It may be fifteen years since we last cowered behind our sofas, but the blizzard of media interest in the forthcoming Doctor Who series has proved that it still holds a special place in the nation's psyche. As uniquely British as bacon and eggs and miserable wet Augusts, it is perhaps best remembered for its monsters, notably the daleks and the cybermen. Despite having clearly been rendered on a shoestring, they successfully traumatised a generation of schoolchildren. After a long absence from our screens (barring a one-off special starring Paul McGann) Doctor Who still retains a loyal fanbase, with a network of local groups afiliated to the offical Appreciation Society. Francis Moloney runs Gloucester group The Mind Robbers, a collective of dedicated fans who meet monthly to discuss all things Who. He is also a player in The Offstage Theatre group, a local company run by Barnaby Jones which stages comedic Doctor Who plays at conventions dedicated to the series. Scary Francis was five when he first saw Doctor Who (who was then played by Jon Pertwee). "It was just one of the most bizarre things I'd ever seen on television, and it was really scary," he recalled. He puts the enduring popularity of the series down to the fact that it's "great escapism". "Stories can take you from ancient Rome, to the far future, to alien worlds - there's great diversity." He remembered being most scared of the autons. "They were plastic facsimilies of people, like tailors' dummies come to life. They were pretty eerie. I believe they may be coming back in the new series." New Doctor The casting of the Doctor in the new series was a difficult task, bound to provoke a reaction among veteran fans but Francis believes Christopher Eccleston is a good choice. "He's played a wide range of roles to date and I think he'll make a good job of it," said Francis. Francis' own acting outlet, The Offstage Players, is an amateur theatre group which has been established for 13 years. In 2002, they took a step away from traditional drama when group founder Barnaby Jones co-wrote Deja Vu of the Doctors, a Doctor Who spoof. They successfully pitched the play to the organisers of Doctor Who convention Destiny, and have gone on to performed at a string of Who-related events, including the BBC-backed PanoptiCon. Return The group also makes regular appearances at Doctor Who conventions, such as the one in Liverpool in October 2004. Francis explained a little about what takes place at these events. "There are interview panels with actors from the shows, autograph panels, photo sessions and
merchandise rooms." With the impending return of the Doctor currently causing a stir, 2005 could be a busy year for Francis and his friends. 
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As Doctor Who prepares to return to our screens, a Gloucestershire group are bringing the Time Lord to life on stage.
