All New Who

{{ I dont think it has to be multi Doctor to be a celebration of the shows 60 years, there are so many companions you could bring back, Mel I doubt would have been top of many fans lists however. But so far its been very much a group tug for RTD era and little else.

These just don't feel special, they don't feel like there are any stakes to them, they don't feel like they are building to a crescendo with a point.
The 50th had the fan pleasing multi Doctor bits, but at its core it had a proper narrative dealing with solid meaty material that dealt with, and tied up loose ends and a character arc that had been developed since the show returned with Eccleston.
It gave the 50th a purpose outside of being just a special, and in doing that it meant it built to genuine crowd lifting moments- I can't imagine a cinema full of people going wild for anything in these specials the way they did when all the Doctors showed up to save Gallifrey, or when we got a glimpse of the Eyebrows or heard the dulcet unmistakable tones of Tom Bakers 4th. Or any moment that carries the weight of emotion as the War Doctors "Great men are forged in fire. It is the privilege of lesser men to light the flame." moment, or the insight of 'the man who regrets and the man who forgets' cell scene, emotional pay offs built off the backs of years of story telling. There just seems nothing of that substance or weight in the 60th so far.
And let's not forget the 50th also managed to dovetail into and involve the overall series narrative of series 7B too, leading to the next episode after the special when 11 regenerates. Plus the 50th was funny too on top of all that, I've found RTD's humour more miss than hit so far in his specials. And my favourite 50th thing, it gave a different option and recontextualised why 10's last words before regenerating where the whiny "I don't want to go" - subconscious memory of the events of the 50th as he changed into 11, of 11 telling him about Trenzalore and his death in battle and 10 saying those very words in response, giving a better excuse for it for those of us who hated the Doctor saying those words in their original context of self-pitying whinging manner. That was just cherry on the cake.

I feel in comparison to the 50th the 60th is a bit of a damp squib two episodes in with no substance or celebration to it. }}

I mean yeah I do completely agree with you, but we are looking at this from a hardcore fan perspective...I just feel at this point RTD is using the 60th more as a soft-reboot /springboard for the future rather than looking to the past for hardcore fans (Ncuti Gatwa's first series will be a New Season 1 not Series 14), I've long ago accepted his visison for the show isn't one that appeals to me all that much, RTD is such a different writer than Moffat when it comes to Dr Who perhaps he felt uncomfortable about using/referencing that era too much

I vastly preferred the Moffat era to RTD's overall, but RTD's era seemed to appeal to the general public better and the Tennant/Tate pairing remains the most popular in the uk at least so if his options were limited I suppose it made more sense to bring back actors he'd already worked with for years rather than trying to wrangle cameos out of Matt Smith/Karen Gillan's schedule (not sure the BBC would be able to afford their fees now they've hit big in hollywood anyway). The show has been back for nearly 20 years now and with the Disney money massively increasing the budget/potential audience it was probably the best time to reset things back to basics and try to bring lost viewers back.

I get the impression A) Tennant won't regenerate in the traditional way in special 3 (rather than bringing him back just for 3 specials I have the feeling RTD's going to find a way to keep the 14th Doctor around for future specials in some way and account for Tennant ageing in future returns) and b) We won't be seeing a traditional post-regeneration episode with Gatwa at christmas either, I think he's going to arrive fully formed and moved on from all the time war/timeless child angst, back to being a jolly wanderer in space and time, a soft reboot and brand new era.

Classic Who 1963-1989
Wilderness years 1989-2005
New Who 2005-2023

Modern Who(?) 2023-?

{{ I expected the reboot bit, but more so after the 60th once 'season 1' or whatever they are calling it starts with Ncuti. I was rather hoping the 60th with bringing back 10 and Donna as a starting point would be more a celebration of classic and NU to that point before he reboots it, not the reboot itself.
I hope very much the plan is to get back to a wanderer in space and time without the baggage- Moffat did the right thing to get rid of it as a constant but leave room for it to still be used in character exploration as writers desired, but I don't want Ncuti's Doctor to be weighed down, or angsty all the time and from what I've seen of him I don't think he will be. Only thing I wait to see if he can do the sense of age and gravitas too when needed.}}

RTD is in a bind, if he makes the 60th and Tennant's return too fantastic then people will just say, why bother rebooting. So, I think he is softening us up for the new Doctor. Its just nostalgic enough to draw back old fans but not too exciting.

