{"id":38108,"date":"2023-10-15T09:00:35","date_gmt":"2023-10-15T07:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1896800"},"modified":"2023-10-15T21:53:36","modified_gmt":"2023-10-15T19:53:36","slug":"my-life-as-a-doctor-who-fan-part-6-2013-to-now","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/my-life-as-a-doctor-who-fan-part-6-2013-to-now\/","title":{"rendered":"My Life as a Doctor Who Fan: Part 6 \u2013 2013 to now"},"content":{"rendered":"

The highs of the 50th anniversary, meeting Brian Cox and Peter Capaldi, interviewing Steven Moffat and reaching Devil\u2019s End with Katy Manning <\/p>

By Patrick Mulkern\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Sunday, 15 October 2023 at 07:00 AM<\/p>

\n\n

\u201cThe ratings and reviews were through the roof. Everybody everywhere was happy. That was one of the rare moments where I actually thought I know what I\u2019m doing. It lasted about four seconds\u201d<\/em> \u2013 Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat on the 50th anniversary special\u00a0(RadioTimes.com<\/strong>, 2017)<\/p>\n

2013<\/strong><\/p>\n

The BBC and Radio Times<\/strong> have always celebrated Doctor Who<\/a>\u2019s ten-year anniversaries \u2013 even when the programme was long off air, as it was for its 30th in 1993 and 40th in 2003. The 10th and 20th anniversaries were major events in my life as a fan, but the 50th would be the apex. I could approach it as a middle-aged professional but \u2013 now that I knew a range of people connected with the series \u2013 with a degree of insight as well as with a sense of fun.<\/p>\n

I was delighted for Waris Hussein. He\u2019d been a founding father of Doctor Who half a century earlier, and now those days were being re-created in An Adventure in Space and Time, Mark Gatiss\u2019s 90-minute BBC \u201corigins drama\u201d. In the early weeks of 2013, Waris rang almost daily to update me on how things were progressing. He was flattered to be portrayed on screen but understandably wary too, helping Mark get the details right about not only himself but also his deceased friends, producer Verity Lambert and head of drama Sydney Newman.<\/p>\n

Waris was impressed by Mark, and by Sacha Dhawan, The History Boys star who\u2019d been cast to play him. I captured on camera the first moment they met \u2013 in the BFI green room on 12th January. Sacha confided that he was already studying Waris\u2019s mannerisms, whereas Waris told me, jokingly, \u201cI am to be portrayed by my doppelganger, Sacha Dhawan, a\u00a0handsome\u00a0actor. Vanity prevails!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Sacha\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Sacha Dhawan meeting Waris Hussein at the BFI in 2013 (photographed by Patrick Mulkern)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

I was privileged to witness the backstage jollity as Waris was reunited with Carole Ann Ford and William Russell, whom he\u2019d cast as Susan and as Ian in 1963, and sweet-natured Brian Hodgson, the Radiophonic Workshop wizard who\u2019d created the sounds of the TARDIS and the Daleks. Something I hadn\u2019t witnessed before was the revere people had for Waris as the great director, which, of course he was. The proof was writ large on the NFT1 screen, as we enjoyed the atmosphere and fluidity he\u2019d brought to An Unearthly Child<\/a> at the startlingly young age of 24.<\/p>\n

\"William\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
William Russell, Carole Ann Ford, Brian Hodgson and Waris Hussein reunited at the BFI in 2013<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

One frosty February morning, filming for An Adventure in Space and Time started on Wimbledon Common. Two of my favourite actors, David Bradley and Lesley Manville, were playing William and Heather Hartnell, and Radio Times<\/strong> went along to photograph them by the lakeside, as they posed with a mock-up of the first RT<\/strong> with Doctor Who on the cover.<\/p>\n

\"Lesley\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Lesley Manville and David Bradley as Heather and William Hartnell in 2013 (photographed for RT by Gary Moyes)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Production then moved to BBC Television Centre. Waris stood out of shot watching Sacha and Jessica Raine \u2013 younger versions of himself and Verity \u2013 walking along one of the circular corridors. He was moved to tears and admitted it was fortuitous that he was flying out for a long spell in LA so he would miss any more filming.<\/p>\n

