Wikipedia:Featured list candidates/List of Doctor Who characters/archive1

Icepinner

Shall review this. Icepinner (Come to Hakurei Shrine!) 11:01, 14 April 2026 (UTC)

• "The long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who has had a large number of characters feature throughout its history." Featured? Also, not the biggest fan of the "has had"... is there a better phrase?
• Similar to Olliefant, I also think the article could use some images (like a gallery for each section... see what I did with List of Singapore LRT stations). The cast of Doctor Who is very diverse, so it would be helpful to add images to illustrate the characters.

The Doctor:

• Would it be relevant to somehow include List of actors who have played the Doctor in this section... like in a "further information" or "see also" template?
• "characterised as being an "elderly curmudgeon" with moments of empathy" omit "being"?
• "the Eleventh Doctor is high energy," Highly energetic?

Companions

• I agree with your decision not to include every single companion for this section; WP:FL? Criterion 3a says "providing at least all of the major items and, where practical, a complete set of items"; it wouldn't be very practical to transcribe every single companion of the Doctor on this list. I also interpret "major items" in the criterion to be entries with articles, so it would make sense to exclude companions that don't have articles.

Antagonists

• "Also a Time Lord, the Master is scheming, and their goals include..." "the Master is scheming" is a bit awkard; it implies that the Master is actively scheming (we also don't know what exactly the Master is scheming for)
• "he is later be revived" -> "he was later revived"?

Other supporting characters:

• "Originally created as an original character" -> "Initially created as an original character" (removes the repeated "original")
• "Danny works as a Maths teacher" "Maths" shouldn't be capitalised. Also, maybe rephrase it to "mathematics" (but I doubt anyone in FLC will care that much about using "maths" in a sentence)?

Sources

• Few missing stuff, including, but not limited to:
  • Archived links
  • Identifiers (ISSN, ISBN)

General

• The in the "First appearances" and similar columns seem to be uncited?

That's all I have. As someone who barely knows about Doctor Who, the prose is pretty good. I would say the lead is also a bit short, but hey, I can't really comment on that. Icepinner (Come to Hakurei Shrine!) 16:38, 19 April 2026 (UTC)

Incorporated all prose concerns, currently in the process of expanding citations. To clarify, what kind of images would you propose being included? Many characters here lack free use images, so for some we'd either have to use pictures of the actor or limit it to what free use pictures we have access to of the characters themselves. For most aliens we lack free use images entirely (Well, ones that aren't controversial for use at least). What would you like to have implemented? Additionally, how would you expand the lead? As stated below I simply am not sure what further content would need to be incorporated into it. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 22:21, 19 April 2026 (UTC)

All citations have been dealt with. Also, for appearances columns, I believe this should fall under MOS:PLOT (Since it's relatively uncontroversial plot information) Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 00:28, 20 April 2026 (UTC)

I was thinking a miscellaneous collection of the actors who portrayed the Doctor, plus the outfits of certain Doctors (similar approach for the Doctor's companions). Based on some digging, there seems to be some free-use images of Doctor Who aliens and villians available, like c:File:Davros (10634476205).jpg, c:File:At Sudbury Hall 2023 005.jpg, c:File:Yeti Abominable Snowmen Filming.jpg, c:File:Weeping Angel.jpg; there are no free images of the characters in the actual episodes, but I think these images provide a good representation of the aliens and villians.

For the lead, I'm thinking of general commentary on characters... like the general creative process for designing Doctor Who characters, the characters' impacts on popular culture, audience reception of the characters, etc. Icepinner (Come to Hakurei Shrine!) 16:40, 20 April 2026 (UTC)

@Icepinner many of your above linked images have been considered potentially problematic and lack a consensus for actually using them; in my prior Doctor Who FAC I was told not to use them. Of these, the Yeti image is the only one considered non-problematic. Many Doctor costumes also fall under a similar boat as the monster images. The actors shouldn't be too hard to do, but given the sheer number for companions that exist, that section may be a bit unwieldy. I can look into getting a multi-image template set up for the Doctors tomorrow, but I am a little bit less certain on including images for 40+ characters in a Gallery. Would appreciate thoughts there.

From my source research, there isn't really a "general process" on creating characters. There often is for particular sub-archetypes (Doctor, Companion, Monster, etc) but these are discussed at split-out articles where that information is more pertinent. Similarly, reception and analysis discuss less characters as a whole, and rather the individual sub-archetypes of character, with those articles being better for discussing those archetypes due to focus issues. I'm not sure the lead would have room for that kind of information, let alone the wider article, which is meant moreso for general navigation to these various sub-articles than anything else. Let me know on this. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 02:52, 21 April 2026 (UTC)

Ah, forgot props/costumes are technically copyrighted. Should they even be on Commons?. I don't think you have to add an image of every single actor who played a companion to the Doctor or the Doctor himself; a certain number will do, like 5-8.

