[GreyhoundJon @replies]

Hello all,

First post from a fairly recent lurker (a few weeks). I’m a lifelong fan (mid Tom Baker) though a little behind at the moment, having just watched The Zygon Invasion, but I’ve quickly got used to turning here after each adventure.

Although, being behind, I’ve not been able to contribute to any discussion (or had any insights/theories half as sharp or bonkers), the atmosphere here has made me wish I had. Without exception you have shown yourselves to be welcoming, thought-provoking, humane, liberal and erudite, in fact just like the values we admire in a certain programme.

The thought of being able to discuss episodes and bonkersness here helps me to press play and reluctantly move one episode closer to the end of the Capaldi / Coleman era, which I sincerely believe to be the best Dr Who there has ever been or ever will be and whose end I dread.

Of course, my point is that I have held equally sincere beliefs before.

Is this not close to the heart of the magic of our favourite programme, that it can continue to grab us, involve us, wrench from us our emotions and imaginations and new devotions and in ways we never expected and had never foreseen? Even when we ‘know’ that things can never be this good again, somehow they always are. And all the while it stays true to its generous, positive and liberal nature which has – as others have noted (@nick, @jimthefish) – been part of its DNA from the start.

Sure, the lead has gone to men until now, but the show began in a different era and I agree with @thane15 that traditions can evolve into different traditions. Yesterday’s announcement has made me double-motivated to catch right up with the transmitted stories, because I think it shows that Chris Chibnall will not be afraid to shake things up and keep things evolving. Like @frostfair I’m looking forward to seeing how all the interactions we’ve got used to having half a handle on are shaken up. Just the shot in the arm that gives me hope I can move on post-PC/JC. Much kudos also to Steven Moffat for making it possible.

I wanted to counterbalance some other new-joiners who have already treated us to their spleen. By which I don’t mean those with considered misgivings (whether or not I agree), but those whose knee-jerk objection to Jodie Whittaker is solely that (eek!) their role-model will soon be a woman.

I don’t accept that women can’t be role-models for boys/men. The only reservation I have ever had about a female doctor was that enough people might object to it to threaten the show’s future. I haven’t thought that for a long time as I’m sure that nowadays the people who will be excited by a female doctor in general and what Jodie can bring to it in particular far outweigh those that might object. This isn’t 1963.

As @jimthefish already wrote, the spleen-venters don’t get what makes our programme unique anyway. That’s fine, we don’t all need to like the same thing. There are other shows they may like more. This one doesn’t need to change its soul to keep them comfortable.

(Looks aghast at amount he has written, presses ‘Submit’ nervously …)

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