With my RT<\/strong> hat on, I attended various stages of the production and found returning to TV Centre especially poignant. Everyone working on Adventure was mindful that it was the very last BBC drama being shot there before the site was redeveloped. On 12th February I went to interview the cast and crew including producer Matt Strevens (who later became a Who executive producer during Chris Chibnall\u2019s tenure). We were on the seventh (top) floor, where offices had been given a 1960s look, and I watched heated scenes between Verity and her boss Sydney Newman, played by Brian Cox<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The BBC publicist wasn\u2019t keen to introduce me to the great man, intimidated perhaps by his formidable personality. This was long before Cox\u2019s stratospheric fame in Succession<\/a> but he was already an acting giant. I had nothing but admiration and had recently been tickled by his BBC Four sitcom Bob Servant Independent. I\u2019d done my homework and was determined to speak to him.<\/p>\n

Coming through an office door, Cox grazed his hand on a splintered frame and needed a plaster, so he took a break between scenes. To the consternation of the publicist, I approached Cox, explained I was from Radio Times<\/strong> and asked when he\u2019d be available to talk. \u201cOh hi,\u201d he said in that distinctive brogue, part Dundee, part Brooklyn. \u201cI saw you back here and guessed you were an executive I hadn\u2019t met yet.\u201d That made me chuckle. \u201cSure, if you\u2019re free, let\u2019s do it now.\u201d We stepped out onto a balcony overlooking the inner circle, the \u201cdoughnut\u201d of TV Centre, and chatted for half an hour. Despite his stern bearing, Brian Cox is an Aslan figure, growling but benevolent. He was in a nostalgic mood, recalling his work for the BBC in the 1960s and \u201870s. When we came back inside, he confounded the publicist by asking them to take a snapshot of us on my iPhone.<\/p>\n

\"RT's\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
RT\u2019s Patrick Mulkern and Brian Cox at BBC TV Centre in 2013<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Moments later, Mark Gatiss appeared and whisked me two flights down for a private tour of the deserted fifth floor, close to where the original Doctor Who personnel had been housed in 1963. His design team had created a suite of retro offices, with clunky desks, old typewriters, pencil sharpeners, ancient paperwork\u2026 He gave me an hour of his time and shared the nuts and bolts of his passion project.<\/p>\n

\"Mark\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Mark Gatiss at BBC TV Centre in 2013 (photographed by Patrick Mulkern)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

We\u2019re of a similar age so our memories of Who compare. \u201cWe\u2019re Pertwee boys!\u201d he cooed. But we both loved all this earlier stuff too. \u201cThe genesis of it all has always fascinated me,\u201d he said. I can\u2019t claim to know Mark well, but I like him immensely. He\u2019s a cultured, talented man, benign and courteous, albeit with more than a tinge of pitch-black wit. He was one of The League of Gentlemen after all, which I adored.<\/p>\n

His excitement for what he still had to film was infectious \u2013 the original TARDIS, the junkyard from An Unearthly Child<\/a>, Vortis from The Web Planet<\/a>\u2026 \u201cWe\u2019ve got three Menoptra. They\u2019re beautiful. It\u2019s so exciting! And on Sunday morning we\u2019re shooting the Daleks on Westminster Bridge! Come along.\u201d So just after dawn on 17th February I arrived as four Daleks were offloaded from a van. The team were racing to film the Daleks streaming over the bridge with Big Ben in the background before the city woke up. In a nice touch, Mark\u2019s partner Ian Hallard was playing 1960s Who director Richard Martin. I recognised a few other fans on the scene, including Kevin Davies who\u2019d created a similar re-enactment for his excellent BBC documentary 20 years earlier.<\/p>\n

\"Daleks\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Daleks on Westminster bridge in 2013 (photographed by Patrick Mulkern)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

