THE NEW DOCTOR WHO
Though Doctor Who, the longest running sci-fi show in the world began in 1963 (known as the Classic Doctor Who), what we will see in India is the new Doctor Who, the series that started with the Ninth Doctor under showrunner Russell T. Davies in 2005. In the new era the Doctor, who is a Time Lord — a time-travelling humanoid alien with two hearts — is in his twelfth reincarnation. Yes, he can regenerate, that is change into another body when faced with near-fatal injuries. He travels to different worlds, often with a companion, and saves it from disaster.

THE COMPANIONS
The Doctor often takes with him a companion on his travels through different time and space.  

Rose Tyler (Billie Piper): The shop girl became the Ninth Doctor’s companion after he saved her in the very first episode. Rose was also the Tenth Doctor’s companion and the only companion who the Doctor was romantically involved with, though it is never mentioned or explored. She is spunky, up for all kinds of adventure and never afraid to go the extra mile for the Doctor.

Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman): She was a medical student before she became the Doctor’s time-travelling companion. Martha fell in love with the Doctor but the feeling was not reciprocated. She was later inducted into the paramilitary organisation UNIT.

Donna Noble (Catherine Tate): This ‘temp from Chiswick’ was the only companion who was really a friend to the Doctor and often referred to as ‘best mate’ by the Tenth Doctor. Funny, witty, competent, she never took shit from the Doctor and dished out as good as she got. 

Amy Pond (Karen Gillan): The Eleventh Doctor first met Amy Pond when she was seven and then later as a grown woman. Their relationship is more like that of siblings. Amy is sassy, fun and spunky. And she does her own thing whether or not the Doctor is around. Her fiance, Rory, also becomes a companion of the Doctor. 

Clara Oswald (Jenna Coleman): A companion to the Eleventh and Twelfth Doctors, Clara is often referred to as the ‘impossible girl’. A nanny and later a school teacher, she also meets the Tenth and the secret Doctor in the anniversary special.

Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman): A Time Agent and former conman, Jack Harkness is a smooth-talking, flirtatious and morally ambiguous man, who is more of an action figure than the Doctor. He accompanied the Ninth Doctor and was a part of many of the Tenth Doctor’s travels. He is also the first bisexual character in the show’s history.

River Song (Alex Kingston): 
A mystery woman (*tapping nose* ‘Spoilers’), who is also a time-travelling adventurer and seems to know more about the Doctor and his future than anyone else. River Song has shown up with both the Tenth and Eleventh Doctors.

THE NINTH DOCTOR
Christopher Eccleston
The black leather jacket, jeans and T-shirt wearing Doctor had just been part of a catastrophic Time War and bears the marks of the battle. He is angry, often aggressive and pretty impatient. Unlike the Classic Doctors, he is not eccentric. But he is also charming, with a blinding smile and a child-like glee that is infectious.
First appears in: The first episode, Rose, of the first series.
His favourite phrase: “Fantastic!”

THE TENTH DOCTOR
David Tennant
Voted the best Doctor by many Whovians, Ten, as he is often referred to by fans, brought to the Doctor the perfect mix of childlike innocence and menace, kindness and cruelty, humour and pathos. His pin-stripe suits and trainers, messy hair and the glasses have become iconic.
First appears in: The climax moment of the 2005 series finale The Parting of the Ways.
His favourite phrase: “Allons-y”, “Wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey”, “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry”, “What? What?! WHAT?!”

HIS GADGETS
TARDIS: Acronym for Time and Relative Dimension in Space, the TARDIS is the Doctor’s ‘ship’. It resembles a blue police call box and is much “bigger on the inside”. The inside of the TARDIS also changes with each regeneration.

Sonic Screwdriver: The Doctor has an apathy for arms. His signature gadget is a sonic screwdriver, a multi-function device that does everything from picking locks to disarming weapons and scanning.

THE ELEVENTH DOCTOR
Matt Smith
He made tweed jackets cool... and fezzes...and bow ties... and braces. More alien-like than the previous Doctors, he was childlike, energetic, eccentric and reckless. He was also deceptive and manipulative, but at the same time lovable. Oh, and he loved fish fingers and custard, something he termed Fish Custard.
First appears in: The final scene of End of Time.
His favourite phrase: “Geronimo” and “Yowzah!”

THE TWELFTH DOCTOR
Peter Capaldi
The oldest Doctor in the new series, Capaldi’s Doctor is more alien and more menacing than the three that went before him. He doesn’t understand humans and is not particularly concerned about what they think of him. He is energetic and wise-cracking, but also dangerous. And he has “attack eyebrows”. 
First appears in: The 50th anniversary special, The Day of the Doctor.
His favourite phrase: “Pudding brain”.

THE VILLAINS

 

The villains — human and alien — that the Doctor comes up against are an integral part of Doctor Who.

The Master: A renegade Time Lord and the nemesis of the Doctor, the Master has appeared at various points throughout the series, and like the Doctor he can regenerate. In the new Doctor Who series he first appears in The Sound of Drums. 

The Cybermen: Among the most recurring enemies the Doctor faces. A race of cyborgs, the Cybermen are interested in increasing their numbers by converting others into cyborgs through a process called upgrading. 

The Daleks: A race of genetically engineered mutants from the planet of Skaro, the Daleks consider the Doctor one of their greatest enemies. They consider themselves the most superior of races and want to exterminate all other ‘lowly’ life forms.

The Silence: A religious order founded by Tasha Lem, Mother Superious of the Papal Mainframe, who try to kill the Doctor to prevent the fulfilment of a prophecy. They are humanoids with an alien-like appearance. Humans who see them forget about them the moment they look away.

The Weeping Angels: One of the scariest enemies the Doctor has gone up against, they will make you afraid to blink. The angels are statues who move when you are not looking at them directly and they zap you into the past and feed off the “potential energy” created.

Chandreyee Chatterjee
Doctor Who airs Monday to Friday on FX at 9pm

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