Nine years ago today

[Cutter John]

Apparently nine years ago, March 26th, 2005, Doctor Who reappeared on our screens. Was it really that long ago?


So were you there for that first episode? Anything you remember from that night?

I think I watched the first story online, and remember not being overly impressed. It was pretty rough around the edges, and had a pretty weak ending. But despite silliness like the burping garbage bin, I was pleased that the new writers obviously knew and cared about the shows history and weren't trying to "re-imagine" the program. And Chris was certainly likeable enough, despite his intimidating appearance.

Still, I also know a lot of genre shows had weak beginnings *cough* TNG *cough*, so I was more than willing to give it a chance since even then I was a huge fan. And I've been with it ever since.

[YT]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRBQZdBqoOU&feature=youtu.be[/YT]

 

[Pindar]

Pretty much sums up my initial feelings, I especially hated the bin.

 

[Starkers]

He had me from "Lot's of planets have a north."

Actually he probably had me from "Run!"

Yes it was hoky and far too silly in places; the Auton Mickey, the burping bins, and the story was wafer thin, but I remember being desperate to watch it again the next day because the positives outweighed the negatives, and it was bright and fun, and not at all what I was expecting.

I think The End of the World nailed the series' return better than Rose, but as an introduction it's ok.

 

[The Wormhole]

Well, I had to wait until April 5 when it premiered on CBC in Canada. My first time watching Doctor Who, though I knew much about it thanks to my uncle who has loved the show since he was a teenager. In fact, after Rose finished, he called me up and asked "well, wasn't that awesome?" My response, "it is acceptable." Then we discussed various plot points, nitpicks, and general opinions. In fact, this kind of post-episode phone call became a tradition of ours for most of Eccleston's season.

It took me a while to warm up to the show. Ironically, the Slitheen story was when I finally decided I liked the show, and that gets panned to this day. Although these days while watching Rose and even The End of the World and The Unquiet Dead I find I enjoy them a lot more than I did in 2005.

 

[DS9Continuing]

I actually missed the first couple of eps altogether. The first new ep I saw was "The Unquiet Dead," which I found to be wonderfully Doctor Who-ish, in all the good and bad ways. Even the bad things about it were wonderful in a nostalgic way - they made it feel like this was still Doctor Who I was watching. I didn't catch up with "Rose" and "The End of the World" until somewhat later.

.

 

[MacLeod]

If memory serves there was a bit of a cock-up where during the first few seconds they ad not turned off the audio feed from the previous programme. So you could hear that.

 

[WillsBabe]

If memory serves there was a bit of a cock-up where during the first few seconds they ad not turned off the audio feed from the previous programme. So you could hear that.

Yes, from Graham Norton on the programme before, but I can't recall what that programme was. Any one recall? I can't believe it's been 9 years, though!

 

[Green Lantern]

I remember it! I was very young at the time (must have been 6 I think) and I was eating dinner in the dining room, we opened the door so we could watch the TV that was in the study. I watched the episode and thought it was alright (I saw a documentary on Doctor Who about a year before and didn't like it because it was too scary), and then I watched the second episode but I didn't got for the third one as we agreed it'd be too scary for me at the time, and I never bothered to watch the series live again until series 2. We eventually caught up before the beginning of series 2, although I didn't see "Fathers Day" for a year or two because we couldn't get home in time to record it or the TV was playing up, I can't remember. We also missed "Dalek" but I think my aunt or something gave us a copy. So yeah, that's my beginnings with the show. I think it was either towards the end of series 2 or just after it that I brought my first DVD of classic Who, Earthshock and fell in love with it. I think I watched it over and over again until I watched it so many times I got fed up with it.

 

[Chris3123]

It was 8 years and 9 days ago for us in the US. I had never seen Doctor Who before, but I caught the premiere and, despite how poor "Rose" was overall, I was hooked on the show before the episode even ended. I've been watching ever since, including catching up on about 95% of Classic Who.

