Memories of the Seventh Doctor

Thank you to all those who responded to our requests for your thoughts and memories of the Seventh Doctor...

1987 was a strange old year. I was living in Manchester, playing the part of wannabe Rock Star and struggling author. My love for my childhood show was at an all time low; the previous season had scarred me deeply and my eyes had still to reset themselves after THAT costume, so it was with little enthusiasm I sat down to watch this ‘new guy.’
Initial impressions were not good but despite the derision of my peers I persevered. Slowly something strange occurred and by the time of Remembrance of The Daleks I had come to love this darkly comic, suspicious little man. Battlefield, Ghost light and Fenric cemented these feelings and, truth be told, I may have shed a tear at the end scene of Survival..

I find it ironic that for something that got so many things wrong, the TV Movie actually delivered a touching and suitably violent goodbye to perhaps the darkest doctor of them all (get back in your cupboard Eccleston!)The opening scenes in the Tardis shall stay with me forever…

By @KneelDowne

brian tapparno-clark @badwolfbrian
Always been my favourite Doctor. Know i seem to be in the minority here. There are some good stories like Fenric & Ghostlight

brian tapparno-clark @badwolfbrian

I just thought he was great loved the interaction between him and Sophie plus loved the darker side he portrayed #underrated

Cory Eadson @TimeLord89

The finale of Battlefield. A lovely little moment between the Doctor and the Brig. Marvellous! #dwbar #memoriesof7

Daniel White @Dr_Who_Con_Fans

My memories of the seventh doctor are as follows: brilliant and innovative yet very dark. Manipulative in achieving his aims and loyal to his companions. Brilliant stories Sylvester through himself into the role yet is regarded by some as the least popular Doctor. People rubbish his tenure and wrongly so. He was a victim of the BBCs shunting the program to midweek.

Martin Carle @who_martin

7th dr, was the most entertaining to watch and the one that went through several emotions in 1 episode.

Daniel White @Dr_Who_Con_Fans

@who_martin totally agree to write off his tenure and stories is wrong some of them and his doctor was riveting

Martin Carle @who_martin

@Dr_Who_Con_Fans In a way he also kept dr who going right up until its end in 1989.

Martin Carle @who_martin

@Dr_Who_Con_Fans yes, his 7th into 8th dr regenneration was a sight to behold, he just does 1 of his many faces.CloseAndrew Buckley @bluerockquarry

@7thDocisAce

a superb Doctor/Companion team. Seasons 25 and 26 among the best in the original run!!

sasha hale @sassysashsash

@7thDocisAce McCoy was my doctor as when I was a kid x the best! he made u wish u could be his companion & scream at the tv on edge of seats and crave the next week 2hurry up. he also made u feel alive and u could do anything if u put your mind to it! loved his firm but fair manor

James Hadwen @jameshscience

I think I'm in the minority but I prefer the season 24 McCoy to the other two seasonsI think it's mostly because it's a portrayal more suited to McCoy's acting ability. He does the clown so well. But he doesn't resort to "angry acting" where he goes too shouty. He's mischievous rather than manipulative

Feel free to leave you comments about the Seventh Doctor below...

10 Facts about Sylvester McCoy!

1. Sylvester McCoy became the Seventh Doctor after taking over the lead role of ‘The Doctor’ in 1987 from previous incarnation Colin Baker. He remained on the series until it ended in 1989.


2. As Colin Baker declined the invitation to film the regeneration scene, Sylvester briefly wore a wig and appeared as the 6th Doctor in the regeneration scene.


3. He played the Doctor in the 1993 charity special Dimensions in Time, and again in 1996, appearing in the beginning of the Doctor Who television movie starring Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor.


4. In his first series, Sylvester portrayed the character with a degree of clown-like humour, but script editor Andrew Cartmel soon changed that when fans argued that the character and plots were becoming increasingly lightweight.


5. The Seventh Doctor developed into a much darker figure than any of his earlier incarnations, manipulating people like chess pieces and always seeming to be playing a deeper game.


6. A distinguishing feature of McCoy's performances was his manner of speech. He used his natural slight Scottish accent and rolled his R’s.


7. In 1990, readers of Doctor Who Magazine voted McCoy's Doctor "Best Doctor", over perennial favourite Tom Baker.


8. The 7th Doctor was the last Incarnation to have his face in the opening titles of the show.


9. The 10th Doctor Two–Part Story ‘Human Nature’ and ‘Family of Blood’ was an adaptation of a ‘Virgin New Adventure’ originally written for the 7th Doctor called ‘Human Nature’.


