1961

History of the Doctor Who Universe

 * Yuri Gagarin is the first Earth human to travel in space, - officially, anyway ("The Seeds of Death").

January

 * 7 - The Avengers debuts on British television. The series was devised by Sydney Newman, who would next go on to create Doctor Who.

December

 * 12 - Doctor Who cast member Sarah Sutton, who played companion Nyssa, is born.


 * 19 - Doctor Who cast member Matthew Waterhouse, who played companion Adric, is born at Hertford, England, UK.

Unknown date

 * Mark Strickson, who portrayed companion Vislor Turlough, is born at Stratford-upon-Avon.


 * Steven Moffat, writer of The Curse of Fatal Death, The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances, The Girl in the Fireplace, Blink, Time Crash and Silence in the Library and Forest of the Dead and who will become head writer and executive producer of Doctor Who in 2010 is born in Paisley, Scotland.