sometimes controversially, combining a professional A4 magazine format with some of the anarchism and disrespect for authority of the underground. Dreamwatch was a British Magazine covering Science fiction and Fantasy Films Books and Television
To a large extent, today fanzines have been replaced by websites, podcasts and discussion boards, but a few do still exist. Many of them are published by fan clubs including the DWAS zine Celestial Toyroom, (which is the latest version of a number of DWAS fanzines which began with the fanzine TARDIS in the 1970s), the New Zealand Doctor Who Fan Club zine Time-Space Visualiser (TSV) which has been in existence since 1987, and the DWIN fanzine Enlightenment which has been published six times a year since 1983. Other individuals and groups still produce fanzines as well such as the highly popular, British-based, Black Scrolls Magazine, which has the distinction of being professionally printed and entirely in colour. Black Scrolls was the first prozine to offer a multimedia CDROM on its cover in 2005, featuring interviews with actors, Who-related art, a back issue archive and an alternative voice-over commentary for one of the episodes. Many fanzines still take the time-honoured route of printing and distributing their zine by mail, but many now distribute their fanzine as downloadable and printable PDFs - finally removing what was often the main cause for a fanzine's closure, the cost of printing and distribution.
Many professional Doctor Who writers, for both the current TV series and the books, began their careers writing for fanzines, including Paul Cornell, Rob Shearman, Matt Jones, Marc Platt, Gareth Roberts, Clayton Hickman, David Howe and Stephen James Walker. Paul Cornell (born July 18 1967) is a British writer best known for his work in television drama as well as Doctor Who fiction Robert Shearman (also credited as Rob Shearman; born February 10 1970 near London, England) is currently Matthew David Jones (born August 5 1968) is a British Television writer and producer, who has worked on a variety of popular drama Marc Platt (born 1953 is a British writer He is most known for his work with the BBC Science fiction Television Gareth Roberts may refer to Gareth Roberts (physicist, FRS (1940–2007 British physicist engineer and President of Wolfson College Oxford Clayton Hickman is a British writer Magazine editor and designer David J Howe is a British writer journalist publisher and media historian Stephen James Walker is a writer and editor most associated with his work relating to the BBC Television series Doctor Who, usually with co-editors
Fan productions
Like other genre which has developed a large following (Star Trek, Star Wars, Blake's 7 just to name a few), Doctor Who also has groups of fans developing their own productions based on the show. Star Wars is an epic Space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas during the 1970s and significantly expanded Blake's 7 is a British Science fiction television series made by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC for their BBC 1 channel Like other fan productions, though, the legality of such unofficial productions is highly questionable. But this has not stopped fans from making their own brand of Doctor Who.
Unlike productions based on other genre, Doctor Who fandom create not only video, but also audio drama as well, audio drama being much more mainstream in the UK where Doctor Who is made by the BBC.
One of the most significant fan groups producing dramatised stories were Audio Visuals, who distributed their works on audio cassettes during the 1980s. The Audio Visuals were an unlicensed series of Doctor Who audio dramas made by British fans in the 1980s Many involved in this group would later form the commercial company Big Finish and be licenced by the BBC to produce official Doctor Who stories for a retail market on audio CD. Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays (released straight to Compact disc and Several of these productions were later broadcast by BBC Radio.
Many fans put a huge amount of work and effort varying from animation to live action films. A lot of them use villains from the real show, like Cybermen and Daleks, and attempt to remain within continuity. The Cybermen are a Fictional race of Cyborgs who are amongst the most persistent enemies of the Doctor in the British Science fiction television A Dalek (, ˈdɑːlεk is a member of a Fictional extraterrestrial race of Mutants from the British science fiction television Many can be watched on YouTube and the more popular ones like The Voice Of Evil have their own web-site where viewing is available through YouTube links http://www.voiceofevil.com .
Celebrity fans
The series has a devoted global following of people from a range of backgrounds.
