Build Your Own Dalek From The Official BBC Blueprints

by Sean Fallon on September 17, 2010

Back in the early ’80s if a Doctor Who fan requested plans from the BBC on how to construct his own Dalek he actually got them. If this happened today, the letter would probably come back with stains from being asswiped along with another letter going on and on about trademarks, patents and excessive fines and/or jail time.

At any rate, the blueprints unearthed by Blastr after the break were first released in 1973, so the Dalek it would create would be slightly dated. Nothing wrong with a little retro flair though.

(TMC and Letters of Note via Blastr)

Tagged as: blueprints, Dalek, DIY, doctor who

Jollyboy

“trademarks, patents and excessive fines and/or jail time”

There’s nothing at all in English law to prevent you building your own Dalek. The only way you would be in breach of copyright law is if you sold your home brew Dalek. Quite where you get the idea you could spend time in prison for building a Dalek I don’t know. Recently a school near me built a Dalek entirely from licorice and displayed it in the local museum. The BBC are not particularly arsey about their copyrights unless somebody tries to make money out of them.

The most famous Doctor Who related trademark case was not the BBC suing, but the Metropolitan Police actually going after the BBC for using their trademark in the shape of the TARDIS.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Jeremy-Eble/1189395623 Jeremy Eble

Done and done.