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Note: The Doctor Who FAQ is currently being updated and should be done in mid-April 2006.

Outpost Gallifrey's Frequently Asked Questions List is a handy guide to general Doctor Who information; primers on video, audio and material in print; information on fan events and clubs; and other details of interest to Doctor Who fans. If you don't see something answered here that should be, or you feel you would like to contribute, please email us and let us know!

For a more broad-based and comprehensive FAQ, visit Siobhan Morgan's Nitro Nine website; for detailed info on North American DVD and VHS visit Steve Manfred's DVD/Video FAQ; and for more detailed info on the making of each Doctor Who story we recommend Shannon Patrick Sullivan's A Brief History of Time (Travel). Outpost Gallifrey's Recommended Links page also has a ton of sites we'd love you to check out!

Special thanks to Robert Franks and Steve Manfred for help with editing this page.
Last Updated: January 1, 2004
Overview
Who/what is Doctor Who?
Doctor Who is the longest-running science fiction television series in the history of broadcasting, a series that began on the BBC1 network in the United Kingdom in November 1963 and ran until 1989... and which will be returning to BBC1 in early 2005 for all new adventures. It was created as a show for older children to be aired late Saturday afternoons and, due to a sudden boost during its first season caused by a race of mechanical nasties called the Daleks, became an overnight British sensation. It was later syndicated overseas to many countries such as the US, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, and eventually became one of Britain's most popular export entertainments. It also became a staple of American public broadcasting network PBS during the 1980s, drawing record pledge amounts. It's the story of a wanderer in space and time known only as the Doctor, on the run from his homeworld and traveling in a dimensionally transcendental time machine (i.e. bigger on the inside than on the outside), the camouflage system of which became stuck in the shape of a London police public call box. The Doctor, who is in reality a Time Lord from the far-future civilization on the planet Gallifrey, now travels time and space fighting the forces of darkness, taking on traveling companions from places he visits who join him on his adventures. The Doctor's true name has never been revealed, thus the reason for the series' title, 'Doctor Who'.
Much of its success was due to its flexible nature: the Doctor's people have the power to regenerate their bodies during near-death experiences, allowing the central character to be recast with a new actor ... and a new personality completely. During the 26-year run of the show, seven actors took the role: William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy, with an eighth actor, Paul McGann, playing the role in 1996 for a special US/UK co-produced film that aired on BBC-1 and America's FOX network. Over the years, he has been joined by nearly forty regular cast members fighting alongside him (his companions) or against him (in the case of the Doctor's arch-nemesis, the renegade Master), among them Carole Ann Ford, William Russell, Jacqueline Hill, Maureen O'Brien, Peter Purves, Adrienne Hill, Jean Marsh, Jackie Lane, Anneke Wills, Michael Craze, Frazer Hines, Deborah Watling, Wendy Padbury, Caroline John, Katy Manning, John Levene, Richard Franklin, Elisabeth Sladen, Ian Marter, Louise Jameson, Mary Tamm, Lalla Ward, John Leeson, David Brierley, Matthew Waterhouse, Sarah Sutton, Janet Fielding, Mark Strickson, Nicola Bryant, Bonnie Langford and Sophie Aldred, with Roger Delgado and Anthony Ainley portraying the Master, and Nicholas Courtney playing the Doctor's longtime friend in Earth's multi-national, world-defending military organization, UNIT, Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. At press time, the actor who will be taking the role of the Doctor in the new BBC series has not been announced.
Can you give me some details on the show / episodes / characters / storylines?
Outpost Gallifrey maintains a very handy complete episode guide featuring details on storylines, cast and crew information, and so forth. It's also searchable in a variety of ways, including the story title, cast, crew and characters.
What's the difference between a Doctor Who "episode" and a Doctor Who "story".
With only one exception, every 25-minute episode of Doctor Who is only part of a full story.... multiple episodes making up a larger tale told over consecutive weeks when it first aired on BBC-1. You might witness "Pyramids of Mars" if you've seen the whole tale, say, or only "episode 3 of Pyramids of Mars" if you've only seen one installment. Most Doctor Who stories are four or six part tales, although a wide variety are of different lengths... two, three, five, seven, eight, ten, twelve, even fourteen! One season -- Season 22 -- was broadcast as 45-minute episodes, which in essence turned two half-hours into the near-hour-long slot, but that's a different story...
Outside of Britain, your experience with Doctor Who might be completely in the "omnibus" format, especially in America; that's the way it was syndicated to public television. These traditionally got rid of the cliffhanger endings and multiple credits in favor of creating one long "movie" formatted story. In America especially, you might have seen these with narration; actor Howard da Silva was tapped in the late 1970's to record voiceover narrations for these omnibus editions, but those versions were eventually discarded for newer prints without the narration. (For more detail about the da Silva voiceovers, see the North American version of the DVD of "The Robots of Death".)
There are episodes of Doctor Who that are missing? Why?
Yes, 109 episodes of Doctor Who (out of over 500) are currently missing, presumed lost. To make a long story short: during the 1970's, the BBC -- not realizing the future value of syndication -- junked most of the earliest years of Doctor Who and a myriad of other programs, which were taking up valuable space in their film and television archives. Relentless searching, research and incredibly good luck were factors in the recovery of much of what was lost, but there are individual episodes that are sadly not available, and likely will never be.
