back to article The Doctor Who Experience

Since the revival of Doctor Who almost six years ago, the BBC’s marketing machinery has been in full flow, with the programme spawning action figures, DVD box sets, plenty of other merchandise, alongside Proms concerts and exhibitions. Doctor Who Experience I remember my first Doctor Who exhibition, at Longleat in the 1970s …

COMMENTS

This topic is closed for new posts.
  1. Aristotles slow and dimwitted horse
    Thumb Down

    Entry is how much?!!!!

    * cough *

    * cough *

    * splutter *

    1. JEDIDIAH
      Linux

      Entry is how much?

      It sounds like any other London tourist attraction really.

      If you're there for the day or week you really get "sticker shock".

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    London and then Cardiff

    why are these things never located somewhere central to the country?

    1. ThomH

      London is quite central...

      ... if you work it out as average commute time for actual, living people. There are almost eight times as many people living in London as in second place by population Birmingham and the transport links are excellent. You know, in relative terms, compared to the country as a whole.

      I'm not sure that supports everything happening there though.

      1. Quirkafleeg
        Grenade

        And the rest of us?

        BrAiNs…

    2. Nigel Whitfield.

      To be fair ...

      There have been exhibitions dotted around the UK, including Glasgow and one down in Cornwall as well.

      I suppose the logic for this one is probably that London is a reasonable place close to the home of BBC Worldwide to try it out, while the production base in Cardiff is the show's home and so a logical final destination.

      Of course, wherever you put this (or indeed, anything by the BBC) there will be people complaining that it's either too biased towards some particular area, or that they're spending money pandering to shouty people in the regions.

    3. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Well maybe...

      ..something to do with London having the most number of tourists followed by something to do with Dr Who being a BBC Wales show?

      Oh and they can shaft you for more cash in London.

      1. Deano2099

        Coventry

        The exhibition was in Coventry for ages too.

    4. David Gosnell

      Birmingham

      This, or an extremely similar forerunner, was in Birmingham last year I believe. Friends of mine went.

      1. Nigel Whitfield.

        The walk through is new

        Some of the bits and pieces will certainly have been seen elsewhere, but the central 'walk through' part is brand new.

    5. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Erm they are

      The last Doctor Who "exhibition" was in Coventry which could be considered to be pretty central...

  3. IsJustabloke
    Stop

    I refuse to enoble a simple forum post!

    ha hah ha hahhhaaahaaa...

    For a moment I thought you said 65 quid.... imagine that... how foolish do I feel?

    Sorry? it is?.... blimey.

    actually all joking aside the sad thing, this will rake in enormous amounts of money :(

    1. K0de

      Not that bad

      As the article states £65 is for a family of 4 on the door, if you book in advance its cheaper.

      For adults its £20 on the door or £18 in advance, which is still pretty expensive, but not that bad when compared to attractions like madame tussauds

      1. IsJustabloke
        Badgers

        I refuse to enoble a simple forum post!

        yeah, fair enough...

        But its still a minimum of £36 for two adults booking in advance plus getting there plus nibbles/drinks/souveniers and based upon this admittedly, slightly sketchy account of the place I would ask.... can we spell "Rip Off" ?

  4. Mark York 3 Silver badge
    Coat

    Costumes

    Seeing them arranged like that reminded me of the bit in "The Forgotten" comic.

    Jo Grant should be recognisable from having appeared in the Sarah Jane Adventures, in "The Death of The Doctor".

    I'll get me coat with the bigger on the inside pockets.

  5. Loosewheel

    Call me an old cynic

    But for sixty five quid (or fifty five fifty for family of three) I would like it if you could educate my kid/s in the potential physics behind the many Whoism concepts to some degree, not just give them an expose' to the Who merchandising machine.

    Caught me on a grumpy day.

    1. Nigel Whitfield.

      Educate, inform and entertain?

      I think that sounds like a job for the Science Museum; I'm sure they could get tons of people through their doors with a 'Science of Dr Who' show.

      But you are right, in that there are lots of things that could be done, given the show's longevity, the range of topics that it's covered and the wealth of material they must have in the archives.

      With enough space and time (see what I did there? ;)) you could probably find ways to work most of the subjects of a school curriculum into a really comprehensive Dr Who exhibition. But, if they can't find space for more than a couple of hundred words about each Doctor, there's not much chance of a gallery of, say, all the historical figures he's met over the years.

    2. Annihilator
      Boffin

      Eh??

      As wonderful as I'm sure your intentions are, I'm not sure what "potential physics" you could relate to a science *fiction* show such as Doctor Who?

      1. Shakje
        Boffin

        I'd guess that...

        the physics you could relate to would be things like relativity and the fun things that happen near the speed of light and on a quantum level. Just general weirdness. But then you have the problems of:

        1) It's too advanced for most kids to really grasp

        2) If you apply physics that they will actually grasp, it would be too weakly related to the show to actually hold interest

        I reckon you might be able to do something, but it would be more "look at how cool this is" rather than teaching science, the real avenue might be constructing an adventure which incorporated things like Natural History for a short-term exhibition.