The best was yet to come. On 25th February, at Wimbledon Studios, I really did feel like I was having my own adventure in space and time. The team had created a magical evocation of Lime Grove, the BBC\u2019s dilapidated studio facilities circa 1964. Various sets were dotted around, representing Hartnell\u2019s historical stories, Marco Polo<\/a> and The Reign of Terror<\/a>. In one corner a police box perched on a patch of sand. A production gallery looked onto an exquisite re-creation of the TARDIS control room \u2013 complete with intricate console, a bank of computers, indented walls, even tacky backcloths and the original brass pillars from 1963. Mark walked me round and I couldn\u2019t resist pressing buttons on the console, fingering the fast-return switch\u2026 I touched a bright bulb and seared my finger. A stinging blister! Mark said everyone had done the same \u2013 and we recalled you can see Frazer Hines burning himself on the console in The Web of Fear<\/a> (1968).<\/p>\n

For a while I sat alone in the TARDIS, watching the filming at the far end of the studio. The set was so realistic, it was easy to believe I\u2019d time-travelled to 1963. It crossed my mind that 30 years had passed since I\u2019d first set foot inside the TARDIS \u2013 at TV Centre in 1983 to watch the recording of Peter Davison\u2019s Planet of Fire<\/a>. I was itching to take photos but, understandably, the publicist vetoed that. Mark was boss, however, snapping away all day with his iPhone, and kindly took three photos of me by the TARDIS console.<\/p>\n

\"2013\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
RT\u2019s Patrick Mulkern photographed by Mark Gatiss in the TARDIS. An Adventure in Space and Time, 2013.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Later, I looked sideways and realised a high-profile fan was on set. Peter Capaldi was standing a few feet away. It was still some time before he and the world knew that he would be the next Doctor. Like me, Peter was content to hover on the sideline, observing intently. Before I left, Mark gave me a copy of the artwork for the Doctor Who Annual cover glimpsed briefly in the drama. A subtle improvement on the 1965 original.<\/p>\n

\"Shooting\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Shooting schedule for An Adventure in Space and Time and cover art for a Doctor Who Annual, featuring David Bradley<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

The BFI event in January had been just the first of a monthly commitment throughout 2013 to celebrate each Doctor \u2013 screenings, Q&A panels and what felt like a mini-convention for devotees. For the first few months, I assisted by supplying contact details for certain personalities who were off the BFI and BBC\u2019s radar, and I reported on the events for RadioTimes.com<\/a>, until my interest waned.<\/p>\n

An Unearthly Child<\/a> and The Tomb of the Cybermen<\/a> were superb choices. The six-part The Mind of Evil<\/a> was a slog, albeit painstakingly restored in colour. My friend Richard Marson and I sat with Katy Manning (companion Jo), which was a hoot, even though she was in great discomfort with a fractured pelvis. Such a trooper, she got through the afternoon without complaint and with few being aware of her injury. As ever she was hilarious on stage. In April, The Robots of Death<\/a> (1977) was a perfect choice for Tom Baker. The great man was there alongside Louise Jameson (Leela) and their 1970s producer Philip Hinchcliffe. I\u2019d booked a ticket for my RT<\/strong> chum Mark Braxton because it\u2019s his all-time favourite story.<\/p>\n

\"producer\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
1970s Doctor Who producer Philip Hinchcliffe, Louise Jameson, Tom Baker and host Justin Johnson at the BFI in April 2013. (Photographed by Patrick Mulkern)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Each event was deftly managed by BFI programmer Justin Johnson, always witty and well prepared, a calm, reassuring presence even as demanding attendees jabbered in his face. In a quiet moment he turned to me and said plaintively, \u201cNobody will want to know me next year.\u201d However, Justin has remained a steady hand at the BFI over the subsequent decade, hosted many more Who screenings and become a linchpin at the Radio Times Festival<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The intensity of the 50th eased in the summer, but two dates still stand out. On Sunday 14th July I took all my nieces and nephews \u2013 the \u201cniblings\u201d as I call them \u2013 to the Royal Albert Hall for the Doctor Who Prom. Kaia (12), Finn (9), Jamie (7) and Rose (almost 6) all loved the programme, and the concert brought out the big kid in me. It was a showcase for Murray Gold\u2019s stirring compositions, with perhaps too little of the older music, but a spectacle.<\/p>\n

