Almost everyone collects something. My five year old son collects rocks that he finds. I collect sports memorabilia. Others may prefer to collect books, coins or stamps. For fans of Doctor Who, there are plenty of collectable options, from figurines to the various novels and autographs. For one man, Rob Hull, that collection involves Daleks – over 1800 of them.
It is certainly understandable as to why someone would want to collect Dalek merchandise. They are, after all, one of the more iconic creatures in television history. References to the Dalek have been made in numerous other programs, from the creatures being seen during an episode of Rugrats to an appearance in Looney Toons and even making an appearance on the Craig Ferguson Show. The Dalek is, indeed, everywhere.
This insertion into other facets of life, along with their fairly amusing xenophobia and pepperpot appearance, would make them known to people outside the Whovian realm. In fact, that is what makes Hull’s collection so interesting. Hull loves Daleks, but is not a fan of the show itself. Yes, the man who has amassed such a large collection of Daleks does not watch Doctor Who.
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It seems peculiar to collect something related to a program that one does not enjoy. For instance, if one did not enjoy reading, why would someone collect books? However, given the proliferation of the Dalek into the rest of the universe, and the continued entries into pop culture, it is understandable that such a creature could attract attention, and even fans outside of the Whoniverse.
Of course, what could be more natural than a fan of Daleks not being a fan of Doctor Who? It does, after all, center around the adventures of the sworn enemy of the Dalek race, a being who has, in his time, done more to thwart their plans of total domination than anything else in the universe. No matter what the Daleks do, there is the Doctor, finding a way to beat them at their own game.
Everyone collects something. Just know that, should you be looking to add a rare Dalek figurine to your Doctor Who collection, there may be a non-Whovian with a mania for these murderous pepperpots bidding against you.