The Ever Expanding Universe of Doctor Who
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departure he has taken from what seemed to be very fundamental beliefs.
Only time will tell if the last of the Time Lords will return to his original
ideals.
From the onset of the new series, the dialogue of Doctor Who is
riddled with Britishisms and Britishness. Jokes about accents and beans
on toast immediately entrench viewers within the British culture, and
consequently exclude those that reside outside the island. Americans
know very little about the regional accents of the English; some are hard
to distinguish while others are nearly impossible to understand for the
inexperienced ear. In contrast, a compatriot can discern the speaker’s
region of origin from just a few words. The show even plays on this idea,
as Rose asks the Doctor, “If you are an alien, how come you sound like
you’re from the North?” {Doctor Who “Rose”). These culture-specific
references continue further on in the series as well. For instance, when
Lady Cassandra, a woman reduced to nothing but a thin sheet of skin
after undergoing hundreds of cosmetic procedures, transfers her
consciousness into the body of Rose, the new Doctor’s first companion,
she scrutinizes her reflection in a mirror and exclaims; “Oh my God, I’m
a chav!” referring to Rose’s appearance {Doctor Who “New Earth”). A
very trendy word in England when this episode aired, few Americans
would have understood the word “chav” and its associated cultural and
socio-economic implications; according to David Crystal, the term, in
fact, had only recently been revived in contemporary British English. As
well as using these more subtle aspects of Britishness, the show also
pokes fun at their more traditional and well-known customs, with tea
drinking and references to tea found all throughout the series. Indeed, it
is this staple of British society which helps the Doctor to heal after his
regeneration just in time to save the world yet again {Doctor Who
“Christmas Invasion”).
These tongue-in-cheek references to British culture continue
even when the show leaves its homeland. In fact, the western episode
showcases more memorable Britishisms than any other in reeent
memory. The complete opposite of modern-day London, the Wild West
town of Mercy serves to highlight each use of a foreign expression, for
the vocabulary and culture these three British time-travelers bring to this
setting make the references more overt, and eonsequently more comical.
This may be the reason why there are more obvious references to British
culture here than in most other episodes. For instance, the Doctor orders
tea while in the western saloon and then proceeds to use the traditionally