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24 September 2014
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17.11.03

MPs vote for Stephen Fry as next Doctor Who

MPs have chosen Stephen Fry as the person they most want to become the next Doctor Who, according to a poll carried out by 大象传媒 Worldwide to celebrate Doctor Who's 40th anniversary next Sunday (November 23rd). The Daleks were voted the scariest monsters, and a significant proportion of MPs admitted to hiding behind the sofa while watching Doctor Who. Their favourite Doctor was Tom Baker, who served between December 1974 and March 1981.


One hundred and thirty MPs responded to the poll, many of them showing huge enthusiasm for this uniquely British institution which had its origins in the white heat of the technological revolution of the 1960s. It was first transmitted on November 23, 2003 the day after the assassination of President John F Kennedy.



Who should be the next Doctor?
Stephen Fry, the multi-talented star of 大象传媒 drama Absolute Power, 大象传媒 quiz show Qi, and director of Bright Young Things, received the most number of votes, just beating Alan Rickman, Bill Nighy, David Jason and former Doctor Tom Baker. A total of 78 different names were suggested, including Eddie Izzard, Hugh Laurie and David Bowie. Female names put forward were Zoe Wanamaker and Joanna Lumley as joint female favourites, with runners up Caroline Quentin, Catherine Zeta Jones, Carol Vorderman, Kate O'Mara, Patricia Routledge and Dawn French.


Some of the more unexpected nominations included Jeremy Paxman, William Hague, Iain Duncan Smith, and John Peel.



Which Monsters were the most scary?
When asked which monsters they were familiar with, 95% were aware of the Daleks, 86% of the Cybermen and 55% of the Ice Warriors. A third of MPs were familiar with the Giant Maggots, and 45% had heard of the Sea Devils.


The Daleks were voted the scariest monster in Doctor Who. Of those who were aware of the Daleks, 38% said they were the most frightening. The Cybermen came second, with 26% nominating them as the most frightening. Of the much smaller number who knew about the Giant Maggots (just 42), a quarter found them the most frightening. In some cases, fear was enough to send them scuttling behind the sofa for safety. Thirty-seven MPs (28% of the total) claimed that they had hidden behind the sofa while watching Doctor Who.



Who was your favourite Doctor?
The fourth and most long-serving Doctor, Tom Baker, was voted their favourite Doctor by 44 MPs (34% of the total), making him easily the most popular Doctor in the House. The third Doctor, Jon Pertwee, came second, with 32 votes (25%), and in third place was Patrick Troughton, the second Doctor, with 24 votes (18%).


Doctor Who is an example of Great British Television because聟
Many MPs considered Doctor Who to be great British TV because it was innovative, groundbreaking, original, unique and creative, with 36 MPs (28 %) putting it into this category. Twenty-six MPs (20%) said they valued it because it had family appeal and the ability to appeal to new generations. Seventeen (13%) found it funny, amusing or endearing, 16 (12%) said it was well written with good storylines, 14 (11%) said it was classic and timeless, while 11 (8%) said it provided good value for money. Six MPs (5%) found it addictive, compulsive or unmissable.


BACKGROUND

The Survey
大象传媒 Worldwide carried out the postal poll in 2003 and results were analysed by NSM Research.

  • Facts and figures about Doctor Who
    Doctor Who is one of 大象传媒 Worldwide's most enduring and well-loved brands. As well as making headlines it has continued to win awards in 2003. The most recent include the DVD Times Awards for Best World DVD (Doctor Who: The Tomb of the Cybermen), and the SFX Magazine Greatest Science Fiction Character (Doctor Who).
  • Throughout its 27-year broadcasting history on 大象传媒 television, 大象传媒 Who attracted average audiences of over nine million, achieving a peak of 16.1 million.
  • Doctor Who has been shown in 60 countries around the world, from Abu Dhabi and Algeria to Poland, Qatar, Taiwan and Zimbabwe.
  • Filmmaker Ridley Scott was the 大象传媒 designer originally allocated to design the Daleks. He never carried out the task as Raymond P Cusick, who was able to commit for a longer period, replaced him.
  • 大象传媒 Worldwide has published well over 100 original Doctor Who novels. The series is listed in the 2001 Guinness Book of World Records as the largest-ever book range built around a single principle character.
  • Richard E Grant, who plays the Doctor in cartoon form in the new 大象传媒i webcast, The Scream and the Shalka (launched November 13th), has played the Time Lord before. He was one of five actors to play the part for the 1999 Comic Relief story The Curse of Fatal Death.
  • By the end of this year, 大象传媒 Worldwide will have issued 145 different Doctor Who video titles and 19 DVD titles. All-time sales for both formats have passed the three million mark.
  • 大象传媒 audiobooks have sold more than 250,000 audiocassettes and CDs across 42 Doctor Who titles.



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