Doctor Who turns 59: the television series that survives and continues to add fans

Specials for 60 years will be headed by David Tennant (Staged, Good Omens, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) who was the tenth Doctor and now also the fourteenth. Later will give way to the already elected Ncuti Gatwa (Sex Education) who will push the series into the future.

What is Doctor Who, how is it still coming out after 59 years and why anyone can join

doctor who ncuti gatwa millie gibson

BBC

On this date, but 1963, the BBC premiered the opening episode of its new “educational series”. During its early years, Doctor Who laid the foundations that still sustain the series: We follow the “Doctor”, an alien in human formof a race called “Time Lords” (Lords of Time), who owns a machine that travels through time and space and visits different eras and planets trying to fix errors caused by a huge gallery of villains.

Mechanics is just an excuse to explore our own world. as an external, the Doctor learns from humanity at the same time that spreads values ​​where courage and kindness are the axis. At the same time, his earth companions that teach him form a communion that highlights all that we can be. The Doctor does not solve things with weapons or violenceintelligence and desire to “discover what keeps evil at bay” they are all you need.

doctor who tom baker

BBC

The secret to his longevity came in 1966. The advanced age of the main actor, william hartnell, led the producers to decide whether to cancel the series or find a solution. From there came one of the most intelligent ideas in fiction: from that moment on, the Doctor’s race possesses the power of “regeneration”by which When he dies, his body transforms into a new one. but keeping his memories.

Thus a universe of possibilities opened up. Every few years, when an actor decided to retire of the character, the series simply I would write a farewell story and replace it with the next one. Until now, 13 actors and one actress they played the Doctor, plus some alternate versions and comebacks.

The constantly changing nature who got the series too allowed different generations of fans to join in at different times of his history, each with “his era” and “his Doctor”. When a Doctor changes (especially in the last decades) the first episode of the new one is usually written as a “relaunch” of the seriesexplaining the basics again so anyone can join from there.

The present and future of Doctor Who: an ideal time to start

The series did not always have good moments: it was canceled in 1989 and spent practically 16 years off the air. In 2005, producer Russel T. Davies (Years & Years) managed to revive it with the BBC and produced four seasons. During the 2010s, Steven Moffat (Sherlock) and Chris Chibnall (Broadchurch) they gave their mark with greater and lesser successes.

Now, (before a precipitous drop in ratings and criticism) Davies returns to producer role and plans to give it a big push to the series. That’s why, signed a distribution deal with Disneywhich will make the new episodes of the series reach the whole world (except the United Kingdom) on the Disney+ platform. This ease of access and such a strong breaking point in production will make de his return in 2023 an ideal point for anyone who is interested in starting to see the series.