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Oliver Wake

@oliver-wake.bsky.social

#DoctorWho and old TV. Tired and emotional. Sentimental and violent. Doctor Who blog here: https://thehiddenplanet.substack.com/

932 Followers  |  619 Following  |  1,518 Posts  |  Joined: 22.09.2023
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Posts by Oliver Wake (@oliver-wake.bsky.social)

Preview
Rage Software

The story of Rage Software. They and Psygnosis were the two main characters in the nineties Liverpool Software scene.
whereweretheynow.blogspot.com/2026/03/rage...
Includes a second special guest appearance from @jake74.bsky.social #Amiga #AtariST #PlayStation #RetroGaming #RetroComputing

01.03.2026 22:11 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

I did. And then I forgot about it while writing this! A friend reminded me this morning and I kicked myself. I'll try to add it in later.

01.03.2026 11:58 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Thanks John. I did wonder about that but I'd prefer to assume it was a coincidental similarity. I find it hard to believe Potter mentally filed away a bit of The Time Monster for 22 years only to call upon it when defining the sublime. But maybe that says more about my opinion of The Time Monster!

01.03.2026 11:46 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

I should add my belated apologies to @greavesian.bsky.social, @rolinsond.bsky.social and @worldoftelly.bsky.social, whose collection of Potter's journalism, 'The Art of Invective', I plundered mercilessly.

01.03.2026 01:50 β€” πŸ‘ 7    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
When Dennis Potter wanted to write for Doctor Who β€œBlossomiest blossom”, says Jodie Whittaker’s thirteenth Doctor moments before she regenerates in The Power of the Doctor. This snatch of dialogue references a famous remark by Dennis Potter from his ...

New on my blog today, an article about the time Dennis Potter tried to get into writing for Doctor Who in the 1960s, what his story would have been about, and the other times he crossed paths with the series. Hopefully this will interest a few of you.
thehiddenplanet.substack.com/p/when-denni...

28.02.2026 20:26 β€” πŸ‘ 52    πŸ” 23    πŸ’¬ 5    πŸ“Œ 2

That sounds brilliant. Except for the first two.

27.02.2026 22:39 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

The same for many of us.

26.02.2026 23:31 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Yes, sorry about that. I love that bit too. But it was too far from the narration to include. And I was trying to keep to it to 30 seconds (and failing!) as I undertsood nobody watched beyond that on twitter anyway (I made it for twitter years ago when it was still worth visiting).

26.02.2026 22:45 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
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A slight re-edit of the opening of Genesis of the Daleks to match the definitive interpretation of the story. Make sure you have sound on or it won’t make sense.

26.02.2026 19:57 β€” πŸ‘ 31    πŸ” 6    πŸ’¬ 3    πŸ“Œ 0

We have the beginnings of a Starter Pack (thanks to @emma.best for the suggestion!)

go.bsky.app/1At7oC

25.02.2026 21:08 β€” πŸ‘ 45    πŸ” 19    πŸ’¬ 5    πŸ“Œ 2

Isn't Astatine what you take if you've got high cholesterol?

24.02.2026 23:27 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

Some were wiped (and many went out live and unrecorded) but adaptations of major stage plays were considered prestigious and potentially marketable, and may have been expensive, so had a much higher chance of being retained than programmes they considered more populist, ephemeral or run of the mill.

24.02.2026 22:36 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Yes, they did several of his plays and many dramatisations of the short stories. Three Cherry Orchards alone. At a quick count, between BBC and ITV there were at least 53 Chekhov plays or stories broadcast on UK television.

24.02.2026 22:33 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

He wasn’t particularly. But prior to the 90s they did regular stage play adaptations on TV. Over the decades they got through pretty much all of the European canon, with several versions of some plays (most obviously Shakespeare’s better-known ones). Ibsen was just part of the repertoire.

24.02.2026 22:10 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

This is being repeated this coming Sunday. I think it'll be the earliest TV repeat BBC4 has ever shown, if not the whole of the BBC.

24.02.2026 20:48 β€” πŸ‘ 34    πŸ” 14    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

"I doubt you're aware, but..."

24.02.2026 15:50 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

I had a very productive night of thinking. Trouble is, I was aiming for a productive night for sleeping. Yawn.

