@mrfusion I'm not sure there is! tbh, the true basics are:
*The Doctor is an alien who can travel through time and space, and instead of dying can change their appearance/personality.
*The time-space machine is called a TARDIS, and it looks like a UK police call-box because its camouflage circuit failed.
*The Doctor usually travels with one or more companions.
And maybe:
*The Doctor tends to avoid violence, except as a last resort (but that varies wildly depending on era and circumstance).
@mrfusion
Beyond that, everything changes so much its not necessary to know! Even things like "Time Lord" and "Gallifrey" weren't present from the beginning!
I can recommend the first few minutes of this ep of @incomparable -- it's not confined to classic Who, but it does have ideas of where/how to start!
https://www.theincomparable.com/theincomparable/714/
Put on your mouse ears and step into the TARDIS! We’re discussing the return (rebirth? regeneration?) of “Doctor Who” in 2024, this time on Disney+ (and the BBC). It’s a new era with an old showrunner. How did the 2023 specials hit us, where should curious viewers start watching, and what are our hopes for the coming season?
Oh! One more thought - years ago, Verity! podcast did a series watching a "representative" story for each Doctor (no, we did not all agree what was representative, which made for some fun discussion).
Dipping into one ep per Doctor would be a grand way to sample classic Who. (And if she wants, she'd have a companion podcast to explain what's particular to each Doctor.) We went in reverse order, so we did the 7th Doctor first. https://veritypodcast.wordpress.com/2013/03/13/verity-episode-6-all-seven-and-we-watch-ace-fall/
Tom Martinek
Erika Ensign