10 Times Doctor Who Has Ripped Off Other Franchises

7. Star Trek

Often seen as a very different show to Doctor Who, the other 'best ever sci-fi show' has sometimes made its presence felt. Just look at any 70s Who set in the future to see the influence of Trek, especially if the Doctor is ever on a spaceship. Pertwee producer Barry Letts might also have taken a lead from Trek, especially in presenting shows that had a moral message behind all the laser guns. The serial most obviously influenced by Trek is Frontier in Space, a sprawling space opera that could easily have been reworked to make a Trek movie. As well as this, the Draconians, Jon Pertwee's favourite monster, were obviously versions of the Klingons, the Federation's big bad. The famous Star Trek transporters also showed up on occasion, with a whole tale, The Seeds of Death, being based around them. However, it was sister show Blake's 7 that appropriated them the most. Perhaps the most infamous lift from the Star Trek franchise was the reveal in the Doctor Who Movie that Paul McGann's Time Lord was half human on his mother's side. Of course, this is the parentage of Mr Spock, Star Trek's most iconic character. Funnily enough, though now established as canon, no one seems to want to discuss this rather shocking plot development.