Researchers (mostly from fandom) continue to stumble upon occasional finds -- the first part of "The Crusade" was located a few years ago, clips were discovered in Australia for a number of lost stories (excised by local censors), and most recently, some footage was found from "Fury from the Deep" -- but the likelihood of discovering lost Doctor Who serials gradually fades with each passing year.
But there IS a silver lining... mostly due to the forethought of Doctor Who viewers and technical crew. During the 1960's, before the era of the VCR, many Doctor Who stories were "telesnapped" -- camera photos taken of the TV screen while the story was being broadcast -- so that directors could have a visual record of their work. And several loyal fans, unable to capture the images on their screen, nevertheless audio taped the show to be able to listen to it -- which is why, though 109 episodes are currently missing, every single Doctor Who story exists in audio form. BBC Worldwide, through its Radio Collection series, has been releasing all the lost stories on audio over the past few years, narrated by actors from the show such as William Russell, Anneke Wills and Frazer Hines; only a few stories have yet to be released.
When does Doctor Who air on television? Does it air in my area?
The regular weekly This Week in Doctor Who column, which is out each Wednesday (and which Outpost Gallifrey hosts a web copy of, click on the link) notes exactly where and when Doctor Who airs in the entire world in the next week. Benjamin Elliott researches each week's column to give you a "TV guide" to what's airing and when.
Where can I find a list of new and forthcoming Doctor Who releases?
Outpost Gallifrey maintains a complete list of new and forthcoming Doctor Who releases on our Forthcoming Releases Guide. You'll find the latest covers, back cover blurbs and product information there. Also be sure to check out the News Page, which lists the most recent items (as well as a handy month-by-month release list down the right-hand side.)
Where can I buy Doctor Who products?
A number of specialty stores in Europe and North America carry the full line of Doctor Who products! In the UK, our favorite retailer is Tenth Planet in Barking, which specialises in Doctor Who but also carries a wide variety of products, and hosts many different monthly autograph signings with Doctor Who and cult television stars. Also in England is Galaxy 4, another fine store located in Sheffield.
In North America, our own local retailer in Los Angeles is Ambrosia Books & Collectibles, which offers subscriptions to the audio and book lines as well as mail-order discounts. Who North America is a mail order-only retailer based in Illinois with a very quick turnaround on merchandise. Alien Entertainment runs a popular website as well, and has a massive Doctor Who catalog.
Where does Story X / Audio Y / Book Z fit into the grand scheme of things in Doctor Who?
Check out Outpost Gallifrey's widely acclaimed Canon Keeper's Guide to Doctor Who, an exhaustively researched volume incorporating everything -- episodes, books, audios, comics, periodicals -- into one neat continuity.
How can I subscribe to Doctor Who Magazine?
Details forthcoming soon!
Broadcasting
Will Doctor Who ever return to the airwaves? Will there be a Doctor Who film?
Yes, indeed. Doctor Who will be back on BBC1 Television in 2005 in a brand new series of adventures created by Russell T. Davies ("Century Falls," "Queer as Folk"). At this early stage there is no word on who will play the Doctor or his companion (tentative called Rose Tyler), but it will be twelve 45-minute episodes broadcast on Saturday evenings, likely in the first quarter of the year. For complete details on the return of Doctor Who, visit Outpost Gallifrey's New Series News Page.
That said, remember that what we consider the "classic" Doctor Who era today isn't dead, either... not by a long shot. Stars from the original series have continued to play their original Doctor Who series roles or new, original roles in the audios produced by Big Finish, among them Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy, Sophie Aldred, Bonnie Langford, Nicola Bryant, Sarah Sutton, Lalla Ward, Mark Strickson, Katy Manning, Elisabeth Sladen, Anneke Wills, Wendy Padbury, Caroline John, Terry Molloy, Ian Collier, Geoffrey Beevers and Nicholas Courtney. Paul McGann returned from the 1996 TV movie to reprise his role as the Eighth Doctor. Richard E. Grant will be starring in November 2003 in a webcasted animated Doctor Who serial broadcast on the official website, BBCi. Famous names from television, stage and screen continue to appear in audio form: Derek Jacobi, Geoffrey Bayldon, David Collings, Michael Praed, Bill Oddie, Jacqueline Pearce, Anthony Stewart Head, Peter Jurasik, Martin Jarvis, Christopher Biggins, James Fox, Andrew Sachs, Eleanor Bron, Sabina Franklyn, and Tony Blackburn. BBC Books and Telos Publishing continue to keep the flames burning with new, original fiction every single month from both long-running Doctor Who novelists and popular science fiction and fantasy authors. And several producers -- among them, Big Finish, BBV, Magic Bullet Productions and Mad Norwegian -- continue to produce high-quality Doctor Who spinoffs in audio, comic and book form. It's still a great time to be a Doctor Who fan.
I heard (enter name of the week here) will be the new Doctor. Is that true?
See above. When it happens, the BBC will make a huge announcement. So far they haven't, despite all the press rumblings and rumors about who will play the Doctor in the new show.
