What Nice Doctor Who Collectables Do You Own?

[Si Hunt]

We all have collections of Doctor Who "tat", books, CD's, magazines and so on. Some of us have masses of it, some of us not so much, some of us sell bits and bobs every now and again when times demand, and some peoples collections lean more towards one sort of item (Books say, or CD's) than others. But we actually talk about our individual collections quite infrequently.

So let me ask you -

What item, or group of items, in your Doctor Who collection, are you particuarly proud of? Maybe something that is rare, or has sentimental value, or that you just like?

Is there anything especially rare or valuable that you have picked up? An original prop perhaps?

Is there any "form" of Doctor Who merchandise that you actively still collect?

Do you go in for signed stuff? And if so, whose is the autograph you are most proud of owning?

Any other stories about items that were hard to find? What was the most difficult thing to find that you've managed to pick up? And have you ever paid a lot for something?

If you had to rescue one Doctor Who "thing" from your collection in a fire, what would you take?

Not after a complete list of what you have, just wondered about your collections, and which parts of them you are most fond of.

Si.

[Martin Penny]

What item, or group of items, in your Doctor Who collection, are you particuarly proud of? Maybe something that is rare, or has sentimental value, or that you just like?

It sounds silly, but I have great sentimental attachment to my Dapol Figures! Me and the family made about two or three trips to the Doctor Who Exhibition in Llangollen around the time of my birthday, and I always used to have money to spend on the figure - which I would then spend hours playing with. Although Dapol produced many shoddy figures, I still think they have a certain charm.

I also have this delightful Dalek mini playset, with action figures of the fourth Doctor and a Dalek, which opens up to reveal a Dalek ship, complete with Davros. I still yearn for them to make another one! I used to live mini playsets.

Is there anything especially rare or valuable that you have picked up? An original prop perhaps?

Not to my knowledge...

Is there any "form" of Doctor Who merchandise that you actively still collect?

I still go in for the occasional action figure, but have more or less given up collecting them now.

Do you go in for signed stuff? And if so, whose is the autograph you are most proud of owning?

I once purchased a Target novel of 'The Tenth Planet' in a 'four for a pound' offer at the NEC, only to open it up and find it was signed by Tom Baker!

Any other stories about items that were hard to find? What was the most difficult thing to find that you've managed to pick up? And have you ever paid a lot for something?

[Pip Madeley]

What item, or group of items, in your Doctor Who collection, are you particuarly proud of? Maybe something that is rare, or has sentimental value, or that you just like?

I love my collection of TARDIS models of varying sizes, but particularly the 'Flight Control' version which made my inner child very happy.

Is there anything especially rare or valuable that you have picked up? An original prop perhaps?

No props! Never been in a position to buy any or been that bothered anyway.

Is there any "form" of Doctor Who merchandise that you actively still collect?

I'm collecting the DVDs but not as immediately as I used to - I'll happily wait for the prices to drop before dipping, particularly as I have the stories already. I still buy DWM but copies are all over the place, some with me, some at my dad's house (could do with getting them all in one place). As for the action figures, I only have a handful and they were all either cheap or presents. They're nice enough.

Do you go in for signed stuff? And if so, whose is the autograph you are most proud of owning?

I've got a fair few autographs but I've not paid for most of them, thanks to my involvement with Fantom Films. Saying that I helped at Utopia earlier this year and didn't take anything to get signed, couldn't be arsed if I'm honest! Meeting people is the nicest thing anyway. I am proud of having Katy Manning's signature, particularly as she wrote a lovely message to me as well, a nice memento of a mad afternoon.

Any other stories about items that were hard to find? What was the most difficult thing to find that you've managed to pick up? And have you ever paid a lot for something?

Finding a few of the VHS releases was a challenge, I remember being particularly excited to finally track down 'Daleks: The Early Years' for a fiver on a local market... and finding 'The Invasion' in a Manchester bookshop and having to haggle with the owner before I got my hands on it. Fun times.

If you had to rescue one Doctor Who "thing" from your collection in a fire, what would you take?

Dave the Dalek, my Product Enterprises toy I've had since about 2002. He's special.

