My First Doctor: Eideann
(I’m on vacation this week, so I bring you an edition of “My First Doctor” written by my friend Eideann. Doctor Who fandom is something that we have shared since we first met, lo those many moons ago. Enjoy!)
My First Doctor by Eideann
Easter Break, 1983
I was helping clean the house in preparation for a family gathering while my father cleaned out the fireplace in our family room. He had the TV on our local public television station, and he called me in to see what he was watching. He said it was a fun, very silly science fiction show that I would love.
I fell to watching, mightily puzzled by the tall man with his insanely long scarf running around a futuristic city with a scantily clad woman who responded to people with laser guns by threatening them with her sharp knife – and nevertheless succeeded in intimidating them. As the afternoon wore on, I grew to know the man as the Doctor and the woman as Leela, his companion.
Thus began a family tradition that continued for several years. Between theater, scouting, church and school, the only time all four of us were consistently at home together was on Sunday afternoons. At that point in time, KVIE, our PBS station, played the serial segments of Doctor Who on weekday nights, then played the whole week’s worth on Sunday afternoons. We watched it weekly as a family till I was in late high school, growing to know each Doctor in his turn, and each companion.
Last year, at just about this time, my father was diagnosed with aplastic anemia, an immune deficiency disorder that depletes the blood of just about everything. He couldn’t go out without risking infection, and his body wasn’t getting enough oxygen, so anything more active than sitting was out. I had just purchased the DVD set of the Christopher Eccleston Doctor Who, so I took it to him. It was something we could share again, something he could enjoy at his own pace and that wouldn’t tire him out.
I know he enjoyed the ones he got to watch. He died on June 30th, 2006, so Doctor Who was some of the last TV we shared together.
July 3rd, 2007 at 1:01 am
Eideann is a real Doctor Who freak. I should know. She tied me to a chair once and MADE me watch. Really!
July 3rd, 2007 at 11:15 am
That was a great entry Eideann! I’m sorry for your loss. However, I’m happy that you have some wonderful memories of the time you spent with your dad - and the Doctor!