Whoniverse

Last updated

Whoniverse
Created by Sydney Newman
C. E. Webber
Donald Wilson
Original work Doctor Who (1963–present)
Owner BBC
Years1963–present
Print publications
Book(s) Doctor Who books
Comics Doctor Who comics
Magazine(s) Doctor Who Magazine
Films and television
Film(s) Dr. Who and the Daleks
Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 A.D.
Television series Doctor Who (spin-offs)
Theatrical presentations
Play(s) Doctor Who Live
Musical(s) Doctor Who Prom (2008)
Games
Video game(s) Doctor Who video games
Audio
Soundtrack(s) Doctor Who music releases
Original music Music of Doctor Who
Audio play(s) Doctor Who audio plays (spin-offs)
Miscellaneous
Toy(s) Doctor Who merchandise
Theme park attraction(s) Doctor Who exhibitions

The Whoniverse is a British media franchise and shared universe centring on the BBC television series Doctor Who , its spin-offs [1] and other associated media. [2] [3] The shared universe nature was established by crossing over common plot elements, settings, cast, and characters, usually deriving from the main programme. [4]

Contents

Doctor Who depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being with a human appearance. The Doctor explores the universe in a time-travelling space ship called the TARDIS. With various companions, they combat foes, work to save civilisations, and help people in need. Doctor Who was first broadcast in 1963 and ran for 26 seasons until 1989, returning briefly in the form of a TV film in 1996. It was later revived in 2005, when the show's newfound success led to the commissioning of several spin-offs – Torchwood (2006–11), The Sarah Jane Adventures (2007–11) and Class (2016). Other spin-offs include the pilot K-9 and Company (1981) and non-BBC produced series K9 (2009–10).

The franchise name, a portmanteau of the words "who" and "universe", was originally used to describe Doctor Who's production and fanbase. [5] In 2023, the year of the show's sixtieth anniversary, the BBC adopted the name in an official capacity, making the Whoniverse the umbrella brand for all programmes connected to Doctor Who, including documentaries.

The majority of the Whoniverse's programmes have been commercially successful and generally received positive reviews. They have also inspired an extensive collection of book, comic and magazine publications, audio plays, films, video games, exhibitions, and stage plays.

Background

The earliest official usage of "Whoniverse" was in the introduction to the appendices of The Doctor Who Programme Guide Volume 2 by Jean-Marc Lofficier published May 1981 in its hardcover edition. [6] The publicitity blurb on the back of The Second Doctor Who Quiz Book by Nigel Robinson published in December 1982 also used the term. [7] In his 1983 book Doctor Who: A Celebration; Two Decades Through Time and Space, Peter Haining called his final chapter "The Whoniverse". [5] The section assembled factual information about all the episodes to date, but also gave information about fan clubs and ancillary entertainments related to the programme. Thus, the term Whoniverse referred to everything connected with the programme behind-the-scenes. In this meaning, standing exhibitions, discussions about the filming of episodes and even the fandom itself were considered part of the "Whoniverse". The term Whoniverse is still used with this definition today, [8] [9] [10] [11] including as the name of a Doctor Who convention in Australia. [12] [13]

The term began to appear in mainstream press coverage, placing greater emphasis on it as a fictional universe, following the popular success of the 2005 Doctor Who revival and the establishment of its returning spin-offs, Torchwood (2006–11) and The Sarah Jane Adventures (2007–11). [14] [15]

Development

In October 2022, it was reported that Bad Wolf Studios had filed for a new subsidiary company, run by former Doctor Who executive producer Julie Gardner and former BBC head of drama Jane Tranter, called "Whoniverse1 LTD". [16] On 17 January 2023, outlets reported that a new sign at Bad Wolf Studios possessed the tagline "Home of the Whoniverse". [17] [18]