ETA: For some added nostalgia, here's a teaser trailer for the "new" Doctor Who:

[yt]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDifFDnCR6Y[/yt]

 

[Cutter John]

Just from watching that clip its amazing how much production quality has improved over the years. No offense, but most of Rose felt really low-budget.

 

[Sparky]

^^^That's an awful teaser. If I was new to Dr Who at the time, that would have turned me off of it completely.

I watched the leaked copy that came out before the first ep aired. Of course I had to watch the actual episode itself just in case there were any major differences, and besides the opening title music I think it was the same. Overall it was a poor episode. The Bin was rubbish, Mickey was a whiny wimp, and the sight gags of a plastic hand strangling the Doctor made me roll my eyes. But, Dr Who was back! There was no way I was letting one episode deter me from watching more.

 

[tomalak301]

I guess considering this was my first introduction to Doctor Who, Season 1 is a sentimental favorite. The series felt simpler than, with a not so convoluted arc and likable characters in The Doctor and Rose. I'm hoping Capaldi can bring back some of that Eccleston to the role, someone who is likable but still has a dark past and doesn't act like a child for a lot of the time.

 

[Cutter John]

Rather interesting how he blew Rose off at first. Still a bit of the War Doctor there I guess.

 

[Csalem]

I remember reading about the relaunch of Dr Who in the sci-fi magazines in the months before it aired. It fascinated me because even though I was five and six at the time, I saw the last two seasons of the original series when it aired in the 1980s. RTD's involvement also intrigued me but I was not sure if I wanted to put a level of commitment into this new series as I did not think it would interest me as a 21 year old. On the night I decided to video record it (yes video!) and watched it later that night and was hooked!!!

The stand out moment for me was when the Doctor flicked through the magazine and said a celebrity couple wouldn't last as one was an alien and another was gay. As a gay man that throw-away comment made me smile because within twenty minutes of this new Saturday evening show starting the 'gay' word was mentioned, something Star Trek never achieved.

Each week it got better and better for me, even the Slitheen episodes had good moments, but highlight was Moffat two-parter. Dr Who I think has had greatest comeback ever.

 

[Redfern]

I saw the "leaked" version which used the classic Delia Derbyshire arrangement if Grainer's theme. I just can't remember exactly when. I recall interviews and articles that kept emphasizing how "upscale" this version would be compared to the "classic" series. Yet, except for the establishing shot when Rose enters the TARDIS (which I gladly admit and praise was very well done), the show felt, hmm, "small" and "contemporary". Much of it seemed like a modest budget domestic drama. Yeah, I realize that's what the creators intended. Start with something "normal", a relatable frame of reference for the audience and then gradually add the more fantastic elements. After all, that's what "An Unearthly Child" did. But I guess knowing where this situation could go, from one end of the universe to the other, I guess we were a bit impatient for things to get going.

What I recall were those first clips of Eccleston and Piper. I realized Billie was in costume though what she wore would not draw a second glance on the street (her counsel estate jeans and sweatshirt). But I thought, "Dang, I guess we'll have to wait until nearer the premiere to see Eccleston's wardrobe. Looks like the production is keeping it a secret. Looks like a "thug" right now with that leather jacket." Of course, later I discovered that WAS his costume! What?! It took me a long time to get used to it. It just looked too "conventional" to me. The Doctor needs to be "odd", maybe not insanely flambouyant like Colin's ensemble, but something should be "off", out of step with the times. It was only when someone compared Eccleston's outfit to that of a U-boat commander did I finally see it as eccentric.

While the following is several episodes later, who remembers the unusual circumstances surrounding the airing of "Dalek"? the BBC was enhancing its on-line presence, setting up the tools for streaming media. It was meant only for residents of the UK, but due to an "incorrect" setting, people outside Great Britain were able to watch the return of the Daleks at the same time BBC viewers saw the broadcast version. That was the wildest experience, watching a DW episode "in sync" with the British audience while I was in southern Georgia. I wouldn't have that opportunity again until "Day of the Doctor".

