Biographic - Sunday May 2, 2010 Comic Strip Licensing and Permissions

Transcript

The longest-running sci-fi tv show in the world. "Doctor Who" debuted on BBC television in Britain on November 23, 1963. The show follows the adventures of a time lord who roams through time and space in the Tardis, a spacecraft disguised as an old-fashioned London Police Box. (Tardis is an Acronym for "Time and Relative Dimension in Space.) the original series was so low-budget that when the script called for six Daleks, the evil aliens in tank-like machines that are The Doctor's greatest foes, the producers have to pad out the numbers with two cardboard cutouts on which were pasted photos. William Hartnell was the first actor to portray The Doctor. When he left the series in 1966, the producers hit upon a novel way to introduce his replacement. They decided that time lords have the ability to regenerate, thus allowing them to incorporate the introduction of Patrick Troughton into the storyline. A succession of actors has since taken on the role. Each Doctor has been accompanied by companions, and among those who have filled that role are actress Billie Piper, comedienne Catherine Tate and pop star Kyle Minogue. The mid-1960s saw The Doctor on the big screen, with veteran horror star Peter Cushing in the title role. "Doctor Who" became a cult favorite on North American TV in the 1970s, when the lead was played by Jon Pertwee and then Tom Baker. They were followed by Peter Davidson, Colin Baker, and then Sylvester McCoy, who was the incumbent when the show went on Hiatus in 1989. It returned briefly in the mid-1990s, with Paul McGann as The Doctor. The show returned in 2005 with Christopher Eccleston star of such movies as "Elizabeth" and "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra" as the ninth doctor before David Tennant began a five-year stint.

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