A back to basis approach was needed after 18 years i think, my main concern is how different RTD's approach will be this time, once he's reset the show again which new direction will he take it in? Will he just trust his instincts from last time, or take more risks? he basically has full creative control now...a reset was needed but I wouldn't want just more of the same.

The Eccleston/Tennant seasons were very grounded and mostly set on earth with relatively normal people, is RTD going to try something differen this time? i'm not particulalrly keen to see more daleks invading the earth every series/episodes set in a council estate...judging by 'The Star Beast' his approach to characters/alien invasion stories hasn't changed at all, though in fairness these specials are basically a coda to Series 4.

I'd like them to lean more into the sci-fi this time and explore more alien worlds, make the most of the younger doctor/companion, bring in a sense of discovery/wonder.

{{ another beautiful vid from Margarita Life focused on one of my favourite companions of NuWho the much maligned Clara, highlighting her story and tragedy superbly, well worth a watch. And how I miss those great lines of dialogue, which as with all this era based vids this one is full of. }}

{{ Cant help but think there is something a little desperate about this, and it might be more a response to the specials losing a million viewers on overnights between ep 1 and 2. This is the big finale of the specials (though what exactly it's a finale too I'm not sure after the first two) and it's got the big name star in it with Neil Patrick Harris, and it's been by far the most advertised. If they feel it needs this sort of thing too from RTD himself it just seems, odd. }}

wow RTD practically begging people to watch. how embarrassing.


I believe that Tennant has his worst viewing figures ever. I am not surprised, he got trashed by RTD.

{{ I wouldn't pay too much attention yet to viewing figures, as they are hard enough to work out at the best of times, with Disney in the mix and streaming channels not releasing traditional audience numbers it's even harder to tell.
In terms of BBC viewing it's certainly down in comparison to when Tennant was 10, Starbeast came in about 4.5 million on overnights and last weeks about 3.5.
But Starbeast also timeshifted 4.5 million (those watching on catchup on iplayer) which puts its timeshift numbers in the top end of Who, alongside the best of Capaldi era, 10 and 11 regen episodes, Jodie's debut and the 50th specials and leaves it about 7-8 million in total for BBC viewers (which is pretty decent these days).
And in terms of audience it was about 35% of the total possible audience which made it the most watched drama of the week on BBC (excluding the big soaps who always take up the top few slots along with Strictly, as it's a live audience participation show so tends to get a big live audience).
So whilst in direct comparison with 10's time it's the worst numbers for RTD and Tennant, in the current TV landscape it's doing about the same business as a share and in terms of chart position as it's always done.
The AI is back above 80 too for the first time since Chibnall's first series, even last week's that I thought was not much good and was maybe a bit too weird for casual viewers came in with a healthy AI of 83.
I don't think, as these are the 60th Anniversary Specials, they will be of much use as judgement on viewing figures, the real tell will come about the midway of Ncuti's debut series; if it can hold the numbers or increase on them or not. }}

I think Disney is going to be the kiss of death for established fans. Disney seem to want to deliberately trash whole franchises. They will run the full gamut of woketard Messaging with Ncuti, crash and burn the old fans and try to appeal to the TikTok GenZ instead. I predict cringing so bad I turn into origami. But at least there was Donna and Tennant before I sign off from Dr Who.

Well 'The Giggle' was a decent enough episode itself I suppose...but yeah those leaks were true...I hated the idea when I read them I hate them even more seeing it in practise.

Gatwa was rather good in his few minutes here...but honestly I loathe the idea of Tennant sticking around off screen indefinitely so much I'm not sure I even want to continue watching the series now.