Sincerely,

Bill

 

[sttngfan1701d]

Makes me miss Eccleston and angry that he didn't come back for the 50th so we could see him again, but let's not open that can of worms.

I saw it on SciFi when it premiered. I was in college. I remember being excited to give this iconic property a shot, and then disappointed in the silly CGI, the plastic people, and the horrid early 90's video quality (with the light halos around everything). But I liked The Doctor. I liked his energy. So I stuck with it, even through the Slitheen episodes.

I'm glad I did. There's been some rough spots and both showrunners have had their annoying quirks, but the show is really humming along now, with confidence and style. It's come a long way.

 

[Iamnotspock]

I think I watched the first story online, and remember not being overly impressed. It was pretty rough around the edges, and had a pretty weak ending. But despite silliness like the burping garbage bin, I was pleased that the new writers obviously knew and cared about the shows history and weren't trying to "re-imagine" the program. And Chris was certainly likeable enough, despite his intimidating appearance.

Pretty much exactly my feeling too. Equal parts elation and disappointment. Thankfully it got better!

If memory serves there was a bit of a cock-up where during the first few seconds they ad not turned off the audio feed from the previous programme. So you could hear that.

Yes, from Graham Norton on the programme before, but I can't recall what that programme was. Any one recall?

Strictly Dance Fever. The main show was on before Who, and then there was a supplementary programme on BBC3 during Who, and I believe the fault made the audio from that bleed through onto BBC1.

Something very similar happened again five years later;

[YT]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnpZS_54uoA[/YT]

Individually, these foul-ups were annoying. Together, with the fact that neither one was Norton's personal fault, they're quite amusing. I remember an angry thread on another forum after The Time of Angels went out, titled Norton Does It Again!

 

[Steve Roby]

When Rose premiered, my wife Laura and I were ready. We'd both seen a few classic episodes way back when before we met, and in 2001 I'd started seriously getting into Doctor Who, so we were watching classic episodes and listening to Big Finish audios, and I was reading books and magazines and online forums.

One surprise for us was Eccleston's performance. We'd seen him in several TV shows and movies. He was best known for doing intense dramatic stuff, and he did it very well. We hadn't seen him do anything like his portrayal of the Doctor. But he was still good, we loved the "lots of planets have a north," we liked the speed and energy of it. The bin and the fake Mickey we weren't so sold on, but we liked the fact that the show was setting out to be fun. There are many things I like about the 1996 TV movie, but it was short on fun and long on things that don't mean anything to new or casual viewers.

The first season wasn't perfect, but it was much, much better at working out what it wanted to be than TNG was in its early years. And much more likely to be rewatched in this house.

The one consequence of the new Who's success that still strikes me funny is that I can walk around Ottawa and see people I don't know wearing Doctor Who t-shirts and having conversations about it -- from teenagers to people of my own advanced years. It's common and ordinary to talk about Doctor Who with people at work or at the comic shop or at the pub, my inlaws, etc. Back in 2001 I was just happy that I had 26 years of TV Who and a lot of books and whatnot to dive into; I never would have expected a new series, much less that it would be so popular.

 

[DWF]

I'm a member of the Doctor Who Columbus fan club and we saw the show as a group, we saw the leaked ep. of Rose and I remember thinking how short it was. And I really remember how good Billie Piper was seeing how she was described as the British version of Brittany Spears, but she turned out to be rather good. And I was alittle impressed by the new console room since it was a huge set. The whole series was upgraded, but as I said it felt very short a mere 45 minutes.

 

[Green Lantern]

I'm a member of the Doctor Who Columbus fan club and we saw the show as a group, we saw the leaked ep. of Rose and I remember thinking how short it was. And I really remember how good Billie Piper was seeing how she was described as the British version of Brittany Spears, but she turned out to be rather good. And I was alittle impressed by the new console room since it was a huge set. The whole series was upgraded, but as I said it felt very short a mere 45 minutes.

As a child (like I was at the time), 45 minutes felt long enough and much longer probably would have been too long for a child, and I'm pretty sure children and families were the main target audience for the show at that time. How things change as you get older. :P