The Props
A brief overview of the main TARDIS props
There have been ten main — or ‘hero’ — TARDIS props used for the revived series of Doctor Who since production began in the summer of 2004. Each of the props were constructed from wood, and finished to a similar size and shape, with only minor alterations made along the way. Throughout this article, I’ll be referring to them as TARDIS A-1–2, TARDIS B-3–4, TARDIS C, TARDIS D, TARDIS E, TARDIS F, TARDIS G, TARDIS H, TARDIS I, and TARDIS J.
Naturally, it’s not quite as simple as moving from one prop to the next in strict order as the series progresses, and in the sections which follow, you’ll find more details about how the props were swapped around, brought in and out of retirement, and doubled up to suit the needs of the production team at any one time.
While I’ve detailed main alterations to the props (such as replacement door signs, etc.) along the way, I’ve neglected to list every minor tweak to the props, such as changes of paint between episodes, unless it’s of a major point. The props were often patched up to hide the damage caused by a hectic production schedule, and trying to track every minor repair would be near impossible.
It’s also worth noting here that I’ve concentrated mainly on the front of the props, the doors, the frame, the roof, and the base. There are times where more than one prop is in use, and it’s entirely possible that in these cases, side/back panels may be swapped between them, in the same way that we know the doors were on the first two props. It’s rare that we ever get a good look at all four sides of the TARDIS in an episode, which would make it incredibly difficult to track these alternate configurations. In any case, it seems that the side/back panels were usually kept together with the corner posts they were constructed with, even if the doors were not.
Each of the different TARDIS props has its own unique set of characteristics which are useful for identifying which prop is used where. What follows here is a very brief description of each of the props;
TARDIS A-1–2 and TARDIS B-3–4
Constructed in July 2004, these props were used from Rose through The Unicorn and the Wasp. Components from both these props later appeared as the Tenth Doctor’s TARDIS in The Day of the Doctor.
The designations A-1–2 and B-3–4 refer to the two frames (A and B), and the four doors (1, 2, 3, and 4. In this, Doors 1 and 3 are on the left of the prop, featuring the phone panel, while Doors 2 and 4 are on the right-hand side).
They’ve been numbered based on the configurations seen in photos of the props original construction. By the end of the first season, the doors from prop B (Doors 3 and 4) start being attached to Prop A, and these instances are marked on the relevant pages, through the use of designations such as A-3–2 or A-3–4. It’s worth noting that Frame B only ever appears on screen with it’s original doors, while Frame A is paired with several different door combinations throughout its lifetime.
These props are most easily identified by the prominent wood grain on the surface (brought out using blow torches during construction), and also a number of dents and imperfections in the wood. Frame A features a number of small holes and marks, for example, while Doors 2 and 3 both feature prominent cracks. Door 1 has a very distinct grain pattern on the centre divider and above the ‘Pull to Open’ panel, which sets it apart from the other doors on these two props.
At around the same time, two further wooden props were constructed, featuring squarer panels on the doors. These were used for promotional activities, but never appeared on screen.
TARDIS C
Constructed in late 2007, and used during the production of Series Four. TARDIS C first appears in Partners in Crime, and is used intermittently through to The Eleventh Hour, before returning as the War Doctor’s TARDIS in The Day of the Doctor.
This prop was constructed with significantly wider corner posts than the first two props, and would become the template for the later TARDIS props built for the show. Again easily identified via the wood grain, particularly on the left-hand door, to the top right of the phone panel, while the thicker corner posts mark it out when used in conjunction with an earlier prop during the first half of Series Four.
TARDIS D
Constructed in spring 2009 for use in the production of Series Five. Used from The Eleventh Hour through Night Terrors.
TARDIS D utilises a different style of paint to give the box an almost metallic finish, making the wood grain extremely visible. For the first time since the 1960s, the TARDIS was given white window frames, and featured a St John Ambulance badge, which was hand-painted on the right-hand door.
