Happy New Year. Our resolution is to read more: so where better to go than the biggest library in the universe. Podcaster Richard Smith chooses his favourite things but will they be found on the same shelf as those of your host? Or are they not remotely on the same page? Oh, and if you're listening to this on the day that it is released, please don't forget to wish Toby a happy birthday! #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.  

Happy New Year! With Tom Baker receiving his MBE in 2025, and rumours abounding that Peter Capaldi has turned down an invite from the Palace, it's high time we had a look at who has been honoured by the Queen (and now King) and has also passed through the Whonioverse. As ever there are surprises, patterns and coincidences, as well as, of course, differences of opinion. You would honour this podcast by having a listen. This was written and recorded before the New Year's Honours of 2026 were announced but a pre-titles addition has taken this into account. #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.  

Happy Christmas everyone. No festive Doctor Who episode this year - so here's a Christmas special of Happy Times and Places in which your host Toby Hadoke and convention organiser and writer Steve Hatcher decide upon their favourite things about Last Christmas (the episode, not the event). Or do they? #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho  Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.  

A treat from the archives as documentary producer Ed Stradling and host Toby Hadoke reunite, having made a programme on this story for the BBC DVD range. They worked well then, but can they be in accord now about their favourite things in this controversial, rather violent tale... or will they end up shooting each other? Or melting their faces? Or releasing poison gas? #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.  

As the 62nd Anniversary of Doctor Who approaches this month, AND we are still in the 20th Anniversary year of New Who (which we really have to stop calling it) a reminder that some of us were around for the previous 20th Anniversary back in November 1983. So as we celebrating 20 years of the resurrection of Doctor Who, here's a look back to a time when New Who wasn't even Now Who... the build up to the return of the show and its parallels or otherwise with the other 20th Anniversary. #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.    

American fan Rueben Herfindahl brings his unique perspective to this firm fan favourite: will your host, by a happy accident, choose the same favoruite things, or will he been green with envy because of Reuben's choices? It's an omnibus, so it's a long one! #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.  

And so here it is - the final countdown to your most desired of the 97 missing episodes of Doctor Who. Special guest Russell T Davies tells us what he would like in the fantasy car boot sale where 17 film cans are ready to be purchased. Only one story has all of its episodes in the Top 20, but which individual instalment will win out? With observations from an array of voters including fans of yore Jeremy Bentham and Patrick Mulkern, writers Simon Guerrier and Pete McTighe, and such diverse talents as Gary Russell, Jonathon Carley and Richard Marson. #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.      

This was released in a condensed form for the 20th Anniversary of the 2005 return of Doctor Who, but that version only featured one guest : but what a guest - the main man himself, Russell T Davies. However, for this sepcial 62nd Anniversary edition (alright, it's the anniverasry of the original run, but hey, it's all the same show) AND to mark 100 stories covered in Happy Times and Places, here is the full version. So joining Russell are past contributors to Happy Times, including those who helped it when it was merely a possibility, a gleam in a podcaster's eye (and during lockdown, remember that?). We also have some other writers from that first 2005 series giving their opinions on the episode - and they are newcomers to Happy Times..., adding a bit of lustre to this anniversary release. Oh, and it's a long one! Happy Times and Places to you all - and thanks for listening. #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #russelltdavies Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.  

An episode that means an awful lot to your host - and let's be honest, he probably wouldn't be here without it as it features quite strongly in his Moths Ate My Doctor Who Scarf show. And so it seemed appropriate to break it out in the run up to the 100th edition. Sarah Jane! K-9! Giles from Buffy! There's so much going on here that Paul Griggs, interviewer and podcaster extraordinaire, is spoilt for choice. And it's hard to believe it was on nearly 20 years ago. We got old Sarah. #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.  

This was supposed to be the second and final episode but it ended up going on a bit - so we have the countdown from Joint 77th to Joint 30th in our search for the most requested missing episodes to turn up at a fantasy car boot sale. Along the way there will be facts, trivia and observations, plus we have vocal contributions from writer, actor and all round renaissance man Mark Gatiss, actor and comedian Tom Burgess, and the writer of Full Circle, Andrew Smith : all bona fide Doctor Who fans who explain their personal choices in this parlour game involving rusty cans, nitrate and hope! And plenty of fan comments are included too :) #doctorwho #doctorwhomissingepisodes #markgatiss #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho #filmisfabulous Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.    

With all this missing episodes speculation in the air, your Host With The Most (that is "Most Patience For Wrangling Arcane Facts and Stats Because He's A Very Boring Man") Toby Hadoke has found the time too reach out to various Doctor Who fans (writers, actors, journalists and missing episode finders amongst them) in order to draw up a list of the episodes and stories most people would like to see returned to the archive. His request was simple - you're at a car boot sales, and some old fella has, amongst the bric-a-brac, 17 film cans, all of them containing lost Doctor Who. Each guest has chosen the 17 episodes they most want the cans to contain the results have been tabulated. In Part One, we count down the stories most responders would like to see completed, and begin the long journey down from 97th most popular missing episode - which is bad news for a few instalments nobody seems to want back. On the way we will hear from a number of illustrious guests, including, well, Doctor Who himself, plus a Dalek and a multi-episode writer. This podcast has been inspired by the work of Film Is Fabulous, who are currently embarking on a search for lost television and film in order to preserve it. They need donations to ensure that they can do this properly : more details can be found at : filmisfabulous.org.uk #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #davidtennant #peterharness #nicholaspegg #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho #filmisfabulous Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.

