# SciFi Channel picks up Doctor Who



## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

From TV Shows on DVD:

*Doctor Who - Reason for delay explained - Sci-Fi Channel picks up series*


> Two days ago we posted news that the February 14 release of Doctor Who had been pulled from the schedule, and today we know why; Sci-Fi Channel has picked up the series and will begin airing it later this year. BBC has moved the release date to July 4, 2006 to gain more publicity for the box set, and to allow Sci-Fi to air the series before they release it on DVD.


FULL ARTICLE HERE

From SciFi Wire:

*SCI FI To Air New Doctor Who*


> SCI FI Channel announced Jan. 12 that it will air the first season of the BBC's hit SF series Doctor Who, starting in March. The 13 episodes, starring Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor and Billie Piper as Rose Tyler, will air as part of SCI FI Fridays at 9 p.m. ET/PT.


FULL ARTICLE HERE

From Outpost Gallifrey:



> At long last... America will finally get the first season of the new Doctor Who television series, according to a press release on the official Doctor Who website. The US-based Sci-Fi Channel, owned by NBC Universal, has secured a deal to broadcast the 13 episodes in America starting in March, beginning on what Outpost Gallifrey believes is likely March 17 (the week after the season finales of the popular "Battlestar Galactica" and two "Stargate" shows), at 9:00pm Friday nights, and it will likely conclude at some point in mid-to-late June in time for Sci-Fi's summer premieres of those shows. The press release notes that Sci-Fi has an option for series two, likely to be acted upon after initial ratings come in


FULL ARTICLE HERE


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

Definately good news. I will still probably buy the DVDs when they come out later, but will very much like having the opportunity to watch them first on Sci-Fi.


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

Good News for US Doctor Who fans today, as the BBC have signed a huge deal with Sci-Fi Channel USA to screen Series 1 of the new Doctor Who. Starting in March at 9pm on the Sci Friday spot.

NBC/Universal have the option to buy series 2.

www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho

www.scifi.com/scifiwire


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

I was just thinking... I wonder if this also means that it will be shown on the UniversalHD channel in widescreen (if the BBC program is in widescreen that is)?


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## pjmrt (Jul 17, 2003)

WooHoooo!

If it starts in the Friday evening slot - does this mean SciFi is dropping one of the other Friday night regulars - Battlestar, Star Gate or Atlantis?


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## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

_Because this relates to programming, and there is already a pre-existing thread, I have merged the two threads together. - *Holtz*_


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

pjmrt said:


> WooHoooo!
> 
> If it starts in the Friday evening slot - does this mean SciFi is dropping one of the other Friday night regulars - Battlestar, Star Gate or Atlantis?


I suspect that the timing of things will allow the current new seasons of the Friday night lineup to complete, then Doctor Who will start airing instead of repeats of the just finished seasons of the other programs.


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

HDMe said:


> I was just thinking... I wonder if this also means that it will be shown on the UniversalHD channel in widescreen (if the BBC program is in widescreen that is)?


Under Royal Charter of 1995, All programming on the BBC filmed after 1998 was in 16:9 widescreen. (It is very rare to see a show recorded in 4:3 now in the UK 80% of the networks broadcast in widescreen). As of 2004 most shows started recording in HD PAL.


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## invaliduser88 (Apr 23, 2002)

Good news indeed. But, I'll still be watch series 2 via Internet this spring...

It they continue to run Stargates and Galactica with new episodes, they should finish this season in mid March.


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## BobMurdoch (Apr 24, 2002)

HDMe said:


> I suspect that the timing of things will allow the current new seasons of the Friday night lineup to complete, then Doctor Who will start airing instead of repeats of the just finished seasons of the other programs.


It sounds like they ae going to go the HBO route..... Air 10-13 eps in a row, then put Dr. Who on for 10-13, and then go back to Atlantis.

Right now, most of us tune out from SciFi Friday when they are in rerun mode..... This will allow them to keep us coming back.....


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

BobMurdoch said:


> It sounds like they ae going to go the HBO route..... Air 10-13 eps in a row, then put Dr. Who on for 10-13, and then go back to Atlantis.
> 
> Right now, most of us tune out from SciFi Friday when they are in rerun mode..... This will allow them to keep us coming back.....


I've been torn about how Sci-Fi does their shows like this. On the one hand, I like getting a bunch of new shows in a row without repeats... and in this case, one season ends and Doctor Who new episodes will begin. Cool!

BUT... as someone who has at times tuned into a series late in the game... I wonder if they are hurting new viewership by not showing reruns? I mean, if you haven't watched Galactica but hear about it... when would you be able to tune in and see the old episodes you missed?

This happened to me with USA's Dead Zone, which they basically never show reruns... I had missed the third season, so I bought 1-2 on DVD... I eventually bought Season 3 on DVD and was able to watch it all the week before they began season 4 last year... but noticed they never repeated any of Season 3 on USA.. so new viewers who saw commercials would never be able to try it out to like it!


