Whoniverse
Media franchise and shared fictional universe (1963–present)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Whoniverse is a British media franchise and shared universe consisting of the BBC television series Doctor Who, its spin-offs,[1] and other associated media.[2][3] The shared universe nature was established by crossing over common plot elements, settings, cast, and characters, usually deriving from the main programme.[4]
Doctor Who depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being with a human appearance. The Doctor explores the universe in a time-travelling space ship called the TARDIS. With various companions, they combat foes, work to save civilisations, and help people in need.
Doctor Who was first broadcast in 1963 and ran for 26 seasons until 1989, briefly returning in the form of a TV film in 1996. It was later revived in 2005, when the show's newfound success led to the commissioning of several spin-offs—Torchwood (2006–2011), The Sarah Jane Adventures (2007–2011), Class (2016), and The War Between the Land and the Sea (2025). Other spin-offs include the pilot K-9 and Company (1981) and non-BBC produced series K9 (2009–2010).
The franchise name, a portmanteau of the words "who" and "universe", was originally used to describe Doctor Who's production and fanbase.[5] In 2023, the year of the show's sixtieth anniversary, the BBC adopted the name in an official capacity, making the Whoniverse the umbrella brand for all programmes connected to Doctor Who, including documentaries.
The majority of the Whoniverse's programmes have been commercially successful and generally received positive reviews. They have also inspired an extensive collection of book, comic and magazine publications, audio plays, films, video games, exhibitions, and stage plays.
Background
The earliest official usage of "Whoniverse" was in the introduction to the appendices of The Doctor Who Programme Guide Volume 2 by Jean-Marc Lofficier published May 1981 in its hardcover edition.[6] The publicity blurb on the back of The Second Doctor Who Quiz Book by Nigel Robinson published in December 1983 also used the term.[7] In his 1983 book Doctor Who: A Celebration; Two Decades Through Time and Space, Peter Haining called his final chapter "The Whoniverse".[5] The section assembled factual information about all the episodes to date, but also gave information about fan clubs and ancillary entertainments related to the programme. Thus, the term Whoniverse referred to everything connected with the programme behind-the-scenes. In this meaning, standing exhibitions, discussions about the filming of episodes and even the fandom itself were considered part of the "Whoniverse". The term Whoniverse is still used with this definition today,[8][9][10][11] including as the name of a Doctor Who convention in Australia.[12][13]
The term began to appear in mainstream press coverage, placing greater emphasis on it as a fictional universe, following the popular success of the 2005 Doctor Who revival and the establishment of its spin-offs Torchwood (2006–2011) and The Sarah Jane Adventures (2007–2011).[14][15]
Development
In October 2022, it was reported that the production company Bad Wolf had filed for a new subsidiary company, run by former Doctor Who executive producer Julie Gardner and former BBC head of drama Jane Tranter, called "Whoniverse1 LTD".[16] On 17 January 2023, outlets reported that a new sign at Wolf Studios Wales possessed the tagline "Home of the Whoniverse".[17][18]
On 30 October 2023, the BBC announced it would be using the term "Whoniverse" in an official capacity to describe all shows within the orbit of Doctor Who, and specifically their home on BBC iPlayer, including documentary programming.[19] It had previously been announced that over eight hundred previous episodes would be available to stream on BBC iPlayer.[20] A Whoniverse ident was also adopted to unify content within the Whoniverse collection.[19]
