As one of the absolute gems of British television programming, Doctor Who has been enthralling audiences since its first airing in 1963. The all-ages science fiction drama is well known for being appropriate for all ages, and as such the series has attracted a significant better-than-cult following, and with the release of the most recent bout of series, starting in 2005, the series has truly gone global, attracting an enormous cohort of fans; known as ‘Whovians’; whose number realistically could trump long standing sci-fi veterans Star Trek and perhaps even Star Wars.

The fan base is, as one might expect, a diverse one. Fan clubs are run across the world; New Zealand, Canada, USA; and local clubs are so enormously widespread that in 2012 a Google Map project commenced with the aim of logging all of the local Doctor Who groups in the UK so that fans could more easily find and join a club in their area!

As with any science fiction series, conventions are a large part of the Doctor Who fan experience. The first was held in 1977 by The Doctor Who Appreciation Society, quickly becoming the well known and fantastically well attended Panopticon, the largest of the Dr Who gatherings. Within these events fans have the chance to meet the stars of Dr Who, watch fan productions based on the show and indulge in a little collectible hunting. 

Collectibles are naturally big business in the Dr Who community. In 2007, a full sized Dalek prop from the 1988 series was auctions at London’s Bonham's auction house, reaching £7000. This is small change compared to an auction that took place just two years earlier, however, when an older specimen was sold for a gigantic £36,000! 

With Who-themed merchandise an important aspect of the fan community, one can see why many manufacturers and businesses have been keen to hop aboard the Doctor Who bandwagon. Clothing, mugs, TARDIS-themed fairylights, Dr Who-themed gelatine moulds and all-important Dr Who teapots; one wonders what other product ideas will be hatched regarding the series. Perhaps we could soon see Who-themed games on sites such as JackpotCity in the near future? There wouldn’t be any time travel involved though- it would surely defeat the object of playing! 

Dr Who is huge news and a cemented aspect of pop culture across the world, not just in its spiritual home of the United Kingdom, and with new series planned and no end of the entertaining adventures in sight, the Doctor seems set to reign long into the future!

[Source: Superserp]