Book excerpt: When Sydney Newman conceived the idea for Doctor Who in 1963, he envisioned a show in which the Doctor and his companions would visit and observe, but not interfere with, events in history. That plan was dropped early on and the Doctor has happily meddled with historical events for decades. This collection of new essays examines how the Doctor's engagement with history relates to Britain's colonial past, nostalgia for village life, Norse myths, alternate history, and the impact of historical decisions on the present.