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[Bobby Roberts]

I remember getting the job to recap that show for a website, thinking "YES." because, you know, Children of Earth was so damn good.

I gave up after the fourth episode, largely because I could find no joy even in the summary execution of every ridiculous idea being tepidly coughed onto the screen. It was so bad it sucked all the life out of me.

It's maybe the worst thing Russel T. Davies has done, period.

 

[APZonerunner]

Spent my hungover morning listening to the 10th Doctor's anniversary audio story. In it he receives a message from the 11th, who signs off "You're the best. Except for me."

Really looking forward to seeing them together. Little tidbits like this get me hyped!

 

[Slowdive]

Great pictures, I'll be buying.

http://www.doctorwhotv.co.uk/moffat-on-why-eccleston-turned-down-50th-53906.htm

Steven Moffat has given a little insight on why Christopher Eccleston turned down the chance to appear in the 50th anniversary special, The Day of the Doctor.

In an interview in SFX magazine (#241, out 16 October), Moffat says: “I had an initial contact with Chris [Eccleston] and, in a very amiable and gentlemanly way, he didn’t feel that he could come back to it.

He adds: “There wasn’t any big fuss about it – I had a couple of meetings with him, and he was perfectly pleasant, and indeed quite enthused about the show, but he just doesn’t do that, it’s just not him.”

Basically the same as what the BBC source said before. Yeah, I think it's pretty certain he won't be appearing, even though he said he's "been lying his arse off for months" I believe him. Still hoping for Mcgann though!

 

[RetroMG]

Spent my hungover morning listening to the 10th Doctor's anniversary audio story. In it he receives a message from the 11th, who signs off "You're the best. Except for me."

Really looking forward to seeing them together. Little tidbits like this get me hyped!

I'm not aware of the story that you're talking about, but Google leads me to a story called Death's Deal - Is that it?

 

[Mr. Sam]

I'm not aware of the story that you're talking about, but Google leads me to a story called Death's Deal - Is that it?

I would also like to know.

 

[peanutbutterlatte]

Great pictures, I'll be buying.

http://www.doctorwhotv.co.uk/moffat-on-why-eccleston-turned-down-50th-53906.htm



Basically the same as what the BBC source said before. Yeah, I think it's pretty certain he won't be appearing, even though he said he's "been lying his arse off for months" I believe him. Still hoping for Mcgann though!

Ah well, at least he doesn't sound as bitter as previously thought... but would be the best surprise ever Moffatt, just saying.

 

[APZonerunner]

I would also like to know.

Yeah. There's an audio story for each Doctor, each except the 8 and 9 read by one of the companions. Even in those cases they've drafted in Who alumni, though, Nick Briggs etc. They're all pretty good so far - in fact, I'd say the 10th is the worst one so far, as the story fails to click somewhat - though Catherine Tate, reading, is great.

1: Hunters of Earth (set right before the very first episode, which is cool. It also ties some New Who stuff to it, like a nod to Magpie's Electricals)
2: Shadow of Death
3: Vengeance of the Stones
4: Babblesphere
5: Smoke & Mirrors
6: Trouble in Paradise
7: Shockwave
8: Enemy Aliens
9: Night of the Whisperer (This is a REALLY GOOD 9/Jack/Rose story.)
10: Death's Deal
11: The Time Machine

The complete set is called 'Destiny of the Doctor' and will be available next month. They've been releasing one a month, so only 11 isn't out now. The range does a pretty good job on the whole of recreating the 'feel' of each Doctor's era pretty well.

To be clear, these aren't Big Finish style full-cast audio plays but simply audio books. Big Finish had a hand in 'em, though, the first time they've been allowed near modern Who stuff.

------

An aside - Actress who plays Vastra has been blabbing a bit:

"The sexual themes in Doctor Who should be talked about more and embraced more. It could be edgier and more dangerous. We can do so much in Victorian times, it’s got that steampunk edge to it. Think how freaky that era was with the Elephant Man and all that and just add us into the mix, with time travel and all sorts of weird, wonderful stuff.

