There's an old saying: "Life begins at 40." For some, it's the watershed moment after midlife crisis washes through their psyche. It's time to take stock, reevaluate, start fresh; it could just be the best time of your life. And for the science fiction cult classic TV series, DOCTOR WHO, 40 may be the beginning of a very exciting new life indeed.

When it first debuted on the BBC on November 23, 1963, DOCTOR WHO was a strange black and white adventure into the unknown. Its central figure was a mysterious old man who traveled through time and space in a vast ship disguised as a British police box (it's dimensionally transcendental). Initially, his granddaughter and her two inquisitive teachers accompanied him as they journeyed to different worlds and times. While it was originally conceived as a children's show with historical themes, its second serialized story arc would launch it into pop culture history and introduce a race of monsters that would terrify U.K. kids for generations the Daleks.