\"At\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
At the Albert Hall in 2013 with Rose, Jamie, Finn and Kaia (photographed by Karen Mulkern)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Jaws dropped as monsters such as a Weeping Angel and Cybermen emerged and the current charismatic Who leads, Matt Smith and Jenna Coleman, materialised among the orchestra. They ran through some entertaining shtick, partly in character and partly as themselves. Peter Davison and Carole Ann Ford had joyful moments in the spotlight. And I take my hat off to Neve McIntosh as Silurian Madame Vastra and Dan Starkey as Sontaran Strax, who must have been broiling in their masks and costumes.<\/p>\n

\"Radio\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Radio Times preview for Doctor Who at the Proms<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Three Sundays later (4th August) we had a laugh-filled afternoon when Katy popped round for tea and met my mum and dad for the first time. We\u2019d been playing Scrabble in the garden and Katy insisted on another game, which was a lot of fun, fuelled by Mum\u2019s cherry Bakewell. My Dad and Katy hit it off and nattered about cricket. Ever optically challenged, Katy mistook a mirror in our garden for a gap through to next door and apologised to the people for the noise we were making.<\/p>\n

\"Richard\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Richard Mulkern, Patrick Mulkern, Katy Manning and Patricia Mulkern in 2013<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Coming inside, we turned on the telly just in time to see Peter Capaldi being announced as the new Doctor live on BBC One. Everyone was cock-a-hoop with this mature casting. I\u2019d adored Matt Smith but was losing hope we\u2019d ever see an older actor as the Time Lord.<\/p>\n

\"Katy\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Katy Manning tweeting as Peter Capaldi is announced as the new Doctor in 2013<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

On 30th September, I drove Anneke Wills (companion Polly) down to Beaulieu for lunch with Ralph Montagu and his mother Belinda. We were left to our own devices to wander round the Motor Museum, but Ralph gave us a personal tour of his beautiful family estate (to which he was still heir), the house and gardens, where we took photos among the medieval walls.<\/p>\n

\"Anneke\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Anneke Wills, Patrick Mulkern and Ralph Montagu at Beaulieu in 2013<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

An October miracle. News finally broke that a tranche of missing 1960s episodes had been rediscovered in Nigeria by fan\/archivist Philip Morris. I\u2019d known about this since the start of the year but was sworn to secrecy \u2013 always thinking I\u2019ll believe it when I see it. Especially as two must-have stories, Marco Polo<\/a> and The Web of Fear<\/a>, were guaranteed among the haul. I\u2019ve no idea what became of Marco (that never materialised) but pray a copy is found in Waris\u2019s lifetime. The newly found The Enemy of the World<\/a> confounded expectations, but an almost complete recovery of The Web of Fear, including the to-die-for fourth episode with so many brilliant scenes directed by Douglas Camfield\u2026 Oh my giddy aunt! The press launch at the Soho Hotel was quite something, presided over by Mark Gatiss, with Frazer Hines and Debbie Watling (Jamie and Victoria) elated at seeing their youthful selves on screen. The past was in the future, as Patrick Troughton had once told Richard and me.<\/p>\n

2013 brought mixed fortunes for Richard. After many years at a senior level at the BBC, as Blue Peter editor, then producing\/directing Tales of Television Centre, he felt empathy for John Nathan-Turner, the showrunner and indeed showman of 1980s Doctor Who. JN-T had died in 2002, but Richard knew he\u2019d make a fascinating subject for biography. Thus \u201cThe Life and Scandalous Times of John Nathan-Turner\u201d was conceived. Richard interviewed more than a hundred friends, colleagues and detractors (far more people than any biographer would usually bother to trace) to create a complete, unvarnished but compassionate biography of this complex individual.<\/p>\n

No book on a Doctor Who personality had ever been attempted in this vein before and it both enthralled and appalled sectors of fandom. Running right to the top. In a subsequent appendix for its second edition, Richard collated the feedback he\u2019d received. Russell T Davies was extremely supportive: \u201cThat book is extraordinary\u2026 a great piece of work. I have read it in two days flat, I couldn\u2019t stop.\u201d But it\u2019s true that Richard became persona non grata in some quarters. Certain BBC personnel, who\u2019d been all over him during Russell\u2019s time on Who, cold-shouldered him. The book hit the front page of the tabloids and led to woeful, duplicitous commentary in the broadsheets. DWM, for reasons that remain unclear, wouldn\u2019t even refer to it for several years.<\/p>\n