What the hell is so awesomely perfect and amazing about David Tennant? He already had 4 years as his own doctor, now a miniseries he leads by himself (apparently no other doctors are important enough to mention in the anniversary) and potentially being kept around on ice indefinitely for future possible spin-offs?

Capaldi's last words as The Doctor were 'Doctor I let you go'

The 10th Doctor's last words 'I don't want to go' looks like he really dosen't.

Honestly I think this is more damaging to the series and character than the timeless child.




I bet we get a 14th Doctor/Donna spinoff we don't need instead of the 8th Doctor spinoff Mcgann deserves.

{{{ Ill give my full thoughts later when I have more time, but for now I thought the first half was a decent enough episode, felt like a finale to a series we never got though that would have built up the Toymaker beforehand, didn't feel anything like an Anniversary Special again, didn't rise to those heights. didn't mind Ncuti, feel he needs to settle a bit in the role but thought he did a decent job in what we saw of him, good energy. The other half of the episode, oh dear me. And I'd be willing to bet a barrel of buckie RTD wrote Ncuti running abut in nothing but a shirt and a pair of underpants one handed! }}

I will say based soley on these 3 episodes RTD's approach to Who dosen't feel much different to how it did back in 2005, these specials just felt like Series 4b with a bit more money.

As someone who isn't a huge fan of the RTD era overall the anniversary was a massive dissapointment.

I loved the first half of the episode, the London 1920s thing was intriguing, but it rapidly went downhill at the appearance of the half-naked dude in the tighty-whities who calls himself The Doctor. Seriously, beating an all-powerful entity with a ball game?? The ending was just schmalzy. Half of me likes that Tennant and Donna get to have a happy ending with a pipe and slippers, but it's hardly Bad Wolf Bay.

Yeah the Toymaker's deafeat was very anti climatic, Neil Patrick Harris was rather good in this (terrible german accent aside) but didn't have much to work with, the song and dance number serious cringe.

Bit ironic the first special ends with Donna lecturing the doctor about letting go, yet RTD can't just let of Tennant's Dr, he's apparently now the bestest and most awesomest doctor eva and we should all shut up and put up with him sticking around indefinitely.

I think it's a bit weird they leave the 14th Doctor with the (original?) tardis at the end (and mention he has had several off-screen adventures with Rose and Mel) yet suggest he is retiring to settle down from his trauma, you can't have it both ways, felt like a lazy cop out from RTD to give him an excuse to wheel out Tennant when the ratings next slip.

It makes me wonder what is the point in having the 15th doctor even visit earth if 14 is around to fix things anyway.

Making the first gay/black doctor an offshoot of the main doctor feels like another example of RTD meaning well/going for shock value headlines but not thinking things through-this just gives more ammunition to the 'Gatwa's a fake doctor/woke casting etc' idiots, we aren't even told exactly where/when the 15th Doctor is from in his future-he's apparently not newly regenerated but has he been sent backwards in time? will we seen 14 regenerate in 15 eventually? it's all a bit muddled.

It's long overdue for the tardis to have an access ramp for disabled characters but now I wonder how K9 got inside...

I can't say these specials felt particularly celebratory of 60 years to me...more like a series 4 vistory lap, with all of RTD's old cheese/lazy endings on full display...I dunno whether he's just a bit out of practise writing Who but all three specials felt oddly hollow and clunky, dosen't feel any different to RTD1 to me.

Makes me enjoy the Moffat approach even more so that's something i suppose.

{{ Well that wasn't much of a giggle was it?
Where to start? Ok lets start at the beginning with some very thinly veiled commentary on social media and modern society, everyone thinks they are right and goes mad if you try to argue with them - brilliant social commentary there RTD. And this mass problem and panic and violence it causes in the first ten minutes, yeah that's the last you will see or hear off any of the effects of the Giggle on the world so enjoy, the story is about to forget all about it after the first ten minutes. It's also full of stuff that doesn't make sense, if its also effected all world leaders the world would be over as one of them would have felt they were 'right' to use nukes, that's the premise of your threat RTD you can't then just ignore it and only mention world leaders to get in a cheap jab about how politicians are self serving- which doesn't even work as the giggle doesn't make them honest, it makes them think they are right.
In that sense this is typical RTD sci-fi - it doesn't make sense, not one single part of it can stand up to any scrutiny, it has an underwhelming conclusion unconnected to prior events but don't worry about the sci-fi elements anyway, RTD clearly doesn't have much time for them.

