Christopher H. Bidmead
CountryUnited Kingdom 
GenderMale
BirthdayJan 18, 1941
Death2025-08-06
BiographyChristopher Hamilton Bidmead (18 January 1941 – 6 August 2025) was an English screenwriter, journalist, and actor, best known for his work as the script editor on the eighteenth season of Doctor Who from 1980 to 1981. His brief tenure on the series saw the departure of Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor and a return to a focus on education and hard science fiction.
Bidmead was born in Bolton and trained as an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. After a career in repertory theatre in several cities, he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company and later began acting in several radio plays on BBC Radio 4. Dissatisfied with the scripts he was receiving, Bidmead began writing his own, and also began contributing to a number of television shows. His interest in science also led him to write articles on computers for New Scientist magazine.
In 1979, writer Robert Banks Stewart recommended Bidmead to the Doctor Who production team as a replacement for departing script editor Douglas Adams. Bidmead joined at the same time as new producer John Nathan-Turner and set about turning the show away from what he saw as the excessively silly and fantastical storylines of Adams' tenure. Bidmead had few leftover scripts to work with, and encouraged the hiring of writers new to the series.
Biography from the Wikipedia article Christopher H. Bidmead. Licensed under CC-BY-SA. Full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Bidmead was born in Bolton and trained as an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. After a career in repertory theatre in several cities, he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company and later began acting in several radio plays on BBC Radio 4. Dissatisfied with the scripts he was receiving, Bidmead began writing his own, and also began contributing to a number of television shows. His interest in science also led him to write articles on computers for New Scientist magazine.
In 1979, writer Robert Banks Stewart recommended Bidmead to the Doctor Who production team as a replacement for departing script editor Douglas Adams. Bidmead joined at the same time as new producer John Nathan-Turner and set about turning the show away from what he saw as the excessively silly and fantastical storylines of Adams' tenure. Bidmead had few leftover scripts to work with, and encouraged the hiring of writers new to the series.
Biography from the Wikipedia article Christopher H. Bidmead. Licensed under CC-BY-SA. Full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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