This changes everything. Again. (Doctor Who, Season 2)

Like the iPhone 4, Doctor Who's second season was not without its problems. However, 1965 saw the series' popularity reach even greater heights than the previous year. Even the Beatles wanted to be on Doctor Who, and they sort of were. I think Doctor Who handled its success rather well - pushing the boundaries of what stories it could tell, while not straying from the formula that everyone loved. (Really, Season 2's only big failure was that it couldn't produce a monster to come close to the Daleks' popularity.) But things had to change, if only because of personnel changes. On screen there was, of course, the replacement of Susan with Vicki, and then the departure of Ian and Barbara. Off screen the biggest change was Dennis Spooner taking over from David Whitaker as Story Editor. And there were other decisions, which might have seemed quite minor at the time, that were as responsible for the Doctor Who we know today as anything that happened in Season 1.

Delia Derbyshire turning in her grave can power new generations of Doctor Who electronica

I'd heard about this but I hadn't seen it. Whoever designs the next titles and theme music arrangement (and let's hope it's soon) should take inspiration from this video. Also, Matt Smith is a rock star. Who knew?

Doctor Who Mentioned by "Normal" People story #1

I'm now back in Australia, and I'm glad to see Doctor Who's profile has also risen here. I remember when, in the few shops that still stocked Doctor Who books and videos, the Doctor Who section gradually dwindled until it was the Doctor Who shelf. Now just the release of a new DVD gets a full window display at the ABC Shop. Schoolgirl got on the bus yesterday. What did she have in her hand? A Doctor Who book. As well she should. I remembered with a shudder when I was a teenager and used to display the Doctor Who book I was reading as prominently as I could at school and rehearsals and stuff, thinking that out of all these people my age, someone must be a Doctor Who fan. No one was. Or, at least, no one admitted to it. The rooms I entered were probably full of Doctor Who fans, but they were all thinking "God, what is he doing? Doesn't he know that our kind can only survive if we stick to the shadows? The humans must not know that Doctor Who fans walk amongst them!" Realising that there were no Doctor Who fans around me, I resolved to create some, and I was moderately successful with that amongst some of my nerdier friends. But I also wanted to convert members of my other main group of friends - the future actors, writers, and directors. But when in 2003 I suggested to one such friend that, since the ABC was about to start showing the whole series again (one episode at 6pm every weeknight), perhaps he should watch it, because, you know, he might like it. AND HE LAUGHED. If I'd known what I know now, I'd have said, "Laugh now but one day we'll be in charge." Of the BBC. Of British politics. Hey, if Doctor Who had featured as prominently in the Australia's federal election as it did in Britain's, maybe we'd have a minority government by now. What would your focus groups think of that, Karl Bitar?

They're making more Torchwood! Tentative yay!

I thought I'd already posted this, but it seems I hadn't. Hey! Russell T. Davies (perhaps you've heard of him) is no longer unemployed! The big gay Welshman-turned-Los-Angeleno and former showrunner of Doctor Who (perhaps you've heard of it) has announced that a ten episode series of Torchwood will be born from a collaboration between BBC Wales, BBC Worldwide, and American cable channel Starz.

Torchwood made history in 2006 as the first proposed Doctor Who television spin-off to actually happen (previous suggestions, including Jago and Litefoot, K-9 and Company, and Rose Tyler: Earth Defence, thankfully didn't make it very far). As RTD's interviewer in the above link says, the series ran for one season of thirteen episodes on BBC Three, a second season of thirteen on BBC Two, and a mini-series of five episodes shown over five nights (known as Torchwood: Children of Earth) on BBC One. I can't think of another show that could have survived all these format and channel changes and not at all seemed like it was failing. Doctor Who, for instance, would lose the large portions of the general public it relies upon to be considered a success if it started changing around its format. Torchwood can survive with a small fanbase which will follow it wherever, as well as new viewers who've heard it's actually good this season.

Vote Dalek?

If they were playing fair, print media in the US/Australia/Canada would have waited until now to announce the results of the UK general election so it accompanied the right Doctor Who episode for those who don't know how to use the internet. "But what relevence does Doctor Who have to the UK election?" I hear you cry. Everything, at least superficially. When Gordon Brown starts publicly talking about David Tennant being his favourite Doctor instead of the economy or whatever, you know that Doctor Who has reached unprecedented levels of influence. This article sums up and provides links to most of the shenanigans. In response (to the shenanigans) Lawrence Miles suggested a "Simple electoral reform: the party with the most Doctor Whos in its election broadcast wins. (The BNP may have to exhume William Hartnell.)" Oh, and Britain's main television guide magazine thing, the Radio Times, brought back its "Vote Dalek" (What does that mean? Is that really what the Radio Times wants voters to do?) cover idea from 2005, this time allowing readers to choose the cover whose Dalek (2010 design) colour corresponded to their party of choice. In response, the Green Party released this ad (after the jump).