It will be sad not to be working with Matt again but I’m really looking forward to Peter taking over and seeing what he does with it. We’ll be helping the Doctor more, but I can’t say anything else."

The sex stuff was said specifically in relation to suggestion of a spin-off, it seems.

 

[The Elite]

An adult spinoff to Doctor Who with mature themes and lots of sex?


Sure. Let us go down that road again.

 

[peanutbutterlatte]

An adult spinoff to Doctor Who with mature themes and lots of sex?


Sure. Let us go down that road again.

I hate spinoffs in general because I'm only ever looking for references to the main show. When they don't mention the Doctor for long enough, I get irritated. I know I shouldn't, but if Torchwood had been "Sexy Area 51 Cardiff" I wouldn't have touched it with a ten-foot pole.

Love Gwen's speech about the Doctor from Children of Earth.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

To be clear, these aren't Big Finish style full-cast audio plays but simply audio books. Big Finish had a hand in 'em, though, the first time they've been allowed near modern Who stuff.

Did their radio drama license get renewed? I think it was supposed to run out at the end of 2012.

I wonder if Jenny, Vastra & Strax are about to basically become co-companions for Capaldi. Although I guess you could almost argue that they essentially were for Smith, too.

 

[APZonerunner]

Did their radio drama license get renewed? I think it was supposed to run out at the end of 2012.

I wonder if Jenny, Vastra & Strax are about to basically become co-companions for Capaldi.

They're re-licensed through 2016, but for Classic Doctors & characters only.

Moffat's already been clear they'll be appearing in Series 8, as he said the hardest thing about Series 5 was writing a new Doctor without a Rose in Christmas Invasion/New Earth figure to ask the questions the audience asks - how are you still the same, prove yourself, etc. He was saying how chuffed he is to have not one but five major (Clara, Vastra, Jenny, Strax and possibly River) and two minor (Clara's 'kids') potential characters to do that with. So I imagine they'll continue to appear in a similar capacity to Series 7.

It's worth noting the structure of Series 7 was originally a bit different with Clara not dying at Christmas but joining then, which would've made those three part of her 'home period' support network ala Jackie, Wilf etc - they made the decision to make the 'real' Clara a modern one fairly late - and you can see it in the series a bit, with how Nightmare in Silver, taking the kids on a trip, follows immediately after a trip back to Victorian times. Anyway, that original structure implies they intend to keep going back to Victorian London. I'm sure they will.

A semi-related aside - S8 casting rumour - fairly minor:

Spoiler

In terms of companion stuff, they've allegedly put a call out to agents for a good-looking young man for a male companion for Series 8, which is presumably how they'll appease the fangirls/shippers with Capaldi being much older.

 

[V_Arnold]

To the spoilered stuff:

Spoiler

Why not Barrowman

 

[infiniteloop]

Cinema details for Australia:

Fans will be able to don their 3D glasses and take their enjoyment into another dimension as Doctor Who celebrates its 50th anniversary with special 3D screenings of The Day of the Doctor at 87 cinemas across Australia.

The hotly anticipated feature-length episode of the world’s longest-running and most successful sci-fi series will be screened at Events, Hoyts, Dendy, Village and Independent cinemas around the country on November 24.

Cinemagoers will be able to find their nearest screen by checking participating cinema chains’ websites:
www.eventcinemas.com.au www.villagecinemas.com.au www.hoyts.com.au www.sharmillfilms.com.au

 

[Bluth54]

To the spoilered stuff:

Spoiler

Why not Barrowman

Yeah I would like to see him return too instead of a new companion.

 

[xandaca]

Ben Wheatley will direct Peter Capaldi's first Doctor Who story. For those not in the know, and there's no reason you should be as I don't think he's even especially well known in the UK, Wheatley is an insanely gifted director who tends to deal in very dark, surreal material. His stuff is typically very much for adults as well, so it'll be fascinating to see how he handles a family show. Kill List, Sightseers and A Field In England are all among my favourite films of their respective years and he's great at building and sustaining tension, something he'll hopefully be able to bring to Who.

