From: retief@iastate.edu (Jim Miller)
Subject: MONTHLY FAQ POSTING
Organization: Iowa State University, Ames IA
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1992 19:34:23 GMT


          -  The rec.arts.drwho Frequently Asked Questions List -

                                                             Updated: Apr '92
(Condensed since March, some stuff removed to save bandwidth)
CONTAINED IN THIS ARTICLE:

Where to get Who material
1.0   File list of Dr. Who FTP/mailserver site
1.0B  Pictures from Dr. Who (.GIFs)
1.0C  Other Sources

The Doctor and timelords in general
1.1 Who is Doctor Who?
1.2 What is the Doctor's name?
1.3 What is the distinction between regeneration and incarnation?
1.4 How many regenerations does a timelord get?
1.5 Regenerations - explained
1.6 How old is the Doctor?

Confusing plots and storylines
2.1 Please explain Romana's regeneration.
2.2 Was that really the White Guardian at the beginning of the Key to Time?
2.3 Was there a regeneration scene from Colin to Sylvester?
2.4 What are those extra faces in The Brain of Morbius?

Making the show
3.1 Will there be more Doctor Who? 
3.2 Will there ever be a woman Doctor?
3.3 Is David Agnew really a pseudonym for Douglas Adams?
3.4 Was Castrovalva the first Peter Davison story filmed?

Miscellaneous
4.1 What are the "missing episodes"?
4.2 Which story included John Cleese?
4.3 What is Temporal Grace?
4.4 Who will be making Who? (What is Darklight Productions?)
4.5 Where can I get more information(off net)?
4.6 What other books are recommended?
4.7 How do I get Ryan K. Johnson's fan-produced episodes of Doctor Who?
4.8 Music & Video Available (of Who relationship)

=========================================================================

FOLLOWING THIS ARTICLE:
 Another article with a list of episodes 

=========================================================================

1.0  Where to get Who material (files, guides, etc.):

Last I heard the mail server had died and I'm not sure where the ftp
site is right now(Been out of touch, sorry).  If you want something
ask for it, I'll try to know by next month.

1. Timelord list - a complete list of timelords that have appeared on DW.
                                                    ("timelords")
2. Shada info                                       ("shada")
3. Scarf patterns - knit your own scarf!            ("scarf_pattern")
4. Companion analysis by James Armstrong            ("companions")
5. Ascii pictures - Tardis, K9, dalek, and 2 logos  ("drwho_pics")
6. List of Dr. Who novels                           ("drwho_booklist")
7. Dr. Who episode lists                            ("drwho_episodes")
   (containing author list & special notes of
     interest)                                      ("drwho_guide")
8. Other roles of Dr. Who actors                    ("other_roles")
                                                    ("drwho_roles")
9. This FAQ file                                    ("drwho_FAQ")
10. The Stories of Nyssa series - all are under "nyssa_##". The ## is
    the episode #, the index is "nyssa_guide". 
11. The Romana 'n' Dave series:

    [with thanks to: Tom Golden (tgolden@cup.portal.com)
     &               Raymond Chen (rjc@math.princeton.edu)
     Note:           Comments about Romana 'n Dave should be sent to Tom.]

     And now.. the list:

     Episode Guide                                          ("romana.readme") 
     Romana-'n-Dave-related articles from Tom Golden.         ("romana_news")
     AN UNEARTHLY JOKE / THE WAD OF GUM (episodes 1 through 5)   ("wadofgum")
     REVENGE OF THE BAKER-MAN (episodes 5 through 8)             ("bakerman")
     AQUA-VALVA (episodes 9 through 13)                         ("aquavalva")
     SIGMA (THE ULTIMATE FAUX) (episode 14                          ("sigma")
     'N.', 'B.' AND 'C' (episodes 15 through 18)                      ("nbc")
     SHADAAP (episodes 19 through 22)                             ("shadaap")
     VENGEANCE ON VALIUM (episodes 23 through 26)               ("vengeance")
     THE UNDIFFERENTIATED APPENDAGE OF GENERIC ILL-FEELING (episodes 27 to 30)
                                                                ("appendage")
     THE TRIAL OF A TALK SHOW HOST (STORY 1) (episodes 31 through 35)
                                                                      ("tth1")
     THE TRIAL OF A TALK SHOW HOST (STORY 2) (episodes 36 through 40)
                                                                      ("tth2")
     THE TRIAL OF A TALK SHOW HOST (STORY 3) (episodes 41 through 44)
           						              ("tth3")


