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Amusing mentions on old website
Rorschach
Posts: 10,818 Forum Member
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Whilst looking for information on an unrelated show I found the following post on a "British TV show" website.
Crime Traveller (5/97)
From the maker of Bugs, with all the same flaws and fortunes...Even more annoying is this series, though nicely mounted, drew 15 million viewers on Saturday night on BBC-1 in a time slot (and with a budget) that could have been better spent on a new series of Doctor Who instead. It doesn't take a genius to now realize the Doctor has no future on the Beeb, who would prefer empty-headed, though glossy, adventure series over anything with any real texture or history.
and
Doctor Who Night (9/00)
BBC-2 Theme Nights are great for fans, although they follow a very prescribed ritual: amusing host segments, the obligatory documentary, a look at the fans, and plenty of clips from the most popular episodes. Whether it's Goodness Gracious Me, Monty Python or Doctor Who, that are being celebrated, the formula never varies. That said, for the 36th anniversary last year, Tom Baker was trotted out to introduce the shows, and they even provided him with an elaborate CGI TARDIS to inhabit. Big-name fan Mark Gatiss (now best known for The League of Gentlemen) was enlisted to produce three sketches especially for the night and they are right on the money and classic: the first takes place in 1963 as a producer attempts to pitch the series to the BBC. Full of hilarious in-jokes including the origin of the theme tune, you almost have to wonder if it really happened this way. The second sketch takes place in a quarry with the Doctor (Gatiss) encountering some of the most crap aliens ever, although he tries to be polite to get rid of them. Finally, the night was capped with a sketch in a fan's bedroom as his best friend has just kidnapped the real Peter Davison and brings him in for inspection. The documentaries included "Adventures In Time and Space" narrated by Peter Jones (of The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy) just before he passed away. There is a look at the various Doctor Who monsters over the years, and even a scientist discussing how you could realistically build a working TARDIS. Now if only the BBC would actually make some new episodes for television!
The bold emphasis is mine. He he.
Crime Traveller (5/97)
From the maker of Bugs, with all the same flaws and fortunes...Even more annoying is this series, though nicely mounted, drew 15 million viewers on Saturday night on BBC-1 in a time slot (and with a budget) that could have been better spent on a new series of Doctor Who instead. It doesn't take a genius to now realize the Doctor has no future on the Beeb, who would prefer empty-headed, though glossy, adventure series over anything with any real texture or history.
and
Doctor Who Night (9/00)
BBC-2 Theme Nights are great for fans, although they follow a very prescribed ritual: amusing host segments, the obligatory documentary, a look at the fans, and plenty of clips from the most popular episodes. Whether it's Goodness Gracious Me, Monty Python or Doctor Who, that are being celebrated, the formula never varies. That said, for the 36th anniversary last year, Tom Baker was trotted out to introduce the shows, and they even provided him with an elaborate CGI TARDIS to inhabit. Big-name fan Mark Gatiss (now best known for The League of Gentlemen) was enlisted to produce three sketches especially for the night and they are right on the money and classic: the first takes place in 1963 as a producer attempts to pitch the series to the BBC. Full of hilarious in-jokes including the origin of the theme tune, you almost have to wonder if it really happened this way. The second sketch takes place in a quarry with the Doctor (Gatiss) encountering some of the most crap aliens ever, although he tries to be polite to get rid of them. Finally, the night was capped with a sketch in a fan's bedroom as his best friend has just kidnapped the real Peter Davison and brings him in for inspection. The documentaries included "Adventures In Time and Space" narrated by Peter Jones (of The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy) just before he passed away. There is a look at the various Doctor Who monsters over the years, and even a scientist discussing how you could realistically build a working TARDIS. Now if only the BBC would actually make some new episodes for television!
The bold emphasis is mine. He he.
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Comments
The sketches were written by Mark Gatiss and David Walliams, who is also a massive Doctor Who fan and they performed in all three.
I remember this as being in a different order, though I'd have to try and find the tape with it on to confirm it. I thought it was the quarry first, Peter Davison abducted second and the history of Doctor Who ending up with the any old "bleep" with an Equity card comment last, which led to a lot of bad feeling from certain ex-Doctors.
Crime Traveller was dreadful, but was a guilty pleasure.