DVD and Video
Will the Doctor Who movie ever be out in North America?
Current rights issues have prevented the 1996 Doctor Who telefilm from appearing in the US and Canada; the distribution rights for the film, unlike the series, are co-owned by the BBC and Universal Television. BBC America has been working on getting these video release rights but at this point, there is no sign of when the film will appear.
Are the VHS videos ending in North America?
Yes. October 2003 sees the release of "The End of the Universe Collection" in which eleven Doctor Who stories will be released on video -- the last time a release of Doctor Who will be done on VHS. This release incorporates all remaining VHS releases -- with two stories ("Invasion of the Dinosaurs" and "The Reign of Terror") having different cover illustrations than those in the UK.
What are the DVD releases for the UK in 2004? For Australia/New Zealand?
While the UK release calendar for 2004 has been determined, it has yet to be announced... with one exception. "Pyramids of Mars" has been confirmed as one release; it was the winner of a recent Doctor Who Magazine poll conducted to find what release fans most wished to see in 2004. There are many rumors, of course, but none have been confirmed; keep checking Outpost Gallifrey for the latest release news.
No word has yet been received on Australia/New Zealand releases for 2004; however, they usually follow the UK schedule very closely with a two or three month delay.
It should be pointed out that several stories have already had commentaries taped due to the availability of the actors (for example, Katy Manning is well known to have taped commentaries for "Terror of the Autons" and "The Green Death" while she was in the UK, because she lives in Australia). This does not mean, however, that the stories will see release in 2004.
What are the DVD releases for North America in 2004?
There have been no confirmations for 2004, but it is very likely that you will see "The Seeds of Death" and "Earthshock," both having been released in the UK as of the time of this FAQ, early in the year. "The Two Doctors," "The Three Doctors" and "The Curse of Fenric" are also extremely likely, due to their late 2003 releases in the UK. There is no word at this time as to whether or not BBC America/Warner Home Video will be releasing a boxed set of DVDs like they did in 2002 with "The Key to Time".
Can I view the DVD/VHS releases from another country?
Depends on your video equipment. The UK, Australia and New Zealand all use a broadcast system called PAL while the United States and Canada are on the NTSC system. Video from one cannot play on the other; you might get sound, but no picture (it has to do with the number of horizontal lines on your screen). The only way to play a PAL video on an NTSC player, or vice versa, is to have a special video machine with a built-in converter, which can be quite expensive. (Or you can buy a video machine of the other standard, but you'll also need a TV that plays that standard as well.)
On the other hand, DVD is quite a different story. While the NTSC/PAL difference still exists, DVD has been simplified by dividing the planet into six "regions" of broadcast. The UK and Europe are "region 2"; the US and Canada are in "region 1"; Australia and New Zealand are "region 4". You can't play a Doctor Who DVD from region 1 on a regular region 2 player... but you CAN purchase a "multi-region DVD player" which not only transcends the region barriers, but actually converts the signal from NTSC to PAL or vice-versa. Multiregion players are more difficult to find, but are quite inexpensive; they're also more common in the UK than in North America. The best way to find them is to look one one of the multiregion sites like codefreedvd.com; you can also find them on EBay, or even sometimes in your local store. Search Google or Yahoo for "multiregion DVD" to find information about what players are currently out there.
It is also important to remember that the region system is imposed by film studios and other interested parties simply for their own financial interest; it is by no means illegal to own a multiregion deck, nor to import a DVD from another region. Most major retailers ship DVDs overseas; Amazon's various branches do so, and the UK also has several great specialty DVD exporters, most notably the wonderful Blackstar.
What's the deal with the Key to Time Season DVD Boxed Set?
In the US and Canada, it is getting prohibitively more difficult to release television shows in single-story format as opposed to season boxed sets, the current trend. BBC America released "The Key to Time" (season 16) as a boxed set as an experiment in late 2002, which has done exceedingly good business for them. At this point there is no plan to release this season in the UK on DVD.
What is the Doctor Who Restoration Team?
The Restoration Team is a group of fans who contract with the BBC to do restoration work on Doctor Who stories for release on video and DVD. The RT, as they are known, have worked on all of the Doctor Who DVD releases in the UK (and contributed to the picture restoration work on the North American DVD release of "The Key to Time" season box set.) While they are paid for their work, the fact that it is a labor of love for the RT is a bonus for fans; witness the "Restoring the Aztecs" documentary on the DVD release of "The Aztecs" for some insight on what goes on with the restoration.
Books
What's going on in the Eighth Doctor series?
