During a visit to the UK last week, I discovered the odd police box, silently waiting at different points through London. With less than a month to go before the official 50th Anniversary of “Doctor Who,” I found the British capital ramping up for the climax of the yearlong celebration.
The 90-minute special marking the world’s oldest science fiction television show will air November 23. That’s giving fans of this giant of UK culture a few more weeks to salute The Doctor.
Since there’s still time to celebrate the Time Lord’s birthday, here are the UK events still up and running leading up to Nov. 23 and “The Day of The Doctor” — direct from VisitEngland and UK tourism authorities.
Tours and Whovian Hotspots
London is packed with thrills for “Doctor Who” fans. The Doctor has been fighting foes in the city for years and now you can visit the locations from the series.
Brit Movie Tours offers a Doctor Who Walking Tour, taking visitors on a capital adventure looking at “Doctor Who” locations from the past 50 years, accompanied by a Whovian expert guide. Visitors will get to glimpse 15 ‘set-jetting’ locations, including sites featured in “Doctor Who” stories “The Invasion,” “Remembrance of the Daleks” and “Rose.”
Tours run at over the 50th anniversary weekend, 23-24 November. Tours last approximately 2 1/2 hours and cost £12 for adults and £10 for children.
Many of the capital’s iconic landmarks have taken center stage in recent times. When The Doctor met Shakespeare, they filmed inside Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre. Today, the Globe Exhibition and Tour gives visitors an opportunity to channel their inner David Tennant and learn more about this unique building and its most famous playwright.
Even the most upmarket addresses in London have been featured in “Doctor Who.” Buckingham Palace narrowly missed being hit by the Spaceship Titanic in the 2007 Christmas special “Voyage of the Damned” while the Slitheen infiltrated 10 Downing Street in the 2005 episode “Aliens of London.”
Outside the capital, Stonehenge took a staring role in the final episode of Season 5. It seems only natural that the sci-fi smash should finally team up with one of England’s most enigmatic and mysterious sites. In the episode, the historic landmark becomes an underground prison for the universe’s most deadly being — The Doctor himself.
These days, visitors to the awe-inspiring World Heritage Site can get up close and personal with the ancient stones. Stone Circle Access-visits provide the opportunity to go into the center of the stone circle, not possible during normal opening hours. Tickets cost £16.30 for adults and £9.80 for children.
In Search of The Infamous Blue Box
If you like The Doctor, you love nothing more than a quick jaunt through time and space, you’ll find a blue police phone box parked near Earl’s Court Station in London. Any day of week, large groups of tourists and fans alike can be seen outside the TARDIS-like landmark, taking advantage of this unique photo opportunity.
Not to be outdone, the National Space Museum in Leicester will hold “Science of the Time Lords” on 16 November. This event will take a closer look at time travel, teleportation and robots, providing children and adults alike with all the information they’ll need to stop the next alien invasion.
Three of the Doctor’s former companions, Sophie Aldred, Nicola Bryant and Louise Jameson, will all be on hand during the day to offer budding Time Lords expert advice and insider tips. In addition, voice of the Daleks and Cybermen Nicholas Briggs will return to the National Space Centre with the Monster Challenge, giving visitors the opportunity to try out the Ring Modulator, the device used on the show to create the perfect alien voice. Tickets cost £13 for adults and £11 for children.
In Herefordshire, The Time Machine Museum of Science Fiction has a permanent “Doctor Who” exhibition. This collection of Who props and costumes is open throughout 2013 and is widely considered to be one of the finest anywhere in the world, with many items on show from both the classic and the new “Doctor Who” series, including costumes from David Tennant’s last ever episode, “The End of Time.”
The Museum also features collections dedicated to other sci-fi favorites, including Star Wars and “Red Dwarf.” This quirky museum is open every day during bank holidays and school holidays. Outside of the holidays, the Museum is open Wednesday to Sunday from April to September. Admission costs £8 for adults and £6 for children.
Finally, from 22 – 24 November, ExCel London will get a whole lot bigger on the inside as the stars and monsters from “Doctor Who” take over for three out-of-this-world days. A gateway to a whole universe of adventure, the official Doctor Who 50th Celebration will bring together panel sessions with stars from five decades of space and time travel — promising plenty of behind the scenes information from the production team and crew who’ve been bringing the magic to our screens for 50 years.
The Doctor Who Celebration will be presenting Walk Like a Monster workshops every day, and visitors will even be able to design their own monster with the artists and team from the official “Doctor Who” magazine Doctor Who Adventures. The presentation is sponsored by “The Doctor Who Experience,” an exhibit of props and other memorabilia from the show’s rich history on permanent display in Cardiff.
Standard tickets for the Celebration cost £49.04 for adults and £22.12 for children.