And so we are off to Mexico for another adventure in pure history. It turns out you can rewrite the odd line, especially during rehearsal, but this episode poses some new questions for the format of the show and showcases a director who helms his only full Doctor Who story here. The writer gets some press attention, one of the regulars jets off on holiday, and the music is composed by someone who had a unique place in Who history - and he is duly showcased here. It's the When, What and Who of The Temple of Evil: make sure you don't inadvertently nick anything from it!   #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.

We're out of your host's comfort zone again - we are trying to up the new series episodes as we don't want to run out of Classic Who early. So here we are with some of the first ever Matt Smith stuff to be recorded. Oh yes, here at Happy Times... we remember when Matt Smith was new - seems like yesterday! A rare American contributor to the show, Joe Lewallen, is a fabulous and fascinating guest, and instead of plugging something for you to purchase, he has asked to link to a very good cause, which we are more than happy to do: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-annie-with-medical-costs?utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet&utm_medium=copy_link_all&utm_source=customer #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.  

And so we go back to where it all began when we reach the climax of The Invisible Enemy, the starting point of your host's rather bizarre decision to dedicate pretty much his whole life to Doctor Who. What a peculiar thing to do. And yet he'll still manage to shoehorn in a reference to The Other Programme, the scarlet capsuled temptress that is Quatermass: he has a book out about it you know. And his guest, Iain Key ALSO has a book out. But will they be on the same page when it comes to choosing their favourite things about this adventure...? #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.

So we've gone from a hospital into the Doctor's brain. What knowledge can be found in there? The best way to the nearest pub? Probably - but all that and more as there's a battle going on outside too. Not to mention this podcast, which is about a meeting of minds and seeing if everyone is on the same wavelength. Is that the case this time? Or will the points go to our guest, Iain Key, writer of a new book about The Clash. #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.        

And so a change of scenery as we move location in this - a story with many different landscapes. What never changes though, is everyone's love for Michael Sheard, even though he's a baddie this time around. We meet a pretty interesting cast and there's a bit of chatter about this episode's one-off director... and then there's the small matter of a robot dog who was only supposed to stick around for three episodes but somehow slips off his lead and causes havoc for the next couple of years. Will guest Iain Key be a good boy and choose the same thing as your host, and so get a treat - or will he need to be muzzled before next week? #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.

As we count up to 100 it seemed approprate to stop by at a landmark episode - at least as far as this podcast is concerned. Writer and music expert Iain Key has chosen a story that holds a special place in your host's heart : but does that mean that they will be sympatico when it comes to choosing their favorite thing? Will contact be made, or will they fly miles off course? #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.  

A strange anomaly of an episode - an episode in which everything goes wrong for the good guys. Well, everything went a bit wrong for your host as well so it's been a bit of a palaver putting this together. The last time guest Jason Thompson was on it was a rare win for the home team - so will history repeat itself or will Toby be exterminated just before he can successfully launch his recording? There's only one way to find out - we need to set a course for Kembel where there's a somewhat thorny situation developing. #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.  

As we'rew approaching our 10th edition we thought it might be fun to avail ourselves of an all too rare opportunity - to get someone heavily involved in a Doctor Who project to make their own contribiutoon to its Happy Times and Places. Fortunately Benjamin Cook, who was in charge of the recent The War Games in Colour broadcast, was more than happy to share his thoughts and insights regarding this huge undertaking. So here we go - and what a joy it is to get his perspective into the making of this alternative version. Oh, and your host is positively encouraged by Ben to be honest about any perceived shortcomings ... and he is equally bold and forthright in his opinion - entertainingly so! Ben is, of course, brimming with positivity and fascinating facts - from the inside, from directly behind-the-scenes and we are really grateful to him for the time and care he has taken over his contribution. Oh, but he does say a mildly rude word towards the end, you have been warned. #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.    

End of an era folks.William Hartnell takes his final bow, but before he shuffles off he gets time to make an entrance and say a few legendary lines (some of them kindly preserved by a canny camera-wielder Down Under). There are so many landmarks in this story, welcome guest Martin Holmes is spoilt for choice - will you, and indeed your host - be in sync with Martin, or will the whole thing overload with goodness that it'll just melt? #doctorwho #doctorwhoreaction #doctorwhocommentary #doctorwhocomedian #tobyhadoke #doctorwhofacts #positivedoctorwho #classicdoctorwho Please support these podcasts on Patreon, where you will get advance releases, exclusive content (including a patron-only podcast - Far Too Much Information), regular AMAs and more. Tiers start from as little as £3 per month: patreon.com/tobyhadoke  Or there is Ko-fi for the occasional donation with no commitments: ko-fi.com/tobyhadoke Follow Toby on Twitter: @tobyhadoke And these podcasts: @HadokePodcasts And his comedy club: @xsmalarkey www.tobyhadoke.com for news, blog, mailing list and more.