BBC iconic brand Doctor Who will be making an appearance at the Taobao Maker Festival in Hangzhou, China, from 13-16 September 2018. Organised by Taobao, China’s largest mobile commerce destination developed by Alibaba Group, this four-day festival is a celebration of China’s young entrepreneurs.

As part of this festival, the TARDIS will land on the banks of Hangzhou’s West Lake, the UNESCO World Heritage site where the outdoor festival is held. Festival-goers will be able to enter the specially constructed TARDIS, and print out limited-edition Doctor Who postcards, bringing home a snapshot of best moments and lines from the long-running series.

In addition, Doctor Who is collaborating with four local Taobao merchants to design and produce four items of Doctor Who merchandise – a pair of Doctor Who sneakers, traditional Chinese dough figurines in the shape of characters from Doctor Who, a designed mobile phone case and a Doctor Who book cover. From 13-16 September, fans in China can view these four Doctor Who festival exclusives in the Taobao Maker Festival Doctor Who exhibition, located in the ‘Vintage Market (宝市)’ section.

“Science fiction is a well-loved genre in China, and Doctor Who is an iconic brand that is popular among our young audiences. We are very pleased to feature Doctor Who in our Taobao Maker Festival, which is designed to draw inspiration from Hangzhou’s rich heritage and put a spin on Chinese culture. We hope that by combining elements from ancient Chinese history and modern pop culture, we will inspire creativity in our young festival-goers,” said Zheng Zhong, Taobao Marketing Director and Taobao Maker Festival Project Director. “Having an iconic global brand such as Doctor Who making an appearance in West Lake shows cross-culture collaboration at its finest, where east meets west, and where past meets present.”

“Doctor Who is a global phenomenon, and we are honoured to work with Alibaba Group to bring the Doctor Who experience to more fans and families in China. West Lake is instrumental in Chinese culture, having influenced the poets and painters throughout Chinese history. We hope having the TARDIS land in West Lake signifies the start of a new era for Doctor Who, and we are excited for the possibilities of this iconic brand,” said Kelvin Yau, General Manager, Greater China, of BBC Studios.