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## mhking (Oct 28, 2002)

Doctor Who is set to start when SG-1/Atlantis/BSG finish their runs.


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

I wonder when they will start running ads for it? and add it to the Scifi website?


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## Danny R (Jul 5, 2002)

_BUT... as someone who has at times tuned into a series late in the game... I wonder if they are hurting new viewership by not showing reruns? _

SciFi usually repeats the hell out of shows during the weekly daytime hours, so even though they won't show them during the primetime Friday slot, you would likely still be able to tune in and watch the whole season sometime else during the week during the off season.


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## DTC mac (Oct 23, 2005)

A minor point...do not call it the first season simply because there was a hiatus of 15 years.


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## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

Blame it on the BBC policies.


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

DTC mac said:


> A minor point...do not call it the first season simply because there was a hiatus of 15 years.


The die hard fans call it *Season 36* or what ever it would be. But the BBC call it Season 1 of the re-launch.


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## DTC mac (Oct 23, 2005)

Ah make that season 27, season 26 ended in 1989 with "Survival". The TV movie does not count ( for anything IMHO ) therefore the hiatus ended in 2005


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

Actualy if you look at the BBC site it says the TV Movie did count.


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## DTC mac (Oct 23, 2005)

Anything canadian produced NEVER counts, just ask Harlan Ellison about "The Starlost".

The TV movie was an abortive attempt to restart the series and rightly crashed and burned as it strayed too far from the roots and production values of the original.


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

I agree with you but as the BBC had a hand in it and, as you see Sylvester McCoy (7th) change from his doctor to Paul McGann (8th).

Then in the UK Paul McGann did Doctor Who Radio Show, and Audio Cassettes. Paul would not return though to become Christopher Eccleston (9th) in the new series.

The BBC see this as official Doctor Who timeline


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## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

The movie does count. Paul McGann is the eight doctor.


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

All i will say to the People who have not seen it, is just wait till Episode 6. It is buy far one of the best, but then the whole series was great.


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

DTC mac said:


> Ah make that season 27, season 26 ended in 1989 with "Survival". The TV movie does not count ( for anything IMHO ) therefore the hiatus ended in 2005


All we need now is a Network to show Seasons 1-27 back to back a Doctor Who Channel


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

Season Two. _*The Cybermen are coming!*_


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

BBC doctor who site has posted a 2 minute snip from a BBC Wales radio broadcast from the Exec Producer of the Show about the sale of Doctor Who to Sci Fi http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/news/cult/news/drwho/2006/01/13/28760.shtml


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## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

http://www.scifi.com/schedulebot/index.php3?date=17-MAR-2006&feed_req=


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## Danny R (Jul 5, 2002)

UKintheUS said:


> All we need now is a Network to show Seasons 1-27 back to back a Doctor Who Channel


That would be nice but I doubt we'll ever see it happen. Also some early episodes have been permanently lost, with only the audio and a few photo captures remaining of the stories.

Lucky for me I've managed to obtain electronic versions of all the episodes on my own via trades and downloads and buying what DVD's are available and have been watching the shows on my own.

If anyone wants a copy, PM me.


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

I've been buying the DVDs as they are released too... I just wish they would release them in a more orderly manner instead of jumping around.

I know some episodes are lost, or have missing scenes... but if they could at least start from the beginning and go to the end and release all that does exist, I would be happy.

I don't mind them releasing each story as a "movie" if they don't want to do season sets (they did one season set with the "Key to Time" season)... but I would like to get a bunch in order so I can watch them in order.

There are a lot of stories that refer to other stories, so its kind of nice to be able to watch in order.


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## DTC mac (Oct 23, 2005)

Releasing in order would be poor marketing. The quality of some certain stories would mean certain releases would sell disasterously and affect the decision to release further titles.

After all it takes "True Grit" to stomach all four episodes of "The Gunfighters"


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

DTC mac said:


> Releasing in order would be poor marketing. The quality of some certain stories would mean certain releases would sell disasterously and affect the decision to release further titles.
> 
> After all it takes "True Grit" to stomach all four episodes of "The Gunfighters"


I don't see how... IF you use that logic (that some series would not sell hardly at all)... then it implies there would never be any motivation to release them.  IF they are released out of order, after all the high-volume releases... then it still wouldn't sell any better.

The only people buying these DVDs of Dr Who are die-hard fans anyway... and they are either like me and want them all OR they are only going to buy the ones that are their favorites.

The order of the release in this case I suspect has very little to do with actual volume of sales. It is a pretty much known quantity.


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## Danny R (Jul 5, 2002)

Besides, the whole problem of potentially poor episodes not selling is simply to release season sets or complete Doctor sets (although Tom Baker would need some breaking up), rather than individual episodes.


