Friday I went to a Doctor Who party at my local library. In addition to some pretty good cosplays (including my own Dalek, if I do say so myself), there was pin-the-bowtie-on-Matt-Smith, fish fingers (seriously, actual fish fingers) and custard, and photo ops with an almost life-size cardboard Tardis. It was a blast and it also gave me some ideas on how to throw the perfect Doctor Who party (perhaps to coincide with the upcoming Series 8 premier?).
Decorations
Before all your fellow Whovians show up, you'll need to decorate to get everyone in the mood. Some simple, but fun ideas include:
Construct and leave a couple little black cubes lying around in homage to Series 7's The Power of Three. You can find the Radio Time's Little Black Cubes template here. |
Cardboard cut-outs of your favorite characters make for great photo-ops. One of my local party stores actually has a Matt Smith cut-out for sale, but if yours doesn't, you can order them from OrientalTrading.com and CardboardCutout.com (the average cost seems to be about 29.50USD, plus shipping).
But what would your party be without the guest of honor? There are several options for having the Tardis make an appearance at your party. One is to purchase a cardboard cut-out of it and position it in a corner (where the cardboard stand in the back would be less obvious). Another is to make your own. There are two simple methods for creating your own Tardis. One is to purchase either a large Tardis blue table cloth or several sheets of blue poster board (which you would tape together to create roughly the same effect as the table cloth). Secure this to the back of a door (or maybe your front door, to greet your guests as they enter) and decorate it to look like the Tardis (patterns for the windows and signs are readily available online). Similarly, if you would like a three dimensional Tardis, you can use a refrigerator box (if you're not sure where to find one, check with your local appliance or furniture store and ask if they have any boxes that they might be willing to give you). Simply attach your table cloth (you will need four or more, depending on how large they are) or poster boards to the sides, then decorate to look like the Tardis. For extra authenticity, purchase a child's camping lantern, paint the appropriate parts blue, then affix it to the top of your Tardis. Remember to turn it on before your party! |
And, as a a generally rule of thumb, Tardis blue is a perfectly acceptable color for tablecloths, napkins, plates, cups, etc. Just jazz them up with Doctor Who stickers!
Food
To start, what's a party without cake? Blue velvet cake is perfect for a Doctor Who party! Much like it's ubiquitous red cousin, blue velvet is simply chocolate cake with a massive dose of food coloring to give it its vibrant hue. You'll find a good recipe here. I would recommend making cupcakes, rather than a cake, to ensure consistent color all the way through the cake because, in a larger cake, you will get color differences in different sections.
And once you've baked these cupcakes, how are you going to decorate them? In true Doctor Who style, of course. Here are some of the fun options I found:
And once you've baked these cupcakes, how are you going to decorate them? In true Doctor Who style, of course. Here are some of the fun options I found:
While some brave souls at the library party tried the authentic version of fish fingers and custard, I was, to my mind, reasonably leery of fish fingers cooked off in a library kitchen. However, this recipe, sounds simply delicious. The "fingers" are actually vanilla cookies rolled in crushed graham crackers! |
An adorable treat to serve at any Doctor Who gathering, these Mashmallow Adipose also make great party favors. What You Will Need -One bag extra large campfire marshmallows -One bag mini marshmallows -56 Toothpicks, cut in half -Black royal icing or a black food marker Step 1: Insert the pointed end of your halved toothpicks into the mini marshmallows, careful not to poke them through the other side. Step 2: Insert the opposite ends of the toothpicks into the extra large marshmallows as shown in the picture at left. Step 3: Use the royal icing (with a fine tip) or food marker to give the Adiposes their smiles and eyes. Makes Approximately 28 Adipose |
But what about the more savory side of things, you might ask? Not everybody likes sweets. Well, fear not. At the party I went to, we had Lady Cassandra Lasagna, but not a lot of people ate it (in all fairness, it was mostly kids and the face on it was rather off-putting). But, who doesn't love pizza? Lady Cassandra Pizza is easy to make. You simply either buy a rectangular cheese frozen pizza or make your own using your favorite dough, sauce, and cheese (Hint: If you'd rather have pepperoni pizza, put the pepperoni on before the cheese- it will look the same). Decorate it to look like the last pureblood human by cutting a red pepper slice into lips and giving it black olive eyes. |
Drinks
There are so many Doctor Who themed drinks out there- here are just a few more alcoholic ideas from Megacynics.com
For children and teetotalers, there's always Time Vortex Punch. What You Will Need -1 Gallon Jug of Hawaiian Punch Berry Blue Typhoon -1 2-Liter Bottle of Crush Grape Soda -1 Quart Rasperry or Strawberry Sherbet Step 1: Combine Hawaiian Punch and grape soda in a large punch bowl. Step 2: Top with sherbet. Step 3: Stir gently to create swirling, wibbly-wobbly patterns. Makes 48 Servings |
Activities
While pin-the-bowtie-on-The-Doctor is fun, it can get boring after a while. Instead, here are some activities which are sure to keep your party goers entertained.
Create your own Doctor Who photo booth! Use your Tardis decoration as a back drop and provide your guests with lots of fun themed props. Some prop ideas include: -Hats (fez, stetson, whatever you call the 4th Doctor's hat) -Neckwear (scarf, bowtie, etc) -Glasses (3D, 10 and 11's glasses) -Dalek Costume (headband, plunger, whisk) -Monster Masks (Silence, Cybermen, Ood, Weeping Angels, Silurians) -Fruit and Veg (banana, apple w/ smiley face, celery) -Signs with classic quotes You can also purchase kits which come with cardboard "hair" and "costumes" for each doctor. Find them here. |
If your guests are in a crafting mood, invite them to create their own sonic screwdrivers. Provide them with either a pen (a great way to get rid of all those old bank and car dealer pens you have rolling around) or an in expensive penlight, then let them design their own screwdriver using items such as fast air drying clay (if you want them to be dry by the end of your party, do this activity first), paint, marbles, rhinestones, paper clips and other odds and ends. |
Or just play Twister. Cyberman optional.