The Doctor Who Collection of Van Donovan

Van is a recent collector of all things "Doctor Who" but not to collecting as a whole. As a child, he was quite fond of horses, but was frequently denied the chance to obtain the My Little Ponies he so very much wanted. By the age of 16, eBay was just getting off the ground, and he discovered he could reclaim some of his lost youth. Between the ages of 16 and 21, his My Little Pony collection expanded beyond his wildest dreams, and had opened the gateway to other such avenues of collection. In 1998, he began collection animation cels for Japanese anime programs. He also began collecting action figures (mostly MIB) for shows such as a Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Voltron, Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Terminator 2 and other such novelty pieces.

He got into collecting "Doctor Who" merchandise in 2006, with the purchase of the "Regeneration Set" featuring the Ninth and Tenth Doctors. That quickly expanded to several of the other items in the toy line, and then beyond into the older Doctors as he became more familiar with the history of the show. Now his primary focus is the Second and Fourth Doctors (and companions Jamie and Adric). He is a moderate collector of autographs, especially fond of those he can obtain in person.

Additionally, Van is also a big fan of costuming and has, to date, pulled of three "Doctor Who" costumes: Tenth Doctor S1, Fourth Doctor S18 and Jamie McCrimmon (The Mind Robber), with plans to cosplay several more in the future. He`d certainly love to get into collecting props and costume pieces (the "State of Decay" Adric costume that went on eBay a few months ago had him juggling funds to see if it was fesible, alas it wasn`t), but currently his budget cannot afford it.

His collection will likely never be a huge one, as he is not a completist and doesn`t desire to collect everything in a set, or all variations, etc. But for the items he does want, he`ll go out of the way to get them because thats all he wants, as opposed to the whole set.

Van is a pretty laid back and friendly 25-year-old, living in Southern California. Feel free to say hello. :)

Van can be contacted by

Enjoy this small sample of
Van's Collection

Patrick Troughton Comet Miniatures Model

This is the 1993 Amarang/Comet Miniatures UK 1:8 Scale Vinyl Model Kit of Patrick Troughton as the Second Doctor. Sculpted by David Pamelroy and Robin. Currently it is unassembled and unpainted, though that might change in the future, as I would like to display him properly. I just have to decide how much I want to handle the pieces. Well see. Bought off eBay in 2007.

Danbury Mint Jamie Chess Piece

I could never afford to get a full Danbury Mint Chess set, so I have opted instead to collect a handful of my favorite characters. This is Jamie, as the knight. I intend to get a Second Doctor to go with him, eventually.

Danbury Mint Adric Chess Piece

Theres no way I can afford a full Danbury Mint Chess set, so I have opted to collect a handful of my most favorite characters. This is Adric, as the Knight. I intend to someday get a Fourth Doctor to go along side him.

Tom Baker Autograph (magazine)

I have not had the pleasure to meet Tom Baker myself, but I ordered this magazine from the www.tombaker.tv shops, and it arrived autographed twice--once by the "Special Edition" tag and a "TB." on his collar. Surprisingly, the magazine did not cost extra for the autograph. :D

Colin Baker Autograph (paper)

Obtained by Colin Baker himself, at Gallifrey One 2007, dedicated to me, although he spelt my name wrong. Ha.

John Levene Autograph (paper)

Obtained at Gallifrey One 2007, when John Levene came out of hiding after ten years out of the public eye. This is dedicated to "Van & Frazer" . . . because I was dressed as Jamie McCrimmon at the time and John kept calling me Frazer. It makes me smile every time I see it.

John Levene Autograph (photo)

Obtained at Gallifrey One 2007, where John Levene came out of hiding after ten years out of the public eye. After obtaining an autograph in my autograph notebook, I opted to get a photo of Levene signed as well and chose this one. Levene described it as him acting "butch." Okay John, if you say so.

Matthew Waterhouse Autograph (photo)

A signed photo by Matthew Waterhouse--its a bit hard to see, as it was signed in blue ballpoint pen. The postcard is also signed on the reverse, dedicated to "Garry." It says "For Garry, Very best wishes, Adric / Matthew Waterhouse." I really do like Adric. :)

Matthew Waterhouse Autograph (photo)

Another Matthew Waterhouse autograph, this one signficantly clearer. This one was given to me as a surprise gift by my friend Pattie Ann. Im especially fond of this photo of him beside Tom Baker, so its doubly special to me. :)

Geoffrey Beeves Autograph (paper)

Obtained by Geoffrey Beeves (the decaying Master in "The Keeper of Traken") at Gallifrey One 2007, dedicated to me. He was such a generous, funny person, and the lucky husband of Caroline John (whose autograph I did not manage to get).

Doctor Who (and related) books

Some of my "Doctor Who" novels, including both Frazer Hines and Tom Bakers biographies and some "Emmerdale Farm" books, which I got for Frazer Hines involvement in the series.

Doctor Who Magazines

Some "Doctor Who" magazines I have, "The Complete Second Doctor" being my most prized of the bunch, although "The Complete Fourth Doctor, vol. 2" is the one with Tom Bakers autograph on it. I am fond of all my magazines though, and hope to get more in the future.

Doctor Who DVDs

My paltry DVD collection . . . mostly because I spend my money on merchandise and other such fun things, instead of the DVDs. But these are the ones I have, and I hope to add to the collection as more stuff is released that I must have. :D Hopefully will take a clearer photo of this later.

Frazer Hines Autograph (photo)

A beautiful photo card of Frazer Hines (who played Jamie in "Doctor Who") as Joe Sugden from his days on "Emmerdale Farm" . . . I realize this isn`t Who merchandise, but I thought it was close enough to include it, as I`d`ve never heard of "Emmerdale Farm" or Frazer`s role on it if it werent for my love of him as Jamie.