Cardiff, center of the SF universe.

Yesterday, Audry and I took a high-speed train from Paddington to Cardiff. At the end of the two-hour trip, we made an immediate beeline for the Red Dragon Centre, which is sort of like a mall, only more entertainment-oriented (restaurants, arcades, a multiplex). It also seems to play host to a swap meet.


Our destination, however, was the massive Doctor Who exhibition in the middle of the centre.




As always, click on the photos for a full-sized view.





A Weeping Angel from "Blink."


"You've got something on your back." Donna Noble's costume (and giant time-sucking bug) from "Turn Left." As in the episode, she's surrounded by the time-mirrors that Rose Tyler and U.N.I.T. use to set the timelines aright.


Tick-tock robot from Stephen Moffat's classic episode, "The Girl in the Fireplace."


Giant wall-mural photo of David Tennant on location at Cinecitta in Italy during the shooting of "The Fires of Pompeii."


L to R: Early Rose Tyler costume; Christopher Eccleston's leather jacket and 9th Doctor clothes; David Tennant's robe and jimjams from "The Christmas Invasion," Martha Jones' trademark purple leather jacket and jeans.


Captain Jack Harkness' costume, complete with stain on lapel.


Rose Tyler's whacking big gun from "Journey's End."


Cybermen!! "Prepare to be upgraded or face deletion!"



Daleks with Emperor Dalek. Exterminate!




"Hey! Who turned out the lights?" A victim of the Vashta Narada from Moffat's "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead" episodes.


K-9! I have one of these at home.


The Ood pose with Donna's costume from "Planet of the Ood."


Ood brain and assorted props, along with a quote from "The Impossible Planet."


Spoiler alert! River Song's sonic screwdriver and copy of the Doctor's Diary from "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead."


Robot angel from "Voyage of the Damned."


A scarecrow from Paul Cornell's "Human Nature"/"The Family of Blood."


Emerging from the exhibition, we managed to escape the Who shop without spending a penny, and promptly hoofed it over to Cardiff Bay and the Millennium Centre -- home to Torchwood and the Rift.






The mirrored waterfall facing the Centre -- and the secret entrance to Torchwood.


Audry in front of the Centre...


...And the waterfall.  (Note the fob watch!)


We then walked a couple of miles down Lloyd George Road to central Cardiff.


At the end of this street we visited Cardiff Castle -- but that's another two dozen photos I'm too lazy to post just now!