Sunday, November 8th marked the fourth Galliday in Disneyland – an unofficial holiday in the parks dedicated to the BBC phenomenon, Doctor Who. Fans of the show (called Whovians) all gather together throughout the day to dress up as characters from the show, meet fellow Whovians, and romp around in the parks all day.
This was my third time attending Galliday and it’s amazing to see how much this unofficial holiday has grown throughout the last couple of years. Galliday occurs twice a year, once in the spring and again in the fall. There’s an official itinerary on the Galliday website for the entire day, but anyone can participate in as many or little events as they’d like.
The unofficial holiday begins with breakfast from 8:30-9:30 in the morning, meeting with fellow Whovians at the Partners statue of Walt and Mickey in Disneyland. The rest of the morning, everyone breaks into groups to “take over” attractions throughout the park. I decided to pass on these first two activities (I like sleeping a little too much) and joined my friends at the first big meet-up: the group photo in front of the castle. This can be rather chaotic, but it’s so much fun to see all of the Doctor Who cosplayers gathered together. Each year consists of some amazing and authentic cosplays, ranging from common characters such as the Eleventh Doctor to some rather obscure ones such as The Master from the 1970’s classic Doctor Who episodes.
This year, my favorite cosplayers were actually all of the children. Sunday’s Galliday definitely had the largest amount of junior Doctors and companions in the event’s history. Honestly, they stole the show and I’m pretty sure they knew more about Doctor Who than I did. Throughout the second large meet-up in the Esplanade in the afternoon, little Tenth and Eleventh Doctors would run all over the place making everyone laugh. There were even adorable baby Doctors and companions! I was absolutely in love!
I always make an effort to attend Galliday each year because I love the community. My first Galliday over a year ago was the first time I had tried my hand at cosplaying and surrounded myself with other cosplayers who loved two of my favorite things: Doctor Who and Disney. Everyone is incredibly nice and you’re able to easily talk to new people and give acknowledging looks of approval to fellow Whovians as you walk past each other in the parks. One of my favorite memories actually involved meeting regular guests who had no idea it was Galliday, but were fellow Whovians themselves.
This most recent Galliday actually was recognized on BBC America and Doctor Who’s official Instagram accounts this year! It’s amazing to see how much this event has grown since its beginning and I can’t wait to see what happens in the future.