Following the events of the 1996 TV movie, the Doctor picked up a British teenager from the late 1990's, Samantha "Sam" Jones, and later a disaffected late 20's drifter named Fitz Kreiner in 1963. During their adventures, the threesome tangled with the dreaded Faction Paradox, a renegade voodoo cult of time travelers who believe in creating time paradoxes and altering history; and the raucous adventurer Iris Wildthyme, a Time Lady from Gallifrey who has been long-known to the Doctor and who travels in a TARDIS shaped like a London double-decker. While Sam was left back in London (in the care of Sarah Jane Smith, now Morley), the Doctor and Fitz were joined by Compassion, a Faction Paradox convert who slowly began a conversion process into a living TARDIS, while the Doctor lost his own capsule. The Time Lords, anxious to get their hands on this new TARDIS technology, pursued the Doctor; his old friend Romana, now President of the Time Lords, was now his nemesis. The conflict with Faction Paradox came to blows on Gallifrey ("The Ancestor Cell") where the Doctor, faced with an impossible decision, destroyed the Faction and major damage to the timelines by wiping his homeworld out of existence -- Gallifrey, in essence, never existed. Much later, we learned that only four had survived the catastrophe, one of which is the Master (seen briefly in "The Adventuress of Henrietta Street"); the other two are unknown. Meanwhile, having rescued the Doctor from near-death, Compassion leaves the Doctor on Earth in the late 19th century -- his memory of his previous life eradicated (perhaps because of guilt, possibly due to other factors) -- while she drops Fitz off in 2001 and departs. The Doctor spends the next 100 years traveling the world, living through its history; he even acts as father to a young girl, Miranda ("Father Time") before meeting Fitz at a prearranged location (due to a note Compassion slipped into his pocket a hundred years before). The Doctor regains his TARDIS, which took the entire century to redevelop itself, and he and Fitz meet Anji Kapoor, a London stock trader; the three leave Earth in the TARDIS for destinations unknown.
Much later, while on Earth in the 18th century, the Doctor, Fitz and Anji meet Sabbath, a Secret Service operative who is aware of time travel and becomes the Doctor's personal nemesis; Sabbath is not actually evil, but his motivations are questionable. The Doctor loses his second heart, which is slowly killing him (the second heart being his only link to his homeworld, which he doesn't remember), and Sabbath takes it for himself, tying the two together. The Doctor and his companions frequently encounter Sabbath, while a stowaway, Beatrix "Trix" MacMillan, enters the TARDIS and stays hidden. Sabbath loses the Doctor's time-sensitive heart and the Doctor grows a new one; he begins to encounter clues of his history (such as seeing an image of the Seventh Doctor in a dream). After the Doctor learns that Sabbath is working for someone, Anji leaves and Trix comes out of hiding. Currently, the Doctor, Fitz and Trix face an uncertain future.
Will Gallifrey ever return? Will the Doctor's memory return?
According to the current editors of the BBC Books line, there are no plans whatsoever to bring back Gallifrey. The Doctor's memory loss is tied up with this; while it's been hinted that the Doctor destroying his homeworld has cut off his memory, there are obviously other factors at work as well (such as the nonexistence of Gallifrey itself). Fitz Kreiner is a link to part of his past; Fitz remembers much of what has happened since he joined the Doctor, but his memory has started to go as well. Obviously, future editors -- or creators of subsequent series -- will have license to use Gallifrey if need be; editor Justin Richards of BBC Books has stated that there are ways to bring Gallifrey back IF it were needed to link with such future developments.
It is important to remember that the loss of Gallifrey is simply another plot strand of an ever-increasing mythology. The first six years of the series (until "The War Games") existed entirely without a clue as to the Doctor's homeworld or any ties to such (with one exception: the mysterious Meddling Monk from "The Time Meddler," also a member of the Doctor's race).
An interesting analogy can be tied between the current state of affairs of the books and the series.... having traveled the universe in his rackety old TARDIS (the Hartnell and Troughton eras vs. the Eighth Doctor books to "The Ancestor Cell"), a confrontation happens where the Doctor must face his own people ("The War Games" vs. "The Ancestor Cell"). The Doctor is exiled to Earth, trapped without his TARDIS (Seasons 7 -10 vs. "The Burning" to "Escape Velocity"); he later encounters a villain he meets in adventure after adventure (The Master vs. Sabbath), and then departs Earth to roam the galaxy again (Seasons 10+ vs. "Escape Velocity" to current). Someday, he'll have to face the music back home again ("The Deadly Assassin" vs. ... use your imagination). In other words, we've been through this before, in different settings and situations -- but the possibilities for future adventures are limitless.
Why were the books cut to one per month?
BBC Worldwide ostensibly cut them to "better focus during the anniversary year" though there are currently no plans to go back to the twice-monthly book schedule. It's very likely that it was simply a matter of economics.
What exactly was the Virgin Books' New Adventures/Missing Adventures line? Why aren't they published anymore?