     .. and several other files of Who-relation (use 'directory' or
      'get archive' as a command to the server to see other files)..


1.0B - Dr. Who Pictures 

     Pictures are available in .gif format from:
     grind.isca.uiowa.edu (128.255.19.233)
     Login: {anonymous}
     Its in directory:  /image/gif/doctor.who

1.0C - Other Sources

     Some other DrWho information is available:

    BY E-MAIL ONLY from Jeffrey Jacobs, 
    timelord@binkley.cs.mcgill.ca, are a series of articles know as 
    The Dark Scrolls of Rassilon.  The Dark Scrolls of Rassilon 
    were a series  of creative writings about the life of Rassilon 
    posted over a period  from October to December 1991.  They were 
    posted to Rec.arts.drwho by  someone named James Herbertson, who 
    went by the name Rassilon.   In total, 5 articles were posted, 
    of which 4 are contained here in this archive:
        DarkScroll.History.Z
        DarkScroll.Omega.Z
        DarkScroll.HighCouncil.Z
        DarkScroll.Matrix.Z

    Working Titles by B.J.Williams@uk.ac.ncl-- Barry Williams has
    collected a list of 'working titles' for various Doctor Who
    episodes(ie, earlier names that were later changed).

============================================================================

ANSWERS TO FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

Contributors include:
James C. Armstrong, Jr.
Steve "BandanaMan" Makuch
Dora Kilburn
Jeff Hildebrand 
Todd Horch
Ron O'Dell
Michael Robertson

     Address any additions/comments about the FAQ to Jim Miller,
      <retief@iastate.edu>, If anyone hears anything about a new ftp
     site please mail me.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

THE DOCTOR AND TIMELORDS IN GENERAL

1.1  Who is Doctor Who?

    Doctor #                 Actor
       1                William Hartnell*
       2                Patrick Troughton*
       3                Jon Pertwee
       4                Tom Baker
       5                Peter Davison (with one "d")
       6                Colin Baker
       7                Sylvester McCoy
       8                (1992 ??? )

  Also, Richard Hurndall* played Doctor #1 in "The Five Doctors", except
  for the old clip at the beginning (that was Hartnell).

  * indicates the actor has passed away


1.2  What is the Doctor's name?
 
The main character of "Doctor Who" has been referred to by several
different labels.  These include:
    -Theta Sigma, used by Drax on the Planet of the Shadow (The Armageddon
     Factor).  This is supposedly an old school name.  It was used again
     in The Happiness Patrol.
    -Doctor Who, has been used in a couple episodes, most notably The War
     Machines, were WOTAN is calling for "Doctor Who".  The role was credited
     as "Doctor Who" until Castrovalva, where the name changed to:
    -The Doctor.  This seems to be what he is called most often.
    -Doctor van Wer, was used in The Highlanders.
    -In Colony in Space, a name was presented, but was unreadable, on a 
     Gallifreyan computer.
    -Dr. Caligari was used in The Gunfighters.
    -Dr. Foreman was hinted at in An Unearthly Child.
    -Dr. John Smith was the alias the Doctor used while he was UNIT's unpaid
     scientific advisor.  He also used this in The War Games.
    -In The Trial of a Time Lord, one section of the matrix had the Doctor
     almost saying his name while on Earth.  He never finishes the sentence.
    -In Remembrance of the Daleks, a calling card was produced by the Doctor
     that may or may not have had his name.
    -Ace usually calls him Professor.
    -The book 'The Making of Doctor Who' by Terrence Dicks and Malcolm
     Hulke gives a mathematical looking symbol containing sigma.

