Via Warren Ellis comes a link to this unusual remix by the Radiophonic Workshop’s Delia Derbyshire, a reworking of the classic Doctor Who theme she came up with in the early 1970s (and indeed there is something very early 70s, Radiophonic Workshop about it to my ear). I prefer the actual theme but it’s still interesting to hear this version which didn’t get chosen for broadcast (although Warren notes it somehow accidentally got attached to a few episodes that were aired in Australia):
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDTuUe3o7ko
And I see Darth Jedi 2005 who uploaded it to YouTube has several other different Derbyshire mixes of the Who theme, including this reworked stereo version of the original 1960s Doctor Who title theme (or, if you went by the first few seconds of the logo slowly appearing, it was ‘Doctor Oho’ for a moment). I still love this version, still sounds great after nearly 40 years:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xGaLYpq1SQ
It’s such an iconic theme that even now with a new series and indeed a new Doctor about to grace our screens just next month, it hasn’t really changed in four decades – of course it has been reworked and re-arranged, sometimes with small tweaks, sometimes larger changes such as the 80s version that came along with the new ‘neon tube’ style logo which seemed so fresh and modern back then as Tom Baker regenerated into Peter Davison, but, unlike the original theme and the 70s logo, dated rather badly, I think:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECpe4rrUXX0
For Whovians my age though there’s one particular version of the theme and the opening titles which is bound to be a favourite version – the version good enough to be spoofed on Family Guy, no less! – and of course it’s the classic ‘time tunnel’ opening for the bulk of the Tom Baker era. This opening title theme has been pretty much etched into my mind since I was knee high to a jelly baby:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdVivT0ShC4
March 27th, 2010 at 6:26 pm
The early 80′s version up there by Peter Howell that is most associated with the Fifth Doctor era is by far and away my favorite version and always has been though that video there is missing the more joyous bit of the doctor who theme and I always liked that. My least favorites would be the theme for the Sixth Doctor’s Trial of a Time Lord scene or the the Seventh Doctor’s them which although I’m used to it now I found quite tedious to listen through each time.