Then we have the Avengers, sorry new UNIT, and did I miss something or when did they get a cheap looking rubbish alien/robot thing that can do alien stuff? Frisk or what the hell it's called? Where did that come from? And what's its point, it's just sort of there. It doesn't do anything at all.
While we're on the subject of UNIT and stuff just happening, how come Donna being a great temp also turns her into a computer genius? And it can't be the Doctor/Donna stuff they made a big deal about how as a woman she can give it up, and did. If she gave it up she can't be still that smart, and if she didn't give it up why is it not killing her still? It smacks of RTD trying to have his cake and eat it, which becomes a major problem with this episode come the end. Then there is the problem that last week Donna said she couldn't remember what she had seen of the Doctor's life since they left, this week she has total recall inexplicably.

But mainly this whole story feels terribly disjointed, we have the cold opening chaos, which as I say gets forgotten about a few minutes later, then we have the Logie Baird stuff which is the excuse for the Giggle but its really underused- we see the doll being bought, we see the filming of it, then all we get after that is the weird body horror scene (what is it with RTD and body horror these specials) of the assistant being turned into a puppet and being puppeteered by the Toymaker, then never again till the end scene when we are briefly shown he's fine again when normality is restored, then we have the UNIT sections and Mels underwhelming return (I'm not sure what purpose her being in this serves, she's just sort of there, she doesn't do anything of note, it feels like at last minute they realised it ought to have some connection to classic being the Anniversary so randomly pulled a classic companion name out a hat to stand about in the background of UNIT HQ), and sort of shoved in around all this is the Toymaker. It's as if RTD saw the puppet Baird used and thought, 'that'd be good and creepy for Who', and he thought a scene with total chaos on the streets and planes crashing 'would be good', and one where Donna is attacked by creepy dolls, 'that'll be good', and a scene where the Doctor finds someone turned into a wooden puppet 'that'll be good', and so on, but you keep expecting something, anything from any of it to come back into the story, or to have some relevance outside 'oh that'd be a neat idea' but none of it does, its just creepy imagary and disjointed thematically unconnected scenes, none of it really gels together into a coherent whole that feels like it's going anywhere, it's all a bit wandering and lazy when it feels like it should be ramping up stakes and tension. Nothing ever feels like it has any real weight to it. There is no real sense of threat because the stakes are never properly laid out or shown. And the threat to the Doctor doesn't really exist as everyone watching knows Ncuti is about to take over they keep telling us about it, we even saw him at the end of Power of the Doctor in the show already so the audience knows he's going to be the next Doctor already, so there are no real stakes here. And without stakes the Toymaker always feels somewhat non-threatening, yes he can do pretty much anything he likes with your reality within the rules of the game, but when it's over so little we are given to care about what does it matter? The worst he can do is turn 14 into 15, which we are all waiting on anyway, so what? It's hardly end of the world stuff, the actual end of the world stuff the script forgot all about ten minutes in.

As a whole it doesn't really hang together, and for the whole thing to come down to a ball throwing game of the sort you normally see little girls play in the school playground was about as anti-climatic as it could be possible to be in a special. I was at least expecting something inventive or clever from the Doctors to win, some neat bending of the rules, some clever Doctory get out, or at the very least some fancy move to win. But no, the Toymaker just fumbles a catch and that's it.

I could also have done without the scene where Kate lets the Giggle affect her, as almost evrey line of her dialogue was meta, addressing Who internet trolls directly, stuff like how can the woman in the wheel chair walk sometimes was one stupid criticism that trolls levelled against RTD's progressive agenda in Star Beast, and here is Kate saying that exact thing here. Who should not be any showrunners personal blog to respond to internet trolls through!


