What is Doctor Who?
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television series produced by the BBC since 1963. It follows the Doctor, a time-traveling alien known as a Time Lord, who explores time and space in the TARDIS, a ship shaped like a police box.
The first episode aired on 23 November 1963. The original series ran until 1989, and the show was revived in 2005, becoming hugely popular again.
The Doctor can regenerate into a new body when near death, allowing different actors to play the role. This clever idea has kept the series going for decades.
Doctors and villains
Many actors have played the Doctor, including William Hartnell, Tom Baker, David Tennant, Matt Smith, Jodie Whittaker, the first woman in the role, and Ncuti Gatwa.
Famous villains include the Daleks, metal creatures who shout exterminate, and the Cybermen.
The TARDIS, which stands for Time and Relative Dimension in Space, is bigger on the inside than the outside. Its blue police box design is an icon of British television.
Doctor Who is listed by Guinness World Records as the longest-running science fiction television series. It has a large worldwide fan base, known as Whovians, and has inspired spin-offs, books and audio dramas.