I agree with Olliefant's lead suggestions, so I trust her to guide the development of the lead from this point onwards. Once the images are added, I will support this nomination. Icepinner (Come to Hakurei Shrine!) 16:30, 22 April 2026 (UTC)

@Icepinner I've added images to the Doctor and Companion categories (Totally didn't just steal the image formatting from List of actors who have played the Doctor). Let me know if anything else should be added.

Technically props and costumes can be on Commons even if copyrighted due to stipulations with public domain and whatnot, but with many of these images it's unclear if they do or not and all attempts of mine to start a discussion on it have been met with radio silence, so it's better to play it safe and not use potentially problematic images. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 17:11, 22 April 2026 (UTC)

It's looking good, just two more comments:

• Is there any way to get rid of the empty space between the "Main incarnations" section header and the table? It seems that the gallery created the space.
• Why do the bracketed sentences in the captions for the Doctor's companions gallery begin with a capital? It should be lower case, no?

We're nearly at the end of the rainbow. Icepinner (Come to Hakurei Shrine!) 15:19, 24 April 2026 (UTC)

@Icepinner from what I can tell on the first one, no. I've tried messing with the size and shrinking it further messes with the table formatting. On the second, oops. adjusted. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 01:35, 25 April 2026 (UTC)

GiftedIceCream

Comments coming in a few days. GiftedIceCream 14:05, 15 April 2026 (UTC)

• The lead is a little short.
• Refs 16 and 17 are duplicated.
• Some refs use dashes, while others use DMY.
• The long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who This needs a source.
• the Master is a schemer what does that mean?.
• The Cassandra box fails to show why Cassandra is antagonist.
• The Silurians and Sea Devils are a race of reptilian humanoids that hail from Earth. plural?

Drive-by comment

There's some inconsistency in terms of tenses used. For example, "Depicted as an old man, he is characterised" (present), "The Second Doctor was characterised" (past), "The Fifth Doctor was characterised as having a youthful energy, and is depicted" (both past and present in the same sentence). Also "The Eighth Doctor regenerated" (past) but "The Eleventh Doctor regenerates" (present) -- ChrisTheDude (talk) 15:58, 17 April 2026 (UTC)

@ChrisTheDude I believe tensing should be fixed. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 17:54, 17 April 2026 (UTC)

Olliefant

• The lead is kinda lacking, could some examples be added?
• Tables are missing row and column scopes
• Can some images be added?
• Ref 2 shouldn't be capitalized
• Why no table for Companions?
• I don't know if Dr. Who should be included if this list is about the television show and he's exlusively appeared in the films
• "Below are a number of the Doctor's companions from throughout the show's history." this implies some are missing
• The companions list appears to be unsourced, particularly in who it describes as a companion, for example Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart is often considered the Second Doctors companion during The Five Doctors

That's what I found ping me when done Olliefant (she/her) 03:30, 18 April 2026 (UTC)

@Olliefant

-Could you clarify on what kind of examples you'd like added to the lead? I am not sure what you want added here.

-What do you mean by row and column scopes? I am unfamiliar with the terminology.

-What kind of images would you want? For many sections there simply is not room to add them, and many listings lack strong composite images for their groups (And what does exist are not representative of the group as a whole). I considered potentially adding more images on my initial writing of this article but frankly was not sure what I could add image-wise.

-Ref 2 has been adjusted.

-I elected not to do a Companion table since there are substantially more of them than with any other listing, and given that the Companion (Doctor Who) functions on a similar table format, unlike the other articles, the table likely would've amounted to UNDUE compared to the rest of the list.

-Some companions are, indeed, missing: This is because this section only lists those with articles. Those without articles are not going to be included, so to avoid including something misleading like "This section contains a list of all companions" I elected to include the current wording. If you feel this can be phrased better I am open to changing it.

-I initially sorted Brigadier elsewhere since some sources did conflict, but I elected to do a search and it does seem most overall Companion listings do seem to include him. I've shifted him upwards and added a verifying source, but can add further if you feel it is necessary.

Let me know on the above. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 04:53, 18 April 2026 (UTC)

• Like, who was the first doctor, companion, major villian, who were more notable in the role and whose more recent
• See MOS:DTAB

Olliefant (she/her) 03:31, 21 April 2026 (UTC)

@Olliefant

Would something like this lead expansion be good, or would you want some more information?

