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Post by Deleted on Dec 25, 2023 6:45:04 GMT
The first ever Doctor Who Christmas special aired on this day in 1965.
Viewership was slightly down at 7.9 million, but the AI scores were truly awful. 39 is a low only beaten by one other story (more on that in March!). Perhaps as a result of that, it was forty years before another Christmas special would be aired.
(direct to camera) Incidentally, a Happy Christmas to all of you at home! (thanks for the transcript Chakoteya)
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Post by Deleted on Dec 26, 2023 6:20:27 GMT
On 26 December 1964, Boxing Day saw Doctor Who at the Flashpoint, also known as episode 6 of Dalek Invasion of Earth.
12.4 million people tuned in, with an AI of 63. The return of the Daleks had audiences loving the show, but would this audience hold up over the coming weeks.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 27, 2023 7:46:34 GMT
Nothing to see here. Move along please.
Doctor Who will return tomorrow (and for quite a busy day, too)
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Post by Deleted on Dec 27, 2023 7:59:34 GMT
Nothing to see here. Move along please. Doctor Who will return tomorrow (and for quite a busy day, too) Well, how about a Happy 89th Birthday to Christopher Benjamin, 89 today!
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Post by Deleted on Dec 28, 2023 7:39:03 GMT
Gosh, this is going to be a long one. 28 December has been a busy day on Doctor Who.
In 1963, the Daleks aired, and Doctor Who was changed forever. The numbers are deceptive, 6.4m viewers and an AI of 58 is totally consistent with previous weeks, but this episode started a word of mouth explosion, and the effects weren't really seen until the following weeks. More on that later.
In 1968, episode 1 of the Krotons aired, to an inexplicably high 9.0 million viewers and a very healthy AI of 59. Sadly the story didn't hold the increased audience and figures would be back to the more typical 7 million by it's end.
Then in 1974, we have the debut episode of Mr Tom Baker, with the beginning of Season 12. A very healthy 10.8m tuned into episode 1 of Robot, which scored an AI of 53.
Finally, in 1988, season 25 plodded on. 4.8 million tuned in to episode 3 of the ironically titled Greatest Show in the Galaxy. They continued to be enjoying the show, with an AI of 69. The AI seemed to go up as the audience we t down, which I suppose makes sense as by 1988 people were less likely to be watching solely because it here was nothing else on.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 29, 2023 6:47:24 GMT
29 December 1973 saw The Time Warrior episode 3 still heavily impacted by Christmas, with viewer numbers down to a mere 6.6 million. No AI recorded.
By contrast, in 1979, audience figures for episode 2 of Horns of Nimon showed a healthy recovery, up to 8.8 million. Again, no AI.
I'm tempted to start a Doctor Who watch through where I miss out the lowest viewed episode(s) to get a feeling for the viewing experience of those millions of people who missed out a chunk of each story.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 30, 2023 8:03:46 GMT
30 December.
In 1967, episode 2 of Enemy of the World was watched by a healthy (for the era) 7.6m with an AI of 49.
Five years later, in 1972, the 9 years and 37 days anniversary was celebrated with episode 1 of The Three Doctors. 9.6 million tuned in, which was a normal sized audience for the day. No AI is recorded.
And finally, in 1978, Power of Kroll episode 2 more than made up for the previous week's poor 6.5m by snaring an absolutely bonkers 12.4 million viewers! No AI is recorded but I'm guessing the 3 million unexpected viewers weren't impressed as they didn't come back the following week.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 31, 2023 6:53:13 GMT
31 December 1966 saw episode 3 of the Highlanders. It was the highest rated episode, at 7.4m, which was still low for the period. AI was 47, a common level for all of the early Troughtons. It would take the upcoming fast-tracked return of the cybermen to turn that trend round.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 1, 2024 7:42:19 GMT
Before the End of Time or Chibnall, New Years Day had a few Doctor Who episodes make their first airing.
In 1966, normal service was resumed with the episode Volcano. Audience figures bounced back nicely from the disastrous Christmas special, with 9.6m viewers and an AI of 49.