And here's the link.

 

[Dryk]

Hmm, one decent centralised session in Adelaide and a few meh ones. Must gather the troops before the end of the day and organise tickets.

 

[Jorok Goldblade]

It's worth noting the structure of Series 7 was originally a bit different with Clara not dying at Christmas but joining then, which would've made those three part of her 'home period' support network ala Jackie, Wilf etc - they made the decision to make the 'real' Clara a modern one fairly late - and you can see it in the series a bit, with how Nightmare in Silver, taking the kids on a trip, follows immediately after a trip back to Victorian times. Anyway, that original structure implies they intend to keep going back to Victorian London. I'm sure they will.

The quotes I've read seemed to imply that originally she was meant to die in the Snowmen, but after Jenna became available to shoot earlier than expected, they reworked Asylum of the Daleks to include her. At that point, they briefly flirted with the idea of making Victorian Clara the companion, before deciding they wanted a contemporary companion for audience perspective.

 

[Forever]

they briefly flirted with the idea of making Victorian Clara the companion

I would have preferred this. It would have made her more distinct from the other New Who companions.

 

[peanutbutterlatte]

“The absolute reality was we didn’t have all those Doctors about to come back through the door. There were limitations to who we could get back.

“They’re all brilliant, they’re all terrific, but time has passed. I think it would be beyond the dignity of all those very fine actors to want to force themselves back into a costume from 20 or 30 years ago.

“I was thinking more “What would be a grand old story for the Doctor? And what would speak to the generation who are watching it now, while still celebrating the fact that it’s been around for all that time?” Everyone wanted to see David again – that’s just a fact. And David and Matt together are glorious. That’s a joy.”

Moffat's views on Classic Doctors in the 50th

Well, I guess that's that

 

[infiniteloop]

I agree with him, although I'd have like to see McGann back.

Also:

“Why not a mayfly Doctor, who exists for one show only? I’d often thought about that. Would it be weird in the run of the series to have the 45th Doctor turn up and be played by Johnny Depp or someone? Would that be a cool thing to do? There was also the idea that if you could bring one classic Doctor back, you’d actually, impossibly, want it to be William Hartnell. You wouldn’t want any of the others. You’d want him to come and say ‘What in the name of God have I turned into?’ That’s the confrontation that you most want to see, to celebrate 50 years. Going round and round in circles on it I just thought ‘What about a Doctor that he never talks about?’ And what if it is a Doctor who’s done something terrible, who’s much deadlier and more serious, who represents that thing that is the undertow in both David and Matt. You know there’s a terrible old man inside them. Well, here he is, facing the children he becomes, as it were.”

http://www.sfx.co.uk/2013/10/14/steven-moffat-talks-john-hurts-doctor/

 

[Bobby Roberts]

Moffat's views on Classic Doctors in the 50th

Well, I guess that's that

Clinging to my wiggle room: He said 20-30 years ago.

McGann is *only* 17 years ago.

ONLY 17! That puts him in range!

(CLINGINGGGG)

 

[Slowdive]

Moffat's views on Classic Doctors in the 50th

Well, I guess that's that

Mcgann could easily come back, with his new costume and everything. Him in it or a prequel is my last hope then.

 

[APZonerunner]

An aside on regeneration limits: What if Rose is in Bad Wolf mode, reaching back into the Time War, both there and on Satellite 5 during Series One during the 50th and just gives him a new regeneration cycle? Very easy out. She's already made one person immortal!

 

[Ventilaator]

An aside on regeneration limits: What if Rose is in Bad Wolf mode, reaching back into the Time War, both there and on Satellite 5 during Series One during the 50th and just gives him a new regeneration cycle?

My prediction from a while ago was this:

Okay, fan fiction time.

