By Matthew Gibbons
‘Timeless’ is a cliche adjective for British literary classics, the texts they made us study for English – think Dracula, Frankenstein, or Sherlock Holmes. Characters such as these are undeniably memorable though, inspiring endless reimaginings for over a century. Despite the many stylistic changes in popular adaptations basing the original concepts around contemporary trends and culture, there is always a recognisable identity to these characters. Dracula will always be the definitive vampire, Sherlock Holmes will always be the genius detective, and ‘Frankenstein’ transcends context completely! This kind of legacy merits a ‘timeless’ status.
To be timeless then, is not to be unchanging. Something can still be timeless so long as it has an identity that is unaffected by the passage of time, even if it does undergo changes in expression…so what could be more timeless than the everlasting journey of a mysterious traveller, exploring all of space and time with ordinary humans like us?
Doctor Who, the British science fiction television show that launched on November 23rd 1963, remains an influential cult classic to this day. Although considerably younger than the aforementioned Intellectual Properties (IPs), at the time of writing it has over 62 years of real-world history. Within that time it has demonstrated a unique timelessness that sets it apart from other IPs:
Firstly, Doctor Who has infinite potential by nature. Although generally a sci-fi show, the TARDIS (the titular Doctor’s time machine) can go anywhere and anywhen in spacetime, from the birth of the Earth to the end of the universe – and it has! From faraway alien worlds to the Stone Age, Victorian London and near-future colonies in space, the Wild West and William Shakespeare, the possibilities really are endless! One glance at any given series on BBC IPlayer will prove that Doctor Who has immense narrative freedom – for example, in just the first three episodes of 2008’s Series 4 we go from Partners In Crime, an alien conspiracy story set in present-day London, to The Fires of Pompeii, a historical doomsday epic, and then Planet of the Ood, a far-future adventure on a planet colonised by humans. Series 4 also features Midnight, the popular psychological horror episode almost entirely set in a single room!
Secondly, Doctor Who is uniquely interconnected, with a single continuity spanning almost all of its official media (if you can clearly draw a line between what counts as ‘official’ or not!) Fan projects are abundant, but even if we exclude them, Doctor Who is different. Unlike most other IPs, instead of undergoing reboots and remakes every ten years, Doctor Who retains its past, even if there is supposedly no canon. From its humble beginnings as a family show with educational elements, to the ups and downs in viewership and production budgets over the years – even outright cancellation of the show and a 16 year hiatus – Doctor Who perseveres as a concept that entertains and inspires a fanbase of millions.
Even if Doctor Who is a timeless idea that can infinitely return in new ways, it is still a fictional IP subject to criticism, controversy and contemporary culture and politics. Like any good science fiction, Doctor Who reflects its audience – and in over six decades the values, beliefs and attitudes of both audiences and creators have changed significantly. At its best, Doctor Who transcends context and provides meaningful stories for multiple audiences, but many parts of the show have become dated. This can happen because of lackluster special effects, obvious references to things that aren’t relevant anymore, or offensive language that was normalized at the time of production. Even as recently as 2024 we can find blatant examples that won’t age well, from the uncanny CGI animated mouths of the cringeworthy Space Babies, or the repeated mentions of ‘Bridgerton’ in Rogue, so painfully on the nose that they have broken the proverbial proboscis. When there are repeated examples of moments that don’t age well, it defines the show more negatively for most audiences, and especially fans.
Fans are the audience most affected by Doctor Who’s timelessness (or lack of it) because the problem with Doctor Who’s timelessness is also its greatest appeal: it can never end. As they are the most charmed by the endless possibilities of the show, fans are also the most disillusioned when the show changes. Imagine becoming deeply invested in the world(s) and characters of a story for years, only to have it all lost with a replaced cast, a different writing direction and a changed production style, mimicking the same idea but without the things you became attached to. The longevity of the show guarantees that it will keep receiving new fans, often children, but at the same time many older fans become distant and move on.
Impermanence is one of the only permanent things about the IP. Fan frustration is heightened when new storylines actively undermine previous stories or outright contradict established lore, and online discourse surrounding the show seems to have become increasingly divisive in the last decade. When you have decades of history and generations of fans comparing and judging whatever is happening now to the version of Doctor Who that they grew up with – be that ten, twenty, or even fifty years ago – the fanbase becomes more tribalistic. To some, ‘Classic Who’ (1963-1989) and ‘NuWho’ (2005-2022) are incomparably different things, and the current run of the show has often been cited as the worst content the IP has ever produced. Even the very ‘vibe’ of Series 1 (2005) is different from Series 5 (2010), owing to the literal differences in camera resolution – they fundamentally look and feel different because of the filming, never mind differences in writing and direction. Even for the most dedicated fans who like every part of Doctor Who, the show has undeniably transformed many times, and in longer time spans that will inevitably harm the timelessness of the show as the world changes.
So, what this article considers to be ‘timeless’ must be the idea of Doctor Who, not Doctor Who itself. As such, the subjective experience of Doctor Who will be entirely different for everyone, being passed onto different writers and actors every few years. The style and genre of the show will change, creating different first impressions for different audiences experiencing the show for the first time, in different years.
However – if all of these subjective experiences of the show are so memorable, creating long-lasting feelings…is that not itself timeless? Does that not mean that every interpretation of the show is timeless, even if only to a single person? Perhaps the objective timelessness of the show is rooted in the most basic iteration of its concept, but if a particular version of the story, a particular version of the character stays with a person’s thoughts, values and ideas for being memorable, inspiring, even educational…then is that not also a subjective timelessness, in that the impact of that particular Doctor Who lasts forever?
In a sense then, all of Doctor Who is Timeless – every single different incarnation, every single different run, every single different interpretation. I think there’s a beauty in that which we could find valuable in a time when derision, division and extremism dominate public discourse on something as trivial as everybody’s favourite British sci-fi show. Doctor Who is timeless, because it can be more than one thing.
‘We’re capable of the most incredible change. We can evolve while still staying true to who we are. We can honour who we’ve been and choose who we want to be next. Now’s your chance’
-The 13th Doctor, The Woman Who Fell To Earth
Photo by Dante Candal on Unsplash