        On a side-note, I'd be interested whether teaching the real basics of QM to kids would change the way that they view the world, or if it would just confuse them and make them lose interest in science.

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Is there a Dr. Who acronym

    for the something that is a waste of time, space and money? Maybe the WOTSAM.

  7. ratfox
    Paris Hilton

    What is this doing in Reg Hardware??

    I am genuinely curious.

    1. Nigel Whitfield.

      'Cos I'll do most things for money (but I won't do *that* ...)

      I had tickets for the test-pilot. I write here often, and there's a fair bit of cross-over between the fans of gadgets and those of Doctor Who, apparently.

      So, it seemed only polite to offer to write about it for the lovely people here.

    2. Magnus Ramage

      Sonic screwdrivers

      and Tardises. Or possibly the networking control of Daleks, which must surely use 4G by now.

  8. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Jo Grant

    I didn't think the BBC wanted much to do with her after she posed naked for a Gentlemans Magazine just after she finished her stint with the Dr

  9. Pavlovs well trained dog
    WTF?

    what is it..

    with you brits and your love of Dr Who?

    never understood it.

    1. Ugotta B. Kiddingme
      Happy

      not just Brits

      a significant quantity of us North Americans of varying flavors enjoy it as well.

      I was really hoping to read that the exhibit was done up to the degree that Paramount Studios did the Star Trek Experience in Las Vegas a few years ago. It is sadly no longer there but, while it was, it was VERY thorough and very well done - covering all aspects of the ST universe from TOS through Voyager.

      Maybe when the Dr. Who exhibit moves to its "permanent?" home in Cardiff. I'm hoping to make a trip to Europe in the next couple years, mostly to trace familial roots, but also lots of typical touristy things. Must be sure to include this in the itinerary.

    2. NightFox
      Alien

      What it is is

      Mostly nostalgia, I think.

      Many of us grew up in an age of just three (or even two) TV channels with Saturdays having only a couple of child-friendly programmes in the evening; so as a child you didn't generically watch TV, you watched Dr Who (or whatever was filling the slot at the time). And you knew that for the same reason that's what all your friends would be watching and recreating at school the next day. Dr Who - for better or worse - is part of most of our childhoods.

    3. MJI Silver badge
      Thumb Up

      Lots of reasons

      As above nostalga, but there is none from the young children watching now.

      How about a well written family drama with good production values and a lot of fantasy and SF elements.

      As to quality of writing 2007 2008 Hugo awards winner for starters.

  10. Rob 101

    Switch on Wi-fi?

    Just wondering what good that will do.

    Surely they mean switch on bluetooth so they can punt ads at you.

    1. Nigel Whitfield.

      That was my thought

      But no, it's a closed wifi network, which will have things like voucher offers, background material and additional stuff for the deaf.

      It's a great shame it wasn't switched on for the test day, because I too thought "That's weird, wouldn't Bluetooth be more straightforward?"

      I guess they know that they can deliver a wider range of material via WiFi and a local web server, but I can't help feeling that they will have to explain to quite a few people how to select the right network and connect to it; once that's done, then the standard hot-spot landing page mechanisms should help point people in the right direction.

  11. NightFox

    Life Before RTD

    What a shame that despite the promises suggested by the Giant Robot and Zygon pictures, this sounds like it continues the trend of trying to forget about the heritage of the 'original' Dr Who, like hiding a senile grandparent under the stairs when anyone calls. It's ironic that a programme that's based on time travel seems so embarrassed about its own past. Yes, some of it was appalling and lacked the flash-bang CGI that seems necessary in today's short attention span rating wars, but without William Hartnell there would be no Matt Smith.

    1. graeme leggett Silver badge

      I suspect

      That most of the stuff that belongs to the first era (Hartnell to McCoy) is unfortunately not suitable for an exhibition being tatty (the original Daleks were repaired, repainted, modified and painted again), long since lost or fallen into pieces (the Tardises), or now owned by individuals (and so not available)

      1. Nigel Whitfield.

        Some has been borrowed

        Certainly at least one of the Daleks on display is marked as on loan from a private collection.

        Interestingly, some of the items have descriptions saying "this is the actual costume" while others don't...

      2. NightFox
        Terminator

        Adventures in Time and Cardiff

        I often wonder what happened to all the stuff from the permanent exhibition at the Dapol factory in Llangollen (where the used to make the figures) when it closed down - that had some good original stuff in it, albeit mostly from the Peter Davidson era IIRC. Best bit was when I took my (adult) sister there and as she was looking at an exhibit she felt a tap on her shoulder, turned round and found herself face-to-face with a Dalek. Think she still has nightmares about that to this day!

  12. Danny 2

    @Pavolvs dog

    I'm more confused by Dr Who's love of the Brits. Didn't American children ever get so scared by a TV programme that they hid being their couches?

