7 Doctor Who TV References You (Probably) Didn't Know About

2. Family Guy

Doctor Stew The creators of Family Guy made good use of Doctor Who's iconic theme tune during their 2007 Star Wars special, Blue Harvest, in which they paid homage to another cult classic. The show's opening titles were briefly played when the show's protagonist Peter Griffin noted that "hyperspace always looks so freaky" before cutting to a clip of Tom Baker's face swirling in what is no doubt the most famous representation of the time vortex in TV history. Pretty freaky indeed. It would've been better if they'd played the whole thing, though. And then maybe the entire episode that followed, too, although that would've probably taken away the purpose of the joke somewhat. Still, it's a surprise that Doctor Who references such as this one haven't been a more regular occurrence throughout Family Guy's run considering the sitcom is acclaimed for its ever growing plethora of more ambitious storylines as it continuously sets out to break away from the confines of the TV genre in which it is confined - something the Doctor is also constantly trying to achieve. That's pretty much where the similarities between the two formats ends, however, although one of Family Guy's central and more popular characters, Stewie Griffin, is a coveted time traveller himself, so there will be some fans who are no doubt waiting for the day he encounters the Doctor on one of his escapades. Saying that, it's likely - given Family Guy's track record for parodying other shows - that if the Doctor were to ever make an appearance in Quahog, it wouldn't necessarily be one which represented him, or ultimately the show, in the best of lights. While other animated sitcoms such as The Simpsons have chosen to pay heartfelt tributes to the Time Lord, the writers of Family Guy would probably opt to take a slightly different approach with their edgier style of comedy being used to poke fun at our beloved grand old man of time and space. Still, it would all be in good jest, of course, and the Whovian fandom is notorious for their ability to forgive and forget. Um...
Doctor Who Editor
Doctor Who Editor

Dan Butler is the Doctor Who Editor at WhatCulture.com. When he isn't writing his own articles or editing other people's, he can be found trawling the internet for gifs of Steven Moffat laughing. Contact him via dan.butler@whatculture.co.uk.