Some fans have ended up working creatively on the television series. One of the most prominent examples is the creator of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, the late Douglas Adams, who wrote or co-wrote several television scripts (The Pirate Planet, City of Death and Shada) and was script editor of the original series' seventeenth season. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a science fiction comedy series Douglas Noël Adams (11 March 1952 &ndash 11 May 2001 was an English author comic Radio dramatist The Pirate Planet is a serial in the British Science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in City of Death is a serial in the British Science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four For the Arabic emphasis sign see Shadda; for the village in Azerbaijan see Şada. Adams had been a fan since the first season, and made two attempts to pitch a script for Doctor Who in the early 1970s before his first serial was commissioned. [1]. Kylie Minogue who made headlines in her native land of Australia by appearing in The Voyage of the Damned has also stated she is (and always has been) a fan [1]
Other celebrity fans have donated to the show in alternative ways. Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE, born 28 May 1968 is an Australian pop Singer - Songwriter and occasional Actress. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. For example, the Panini publication The Complete Seventh Doctor (p47) lists singer Bob Dylan as a "great fan", such that he permitted his music to be used in the opening moments of season twenty-five without royalty. Bob Dylan (born Robert Zimmerman, May 24 1941 in Duluth, Minnesota) is an American singer-songwriter author poet and painter who has been a major (Although Dylan's music was not in the event used). William Rees-Mogg, editor of The Times newspaper from 1967 until 1981, publicly declared his enjoyment of Doctor Who on an edition of the BBC's current affairs series Panorama in 1980. William Rees-Mogg Baron Rees-Mogg (b July 14 1928, Bristol England) is a journalist and writer in the United Kingdom. The Times is a daily national Newspaper published in the United Kingdom since 1785 when it was known as The Daily Universal Register. Panorama is the longest-running current affairs documentary series in the world [2] Prompted by this, the actor and dramatist Emlyn Williams admitted in the pages of The Times that he too was a keen follower of the series. George Emlyn Williams CBE ( 26 November 1905 &ndash 25 September 1987) known as Emlyn Williams, was a Welsh [2]
Celebrity fans include Queen Elizabeth[3], comedians Jon Culshaw, David Walliams[4], Mitch Benn, Peter Kay, Mark Gatiss, Stewart Lee, Matt Lucas, Toby Hadoke, Wil Anderson; actors David Hewlett[5], Stephen Fry[6], Eric McCormack[7], Simon Pegg, Anthony Stewart Head and Elizabeth Hurley; Simpsons creator Matt Groening, science fiction writer Robert J. Sawyer, horror writer Stephen King, Iron Maiden singer Bruce Dickinson, graphic novelist and fantasy writer Neil Gaiman, horror novelist Brian Keene, Star Trek star Patrick Stewart [2] and critic Harlan Ellison. For the ship see RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Context States headed by Elizabeth II Jonathan Peter Culshaw (born 2 June 1968 in Ormskirk, Lancashire) is a British impressionist and Comedian David Walliams (born David Williams, August 20, 1971) is an English Comedian and Actor, best known for his partnership Mitch Benn (born Mitchell John Benn 20 January 1970) is a British Musician of Liverpudlian / Scottish descent and stand-up Peter John Kay (born 2 July 1973 in Farnworth, Lancashire, England) is an English Comedian, Writer, producer Mark Gatiss (born 17 October, 1966) is an English Actor, Screenwriter and Novelist. Career to 2000 While studying English at St Edmund Hall Oxford in the 1980s he wrote and performed comedy in a revue group called "The Seven Raymonds Matthew Richard Lucas (born 5 March 1974) is an English Comedian and Actor. Toby Hadoke (born 2 January 1974) is an English Actor, Writer and Stand-up comedian. William James (Wil Anderson (born 31 January, 1974) is an Australian Comedian, performing stand-up as well as on Television David Ian Hewlett (born April 18, 1968) is a British -born Canadian Actor best known for his role as Dr Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957 is an English Humorist, Writer, Wit, Actor, Novelist, filmmaker Eric James McCormack (born April 18 1963 is an Emmy Award -winning Canadian - American Actor, Musician, Television producer Simon Pegg (born Simon John Beckingham; 14 February 1970) is an award-winning English Actor, Comedian, Writer Anthony Stewart Head (born 20 February, 1954) is an English Actor and Musician who has appeared in Theatre, Television Elizabeth Jane Hurley (born 10 June 1965 is an English model and former actress who became known as a girlfriend of Hugh Grant in the 1990s Matthew Abram Groening (ˈɡreɪnɪŋ GRAY-ning) (born February 15 1954 is an American Cartoonist, television producer and writer from Portland Robert J Sawyer is a Canadian Science fiction writer born in Ottawa in 1960 and now resident in Mississauga. Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American Author, Screenwriter, Musician, Columnist, For other uses see Iron maiden. Paul Bruce Dickinson (born 7 August 1958 in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, England) is a British singer Airline pilot, radio show Neil Richard Gaiman (ˈgeɪmən (born November 10, 1960) is an English author of Science fiction and Fantasy short stories and Brian Keene is a two-time Bram Stoker Award winning horror author first in 2001 for his non-fiction work Jobs In Hell and then again in 2003 for his debut Patrick Hewes Stewart, OBE (born 13 July 1940 is an English Film, Television and stage Actor. Harlan Jay Ellison (born May 27, 1934) is a prolific American Writer of Short stories, Novellas, Teleplays
From the world of sport, cricketers Mike Gatting and Graham Gooch, footballer David Beckham, and from the music industry US heavy metal band Slipknot, Omar & Cedric of At the Drive-In/The Mars Volta, Jamie Lenman of UK band Reuben, Matthew Bellamy of the UK band Muse (band), Welsh hip-hop band Goldie Lookin Chain[8], Jon Spencer of the US garage rock group Blues Explosion[9], Paul & Phil Hartnoll of UK techno duo Orbital, singer and actress Toyah Willcox, singer Meat Loaf[10]. Michael William Gatting OBE (born Kingsbury 6 June 1957 usually known as Mike, was an English Cricketer who played First-class cricket Graham Alan Gooch, OBE (born July 23 1953) is a former Cricketer who captained Essex and England. David Robert Joseph Beckham, and is also a member of the England national team. Slipknot is an American band from Des Moines Iowa. Slipknot consists of nine members the current band members are Sid At the Drive-In was an influential American Post-hardcore band from El Paso, Texas, that was active from 1993 to 2001 The Mars Volta is the name of a partnership between guitarist Omar Rodríguez-López and singer Cedric Bixler-Zavala founded in 2001 Reuben was a three-piece Musical group from Camberley in the United Kingdom. Matthew James Bellamy (born 9 June, 1978) is the main Songwriter and Lead vocalist, Guitarist and Pianist in Muse are Not to be confused with GLC the American rapper or the Greater London Council Goldie Lookin Chain is a rap-pop music group based in Newport Blues Explosion (formerly The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion and sometimes abbreviated JSBX) is a New York -based Punk blues trio Orbital were an English electronic duo consisting of brothers Phil Hartnoll and Paul Hartnoll whose career lasted from 1989 until 2004 Toyah Ann Willcox (born 18 May 1958 in Kings Heath, Birmingham) is an English actress and Singer. Michael Lee Aday (born Marvin Lee Aday; September 27 1947 better known by his stage name Meat Loaf, is an American rock Musician South Park co-creator Trey Parker who has put several references to the show in several South Park episodes. South Park is an animated American television comedy series created and written by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for Comedy Central Randolph Severn "Trey" Parker III (born October 19, 1969) is an American Animator, Screenwriter, Film director Jazz pianist Ethan Iverson of The Bad Plus, who has also written about the show. Ethan Iverson (born February 11 1973 in Menomonie, Wisconsin) is a pianist and composer best known for his work in the post-modern piano trio The Bad Plus The Bad Plus are a Jazz trio from the United States, consisting of Pianist Ethan Iverson, Bassist Reid Anderson
Podcasts
Another way fans voice their opinions on the show is through regular podcasts. A podcast is a series of audio or Video digital-media files which is distributed over the Internet by syndicated Download Popular examples of this include DWO Whocast, Podshock, American Who and Tin Dog Podcast. Doctor Who DWO WhoCast (commonly known as The Whocast, but officially titled Doctor Who Podcast DWO WhoCast) is a weekly Doctor Who Podshock (commonly referred to as Podshock, but officially titled Outpost Gallifrey Presents… Doctor Who Podshock)
References
- ^ Simpson, M. J. (2003). Hitchhiker: A Biography of Douglas Adams, First U. S. Edition, Justin Charles & Co. , Page 100. ISBN 1-932112-17-0.