Tennant is #10. He used up a regeneration to heal a Dalek shot, so he is technically regeneration #11. Which makes Smith #12. Adding Hurt, Smith is actually #13, also known as the last one according to old canon.

Then we have Capaldi who is an old man again (Exactly as old as Hartnell!) after a significantly younger Smith.

Calling it. Whatever happens to Smith resets his regeneration limit in the process. Capaldi is the first of the next thirteen Doctors. This fixes the limit issue while not outright eliminating it, so a future writer decades later could deal with it all over again.

Now Moffat is saying that the regeneration limit is still in place while also saying that we've been counting them wrong. That makes that theory sound way more likely to me than it did when I wrote it.

 

[APZonerunner]

Speaking of which, Moffat did a talk that was quoted a bit in one of yesterday's papers:

On Capaldi's first moments at Christmas:
"Utterly bonkers. He still thinks he's Matt Smith, but he looks like he's Peter Capaldi. He's adjusting to who he is. It's a transitional phase."

On regeneration:
"According to that, [the 1976 episode to introduce it], there can be 13 Doctors, but this is science fiction. In the event that it comes up, we'll think of something."

On casting another "cis white male":
"We are not looking to change the role. We are not looking to overturn any ideas. We're looking for someone who can take one of the great parts in television and make it great."

On costumes:
"You want the Doctor to look good, but at the same time you want him to appear as a boffin. Peter's quite dashing when you meet him in person. He likes his suits. I didn't understand some of the things he said while looking for costumes. He said, 'It's something soft, it's something...'"

Moffat goes on to say (not directly quoted in the article) that he was the one who suggested the "swashbuckling" pirate style costume for Matt, and he admits it would've been a disaster.

"I know from the last time that I'm not a useful contributor to the costume discussions. Peter and the costume director will come up with something."

"Matt was choosing his outfit and it was only a few days before we started shooting. He said: 'Can I try a bow-tie?' And I said: 'No, that's silly. That's a cartoon idea of what Doctor Who is.' But because he's Matt, it was the outfit that made him feel like the Doctor. We were pushing him towards a man of action, but Matt was saying: 'He's a scientist who thinks he's going to lunch with Marie-Antoinette. He's a professor. He's a boffin who gets into scrapes. That was the first hint of how good he was going to be."

 

[dan2026]

For some reason I just can't get into new Doctor Who.

Old Doctor Who I can enjoy fine and without problems.

But with the new stuff I just can't get it to grab me at all and I don't know why.

 

[davidcotton]

Moffat's views on Classic Doctors in the 50th

Well, I guess that's that

Says the guy who wrote Time-Crash.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

Boffins galore, apparently.

 

[APZonerunner]

Says the guy who wrote Time-Crash.

A ten minute thing for charity that's really debatable canon-wise and can pass off the difference with a dig at Davison's beer belly is a bit different to the most important, grandstanding, show-representing episode since either "The Eleventh Hour" or "Rose", really.

I think the real question is - do all the people who love Tom/Peter/Colin/Sylv really want to see them lumbering around, fatter, older, wearing wigs or with the "wrong hair" etc in an actual story? I think most probably wouldn't once they actually saw it.

 

[odiin]

Scumbag Moffat. Says previous Doctors are too old to be in the 50th anniversary special. Replaces them with an actor in his mid 70s.

 

[Future Foundation]

Scumbag Moffat. Says previous Doctors are too old to be in the 50th anniversary special. Replaces them with an actor in his mid 70s.

When you get the chance to get John Hurt in your show, you have to do it.

 

[King of the Potato People]

Scumbag Moffat. Says previous Doctors are too old to be in the 50th anniversary special. Replaces them with an actor in his mid 70s.

