The Doctor beats time to lead the heroes of science fiction
- Publication: The Times
- Date: 2002-12-28
- Author: Adam Sherwin
- Page: 11
- Language: English
The Doctor beats time to lead the heroes of science fiction
DR WHO, whose screen exploits prompted a generation to hide behind their sofas in terror for part of every Saturday, has been named the greatest science-fiction character in entertainment history.
The Time Lord Played by seven actors during the show's three decades on screen, was voted top by television and film buffs.
The programme Buffy The Vampire Slayer proved the biggest hit in the poll of sci-fi and fantasy figures for SFX magazine with four of its leading figures making the top ten. Perhaps strangely, Buffy herself played by Sarah Michelle Geller — is not the highest-ranked character from the show. The high school heroine is beaten by the cocky vampire Spike — played by James Marsters — who came second.
Doctor Who has a devoted worldwide fanbase, but he was dispatched deep into space by the BBC in 1989. He had been able to assume new forms by way of regenerating, so allowing different actors to take on the role The Doctor was rescued from oblivion in 1996 for a one-off American TV film, in which he was played for the first time by Paul McGann. There continues to be talk of further adventures for the eccentric, who has travelled through lime and space since first appearing on sanens in 1963. Two characters from television's Farscape made it into the top ten, as did Han Solo and Darth Vader from the Star Wars films, and Angel, a Buffy spin-off with David Boreanaz in the title role The top ten was completed by Gandaif from The Lord Of The Rings trilogy, played by Sir Ian McKellen. Dave Golder, the editor of SFX, said: "The Doctor hasn't been on our screens for more than five years now, and he still beat characters who have been in hugely popular shows and films on our screens in the past 12 months"
Sci-fi favourites
1. Dr Who
2. Spike (from Buffy The Vampire Slayer)
3. Buffy
4. John Crichton (from Farscape)
5. Aeryn Sun (from Farscape)
6. Han Solo
7. Willow (from Duffy)
8. Darth Vader
9. Angel
10. Gandalf
A Time Lord's life
The BBC produced 158 Dr Who stories. In his 1963 debut, William Hartnell travelled back in time 100,000 years to help cavemen to discover fire.
Tardis: Time And Relative Dimensions In Space.
This year, 24 new Dr Who novels, six videos/DVDs of old adventures, 17 CDs of new adventures and 13 issues of the official magazine were released.
As well as the Daleks, the Doctor's deadly foes Included the Cybermen, Sea Devils, the Sontarans, giant maggots, Quarks, Ogrons and the Kandyman.
Caption: The Doctor was played by William Hartnell (Richard Hurndall took the role here), Peter Davison, Tom Baker (here represented by a waxwork), Jon Pertwee, and Patrick Troughton
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- APA 6th ed.: Sherwin, Adam (2002-12-28). The Doctor beats time to lead the heroes of science fiction. The Times p. 11.
- MLA 7th ed.: Sherwin, Adam. "The Doctor beats time to lead the heroes of science fiction." The Times [add city] 2002-12-28, 11. Print.
- Chicago 15th ed.: Sherwin, Adam. "The Doctor beats time to lead the heroes of science fiction." The Times, edition, sec., 2002-12-28
- Turabian: Sherwin, Adam. "The Doctor beats time to lead the heroes of science fiction." The Times, 2002-12-28, section, 11 edition.
- Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=The Doctor beats time to lead the heroes of science fiction | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/The_Doctor_beats_time_to_lead_the_heroes_of_science_fiction | work=The Times | pages=11 | date=2002-12-28 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=12 March 2025 }}</ref>
- Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=The Doctor beats time to lead the heroes of science fiction | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/The_Doctor_beats_time_to_lead_the_heroes_of_science_fiction | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=12 March 2025}}</ref>
