An Interview With the Editor
Connor Johnston sits down with DWTV’s Editor, aka the Tear Doctor.
For just over 2 years I’ve had the privilege of working closely with the man who works effortlessly (365 days a year) to ensure the smooth running of the site and more often than not: the fandom’s sanity. Today, we as a DWTV community have the very rare opportunity to venture into the ‘chaotic wonderland’ – the mind of the man behind the entire sites existence, to learn a little bit more about what it’s like to moderate DWTV as well as a chance to share our own appreciation for the devotion he exhibits day-in-day-out. You know him as our supreme overlord who feeds on the tears of the many; I know him simply as Chris McIntyre.
Upon a Google Search of “Doctor Who,” this site comes in in 5th place only second to official BBC, imdb and YouTube pages. It is (by those standards) the most popular and widely visited Doctor Who fan site on the internet… Could you ever fathom back in 2005 that you’d be still running the site and watching it continue to go from strength to strength 10 years down the track?
No, not at all! It’s pretty crazy when you put it like that. The whole thing actually started out as more of an experiment and somehow it grew into this. But it’s not something I really want to dwell on, as it would only add pressure.
Do you recall what your initial motivation for starting the site, then known as “Doctor Who 2K”, was?
I wanted to dabble in creating a simple website using my (at the time) basic web skills. Doctor Who had just returned to our screens in 2005 and the show inspired me to combine the two, and thus “Doctor Who 2K” was born. I think the name was originally going to be “Doctor Who 2k5” to better reflect intended focus on the new series but that domain was taken. In late 2005 it became “Doctor Who TV” instead, it was just simpler and the name wouldn’t date as much.
For many, the appeal of this site in particular is that it goes far beyond being simply a ‘news and updates’ website. In fact I’d go as far to say many would label the heart of Doctor Who TV as the feature articles. Personally, I’ve always maintained that it’s the fact the site offers quite literally anyone and everyone a platform to contribute their views for discussion that really sets it apart from competitors around the web. What is it about the “Guest Contributor’ format that you feel works so well within the framework of Doctor Who TV?
Allowing anyone to contribute was an idea that came a bit later on and it didn’t really take off until Matt Smith’s era. My thinking was everyone has a voice so – as long as it fits the guidelines – why not let other people have a go rather than just restrict it to the regular writers. I think it has allowed some fascinating articles to come to light exploring the many facets of this universe and the huge variance of opinions.
Obviously maintaining such an active and devoted site would be quite time consuming; especially during the peak periods when Doctor Who is on television and news, previews and reviews are being released left right and centre. How do you continue to meet such a daunting challenge so professionally day after day?
Fortunately in the last ten years I have been able to build a real-life TARDIS and master time travel to help manage things!
But, seriously, that’s a good question. It’s a very tricky balancing act doing it every day, all year round. In truth probably a lot more time goes into the site than many would realise and sometimes more than is probably healthy on the busiest days!
Following along the same note, complete the sentence: The hardest thing about running “Doctor Who TV” is…?
…that the internet never sleeps. Big news could break at any moment so trying to keep on top of that is another challenge. The other major thing is attempting to keep the comments section from turning into Youtube free-for-all, particularly on the hotter topics. Hence we have stricter moderation than many sites, but the pay-off has resulted in one of the nicer communities on the net, I believe.
And to maintain some joy: The most rewarding thing about running “Doctor Who TV” is ….?
The deliciously yummy tears generated from the ridiculously impossible Face-Offs… Er… I mean just seeing people engaging with the articles really and the community grow over the years.
The last few years in particular has seen the rise of immortalised segments to the Doctor Who TV line-up of news and updates. What to you is the most iconic and why, out of examples like: ‘Weird and Wonderful’, ‘2nd Opinion Reviews’, ‘Best of the Year Summaries’, ‘April Fools Posts’ or perhaps one of the oh-so-many engaging polls?
It’s hard to think of any feature as “iconic” but “Weird and Wonderful” is probably the one that has stuck the most. There are so many talented Whovians creating amazing things and it’s great to offer them a platform to show off their work.
As much as there is quite a significant jump in job descriptions, if one day by the strangest of circumstances you were promoted from “Doctor Who TV Editor” to “Doctor Who Executive Producer” (Don’t get too excited)… What direction would you point the show in?
Well if such an event was to occur I’d first ask what on Earth happened to all the far better qualified people! But I’d probably take it into more of a Hinchcliffe and Holmes direction, really pushing the horror elements.
Over the years, the site has had its fair share of celebrity visitors. Which of these has manifested the most excitement from yourself?
I wouldn’t want to single any out. But it’s always a little odd seeing some of the people who actually work on the show visiting, or even commenting.
If you had to pinpoint 10 highlights for 10 years of the site’s existence they would be…
10 is tricky in the space we have, but there are two specific ‘eras’ that are particularly special. First it was probably during Series 5 where the site really started to find an audience as everyone tried to piece together the Silence Will Fall arc.
Secondly, the 50th anniversary. It was such a rare event for a show and to see it your lifetime is a privilege for us all. To see so many Whovians united over the grand occasion was a very special time. One I think we can all very fondly remember for a long, long time.
Personal Opinion PowerRound: Favourite Doctors, Companions, Writers, Monsters and Episodes of the last 52 years?
Capaldi is already fantastic, but right now it still feels a bit early in his tenure to fully judge against others, so at the moment probably Pertwee and Eccleston for Doctors. The Brigadier and the Ponds for companions. Robert Holmes, RTD & Moffat for writers. The Autons and Weeping Angels for monsters. Spearhead from Space, Midnight and Blink (unoriginal again, I know) for episodes. Honestly though, these could all change by tomorrow!
And finally, what is it about ‘Doctor Who’ in particular, as well as the strong community of Whovians that obsess over it, that has touched you so deeply and that you find so utterly enthralling?
Just seeing the community come together over things they are so passionate about is a delight.
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Happy 10 years Doctor Who TV!