1.3 What is the distinction between regeneration and incarnation?

    When a regeneration occurs, a timelord renews his or her body.  What that
means to us is a new appearance (a new actor).  An incarnation is a particular
body.  So far, the Doctor has had seven incarnations and six regenerations.


1.4 How many regenerations does a timelord get?

    Twelve.  The fact that there is a fixed number is referenced in many
stories, and I believe the first mention is in "The Brain of Morbius".
The number twelve is stated in "Mawdryn Undead", and probably in other
stories as well.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

1.5 Explanation of Time Lord regenerations

        conceived and edited by:
        Erin McCanna (ema@cfsmo.honeywell.com)
	Mike Cerrato (SirOtto%maple.decnet@pine.circa.ufl.edu)

Time Lords (perhaps only those that have achieved a certain level at
the academy) can create a projection of themselves that they will
regenerate into.  By doing this they choose their new form as well as
make the transition easier.  This is shown at the end of _Planet of
the Spiders_ when K'ampo regenerates into his projection (Cho-Je).
This can also explain Romana's controversial regeneration in _Destiny
of the Daleks_.  She projects different bodies until she finds one she
likes.  Asking the Doctor's opinion, but ultimately choosing her
favorite, she regenerates into Astra's likeness.  (We never see her
room during all of this.  The Mary Tamm/Romana I version of her could
have been laying on the bed the whole time.)

If we explain the Master's 13th regeneration (going into his 14th
incarnation) by the Master using what was left of the power of "The
Source" in him to steal Nyssa's father's body, then the next logical
question is "Why doesn't the Doctor make projections?" The obvious
answer would be, "Then there would be no plot for _Castravalva_." 
More seriously, there could be two reasons.

First: The Doctor hasn't achieved this "higher level" at the academy
necessary to do this.  All regenerations but one just happened, the
new form chosen randomly.  The odd one (4th regeneration to 5th
incarnation, _Lagopolis_) involved the mysterious Watcher.  The
Watcher could have been a projection (provided by the Time Lords or
the Doctor's subconscience), but since the Doctor hasn't achieved this
"higher level" he couldn't give it a form.  And it didn't make the
regeneration go any smoother either.

Second: The Doctor has this ability, but has never had a chance to use
it.  All of the Doctor's regenerations have been with him dead, dying
or under stress.

	1) His body was 'worn out'(ie, old age and stress).
	2) The regeneration was forced by the Time Lords just before
	   his exile to Earth.
	3) His body was ravaged by the cave of crystals and he was
	   dying.  The regeneration was started by K'ampo.
	4) He had just fallen and was about to die.
	5) He stepped into the bat's nest and was poisoned.  (He actually
           says the poison triggered the regeneration.)
	6) The Rani ripping him out of time triggered the regeneration.

This still leaves the Watcher.  The Watcher could be a projection
created either by the Doctor's subconscience or by him consciencly (he
doesn't admit to it though), {maybe created in response to the
cloister bell, but I don't remember if he heard it first or saw the
Watcher first} but he never had a chance to do anything with it since
he was saving the universe from entropy.

In either case, the Doctor's comments about "pot luck" make sense.
Either it is because he can't control it or it is because he didn't
have a chance to control it.

None of this, of course explains the Valeyard from the _Trial of a
Time Lord_ series, but then, he may never be explained.  (It was just
a bad dream . . .  :-)


1.6 How old is the Doctor?

    Here are some clues:

  From "The Ribos Operation":
        The Doctor: "How old do you think I am?"
        Romana: "759"
        The Doctor: "756"
        Romana: "You've lost count somewhere."

  From "The Pirate Planet":
        The Doctor: "How long do you think I've been operating this TARDIS?"
        Romana:  "523 years."
        The Doctor: "Right uh....has it been that long?"

