Doctor Who

Doctor Who is a long-running British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC about a mysterious time-travelling adventurer known only as "The Doctor". It is also the title of a 1996 television movie featuring the same character. It is common to see the show's title abbreviated as Dr. Who, even by the BBC, although purists consider this form incorrect.

Viewership

Doctor Who has always appeared on the BBC's mainstream BBC One channel, drawing audiences of many millions of viewers. It was most popular in the late 1970s, when audiences frequently averaged as high as 12 million viewers per airing. During the ITV network strike of 1979, viewership peaked at 16 million. No first-run episode of Doctor Who has ever drawn fewer than three million viewers on BBC One, although its late 1980s performance of three to five million regular viewers was seen as being poor at the time, and was a leading cause of the programme's 1989 suspension. The BBC One broadcast of Rose, the first episode of the 2005 revival, drew an average audience of 10.81 million, No. 3 for BBC One that week and No. 7 across all channels.

Related Topics:
BBC One - ITV - 1980s - Rose

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Only four episodes have ever had their premier showings on channels other than BBC One. The 1983 twentieth anniversary special The Five Doctors had its debut on November 23 (the actual date of the anniversary) on the Chicago PBS station WTTW-TV in the United States and various other PBS affiliates two days prior to its BBC One broadcast. The 1988 story Silver Nemesis was broadcast with all three episodes edited together in compilation form on TVNZ in New Zealand in November, after the first episode had been shown in the UK but before the final two instalments had aired there. Finally, the 1996 television movie premiered on May 12 on Citytv in Toronto, Canada, fifteen days before the BBC One showing.

Related Topics:
The Five Doctors - November 23 - Chicago - PBS - WTTW-TV - 1988 - Silver Nemesis - TVNZ - May 12 - Citytv - Toronto

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There was some controversy over the show's suitability for children. Moral campaigner Mary Whitehouse made a series of complaints to the BBC in the 1970s over its sometimes frightening or gory content. Ironically, her actions made the programme even more popular, especially with children. Producer John Nathan-Turner was heard to say that he looked forward to Whitehouse's comments, as the show's ratings would increase soon after she had made them.

Related Topics:
Mary Whitehouse - John Nathan-Turner

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During the 1970s, the Radio Times, the BBC's own listings magazine, announced that a child's mother said the theme music terrified her son. The Radio Times was apologetic, but the theme music remained. However, the visuals were more complained about than the music. During Jon Pertwee's second season as the Doctor, in the serial Terror of the Autons, images of murderous plastic dolls, daffodils killing unsuspecting victims and blank-featured android policemen marked the apex of the show's ability to frighten children.

Related Topics:
Radio Times - Jon Pertwee - Second season - Terror of the Autons

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It has been said that watching Doctor Who from a position of safety "behind the sofa" (as the Doctor Who exhibition at the Museum of the Moving Image in London was titled) and peering cautiously out to see if the scary bit was over is one of the great shared experiences of British childhood. The term has become a common phrase in association with the programme and occasionally elsewhere.

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A wide selection of serials is available on VHS, DVD and even UMD from BBC Video, on sale in the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States. Every fully extant serial has been released on VHS, and BBC Worldwide continues to release serials on DVD on a regular basis. The latest series has been generally receiving ratings of about 7.5 million, with the highest so far being 10.81 million for Rose.

Related Topics:
VHS - DVD - UMD

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