‘THE HOME WHOVIAN’

Please feel free to comment on my review.

Tim Bradley’s DVD cover of ‘An Englishman on Gallifrey’/’The Home Whovian’ signed by Sarah Sutton, Mark Strickson and Colin Baker

Tim Bradley with Colin Baker at ‘Film & Comic Con Cardiff’, Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff, March 2019

‘The Home Whovian’ is an unusual yet enjoyable ‘Doctor Who’ special feature! It contains interviews with four classic Doctors from the ‘Doctor Who’ TV series as well as the show’s producer John Nathan-Turner. The feature was made in 1985, at a time when the show was in a turbulent period. 😐

This was meant to be the first of a series of USA video releases in the 1980s, featuring interviews with the ‘Doctor Who’ stars. Sadly, it ended up being a one-off video release. No more were made after that. It’s a shame, since I enjoyed watching the collection of interviews featured in this feature.

The interviews are presented one after the other. It starts with John Nathan-Turner being interviewed before he’s followed by Jon Pertwee, then Tom Baker, then Peter Davison and then Colin Baker. Just to note, I’ve met Tom, Peter and Colin at the conventions I’ve attended thus far. 😀

Compared to ‘An Englishman on Gallifrey’ which was about 50 minutes, ‘The Home Whovian’ lasts for about 31 minutes. I like how ‘The Home Whovian’ starts with a sort-of TV commercial by Patrick Troughton, well-known as the Second Doctor in ‘Doctor Who’. Patrick was amazing and funny to see.

I wish I could meet him at a convention if he was alive today. 🙂 It’s a shame ‘The Home Whovian’ didn’t present the interviews with Terry Nation, Carole Ann Ford, Patrick Troughton and Sylvester McCoy, as it seemed to be promised at the beginning. Perhaps those interviews are on another DVD.

The interview with John Nathan-Turner was interesting. The comments he made about what his influences on characters such as the Master and companions like Peri, Tegan, Turlough and Adric were fascinating. Odd that he didn’t mention Nyssa, as I find her important and I’m very fond of her.

Jon Pertwee’s interview was very enjoyable. I was struck by how Jon reflected on he was happy when the show was produced by Barry Letts. He does express his hatred on working with Daleks. I wish I could meet Jon Pertwee at a convention and have a conversation with him about the show. 😀

Tom Baker’s interview was equally enjoyable here. Tom gets to be interviewed on a panel at a convention, standing up and answering questions to American fans. I found his story of getting the part of ‘Doctor Who’ very funny. He clearly enjoys being loved and adored by the fans in the USA. 😀

So far, I’ve met Tom Baker twice at conventions, including ‘Timey-Wimey 1’ in Brighton, November 2014 and the ‘London Comic Con Spring’ in March 2019. I enjoyed his panel talk when at Brighton and I’ve even had photos with him at conventions. It’s amazing to think that I’ve met Tom in real life!

My standout memory of Tom was at the Brighton convention when I said to him, “It’s very nice to meet you!” and he replied, “It’s nice to be met!” That’s a moment I will never forget. From the convention panel he did in ‘The Home Whovian’, he must have been fresh coming off ‘Doctor Who’.

Peter Davison’s interview was a joy to watch. I really enjoyed how he commented on the way he decided to play his Doctor and what he believes makes good ‘Doctor Who’. My favourite highlight of his interview was when he talked about his companions and explaining why Nyssa is his favourite. 😀

I’ve seen Peter at more conventions since Janet Fielding’s ‘Project Motor Mouth’ convention in Slough, August 2013. I’ve had plenty of opportunities to chat with him. I also enjoyed seeing him in ‘The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot’. I’m currently looking forward to seeing Peter again at another convention.

Colin Baker’s interview was equally a delight. I was surprised by how young he looked and how slim he was, as he’s let himself go over the years. I enjoyed how Colin commented on his approach to playing his Doctor and shared how much he enjoyed the attention he received from fans in the USA.

I have met Colin at conventions plenty of times and I’ve always enjoyed meeting him. I’ve had the opportunity to share how much I’ve enjoyed his Doctor both in the TV series and the Big Finish audios. Colin is quite a character; but he’s always easy to laugh with and he welcomes the attention.

By the way, I’ve realised that I’ve had the DVD cover of ‘An Englishman on Gallifrey’/’The Home Whovian’ signed by Colin Baker as well as Sarah Sutton and Mark Strickson. Colin signed the DVD cover for me when I saw him at ‘Film & Comic Con Cardiff’ in March 2019. I’m very glad he signed it.

My disappointment with ‘The Home Whovian’ is that there aren’t any interviews with companions such as Sarah Sutton, Sophie Aldred and Wendy Padbury. Obviously if more ‘Home Whovian’ video releases were made, there would be more interviews with the companions. Sadly that wasn’t to be.

‘The Home Whovian’ has been a pleasurable viewing experience indeed. It’s pretty straight-forward in terms of the interviews with the producer John Nathan-Turner and the Doctors, including Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, Peter Davison and Colin Baker, but I found it a very insightful feature indeed. 🙂

The ‘An Englishman on Gallifrey’/’The Home Whovian’ DVD was great to check out. Mark Strickson’s ‘An Englishman on Gallifrey’ was the highlight for me, especially with Sarah Sutton and Bonnie Langford in it as well. ‘The Home Whovian’ is good, but in some respects I found it pretty short-lived.

When ‘The Home Whovian’ ended, I was like “Is that it?” I wish more of ‘The Home Whovian’ series was made and that there were more interviews with other ‘Doctor Who’ stars like the companions. I’m quite curious as to what else the New Jersey Network produced in terms of ‘Doctor Who’ stuff. 🙂

If you wish to attend a convention, check out ‘An Englishman on Gallifrey’ to discover what goes on at some of these events. Conventions are amazing! I’ve had my share of them and I’ve enjoyed going to the intimate ones like the Showmasters events and the ‘Regenerations’ Swansea events. 😀

I recommend purchasing the ‘Myth Makers’ interviews with the ‘Doctor Who’ stars if you’re unable to attend or if you don’t want to go to a convention! They’re great to watch! You can purchase them from the Time Travel TV website. For obvious reasons, Sarah Sutton’s ‘Myth Makers’ is my favourite.

‘The Home Whovian’ rating – 8/10