History JustForFun / InspectorSpacetime

* NiceShoes: Associate Petula's white go-go boots.

The programme won a devoted audience for [[FirstLawOfTragicomedies wittily combining]] humour with scares and grew into a LongRunner despite ExecutiveMeddling from producer British Television and distributor Boogatron Media--not to mention [[NoBudget chronic underfunding]], [[LoadsAndLoadsOfWriters inconsistent script quality]], [[MissingEpisode archival carelessness amounting to sabotage]], [[WhatCouldHaveBeen perversely wasted potential]], and numerous other problems best left for another discussion. Twelve actors have taken on the iconic role of the Inspector so far[[note]]thirteen, if the [[LoopholeAbuse Unknown Inspector from the 50th anniversary specials counts]][[/note]], alongside literally dozens of Associates, in an ever-expanding cast. The sheer AMOUNT of canon there is to go through might cause some ArchivePanic, but it's well worth the hours you'll spend with it.[[note]]In all seriousness, though, there is already an effort in motion to write actual episodes of this series [[http://inspectorspacetime.proboards.com/index.cgi found here]].[[/note]]

** So far, the Eleventh Inspector and his bowler hats.

* NiceHat: A trademark of the series, although averted by the... thing... the Fifth Inspector sported on her head. The Fifth Inspector was the only female Inspector in the series and also the most fashion-challenged one to date.

* AmericansAreCowboys / AwesomeAussie: Veneziana is a mix of these tropes. She is from Newer South Wales, a rather bizarre 24th-century Earth colony that mashes together the best and worst of the cultures of the [[LandDownUnder Australian outback]] and [[EverythingIsBigInTexas Texas]]. She is introduced lassoing Circuit-Chaps while wearing a [[NiceHat bushranger hat]] and spurs. Subverted when it's revealed she's afraid of horses.

** Of the Inspectors themselves, Leslie French and Lynda Bellingham chewed the largest hunks of scenery, while Creator/TraceyUllman went to town playing Dynamo.

* CanonForeigner: [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters Many additional Associates]] created for the Great Ending Productions Inspector Spacetime audio plays.

The origin of this landmark television show requires detailed examination to extensive and complicated to summarize here. [[note]]''Inspector Spacetime'' is in reality a recurring gag/homage to ''Series/DoctorWho'' made by ''Series/{{Community}}'', which first appeared in its season 3 premiere, "[[Recap/CommunityS3E01Biology101 Biology 101]]", and has been regularly referred to in later episodes. But that doesn't mean we can't have our own fun with it![[/note]]

It has a recap page here and its own wiki [[http://madmanwithabooth.wikia.com/wiki/Inspector_SpaceTime_Wiki here]].

The origin of this landmark television show requires detailed examination. [[note]]''Inspector Spacetime'' is in reality a recurring gag/homage to ''Series/DoctorWho'' made by ''Series/{{Community}}'', which first appeared in its season 3 premiere, "[[Recap/CommunityS3E01Biology101 Biology 101]]", and has been regularly referred to in later episodes. But that doesn't mean we can't have our own fun with it![[/note]]

%% Also, please consider submitting tropes to IS subpages, such as those for characters, funny, moments of awesome, narm, nightmare fuel, etc. (And please try to group multiple examples, check for duplicates/repetition, and avoid zero context examples.)

* BritainIsOnlyLondon: [[{{UsefulNotes/London}} London]] is undoubtedly the Inspector's favorite city on Earth, not least because it attracts so many aliens. The Inspector's adventures officially began here in "A Timeless Man", and each of his incarnations has visited at least once. As the Third Inspector says, "When one is tired of London, one is tired of the universe!"

** The 50th anniversary in 2012: "The Night of the Inspector" unites the Inspector's four most recent incarnations; and "The Golden Jubilee of the Inspector" 2012 Christmas Special sees them encounter [[HistoricalDomainCharacter historical personages]] like [[UsefulNotes/QueenVictoria Queen Victoria]] and [[BadassNative Black Elk]] (in the suspenseful 1887 storyline during her 50th anniversary) and celebrities like Music/TomJones and [[DragQueen Dame Edna Everage]] (in the comic 2002 one during [[UsefulNotes/HMTheQueen Elizabeth II's]]).

** Creator/ChristopherLee famously played the Second Inspector as "Literature/SherlockHolmes [[RecycledInSpace In Space]]".