Television
| Series | Seasons / Series | Episodes | Originally released (UK) | Network | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Live-action series | ||||||||||||
| Doctor Who | 26 | 695 | 23 November 1963 – 6 December 1989 | BBC1 | ||||||||
| TV film | 27 May 1996 | CITV-DT / Fox / BBC1 | ||||||||||
| 15 | 196 | 26 March 2005 – 31 May 2025 | BBC One / Disney+ | |||||||||
| K-9 and Company | Pilot | 28 December 1981 | BBC1 | |||||||||
| Torchwood | 4 | 41 | 22 October 2006 – 15 September 2011 | BBC Three / BBC Two / BBC One / Starz | ||||||||
| The Sarah Jane Adventures | 5 | 53 | 1 January 2007 – 18 October 2011 | CBBC / BBC One | ||||||||
| K9 | 1 | 26 | 31 October 2009 – 20 November 2010 | Network Ten / Disney XD | ||||||||
| Class | 1 | 8 | 22 October – 3 December 2016 | BBC Three | ||||||||
| Tales of the TARDIS | 1 | 7 | 1 November 2023 – 20 June 2024 | BBC iPlayer / BBC Four | ||||||||
| The War Between the Land and the Sea | 1 | 5 | 7–21 December 2025 | BBC One / Disney+ | ||||||||
| Animated series | ||||||||||||
| Death Comes to Time | 1 | 5 | 13 July 2001 – 3 May 2002 | BBCi | ||||||||
| Real Time | 1 | 6 | 2 August – 6 September 2002 | |||||||||
| Shada | 1 | 6 | 2 May – 6 June 2003 | |||||||||
| Scream of the Shalka | 1 | 6 | 13 November – 18 December 2003 | |||||||||
| The Infinite Quest | 1 | 13 | 2 April – 29 June 2007 | CBBC / BBC One | ||||||||
| Dreamland | 1 | 6 | 21–26 November 2009 | BBC Red Button | ||||||||
| Daleks! | 1 | 5 | 12 November – 10 December 2020 | YouTube | ||||||||
| Untitled animated series | 2 | 52[21] | 2027 – 2029[22] | CBeebies[23] | ||||||||
| Web series | ||||||||||||
| Tardisodes | 1 | 13 | 1 April – 1 July 2006 | Mobile | ||||||||
| Torchwood: Web of Lies | 1 | 10 | 9 July – 10 September 2011 | iTunes Store | ||||||||
Untitled CBeebies animated spin-off
In June 2025, the BBC announced it was seeking a production company to work on an animated spin-off of Doctor Who for pre-school audiences to air on CBeebies.[23] Production of the first 52-episode series is set to begin in January 2026. The 11-minute episodes are expected to air in two parts: the first 26 episodes from 2027–2028, and the remaining 26 from 2028–2029.[22] In December 2025, the contract for production was awarded to Blue Zoo Animation Studio, with the 52 episodes to be split across two series.[21][24]
Films
| Film | UK release date | Director | Screenwriter(s) | Producers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dr. Who and the Daleks | 23 August 1965 | Gordon Flemyng | Milton Subotsky | Milton Subotsky and Max J. Rosenberg |
| Daleks' Invasion Earth 2150 A.D. | 5 August 1966 | Milton Subotsky and David Whitaker |
Stage plays
| Title | Date premiered | Writer(s) | Premiere venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Curse of the Daleks | 21 December 1965 | David Whitaker and Terry Nation | Wyndham's Theatre, London |
| Doctor Who and the Daleks in the Seven Keys to Doomsday | 16 December 1974 | Terrance Dicks | Adelphi Theatre, London |
| Doctor Who – The Ultimate Adventure | 23 March 1989 | Terrance Dicks | Wimbledon Theatre, London |
| The Trial of Davros | 14 November 1993 16 July 2005 (revised) |
Kevin Taylor and Michael Wisher | The Village Hotel, Hyde, Greater Manchester Tameside Hippodrome, Ashton-under-Lyne (revised) |
| Doctor Who Live | 8 October 2010 | Will Brenton and Gareth Roberts | Wembley Arena, London |
| The Crash of the Elysium | 1 July 2011 | Tom MacRae | MediaCityUK, Salford |
| Doctor Who: Time Fracture | 26 May 2021 | Daniel Dingsdale | Davies Mews, London |
| Doctor Who: The Black Archive | 23 July 2025 | to be added | San Diego Comic-Con |
Independent video drama
There have been several independent video drama spin-offs, most licensing characters and concepts from writers of the classic series of Doctor Who. These have been released direct to video via videotape, DVD, Blu-ray, and online video formats.