\"2013\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
John Nathan-Turner biography by Richard Marson<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

This didn\u2019t, by association, put me in a difficult position because my position will always be that I defend my friends. To borrow JN-T\u2019s line, \u201cI was surprised and delighted\u201d by the biography. It was unputdownable, scurrilous, dripping with detail, gossip, muck, heart and love. That Richard dedicated the book to me speaks volumes, and I was amused when he said he\u2019d written it with my ear in mind. And through it, I\u2019d given life to the term \u201cdoable barker\u201d to sum up the object of desire of Gary Downie, JN-T\u2019s partner.<\/p>\n

Radio Times<\/strong> was keenly supporting the 50th throughout 2013, and I contributed features, wrote the Choices previews for all the latest Matt Smith episodes (a mini-season I described as \u201cpatchy\u201d), and then the reviews for RadioTimes.com<\/strong>. I found myself in the awkward position of interviewing writer Neil Gaiman for the mag, but in the same issue having to be frank that his Cybermen episode Nightmare in Silver<\/a> was dreadful. I ran an extensive profile of Waris<\/a> and called upon Don Smith<\/a> for his memories of the very first photoshoot.<\/p>\n

Although the BBC had graciously given us major access to Adventure, the shutters were down for the 50th special itself. Understandably, they had plenty to do shooting The Day of the Doctor<\/a> and keeping its surprises, without entertaining journalists. I didn\u2019t give two hoots that Christopher Eccleston turned the special down, and was far more excited that it paved the way for John Hurt. With a CV from The Elephant Man to Caligula in I, Claudius, via Quentin Crisp and Alien, he was a legend. One of our finest actors. And he was delighted to \u201cbe a Doctor Who\u201d and made the competition look like, well, jelly babies.<\/p>\n

Art editor Paul Smith toiled over 12 collectable covers, one for each Doctor, which could be lined up into one image using a collage of pictures from various RT<\/strong> sources. My initial brief was to supply a panel of stats on each era, until editor Ben Preston asked for a profile of each actor. No stretch for me but also no mean feat with a tight deadline. For the RT<\/strong> Choices pages, I was able to preview An Adventure in Space and Time properly, but The Day of the Doctor<\/a> remained \u201csight unseen\u201d until its global premiere.<\/p>\n

\"Radio\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Radio Times preview for An Adventure in Space and Time, 2013<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n
\"2013\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Radio Times preview for The Day of the Doctor, 2013<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

That November was full of excitements. On Tuesday 12th, Waris, his partner Jean-Louis, Richard and I attended the BFI premiere of Adventure \u2013 a beautiful and moving drama, and a triumph for Mark G. On the Friday, DWM held a birthday bash near St Paul\u2019s. Steven Moffat got up and paid a funny heartfelt tribute to the magazine and its editor Tom Spilsbury. At the bar, I introduced Dominic May to Steven, and noticed Steven seemed far more chuffed finally to meet this illustrious name from fandom than Dom was to meet Steven.<\/p>\n

The BBC\u2019s mega event was The Doctor Who Celebration at the London ExCeL centre over the weekend of 22nd to 24th November. Again I was lucky to go behind the scenes with chums like Waris, Anneke and Katy. So many memories from that green room. Anneke hitting it off with Camille Coduri (Jackie Tyler), who was poorly. Darling June Hudson warming up the resolutely aloof Tom Baker. He grinned when I showed him the photos on my phone my mum had taken of us in the 70s. Justin introducing me to Bernard Cribbins. Having a coffee with William Russell, who was thrilled to be part of the 50th. He\u2019d filmed a cameo as a BBC commissionaire in An Adventure and said he was delighted when his friends spotted the small acknowledgement I\u2019d put in Radio Times<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"The\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
The ExCeL celebration in November 2013: Anneke Wills and Camille Coduri; Waris Hussein; Patrick Mulkern and Tom Baker<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