On 30 October 2023, the BBC announced it would be using the term "Whoniverse" in an official capacity to describe all shows within the orbit of Doctor Who , and specifically their home on BBC iPlayer, including documentary programming. [19] It had previously been announced that over eight hundred previous episodes would be available to stream on BBC iPlayer. [20] The launch of Tales of the TARDIS on 1 November was marketed as the first Whoniverse exclusive release. A Whoniverse ident was also adopted to unify content within the Whoniverse collection. [19]

In other media

The Whoniverse version of Earth is referred to as Earth-5556 in the Marvel Multiverse. [21]

References to the Whoniverse appear in The Inheritance Cycle fantasy novels by Christopher Paolini. [22]

Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies cast John MacKay as John Logie Baird for the episode "The Giggle" (2023), reprising the role he played in Davies' ITV series Nolly earlier in 2023. Davies joked that this casting meant that all the television series he has written are set in the same universe. [23]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Doctor Who</i> British science fiction TV series

Doctor Who is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterrestrial being called the Doctor, part of a humanoid species called Time Lords. The Doctor travels in the universe and in time using a time travelling spaceship called the TARDIS, which externally appears as a British police box. While travelling, the Doctor works to save lives and liberate oppressed peoples by combating foes. The Doctor often travels with companions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TARDIS</span> Fictional time-travelling device

The TARDIS is a fictional hybrid of a time machine and spacecraft that appears in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its various spin-offs. While a TARDIS is capable of disguising itself, the exterior appearance of the Doctor's TARDIS typically mimics a police box, an obsolete type of telephone kiosk that was once commonly seen on streets in Britain in the 1950s. Paradoxically, its interior is shown as being much larger than its exterior, commonly described as being "bigger on the inside".

Doctor Who spin-offs refers to material created outside of, but related to, the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.

Doctor Who is a British television science fiction series, produced and screened by the BBC on the BBC TV channel from 1963 to 1964, and on BBC1 from 1964 to 1989 and since 2005. A one-off television film, co-produced with Universal Pictures and 20th Century Fox Television, was screened on the Fox Network in the United States in 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rose Tyler</span> Fictional character in the TV series Doctor Who

Rose Tyler is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. She was created by series producer Russell T Davies and portrayed by Billie Piper. With the revival of Doctor Who in 2005, Rose was introduced as a new travelling companion of the series protagonist, the Doctor, in his ninth and tenth incarnations. The companion character, intended to act as an audience surrogate, was key in the first series to introduce new viewers to the mythos of Doctor Who, which had not aired regularly since 1989. Rose became the viewers' eyes into the new world of the series, from the companion's perspective. Piper received top billing alongside Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant for the duration of her time as a regular cast member. The character was a series regular for all of Series 1 (2005) and 2 (2006). Piper later reprised the role in a supporting capacity in Series 4 (2008) and the New Year's special "The End of Time" (2010). Piper further played a sentient weapon called the Moment, which utilises Rose's image, in the 50th anniversary special "The Day of the Doctor" (2013).

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Mickey Smith is a fictional character in the BBC One science fiction television series Doctor Who. He is portrayed by British actor Noel Clarke and was the show's first televised black companion. The character is introduced as the ordinary, working class boyfriend of Rose Tyler, a London shopgirl who becomes a travelling companion to the Ninth and Tenth incarnations of an alien Time Lord known as the Doctor. Mickey first appears in the first episode of the 2005 revival, "Rose". Initially someone who struggles in the face of danger, Mickey nevertheless acts as an Earth-based ally to the Doctor and Rose. In the second series he joins the pair as a second companion of the Doctor's, though he leaves during the 2006 series to pursue his own adventures. He returns to aid the Doctor and Rose in the series finale later that year, and then again for the 2008 finale "Journey's End," as well as fleetingly in 2010 in the Tenth Doctor send-off "The End of Time".

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Captain Jack Harkness is a fictional character played by John Barrowman in Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. The character first appears in the 2005 Doctor Who episode "The Empty Child" and subsequently features in the remaining episodes of the first series (2005) as a companion to the series' protagonist, the Doctor. Subsequent to this, Jack became the central character in the adult-themed Torchwood, which aired from 2006 to 2011. Barrowman reprised the role for appearances in Doctor Who in its third, fourth, and twelfth series, as well as specials "The End of Time", and "Revolution of the Daleks".