* {{Mockbuster}}: The Inspector appeared in the completely unauthorised 1973 Turkish film ''5 Kudretli Adamlar'' (lit. ''5 Mighty Guys'', aka "Turkish Blacula"). The film featured the Inspector teaming up with Film/{{Blacula}}, Wrestling/ElSanto, and advertising {{Mascot}} Mister Clean to defeat an extremely violent and sadistic version of {{Tintin}}. The Inspector, wildly out of character throughout, wields a leftover Batarang prop from the 1966 ''Series/Batman1966'' instead of his Optic Pocketknife.

** [[InvertedTrope Inverted]] after Arthur Darvill ended stint as Rory Williams on ''Inspector Spacetime'' only to play ''the same character'' in [[Series/DoctorWho That Ripoff.]]\\

* DomesticAbuse: [[ImpliedTrope Implied]] with the Sergeant and Lucio, the ([[ObfuscatingStupidity suspiciously competent]]) shoe-shine boy he married in Mexico [[spoiler: while posing as Henry Anglo]]. Lucio has the last laugh, however, when [[spoiler: he cleans out "Anglo's" ill-gotten re-election fund and is last seen literally sailing off into the sunset on a yacht.]]

** In the new companion book, we find out why. [[spoiler: He lost them the War of 1812. They had to [[Retcon fix it]] themselves. They still remember. All of them.]]

* UnreliableNarrator: The episode "Morton's Fork". "Hello there! I will now tell you a whole ''slew'' of simply ''massive'' [[LiesToChildren lies]]!"

* TransatlanticEquivalent: The American remake, entitled ''Epochs of Eternity: Inspector Spacetime'', stars ''Series/{{Beverly Hills 90210}}'''s Luke Perry and Jennie Garth as [[MrFanservice Inspector Spacetime]] and his [[MsFanservice Ensign]].

* WhoWearsShortShorts:
** Thorough Visor wears short shorts! This also led to some [[HoYay questionable moments]] between Visor and the Fourth Inspector when crammed in the Booth together. In a case of massive over-compensation (intentional or otherwise), following the Inspector's metamorphosis, Visor spent the next three seasons crammed in the Booth with three women, albeit with one of them wearing spurs.
** Of course back in that era it was all just joking, unlike the famous kiss the Inspector gave Capt. James when the latter [[spoiler: volunteered for a suicide mission on the Inspector's behalf.]]
*** [[spoiler: It's okay, James survived.]] But the kiss [[spoiler: and subsequent separation from the Inspector]] helped James come to terms with his own pansexuality, though the creators revealed that [[WordofGod nothing actually happened between him and the Inspector.]]
** Robbie [=McMillan=]. His [[ManInAKilt kilt]] was at ''least'' a handspan too short!
** The Indictor ([[FanDisservice ...*shudder*]]), according to [[DeletedScene the few seconds of deleted footage]] that showed him from the waist down with his [[OminousOperaCape robes]] open.

* MidBattleTeaBreak: Literally. The Third Inspector would employ his [[SpotOfTea legendary love of tea]]—"It's always teatime somewhere in the universe."—as an excuse to extract himself and his Associates from sticky situations.

* NoBiochemicalBarriers: Implied, initially, as the First Inspector indicates that Infinity Knights have been conditioned to survive on a variety of different planets; gradually explicit as the story editors softened the science fiction in the series, with later Inspectors developing an addiction to a particular Earth beverage and a fondness for British sweets and biscuits.

* NoBiochemicalBarriers: Implied, initially, as the First Inspector indicates that Infinity Knights have been conditioned to survive on a variety of different planets; gradually explicit as the story editors [[MohsScaleOfScienceFictionHardness softened the science fiction]] in the series, with later Inspectors developing an addiction to a particular Earth beverage and a fondness for British sweets and biscuits.

* WeirdMoon / WeirdSun: Both are {{Plot Point}}s, thanks to ArtisticLicenseAstronomy, in "The Obvious World".

