In a development so timey-wimey even the Doctor’s head would be scrambled, it appears Doctor Who may have predicted the real look of our universe almost 50 years before NASA discovered it.
Yesterday, the US space agency revealed our clearest view of the universe to date, taken with the new James Webb Space Telescope. The image shows the light from galaxies which has taken billions of years to reach us, meaning the picture, while taken in recent days, shows an ancient view of the universe.
However, for Doctor Who fans this wasn’t the most notable detail about the image – instead, they were focused on how similar the image looks to the psychedelic Sixth Doctor opening title sequence, which ran from 1984 to 1986.
You can see the eerie, remarkable comparison right here:
https://t.co/1muQrZ3r49 pic.twitter.com/mj33ozKsin
— Morgan Jeffery (@morganjeffery) July 12, 2022
This initial image was previewed by President Joe Biden, while NASA will be following up on the image with a global presentation, including further images from the new telescope. Who fans will surely be on the lookout for further real life crossovers, with the long-running sci-fi show amongst the new pictures.
The official Doctor Who Twitter page isn’t out of the loop either, retweeting NASA’s post alongside the title sequence saying: “We’ve seen this one before…”
We've seen this one before... ????✨ https://t.co/4IbjHl2hqz pic.twitter.com/tkj0y4Pcq5
— Doctor Who (@bbcdoctorwho) July 12, 2022
This isn’t the first time the show has correctly predicted the future (or in this case, the past – as we say, timey-wimey). Fans often point to the Tenth Doctor carrying the Olympic Torch ahead of the 2012 Olympic Games in the episode Fear Her, which then came true in a roundabout way when Matt Smith carried it in the real life.
The show has received renewed interest in recent months, after a slew of big announcements regarding Russell T Davies’s plans for the upcoming 60th anniversary.
Doctor Who is available to stream on BBC iPlayer with episodes of the classic series also available on BritBox – sign up for a 7-day free trial.
Check out more of our Sci-Fi coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight.
The latest issue of Radio Times magazine is on sale now – subscribe now and get the next 12 issues for only £1. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to the Radio Times podcast with Jane Garvey.