Yes, Tom Baker was Dr Who for me, and Genesis of the Daleks was pretty scary stuff back then.
I did enjoy Pertwee though, and the Brigadier et al… The Sea Devils were pretty scary (made me very wary of going to Camber Sands) and also those bulletproof maggot things too. But Genesis of the Daleks was when it got really good. I wonder whether I could still watch and enjoy it today?
Only one way to find out, £7 on Amazon.
I got it just before lockdown for £4 and, I have to say, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I wanted to, given that I remember watching Tom Baker with my mum at an age when I was too young to remember much detail. I do remember enjoying Caves of Androzani as a 10-year old.
Although the concept and script of Genesis… were both clearly very good, I think I found the shonky production values too much of a distraction. Normally, I have a very high tolerance of such things (a bit of nostalgia, I think) but the short grey corridors and cheapness of too many of the costumes and props kept distracting me from the plot.
Now, after that, do I dare revisit Caves of Androzani for the first time in over three decades?
Mark
The fifth doctor remains Tristan Farnon to me. Can’t help.
That image of the long glove on his arm?
I’ve just checked with my two sons (now 21 and 19) for their thoughts on the OP’s original questions.
The latest Doctor Who has lost its way for the reasons already given above. Eccleston, Tennant and Smith worth watching but stories can be a bit scary.
The classic Doctor Who was made on a very limited budget and it shows. Tom Baker was probably the best. He had a robot dog called K9 which may appeal to children.
Sarah Jane Adventures was a very good spin off, aimed at children.
Avoid watching Class which was a spin off for teenagers that didn’t work, at least for my teenagers!
Torchwood was originally rated for 15 year olds and included some adult themes. It was good though.
Thunderbirds was and remains a big favourite. The original series is much better than the 2015 animated reboot. However, the pace of older drama was much slower than people expect nowadays due to the way tension was built up.
Other shows not yet mentioned on this thread, but suitable for family viewing:
Merlin (2008 version) was excellent. Several seasons.
Robin Hood (2006). Also excellent, particularly Keith Allen as the Sheriff of Nottingham.
Atlantis was okay, some good performances but it rather lost its way.
I know my two sons in their 20s both think much the same (we have watched together since the reboot, one of them giving up on the latest before me).
Hah, I was going to write just this, pretty much word for word!
I thought Matt Smith era started out OK but feel the plot lines became too convoluted. Thereafter it started to disappear up its own bum and while I had some hopes for Jodie Whittaker, it’s just awful, patronising, kiddie lite, twaddle and reminds me very much of the Sylvester McCoy years, though with a budget.
I always forget about Sylvester McCoy, probably for the reasons you cite!
I don’t think Peter Capaldi’s reign was very good either. A good actor but came across as far too earnest & frantic for me, lacking the lighter touch which many DW’s have had which, for me, embellishes the role.
I find the Whittaker era execrable. It is SO badly written. This is the third time I have simply STOPPED watching WHO. The first was Colin Baker and the second was McCoy.
Whittaker herself is OKish, but not good. If they wanted to follow a female Timelord why not introduce the Dr’s daughter; that would have been fascinating.
However, now, as with much genre TV, modern writers have chosen to trash the history by doing bald and badly conceived re-writing. They have turned the Dr into a ‘victim’; a very modern position, and NOT a good one.
I was happy paying my licence fee on the basis of: Maintaining training and a UK based TV industry; Decent balanced reporting of WORLD news; Radio 4; and, Dr Who.
Now I am only left with the first reason as the BBC has sullied the others from my perspective.
Not that this exercises me AT ALL 
.
For the record:
I was very young when I started watching with Hartnell from behind the sofa. I remember being freaked out by how they changed Jamie, via a jigsaw puzzle. The whole of the series has lived with me, although I think only fragments are extant.
Patrick Troughton was OK but I never really warmed to him, although I loved the ‘excavation’ of the Cybermen.
Pertwee I loved, and this really was MY Dr. Of the others I thought Tom B., Eccleston, Tenant & Smith were good. Capaldi suffered from poorer writing, he could have been excellent; I thought the episode with the 2D creatures was superb, an idea that subsequently got taken up by other genre shows, and demonstrated just how good he could have been.
I would suggest looking across the Atlantic for dvds of Man from Atlantis, The 6 Million Dollar man, The Incredible Hulk, Buck Rogers and Airwolf.
David tennant was I found unwatchable due to that face he kept pulling, looking like Kiera knightly doing her serious drama look.
I find the Whitaker episodes ok except for her ridiculous costume and the overwhelming PC element. I too am an of a age to have hidden behind the sofa at the first Hartnell episodes and the Weeping Angels scared the poo out of me …
I too watch very little BBC TV , Gardeners’ World, ( derigeur ) both variants of MasterChef , University Challenge and Match Of The Day
It is radio that’s the gem, Radio 3, TMS & The Service of 9 Carols and Lessons on Christmas Eve. That is when Christmas starts
Best wishes
I suspect we could have a very interesting chat at the pub!
Yes indeed
Best wishes
Ian
I thought it was Kate Middleton talking about …
Some. err…
Tom Baker lives me in Kent. Used to see him driving a right piece of junk of a Ford fiesta. Always had to shout to him about getting a better quality time travel machine than his fiesta if I saw him drive through Tenterden!
I guess he’d heard it all before. Many times!
William Hartnell has never been surpassed for those who watched the first series. I believe some are on YouTube.
Little Britain has now had the chop. Can’t believe that was from 2003.