10. McCoy is acknowledged as the actor who played the Doctor for a longer period of time than any other.

The Seventh Doctor era is noted for the ‘Virgin New Adventures’, a range of original novels published from 1992 to 1997, taking the series beyond the television serials. It is also noted for the cancellation of Doctor Who after 26 years on British TV.

A sketch of The Seventh Doctor is later seen in John Smith's ‘A Journal of Impossible Things’ in the new series 2007 episode "Human Nature". Brief holographic clips of the Seventh Doctor appear in "The Next Doctor" and "The Eleventh Hour".

A Controversial Doctor?

Played by an actor more familiar to the general public for sticking nails up his nose, Sylvester McCoy was brought to the attention of producer John Nathan-Turner whilst McCoy was playing the Pied Piper.

For those of you that have the DVD of Time of the Rani you can clearly see why JNT wanted McCoy for the role, as he gives a fantastic performance in his audition for the role against former companion Janet Fielding who played a Thatcherite dictator. McCoy has the same gravitas that we wouldn’t see on screen until his later seasons.

I think it is a shame that McCoy came into the role when the show was struggling. JNT was who-ed out. The BBC wanted to axe the program and his early stories were either written for Colin Baker or an unknown Doctor. Like Jon Pertwee, who was also known as a comedian, he wanted to play the part straight. But the early scripts were written before the character of the Seventh Doctor was established or defined. So we see plenty of mixed metaphors, pratfalling and spoon playing,

As the script editor gained more control over the series he put his “master plan” into action to add more mystery into the character, which had been lost over the past decade.

Remembrance of the Daleks, McCoy has said, was the first story that he felt at ease with the character. Here we see a Doctor manipulating events, far more than ever before. We seem to have been dropped in the middle of the story, rather than the Doctor arriving by accident. This was something explored further in the Virgin New Adventures.

Seventh Doctor Week in @TheDoctorWhoBar

As some of our regular fans have recently asked to watch some stories from the Sylvester McCoy Era, we thought we would have a Seventh Doctor theme this week.

Later this week we will be posting some articles about the Seventh Doctor...

Meanwhile you can choose from a selection of his stories. We have selected stories that we haven't seen for a while.

Time and the Rani is quite a sound story from Pip and and Jane Baker. It's better than people give it credit for. Bare in mind that it was written before Sylvester was cast in the role. If you look beyond Mel's screaming you will find that she is a loyal companion. The effects are surprisingly good for its era.

Remembance of the Daleks is an amazing Dalek story and a social comment on the early Sixties. Ben Arronovitch really understood the essence of the Daleks. It is the event that arguably kicked of the Time War...

Silver Nemesis: The 25th anniversary story. It shows the Doctor at his manipulative best with some shiny Cybermen!

If you look closely at the sight seers who are touring around Windsor castle, you might get a surprise! None other than Vere Lorimer, Nicholas Courtney, Fiona Cumming, Peter Moffatt and Kevin Clarke himself!

The Greatest Show in the Galaxy. Continuing the Ace arc, that made this era really interesting, the Doctor takes Ace to the Psychic Circus after receiving some space junk mail, so that she can face her fears. Behind the scenes asbestos was discovered at BBC Television Centre, so they could not use a studio. So they pitched pitched up a real circus tent in the car park at BBC Elstree. I think this gave the scenes a terrific atmosphere, which they might not have got in studio.

Battlefield sees the return of the Brigadier in his final meeting with the Doctor, in a version of the sword and the stone.

Ghost Light is an intriguing story by Marc Platt. It shows a dark and mysterious Doctor once again manipulating events and getting Ace to face her demons.

Survival sees the return of the Master and the final story of the show's original run. The Doctor finally takes Ace back to her home town of Perivale. Her old friends are being kidnapped by a race of alien hunters called the Cheetah People..

So take your pick from the above stories, vote on the poll and join The Doctor Who Bar from 7.30pm on Twitter and we will press play on our own DVDs or videos at 8pm, to stay in sync.

Meanwhile if you have any memories of this era or stories of meeting Sylvester McCoy, Bonnie Langford and Sophie Aldred then let us know in the comments below.