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Martha Jones is a fictional character played by Freema Agyeman in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. The show's first female black companion, she is a companion of the Tenth Doctor in Doctor Who, after Rose Tyler but before Donna Noble. According to the character's creator Russell T Davies in his non-fiction book Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale, Martha was developed from the beginning with the intention of appearing for the whole of the 2007 series, and to later make guest appearances in subsequent series and crossover appearances in the show's two spin-offs; Martha subsequently made guest appearances in Torchwood series two and in Doctor Who series four in 2008 and special episode "The End of Time" in 2010. Martha was also intended to make guest appearances in the 2009 series of Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures, but could not due to the actress's other work commitments.

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References

Citations
  1. ↑ Capaldi's Past Whoniverse Appearances Not Ignored, Doctor Who TV, 28 September 2014
  2. ↑ Kistler (2013) Page 224
  3. ↑ Lofficier (1992) Foreword
  4. ↑ Lloyd, Robert (18 April 2008), "She's back in the Whoniverse", Los Angeles Times
  5. 1 2 Haining 1983
  6. ↑ Lofficier, Jean-Marc (1981). The Doctor Who Programme Guide Volume 2. London: Target. p. 105. ISBN   0491028040.
  7. ↑ Robinson, Nigel (1982). The Second Doctor Who Quiz Book (A Target book). London: Target. pp. Back cover. ISBN   978-0426194064.
  8. ↑ A message from Matt Smith: "To the Whoniverse, thanks a million. You're the best. I'll miss you. And I'll miss the madness.", twitter.com
  9. ↑ "The Sarah Jane Adventures", BBC – Blogs – Writersroom, BBC, 1 November 2010
  10. ↑ "Doctor Who – #Save The Day". BBC.
  11. ↑ "Jessica Simpson to Enter the Whoniverse?". Anglophenia. 7 February 2007. Archived from the original on 15 August 2007.
  12. ↑ "Whoniverse". The Hub Productions. 2011.
  13. ↑ "Whoniverse: The Doctor Is In – Australia 2014 Convention". Magnificent Matt Smith! – Your newest online resource to the 11th Doctor Matt Smith!. Archived from the original on 25 March 2014. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
  14. ↑ Morrison, Ryan (12 July 2007). "Battle of Flowers: Cybermen and Dalek for Battle". BBC Jersey.
  15. ↑ "Peter Capaldi's Multiple Appearances in the Whoniverse To Be Explained by an Old Russell T Davies Idea". Bleeding Cool. 29 September 2013.
  16. ↑ Jasper, Matthew (27 November 2021). "New Doctor Who Production Company Name Hints at Shared Universe & Spinoffs". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on 27 October 2022. Retrieved 27 October 2022.
  17. ↑ Welcome to the Whoniverse, blogtorwho.com
  18. ↑ Flook, Ray (17 January 2023). "Doctor Who: Bad Wolf As "The Home of The Whoniverse" Very Promising". Bleeding Cool News And Rumors. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  19. 1 2 "Doctor Who: Welcome to The Whoniverse where every Doctor, every companion and hundreds of terrifying monsters live". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 30 October 2023.
  20. ↑ 60 Years of Doctor Who drops on BBC iPlayer alongside landmark online archive, bbc.co.uk
  21. ↑ All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z Vol 1 7
  22. ↑ Paolini, Christopher (20 September 2008). "Acknowledgments" . Brisingr (1st ed.). New York City: Alfred A. Knopf. p.  761. ISBN   978-0-375-82672-6. Also, for those who understood the reference to a 'lonely god' when Eragon and Arya are sitting around the campfire, my only excuse is that the Doctor can travel everywhere, even alternate realities. Hey, I'm a fan too!
  23. ↑ Cormack, Morgan (9 November 2023). "Doctor Who confirms further castings for 60th anniversary specials". Radio Times . Retrieved 9 November 2023.
Bibliography

Further reading

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