The TV series Doctor Who is now over 50 years old. We were treated to a special anniversary episode, with the new Doctor, Peter Capaldi, being introduced at Christmas. 50 years is a long time for any TV programme to survive, so I thought I’d take a look to see how the show has been commemorated in plaques.

BBC Television Centre

plaque #6008 plaque #6004 plaque #6006 The BBC Television Centre, home to the early Doctor Who episodes, had plaques for the first three doctors, John Pertwee, William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton. These were all unveiled back in 1992, in a ceremony attended by many ex-cast members. It is now no longer home to the BBC and, these plaques are no longer there, having been removed and then auctioned on eBay. A shame! There were plaques inside the Centre as well, but these have also disappeared into the ether.

Jon Pertwee

Pertwee was commemorated at the New Wimbledon Theatre in 2016 plaque #42042

The Cardiff Connection

plaque #29898 A Doctor Who related plaque was unveiled in Cardiff by the local Llandaff Society. This plaque remembers Terry Nation, who was of course the creator of the Daleks, and lived at this address from 1930 to 1952.plaque #29924 We’ve also discovered that there’s a plaque dedicated to fictional character Ianto Jones from Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood at the Mermaid Quay in Cardiff.We can’t find any plaque yet commemorating Verity Lambert, the first producer of the show, or Sydney Newman, who created the show (as well as The Avengers) – but perhaps their time will come?