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17.11.03
MPs
vote for Stephen Fry as next Doctor Who
MPs
have chosen Stephen Fry as the person they most want to become the
next Doctor Who, according to a poll carried out by Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Worldwide
to celebrate Doctor Who's 40th anniversary next Sunday (November
23rd). The Daleks were voted the scariest monsters, and a significant
proportion of MPs admitted to hiding behind the sofa while watching
Doctor Who. Their favourite Doctor was Tom Baker, who served between
December 1974 and March 1981.
One
hundred and thirty MPs responded to the poll, many of them showing
huge enthusiasm for this uniquely British institution which had
its origins in the white heat of the technological revolution of
the 1960s. It was first transmitted on November 23, 2003 the day
after the assassination of President John F Kennedy.
Who should be the next Doctor?
Stephen Fry, the multi-talented star of Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ drama Absolute Power,
Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ quiz show Qi, and director of Bright Young Things, received
the most number of votes, just beating Alan Rickman, Bill Nighy,
David Jason and former Doctor Tom Baker. A total of 78 different
names were suggested, including Eddie Izzard, Hugh Laurie and David
Bowie. Female names put forward were Zoe Wanamaker and Joanna Lumley
as joint female favourites, with runners up Caroline Quentin, Catherine
Zeta Jones, Carol Vorderman, Kate O'Mara, Patricia Routledge and
Dawn French.
Some
of the more unexpected nominations included Jeremy Paxman, William
Hague, Iain Duncan Smith, and John Peel.
Which Monsters were the most scary?
When asked which monsters they were familiar with, 95% were aware
of the Daleks, 86% of the Cybermen and 55% of the Ice Warriors.
A third of MPs were familiar with the Giant Maggots, and 45% had
heard of the Sea Devils.
The
Daleks were voted the scariest monster in Doctor Who. Of those who
were aware of the Daleks, 38% said they were the most frightening.
The Cybermen came second, with 26% nominating them as the most frightening.
Of the much smaller number who knew about the Giant Maggots (just
42), a quarter found them the most frightening. In some cases, fear
was enough to send them scuttling behind the sofa for safety. Thirty-seven
MPs (28% of the total) claimed that they had hidden behind the sofa
while watching Doctor Who.
Who
was your favourite Doctor?
The fourth and most long-serving Doctor, Tom Baker, was voted their
favourite Doctor by 44 MPs (34% of the total), making him easily
the most popular Doctor in the House. The third Doctor, Jon Pertwee,
came second, with 32 votes (25%), and in third place was Patrick
Troughton, the second Doctor, with 24 votes (18%).
Doctor
Who is an example of Great British Television becauseΒ…
Many MPs considered Doctor Who to be great British TV because it
was innovative, groundbreaking, original, unique and creative, with
36 MPs (28 %) putting it into this category. Twenty-six MPs (20%)
said they valued it because it had family appeal and the ability
to appeal to new generations. Seventeen (13%) found it funny, amusing
or endearing, 16 (12%) said it was well written with good storylines,
14 (11%) said it was classic and timeless, while 11 (8%) said it
provided good value for money. Six MPs (5%) found it addictive,
compulsive or unmissable.
BACKGROUND
The
Survey
Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Worldwide carried out the postal poll in 2003 and results were
analysed by NSM Research.
- Facts
and figures about Doctor Who
Doctor Who is one of Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Worldwide's most enduring and well-loved
brands. As well as making headlines it has continued to win awards
in 2003. The most recent include the DVD Times Awards for Best
World DVD (Doctor Who: The Tomb of the Cybermen), and the SFX
Magazine Greatest Science Fiction Character (Doctor Who).
- Throughout
its 27-year broadcasting history on Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ television, Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Who attracted
average audiences of over nine million, achieving a peak of 16.1
million.
- Doctor
Who has been shown in 60 countries around the world, from Abu
Dhabi and Algeria to Poland, Qatar, Taiwan and Zimbabwe.
- Filmmaker
Ridley Scott was the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ designer originally allocated to design
the Daleks. He never carried out the task as Raymond P Cusick,
who was able to commit for a longer period, replaced him.
- Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ
Worldwide has published well over 100 original Doctor Who novels.
The series is listed in the 2001 Guinness Book of World Records
as the largest-ever book range built around a single principle
character.
- Richard
E Grant, who plays the Doctor in cartoon form in the new Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔi
webcast, The Scream and the Shalka (launched November 13th), has
played the Time Lord before. He was one of five actors to play
the part for the 1999 Comic Relief story The Curse of Fatal Death.
- By
the end of this year, Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Worldwide will have issued 145 different
Doctor Who video titles and 19 DVD titles. All-time sales for
both formats have passed the three million mark.
- Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ
audiobooks have sold more than 250,000 audiocassettes and CDs
across 42 Doctor Who titles.
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