| Title | Release date | Director | Screenwriter(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reeltime Pictures | |||
| Wartime | 20 January 1988 (revised version released 1997) |
Keith Barnfather | Andy Lane Helen Stirling |
| Downtime | 2 September 1995 | Christopher Barry | Marc Platt |
| Mindgame | 1998 | Keith Barnfather | Terrance Dicks |
| Mindgame Trilogy | January 1999 | Terrance Dicks Miles Richardson Roger Stevens | |
| Dæmos Rising | 14 March 2004 | David J. Howe | |
| The White Witch of Devil's End | 13 November 2017 | Sam Stone David J. Howe Raven Dane Suzanne Barbieri Debbie Bennett Jan Edwards | |
| Sil and the Devil Seeds of Arodor | 1 November 2019 | Philip Martin | |
| Dreamwatch Media | |||
| Shakedown: Return of the Sontarans | 1 December 1994 | Kevin Davies | Terrance Dicks |
| BBV Productions | |||
| P.R.O.B.E.: The Zero Imperative | January 1994 | Bill Baggs | Mark Gatiss |
| P.R.O.B.E.: The Devil of Winterborne | January 1995 | ||
| P.R.O.B.E.: Unnatural Selection | October 1996 | ||
| P.R.O.B.E.: Ghosts of Winterborne | November 1996 | ||
| Auton | 1997 | Nicholas Briggs | Nicholas Briggs |
| Auton 2: Sentinel | 1998 | ||
| Auton 3 | 1 June 1999 | Bill Baggs Patricia Merrick |
Nicholas Briggs (as "Arthur Wallis") Paul Ebbs |
| Cyberon | 2000 | Bill Baggs | Lance Parkin |
| Zygon: When Being You Just Isn't Enough | February 2008 | Lance Parkin Jonathan Blum (both uncredited) | |
| P.R.O.B.E: When to Die | 20 April 2015 | Bill Baggs | |
| P.R.O.B.E.: Case Files | 28 April 2020 – present | various | |
Escape games
| Title | Date premiered | Writer(s) | Premiere venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Worlds Collide | 16 January 2019 | Escape Hunt | Bristol |
| A Dalek Awakens | 9 March 2020 | Escape Hunt | Reading |
| The Hollow Planet | 8 August 2020 | Escape Hunt | Print and play game |
Musicals
| Title | Date premiered | Broadcast | Premiere venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doctor Who: A Celebration | 19 November 2006 | BBC Red Button | Wales Millennium Centre |
| Doctor Who Prom (2008) | 27 July 2008 | BBC Radio 3 | Royal Albert Hall |
| Doctor Who Prom (2010) | 24 July 2010 | BBC Radio 3 | Royal Albert Hall |
| Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular (Melbourne) | 4 February 2012 | N/A | Plenary Hall |
| Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular (Sydney) | 15 December 2012 | N/A | Concert Hall |
| Doctor Who Prom (2013) | 13 July 2013 | BBC Radio 3 | Royal Albert Hall |
| Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular (2014) | 31 January 2014 | N/A | Plenary Hall |
| Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular (Australia & New Zealand Tour 2015) | 24 January 2015 | N/A | Adelaide Entertainment Centre (Australia), Vector Arena (New Zealand) |
| Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular (UK Tour 2015) | 23 May 2015 | N/A | The SSE Arena Wembley |
| Doctor Who Finale Countdown | 17 June 2017 | N/A | Wales Millennium Centre |
| Doctor Who @ 60: A Musical Celebration | 12 October 2023 | BBC Sounds | Wales Millennium Centre |
| Doctor Who Prom (2024)[25] | 26 August 2024 | BBC Radio 3 | Royal Albert Hall |
In other media
Film and television
The Whoniverse version of Earth is referred to as Earth-5556 in the Marvel Multiverse.[26]
References to the Whoniverse appear in The Inheritance Cycle fantasy novels by Christopher Paolini.[27]
Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies cast John MacKay as John Logie Baird for the episode "The Giggle" (2023), reprising the role he played in Davies' ITV series Nolly earlier in 2023. Davies joked that this casting meant that all the television series he has written are set in the same universe.[28]
Sylvia Trench from James Bond film series appeared in the episode "Joy to the World" (2024), portrayed by Niamh Marie Smith. Writer Steven Moffat stated that in his mind the character is intended to be the same character portrayed by Eunice Gayson in Dr. No (1962) and From Russia with Love (1963).[29]
Video games
Doctor Who has had 19 video games ranging from computer and browser games, console and mobile.[30][31][32] Doctor Who characters have appeared in other games such as Fall Guys, Minecraft, Lego Dimensions, PlayStation Home and LittleBigPlanet 3.[33][34] The 1992 Doctor Who pinball machine was included in the 2012 pinball video game The Pinball Arcade.[35]
Museums and exhibitions
There have been various Doctor Who–related exhibitions in the United Kingdom, including the now-closed exhibitions at:[citation needed]
- Land's End, Cornwall[36]
- Blackpool
- Llangollen
- Kelvingrove Museum, Glasgow
- Coventry Transport Museum, Coventry
- Centre for Life, Newcastle upon Tyne
- Melbourne, Australia
- Kensington Olympia Two, London
- Longleat, which ran for 30 years[37]
- Cardiff (the city where the series is filmed)[38]
Merchandise
Since its beginnings, Doctor Who has generated hundreds of products related to the show, from toys and games to collectible picture cards and postage stamps. These include board games, card games, gamebooks, roleplaying games, action figures and a pinball game. Many games have been released that feature the Daleks.[citation needed]