24.02.2026 07:42 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

I used to have some of their original paste-up boards. I wonder if they want them back for this project. I haven't got them any more though.

23.02.2026 15:53 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Thank you. Yes, both heavy smokers of course.

23.02.2026 09:23 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Terry Nation’s Seeds of Destruction It’s common for writers to include aspects of their own lives in their fiction.

In case you missed it, last weekend I posted an article on my Doctor Who blog about how Terry Nation used the illness which would later kill him in one of his Daleks short stories. Find it here:

thehiddenplanet.substack.com/p/terry-nati...

22.02.2026 19:35 β€” πŸ‘ 16    πŸ” 5    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
A round symbol of what looks like the dome of a Dalek, next to which is printed β€˜Stations & Onward Travel’.

A round symbol of what looks like the dome of a Dalek, next to which is printed β€˜Stations & Onward Travel’.

I can’t see this as anything other than the head of a Dalek. Just me? It’s on the back of every South Western Railway train seat. Genuinely not sure what it’s supposed to represent.

21.02.2026 19:32 β€” πŸ‘ 14    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
Excerpt from β€˜Anton Walbrook: A Life of Masks and Mirrors’ by James Downs, which reads, β€œβ€¦with music by Ron Grainer – best known now for β€˜The Tales of the Unexpected’ theme…”

Excerpt from β€˜Anton Walbrook: A Life of Masks and Mirrors’ by James Downs, which reads, β€œβ€¦with music by Ron Grainer – best known now for β€˜The Tales of the Unexpected’ theme…”

*ahem*

21.02.2026 19:27 β€” πŸ‘ 20    πŸ” 2    πŸ’¬ 4    πŸ“Œ 1

One for @tobyhadoke.bsky.social there - an inverse 'best known for...'

21.02.2026 19:29 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
Preview
Reviewing the BBC's Charter - British Broadcasting Challenge The government's BBC Charter consultation closes 10 March 2026. Download our guides to help you respond.

Some great, clear and accessible guidance is now available on how you can respond to the Government's open consultation on the BBC Charter Review. If the BBC matters to you then please get involved. The closing date is 10 March. britishbroadcastingchallenge.com

21.02.2026 10:29 β€” πŸ‘ 20    πŸ” 17    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

BBC4 did it for one or two of the Screen Twos they showed a few months back too. It's most annoying and I can't think of any good reason for it.

20.02.2026 22:22 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Television profile shot of a middle aged white man (actor Derek Jacobi playing Alan Turing) with black bars both to the sides and top/bottom of the picture.

Television profile shot of a middle aged white man (actor Derek Jacobi playing Alan Turing) with black bars both to the sides and top/bottom of the picture.

BBC4: No, that’s not good enough. You know better. You cropped out the unnecessary black bars top and bottom in the clips you used in the immediately preceding programme, so why show the whole thing like this?

20.02.2026 22:15 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

So, for reasons best known to its useless AI mods, Facebook has deleted the Obverse Books page, and removed all 1000+ followers. We've created a new page, so if you're on FB and want to keep up with Obverse news there, rather than here, this is the new link:

www.facebook.com/profile.php?...

19.02.2026 20:30 β€” πŸ‘ 26    πŸ” 29    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 3

I think they get sent to live in the White House

19.02.2026 12:26 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
Liverpool 1. Mark Butler of Imagine drives his car passed what looks like a shell of a building.

Liverpool 1. Mark Butler of Imagine drives his car passed what looks like a shell of a building.

Liverpool 2. In the background of this picture is some sort of warehouse or industrial unit.

Liverpool 2. In the background of this picture is some sort of warehouse or industrial unit.

Liverpool 3. A very washed out building in the background. It could be a tower?

Liverpool 3. A very washed out building in the background. It could be a tower?

Liverpool 4. A wide three lane road. Buses parked in the very background. And what's going on with that weird open-topped red car on the left?

Liverpool 4. A wide three lane road. Buses parked in the very background. And what's going on with that weird open-topped red car on the left?

Liverpool people. Is there any chance you recognise these 1983 streets?
They come from this BBC Archive report on the success story that was Imagine Software www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aV5...

18.02.2026 21:09 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 1

Let's not argue about it. Good night or good morning as is applicable where you are.

18.02.2026 01:00 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0