  From "Time and the Rani":
        "953" (given as pass code to a door)
        The Doctor: "That's my age.  And the Rani's."

  From "Remembrance of the Daleks":
        Younger female scientists: "How do you just rewire a piece of alien
        machinery?"
        The Doctor: "It's easy... when you have 900 years of experience."

CONFUSING PLOTS AND STORYLINES

2.1  Please explain Romana's regeneration.

There is no good explanation, but net discussions have yielded these
possibilities:

a: Romana had achieved a higher level in the Academy, and hence the
ability to "try-on bodies"
b: Romana, unlike the Doctor, regenerated "Without Stress". What I
mean by this is that the Doctor could choose and "Try-on bodies" like
Romana did *IF* there was no stress about his regeneration.


2.2  Was that really the White Guardian at the beginning of The Key to
Time?

There are two camps of opinions to this question, obviously one yes and
one no.  The No Camp believes that the pursuit of the key was motivated
solely by the Black Guardian, and use as evidence his masquerade in
The Armageddon Factor as their proof.  They also feel that the White 
Guardian at the start of the sequence was threatening to the Doctor,
and therefore out of character.

I [James C. Armstrong, Jr.] personally disagree.  When masquerading, 
the part was still played by Valentine Dyall.  In The Ribos Operation, 
the part was played by  Cyril Luckham.  Cyril also played the White 
Guardian in Enlightenment, when both Guardians were present, so we may 
be confident that Cyril's appearance is the "normal" appearance of the 
White Guardian.


2.3 Was there a regeneration scene from Colin to Sylvester?

This is how Time and the Rani begins:

Voice of BBC1: "A new series, a new physical form and a journey to an
altogether more far-flung shore.  Sylvester McCoy stars as Doctor Who."

[OK, so that bit was only on the BBC, but I'm saying that so people know that
these nexts bits come before the title sequence.]

Computer animation space sequence: swirling stars.  Out of these come spinning
the TARDIS.  Multicolored beams come from the left.  Some miss, some hit.
Those that hit cause the TARDIS's gyrations to alter, so that the TARDIS is
spinning in three (maybe four!) dimensions.  There are two of these sequences,
actually.

Inside the TARDIS:  The Doctor and Mel are lying on the floor.  The Doctor is
face-down [and surprisingly short, since it's actually McCoy in a wig and
Colin's immense costume].  The exercise bike falls over.

On Lakertya:  Ikona climbing atop the quarry, er, serene rocky mountain.
He looks into the pink sky and sees a color-cycling rainbow.  Down this bow
comes the TARDIS.

Inside the TARDIS:  Red-clothed feet enter.  Pan up.  It's the Rani, holding
a gun-like object (which the Doctor recognizes later in the show), which she
used to shoot down the TARDIS.  Rani speaks: "Leave the girl; it's the man
I want."

Inside the TARDIS:  Furry feet.  (Urak)  They lumber over to the face-down
Doctor.  Furry hand reaches down, and turns the Doctor over, just as the
fx people turn on a video bleed.  The wig disappears as the shot is changed
to a wig-less McCoy, and the fx people slowly turn off the bleed, as the
whooshy music rises portamento higher and higher and higher.

As the bleed stops and we see the face and the music climaxes, the
opening title sequence begins.


2.4 What are those extra faces in The Brain of Morbius?

In the Brain of Morbius during the mind wrestling match first images
of all of the Doctors previous incarnations are shown.  Then several
other faces are shown immediately after William Hartnell raising
questions as to whether the Hartnell Doctor was infact his first
incarnation.  Most people beleive that those faces are images of
Morbius' previous incarnations, not the Doctors.  The pictures were
actually those of several of the production crew.

MAKING THE SHOW


3.1  Will there be more Doctor Who?

Maybe, maybe not.  Not anytime soon, anyway.  The official announcement is:

"Doctor Who will be back but not in the near future. We are
 not close to a deal with any company. When Doctor Who returns
 the programme will be vibrant, vital and improved, not a tired
 old Time Lord who comes back too soon" *

* The BBC has announced it may start production of Dr Who in 1992.
  This leaves the questions though:

     1. When will the first episode be aired?
     
        The latest reports of show times could be as early as the '92 season,
     but is mostly speculation now - and for U.S. viewers, it could mean
     a year at least after the first season ends.


