With Season 11 still months away from airing and my budget for Big Finish audio stories all tapped out, I’m forced to look elsewhere for my Doctor Who fix. Today, we’ll be taking a look at some of the best parody videos out there in the world. If you can’t have The Doctor right now, at least we can have a reasonable facsimile of her with a bit of humor thrown it.
10. Hillywood
I’ve been a fan of Hillywood’s since their Harry Potter/“Friday” mashup. They really go above and beyond with this retelling of the Tenth Doctor’s time using “Time Warp” from The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The Donna pantomime parts in place of the Columbia tap-dance are particularly genius.
9. The Curse of Fatal Death
This is easily one of the most influential parodies ever made of Doctor Who. Not only was it written by Steven Moffat way back before anyone thought he’d become showrunner, it also foreshadowed the eventual casting of Jodie Whittaker as the first woman and 13th Doctor. Interesting side note, all of the actors to play The Doctor in this parody have either played the role in other vehicles or were heavily rumored to be official casting choices in the past.
8. Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Daleks
I’d actually forgotten all about this one, even though I used to show it before the classic Doctor Who screenings I hosted at Alamo Drafthouse before the BBC gave all their screening privileges to Fathom Events. This is an homage to the classic Hitchhiker’s Guide, substituting the Daleks for the Vogons. It’s an appropriate meshing, considering Douglas Adams was himself a Doctor Who writer in the Tom Baker era.
7. Dalek Meditation
Another Dalek-based classic. Even the most evil fascists in the universe need a little downtime. Here’s what it sounds like when the Daleks have a guided relaxation.
6. Doctor Who/One Born Every Minute/Call the Midwife
Unfortunately the good version of this you used to be able to find online got dinged for copyright, so we’re stuck with this crappy, filmed-off-TV version. Still it’s another great Comic Relief set up that combines three of Britain’s greatest shows. Oh, and here’s an explanation if you’re American like me and didn’t get Eleven’s punchline the first time around.
5. Japanese Doctor Who
That’s what it’s called, but what you’re seeing is the brainchild of UK filmmaker Joshua Kahan. I didn’t know I needed a Power Ranger-version of The Doctor, and I’m betting you didn’t either. It’s not quite as awesome as that Paul Johnson anime Doctor Who, it’s up there.
4. Time Travel Maybe
This one is just sweet. Yukeh does a send up on “Call Me Maybe” that fully captures the lonely Whovian’s yearning for adventure. On the way a dude who looks eerily like Matt Smith gets snubbed. I probably laughed harder than I should have at that.
3. Dead Ringers Tom Baker
Another classic. Here’s the Dead Ringers have a Fourth Doctor look-alike (and a thumping good one) go around, well, just being Four. For more information on this sort of thing, visit the Texas Renaissance Festival, where at least one dude is on site pulling the same trick every time I’ve been in the last four years.
2. The Web of Caves
This is a personal favorite of mine for its simplicity and just unapologetic Britishness. Mark Gatiss plays an incarnation of The Doctor increasingly annoyed at a pair of villains who want him to stop them. This appearance of Gatiss as The Doctor makes him, along with Derek Jacobi, one of the short list of people who has played both The Doctor and The Master in licensed material.
1. Doctorin’ The TARDIS
We leave off with one of my favorite nutso music videos of all time, Doctor Who-related or otherwise. This parody of “Rock and Roll (Part Two)” by The Timelords has catchy tunes, car chases, crap Daleks, and everything else to make a day seem brighter. Enjoy.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2018.