Then in 1972, Season 9 launched with episode 1 of Day of the Daleks. A healthy 9.8m tuned in, a nice step up in viewer numbers from Season 8.
Finally in 1977, Season 14 returned from it's mid-season break with episode 1 of The Face of Evil. 10.7 million viewers was the going rate for this era, as was the AI of 61, so the rest over Christmas had clearly done no harm.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 2, 2024 6:43:52 GMT
On 2 January 1965, The Powerful Enemy, better known as episode 1 of the Rescue, aired to a very healthy 12.0 million viewers, with an AI of 57. I'm sure the producers were hoping the huge spike in viewers for the preceding Dalek story would stick around, and this was a good start.
6 years later and, of course, Season 8 launched. Episode 1 of Terror of the Autons was watched by 7.3m, a bit of a slide from the previous year. Season 8 has no AI scores recorded. Happy 52nd, Jo and The Master.
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Post by number13 on Jan 2, 2024 12:30:12 GMT
On 2 January 1965, The Powerful Enemy, better known as episode 1 of the Rescue, aired to a very healthy 12.0 million viewers, with an AI of 57. I'm sure the producers were hoping the huge spike in viewers for the preceding Dalek story would stick around, and this was a good start. 6 years later and, of course, Season 8 launched. Episode 1 of Terror of the Autons was watched by 7.3m, a bit of a slide from the previous year. Season 8 has no AI scores recorded. Happy 52nd, Jo and The Master.And Mike Yates too. Quite the debut story all round!
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Post by Deleted on Jan 3, 2024 7:00:22 GMT
Ok, so, fair warning. The schedule gets a bit cluttered from here for a while.
Not only do we have Saturday episodes every five or six years for January and September seasons, but from Season 19 we also have the midweek episodes. Running twice weekly, and changing the day of the week from season to season means we'll often have episodes showing on the same date in consecutive years. So, what does that mean in practise:
1970, 8.4m tuned in to the first ever colour episode, Spearhead from Space part 1. With an AI of 54, things were off to a strong start for the new Doctor.
1976, and 9.5m tuned in for episode 1 of Brain of Morbius, the return of season 13 from it's mid-season break. Quite a drop in viewers from before Christmas.
1981, and Warriors Gate episode 1 saw a big increase after season 18's break, now that ITV were no longer showing Buck Rogers. 7.1m and an AI of 59.
1983, and Arc of Infinity episode 1 opened season 29 with a very comparable 7.2m, and a much better AI of 69. The viewing figures might look stable compared to season 18, but represented quite a big drop from season 19. More on that tomorrow (hint hint).
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Post by Deleted on Jan 3, 2024 8:27:19 GMT
Ok, so, fair warning. The schedule gets a bit cluttered from here for a while. Not only do we have Saturday episodes every five or six years for January and September seasons, but from Season 19 we also have the midweek episodes. Running twice weekly, and changing the day of the week from season to season means we'll often have episodes showing on the same date in consecutive years. So, what does that mean in practise: 1970, 8.4m tuned in to the first ever colour episode, Spearhead from Space part 1. With an AI of 54, things were off to a strong start for the new Doctor. 1976, and 9.5m tuned in for episode 1 of Brain of Morbius, the return of season 13 from it's mid-season break. Quite a drop in viewers from before Christmas. 1981, and Warriors Gate episode 1 saw a big increase after season 18's break, now that ITV were no longer showing Buck Rogers. 7.1m and an AI of 59. 1983, and Arc of Infinity episode 1 opened season 29 with a very comparable 7.2m, and a much better AI of 69. The viewing figures might look stable compared to season 18, but represented quite a big drop from season 19. More on that tomorrow (hint hint). On further investigation it is clear that the methodology behind AI changed in the early eighties. Up until Season 18, the average was around 50 and anything over 60 was exceptional. After a year with no scores, from season 20 onwards the average was around 70, a score only ever reached by one episode in the previous 18 years. (Episode 2 of Image of the Fendahl, if you're interested, or indeed even if you aren't).
