In October I did an application to Whovian.net to be
Dr Who fan of the month. I worked really hard answering all the questions on my
communication aid, but they didn’t choose me. This is what I wrote.
Why are you worthy?
I'm a big Dr Who fan! I don't
just love the Doctor, have all the Dr Who, Torchwood and Sarah Jane Adventures
DVDs, and have posters and a row of little Tardises in my bedroom. I also
choose Dr Who photos for my profile photos on Facebook and Twitter, and write
cryptic Dr Who tweets on my communication aid every Saturday morning about that
evening's episode. Then later I tweet what I think of it. Tweets take me a very
long time because I access the computer with a switch and special software.
That's because I have cerebral palsy, and I'm also deaf. I love tweeting about
Dr Who because on social media I can connect with other Dr Who fans and
communicate equally with everyone. I have also made a Dr Who page on my
communication aid, where I've programmed lots of questions and comments to make
it easier for me to discuss Dr Who with other people. I always watch Dr Who
Extra on i-player and I used to love Confidential, because I'm very interested
in how films and television programmes are made. I'm working on a short
animation about Daleks arriving in my village, and I have just made some block
prints of an Ood and a Dalek. I'm planning to do a series of prints of Dr Who
monsters, and maybe a Tardis print. I've even decorated my wheelchair with Dr
Who stickers.
Firstly, how
and when did you become a Doctor Who fan?
I remember seeing a Dr Who trailer on BBC1 in
2005, with the ninth Doctor and Rose Tyler in the Tardis. I didn't know about
Dr Who at that time, but I thought that looked an exciting programme. My
parents watched with me, because they thought that might be too scary for me! I
loved it, and I've watched every episode since. I thought Rose was a great
character.
We're approaching the end of this year's epic series. What have been your highlights of the Twelfth Doctor's adventures thus far?
I think series 8 is fantastic. My favourite episodes are Deep Breath, Robot of Sherwood and In the Forest of the Night. I think Peter Capaldi is a great actor, though I do miss Matt, and I really like Jenna Coleman who plays Clara.
A new series means a brand new story arc and there's been an interesting one developing around Michelle Gomez as the Gatekeeper of the Nethersphere, otherwise known as 'Missy'. Have you concocted any of your own theories about who she might be?
I think Missy is someone in the Doctor's life, maybe from a future he has not yet experienced. She seems to be a bad character, I'm a bit anxious about her!
Clara's been juggling two worlds this series as she's been developing a romance with Danny Pink, played by Samuel Anderson. Do you think that Danny's a good match for the impossible girl?
Maybe Clara and Danny will stay together in future, maybe they will get married, maybe not... Danny is not a bad match for Clara, but I'm not sure if he's good enough. No boyfriend can be as exciting as the eleventh Doctor!
2013 was a fantastic year for Doctor Who as fans around the world celebrated half a century of adventures in space and time. What golden memories will you cherish from the show's momentous 50th anniversary year?
I loved seeing the tenth and eleventh doctors together in The Day of the Doctor, and I was really interested to see all the programmes about the history of Dr Who. I enjoyed watching the BBC docu-drama "An Adventure in Time and Space", about the early years of Dr Who, and that encouraged me to start watching the very first stories from 1963. Now I've started to explore more stories from the sixties, seventies and eighties, so the anniversary year opened up a whole new dimension of Dr Who for me.
The spooky season of Halloween is once again upon us. What would you say is the scariest episode of Doctor Who to date, and why?
I
find the Weeping Angels really scary. I think the scariest episodes are Blink,
because Sally Sparrow's friend Kathy is taken back in time by the Weeping
Angels and can never return, and Angels Take Manhattan, because I love New York
and I felt upset about the Angels taking over the city. Amy and Rory were taken
back in time; it was such a sad ending!
Is there any Doctor Who
companion - past or present - that you particularly relate to?
I relate most to Clara, I
really like her. She is brave, enthusiastic, confident and fun, and I love her
style. I call my communication aid Clara because it's my companion, and I have
a check dress a bit like Clara's.
Describe what being part of the Doctor Who fandom means to you in 12 words or less.
Connecting with fans around the
world, sharing tweets, opinions, photos and clips.
Finally, is there anything else you'd like to say before you go?