BBC Annual Report

Doctor Who is cited several times as a prime example of BBC output in the corporation'sannual report, jointly published today by the BBC Trust, the body which oversees the organisation and replaced the defunct Board of Governors of the BBC in January this year, and the BBC Executive, which runs the corporation editorially.

The series is mentioned in the BBC Trust's section of the report as a "genuinely popular success" by Sir Michael Lyons, the Trust's chairman. In the BBC Executive's report, the programme receives numerous mentions - these include praise for being one of the corporation's "most loved dramas" during a section highlighting the work of BBC Wales, which is also commended for the spin-off series Torchwood; the report described BBC Wales as a "world-class production centre".

The section dealing with BBC One's drama output opens with: "It has been a year of drama resurgence on BBC One, starting the year with a new Doctor Who, played brilliantly by David Tennant. The series exceeded all expectations and became a national talking point."

The series is also mentioned for its profitability - "Profits from global TV sales were up 19% to £40.2million, driven particularly by contemporary drama such as Doctor Who."

The report does, however, admit that: "Not everything we try works. The TARDISODES, one-minute Doctor Who episodes via mobile phones and bbc.co.uk, were not the hit we expected although they were popular on broadband."