Hello all.
How many of you have seen this series. It was an early 1990s adaption of the well-known 'Doctor' series, made by the BBC. It was not as successful as its predecessor and only lasted for one series. Which is a great shame.
If you are interested in seeing it, all seven episodes are available to watch via YouTube.
Doctor At Large only ran for one series - ok, so it was 29 episodes long, but nevertheless it was just the one! And Doctor At Sea for a much more comparable 13. It's a pity that they couldn't get more success from such an otherwise popular format though, you're right.
As a catch up series it put the characters to bed - almost like a Where Are They Now? retrospective. As a sitcom series it just didn't happen, the characters were no longer aspiring to be anything - they were what they were destined to become and that just made them uninteresting.
Quote: Aaron @ January 11 2010, 4:19 PM GMTDoctor At Large only ran for one series - ok, so it was 29 episodes long, but nevertheless it was just the one! And Doctor At Sea for a much more comparable 13. It's a pity that they couldn't get more success from such an otherwise popular format though, you're right.
I believe there was an Australian spin-off entitled Doctor Down Under . I would like to have seen it. Don't think that lasted long either.
I think that's the whole point though. The series were entitled "Doctor at...." with various situations.
Quote: Danny @ January 11 2010, 10:31 PM GMTI believe there was an Australian spin-off entitled Doctor Down Under. I would like to have seen it. Don't think that lasted long either.
Yes, one series of 13 episodes. Offhand, I'm not sure that there were any Australia-moves that ran for more than one series.
I think Doctor At The Top deserved a second series. The first three episodes were poor/average but by episode 4 it really sprang into life.
Quote: Aaron @ January 12 2010, 2:57 PM GMTYes, one series of 13 episodes. Offhand, I'm not sure that there were any Australia-moves that ran for more than one series.
Actually Doctor Down Under did last for two series in Australia. Look out for it on ebay, it is often on as it has been released Down Under.
As for the Doctor series, I've slowly been making my way through the series collecting the DVDs and watched it from the beginning in Doctor in the House up until Doctor at Sea, so I've still got all of 'On the Go' 'Down Under' and 'At the Top' to watch. It is a series I have really enjoyed. Doctor in the House wasa a decent starter, with a paticularly good second series. But when Doctor at Large started, that's when it really started to get good and that and Doctor in Charge are brilliant. The quality sunk a bit for Doctor at Sea (just a bit of a pun there), but it was still very good. Will get into the rest of the series hopefully soon.
Quote: Jack Massey @ January 12 2010, 7:57 PM GMTActually Doctor Down Under did last for two series in Australia. Look out for it on ebay, it is often on as it has been released Down Under.
I have it. But I'm not aware of a second series. Nor can I find any mention anywhere else online of it having had a second series. Can you link me to something otherwise? The DVD release has 2 discs as 13 episodes won't fit on one - perhaps some confusion has arisen there?
It was certainly shown in the UK as one series - at least on those networks that could be bothered to show it! Unfortunately the sleeve of the official Australian release mentions no original broadcast dates. It is possible they were split into 7 & 6 or 6 & 7 for two series but I doubt it.
I wondered about that, but this page has dates on:
http://www.tvrage.com/shows/id-9265
First Episode: 1: 1x01 -- Thanks For The Memory (Feb/19/1979)
Last Episode: 13: 1x13 -- It's All In The Mind (May/14/1979)
Quote: Aaron @ January 12 2010, 8:09 PM GMTI have it. But I'm not aware of a second series. Nor can I find any mention anywhere else online of it having had a second series. Can you link me to something otherwise? The DVD release has 2 discs as 13 episodes won't fit on one - perhaps some confusion has arisen there?
There were thirteen episodes overall (though twelve were only shown in this country). The thirteen episodes were shown over two series- http://web.archive.org/web/20041205053830/www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/guide/articles/d/doctordownunder_7772290.shtml
Quote: Aaron @ January 12 2010, 8:24 PM GMTI wondered about that, but this page has dates on:
http://www.tvrage.com/shows/id-9265
First Episode: 1: 1x01 -- Thanks For The Memory (Feb/19/1979)
Last Episode: 13: 1x13 -- It's All In The Mind (May/14/1979)
The link I gave you suggests the first episode was transmitted on the 5th Feb 1979 and the final episode was shown on 10th May 1980.
A reliable website I use is Laughterlog. That also suggests that it was two series in Australia and that says in the episode guide that the first series lasted for six episodes and the second series seven episodes
1x01: Thanks for the Memory (Feb 5th 1979)
1x06: The More we are together(12th March 1979)
2x01: It's all in the Mind (March 29th 1980)
2x07: Identity Crises (10th May 1980)
http://laughterlog.com/2009/01/23/doctor-in-the-house/
Hm, interesting. I'm not sure how much I believe it to be honest - it's pretty expensive to take part of a production crew and a bunch of actors half way across the world, so they'd surely have been filmed at the same time. It's possible that 2 were recorded at once of course, but all 13 seem to have a single identical title sequence, and, although I'm not quite as well versed with Australian DVD distributors as with ours, I think it unlikely that they'd have missed a chance to issue 2 separate releases. It's a pity that they don't seem to have copyright years on the episodes though, as that'd give us a better idea.
I think though that Robin Nedwell and Geoffrey Davies were probably staying down under for quite a long time as they were in a long running stage production of the Doctor series in Australia and New Zealand, so two series could quite easily have been made.
Yes but if you read his book, he does that for all foreign sitcoms, he doesn't split them into series, he just does the transmission dates from the start until the end.