     2. Who will play Who? (The Doctor)

        We know offically that Sylvester McCoy won't be continuning as
     the Doctor. The list of people nominated to take over the part have
     included a run-down list of impossibilities, so hence the real
     word has yet to be given.

---------
      
     Here's the word from an issue of Dr. Who Magazine:

According to DWM, this statement has been released with the support of Peter
Cregeen, Head of Drama Series:

    "There is no question of DW being abandoned. It is still an important
program and when the time is right it should return. However, the show's
popularity over the years has waned in the UK, with an average audience of 4
million. In a competitive market environment, where BBC TV Drama is required
to produce a wide range of programs at an economically viable price, one
 cannot continue to support a programme that is not able to achieve a
 substantial audience." 
    "A decision was taken to rest the program for an extended period so that
when it returns it will be seen as a fresh, inventive and vibrant addition to
the schedule - rather than a battle-weary Time Lord languishing in the back-
waters of audience popularity."
    "DW is too valuable a property for us to relaunch until we are absolutely
confident of it as a major success once again."
    BBC spokesperson Alan Ayres added that a major feature film was in
production and that if this developed as planned, future transmission of the
TV series might be juxtaposed against its commercial release. He declined to
compare DW's ratings with other shows placed against Coronation Street, one
of the major handicaps the series seems to have had in recent years.

     Thanks to: Jericho Johnson
     (for posting about the article)


3.2.  Will there ever be a woman Doctor?

While it may be possible for a male<->female regeneration, it is
unlikely that a woman will be cast as the Doctor in the near future.

This whole controversy started with Tom Baker intentionally stirring
up the hornets nest by saying when he left the part, "And I'd like
to wish the new Doctor, whoever he or she may be..."


3.3 Is David Agnew really a pseudonym for Douglas Adams?

David Agnew was a house pseudonym that was used twice. The first time was on
"The Invasion of Time" and that one was written by Graham Williams and Anthony
Read.  The second episode with that name was City of Death and that one
was Douglas Adams (as script editor) and Graham Williams.



3.4 Was Castrovalva the first Peter Davison story filmed?

Castrovalva WAS the fourth Peter Davison story made.  The others were
made in advance to allow the Doctor character to settle (hard to do
with three other characters to write for...).  In order, they were:
Four to Doomsday, The Visitation, and Kinda.



MISCELLANEOUS

4.1  What are the "missing episodes"?

   During the early seventies many Doctor Who stories were destroyed by
the BBC, along with vast amounts of other material kept by the BBC, in
order to cut costs in storage. This was before they knew they could market
much of the stuff.  Copyright laws had much to do with this also,
along with storage costs and fire codes.  Many of the lost episodes are 
of the later William Hartnell and much from the Patrick Troughton era.  
As many as 109 episodes are still missing (equivalent to 2 to 3 seasons).


4.2  Which story included John Cleese?

John Cleese appeared with Eleanor Bron as art critics in City of Death.


4.3 What is Temporal Grace?

Temporal Grace is the quality which is alleged to prevent the use of
weapons inside a TARDIS.  It has not been working in the Doctor's 
TARDIS since Logopolis.


4.4 Who will be making Who? (What is Darklight Productions?)

	In responce to the BBC being forced to limit it's in-house
programming, the Powers that Be decided officially to allow
production of Doctor Who by a private company.  At the time of this
writing, most sources seem to indicate that the company choosen
for this is a company known as Darklight Productions.  In a recent
issue of DWM (Doctor Who Magazine, Marvel UK), it was stated that
the show would return with a new Doctor and companion, and the pilot
would feature the invasion and Destruction of Gallifrey by the
Cybermen.(by Jeffrey Jacobs)


4.5  Where can I get more information(off net)?

Doctor Who - Twenty-Five Glorious Years
by Peter Haining

Published by WH Allen & Co.
Distributed by:
USA: Lyle Stuart Inc. 
     120 Enterprise Ave
     Secaucus, New Jersey
     07094
Canada: (address included before was out of date, anyone have a new
one?)