** Creator/ChristopherLee famously played the Second Inspector as "SherlockHolmes [[RecycledInSpace In Space]]".

* FamousLastWords:
** "It's all right, Inspector. No one will miss me." [[spoiler: Jeffrey]]
** "''HA HA!'' Once again... Barbartron... TRIUMPHS!" [[spoiler: King Sonacry]]
** "[[CatchphraseInterruptus Oi, wot's all this, th—]]" [[spoiler: The First Inspector.]]
** "[[TheStoic So be it.]]" [[spoiler: The Second Inspector.]]
** "Time for [[OneLastSmoke one last cup of]]—no? Ah well..." [[spoiler: The Third Inspector.]]
** "Ah. ''Now I'' understand. If I could have just ''[[RetroactivePreparation prepared]]...''" [[spoiler: The Fourth Inspector.]]
** "I think maybe things will be [[TemptingFate back to normal]] now." [[spoiler: The Fifth Inspector.]]
** "I intend to stage a [[StronglyWordedLetter formal complaint]]!" [[spoiler: The Sixth Inspector]]
** "Right on [[ClockKing schedule]]." [[spoiler: The Seventh Inspector]]
** "[[ItHasBeenanHonor Before I leave you]], a toast is in order. A final hurrah to all my old acquaintances... Charity, Fitz, Georgina, Mmm'Fash't'ஐ'lan'zac- never could get the third syllable right- Jimmy, dear Lucy, and of course, Miss Renee. I'll miss all of you. We had a splendid run... but the Inspector's going out to lunch. Bless this food and put it to good use. Amen." [[spoiler: The Eighth Inspector]]
** "[[StockBritishPhrases This, old boy, is a bit thick!]]" [[spoiler: The Unknown Inspector]]
** "Honestly? I think [[IShouldHaveBeenBetter I could have been a little better]]." [[spoiler: The Ninth Inspector]]
** "[[NotAfraidToDie I'm ready to go.]] ''¡ARRIBA!''" [[spoiler: The Tenth Inspector]]
** "Between you and me, change isn't always right. It can be sorely, ''sorely'' bungled. I'm utterly fed up with this face, d'you hear me!? The faster I forget it, the better. One day, I'll swear off [[NostalgiaAintLikeItUsedtoBe forever reminiscing when the Inspector was I]]." [[spoiler: The Eleventh Inspector]]

** In "[[{{Demythification}} The Legend Locators]]", when UsefulNotes/NikolaTesla's time-travel experiment goes awry, the Inspector and his Associates must rescue his temporally stranded friend and lab partner, [[Creator/MarkTwain Sam]], from a fifth-century British warlord called [[KingArthur Rigotamos]] who has dragooned him into serving as court magician. Once freed through the help of [[LadyOfWar Layla of Dumnonia]], Sam tells them that their adventure has provided him with the inspiration for his [[Literature/AConnecticutYankeeInKingArthursCourt next novel]].

* LizardFolk: “Reptaliens” (reptilian aliens) are a staple of the Programme, e.g. the saurian Eocenes and their aquatic brethren, the Ocean Demons, the [[ReptilesAreAbhorrent abhorrent]] Serpentians, and the scaly-armored Venusian Sulphur Soldiers. Also, [[spoiler: [[UsefulNotes/HMTheQueen Queen Elizabeth II]] in the episode "The Humans of Westminster" (HMQ is not a fan)]].

* LizardFolk: “Reptaliens” (reptilian aliens) are a staple of the Programme, e.g. Eocenes, Ocean Demons, Serpentians, and Venusian Sulphur Soldiers. Also, [[spoiler: [[UsefulNotes/HMTheQueen Queen Elizabeth II]] in the episode "The Humans of Westminster" (HMQ is not a fan)]].

* TheReptilians: The Eocenes, Ocean Demons, Serpentians, and Venusian Sulphur Soldiers. Also, [[spoiler: [[UsefulNotes/HMTheQueen Queen Elizabeth II]] in the episode "The Humans of Westminster" ([[UsefulNotes/HMTheQueen HMQ]] is not a fan)]].

** Even supposedly American characters such as Nicola "Coco" Coates and Gary Mulligan refer to [[TheProfessor boffins]], [[PowerFist knuckle dusters]], [[BabyCarriage prams]], [[SpaceClothes "space fancy dress"]], [[SpannerInTheWorks spanners]], and, of course, [[PhoneBooth telephone boxes]].

** The 21st-century [[AfterTheEnd post-nuclear apocalypse frontier]] in "A Village Called Sympathy" doubles as a SpaceWestern, down to little details like a [[FrickinLaserBeams laser-lasso]] wielded by Kickpuncher's adversary, the villainous rustler Cowpuncher.