During a break, a tiny elderly lady sat next to me on a ledge, exhausted and hungry, and I realised it was Debbie Watling (Victoria). I fetched her water and a plate of sandwiches. Then Kate O\u2019Mara turned up. Her mates were annoyed that she hadn\u2019t received an official invitation, but Kate was determined to join the party and entertain her fans. She\u2019d glammed up but was evidently desperately ill and died four months later. What a glorious woman.<\/p>\n

I chaperoned Waris round the ExCeL; he loved the re-creation of the junkyard from An Unearthly Child<\/a>. Then I went round again with Anneke, who was like Alice in Wonderland, and we were admitted through the back door into the arena where Tom was, as usual, reluctant to appear alongside the other Doctors (Peter Davison, Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy) and had to be coaxed onto a couch by host Nick Briggs.<\/p>\n

Compared with the Longleat fiasco 30 years earlier, the ExCel weekender was a triumph \u2013 although the old timers were run ragged and some chums told me they were extremely vexed by the rush back and forth to the BFI for the evening\u2019s entertainment.<\/p>\n

A terrific year of celebration rounded off in December 2013 with the BFI premiere of The Time of the Doctor<\/a>, a Christmas episode and Matt Smith\u2019s swansong. I sat with Anne and Paul from RT<\/strong> and hooked up afterwards with Katy and Justin and a Dalek in the riverside bar.<\/p>\n

\"The\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
The BFI\u2019s Justin Johnson, Katy Manning, Patrick Mulkern and a Dalek in December 2013<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

The past decade<\/strong><\/p>\n

2014 to 2023 has slipped past in a flash, a time vortex of its own, weirdly concertinaed by the COVID pandemic. In a change of flow, I\u2019ll not proceed year by year now but by topic or person. No time to talk about my visit to Millennium FX in the very road where I grew up; how I reduced Frazer Hines to tears (of joy); met Azal the Daemon (Stephen Thorne), Fenella Fielding and June Whitfield all on the same afternoon; nor why the ace director Rachel Talalay posted me a fidget spinner. I\u2019ll start with A\u2026<\/p>\n

A for Anneke<\/strong><\/p>\n

This remarkable woman \u2013 face of the 60s, great beauty, globetrotter, ashram dweller, artist, and for a year Polly in Doctor Who \u2013 now lives contentedly in seclusion on the edge of Dartmoor. My partner and I and our dogs have visited her many times for a bluebell walk across the tors, pub lunches, gossip and giggles, and we always depart from her spiritually recharged. Her garden is her pride and joy (as you will see in a coming Blu-ray film), and in 2014 she flattered me by asking me to photograph her domain, which I presented to her as a glossy photobook. I picture a beautiful day in 2016 when she and I wandered into an idyllic deserted quarry on the moor and lay in the sun on slabs of rock, while my dog frolicked in the lake. Dreamy days.<\/p>\n

\"Anneke\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Anneke Wills in 2014 (photographed by Patrick Mulkern)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

When I told Anneke I was writing this memoir, she surprised me by insisting, \u201cYou will put in that time we went to The Vine and got completely sloshed?\u201d This wine bar in Kentish Town was a favourite haunt whenever she came up to London, just round the corner from a friend\u2019s house. Not for the first time, Anneke and I had a largely liquid supper and soon got pie-eyed \u2013 I\u2019m suppressing the photographic evidence \u2013 but she only had to stagger a few yards home, whereas I was ferried home and tumbled out of the car like Eddie in Ab Fab.<\/p>\n