TARDIS E
Constructed in early 2011 for Series Six, and first seen on screen in The Curse of the Black Spot. It appeared in its original form through to The Angels Take Manhattan, after which it was given a heavy repaint for use in the second half of Series Seven. The prop received another drastic repaint to appear weathered for The Snowmen, and Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS. It made its final regular appearance in The Day of the Doctor, before being brought out of retirement for use throughout many episodes of Series Ten.
In its original style, TARDIS E closely resembled its predecessor, with a similar paint finish highlighting a different grain structure, and a slightly different version of the St John Ambulance badge, owing to the nature of it being hand-painted.
When repainted for use in the second half of Series Seven, the prop was given a much flatter, matt finish, which almost entirely disguised the previously prominent grain. Several later repaints only served to hide the grain further. The hand-painted St John Ambulance badge was replaced by a sticker version.
The prop was given new ‘Police Box’ and ‘Pull to Open’ signage in 2016 for its use in Series Ten, but retained its original style of St John Ambulance sticker, which was inconsistent with the version used on TARDIS F in the same series.
TARDIS F
Constructed in August 2013. First appeared in The Time of the Doctor, and still in use as of The Doctor Falls.
TARDIS F was the only ‘hero’ TARDIS prop used for the production of Series Eight in 2014, before being used in conjunction with TARDIS G for Series Nine, and TARDIS E for Series Ten.
Once again, a sticker was used for the St John Ambulance badge, though it features a slightly altered design, which doesn’t match the version used for the doors of the TARDIS Interior set. Originally painted a much brighter shade of blue, this prop was dirtied down during the production of Series Eight. The sides of the doors on this prop are painted white, in contrast to the other props of the Steven Moffat era.
The prop was given new signs at the start of production on Series Nine, and again for Series Ten, though the latter signs featured more of a departure from the style introduced in 2004.
TARDIS G
Constructed January 2015 for production of Series Nine. This prop first appeared on screen in Before the Flood, and was retired after Hell Bent.
Used in conjunction with TARDIS F during the production of Series Nine, this prop was the one onto which the Clara memorial was painted for Face the Raven.
Largely indistinguishable from the previous version, TARDIS G is most obviously identified from the placement of the lock (Unusually close to the corner of the panel below), and because the sides of the doors are painted blue. The St John Ambulance badge is once again a sticker, with a design which matches the one on TARDIS F.
TARDIS H and TARDIS I
Constructed in late 2017 for use in Season Eleven, and used interchangeably throughout that run. TARDIS H was the more prominent of the two props, making its debut in The Ghost Monument.
These props are a huge departure from the style of TARDIS seen between Rose and Twice Upon a Time. They’re smaller in size, with extra detailing to the corner posts, and with altered windows, roof, and light.
While the ‘Pull to Open’ panel is heavily redesigned, switching to white text on a black background for the first time since The Fourth Doctor’s Era, the ‘Police Box’ signage reverts to the style used between Rose and The Husbands of River Song.
The two props are distinguishable from each other by prominent wood grain.
TARDIS H made its final on-screen appearance at the end of Series Eleven, while TARDIS I spent some time in storage before returning as the main prop used for the production of Flux and the 2022 specials.
TARDIS J
Built in 2018 and first seen during a Children in Need segment that same year, TARDIS J went on to be the main prop used for Series Twelve, appearing in eight of the ten episodes. Following this, however, the prop was largely retired from production, though a single door was brought back into service for Jodie Whittaker’s final episode The Power of the Doctor.
Stylistically, the prop matches the previous two – TARDIS H and TARDIS I – and is distinguishable from its grain pattern.
Although it’s often reported that the production team switched to using a fibreglass police box during the second series, this appears to be incorrect. In the latter half of 2005, several fibreglass TARDIS replicas were created for use in promotional activities. These were cast from one of the screen-used props, but for speed only one side of a TARDIS prop was cast — meaning that the fibreglass props feature the squarer panels present on the sides of the early props, and therefore have distinctive doors.