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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2024 6:54:23 GMT
60 years ago today The Escape, episode 3 of The Daleks, saw a big jump up in viewer numbers, 8.9m with an excellent AI of 63. Dalekmania was born!
In 1969, episode 2 of The Krotons continued it's impressive post Christmas audience bounce, with 8.4 million viewers and a good 57 AI.
In 1975, Robot was also holding up well. Episode 2 gained 10.7 million and an average AI of 53.
Then in 1982, after season 18 had a disastrous autumn run, the show moved to a Monday evening January launch. The change seemed to pay off, as 9.1 million tunes in to see Peter Davison's first episode, Castrovalva episode 1
Last, and sadly least, in 1989, season 25 rallied to a strong finish. Greatest Show in the Galaxy gained 6.6 million viewers, the highest figure for the season, with a disappointing, if unsurprisingl AI of 64. It seems the lesson of poor autumn viewing figures had been forgotten in the desire to transmit over the anniversary date.
Phew. Who would have thought 4 Jan would have had so much going on.
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Post by aussiedoctorwhofan on Jan 4, 2024 8:14:00 GMT
Happy 77th Birthday to Mr terry Molloy AKA "Davros". I have a great picture of him trying to strangle me from the last time he visited Oz.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2024 7:50:28 GMT
Busy day today.
50 years ago, 10.6m tuned in to witness the glorious defeat of commander Lynx in episode 4 of the Time Warrior. A very strong surge in viewers from the previous week's. AI was a high 62.
In 1980, viewer numbers were also continuing to climb with episode 3 of Horns of the Nimon. 9.8 million in total.
In 1982, episode 2 of Castrovalva marked the first time episodes had ever aired on consecutive days. Viewing numbers dipped only slightly from the previous day to 8.6m.
In 1983, episode 2 of Arc of Infinity gained 7.3m viewers and an AI of 70.
In 1984, another change in the schedules meant another season launch. 7.6m tuned in to episode 1 of Warriors of the Deep, with an AI of 65.
Finally, in 1985, the show loved back to Saturday, which remarkably meant Season 22 also debuted on 5 Jan. 8.9m tuned in to episode 1 of Attack of the Cybermen, with an AI of 61.
The concentration of episodes airing on 5 January is astounding. 6 in total, 5 of them in a six year period, four in consecutive years. Perhaps this should be known in future as JNT day.
Ok, perhaps not. I promise to be less excited when this happens again on 12 Jan.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 6, 2024 7:55:34 GMT
In 6 January 1968, 7.1m watched episode 3 of Enemy of the World, with an AI of only 48.
In 1973, episode 2 of The Three Doctors picked up an impressive 10.8m viewers.
In 1979, episode 3 of Power of Kroll failed to hold on to the huge audience from episode 2 and achieved a still-respectable 8.9m
Then in 1984, Warriors of the Deep episode 2 pretty much replicated episode 1's performance, with 7.5m viewers and an AI of 64.
Nice to have a better mix of stories, rather than the JNT test of yesterday.
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Post by aussiedoctorwhofan on Jan 6, 2024 9:09:24 GMT
Happy Birthday to Mandip Gill, "Yaz" from 13th Doctor era.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 7, 2024 6:35:20 GMT
On 7th January 1967, 7.3 million saw Jamie join the TARDIS crew in episode 4 of the highlanders, with a poor AI of 47.
It was 1978 before another episode aired on this day, with episode 1 of Underworld, after Season 15 finally returned from it's mid-season break. Viewer numbers were a healthy 8.9 million and the episode was well regarded with an AI of 65.
And that's your lot today. Far more manageable, I've got to say.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 8, 2024 7:27:15 GMT
On 8 January 1966, Golden Death, episode gazillion of the Daleks Master plan, had 9.2m viewers and an AI of 52.
Meanwhile, in 1972 (as a time traveller might say) episode 2 of Day of the Daleks was watched by an improved 10.4 million viewers.
Finally, in 1977, Face of Evil was also slowly building momentum, with 11.1 million viewers.
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