Sci-fi fans in the United States are today reported to be abandoning long-running British staple Doctor Who in their millions in favour of the works of French writer Jules Verne.

North America correspondent, Steven Schlaphandsherecomescharlie commented:

“The system in Britain whereby seasons are split and lead actors are allowed to take time off for the theatre means that US fans can no longer rely on Doctor Who for a regular sci-fi fix. However, US sci-fi fandom believes that, in oldest sci-fi writer, Jules Verne, they have found someone who they can rely on to produce new sci-fi for them at a regular rate over the forseeable future and whose work is unlikely to dry up unexpectedly.”

Doctor Who showrunner, Steven Moffat, insisted today that he remains confident of the continuing strength of the Special Relationship between the BBC and San Diego Comic-Con whereby vital sci-fi intelligence is shared with them before anyone else is allowed to see it.

Hurray! I’m no longer older than the Doctor.

Great choice of Peter Capaldi as the Twelfth Doctor. A fine actor and one who will, with any luck, now be written less frantically and goofily than Matt Smith.

Here’s hoping for a slightly darker, more brooding and less antic Doctor. Or, as they put it quite well over on Cult Box, “bringing a composure and a humour that’ll be entirely different to Smith’s or Tennant’s pin-up cheekiness.”

There’s also the chance that the casting of someone who isn’t pretty may flush out the last remnants of the Tennant personality cult still clinging on under the rim of the bowl. As I posted two years ago, I could just about live with the fact that the Doctor Who audience now only consists of people who like the show for itself and is no longer artificially swollen by a claque of sinister hormonal groupies who fantasize about the lead character sitting on their face.