You take it too seriously. Steven Moffat is right, I don’t want them having to write a silly explanation for why each of these classic Doctors is older. Paul Mcgann is probably the only one who might work because we didn’t see him regenerate but it would be weird having such a brief Doctor compete screen time with the more long-running ones. It’s basically impossible to please most people when it comes to using classic Doctors, I hope it’s just a good story,

 

[DiipuSurotu]

At least his explanation makes more sense than Eccleston's.

 

[aHebrewMenagerie]

50th Pics:

 

[infiniteloop]

noice!

I think the real question is - do all the people who love Tom/Peter/Colin/Sylv really want to see them lumbering around, fatter, older, wearing wigs or with the "wrong hair" etc in an actual story? I think most probably wouldn't once they actually saw it.

Most people on Gallifrey Base
and they want David Bradley as 1, Reece Shearsmith as 2 and Sean Pertwee as his Dad.

 

[Future Foundation]

50th Pics:

Jenna Col-hnnnnng

 

[APZonerunner]

Yeah, seeing that 10th TARDIS pic in high res makes it clear they shot it in the experience. Crikey, that's going to be a tightly shot scene! There's not much of that set left. AWESOME they've used it though.

They should've used the set from Adventure in Space & Time as the Hurt Doctor's TARDIS. Would've been a badass nod.

 

[infiniteloop]

I like Hurt's sonic holster

 

[APZonerunner]

Most people on Gallifrey Base
and they want David Bradley as 1, Reece Shearsmith as 2 and Sean Pertwee as his Dad.

Most of those guys don't know what they want, though. They want it now, but when they actually see it they'll bemoan it as awful and a stain on the legacy of those Doctors or whatever, most likely. These are the same people who are freaking out because Tennant's hair isn't exactly as it was when he left the role! Same for the recasting. They'd love it, but then if it happened there'd be endless, sobbing debates about respecting the passed on Doctors.

It's one of the reasons I hope maybe they get Eccleston for 2015 for the 10 year of new Who and McGann before he gets too old, because once the modern actors age out of the role somewhat I won't want to see THEM any more either.

 

[Box of Bunnies]

Yeah, I agree with APZonerunner. I really don't mind the classic Doctors not showing up in the special. McGann would work, but I really don't need to see C. Bakes back in the technicolour dreamcoat as he is now, much as I love him.

What I'dve preferred in that regard is the Beeb working something out with Big Finish so that David and Matt could appear in an audio special with the Doctors that're active in that medium.

 

[APZonerunner]

Yeah, I agree with APZonerunner. I really don't mind the classic Doctors not showing up in the special.

What I'dve preferred in that regard is the Beeb working something out with Big Finish so that David and Matt could appear in an audio special with the Doctors that're active in that medium.

Yeah, it's probably too soon for Matt, but it'd be an absolute dream for them to even open up the RTD era to Big Finish, really. I long for some Tennant/Tate audio stories, as they're both very talented voice actors. I also think something small and arthousey like Big Finish stands a better chance at being able to coax Eccleston back (plus he loves Nick Briggs, a full-time BF employee) than the actual show. They could soften him up for an appearance in the show.

 

[Quick]

Avatars. Come get 'em.

 

[Slowdive]

Avatars. Come get 'em.

Taken, thanks!

 

[Hot Coldman]

I wish McCoy hadn't been killed on-screen. I reckon he could still pull off his Doctor easily. :/

 

[Box of Bunnies]

I wish McCoy hadn't been killed on-screen. I reckon he could still pull off his Doctor easily. :/

Yeah, I think McCoy would probably work too. He's a bit more portly but looking at him in the Hobbit he could still rock the jumper.

 

[aHebrewMenagerie]

Thanks, Quick!

 

[The Elite]

Thanks.

 

[APZonerunner]

30th September 1965...

 

[RetroMG]

I was just thinking I needed a new Avatar. Thanks, Quick!

 

[peanutbutterlatte]

Probably unpopular opinion: John Hurt is a better actor than any of the Classic Doctors... And wow, actual pictures. If you shake your screen a little bit and say "Geronimo" in a squeaky voice, it's almost a bit like a trailer.