Oh Doctor! My Doctor! (apologies to Walt Whitman!)

I'm a huge Doctor Who fan. Have been for as long as I can remember.

I've faithfully followed the adventures of the Time Lord right the way through my childhood and into adulthood, never missing an episode. In fact, I persuaded my father to buy our first VCR so that I wouldn't miss one. I used to record them all onto VHS and watch a full story back to back.

I have a vague recollection of watching No. 3, the dandy Doctor, Jon Pertwee, but my Doctor was No. 4, the Bohemian, Tom Baker. There was something about him that appealed to kids. He seemed to have the knack of making things less scary than they should have, and of course there were always the Jelly Babies, which he offered to friend or foe alike. He could be brooding of course, most obviously in Genesis of the Daleks, where he goes back in time to the creation of his most famous enemies and has the chance to prevent their creation. He muses on morality and his knowledge of the future, that the Daleks, evil though they may be, have drawn other races into alliances which would not have happened otherwise. Given the chance to commit genocide, he hesitates. "I become like the Daleks. If someone who knew the future pointed out a child to you and told you that the child would grow up...to be a ruthless dictator who would destroy millions of lives, could you then kill that child? Do I have that right?"

Of course he is saved from having to make that choice, but still, imagine the impression that had on me. Suddenly things were no longer black or white. Now there were shades of grey. Good and Bad were no longer absolute markers, but relative. It was a turning point for a young boy.

The years passed, and the Fourth Doctor became a friend rather than a character, and it was a shock when after seven years in the part, Mr. Baker decided to leave. He was replaced by a young Peter Davison, who approached the part with a boyish energy and a love of cricket. He in turn was replaced by Doctors Six and Seven with a brief appearance from the Eighth Doctor. Through all this, I was loyal.

Then suddenly, there was nothing. The BBC, in their infinite wisdom, "retired" the Time Lord and all we had to watch was repeats on UK Gold. Through this, I became acquainted with the First and Second Doctors, along with the Third, getting to know the irascible Bill Hartnell and the Cosmic Hobo of Patrick Troughton.

Then, news began to emerge of a new Doctor Who. It seemed that the character was about to be resurrected in the modern age for a new audience. Chris Ecclestone was the Northern Doctor, number 9, followed by David Tennant, and latterly Matt Smith.

My love for the character has not diminished over time, and indeed now things have come full circle, with my seven year-old daughter being a huge fan of the programme and the character. I wonder if, in years to come, she will look back and remember Matt Smith as her Doctor? I certainly hope so!