Soon-to-be-exterminated Dr Who - the actor David Tennant - caused a panic among his fans yesterday when he was not spotted on any televsion network for more than eight minutes.
Worried supporters flooded the switchboards of all the major channells to demand assurances that he was okay, and the BBC was forced to issue a statement confirming that he would be back on TV as soon as he could be located.
Later they admitted that the 9th Doctor had been found in a toilet cubicle at Television Centre playing with his sonic screwdriver.
Relieved fans posted messages expressing relief on the hundreds of Dr Who fansites.
Tennant himself said later: "I am touched that my long absence from the small screen yesterday provoked such a reaction, and I have asked my agent to make sure it doesn't happen again."
