‘Run!’

The first word I hear escape from the mouth of the mysterious Northerner on the TV. He looks like any normal person… or human. He talks about beans on toast, wears a trendy leather jacket and speaks exactly like my uncle.

‘You’ll like this show… it’s a bit like Back to the Future.’ My mum had insisted, but nothing seemed out of this world – just a normal shop girl and a strange man. Where were the flying cars and hover-boards?

It’s only when the arm of the shop mannequin starts attacking the blonde-haired girl, that I know something is different about this man. He speaks wickedly fast; in verbose sentences I scarcely understand – talking about vortexes and the wider universe – but he’s captivating. His quick paced speech matches his adrenaline-filled actions and I want to see what he does next. The danger is within every street and estate he runs to and something was out-of-the-ordinary with that strange shop dummy.

The mood suddenly drops – everybody has slowed down and hallowing music plays through the television – is this man bad?

His name is ‘The Doctor’ and apparently, he is not from this world.

He’s an alien.

I thought Doctors were supposed to carry stethoscopes and aliens were luminous green, attacking humans. But he cared for others. He wanted to protect them. Unlike anybody I have seen, he runs towards the danger, and this time, armed with a screwdriver and a psychic paper.

Then, he disappears into an old-fashioned box. A phone box. But it wasn’t like the ones near my house, they were covered in graffiti and old circus advertisements. It was from another moment of time. This one was pristine – a shade of blue will forever be embedded in my mind. 

The box stands there (in the middle of a council estate) and the mysterious man somehow squeezes into it – with an effortless amount of ease. 

The box vanishes. Accompanied by a shriek. Where had he gone?

Coincidence after coincidence we meet this man and madness unveils. People turn into plastic. Someone is swallowed by a bin. The shop dummies all come alive. Yet this man still keeps coming back for more. He finds his way back to the blonde girl, Rose. They fight the villains, they save the day. Then Rose travels with this strange man. They see the Earth. Enormous and radiating in all its glory. Out of every place, time zone, galaxy, Rose was chosen for her this adventure. Running towards a new adventure.

How can something so extraordinary – a world full of aliens, exhilaration and police boxes – be happening in London? The ordinary married with this uncertainty  – if it can happen to Rose, then it could happen to you. Maybe it will happen to me?