Doctor Who might have a reputation for wobbly sets, but it has been filmed in some rather exotic places over the years. Here’s a breakdown of the most stunning Doctor Who locations in the Whoniverse…
Paris, France
Ah, that bouquet. Paris has an ethos, you know – a spirt all of its own. But you have to pick one of the vintage years, of course. This might be one of the most well-known Doctor Who locations on our list, as it forms the backdrop of one of the most popular stories of all time – ‘City of Death.’ Thanks to some savvy budgeting on the part of production unit manager John Nathan-Turner, Doctor Who was approved for its first ever abroad shoot in the French capital.
Does this Doctor Who location add much to the story, though? Not really; most of the scenes involve the Doctor and Romana running past various Parisian landmarks to the accompaniment of a beautiful score by Dudley Simpson, and it’s a true sensory feast.
Alas, not all of the cast got the opportunity to ‘sip it and see,’ and guest stars Julian Glover and Catherine Schell had to make do with the corridors of TV Centre. As did John Cleese.
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
When John Nathan-Turner became the producer, the Doctor Who locations did become more exotic. He was criticised for this, however – particularly by his script editor Eric Saward, who argued that the location shoots were completely unnecessary and the stories might as well have been set anywhere.
And whilst this might be true, the more exotic Doctor Who locations do at least offer some visual variety, and they adhere to the logic of the show. After all, if the Doctor has a machine that is capable of taking him anywhere in the universe, why would he always land in England?
And so, when it comes to the use of Amsterdam in 1983’s ‘Arc of Infinity,’ the same logic applies. Why wouldn’t the TARDIS be drawn to the Netherlands from time to time?
Although, ironically, it’s not the TARDIS that’s drawn to the Netherlands, but Tegan, who’s visiting her cousin, so the location is built into the story. And whilst Amsterdam might fall outside of some people’s definition of ‘exotic,’ it is a beautiful city, and looks great on screen.
Lanzarote, the Canary Islands
Lanzarote must, surely, be a holiday destination that no one could argue with. Presumably, it fitted the Doctor’s needs as well, as he took the TARDIS there in 1984’s ‘Planet of Fire,’ albeit whilst also following a strange transmission from an unknown source.
This particular Doctor Who location also doubled as the planet Sarn, which featured heavily in the second half of the story. This was also the first time in the series’ history that a location other than the UK was used to represent an alien planet. Lanzarote would also later be used to represent the surface of the Moon in 2014’s ‘Kill the Moon,’ and it looked great – although we wouldn’t recommend it for your next vacation (too many spiders.)
But was this Doctor Who location ‘justified’? Certainly, Lanzarote produced a more convincing-looking alien planet than any TV studio or CSO-powered backdrop, but then, a UK chalk pit could have done that as well.
Seville, Spain
Sontarans. In Spain. With Servalan. Well – the actor formerly known as Servalan, Jacqueline Pearce. ‘The Two Doctors’ visit to Spain is totally random in story terms and adds nothing except a little variety and some visuals, but what great visuals they are.
Seville did, however, prove problematic to film in. The temperatures were high and the heat soon became unbearable for the actors playing the story’s potato-headed villains. Even actors like John Stratton playing Shockeye had problems, as the sun kept melting the glue keeping the Rice Krispies stuck to his face. And Colin Baker had issues as well, but most of these involved remembering to take his sunglasses off before a take!
There’s no denying, though, that Seville is a gorgeous city, and the third episode of ‘The Two Doctors’ does a great job showcasing its plazas and rustic streets.
Trogir, Croatia
Believe it or not, the 2010 episode ‘The Vampires of Venice’ wasn’t actually filmed in Venice, as it was deemed more practical and economical to shoot in Trogir, Croatia. And there were other advantages to using this Doctor Who location, too, as it also doubled as a French village in a later Series Five episode ‘Vincent and the Doctor.’
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Surely, there has been no Doctor Who location that has looked more like an alien planet than the desert of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Remarkably, this backdrop proved to be a financially viable location for this 2009 Tenth Doctor special, and the production team managed to ship a whole bus load of actors (plus an actual bus) halfway across the world for ‘The Planet of the Dead.’
Alas, this wasn’t the easiest of shoots for the production teams, owing to the continuity problems posed by crew-loads of people leaving footprints in sand. Moreover, the desert winds proved savage and halted filming for extended periods.
And then there were the logistics of shipping a full-size London bus across the ocean, which was practically decimated on arrival after it was throttled by a shipping container. Thankfully, the prop was salvageable, although some of the damage is still visible in the finished episode.
Cape Town, South Africa
As with some of the other Doctor Who locations on this list, South Africa doubled for a number of places in Series 11. It represented the planet Desolation in ‘The Ghost Monument,’ and later stood in for Montgomery, Alabama, in ‘Rosa.’ Certainly, the cinematography in the former episode was stunning, perfectly capturing the country’s otherworldly beauty.
This Doctor Who location (well, continent) would return a few years later for ‘The Story & The Engine,’ when the team travelled to Lagos, Nigeria to capture scenes in one of the local markets.
Can you think of any other exotic Doctor Who locations that have been visited by the good ship TARDIS? And which is your all-time favourite? Let us know in the comments below.
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