[WhiteCrowNZ]

Is there anything especially rare or valuable that you have picked up? An original prop perhaps?

Personally I'd like to organise a Heist with a few Doctor Who fans to steal the Key to Time from the precious things of it's current owner.

Any takers to help me?

[SiHart]

I'm glad you didn't ask for a complete list Si, as I'd be here all day! And probably much of tomorrow too!

What item, or group of items, in your Doctor Who collection, are you particuarly proud of? Maybe something that is rare, or has sentimental value, or that you just like?

I think it has to tbe the books. That's what I've always been most active in collecting and I'm very pleased to have a full set of Targets/ NAs/ MAs/ PDAs/ EDAs at home. It's taken some doing to get them all, and certainly I'm very pleased that I always kept my Targets after the energy I invested in getting them throughout my childhood (I finished the set in 1990 after starting in 1981!).
There are lots of things I'm glad I have and much of it has sentimental value, bringing back days of scouring jumble sales and school fetes and the like to get hold of it. I think I could probably tell you where most of my stuff comes from!
My DWMs too!

Is there anything especially rare or valuable that you have picked up? An original prop perhaps?

I don't have any original props or costumes and to be honest I'm not really that interested in that side of things- you have to have a considerable amount of cash to get into that sort of collecting and it's very difficult to justify. I have a few rare things I suppose- some 60s Dalek annuals, some of the rarer Doctor Who Annuals in very good condition that kind of thing, but these days I'm not really sure what's rare and what isn't!

Is there any "form" of Doctor Who merchandise that you actively still collect?

I still get the books and the DVDs and I'm becoming very fond of the Target talking books now too. Possibly the classic figures too...

Do you go in for signed stuff? And if so, whose is the autograph you are most proud of owning?

I don't mind getting the odd signature here and there! I've got a lovely collection of signed photos from the Camping It Up days which I'm very proud of and my copy of Timeframe is full of signatures now, which I rather like- keeping them all in one place- just opening it up makes me smile because of the happy memories contained within. I suppose despite all the signings I've ever been too, my most special signature is Colin Baker's, which I'll explain about in a minute!

Any other stories about items that were hard to find? What was the most difficult thing to find that you've managed to pick up? And have you ever paid a lot for something?

I remember swapping some stuff back in the day to get hold of the things I really wanted to have- for some reason I relally wanted to own the 1974 Doctor Who Annual and swapped a bloody lovely hardbook of the Dinosaur Invasion for it... I think I possibly did the wrong thing there, who knows...
One of the most difficult things to find for me was The Mysterious Planet target book, which was the last i needed for my collection. It took me three years to find one, and turned out to be one of the biggest bargains, as I only paid 60p for it from Burtons Books when they opened in 1990! That was a proud day- completeing the collection!


If you had to rescue one Doctor Who "thing" from your collection in a fire, what would you take?

I would take the Dalek Omnibus that Colin Baker signed for me on my 10th birthday in 1985. He even wrote Happy Birthday in there for me which made my day!

Si xx

Not after a complete list of what you have, just wondered about your collections, and which parts of them you are most fond of.

[Andrew Curnow]

What item, or group of items, in your Doctor Who collection, are you particuarly proud of? Maybe something that is rare, or has sentimental value, or that you just like?
I think it has to be the 1989 two-video pack of The Daleks (you know the ones - parts 1-4 on one tape, 5-7 on the other in a sepia box). It's come out on DVD since then of course, as have so many other stories, but I remember being just so excited about getting it at the time. Added to that, I got it in fact as an 18th birthday present from Mum & Dad, so there is that added 'sentimental' value there if you like. Over the years most of my VHSs have gone to ebay, but I've never even considered flogging this one. It's atop my little 'Who' shelf in the sitting-room now.

Is there anything especially rare or valuable that you have picked up? An original prop perhaps?
Like the vast majority, I don't have any real interest in picking up props or cossies. However, I do have a Peter Davison TARDIS tin which is I believe semi-rare (or rarer than the Tom one at any rate) which I'm very fond of.

