As I am writing this, I’m waiting for the next Dr Who special to start; I am an unashamed fan as many will know, and that extends to Torchwood (did you know that’s an anagram of Doctor Who?) which is also returning for a new season, and the indications are it may even be on the ABC.

Dr Who is the world’s longest running science fiction TV show – yes even longer than Startrek – and I have every KNOWN episode since day one in 1963 either on CD, DVD or tape. I say ‘known’, as a number of the original tapes have been lost, so in replays over the years, there are some gaps. (Incidentally, if you have any copies of these, the BBC would be eternally grateful to hear from you. I especially would like to see the ones with the Galactic Toymaster again).

Anyway, I got to wondering about the success of TV shows. What gives them longevity and popularity? With the early days of Dr Who and the cardboard cutout sets and silly costumes, it can’t be special effects. That could be said for Top Gear as well. Nor does Top Gear have any sort of storyline. If it were that, then Australian Top Gear would rate through the roof as well. And it doesn’t. So using a quick straw poll of family and friends, I did some checking, and the overall consensus was the magic word, entertainment.

This is why movies or slide nights of your latest holiday are not welcomed by everybody. They are just not entertaining. Sure the subject matter is nice, and the main actors are probably OK, but the wow factor just isn’t there.

I noticed one more thing watching these later Doctor Who’s too. Each scene only lasts between 4 and 6 seconds. I wonder if that is part of the entertainment factor. Maybe time to rewrite that script?