There are two kinds of Doctor Who spin-offs. There are the official ones like Torchwood and the Sarah Jane Adventures (not forgetting K9 and Company) and there are the unofficial ones produced by companies like BBV and Reeltime. There are also the amateur affairs made by fans and fan clubs but they tend to be distributed only within their little circles. This irregular feature will look at those videos which got distributed more or less nationally in the late 80s and throughout the 90s. The professionally produced, low budget dramas which sought to fill the gap that no new television Doctor Who had created. Initially available only by mailorder or from specialist shops, some of these tapes eventually found their way onto the high street and could be bought from HMV or WH Smith as easily as BBC tapes of real Doctor Who. I am reluctant to refer to these productions as "semi-professional" or anything else which might sound derogatory so I’ll be sticking with "unofficial spin-offs" even where the Doctor Who connection is slight.

The pieces will be divided up into categories and should not be taken as comprehensive reviews. They will be a mixture of facts and opinions and neither should be taken as definitive. I will try not to disparage the videos for looking cheap or mocking them for being low budget. If they don’t make sense or the story is rubbish I will say so but I am aware of the limitations the makers were under and will try to be fair at all times.

This will be the title. I’m off to an uncontentious start.

The year it was released. This may or may not be the same as the year it was produced.

The company or companies who produced the play. This is riveting reading so far.

The main formats were VHS and CD but wherever possible I’ll mention re-releases on video or DVD and any extras provided.

The main selling points of most of these productions were the Doctor Who guest stars. This will list them along with anyone else of interest.

The behind the scenes people who we may be familiar with.

The description on the video or CD box (where available).

A summary of the programme. I’ll try not to be too spoilery but you should be aware that I’ll be discussing things that happen so it may affect future enjoyment if you’ve not seen it before. This section may also contain opinion and humour.

The review. My thoughts having watched it. Unprofessional, unqualified praise or criticism. May contain sarcastic humour or other attempts to sound a bit like Charlie Brooker.

These unofficial plays would, from time to time, attempt to stick something a bit naughty into the script to imply that a character was someone we’d met before or to tie it in with something official.

That’s what these programmes were for – to make up for the fact that we had no new Dr Who for sixteen years. Were they like Doctor Who and would they stop people thinking about Doctor Who for a while? In other words, was it something Doctor Who fans would enjoy?

By contrast, was it something which non-Doctor Who fans would enjoy? Could it be broadcast to a general audience? I’ll be assuming the broadcast would take place around the same time the play was released rather than being broadcast today as technology has moved on and few TV special effects from the early 90s would pass muster today.

Production – how well produced was it in terms of performances, effects, direction and professionalism?

Entertainment – how entertaining was it?

Whoishness – how like Doctor Who was it?

Overall – not strictly an average of the above but an approximation of one. Maths not guaranteed.

There are more of these spin-offs than you might think. We’ve had Autons, Yeti, Draconians, Sontarans, UNIT, Sarah Jane, Liz Shaw and her PROBE, Strangers and even a Foot Doctor and mention of The Dentist. I won’t be covering that Dalek film with all the nudity in it though. Mainly because I don’t have a copy. If I could find one I’m sure I could find time to watch it. For review purposes only. Obviously.

This is a fairly obscure project but one I hope someone will enjoy.