* FlowerInHerHair: Pretty much every female inhabitant of Androgyny.

** In the early '70s, Franchise/ArchieComics bought the rights to do an ''IS'' comic under its Red Circle Comics imprint for American audiences. Their writers quickly went [[CerebusSyndrome off]] [[DenserAndWackier the]] [[DarkerAndEdgier rails]], however, and the comic was cancelled in 1979 ([[CutShort cutting short]] an arc in which the Twenty-Second Inspector was travelling to before the Big Bang to codify the universe's laws of time and space).

** Her abandonment of shoes becomes symbolic of her relationship with Minnie Smythe when Minnie also throws out her shoes and the two of them walk off into the sunset holding hands with the soles of their feet caked in mud. The two of them never wear shoes again, staying perpetually barefoot in every appearance after the Series 3 finale, which works out to their advantage in the Series 4 finale when the Blorgons are lured into a trap by their footprint heat signatures. In their final appearance in "The Last Minutes", they've become widely known as "The Barefoot Bounty Hunters" and even wear their wedding rings on their toes. As the Tenth Inspector is about to metamorphosize, he drops off their old discarded shoes and then limps away. They both figure out that this is his final goodbye to them and they won't be getting back on the Booth again.

** After the events of the Time Wave, however, the Inspector's reputation as a dangerous foe received a [[TookALevelInBadass significant boost]]. In the new series, he's prone to [[BadassBoast re-emphasizing this]] in case anyone's forgotten.

* ProductPlacement: To supplement the programme's often meager budget, BTV has occasionally resorted to inserting commercial products into the Inspector's adventures for an under-the-table fee.

* AbandonedArea: Favored by the BTV's budget-conscious producers during the classic series in order to hold down the costs of casting extras and constructing elaborate sets, notably the [[GhostCity lost city of Izzomun]] in "Funeral of the Blorgons", the [[GhostPlanet dark matter world]] in "The Three Inspectors", and the Circuit-Chap–infested [[SinisterSubway Paris Métro]] in "The Revolution".

* TheAdventureContinues: [[spoiler: newyweds Irma and Bert]] cheerfully go off to explore Earth's 3rd-Millenium galactic empire when they part ways with the Inspector at the end of "The Marathon Pursuit". They never appeared on the show again, but a couple of Expanded Universe novels were written about their escapades.

* FairPlayWhodunnit: A staple of the Second Inspector's investigations, particularly the innumerable locked room mystery settings (which were favored for [[BottleEpisode budgetary reasons]]). For example, the Inspector deduced the murders of the chrono-scientists in "The Cube in Time" were perpetrated by [[spoiler: the base's high-tech laboratory equipment and kitchen appliances, which the Circuit-Chaps had modified into lethal conscripts of the Digifleet, after assorted evidence excluded all the human and alien suspects]].

* FourIsDeath: Literally. The Fourth Inspector has left behind a higher body count than any of the other Inspectors, even modern ones, including [[spoiler: associates Lunda, who metamorphosized twice and then went into exile in an alternate dimension, and (probably) Reena.]]

* MadeForTVMovie: The [[TheNineties 90s]] Anglo-American collaboration ''Inspector Spacetime'' starring [[http://buzznet-00.vo.llnwd.net/media/jj1/2008/07/hathaway-phone/anne-hathaway-phone-booth-07.jpg Steve Carell as The Eighth Inspector and Anne Hathaway as his Associate, Charity Galloway]] during the British programme's extended hiatus. Although its canonicity is established, its awkward plot, loose characterization, and [[HamAndCheese over-the-top acting]], and make it something [[FanonDiscontinuity fans prefer to forget]].

* CanonDiscontinuity: For several years after "The 1981 Inspector Spacetime Holiday Special" aired, the BTV's official stance on the episode was to [[OldShame deny that it had ever been broadcast, produced, or even existed in the first place]] and that everyone responsible had been sacked. Any chance of an official release remains very unlikly as the [[CreatorBacklash creator reportedly personally destroyed]] every single official copy shortly after the broadcast, and BTV [[NeverLiveItDown refuses to respond]] to anyone claiming to possess a copy.