From 1991 to 1997, Virgin Publishing released a successful and critically acclaimed line of Doctor Who fiction, which picked up shortly after the events of the final televised story, "Survival". The Seventh Doctor -- known as "Time's Champion" throughout this incarnation -- and Ace were the existing characters that began the line; they were soon joined (in Paul Cornell's "Love and War") by archaeologist/raconteur Bernice Summerfield, and faced both old enemies (such as a regenerated Master, the Cybermen, the Sontarans and the Silurians) and new ones (the turtle-like Chelonians and the venomous Hoothi to name only two.) For a time, the Doctor, Ace and Bernice traveled together despite an unlikely hostility toward one another, which gradually faded before Ace departed in Kate Orman's "Love and War," becoming an independent time-traveler herself (given the nickname "Time's Vigilante".) The Doctor and Bernice were then eventually joined by thirtieth century adjudicator Roslyn "Roz" Forrester and her squire, Christopher Cwej (pronounced "kwedge"), until Bernice departed the Doctor's company after marrying rapscalion Jason Kane in Cornell's "Happy Endings". Roz was later killed in Orman and Ben Aaronovitch's "So Vile a Sin" (which was delayed in publication due to the loss of part of the manuscript, and was published just before the loss of the contract), while Chris accompanied the Doctor up to the final Seventh Doctor adventure, Marc Platt's "Lungbarrow," in which the Doctor returned to Gallifrey to face the ghosts of his past. The novel ends with now-President Romana asking the Doctor to retrieve the Master's remains (leading into the TV movie). (Romana left E-Space to come back home and eventually become President during the Virgin line.) Among the highlights of the series, besides the novels listed, are the adaptation of the independent Sontaran video "Shakedown"; the return of the Meddling Monk, a glimpse into the futures of Melanie, Peri and Liz Shaw; Ace's three-year sabbatical with Space Fleet, fighting Daleks; and a one-shot Eighth Doctor novel featuring the Brigadier and Bernice Summerfield, published immediately prior to the loss of the license.
The New Adventures were accompanied by an ongoing series (from 1994-1997) called "The Missing Adventures," which told stories from the first six Doctors and their companions. Every major companion save one (Leela) was featured in these books (however, Leela appeared in "Lungbarrow" in the NA line, on Gallifrey along with K-9.) Among the major developments were adventures with the Sixth Doctor after his trial ("Trial of a Time Lord") as well as the creation of a new short-term companion for him, Grant Markham; encounters with such historical personalities as Christopher Marlowe, Guy Fawkes and the Marquis de Sade; a glimpse of the oft-mentioned Venusians; sequels to "The Talons of Weng-Chiang" and "Pyramids of Mars"; and an origin story for the Master, a Time Lord named Koschei who gradually turns to evil in an adventure with the Second Doctor. The Missing Adventures series also adapted two works from other mediums: the independent video "Downtime" with the Brigadier, Sarah Jane Smith and Victoria Waterfield, and the BBC Radio 4 drama "The Ghosts of N-Space" with the Third Doctor, the Brigadier and Sarah.
In 1997, BBC Books announced it was discontinuing Virgin's license to publish Doctor Who fiction and start its own series, ostensibly due to the newfound interest in the show following the 1996 TV movie.
Can I submit to BBC Books?
Yes! BBCi hosts an online version of the BBC submissions guidelines here; details about format, characters and story types are noted therein.
Audios
There are audio versions of Doctor Who?
Yes... two, actually. The first is very simple; many episodes of Doctor Who no longer exist so that we can view them. However, every story in Doctor Who's long history does exist as an audio recording; back in the days before VCRs, several fans recorded them using old-style audio tape decks, microphones up to the television set. While we don't have a video record of every story, thankfully due to these persistent fans we can still enjoy these "lost" parts of the show. The BBC Radio Collection, the audio arm of BBC Worldwide, has begun releasing these audio-only stories on CD, narrated by members of the original cast (so that you can understand what's going on.)
The second is a continuing series of audio dramas produced by Big Finish Productions. Big Finish, run by Jason Haigh-Ellery and Gary Russell, acquired the license to produce original audio fiction in 1999... think of it as old-style radio drama starring members of the original cast, with full music scores and sound effects. Four Doctors who played the role on television -- Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy and Paul McGann -- have returned to play the role of the Doctor in these monthly CD releases, alongside such actors as Elisabeth Sladen (Sarah Jane), Lalla Ward (Romana), Louise Jameson (Leela), Nicola Bryant (Peri), Sophie Aldred (Ace), John Leeson (K-9), Mark Strickson (Turlough), Bonnie Langford (Melanie), Sarah Sutton (Nyssa) and Nicholas Courtney (Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart). Original series cast members (such as Wendy Padbury, Anneke Wills and Caroline John) and guest stars (Michael Keating, Philip Madoc, David Daker, Bernard Horsfall, Martin Jarvis, Ian Collier, Terry Molloy, Geoffrey Beevers, Ian Hogg, Yee Jee Tso, Patricia Maynard, Jacqueline Pearce, Robert Jezek, Michael Sheard, Morgan Deare, Eleanor Bron and Lisa Bowerman) have also taken roles in these stories. For more details on these visit the Big Finish website.
Who are Evelyn Smythe, Charley Pollard, Erimem, Frobisher and C'rizz?
Professor Evelyn Smythe is a fifty-something university instructor from present day London, who was created as a companion to the Sixth Doctor to expand Big Finish's regular cast repetoire. Evelyn, played by Maggie Stables, appeared in the audio play "The Marian Conspiracy" and has gone on to be one of the series' most popular and regular companions alongside Colin Baker, Lalla Ward ("The Apocalypse Element"), Nicholas Courtney ("The Spectre of Lanyon Moor") and even Sylvester McCoy ("Project: Lazarus"). Evelyn has actually appeared in print as well, in Gary Russell's BBC Books novel "Instruments of Darkness" where we discover that, following her time with the Doctor, she was left in the wrong era, and he eventually went back to pick her up while traveling with Melanie -- meaning the two at some point were both the Doctor's companions at the same time.
