November 23, 2012 - Dr. Who Day

On this date in 1963, a science fiction TV show was born. Dr. Who aired for the first time and by now has become the world's record longest-running science fiction show. It also the most successful science fiction series.
Whovians (Dr. Who fans) can tell you what a TARDIS is, but in case you don't know, I can tell you that it is a time machine. Well, it's not just a time machine; it's a time-and-space machine. The acronym stands for Time And Relative Dimension In Space. It looks like a battered blue Police call box. And it still looks pretty much the same, now, 51 years later.

You know what doesn't look the same? Dr. Who himself. Our Time Lord has been played by eleven different actors. (I mean, come on, the show's been on for decades and decades, although it was off the air from 1989 to 2005.) How does the show explain all these different-looking Doctors?

Regeneration.

Whenever the Doctor, who is a humanoid alien, has a major injury that would kill most creatures, he undergoes a life process in which he takes on a different body and, to some extent, a different personality. 

Good vs. Evil

There are all these galactic bad guys, but Dr. Who and his human companions fight back and work to rid the universe of evil! When it comes right down to it, an awful lot of TV and movies and books deals with this ultimate struggle.

But Dr. Who does it with clever and imaginative plots along with inexpensive but creative special effects. The show is big in British culture but has also developed a cult television favorite elsewhere. It is currently broadcast in 50 countries spread over six continents. It's the kind of show that inspires some people to DVR a hundred episodes to watch one after another. Although it's hard to catch up with ALL of Dr. Who, these days: there have been 789 installments!!!


Take a peek...

You can find Dr. Who on TV or Netflix or (if you are in the U.S.) BBCAmerica, but you can also check out the short videos on the BBC's You Tube channel. 



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