INDIANAPOLIS — It's a unique collection that started in 1998. For Keith Bradbury, it started with the show "Dr. Who."
"It's a British show, and in the United States, while it was showing on PBS stations, you couldn't get any merchandise. You couldn't get any toys or action figures," Bradbury said. "I always, as a kid, always kind of wanted all this 'Dr. Who' stuff that was only available in the U.K."
Nearly 20 years of hard work resulted in the opening of Who North America on State Road 67 in Camby.
"We've got a retail side and we also have a museum of merchandise. We've been trying to collect the merchandise over the years, and we put them in cabinets so people can see them," Bradbury said. "We really try to cater to the 'Dr. Who' fans, so if you come in here, you get to spend a lot of time. Most people spend anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half and really enjoy the place and see a lot of different things that they won't see otherwise."
Curious fans of the show come from everywhere, like Mary Bird, a native of Cambodia in Indianapolis for job training.
"This is amazing. I've never seen a store where they sell 'Dr. Who' because growing up in Cambodia, the only option was just to watch a show," Bird said. "When I finally went to London, I got to see certain things that reminded me of the show. This is fantastic. I'm super excited right now."
"Who North America is a unique store, there's no others in the United States," Bradbury said. "There is a 'Dr. Who' store in the U.K. called Who Shop in London. Both them and us are probably about the only two really exclusively "Dr. Who" stores in the world."