4.6  What other books are recommended?
Dr.Who - A Celebration,
Dr.Who -The Early Years
Dr.Who Monthly and DWB.(magazines)
Dr.Who - David Bank's Cybermen book.


4.7  How do I get Ryan K. Johnson's fan-produced episodes of Doctor Who?

Basically, all you have to do is put $3 and a blank (VHS) videotape
in an envelope and send it to:

Ryan K. Johnson, P.O. Box 85418, Seattle, WA 98145

and he'll send the tape back to you with the four Doctor Who episodes,
_Wrath of Eukor_, _Visions of Utomu_, _Pentagon West_ and _Broken Doors_,
plus _Star Trek: The Pepsi Generation_ (a parody of you-know-what.)

That's basically it. He wants as many people as possible to be able to
see these and encourages us to "show them around or make copies for friends,
enemies, or people off the street." So there you have it...


4.8  Musical Releases:

     Here's the CDs of music released that is Who-related:

                 Title                        CATALOG # / Record Co.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     1. Doctor Who Sound Effects              EDL-2525-2 (Edel)
        30 different tracks of sound effets - only bad part
        is that it doesn't have a disintegrating Tardis.

     2. Doctor Who 25th Anniversary Album     BBC-CD-707 (BBC)
        A sort of "Best of" for the series - including the 5 versions of
        the theme song, misc. sountrack scores.

     3. Doctor Who - Variations of a Theme    FILMCD-706 (SILVA SCREEN)
        Four scores of variations on the the original theme song.

     4. Doctor Who - Curse of Fenric          FILMCD-087 (SILVA SCREEN)
        Includes most of the scores from one of the best Doctor Who
        episodes to date [also on the last ones].

     5. Mark Ayres - Myths & Other Legends    FILMCD-088 (SILVA SCREEN)
        Contains a song called "Daleks!" of Dr.Who relation,
        and other songs that Ayres did for various movies
        and TV series in the UK.

     6. The Timelords/The KLF - Doctorin' the Tardis
        This single contains a compilation of the song which
        is now a classic.                     TVT4025-2 (TVT Records)


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

4.8B - Dr. Who on Video (in the U.S.):


CBS/FOX Doctor Who video releases

Ep?=episode format, LD?=laser disc
 
Title                        Ep?  LD?   Comments
-------------------------    ---  ---   --------
An Unearthly Child            Y    N
The War Games                 Y    N    2 tapes
The Three Doctors             Y    N
Curse of Fenric               Y    N    Contains extra footage
The Hartnell Years            -    N    Contains: pilot for An Unearthly Child
                                                  The Crusade (3)
                                                  The Celestial Toymaker (4)
                                                  other misc. clips
The Troughton Years           -    N    Contains: The Abominable Snowmen (2)
                                                  The Enemy of the World (3)
                                                  The Space Pirates (2) 
The Seeds of Death            N    N
Spearhead from Space          ?    N
The Day of the Daleks         ?    Y
The Time Warrior              N    N
Death to the Daleks           ?    N
The Ark in Space              N    N
Revenge of the Cybermen       N    N
Terror of the Zygons          N    N
Pyramids of Mars              N    N
The Brain of Morbius          N    N    edited down to 60 mins
The Deadly Assassin           N    N
The Robots of Death           N    N
The Talons of Weng Chiang     N    N
The Five Doctors              Y    N    There's only 1 episode anyway
                                        one person says there's extra footage,
                                        another says it's been edited
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-- 
Jim Miller <retief@iastate.edu>
Computer Science Sophomore, Iowa State University.
I speak only for myself because no one else believes a word I say.