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The www.richardwho.com
website celebrated it's fifth anniversary on the 15th of July 2005.
It has been a fun and winding trip to where we are today. Filled with
interesting topics, wonderful sights and the best people on the planet.
I have been collecting Dr Who merchandise since about 1980 through the meager resources available to me in the Washington DC and surrounding areas. That amounts to almost nothing. I had a few books, a mug and a Tom Baker Fine Art Casting figure I found on vacation. On 21 November 1998 I found eBay and that changed my collecting forever. A whole new world opened to me and I dove in head (and wallet) first. My collection began growing so fast that I needed a way to track what I had preventing me from buying duplicate items needlessly. Being a Software Developer for over 20 years the obvious solution was to write a database application to catalog the information. This worked well until I was forced by my job to do a bit of traveling (I hate business travel) and I lost access to my computer catalog for long periods of time. EBay auctions wouldn't wait for me and I didn't want to loose out on any good deals so on July 15 2000 I moved the catalog to the web. Intended only for me the website served my need to access my collection information wherever I was. I got an email one day from Matt Parish asking about a prop coin from Dragonfire I had in my collection. The first prop I ever got. I was so proud of that coin. Unfortunately Matt was writing to tell me it was not real, merely a copy of the original coin. After I got over the disappointment Matt and I started corresponding on a regular basis. We lamented on how few collectors we knew, me only two counting myself and Matt and he a very small number. We came up with the idea of adding his collection to the site and actively soliciting for other collectors to add theirs. It wasn't long until Col and Mick joined, followed by many others over the years. Some have left to start their own sites and some have left to pursue other interests. The long list of collectors we now enjoy far exceeds what Matt and I ever thought we could find. The rest of the sections of the website sort of evolved as time progressed. The Auction Listings, Exhibitions, Conventions and Behind the Scenes are all the results of many kind people donating their time and photos. The message board was attempted three times before it seem to catch on. I can remember the time when we could go for weeks before someone would post a message. How things have changed. Looking back there have been so many things that have happened that I will fondly remember but my trip to the UK in 2003 to celebrate 40 years of Doctor Who is one of the highlights. Traveling to England and meeting Matt, Sarah and Simon, exploring the UK visiting Doctor Who shooting locations along the way. Toped off with a visit to the Longleat Doctor Who 40th birthday event where I got to meet many collectors from the website. A grand day to remember |
Richard
in Essex made this
wonderful picture to help celebrate
Click
for a larger view
Over the years we have made
several items to advertise the site.
 Cloth Patch |
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 Teddy Bear |
 Pin Back Badge |
 Ball Cap |
 Mug |
 Pen |
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 Another Pen |
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Have a Collecting question then try the 
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If
you collect Doctor Who costumes, props, scripts, Artwork, set designs, or
commercial items we would love to add your collection to the list. (click) For more information...
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