These TARDIS replicas made appearances on other TV Shows (one appeared in an episode of EastEnders in 2008, for example), but don’t appear to have ever been used for the production of Doctor Who. The one exception to this is the use of half a fibreglass TARDIS created for a stunt sequence in The Christmas Invasion — this is detailed under Series Two.
St John Ambulance Badges
While the props featured a St John Ambulance badge between The Eleventh Hour and Twice Upon a Time, four distinct styles were used. These comprised a mixture of hand-painted designs and stickers. All four designs are presented here to better highlight the differences.
Pull to Open Panels
As with the signs used in the ‘classic’ series, the text on the ‘Pull to Open’ panel has varied throughout production. The first three modern TARDIS props use the wording ‘Officer and Cars Respond to All Calls’. From TARDIS D to TARDIS G, the signs replace ‘Officer’ with the more frequently used ‘Officers’, though retain the ‘All Calls’ wording as opposed to the more common ‘Urgent Calls’.
Former Doctor Who Magazine editor Clayton Hickman brought this fact to the attention of the Production Team shortly before work began on Series Five, but incoming ‘showrunner’ Steven Moffat had a theory about the use of the ‘All Calls’ wording, which he explained in an email;
“The TARDIS is just responding to the Doctor’s increasing tendency to
involve himself in the affairs of others. At first it’s just urgent calls
— now it’s everybody.”
A variation of this idea was incorporated into the script for Smile in 2017.
When production began on Series Ten in the summer of 2016, both TARDIS F and the newly-returned-to-action TARDIS E were fitted with new signage courtesy of graphic designer Matthew Clark. The new signs feature a revision of the font and spacing of the text.
With the redesign of the TARDIS props for Series Eleven, the sign was revised for TARDIS H and TARDIS I. These revert the sign to white text on a black background for the first time since 1980, and alter the wording to ‘Officers & Cars Respond to Urgent Calls’.
Interior Set Doors
While not strictly falling under the remit of the research I’ve been doing, it’s worth mentioning the doors of the various TARDIS interior sets used since 2004. Shots of the doors on these sets have been used in close up since Rose to give a better impression of the ‘bigger on the inside’ aspect of the TARDIS, and on several occasions have been digitally mixed with shots of the exterior props to really heighten the effect.
There have been four distinct TARDIS interior sets since the show returned to production.
The first was primarily used from Rose — The End of Time, and made brief reappearances in The Eleventh Hour, The Doctor’s Wife, and The Day of the Doctor. The doors fitted to this set in 2004 remained through its entire use by the production team, and are still in place with the set on display in the Doctor Who Experience. Between production on Series Three and Series Four, the ‘Pull to Open’ panel was replaced with a version featuring incorrect placement of the text, curiously squashing the ‘Pull to Open’ instruction itself.
The second TARDIS interior was in use from The Eleventh Hour — The Angels Take Manhattan, and retained its doors throughout. These same doors were still in place when portions of the set were displayed at the Official 50th Anniversary Celebration in November 2013.
The third interior set was constructed in 2012, and remained in use for five years, being retired at Christmas 2017.
Doors were fitted to the set in 2012 to match the style used on the repainted version of TARDIS E, complete with sticker St John Ambulance badge, and blue door edges.
These doors were repainted for use in The Snowmen for a special effects shot of the Doctor and Clara moving from outside the police box directly into the interior, before being returned to their original condition. They’ve remained in this style ever since, even when a new St John Ambulance badge and white door edges were introduced on TARDIS F. As such, the doors of the interior set have been out of synch with the actual police box prop in use through much of the Peter Capaldi era.
New ‘Police Box’ and ‘Pull to Open’ signage was added to these doors for production of Series Ten.
The interior for Series Eleven took a slightly different approach. Instead of a pair of police box doors opening directly into the console room, the set incorporated a ‘porch’ area, for which a third prop was created.
This gave the effect of three-quarters of a police box (the doors and sides, but no back) opening up into the main room.
This area is covered under The Jodie Whittaker Era.
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