OK lets address the regen controversy. The main issue with it is it doesn't make sense, I also never thought I'd see another Who story as self indulgent and so in love with itself as End of Time, but here we are with a new champion! As far as I can tell the regen happens this way mainly so RTD can have the new Doctors first words be "I'm a bi-regeneration" subtle again RTD.

Annoyingly given the 'recap' puppet show of Amy, Clara and Bill it simultaneously ignores everything that has happened to the Doctor that wasn't RTD era. We get a big deal about how the Doctor is worn out how he needs to rest to stop, and how he doesn't really know who he is any more or what his point is, then we get a big deal made of how he has a family again- but we did this family thing and fully explored it and the loss of it with Amy/Rory and River, then it goes on about him never staying in one place, and how he never has for any amount of time, but we just did this he stayed 1000 years in one village on Trenzalore growing old there, being loved by generations of locals. And as to not knowing who he is or what his purpose is, that was the entire character arc over 3 series of Capaldi era. This was resolved before 13 even came along let alone 14, and much better than its lamely addressed and shoehorned in here. All these themes were much better explored in their relevant series, not this cheap rehash of them we get here that just ignores all the Doctors character development thats come since RTD and Tennant left.

And then we find out he has been nipping off with Rose and others in the TARDIS anyway, so he hasn't stopped at all so what was the point? There are no consequences for anything here. The reason for the ending we get with 14 having to be that way is ruined by and contradicted by the ending we get to see with 14! It's a hot mess. It's more of RTD having his cake and eating it but completely undermining his own script in doing so.

The idea this Doctor will just stop and settle down forever is stupid beyond belief and completely out of character, and now there are 14 and 15 both separate and still existing how does regeneration work going ahead? Does 14 regenerate? If so into who, Ncuti? How does that work? Why would the new Doctor ever have to come back to earth if there is 14 living there permanently to sort out any problems? And why do we need another Tennant Doctor running about?
We have 10, metacrisis 10 and now 14 all still kicking about somewhere it seems. Why? Surely narratively 10 getting finally to a “I do want to go” moment would have been more satisfying and make the new Doctor feel less like he's on temporary probation to see how he does and if it doesn't work out they can just wheel ole Tennant out again. I hated it, I hated it because it's a dumb idea, it makes no sense, and I see no purpose in it that can be good.

Ncuti himself was fine in what we had of him, good on-screen energy, didn't like a lot of his dialogue mind you but that's not his fault, he delivered it well enough. Not sure why he had to spend his debut in his underpants other than RTD fantasising over his keyboard. And is he really going to call everyone 'Honey'?
I also don't know why the Toymaker was saddled with an appalling borderline racist mock German/Austrian accent, the few times he dropped it he was much better. I didn't feel it improved the performance just saddled the actor with unnecessary work. If you are from that part of the world I suspect it was much like Dick Van Dyke in Mary Poppins for an actual Cockney, or Mel Gibson's William Wallace to a Scots ear, offensively bad stereotyping.

And then there is the cheapest shittiest bit of the whole thing, the offhand reference that the Toymaker beat the Master and turned him into his gold tooth, that actually happens, and then at the very end we see the tooth on the ground being picked up by an unknown female hand as we hear maniac laughter- sound familiar? It should it's exactly what happened the first time RTD brought the Master back and killed him off, only it was a ring instead of a tooth, but otherwise the same right down to a mystery female picking it up and the maniac laughing (so back to insane boring Master of RTD/Chibnall eras it seems and not deeper more realised Missy style master). At the very least I expected the tooth to be knocked out as part of the game of catch, but unless I missed it happening its just inexplicably lying there left over for some reason.

As to it being the last of the Anniversary episodes- what Anniversary- what exactly did these episodes celebrate about the show that wast celebrating RTD and Tennant? And even then it was hardly celebratory feeling, or even fun. It's frankly been miserable in its entirely. A pathetic excuse of an Anniversary of the show.

2 out of 10, my worst score yet partly because this is the last of the 'anniversary' episodes and was the last chance to bring it all together in some fashion appropriate to an anniversary special, but it didn't. It failed miserably.

