‘Whovians’ flock to Hauppauge for homage to long-running TV show

Cat Cranston is one of hundreds of thousands of Australians likely to visit New York City this year, according to tourism statistics. But she is perhaps the only one who will spend most of her time stateside in the basement of a hotel in Hauppauge.

Cranston, 40, of Sydney, prefers it this way, she said Saturday.

“When you’re here, you don’t really step outside. What matters is what’s inside,” she said.

What’s inside the Hyatt Regency on Motor Parkway this weekend is the fifth annual Long Island Doctor Who Convention, a celebration of the long-running British sci-fi television show.

Some 1,500 people will attend the three-day convention, according to organizers, who called it the only event of its kind in the tristate area. The convention gives so-called “Whovians” the chance to pose for pictures with actors from the program, attend talks on Who minutiae and, most importantly, meet other fans.

“We all speak the same geeky language,” said Ken Deep, one of the event organizers. “It’s a place where we can let our guard down.”

The convention, like the show, offers an escape from the mundanities of everyday life, Deep said. But even a program about a time-traveling extraterrestrial is not free of real-world political considerations, Deep said, noting the controversial decision to feature the first female protagonist in show history next season.

Deep said he welcomes the change, describing it as in the best traditions of science fiction, which “mirrors what’s going on now in a way that allows us to explore or debate things that sometimes are difficult to talk about.”

Such issues were not major concerns for everyone in attendance, however, including Bryce Morrison, 7, of North Waterboro, Maine, who attended with his extended family and was torn between his desire to wear his full costume of Cyberman — a character from the show — and his need for oxygen.

“It’s quite cozy,” he said of the outfit’s silver mask. But it had no nostril holes. “It’s actually hard for me to breathe.”

Andrea Ornstein of Glen Cove also came in costume: a beaded headdress and white tunic resembling androids called Movellans from the TV show.

“You don’t get to walk around like this every day,” she said.