Mate in Chelsea<\/strong><\/p>\n

Waris has been one of life\u2019s treasures since we met 15 years ago, a true friend and confidante, a joy to be with. We\u2019ve shared holidays (New Year in Cornwall, summer in Shropshire), tackled all-day theatre and movie sessions, and enjoyed dozens of lunches at the Chelsea Arts Club. He gave a speech at my 50th birthday on the Thames, which made me blub. In 2018, he was thrilled to be the subject of a month-long season at the BFI and I attended many screenings with him. In 2021, he dug out his 1960s diaries and read extracts to me, hooting at his pithy turn of phrase but also aghast at the long-forgotten angst of his mid-20s. Only a few weeks later, I was upset when his partner Jean-Louis phoned to tell me that Waris had suffered a life-changing stroke in LA. But Waris being Waris \u2013 and greatly supported by Jean-Louis \u2013 he battles on, determined to live life to the full, and still travels between London and the US. He loves brandishing the flowery blue cane I bought him. (In 2023, RadioTimes.com<\/strong> published extracts from Waris Hussein\u2019s 1960s diaries<\/a> in a series of three articles.)<\/p>\n

We rarely discuss the good Doctor but I\u2019ll share one happy Who-ey memory from August 2015, when Doctor Who\u2019s brand manager Edward Russell kindly invited Waris and me to Roath Lock Studios. We took the train to Cardiff to observe the filming of Peter Capaldi\u2019s season finale, Hell Bent<\/a>. As we wandered around the sets, I informed Waris he\u2019d finally arrived on Gallifrey. \u201cWhere?\u201d he said. Rachel Talalay greeted us warmly and seemed genuinely in awe of Waris, while Peter, a true star and gentleman, and life-long fan himself, suggested quietly, \u201cWould you like to see the TARDIS?\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Waris\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Waris Hussein on the TARDIS set in 2015 with Peter Capaldi and designer Michael Pickwoad<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

He led us to another studio where this fantastic set stood \u2013 an all-encompassing space and by far my favourite TARDIS interior. Its brilliant designer Michael Pickwoad hurried over, keen to show it off, and meet Waris, who long ago had directed his father, the actor William Mervyn. The publicity team took photos of Waris and Peter together, and I had a proper fanboy moment when Waris took my picture with Peter in the TARDIS. We assumed we\u2019d be there all day but, with those money shots in the bag, we were happy to be ushered out. With time to kill, I took Waris round the Doctor Who Experience nearby on Cardiff Bay. He was bemused \u2013 and not for the first time startled by what a money-spinner the little show he\u2019d helped create in 1963 had become.<\/p>\n

\"Waris\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Waris Hussein at the Doctor Who Experience in 2015 (photographed by Patrick Mulkern)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Doctor Who \u2013 as Seen on TV<\/strong><\/p>\n

Actual Doctor Who on the telly during the past ten years has flown by like a whirlwind. As with any era, Peter Capaldi\u2019s was hit-and-miss, though I appreciated his acerbic but heartfelt portrayal, its nods to Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker\u2019s Doctors. When I first met Peter properly at the BFI premiere of Last Christmas<\/a> in 2014, I gushed, \u201cI really hope you stay for a very long time.\u201d He raised an eyebrow and gave an inscrutable smile.<\/p>\n

Steven Moffat wrote some mind-bending episodes for Peter\u2019s Doctor \u2013 bold-concept classics such as the grief-laden one-hander Heaven Sent<\/a>. It would be daft to hail Steven as a genius but he is indisputably an ingenious, extremely gifted writer \u2013 and, in person, I dare say has more than a few traits in common with Peter\u2019s Doctor.<\/p>\n

One of the most rewarding aspects of working for RadioTimes.com<\/strong> has been the space it\u2019s afforded me to ask writers at length about the writing process. Russell T Davies was scintillating when he spoke in great depth about his series Cucumber<\/a>, Years and Years<\/a> and It\u2019s a Sin<\/a>. I\u2019ve not yet had a chance to quiz him about Doctor Who but hope that will come.<\/p>\n

I relished the two long sessions I had with Steven when he was showrunner, first at Brasserie Zedel in October 2015, then at the Wolseley in October 2017 for his exit interview. On both occasions after the first hour and several glasses of wine, any sense of structured interview dissolved into a good old fannish natter about the Time Lord \u2013 some of it unprintable \u2013 but I was struck by his analytical insight. The only other people I\u2019ve had such intense Doctor Who discussions with are Richard Marson and DWAS founder Jan Vincent-Rudzki.<\/p>\n