Dalekmania

Well it's Friday and the last day of my course.

We finished at lunchtime, so I took a bus to Cardiff Bay to look at the Doctor Who Exhibition that's on there.

I wasn't on the bus long, when it pulled up outside, what can only be described as a aircraft hanger. A huge building with the "Doctor Who Experience" blazoned across it.

I went in and paid my entrance fee. I was told that the next tour starts shortly, so I went to their cafe and had some lunch. A peri peri chicken panini.

At half two, around twenty of us gathered at the entrance, where we were told that we would be going on a journey with the Doctor. We were also told, not to him or photograph it, as it would spoil it for others. "Spoilers" as River Song often stated.

The adventure lasted about thirty minutes, then we were let loose in the museum part. Two floors of sets, costumes, monsters and props. And permission to take as many photos as we liked.

Where to start. It was like being in a sweet shop. I remember visiting the one they used to have in Blackpool. And it was not as good as this. Very light and airy, with daylight balanced bulbs, so no colour casting on my photos.

Naturally the exhibits leant towards the new series, rather than the original, which I grew up with. Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker etc.

I spent a good couple of hours there, but was conscious of the three hour journey back home. I could have stayed there all day, looking and reading about everything.  Still it was a great conclusion to a busy week.

Who Goes There?

1963 was a momentous year for several reasons; firstly I was born, Kennedy was assassinated and the longest running science fiction series in the world began; the one and only (or 12) Doctor Who.

Today marks his 50th birthday, as it was way back on November 23rd, that the UK tuned in to the BBC and the famous theme tune and swirly intro began for the first time.
A simple story of two nosy teachers who followed one of their pupils called Susan back to her home, as she seemed to know too much about things for the average teenager. And what was home, but a blue Police box standing inside a junk yard.

After meeting Susan's rather grumpy grandfather, they stumble inside this Police box, which for some reason appears to be bigger on the inside than the outside. And so begins the legend of the Tardis, and the Doctor flying around the universe, past, present and future, fighting Daleks, Cybermen, Ice Warriors, the Master and al kinds of madmen intent on world domination.

My introduction to the world of the Doctor began in about 1972, with Jon Pertwee. And I have been a fan ever since. I wonder if you can guess who is my favourite incarnation of the Timelord from my photo clues?

Yes of course it's Tom Baker. Doctor number 4 1974-1981.

Fish Fingers And Custard

Fish fingers and custard may be one of the Doctor's favourite meals; besides jelly babies of course, but I don't think too many people will try making that particular dish themselves, even if they use items from Lakeland's new range of Dalek and TARDIS cookware.

I spotted this rather eye-catching display in their window at our local branch on Wheelergate today. I bet there's many a Doctor Who fan would love to have that TARDIS display stand to keep, and I reckon quite a few people have been in enquiring whether they could put their name on it.

It's actually something that I used to do when I was younger. Sometimes they would say yes, and other times they would say no. Although sometimes when they said no, they did explain that the item was going to go to the children's ward at the local hospital. So i didn't mind.

If you are interested in seeing what the full range of cookware items looks like, then here is a LINK to the Lakeland website.

Lighting Up Time

Tonight saw Nottingham city centre lit up once again, as it was the annual Light Night festival. The yearly event where buildings are used as cinema screens, strange things pop up in all sorts of places and it is generally very cold.

Well this year was no different. The castle was tonight's backdrop, where a group calling themselves 'Elemental Force' projected a show containing animation, photos and pyrotechnics. It seemed to relay the history of Nottingham, and included of course Robin Hood, lace making and Raleigh bikes.

I was pleased to see that the Daleks and the Tardis were making a return visit. They looked very good last year standing next to the Robin Hood statue, where they were trying to terrify the fabled outlaw. This year they were placed outside the Theatre Royal. I must admit it didn't look so good. Possibly because where they were was quite bright, and so they lost some of their impact, as where they were before was quite atmospheric and darker, so they all stood out more.

Still I suppose I shouldn't complain, as we were lucky to get anything with the continuing cuts in finances and relative poor state of the economy, as it is funding for the arts that always seemed to get trimmed first, rather than say sport.