Charley Pollard is a teenage girl traveling aboard the airship R101 in 1930 when she is rescued by the Eighth Doctor ("Storm Warning"), and brought aboard the TARDIS. Charley was meant to die in the crash; the Doctor's removal of her from the timelines creates a time paradox which shadows her throughout his adventures (erupting in "Neverland" into a major cause of distress). Charley is played by India Fisher.
Erimem is an Egyptian pharaoh... at least she was destined to be, until the Fifth Doctor and Peri rescued her in "The Eye of the Scorpion" -- that's why history has no record of her. Along with Erimem is her cat, Antranak, named after her late champion. She is wide-eyed and naive to history, but wise in her own ways. Erimem is played by Caroline Morris.
Frobisher is a penguin... that is, he's a shapeshifting Whifferdill whose favorite visage is that of an emperor penguin. Frobisher was created in the pages of Doctor Who Magazine as a companion to the Sixth Doctor (with Peri), later traveling solo with the Seventh Doctor. In keeping with this continuity, Big Finish tried him out in the story "The Holy Terror" alongside Colin Baker, which proved to be their first story considered a true "classic"; Frobisher later returned in the one-shot "The Maltese Penguin". Actor Robert Jezek plays Frobisher, whose accent is vaguely analogous to a New York City cab driver.
C'rizz is a new companion played by Conrad Westmaas, who will soon be joining the Eighth Doctor and Charley in the story "The Creed of the Kromon". He's an insectoid, which makes for a different sort of character indeed.
Will Richard E. Grant ever appear in a Big Finish audio?
Not according to Gary Russell, producer of the Big Finish series, who says that at this time their 'future Doctor' adventures are centered around the Eighth Doctor, Paul McGann. Time will tell to see if this changes.
Why won't the Rani / the Sontarans / the Zygons / etc. appear in a Big Finish audio?
Big Finish is reticent to use past creations that have already been featured in BBV/Bill Baggs' successful line of "Audio Adventures in Time and Space". That said, producer Gary Russell has said that he would be interested in featuring the Rani if the story were written by Pip & Jane Baker (who created the character and who wrote for her for BBV.) The Sontarans may, however, make an appearance in Big Finish's Bernice Summerfield series; the Ice Warriors and Rutans already have appeared there.
Can I submit to Big Finish?
At the moment, Big Finish is not accepting any unsolicited submissions or manuscripts.
Where do the Eighth Doctor stories fit into the books?
That would assume they actually do... while Big Finish has on some level kept continuity with the Virgin and BBC book lines (such as, Romana as President of Gallifrey), there has been little to tie the two series together. There has been the off-handed mention of Sam Jones ("Minuet in Hell"), but Big Finish has emphasized that it is its own entity, not tied to the BBC Books storyline (such as the fall of Gallifrey).
That said, there are several possibilities for where in the storyline these adventures take place. Following the arrival of Samantha Jones (in the first BBC novel "The Eight Doctors," taking place immediately after the 1996 film), Sam is dropped off at a Greenpeace rally and picked up later in the afternoon -- though three years have taken place for the Doctor. (Other stories -- such as the Radio Times comic strip and the DWM monthly series -- are said to take place here.) The "three year gap" is generally accepted as a possibility. However, another gap does exist in the Doctor's return to pick up Sam around the time of "Seeing I", which is where our own Canon Guide places these adventures.
Both series actually postulate the first encounter between the Eighth Doctor and the Daleks ("Time of the Daleks" for the audios, "War of the Daleks" for the books), so whichever gap you accept, they happen in that order.
Some fans have speculated that these adventures take place in the Doctor's future, past the BBC Books line, at a time in which Gallifrey has returned; indeed in "Minuet in Hell" an earlier draft included the names of Fitz and Anji. However, by that time, Romana has regenerated into her third incarnation (in the BBC novel "The Shadows of Avalon"); that, and other evidence, would disprove that argument entirely.
Spinoffs
Can you please explain the deal with all the various spinoffs?
Not content with the adventures of the Doctor and his companions? There are many official and unofficial spinoff series, including audios with familiar cast members and books written by Doctor Who writers. Here's a brief guide to introduce you to the world of the Doctor Who spinoffs:
BBV Videos
Producer Bill Baggs began to produce independent videos in the early 1990's under his new company, BBV Productions, starting with a series about "The Stranger," a mysterious, um, stranger with a hidden past. Colin Baker stars as the Stranger (later identified as Solomon); also starring in the videos were Sophie Aldred, Nicola Bryant and Michael Wisher. The Stranger series has started to be released by BBV on DVD (both in PAL and NTSC video formats); the first two, "Summoned by Shadows" and "More Than a Messiah" are currently out. These DVDs also include brand-new audio stories on them set in the universe of the Stranger, but not featuring Colin Baker. Baker did, however, do two additional Stranger projects on audio, as noted in "BBV Audios" below.
