Editing TARDIS (section)

{{short description|Fictional time-travelling device}}
{{other uses}}
{{redirect|Bigger on the inside|other uses|Bigger on the inside (disambiguation)}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2024}}
{{Infobox fictional artifact
| name        = TARDIS
| image       = Tardis in Snow.jpg
| caption     = The Doctor's TARDIS as it has appeared since 2018
| source      = [[Doctor Who]]
| source_type = TV
| company     = [[BBC]]
| first       = [[An Unearthly Child]] {{noitalic|(1963)}}
| creator     = {{plainlist|
* [[Sydney Newman]]
* [[C. E. Webber]]
* [[Donald Wilson (writer and producer)|Donald Wilson]]
* [[Anthony Coburn]]
}}
| genre       = [[Science fiction]]
| type        = [[Time machine]]/[[spacecraft]]
| uses        = Travels through time and space
| traits      = Can change its outer dimensions and inner layout, impregnable, telepathic 
| affiliation = {{plainlist|[[Time Lord]]s}}
}}

The '''TARDIS''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|t|ɑr|d|ɪ|s}}; [[acronym]] for "[[Time]] And Relative Dimension(s) In [[Space]]") is a fictional hybrid of a [[Time travel in fiction|time machine]] and [[spacecraft]] that appears in the British [[science fiction television]] series ''[[Doctor Who]]'' and its various spin-offs. While a TARDIS is capable of disguising itself, the exterior appearance of [[The Doctor (Doctor Who)|the Doctor's]] TARDIS typically mimics a [[police box]], an obsolete type of telephone kiosk that was once commonly seen on streets in Britain in the 1940s and 50s. Its interior is shown as being much larger than its exterior, commonly described as being "bigger on the inside".

Due to the significance of ''Doctor Who'' in popular [[British culture]], the shape of the police box is now more strongly associated with the TARDIS than its real-world inspiration. The name and design of the TARDIS is a registered [[trademark]] of the [[British Broadcasting Corporation]] (BBC), although the design was originally created by the [[Metropolitan Police Service]].<ref>UK Trade Mark no. EU000333757 filed 25 July 1996; Classes 9, 16, 25, 28, and 41. See https://trademarks.ipo.gov.uk/ipo-tmcase/page/Results/4/EU000333757 .</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ipo.gov.uk/tmcase/Results/1/UK00001068700 |title=Case details for Trade Mark 1068700 |access-date=28 January 2007 |publisher=[[UK Patent Office]] }}</ref>