The Wilderness Years

You needed to be committed to be a Doctor Who fan in the 1990s. In the absence of any new episodes on the screen we had to make to with  archive features in Doctor Who Magazine, Target novelisations, Virgin New Adventures and Missing Adventures, videos and Conventions.

We became regular visitors to the Hotel Leofric in Coventry, for Panopticon 1994, 1995 and 1996. 

1996 was the year when there was initially much excitement about the new TV Movie, but although Paul McGann was excellent in the role, it proved to be a false dawn.

The Eighth Doctor did appear in a number of the excellent Big Finish audios though.  By the early 2000s, he had become my favourite Doctor.  Did I mention I was fickle?  In 2003, with the fortieth anniversary in view, I was highly excited about the special audio adventure Zagreus.  We made a point of attending the 40th anniversary convention, which was held in London, but found it slightly disappointing. 

At this point we had news that the series was coming back, but dared not hope for too much.  Once it became clear that it was really happening, I started a diary to record the event as it happened...