Doctor Who spin-offs

Doctor Who spin-offs can be separated into two distinct categories, officially licensed BBC productions, and other productions (not licensed by the BBC.

For the former there are only three examples: K-9 & Company, Torchwood, and The Sarah Jane Adventures.

The latter are all Doctor Who spin-offs which generally contained a monster or element of Doctor Who (licensed from the original holder) and then produced without BBC licensed elements.

Officially Licensed by the BBC

Torchwood

see Torchwood for more detailed information

K-9 & Company

see K-9 & Company for more detailed information

The Sarah Jane Adventures

see The Sarah Jane Adventures for more detailed information

Big Finish

• Big Finish - Doctor Who Audio Dramas
• Big Finish - Explored Worlds

Other Doctor Who Spin Offs

Beginning in 1987 with the release of Wartime by Reeltime Pictures, a number of professionally produced spin-off films and audio dramas have been produced. As noted above, these differ from BBC and Big Finish productions in that they usually only feature characters or monsters not owned by the BBC, but rather licenced from their creators. Some spin-offs are original works using original character strongly suggested by characters in Doctor Who (such as The Stranger). In many cases, original cast members from Doctor Who reprised their TV roles for these films and several involved behind-the-scenes veterans of the series (for example, Christopher Barry, who co-directed the very first Daleks story in 1963-64, directed Downtime). A number of writers and actors involved in these productions later went on to work with fully licenced Doctor Who spinoffs such as the Big Finish audio dramas, and even on the revived Doctor Who series itself when it returned to TV in 2005 (most notably Nicholas Briggs and Mark Gatiss).

BBV

BBV produced both Video and Audio spin-offs.

Audio

• List of BBV audio dramas

Auton Trilogy

Featured the Auton and Nestene. It also featured UNIT. Though there were no 'recognisable' characters from Doctor Who.

P.R.O.B.E.

Featured Caroline John reprising her role of Doctor Elizabeth Shaw working with P.R.O.B.E.

1. The Zero Imperative
2. The Devil of Winterborne
3. Unnatural Selection
4. Ghosts of Winterborne

The Airzone Solution

The Airzone Solution is notable that while it doesn't have any narrative connection with Doctor Who it does feature; Jon Pertwee, Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy and Nicola Bryant. It was also one of Jon Pertwee's final appearances (in film) before his death.

The Stranger

A series featuring Colin Baker as 'The Stranger' (a.k.a. Soloman) and his companion 'Miss Brown' played by Nicola Bryant. Originally intended as a Doctor Who pastiche -- the second film, More Than a Messiah was even based upon an Audio Visuals Doctor Who story, any similarities to the TV series were erased beginning with The Terror Game.

1. Summoned by Shadows
2. More Than a Messiah
3. In Memory Alone
4. The Terror Game
5. Breach of the Peace
6. Eye of the Beholder

Do You Have a License to Save this Planet?

A parody of Doctor Who produced to mark BBV's 10th anniversary, this short film featured Sylvester McCoy as "The Foot Doctor" and poked fun at not only Doctor Who, but also BBV's line of spinoff dramas and the whole "fan film" genre.

Reeltime Pictures

Produced the large range of Myth Makers video interview tapes which interviewed much of the Doctor Who cast and crew. Reeltime Pictures were the first production company to make a Doctor Who spin-off licensed from the creator rather than through the BBC.

Wartime

Starring John Levene reprising his role as Sgt. Benton of UNIT, this 1987 release was the first independent, creator-licenced Doctor Who spinoff.

Myth Runner

A parody of Blade Runner, Doctor Who and the Myth Makers interview series (see below), built around bloopers from Myth Makers.

Shakedown: Return of the Sontarans

A feature-length drama featuring the Sontarans. It has the distinction of being one of two "unofficial" spinoffs to be adapted as an officially licenced Doctor Who novel. The novel Shakedown was expanded to include the Seventh Doctor and released as part of the Virgin New Adventures line.

Downtime

This feature-length drama saw the return of Katy Manning as Victoria Waterfield, Elisabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith and Nicholas Courtney as The Brigadier, and was directed by Christopher Barry. As with Shakedown, it too was adapted as a novel, this time for the Virgin Missing Adventures line; see Downtime (novel).

Daemos Rising

A sequel to Downtime, featuring the return of Beverly Cressman as The Brigadier's daughter.

Non-fiction spin-offs

Since the revival of the Doctor Who franchise in 2005, several ongoing non-fiction TV series have been commissioned to suppliment the main programmes. All feature behind-the-scenes documentary coverage of production, with the exception of Totally Doctor Who which also featured an animated serial, The Infinite Quest.

• Doctor Who Confidential
• Totally Doctor Who
• Torchwood Declassified (technically a spinoff of Torchwood)

Reeltime Pictures also produced several non-fiction spinoffs:

Myth Makers

A series of several dozen interview documentaries featuring cast and crew of the series. Notable entries in the series included a 90-minute interview with Jon Pertwee and two tapes dedicated to Tom Baker.

Return to Devil's End

A documentary featuring Jon Pertwee, Nicholas Courtney, Barry Letts, John Levene and others revisiting the locations of The Daemons in the town of Aldbourne.