20 Things Doctor Who Wants You To Forget
8. Don't Worry About Taking Your Medication
Doctor Who might be an entertainment show, but right from its beginning it has taken seriously its duty to educate. Science and history play a part in this, but the show has always been more about teaching children values, such as welcoming the stranger, not judging by appearances, and dealing with bullies.
In the Forest of the Night, one of the latest episodes to take this responsibility seriously, was written by children’s author Frank Cottrell-Boyce. It contains a positive message about caring for the environment, but inexplicably carries another, more dubious one. A young girl, Maebh, becomes the hero but only by stopping her medication and, following the Doctor’s advice, listening to the voices inside her head.
Medicine isn’t the answer to every ailment, but to make even one unwell child think that it’s good to defy the will of parents and Doctors, and throw away the pills is frankly (excuse the pun) inexcusable.