[DrunkSmurf]

Hi does anybody watch BBC's new Doctor Who?

It hasn't reached the television where I live (midwest USA).

Does anyone's children watch Doctor Who? Is he fading away? The BBC seems to be going to great pains to revive the series. I lost interest during the Sylvester McCoy seasons, and (seem to) remember the shows being spine-cringing bad.

(I've been watching collections of fragments of the Patrick Troughton era. Hard to believe the BBC in those days simply recorded over the old films)

[Syd Smurf]

I've never got into Doctor Who....it's always left me a bit cold or something whenever I have seen it. However I am sure there are plenty here who do like it.

[XoioX2000]

Yeap the new series is quite entertaining I have to admit! And it is made so that kiddies can also watch it: mine were also addicted.

But I'm not sure how long it's going to last: Now that Eccleston has been relaced and I hear that Billie Piper has also left the series?

[steveparkes]

I agree..I watched it for interest value..but once I did, I was hooked..I really enjoyed it..but like you say now eccleston has left I don't think it will be as good.

[Rachel]

Hi Tim, yes we are both big Dr Who fans here. The latest series was excellent but I have to admit, Tom Baker will ALWAYS be my favourite.

Much of the new series was filmed in Wales so there was a lot of local interest as there were a lot of stories coming out during the filming. I used to know one of the writers / directors very well when we were younger and in fact Russell T Davies the chief writer / producer is also a local boy.

I agree though that without Chris Eccleston it may not be quite as good, we will have to wait and see.

[XoioX2000]

Anybody knows when the next series will come out??

[Rachel]

Anybody knows when the next series will come out??

Hi David, I am not sure but the new DR (sorry can't remember his name) and Billie Piper were on the news this evening as they were in Cardiff switching the Christmas lights on and they were talking about a Christmas special which I *think* is being shown on Christmas Day.

[DrunkSmurf]

Hi Tim, yes we are both big Dr Who fans here. The latest series was excellent but I have to admit, Tom Baker will ALWAYS be my favourite.

Peter Davidson is my favorite, but Tom Baker is a very close second. Tom Baker could have carried the series forever and not grown stale.

I think a woman doctor could make for an interesting change.

I'm probably starting to sound American PC, but maybe it's time for a non-white assistant.

[DrunkSmurf]

Hey, by weird coincidence, the 1999 American Dr. Who movie (Peter McGann) was played on cable here.

I though it wasn't bad. Slightly a "chick flick" (really nice doctor, love story, no plot). But, I see how the producers botched it as an attempt to bring Dr. Who to American TV.

It was a bit artsy, required a bit of thinking (a no-no on American TV--"Cuz dis is 'Merica an' if youse don't got no cars crashin' we prob'ly won't get nun of it.")--and overdid making the Master out like a vampire (vampires were the rage in America in the late 90s).

The show should've done a dalek invasion of earth, or something. Or, looked at Dr. Who's own start--the first episode in 1963 involved Dr. Who traveling to several places in time. The American movie literally didn't leave the ground... Summary of the movie's impression: "Doctor Who is good with women, well-cultured, and flies a fantastic ship." That's not bad, but it isn't going to woo "da star trek crowd. Likes I sid befores dis is 'Merica and if youse make us t'ink 'n shit we'z ain't gonna git nun of it"

[Bunno Smurf]

LOL Tim


Well I have watched a few episodes of the new one. I think its finished up again here now. We get reruns of the old one at 6:00pm on the ABC which I used to find scary as a child but now I find highly amusing, especially when you see the wires holding up the space ships and the tacky old costumes. I was watching the MythBusters on SBS on Monday night and they were making this giant slingshot to try and disprove the myth that people are being catapaulted 200 yards over the border (and landing on a single mattress) from Mexico into the US. Anyway one of the guys tangled himself up in all the giant rubber bands and said "hey look, I'm a villian from a Dr Who episode". Funniest thing I've heard for a while cos he did actually look like one!

[SMURFYSTEVE1]

Hi, I don't mind watching doctor who but kim can't stand it
We never watched any from the last series but from what i hear everyone raved about it. I like the idea of David Tenant, ( think thats his name), of being the new doctor.
He was great in casanova recently on the bbc.

Smurfy regards to all
Steve

[XoioX2000]

The new Dr Who starts on Xmas day:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4465560.stm

I wonder what it will be like. It looks like Billie Piper is still in it then! I thought she was a goner!

[DrunkSmurf]

What was all the invasion hype about? BBC was advertising it.

I re-watched some old Dr. Whos (from 1st, 2nd, 4th, and 5th doctors). Wow! I was surprised by the extent to which some are great and some are absolutely incoherent. "Logopolis", the last Tom Baker episode, has a lot of great ideas (the watcher, the eternal regression of TARDISes) but the plot is so flimsy that as an adult viewer I was shocked.

Actually, I'm thinking Logopolis may have been an indirect commentary on life being dust in the wind. Because the entire damn thing was contrived. None of the chain of events should've happened if any of the characters were thinking things through. Tom Baker regenerated in vain!

[XoioX2000]

I missed the start of the new series by the way: Anybody watched it?

I have never really watched the older series so I know very little about it but that last episode you talk about sounds like a "must" watch!

[Rachel]

I missed the start of the new series by the way: Anybody watched it?

Hi David, nope we missed it as well. We totally forgot about it as we were watching films on Christmas Day and it was only yesterday hubby asked when it was on!!

[DrunkSmurf]

What was the inside of a police box used for? Was it just a storage room for maintenance equipment? We have "motorist aid call boxes" in the USA, but those are simply telephones on a post along the highway.