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

Anyone think Scifi will do a lowdown? I mean with a history of the show and what not for the younger US generation?


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

Danny R said:


> Besides, the whole problem of potentially poor episodes not selling is simply to release season sets or complete Doctor sets (although Tom Baker would need some breaking up), rather than individual episodes.


I bought the "Key to Time" season when it came out... it was basically the same as the individual stories (including identical packaging) but inside a slipcase that held them all. I can't remember if there was a cheaper price for the whole set vs each individual story, as they were also made available separately.

Season sets would be nice... except now that they have gone down this path, I hope they continue individually so I wouldn't have to buy anything twice!

I never heard if the "Key to Time" season sold better/worse than the other Tom Baker releases... but so far that's the only one they released as a season. I guess they did that because of the season-long storyline that season and not to test the waters for season sets.


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

UKintheUS said:


> Anyone think Scifi will do a lowdown? I mean with a history of the show and what not for the younger US generation?


That would be nice... Perhaps the week before the first episode, have a 1 hr documentary or something that gives a quick catch-up and basic history of the series. It might help draw in some of the newer viewers.


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## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

At least with the Doctor Who DVDs, each episode gets restored and, most of the time, bonus material is added. In some cases, they use alternative scenes that are CGI rendered. Yes, there is an occassional musical substitution because of rights issues.


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

*Scifi now have a link for Doctor Who. Although it is not up and running yet.*

www.scifi.com/doctorwho


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## DTC mac (Oct 23, 2005)

OT

Another BBC "cannon" that apalls me is the flash animation version of "Shada", the previously released reconstructed/linked video was as Douglas Adams wrote it and, to my taste, preferrable.


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## bavaria72 (Jun 10, 2004)

Maybe they need to develop a 2 hour "Doctor Who Primer" for the US prior to the new show. Heck, even if they showed "The Five Doctors" that would be better than nothing.


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

Anyone seen any ads yet?


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## DTC mac (Oct 23, 2005)

NOT IMPRESSED with the latest cyberman costume "update". Why must every production designer cowtow to the retro-futuristic trend. I'd just as soon see them go back to the original cloth-face than this latest look.


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## Pepper (Mar 9, 2004)

UKintheUS said:


> *Scifi now have a link for Doctor Who. Although it is not up and running yet.*
> 
> www.scifi.com/doctorwho


Duh? That's just a 404 error.
www.scifi.com/jfkdlj$#fslk;jfds goes to the same place.

Now if you actually found that link on some other page at www.scifi.com, my apologies.


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## DTC mac (Oct 23, 2005)

UKintheUS said:


> *Scifi now have a link for Doctor Who. Although it is not up and running yet.*
> 
> www.scifi.com/doctorwho


I'd say that is a dead link from quite a while back when they were showing Tom Baker episodes.


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

Pepper said:


> Duh? That's just a 404 error.
> www.scifi.com/jfkdlj$#fslk;jfds goes to the same place.


Hey, that's my Home page!


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

Pepper said:


> Duh? That's just a 404 error.
> www.scifi.com/jfkdlj$#fslk;jfds goes to the same place.
> 
> Now if you actually found that link on some other page at www.scifi.com, my apologies.


If you got to Scifi's home page and get to Scifi shows you will find the link listed as DrWho (2005) and the link is www.scifi.com/doctorwho.

Its not made up its there.


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## rcbridge (Oct 31, 2002)

It's in the Sci-Fi schedule for March 17th at 9:00, I have seen the first 8 episodes of the new series and I (being a long time fan) enjoyed them very much.


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## ChrisPC (Jun 17, 2003)

bavaria72 said:


> Maybe they need to develop a 2 hour "Doctor Who Primer" for the US prior to the new show. Heck, even if they showed "The Five Doctors" that would be better than nothing.


They did just that about 10 years ago. They had a whole weekend, culminating with "The Five Doctors".


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

Ads for the show debut on Scifi last night.


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## UKintheUS (Dec 23, 2005)

Is is me or is BBC Worldwide (Who are in charge of selling BBC Stuff overseas) are shooting themselves in the foot.

*Friday Premiers*
*Sci-Fi Channel = 9pm EST = Doctor Who, Series Premier.
BBC America = 9:40pm EST = Little Britain, Series 3 Premier.*

Okay Scifi is NBC/Universal, but BBC Worldwide have a say in BBC America.


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

I would agree it seems like odd scheduling.... but it happens here in the US too.

Networks like FOX and WB produce TV shows that are shown on rival networks... so sometimes you have a Warner Brothers produced TV show premiering at the same time against something on the WB and they end up shooting the WB in the foot.


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## Danny R (Jul 5, 2002)

Tonights the night for the SciFi premiere.


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