* HitlersTimeTravelExemptionAct: Subverted in "[[UsefulNotes/NaziGermany Let's Kill Hitler]]". When Aidan strangles den Führer with his bare hands, the Inspector is alternately furious with him and terrified of the awful world they'll find when they return to the early 21st century. In fact, they find [[spoiler: millions of lives were saved because there was no Holocaust; World War II and the Cold War never happened, ushering in an unprecedented era of peace on Earth; and an undivided Germany became a beacon of tolerance and diversity, a shining example for all nations.]]

* HollywoodScience: The science behind the Entanglement timeline is often criticized for its improbability, but writers dismissed these attacks in the third edition of the ''Inspector Spacetime'' companion book. Two words: [[QuantumMechanicsCanDoAnything Quantum Superpositioning]].

* [[PerceptionFilter Observation Screen]]: TropeNamer; however the new showrunner, Stefan Toffat, is not a fan of the earlier episodes and has vowed to reduce or eliminate its use, criticizing it as a HandWave.

** In "[[{{Demythtification}} The Legend Locators]]", when UsefulNotes/NikolaTesla's time-travel experiment goes awry, the Inspector and his Associates must rescue his temporally stranded friend and lab partner, [[Creator/MarkTwain Sam]], from a fifth-century British warlord called [[KingArthur Rigotamos]] who has dragooned him into serving as court magician. Once freed through the help of [[LadyOfWar Layla of Dumnonia]], Sam tells them that their adventure has provided him with the inspiration for his [[Literature/AConnecticutYankeeInKingArthursCourt next novel]].

* RomanticFalseLead: Creator/SpikeMilligan is this for Joanna, until she decides she [[NoSenseOfHumour doesn't like]] '' Radio/TheGoonShow'' and promptly dumps him for [[BiTheWay Minnie]].

The programme won a devoted audience for [[FirstLawOfTragicomedies wittily combining]] [[Funny/InspectorSpacetime humour]] with [[NightmareFuel/InspectorSpacetime scares]] and grew into a LongRunner despite ExecutiveMeddling from producer British Television and distributor Boogatron Media--not to mention [[NoBudget chronic underfunding]], [[LoadsAndLoadsOfWriters inconsistent script quality]], [[MissingEpisode archival carelessness amounting to sabotage]], [[WhatCouldHaveBeen perversely wasted potential]], and numerous other problems best left for [[Trivia/InspectorSpacetime another discussion]]. Twelve actors have taken on the iconic role of the Inspector so far[[note]]thirteen, if the [[LoopholeAbuse Unknown Inspector from the 50th anniversary specials counts]][[/note]], alongside literally dozens of Associates, in an [[Characters/InspectorSpacetime ever-expanding cast]]. The sheer AMOUNT of canon there is to go through might cause some ArchivePanic, but it's well worth the hours you'll spend with it.[[note]]In all seriousness, though, there is already an effort in motion to write actual episodes of this series [[http://inspectorspacetime.proboards.com/index.cgi found here]].[[/note]]

The new series has successfully branched out into several {{Spin Off}}s within the franchise, although they do not CrossOver with the main Inspector Spacetime series. Unlike their parent show, they are all [[SpinOff/InspectorSpacetime situated on Earth and rarely involve TimeTravel]].

Other facets of the vast ''Inspector Spacetime'' media empire include [[ComicBook/InspectorSpacetime American, British, and Japanese comic books]], two different animated adaptations (one Eastern, one Western), novels, radio dramas, and [[VideoGame/InspectorSpacetime video games]].

It has a recap page [[Recap/InspectorSpacetime here]] and its own wiki [[http://madmanwithabooth.wikia.com/wiki/Inspector_SpaceTime_Wiki here]].

** Let's not forget the [[ComicBook/InspectorSpacetime comic book series of the Tenth and Eleventh Inspectors published by CCC (Creation and Concept Comics) Publications.]]

* WhamLine: In addition to all the [[WhamEpisode/InspectorSpacetime twist episodes]], there has been plenty of startling dialogue over the years:

* DanceSensation: Pamela Highwater (the second Petula) was a professional go-go dancer by trade. She performed "Do the Inspector" on ''Series/TopOfThePops'', and her single got as high as #27 on the UK Top Singles chart.

** The serial "Space-Break", which featured the character the Tang Seer, played up his quaffing and extolling the virtues of a brightly coloured [[DrinkOrder "astronaut beverage"]] (that nevertheless failed to penetrate the UK market).