BBV's later video projects include the P.R.o.B.e. series, with Caroline John reprising her series role as Liz Shaw, now an investigator looking into mysterious happenings in the British countryside; the Auton series, starring the evil plastic automatons in a trilogy of terrifying stories; and a comedy outing, "Do You Have a License to Save this Planet?" with Sylvester McCoy as the "Foot Doctor" traveling in a time capsule that looks mysteriously like a washing machine! Most recently, BBV filmed the video "Cyberon," an original drama.
Other Videos
Keith Barnfather's Reeltime Pictures co-produced an independent drama in the 1990's called "Downtime," which starred Who stalwarts Nicholas Courtney as the Brigadier, Elisabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith and Deborah Watling as Victoria Waterfield, all part of an adventure which features the Yeti and the Great Intelligence. Video producers (and Panopticon convention organizers) Dominitemporal Ltd. filmed "Shakedown: Return of the Sontarans", which starred Sophie Aldred, Carole Ann Ford, Michael Wisher and "Blake's 7" actress Jan Chappell in a story featuring both the Sontarans and the Rutans. (Both "Shakedown" and "Downtime" were later adapted in print in the Virgin Publishing Doctor Who novels series.) Reeltime also backed the production of "Mindgame" and "Mindgame Trilogy," videos starring Sophie Aldred with the Draconians; and are currently working on "Daemos Rising," a video sequel to the TV story "The Daemons". Reeltime also had a hand in the pseudo-documentary "Doctor Who's Lust in Space" and has produced an enormous number of direct-to-video documentary titles, including the "Myth Makers" series and specials focusing on various aspects of Doctor Who fandom, such as "An Englishman on Gallifrey," "The Doctor at Sea" and "Patrick Troughton in America".
BBV Audios
In the mid 1990's, BBV embarked on a new series of audios subtitled "Adventures in Space and Time". The first few outings focused upon an enigmatic duo named the Professor and Ace, played by Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred. After an altercation over the rights with the BBC, the names of the characters were shifted (within the stories themselves) to the Dominie and Alice, though the roles did not continue much past the change of names. BBV also released two "Stranger" audios with Colin Baker continuing in the role he created for BBV's first original productions, their Stranger video series. BBV has also licensed many popular monsters, villains and characters from their original creators, and has featured them in a variety of audios: K-9 (played by John Leeson, reunited with Lalla Ward as "the Mistress"), the Rani (played by Kate O'Mara, in a story penned by original scribes Pip & Jane Baker), the Zygons, the Krynoids, the Rutans and the Sontarans. More recently, BBV has focused on the Faction Paradox stories (see below) and more arcane original creations, including the "I" (from the BBC Books novel "Seeing I" by Kate Orman & Jon Blum) and the Cyberons. Original fiction has also been given the audio treatment, including several stand-alone audios about a time traveler called the Wanderer (played by Big Finish's Nicholas Briggs) and a one-shot audio called "Punchline" written by Rob Shearman, starring Sylvester McCoy -- considered by many to be BBV's best audio release.
The Adventures of Bernice Summerfield
In 1997, faced with the end of their license for printing Doctor Who novels (see "Books"), Virgin Publishing spun off their popular character Bernice "Benny" Summerfield, a strong-willed adventurer and faux-professor who had been the first original companion creation in their post-television book series. "The New Adventures" continued with the same brand after the license loss, with Benny as the main protagonist. Virgin later canceled this line of novels due to lower sales. Meanwhile, Big Finish had already acquired the rights to produce original audio works, and bought the license to bring her to print fiction as well; currently, Big Finish produces several audios and at least one hardcover fiction anthology of Bernice stories every year, along with original characters created for the line: Irving Braxiatel (a Time Lord who may be related to the Doctor), Chris Cwej (another Virgin Doctor Who companion, brought new life in these adventures), the mechanical Joseph the Porter, and Jason Kane, Bernice's scoundrel ex-husband. Paul Cornell, who created the character Bernice Summerfield in the 1992 novel "Love and War," edits the fiction anthologies.
Big Finish's Limited Series
Big Finish acquired the rights to do an independent, four-part Dalek serial called "Dalek Empire" in 2001, featuring a host of new characters such as Susan "Suz" Mendes, Alby Brook and the Knight of Velyshaa, Kalendorf (played by Gareth Thomas, Blake of "Blake's 7"). This was followed up in 2003 with "Dalek War: Dalek Empire II," another four-part series; a third 'season' of Dalek stories is due in 2004. "Dalek Empire" builds on the Dalek mythos and their conflict with the Earth Alliance.
In 2002, Elisabeth Sladen reprised the role of Sarah Jane Smith for a five-part serial from Big Finish, building entirely upon the character without any connection to the Doctor Who series (at least until the final part, which featured the return of a villain from the show). Among the authors for the series were Terrance Dicks and Barry Letts, the former script editor and producer who created Sarah Jane in the 1970's.
"Doctor Who Unbound" is a six-chapter limited series of audios using the "What If?" concept to go beyond the boundaries of traditional Doctor Who. Actors David Warner, Geoffrey Bayldon and David Collings took the role of the Doctor for the first three stories; Michael Jayston reprised his role as the Valeyard for the fourth chapter; and veteran stage star Derek Jacobi portrayed a different sort of Doctor in the final chapter. (A sixth actor - to play a female Doctor in the story "Exile" - had not been confirmed at press time.) Both Carole Ann Ford and Bonnie Langford reprised their series roles as Susan Foreman and Melanie Bush, and Nicholas Courtney played a Brigadier with a different history altogether alongside Warner's Doctor.
