Spiral Mutterings 1: The Nth Doctors

Unlike the Virgin book release of the same name, this is not an examination of all the different Doctor Who projects that, for one reason or another, failed to appear between 1989 and 1996. What would be the point? Those interested will have bought at the time, and in any case, it was paraphrased in "Regenerations" - the Philip Segal/Gary Russell co-production.

No, instead this article looks at the pretenders to the Doctor's throne. You see, since the end of Survival, despite re-iterating constantly that the Doctor represented a "tired format", and had no place in modern TV schedules, the BBC never really stopped trying. You see, in direct contradiction to the armies of fans, TV critics, and notable TV professionals, there isn't really any need to tip Alan Davies as the next Doctor - he's already done it. Along with others, even (hushed silence) - A WOMAN! Yet none of them have been at a Big Finish: Unbound recording session.

Have I gone mad? No, not quite, not yet. But as I take you on my journey through the BBC's prime time offerings of the last few years, you may find familiar elements....

1. THE CRIME TRAVELLER (1997 - 8 episodes) Chloe Annett (formerly best known as Clare Grogan's replacement on Red Dwarf as Kochanski) plays Holly Turner, the scientific officer (hmmm...familiar job title?) at a local police station. One of her colleague's, Detective Jeff Slade, gets fired when a stakeout goes wrong. After work, Turner goes home, where she has a functioning Time Machine. She uses it to go back in time, find evidence, and return it promptly enough to save Slade's job. When he questions her about how she did it, she reluctantly leads him back to her home (ah - a reluctance to reveal the time machine installed at your abode....hmmm....interesting), and shows him the machine. Oh, and certain Rules of Time have to be obeyed (rules...or laws? You decide!).

2. JONATHAN CREEK (1997 - 2003) An investigative journalist, played by Caroline Quentin, looking into sinister, inexplicable deaths and disappearances (now, has anyone seen Lis Sladen...?), turns to an eccentric, reclusive, incredibly intelligent individual (Alan Davies), who thinks about things in a slightly unorthodox manner. He manages to explain the inexplicable, in a thoroughly convincing way - making the more mundane authority figures around him appear as bumbling amateurs. I'm sure something similar has happened, down at UNIT HQ.

3. TED AND ALICE (2002) An alien, Stephen Tompkinson, exiled from his home planet to Earth. A gentle soul, he falls in love with an Earth woman, whilst being ruthlessly hunted down by his enemies. I don't want to be the one to mention a certain TVM set in San Francisco, but...

Now, I know that these series' similarities to Doctor Who are, in the main, only superficial, but it does show, I think, that the BBC have been desperate to look for a new hero figure. Between Holly the scientist in Crime Traveller, the hapless Ted, and the ever so bohemian Creek, we have elements of that hero who "is never cowardly or cruel", who never resorts to violence if possible, and who will always do what is right. They haven't found him yet. But I suspect they might, in about 2005, when Russell T Davies's first episodes of the new Doctor Who are aired on BBC TV. Lets hope its all we have dared to dream of these past 14 years.

The "Spiral Mutterings" started life as occasional articles for the website www.who-central.co.uk, now sadly on hiatus (a word most feared in Dr Who circles!). I humbly publish them here again, in the hope that some may enjoy them. Where applicable, I shall annotate them with updated info, reflections on things that have happened since, or just general comments on my own abilities as an article writer.