Doctor Who has defeated some of the most difficult beings in all of time and space. But did you know he went against the U.K.'s Metropolitan Police Authority and almost lost?

The battle was not waged in space, or in the back alleyways of London, but rather in the courtroom. It seems that the BBC's attempt to register the blue police telephone box -- used on the show as the good Doctor's time machine, which he calls the TARDIS -- did not win any friends over at the Metropolitan Police Authority. The organization regarded the police call box as universally associated with (get this) the police.

The facts are these:

• In 1996, the BBC applied for a trademark to use the image of a police call box on Doctor Who merchandising and advertising. The trademark application shows three images of police call boxes. The Metropolitan Police Authority objected to this, citing that the police should own the distinctive image of the police call box.

• In 2002, the objection by the Metropolitan Police was overruled by the patent office because the boxes were no longer in use. (You can read a full PDF report here.) The BBC was very happy.

• Footnote: In 1976, the BBC registered the trademark of a police call box accompanied by the word TARDIS. The Metropolitan Police Authority has no problem with this one, apparently, as it went uncontested.

OK, sure, this was resolved back in 2002, but the TARDIS is a time travel machine so, technically, it might not have even happened for Doctor Who yet.

The Tardis and trade marks [Steve van Dulken's Patent blog]