On your other point, I'm a little confused; how does DTAB apply here and what do you want adjusted? Not a huge tables guy so I'm not super familiar with the lingo and what the rules on the linked article mean for what needs to be done. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 18:08, 21 April 2026 (UTC)

The first row and the top column need scopes. For an example, see Peter Capaldi filmography Olliefant (she/her) 05:40, 26 April 2026 (UTC)

@Olliefant I fear I messed around with the settings and text for a while and have no idea how to add these without bricking the current formatting. I am very confused. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 21:51, 26 April 2026 (UTC)

@Olliefant Pinging again to double check on this. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 19:37, 4 May 2026 (UTC)

Comments

• "The series first began with William Hartnell's First Doctor...." - this sentence uses "first" four times. The first () one can be removed without altering the sense of the sentence. Then "first encountered in the subsequent serial" can be changed to "making their debut"
• "the Seventh Doctor's character evolved" => "the Seventh Doctor's character evolves" (for consistency with other descriptions)
• "though finds purpose in his life" => "but finds purpose in his life"
• "though slowly learns" => "but slowly learns"
• "though this was cut short" => "though this is cut short"
• "(Himself and the Fifteenth Doctor)" - no reason for capital H
• "someone who can't" => "someone who cannot"
• " often assisting them on several occasions" - "often" and "on several occasions" mean the same thing, so both aren't needed
• That's what I got! -- ChrisTheDude (talk) 18:13, 3 May 2026 (UTC)

  @ChrisTheDude implemented all of the above. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 03:22, 4 May 2026 (UTC)

• Support -- ChrisTheDude (talk) 05:30, 4 May 2026 (UTC)

Accessibility review (MOS:DTAB)

• Tables need captions, which allow screen reader software to jump straight to named tables without having to read out all of the text before it each time. Visual captions can be added by putting |+ caption_text as the first line of the table code; if that caption would duplicate a nearby section header, you can make it screen-reader-only by putting |+ {{sronly|caption_text}} instead.
• Tables need column scopes for all column header cells, which in combination with row scopes lets screen reader software accurately determine and read out the headers for each cell of a data table. Column scopes can be added by adding !scope=col to each header cell, e.g. ! rowspan="2" | Incarnation becomes !scope=col rowspan="2" | Incarnation. If the cell spans multiple columns with a colspan, then use !scope=colgroup instead.
• Tables need row scopes on the "primary" column for each row, which in combination with column scopes lets screen reader software accurately determine and read out the headers for each cell of a data table. Row scopes can be added by adding !scope=row to each primary cell, e.g. | data-sort-value="1st Doctor" | [[First Doctor]] becomes !scope=row data-sort-value="1st Doctor" | [[First Doctor]]. If the cell spans multiple rows with a rowspan, then use !scope=rowgroup instead.
• Please see MOS:DTAB for example table code if this isn't clear. I don't return to these reviews until the nomination is ready to close, so ping me if you have any questions. This is not a full review, and does not result in a support vote. --PresN 13:36, 6 May 2026 (UTC)

  @PresN implemented where possible. One question: The tables outside of the first two do not use rowspan, so I'm not sure how to implement scope=col into those columns. A number of cells also lack the data-sort-value, so I'm not sure how to implement things there either. Do I just add those values with the scope=col? I'm not super familiar with tables so I want to double check before implementing anything. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 20:11, 9 May 2026 (UTC)

  I've fixed the "Main incarnations" table. Please take a look at my edits there and fix the other tables accordingly.

  Yes, if there no rowspan, then a header cell will need "! scope=col |" at the beginning of the line. -MPGuy2824 (talk) 11:39, 10 May 2026 (UTC)

  @MPGuy2824 @PresN I believe scope-col's are now applied everywhere. Not sure if there's anything else I missed, please let me know on this. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 02:42, 12 May 2026 (UTC)

  • Please add actual table captions. Right now all the captions seem to be set as "caption_text". In this case, the name of the section/subsection is probably enough for the relevant table caption.
  • Also, all images need to have alt-text. -MPGuy2824 (talk) 05:06, 12 May 2026 (UTC)

    @MPGuy2824 I believe both are now added in their entirety. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 23:19, 12 May 2026 (UTC)

    The lead image still needs alt-text, but I'll trust you'll get that done.

    Support on accessibility. 05:02, 13 May 2026 (UTC) -MPGuy2824 (talk) 05:02, 13 May 2026 (UTC)

    Just added.

    Courtesy ping for @PresN to indicate all of the above have been accomplished. Let me know if anything else needs to be done. Magneton Considerer: Pokelego999 (Talk) (Contribs) 20:11, 13 May 2026 (UTC)

Source review passed; promoting. --PresN 22:44, 17 May 2026 (UTC)

• Closing note: This candidate has been promoted, but there may be a delay in bot processing of the close. Please see WP:FLC/ar, and leave the {{featured list candidates}} template in place on the talk page until the bot goes through.

The above discussion is preserved as an archive. Please do not modify it. No further edits should be made to this page.