60 Years of Doctor Who coming to BBC iPlayer

[Tjm86]

We did a Baker re-watch a few years back. The first season (12) starts off shaky, but finishes strong, but after the generally excellent seasons 13-15, all of them containing more than one absolute classic,

Would have to agree with this.  What I found really interesting was how it affected me rewatching them.  These were my earliest experiences of both Dr Who and television. 

This was just as we had returned from Iran and we not only didn't have telly very often (Dad would get one for major sporting events) but the only channels available were Iranian.  Earliest experiences were of watching Star Trek with the BBC Home Service playing the audio, generally slightly out of sync).

So the first tales I saw were from Robots of Death on but even then it was sporadic.  Only really watching when we are at my nans.  As you can imagine, the results of rewatching those episodes is quite evocative.

My knowledge of pre-Baker Who comes pretty much from the old Target novelisations.  Built up quite an extensive knowledge of the Hartnell, Troughton, Pertwee eras as a result though I'd never actually seen them.  Then I had a corporal on the squadron at Brize who was massively into Dr Who, to the extent that he had a side-business attending conventions and flogging stuff.  He would regularly regale us with details of the mistakes in more recent episodes although by this time Who was pretty much dead in the water.

[Jim_Campbell]

Would have to agree with this.  What I found really interesting was how it affected me rewatching them.  These were my earliest experiences of both Dr Who and television.

That's eerily similar to my own TV experience! My dad was a teacher for the armed forces in Cyprus — I was born there and we lived there until I was four (when the Turkish invasion put an end to that), so there wasn't much in the way of TV.* The earliest memory of watching TV that I can actually put a date to is the final episode of 'Planet of the Spiders' and the Pertwee -> Baker regeneration.

*Mind you, we lived off-base in a flat that was on the sea front in Famagusta — when you have a Mediterranean beach literally on your doorstep, lack of TV isn't really a hardship.

[Tjm86]

Aye, Iran was an interesting experience.  Pre-revolution.  Dad worked at the embassy.  He's ex-RAF too.

Growing up as a Scaley-brat has made for an interesting perspective on the world.  Don't really feel fully connected with anywhere.  Things like music, film, telly, books, comics are all associated with different places.  Like seeing Star Wars at the Watford Odeon but ET at the German cinema in Landstuhl or Iron at Ramstein.

[The Monarch]

shame its not all of it

[Hawkmumbler]

An Unearthly Child will not be (at least initially) included as part of the Iplayer launch next month.

TLDR: The son (and self confessed fascist) of Anthony Coburn, writer of Episodes 2 through 4 of the original 1963 serial has redoubled the same efforts he's been pushing since the 50th anniversary to get the story out of the beebs hands.

Grim.

[judgeurko]

very strange behaviour from coburn junior

[Jim_Campbell]

very strange behaviour from coburn junior

Probably his fault there's no Dredd TV series.

[nxylas]

very strange behaviour from coburn junior

He has said that he hates Doctor Who, and wants to destroy it. He comes across as extraordinarily petty, with some serious daddy issues.

[Jim_Campbell]

He has said that he hates Doctor Who, and wants to destroy it. He comes across as extraordinarily petty, with some serious daddy issues.

Also, basically, a Nazi. Seriously — he has form for this shit, saying stuff about how the inferior races should have known their place... and he's utterly outraged that they've cast a black man as the Doctor.

So, TL; DR — fuck that guy.

[Hawkmumbler]

Indeed, indeed. A notably wretched individual, typical of the type who latch onto their parents works and achievements when they have few if any of their own to be proud of.

Hoping the beeb tell him where to shove it, Coburn was work-for-hire on that script after all and say what you will about BBC scriptwriter contracts of the day because there's certainly a lot that can be said, but I'm surprised he claims to have much of a claim to the rights at all.

[nxylas]

He has said that he hates Doctor Who, and wants to destroy it. He comes across as extraordinarily petty, with some serious daddy issues.

Also, basically, a Nazi. Seriously — he has form for this shit, saying stuff about how the inferior races should have known their place... and he's utterly outraged that they've cast a black man as the Doctor.

So, TL; DR — fuck that guy.

The two are probably not unconnected, given that Nazis and other authoritarian types have always been the bad guys in Doctor Who - most obviously the Daleks, but it's a theme that runs through the vast majority of the Doctor's adventures.