For those who may not know, Doctor Who is a Sci-Fi series created by BBC in 1963. The essential plot line is an alien known as a Time Lord, who travels through all of time and space, saves the universe time and time again, at least when he can.
Doctor Who is known for being the longest lasting Sci-Fi TV show, lasting 53 years and counting, next to Star Trek that lasted only 39 years.
Doctor Who just recently celebrated its 50th anniversary, in 2013. As The Press (a British newspaper) stated in 2008, some believe that it has lasted so long on account for a gap period in the series. They didn’t have any episodes, and it was thought the show had ended, but in 1996 they tried to bring it back with a movie until they were finally able to succeed in 2005 with their comeback series.
Others believe that the Doctor’s ability to fight death and regenerate is what has kept it up and running. Troy Lennon, author of "The how, why, when and where of Dr. Who", states that when the original Doctor became ill, they did not want to end the show, so they came up with a reason why the doctor changes faces. What happens is, whenever the Doctor faces death, his second heart allows him to regenerate.
This regeneration allows them to change actors and keep the show running for many more years to come.
The Doctor has faced many enemies in his lifetime, and similar to regenerations, these monsters have taken on an evolution of their own. The monsters started off as simple creations, and over the years have become more complex.
The first antagonists to take the stage are known as Daleks, they are the Doctor’s arch nemesis, they began as simply a highly decorated trash can, with a flashlight, plunger, and a whisk.
As seen in this image (Left) created by a fan, you can see the progression over the years, they have become bigger and more modern looking.
On top of the physical evolution, the antagonist has gained a more psychological impact. For example, the Weeping Angels, who according to Clarke, a BBC employee, are defined as “quantum-locked alien killers, as old as the universe itself. When observed, they freeze like stone, but in the blink of an eye they can move vast distances." Most people have a tendency to close their eyes against something they are afraid of and have you ever felt the difficulty of keeping your eyes open when you're told not to blink?
Some other similar creatures are the Vashta Nerada, which are these flesh-eating shadows, the reason why people are afraid of the dark according to the episode “Silence in the Library.” Speaking of silence, the Silence are aliens that give reason to forgetting what you walked into the room to do, for the moment you look away from them; you forget you ever saw them.
These creatures are still not the end of the changes Doctor Who has taken over its 53 years.
The TARDIS, otherwise known as Time And Relative Dimensions In Space, is the time machine The Doctor travels in. With the help of Time Lord technology, it’s bigger on the inside and has taken many upgrades through the years. Dr. Piers Britton explains that the TARDIS takes the shape of a 1960’s London police box, and it should have the ability to change shape and blend into its surrounding. However, the chameleon circuit malfunctioned.
As the series progresses, we later find out that the iconic sound the TARDIS makes is because the Doctor simply leaves the breaks on. BBC explains how this sound was first created by rubbing a key against the bass strings of a piano. Now it is simply computer generated.
(The Mind Robber) As you can see in the image to the left, the details on the outside of the TARDIS have changed with every decade or so. The inside also changes from time to time with the culture trends of the viewers.
The show was taken many changes over the years, and from 1963-2016, Doctor Who has seen some good times, and some bad, but through it all, they have lasted long enough to become well known for being the longest lasting sci-fi show.
