Happy Doctor Who Day

Happy Doctor Who Day everyone. A mere 55 years ago, at c.5.15pm, the first episode of Doctor Who - An Unearthly Child - was broadcast. And we saw & heard this - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjDFvoRNpOM - for the first time.

Then, about 43 years ago, I was put in front of the telly by my Mum & Dad and was watching 'Terror of the Zygons'. I would have been four. So, you can blame my parents for the way I've turned out. I can roughly date it because the cliffhanger at the end of Part One is my first Doctor Who memory. Followed by little bits of other stories until 1977 when I remember watching whole stories. Or at least the bits I didn't find too terrifying.

Which means, of course, that Doctor Who has been one of the few consistent - or inconsistent - things in my life apart from my family. It's bought me fear, laughter, tears and - especially - joy. 

I've spent a lot of time watching it, re-watching it, re-re-watching it, reading it and about it, thinking about it, writing about it and talking about it. I've made good friends through it. If it is a phase I was going through & that you thought I was going to grow out of I have left it a bit late.

I certainly think my romantic left-wing view of the world was influenced by Doctor Who. It taught me that that might isn't always right, that a teaspoon and an open mind are essential tools with which to face a complicated universe and that change isn't a bad thing. In more recent years it has taught me to accept that everything ends and that there aren't simple solutions to everything. It taught me that you can't always mend people, but that you can try to help them. And those words that have become a sort of Doctor Who mantra - Never be cruel or cowardly. Never give up. Never give in - have become a motto by which I would like to live my life. And that's not a bad point of view to learn from a television series. 

I've watched episodes with my family. I've watched episodes alone - a lot of those. I've seen Doctor Who in cinemas and at the houses of friends. Both those who like Doctor Who and those who don't. Indeed, if you're a friend of mine I've probably forced you to watch at least one episode. Possibly against your will. Possibly not. I'd say I was sorry, but I'd be lying.

And, of course, I take it far too seriously but I'm also more than capable of taking the piss out of it. No one mocks Doctor Who and its foibles better than Doctor Who fans. We know its limitations inside out. We see them and we don't see them. I know that the Zarbi look ridiculous but I still love The Web Planet. I know that having a monster that looks not unlike Bertie Bassett is silly indeed but I still love The Happiness Patrol. There are probably more important things in the world than Doctor Who but there aren't a lot of things that bring me as much happiness. 

And thank you to all the cast and crew who have worked on Doctor Who over the years. Thank you to the writers of novels, to DWM editors and writers and to everyone at Big Finish. And to all those who've contributed to my love of Doctor Who over the years. You know who you are.

Happy Doctor Who Day everyone.