Kaldor City
Magic Bullet Productions began producing a series of audios called "Kaldor City" in 2002, building on the concepts created by Chris Boucher in the original Doctor Who story "The Robots of Death" (and subsequently revisited in the BBC Books' sequel story "Corpse Marker"). Boucher serves as producer on the series, which bridges the gap between Doctor Who and the Blake's 7 genre. Russell Hunter reprises his role from "Robots of Death" as Commander Uvanov, while Scott Fredericks plays Carnell from the Blake's 7 story "Weapon"; other actors include Paul Darrow, Peter Tuddenham, Nicholas Courtney, Peter Miles, Jasmine Breaks and Brian Croucher; in addition, in recent installments David Bailie has returned to reprise the role of Taren Capel from the Doctor Who serial. The title Kaldor City itself comes from the home base of the characters from "Robots of Death," mentioned in that Doctor Who story.
Faction Paradox
Mad Norwegian, owned by Lars Pearson (author of the unofficial audio/book guides called "I, Who"), will begin releasing novels and comics in 2003 based on the Faction Paradox genre (see the BBC Books section and BBV Audios, above). These will be completely disconnected from the Doctor Who mythos, and in some cases will contradict stories that have previously transpired in the Doctor Who genre.
MJTV's Soldiers of Love
Mark Thompson and his MJTV Productions have released a series of audio CD's called "Soldiers of Love". While this has absolutely no connection to Doctor Who mythology, its stars have included many Doctor Who performers including Colin Baker, Nicholas Courtney and many others.
Fandom
I'd like to go to a Doctor Who convention. Can you tell me where I can find one?
While there aren't nearly as many as there were in the 1980's, during the show's heyday, there still exist several annual and semi-annual Doctor Who conventions. The following is a brief primer on where you can find them:
UNITED KINGDOM
The UK is home to Panopticon, the largest Doctor Who convention and the one sanctioned by BBC Worldwide. It doesn't happen every year, but will be taking place on November 1-2, 2003 in London for the show's 40th anniversary. Newcastle is home to Dimensions, an annual Doctor Who event, while Tenth Planet UK hosts the annual Invasion convention. Cult TV hosts an annual television convention which focuses on Doctor Who and other popular shows, while Indelible Promotions will be hosting a second convention, Dr. Who and the Daleks, in March.
NORTH AMERICA
Five annual or semi-annual events take place in North America. The Gallifrey One conventions in Los Angeles are the continent's largest (second in size only to Panopticon in the UK), taking place every February, with a primary emphasis on Doctor Who but also taking advantage of the local Hollywood entertainment scene. Chicago is home to the ChicagoTARDIS convention in November, a smaller, exclusively Doctor Who-focused event. The annual Sci-Fi Sea Cruise sails from port at irregular times but focuses primarily on Doctor Who, while the media-oriented United Fan Con in the Boston area in November always features at least one Doctor Who guest. In Canada, Toronto hosts the semi-regular Who Party, a smaller gathering/event featuring at least one Doctor Who guest.
AUSTRALIA/NEW ZEALAND
Sydney, Australia is the home of the semi-annual Whovention conventions, an event hosted by the Dr. Who Club of Australia. There are other, smaller gatherings organized in both Australia and New Zealand and different times, and DWCA is hosting a special anniversary celebration this year called Ruby Jubilee.
I'd like to join a Doctor Who fan club. Can you tell me where I can find one?
Fan clubs specifically for the show are on the decline but still exist in pockets. Here's a primer to finding them; the best way to locate and contact them is by looking at the Web Guide to Doctor Who, which we mirror here on Outpost Gallifrey.
UNITED KINGDOM
The UK is still served, as always, by the Doctor Who Appreciation Society (DWAS), the long-running sanctioned Doctor Who organization. Contact them to get in touch with one of their local groups.
CANADA
Canada's Doctor Who Information Network is the major national Doctor Who fan club, with chapters in Ontario, Quebec and other provinces. Canada also has a couple of independent groups.
UNITED STATES
While the US doesn't have a national fan club anymore (the Friends of Doctor Who was discontinued in the late 1990's), a number of independent fan groups exist in select cities; some of the most prominent are the Prydonians of Prynceton (New Jersey), the Time Meddlers of Los Angeles (California), the Milwaukee Time Lords (Wisconsin), the Friends of the Time Lord (Ohio), The St. Louis CIA (Missouri), UNIT-1 (Iowa), the U.S. Branch of UNIT (Massachusetts), the Knights of the White Guardian (Massachusetts), the Minnesota Dr. Who Viewing Society (Minnesota), and the Guardians of Gallifrey (Florida). Other, smaller fan groups also exist.
AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND
The Doctor Who Club of Australia (DWCA) and the New Zealand Doctor Who Fan Club (NZDWFC) both serve their respective countries as large, national groups with smaller chapters in select cities. Contact them for details.