    One of my firends is a compulsive collector who has a Dr Who room in his tiny flat. No models, videos, or other touristy nonsense, just amazingly rare literature and epsiodes. Now if any other obsessive wants a quick tour for £65 then I might just be able to arrange it.

    1. Bod

      episodes

      Any chance he's hoarding missing episodes? I suspect people will pay much more than £65 if so.

  13. Chad H.
    IT Angle

    Hardware?

    Okay, so I suppose this isn't exactly *software* but it doesnt really seem to fit under the hardware banner....

  14. Martin Budden Silver badge
    Boffin

    Mr

    "space is a consideration" ??

    Well it would be, in a Time And Relative Dimension In Space thingy.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Thumb Up

      they must have forget

      thats the thing about these Londoner's they seem to have forgot about susan' s tardis she stole from the master In 2199.

      or even remember the Dalek time ship that supposedly Ian and Barbara blow up after they returned home in it, but it was never sure it wasn't repairable or was in fact a real relative dimensional TARDIS replica and so larger inside than out etc :D

  15. Mark York 3 Silver badge
    Pint

    Danny 2

    Didn't American children ever get so scared by a TV programme that they hid being their couches?

    Probably not due to the warnings before each program..............

    The following program contains scenes of death by falling from heights

    The following program contains scenes of death by stabbing

    The following program contains scenes of death by death ray (various)

    The following program contains scenes of death by machine gunfire

    The following program contains scenes of death by gassing\axphixation (sic)

    The following program contains scenes of death by explosions

    The following program contains scenes of torture & mutilations

    The following program contains scenes of death by falling from heights

    The following program contains scenes of death by stabbing

    The following program contains scenes of death by death ray (various)

    The following program contains scenes of death by machine gunfire

    The following program contains scenes of death by gassing\axphixation (sic)

    The following program contains scenes of death by falling from heights

    The following program contains scenes of death by stabbing

    The following program contains scenes of death by death ray (various)

    The following program contains scenes of death by machine gunfire

    The following program contains scenes of death by gassing\axphixation (sic)

    The following program contains scenes of death by explosions

    The following program contains scenes of death by drowning

    The following program contains scenes of death by explosions

    The following program contains scenes of death by virus or infections

    The following program contains scenes of death by falling from heights

    The following program contains scenes of death by stabbing

    The following program contains scenes of death by death ray (various)

    The following program contains scenes of death by machine gunfire

    The following program contains scenes of death by gassing\axphixation (sic)

    The following program contains scenes of death by explosions

    The following program contains scenes of death by ood

    Viewer discretion is advised, as it's a family show

    We regret the episode of Doctor Who has been replaced by The A-Team,

    The following program contains scenes of falling from heights, but no bodies

    The following program contains scenes of people waving a knife about menacingly

    The following program contains scenes of machine gunfire, people falling down but no blood

    The following program contains scenes of explosions & people flying through the air & landing without injury

    Viewer discretion is advised

    We regret the episode of The A-Team has now been replaced by Hannah Montana

    The following program contains no deaths

    The following program contains family friendly humour (none)

    The following program contains scenes too sickening for words

    The following actress is now 18 & allegedly self-destructing according to her father, because she smoked something funny & should be removed from the airwaves immedietly.

    A pint because scenes would be set in a pub, where booze was consumed & fags were seen to be smoked.

    This post will probably be shortened.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Thumb Up

      Never could...

      "Viewer discretion is advised"

      Never could understand why viewers must be "discrete".

      Would the TV be embarrassed?

  16. MJI Silver badge

    How much!

    Shows I haven't been many places recently.

    For a family of 5 not that cheap.

    Also for that much I would expect to be shown around by the Moff!

    Actually that would be worth it!

  17. Toastan Buttar
    Thumb Up

    At least there is...

    ...a little shop at the end.

  18. Anonymous Coward
    Happy

    Lots of merkins

    Lots of merkins watched the doctor. Some of us tried to watch every episode available. Very entertaining stuff and fondly remembered.

    1. JEDIDIAH
      Linux

      You never forget your first doctor...

      ...cutting church to watch Tom Baker on Sunday mornings.

  19. Arctic fox
    Happy

    It is a strange thing, how a tv program could have that effect.

    I still remember the feeling of excitement on Saturday evening in the early sixties as we sat waiting after tea for Dr Who. To this day I still get a faint reminder of butterflies in my stomach if the old Radiophonic Workshop mix of the theme tune is played damn near fifty years after dear old William Hartnell first brought the Doctor to our screens.

  20. deadlockvictim

    What can one buy with £65

    I haven't looked it up yet but I suspect that one could buy the entire Doctor Who series on DVD (if such a beast exists) for £65...

    1. graeme leggett Silver badge

      Probably

      £65 would get you the majority of the last five years.

      But only a couple of years of Tom Baker.

  21. Chris65

    Theme tune remix

    can be done here ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/news/radiophonatron.shtml )and doesn't cost 65 quid.

This topic is closed for new posts.

Other stories you might like