Doctor Who Online (or DWO by its users) has, since 1996, been a UK-based news, information, and forum site dedicated to the British

science fiction television Science fiction first appeared in television programming in the late 1930s, during what is called the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary ...

programme ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

''. A regular feature on the website is the Doctor Who: DWO Whocast Podcast, started in April 2006.

Site history

The site was founded as ''Doctor Who: The REGENERATIVE website'' in 1996, as a site for fans to find out news and guides for the show while it was off the air. The website was created by science fiction fan Sebastian J. Brook. When it launched, there was no current series of ''Doctor Who'' and the show was not shown in a regular cycle. The website detailed when previous episodes were scheduled to repeat on television. In 2000, the website changed its name to ''Doctor Who Online'' in response to former Doctor

Tom Baker Thomas Stewart Baker (born 20 January 1934) is an English actor and writer. He is well known for his portrayal of the Fourth Doctor, fourth incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the science fiction television series ''Doctor Wh ...

, who suggested the name would suit the website better. Many of the features the website originally had, such as the News section, still remain.

Features

The original website had regular features, including: news, episode guides, magazine releases (often featuring ''

Doctor Who Magazine ''Doctor Who Magazine'' (abbreviated as ''DWM'') is a magazine devoted to the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Launched in 1979 as ''Doctor Who Weekly'', the magazine became a monthly publication the followi ...

'') and convention information. The site has its own ''

Minecraft ''Minecraft'' is a sandbox game developed by Mojang Studios. The game was created by Markus "Notch" Persson in the Java programming language. Following several early private testing versions, it was first made public in May 2009 before being ...

'' server, containing a survival section, a minigames section where players can participate in Doctor Who-themed games and challenges, and a creative section where players can construct Doctor Who-inspired builds and replicas.

Dr. Who News

The news section of the Doctor Who Online website has regular news features and contributors who help to document ''Doctor Who'' broadcast and merchandise announcements. The section also includes news from spin-off shows ''

Torchwood ''Torchwood'' is a British science fiction television programme created by Russell T Davies. A spin-off of the 2005 revival of ''Doctor Who'', it aired from 2006 to 2011. The show shifted its broadcast channel each series to reflect its growing ...

'' and ''

The Sarah Jane Adventures ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'' is a British science fiction television programme that was produced by BBC Cymru Wales for CBBC, created by Russell T Davies, and starring Elisabeth Sladen. The programme is a spin-off of the long-running BBC sc ...

''. In November 2010, a Doctor Who Online News teamed up with

Blendtec Blendtec is an American company that sells commercial and residential blenders. It is a division of K-TEC, Inc.

for a ''Doctor Who: Will it Blend? Doctor Who Special'', in which DWO editor Brook and Tom Dickson, a Blendtec C.E.O, attempt to blend an Ironside Dalek action figure. The video has proven popular on YouTube with over 200,000 views so far.

DWO Whocast

''The Whocast'' (officially titled ''Doctor Who Podcast: DWO WhoCast'') is a weekly

podcast A podcast is a program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. For example, an episodic series of digital audio or video files that a user can download to a personal device to listen to at a time of their choosing ...

featured by the site. ''The Whocast'' was started in April 2006 by Paul A.T. Wilson, during the original run of Series 2 of ''

'', and in conjunction with a ''Doctor Who'' meeting group based in London. In September 2006, ''The Whocast'' teamed up with ''DWO'', with a significant format change and the addition of a co-host. With the format change, the podcast attracted more listeners and experienced a dramatic growth in listenership. The podcast usually features interviews with people involved with the new and the old series of ''Doctor Who'' and

Big Finish Productions Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays (released straight to compact disc and for download in MP3 and m4b format) based, primarily, on cult science fiction properties. These include ''Doctor Who'', the ...

. Interviews with members of the cast and crew from the classic and the new series of ''Doctor Who'' are common; the team are regularly joined by actors who have played the Doctor, such as

Colin Baker Colin Baker (born 8 June 1943) is an English actor who played Paul Merroney in the BBC drama series '' The Brothers'' from 1974 to 1976 and the sixth incarnation of the Doctor in the long-running science fiction television series '' Doctor ...

and

Peter Davison Peter Malcolm Gordon Moffett (born 13 April 1951), known professionally as Peter Davison, is an English actor with many credits in television dramas and sitcoms. He made his television acting debut in 1975 and became famous in 1978 as Tristan ...

. They have had members of the effects team such as

Neill Gorton Neill Gorton (born 6 September 1969) is an English special effects artist, visual effects specialist and make-up artist specialised in animatronics and prosthetics.

and Mat Irvine as well as other members of acting and production staff.

Community

The original forum went live in April 2003 and was originally powered using the " ezboard provider". Due to increased membership, the forum was upgraded a few years later. The online community has over 48,000 members. Discussion frequently takes place on the most recent televised ''Doctor Who'' episodes. Comments center on novels, video, audio, merchandise, and past ''Doctor Who'' adventures as well. The Doctor Who Online forums are frequently used by the British media to gauge ''Doctor Who'' fan opinions. For example, the announcement of the new costume for the Eleventh incarnation of the Doctor (

Matt Smith Matthew Robert Smith (born 28 October 1982) is an English actor. He is best known for his roles as the Eleventh Doctor, eleventh incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the BBC series ''Doctor Who'' (2010–2013), Daemon Targarye ...

) was the subject of discussion on the forum, which was reported on by the

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...

Magazine website. The choice of actor to play the Eleventh incarnation was also heavily discussed. When the actor announcement was made, Brook commented: "...I think it is the right choice. It is good that they have got a young guy with lots of energy."

Reception

A review of the website by BBC Radio 2's Miles Mendoza described it as "...one of the most popular and longest established octor Who sites. The leading UK Science Fiction magazine,

SciFiNow ''SciFiNow'' was a British magazine published every four weeks by Kelsey Media in the United Kingdom, covering the science fiction, horror and fantasy genres. It launched in April 2007, with the print publication ceasing in May 2020. Following t ...

, cited the site as "the web's premiere Doctor Who site".SciFi Now Magazine: Issue #34 -

References

External links

Doctor Who OnlineDWO WhoCast (Podcast)DWO Fanfic Wiki
*{{Official website, http://www.dwowhocast.com Internet properties established in 1996 Doctor Who fandom Entertainment Internet forums Science fiction websites Audio podcasts