Is there any "form" of Doctor Who merchandise that you actively still collect?
I still get DWM every month, albeit that's largely because Mum & Dad get me the annual subscription as a Christmas present. I get some DVDs from time to time, and some books, but I'm not sure that's actively collecting, as I don't get them all by any means. So put me down as a 'don't know' there!!

Do you go in for signed stuff? And if so, whose is the autograph you are most proud of owning?
I'm a bit 'weird' about this, in that I have almost a phobia of meeting anybody 'off t'telly' in case it pops the bubble and they turn out to be not what I'm expecting. That said, Steve Morgan did very kindly get the cover of my Lost in Time DVD signed by Anneke Wills & Nick Courtney, and also the cover to the Timelash video signed by Colin himself - and yes, I still have those too!!!

Any other stories about items that were hard to find? What was the most difficult thing to find that you've managed to pick up? And have you ever paid a lot for something?
Not really - I remember back in the mid-80s getting The Deadly Assassin target book took a bit of doing, and at the time I did get it it completed my collection. But no, I've never actively sought out any rarities.

If you had to rescue one Doctor Who "thing" from your collection in a fire, what would you take?
I guess it would have to be the Daleks on VHS, as per answer one. Although I'd be very sad to see m'Targets and the Sixties/Seventies/Eighties sacrificed to the flames!

[Captain Tancredi]

What item, or group of items, in your Doctor Who collection, are you particuarly proud of? Maybe something that is rare, or has sentimental value, or that you just like?Si.

Probably the signed Peter Davison photo which sits in a frame on top of my television set- handed out at Longleat in 1983, it's battered and has been pinned to my wall at one stage, but I think it's the fact that I've had it for so long which makes it special for me.

Is there anything especially rare or valuable that you have picked up? An original prop perhaps?

I can't think of anything, although under "valuable" you could probably put the first Eccleston DWM cover which somebody was prepared to pay me £41 for.

Is there any "form" of Doctor Who merchandise that you actively still collect?

It's just the DVDs, soundtracks (rebuilding my collection) and audiobooks now- if anything I'm selling off a lot of the novels because I realised there were a couple of hundred books under the bed which took me ten years to read and I didn't fancy spending the next ten years re-reading them.

Do you go in for signed stuff? And if so, whose is the autograph you are most proud of owning?

Not sure I've gone for any Who autographs since Tom's signing in Leeds in 1998, although I do have some oddities from conventions in the late 1990s. There probably aren't many people who have a copy of 'Doctor Who and the Abominable Snowmen' signed by David Spenser, for example, or a convention brochure signed by several cast members from 'Ghost Light'.

Any other stories about items that were hard to find? What was the most difficult thing to find that you've managed to pick up? And have you ever paid a lot for something?

Have to say I'm not really somebody who goes in for tracking down rarities or paying vast sums of money- mine tend to be in the realm of lucky finds instead.

If you had to rescue one Doctor Who "thing" from your collection in a fire, what would you take?

I have one or two things signed by Jon Pertwee which are by definition irreplaceable (particularly the cover of 'The Pertwee Years' video, which is actually dedicated to me- bless my late Grandma from going into Liverpool to get it), otherwise I think it would be the Davison photo.

[Si Hunt]

I once purchased a Target novel of 'The Tenth Planet' in a 'four for a pound' offer at the NEC, only to open it up and find it was signed by Tom Baker!

Why would you get Tom Baker to sign that! Really!

Thank you for all your lovely memories, keep them coming!

What item, or group of items, in your Doctor Who collection, are you particuarly proud of? Maybe something that is rare, or has sentimental value, or that you just like?

What inspired this thread was looking through some of the magazines I found in a folder - one of the few things I've properly kept. In particular the Radio Times 20th Anniversary Special, which I had as a child in 1983 and which still makes me view Doctor Who in a different way when I look at the photos, and the "Five Doctors" Radio Times which is like a living gateway back to 1983. With its big picture of Sylvester McCoy in as well! Neither of the magazines are my original copies, as these things are fragile and don't last 20 years if you love them so much, but I managed to get replacement copies when mine disintegrated.

Is there anything especially rare or valuable that you have picked up? An original prop perhaps?