- ^ a b Williams, Emlyn. George Emlyn Williams CBE ( 26 November 1905 &ndash 25 September 1987) known as Emlyn Williams, was a Welsh "Personal Choice", The Times, 1980-11-22, pp. The Times is a daily national Newspaper published in the United Kingdom since 1785 when it was known as The Daily Universal Register. Year 1980 ( MCMLXXX) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar) Events 498 - Kofi Aseidu- After the death of Anastasius II, Symmachus is elected Pope in the Lateran 9. Retrieved on 2007-01-16. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 27 BC - The title Augustus is bestowed upon Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian by the Roman Senate.
- ^ Nathan, Yates. "EXCLUSIVE: QUEEN IS DOCTOR WHO FAN", 2007-07-26. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 657 - Battle of Siffin. 811 - Battle of Pliska; Byzantine Emperor Nicephorus Retrieved on 2007-01-23. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 393 - Roman Emperor Theodosius I proclaims his nine year old son Honorius co-emperor
- ^ Doctor Who. davidwalliams. com. Retrieved on 2006-12-20. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 69 - Vespasian, formerly a general under Nero, enters Rome to claim the title of Emperor.
- ^ Hewlett, David. David Ian Hewlett (born April 18, 1968) is a British -born Canadian Actor best known for his role as Dr Audio/Website Interview with Linz. Stargate SG-1 Information Archive - David Hewlett Interview - 10/6/06 - PART 1 (Q & A). October 6, 2006. Events 105 BC - Battle of Arausio: The Cimbri inflict the heaviest defeat on the Roman army of Gnaeus Mallius Maximus Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar.
- ^ Moab is my Washpot. Moab Is My Washpot (published 1997) is Stephen Fry ’s humorous Autobiography, covering the first 20 years of his life Stephen Fry. p224-225. 2004 Arrow Books reissue. "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " Random House Inc is the world's largest English-language general trade book publisher For the reissuing of print material see Reprint A reissue (also known as a re-release or re-edition) is the repeated issue
- ^ Sean, Neil. "War on Terror: In It to Win It?" (near bottom of page), Fox & Friends, Fox News, 2006-09-13. For the Fasbinder film see Fox and His Friends. Fox & Friends is an American morning television show on the Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 509 BC - The Temple of Jupiter on Rome 's Capitoline Hill is dedicated on the ides of September Retrieved on 2006-09-13. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 509 BC - The Temple of Jupiter on Rome 's Capitoline Hill is dedicated on the ides of September
- ^ Seaborne, Gillane (Series Producer), & Page, Adam (Producer). (2006-06-17). Doctor Who Confidential [Television series]. Doctor Who Confidential is a documentary series created by the British Broadcasting Corporation to complement the revival of the long-running British Cardiff: BBC Wales. BBC Wales ( BBC Cymru) is a division of the British Broadcasting Corporation for Wales.
- ^ Spencer, Jon. "Tour Diary", Stool Pigeon, July 2005. 2005: January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October
- ^ MEAT LOAF TO HIT THE TARDIS?. contactmusic. com (2006-08-13). Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 3114 BC - According to the Lounsbury correlation the start of the Maya calendar. Retrieved on 2006-08-16. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1384 - The Hongwu Emperor of Ming China, Emperor Dong hears a case of a couple who tore paper money bills while fighting
See also
External links
Many celebrities and notable actors have made Guest appearances in Doctor Who. Doctor Who in North America refers to the broadcast history of the long running British Science fiction television series Doctor Who in the Doctor Who in Australia refers to the Australian history and culture around the British science fiction programme Doctor Who.Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic