Dr Who fans celebrate their own journey through time

DR WHO fans from across Derbyshire have celebrated the 10th anniversary of an "appreciation" group that has led them to meeting the show's biggest stars.

The Whoovers formed in Derby in November 1999 and are now one of the largest Dr Who fan groups in England.

Such is its popularity, fans travel to meetings from all over the Midlands including cities such as Sheffield, Leicester and Stoke.

Over the past 10 years, the group has persuaded actors from the original and current series to visit Derby and speak about their time on the show.

To help celebrate the group's anniversary, actress Lisa Bowerman – who starred in the final episode of the 1989 series alongside Sylvester McCoy – accepted an invitation to be the star guest.

The former Casualty actress spent the evening signing autographs and answering questions from the 30-40 fans at the event held at The Voicebox in Derby.

Steve Hatcher, group co-ordinator, said he was not surprised the group had been going for 10 years. He said: "The biggest aspect of the group is friendship – the thing with Dr Who fans is they tend to have a lot of things in common besides the programme.

"We've got an e-mailing list of more than 100 people and I'd expect that to increase when the new series begins."

Mr Hatcher, who lives near Ashbourne, said the meetings were informal and that everyone is welcome.

He said: "Occasionally we'll watch a Dr Who episode, but it's mainly quizzes and games and just chatting.

"When we have a guest, which is four or five times a year, the meeting is taken up with a question and answer session and the signing of autographs."

Previous guests have included the seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy, and former companions Sophie Aldred (Ace opposite Sylvester McCoy) and Anneke Wills (Polly opposite William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton).

The voice of the Daleks, Nicholas Briggs, has also been a star guest.

Mr Hatcher said people of all ages attended the monthly meetings, which have been held at the Forman Street venue since 2005. He said: "Our oldest member is a man in his mid-50s, and our youngest is under 10."

Although the Whoovers are celebrating 10 years, their story began in 1981 when six teenagers took a liking to the show. Andy Thompson, who was one of the teenagers, said the show was not popular in the early 1980s and those who were fans naturally became friends.

The group grew to 10-15 members and they started meeting at the back of Nunsfield House, in Alvaston. But they stopped after the show disappeared from screens in 1989.

A reunion was organised in 1999 and from then on the Time Lord fans decided to meet up on a regular basis. Visit www. whoovers.org.uk for details.