I don't think I have much that is rare, though I read that they accidentally pulped all but 3000 copies of the 30th Anniversary Special, so maybe that is rare? Also I have several hundred Harlequin Miniatures, and those go for around £10 each, so... oh, and my complete Big Finish collection is not rare, but I'm sure must be worth insuring for close to a grand now, as they all sell healthily on Ebay.

Is there any "form" of Doctor Who merchandise that you actively still collect?

Only DWM, The DVD's and the main range of Big Finish audio's (just!). I could never collect the books, I just wouldn't keep up with them.

Do you go in for signed stuff? And if so, whose is the autograph you are most proud of owning?

If I'd thought to get all my autographs in one place... but I didn't, and I'm not really that bothered. I meet loads of stars at the Doctor Who conventions, but I only rarely get them to sign stuff, if it's only a tiny bit more effort than not doing anything. That's not to be all "look at me I'm blase", I just don't see the point.

That said, years ago I got Michael Craze to sign my copy of "The Smugglers" novel, and I WISH I'd kept it, just because it was a really special day and he was so lovely. But I guess I'll always have the memory.

Any other stories about items that were hard to find? What was the most difficult thing to find that you've managed to pick up? And have you ever paid a lot for something?

You all know about my quest to re-collect all the Target books! I've still never got my hands on that "Wheel In Space" novel...

If you had to rescue one Doctor Who "thing" from your collection in a fire, what would you take?

I do love my TARDIS moneybox from Longleat, now faded and 26 years old. Also a friend of a friend used to do lovely stunning Doctor Who paintings, and I've got three of them on my wall - I love them because they're unusual and I don't expect many people will have seen them. And I treasure them, because the artist gave them to me.

Si.

[shada pavlova]

You all know about my quest to re-collect all the Target books! I've still never got my hands on that "Wheel In Space" novel...

There's one going for under a fiver right now Si! Hurry up and snap it up!

[Si Hunt]

Thanks! I'll consider bidding. Though £5 postage is a bit untempting.

Si.

[shada pavlova]

Isn't that just because it assumes you're in America?

[SiHart]

Ahh! The 20th Anniversary Special! I'd forgotten about how much I loved that- especially the huge poster in the middle that was on my wall for years and years.

I still have whats left of my original copy and two mint condition copies of the Five Docs cover one, thanks to my Mum making sure I looked after them! She knew what she was doing.

Si xx

[Jon Masters]

What item, or group of items, in your Doctor Who collection, are you particuarly proud of? Maybe something that is rare, or has sentimental value, or that you just like?

Probably the books and DWM though neither is complete .DWM has a few specials missing, and although the Beeb books and PDAs are all there I'm missing the odd Target and NA - usually ones form the very end of the range when most book shops had stopped stocking them.
The most sentimental item has to be my original 10th Anniversary RT special - considering I was only 5 at the time my parents must have realised my future tastes. I remember many happy hours pouring over it , with all the strange never seen stories and the Dalek plans. Even though it's lost its front cover I've never tried to replace it - it wouldn't be the same.

Is there anything especially rare or valuable that you have picked up? An original prop perhaps?

I've got a few odd pages from the scripts of Meglos and Full Circle - I went to a little DW day at someone's house where the guest was one of K9's operators (can't remember his name). For answering a couple of questions I won these odd pages !

Is there any "form" of Doctor Who merchandise that you actively still collect?

The books, though the BBC ones are trying my patience now. DWM. I am collecting the audios, BFs and DVDs but at a much slower pace so I'll never catch up

Do you go in for signed stuff? And if so, whose is the autograph you are most proud of owning?

Having been to a few more signings I like getting them, but can't be bothered to get loads of individual stuff signed, so it tends to be 60's /70s / 80s books or something with a good picture in. My favourite is still probably Who on Earth is Tom Baker, just because the evening spent with the man himself was such a joy.

Any other stories about items that were hard to find? What was the most difficult thing to find that you've managed to pick up? And have you ever paid a lot for something?

I still scour charity shops etc for those odd missing pieces, but TBH I'm too mean to spend a fortune just because I don't have it. In the end its just a book / DVD / audio - there are more important things and people I should be spending the money on. I think the most was £10.50 for Eternity Weeps, and at that point I felt so silly paying more than the original cover price that I've tried to avoid doing so ever again.

