Doctor Who: 10 Major Ways The Doctor Affected Human History
9. Inspiring H.G. Wells To Write Science-Fiction
One of the fathers of science-fiction, H.G. Wells wrote many famous novels within that genre, and without him, the world of sci-fi entertainment wouldn't be as popular as it is today. You could even go as far as saying that Doctor Who wouldn't exist without Wells' forward-thinking ideas.
So it's pretty funny that within the Doctor Who universe, Wells was inspired to write his sci-fi stories after an adventure he had with the Doctor.
Wells pops up in the Sixth Doctor serial Timelash, where we don't learn who he is at first - we just know him as Herbert, a young writer with an interest in all things fantastical. From here, the Doctor's TARDIS materialises and Herbert is pulled into an adventure, and at the end of the serial, the Doctor and Peri learn the truth: Herbert is actually the H.G. Wells.
Wells then returns to his own time, going on to pen classic stories like The Time Machine and The War of the Worlds. It was his short-lived travels with the Doctor that proved a key inspiration behind his revolutionary sci-fi narratives.