Sightlines · reception

How An Adventure in Space and Time was received

2013 · Terry McDonough · An Adventure in Space and Time on Sightlines

The arc

A warmly received centerpiece of Doctor Who's 50th anniversary in 2013, it's grown even more beloved since — fans now watch it as an accidental prophecy, given how many of its cast were later pulled into the show itself.

What’s debated

The recurring fan debate is how much dramatic license it takes — whether its affectionate portrait smooths over the messier edges of William Hartnell and the real 1963 production history.

Its footprint

It did more than any documentary to canonize Verity Lambert and Waris Hussein as fandom icons — the pioneering young producer and director behind Doctor Who — and it's the Who community's go-to anniversary tearjerker.

Where it stands

Essential viewing in the Doctor Who corner of Letterboxd — a TV film, technically, but treated by Whovians as a 'you must have seen this'.

Did you know? Playing William Hartnell here got David Bradley the job for real: he was later cast as the actual First Doctor in the 2017 special 'Twice Upon a Time' — and Sacha Dhawan, who plays director Waris Hussein, went on to play the Master.