If you had to rescue one Doctor Who "thing" from your collection in a fire, what would you take?

Would have to be the 10th Anniversary special - too many memories.

[Andrew Curnow]

Like Si and, er, Si I have fond memories of the 20th Anniversary special, and the Radio Times with the Five Doctors cover. Si, I think, mentioned it in one of his early Vervoid pieces (The Sensorites probably) and really captured the sense of excitement that the lavish spread of pictures conjured up in those innocent days. I remember coming home from school one day and finding that Mum has spotted the special in town (I don't recall any advance publicity at all, not even in DWM, so we didn't even know it was on the cards) and had the foresight to buy two, one each for me and bruv.

Heady times!

[Martin Curnow]

The newsagent must have thought our mum was bonkers - 2 Radio Times, 2 Anniversay Specials (especially when we only had one DWM coming in!)

Anyhow, in additi to those collectables I've got the 4th and 5th Doctros money box tins (well made and having pride of place, or rather places, on the mantlepiece.

I sent off a poster to the production office and asked the cast to sign it. Months later, when I'd forgotten all about it, and we'd moved from Cumbria to Devon it arrived having been forwarded from our old address. My sending it had clearly co-incided with Adric leaving (or Mattherw Waterhouse just refused to sign it) but I've got a poster signed by Peter Davison, Janet Fielding and Sarah Sutton all referring to me by name! For years I've thought about getting it framed but it's still in my envelope of who stuff.

[Thasc]

What item, or group of items, in your Doctor Who collection, are you particuarly proud of? Maybe something that is rare, or has sentimental value, or that you just like?

It has to be the Roger Delgado Tribute Magazine.

Is there anything especially rare or valuable that you have picked up? An original prop perhaps?

No

Is there any "form" of Doctor Who merchandise that you actively still collect?

I still buy the Classic Series DVDs from time to time. I have also started collecting the audio books.

Do you go in for signed stuff? And if so, whose is the autograph you are most proud of owning?

I don't have any Who stars autographs

Any other stories about items that were hard to find? What was the most difficult thing to find that you've managed to pick up? And have you ever paid a lot for something?

I tried for ages to get a copy of the No 311 Doctor Magazine which is dedicated to the Delgado Master but didn't have any luck. Logopolis kindly sent me a copy of it and it's another one of my treasured Who possessions.

If you had to rescue one Doctor Who "thing" from your collection in a fire, what would you take?

My Roger Delgado Tribute Magazine, I would hate for anything to happen to it, it's irreplacable

[tony ingram]

Tragic though it probably is, one of my most treasured possessions is my Denys Fisher Tom Baker figure-still complete and in his box. I have the Denys Fisher TARDIS, K9, Cyberman and Giant Robot and the Palitoy talking Dalek, too, but all except the Dalek have various bits missing. Leela, sadly, was lost, broken or thrown away decades ago...

[duncan]

My favourite part of my collection is my set of 6 pewter figures my wife bought for me on our 1st wedding anniversary. The set comprises of a Dalek, Tardis, Cyberman, Sea Devil, Ice Warrior and K9.

[SiHart]

Tragic though it probably is, one of my most treasured possessions is my Denys Fisher Tom Baker figure-still complete and in his box.

That's not tragic! I always wanted those figures when i was young. I was just too young for them when they came out, and later i was just a bit too old for the Dapol figures, so I missed out on Doctor Who figures. I was very jealous of my cousin who had the whole Palitoy set, but he did at least let me play with them when we went to visit him.

Welcome to PS, BTW

Si xx

[tony ingram]

That's not tragic! I always wanted those figures when i was young. I was just too young for them when they came out, and later i was just a bit too old for the Dapol figures, so I missed out on Doctor Who figures. I was very jealous of my cousin who had the whole Palitoy set, but he did at least let me play with them when we went to visit him.

Welcome to PS, BTW

Si xx

Cheers.

Actually, I have a few of the Dapol ones, too. But at least they're still boxed so I can claim they're collectibles, not toys...