AFTER a six-year baffle, Dr Who has vanquished one of his most implacable foes: the Metropolitan Police. The BBC has been awarded the copyright of the Met's old, blue police telephone box, which, as any Dr Who fan knows, was really a poorly-disguised Tardis.
Lawyers at the Patent Office have decided that the image rights to the television timelord's vehicle are now more closely associated with Dr Who and the BBC than the Met, who stopped using the boxes in the Sixties.
The decision means that the corporation will now benefit from all merchandising or productions using the blue police box, which the doctor used for whizzing through time for 26 years.
A spokesman for the Met said yesterday that the force's receiver had objected to the BBC's original application. We're disappointed but philosophical about the decision," he said.
"The force has now gone on to either register as trademarks or make registry applications for a variety of recognised police items."
Among the items that the force has now successfully registered the rights for are the traditional blue police station lamp, the name New Scotland Yard and the metal identity badge worn by officers.
Caption: Colin Baker steps from the Tardis during his time as Dr Who. The police box is now the copyright of the BBC
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