I wasnt keen on the wheelhair accesibility stuff either, far as I know most TARDISes were wheelchair accesible, K9 got in and out classic TARDISes just fine, small lip but nothing much wheechair users deal with kerbs, broken pavements etc every day its annoying its not a barrier, in NuWho 9's TARDIS was a ramp from door to console and flat all around it, 11's was the least acessbile as it had stairs, but the TARDIS can reconfigure its interior as needs, 11 rode a motorbike from the garage somehwere in her depths out the front doors, he presumably didnt have to drive it up stairs to do so, 12's had stairs 13's didnt. So the vast majority of the shows time the TARDIS has been wheelchair accesible, and the few times it hasn't it can reconfigure to be so if it needed to and there was a wheelchair user on board. So it was never an issue. I was quite annoyed at the actress in the wheelcahir in the after show program, almost in tears over how for the first time and forever more the TARDIS will be accesible to wheelchairs bless RTD for that. And I'm thnking have you watched the show before?

Oh and no excuse or time altering to explain either the 'mavity'gravity' thing, guess it was just meant to be a one episode running joke then? Or why Sir Issac Newton is now an Indian fella. Guess that was just there to delibretly annoy people and to rub it in their faces. How supremly childish and tiring of RTD.}}

As with the other specials the more i think it through the less i like it, things happen in the script just to make the story more convinient, the social commentary is a subtle as the 6th Doctor's coat, the dialogue is clunky and it all hinges on us thinking the Donna/Doctor relationship is the most important one ever. It wasn't an anniversary special it was a David Tennant reunion special with RTD thinking of getting headlines first, congratulating himself second.


The 12th Dr travelled with Nardole for 70 years punched through a dimaond wall for billions of years to save Clara and spent decades with River song in bliss, the 11th Doctor spent 200+ years travelling on and off with Rory and Amy and considered them family...but no apparently that barely counts for nothing... the Doctor apparently needs Donna more than anyone else.

I wasn't a big fan of the 13th Dr era (what little of it I've seen so far at least) but it seems a bit strange that in universe the Doctor dropped off Yaz (who they had developed a deep if unspoken until the end romantic connection with) in present day England breaking her heart seemingily only hours/days before but doesn't even mention it once in the specials..we see that Yaz attends the support group for former companions of the Doctor at the end of 'The Power of The Doctor' and Mel is there...gonna be a bit awkward if she finds out Mel is now chums with the 14th doctor and set to be a guest/recurring character in Gatwa's era...

But thinking it over my biggest issue with these specials was not the fact that it was a Series 4 reunion event only...it was that it all felt hollow and rehashed RTD's approach to Who hasn't changed at all, any of these stories could have been done 15-18 years ago, for a show built on renewal and change it really isn't giving me much hope for the future...what exactly will RTD do differently this time? His endings certainlt haven't got any better...

In fairness, I was more annoyed than outright bored like I was with Chibnall's scripts so I suppose I'll keep watching out of a sense of curiousity at least...but I think now I'm content to stick with Big Finish to get my monthly Who fix (seriously, why the hell hasn't RTD hired John Dorney? He's easily the best Who writer currently working https://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/John_Dorney )....I miss Moffat, even at his worst his storylines were experimental, snappy and tried to do new things until the very end, judging so far RTD has nothing new to offer but reheat his old approach.

The 12th Dr travelled with Nardole for 70 years punched through a dimaond wall for billions of years to save Clara and spent decades with River song in bliss, the 11th Doctor spent 200+ years travelling on and off with Rory and Amy and considered them family...but no apparently that barely counts for nothing.- Malick

{{ I found that particularly annoying, as if felt like RTD was trying to take all that brilliant well laid and thought out character development between 11 and 12 leaving, and give it all to HIS Doctor, but in the space of five minutes and expect it to hold the same emotional weight. It was like RTD just wanted Tennant to do his standing in the rain looking into the middle distance sad face, but it felt a cheat, a belittling and betrayal of everything that had come before and all that development. }}

I'm not excited for the new episodes at all. I think he is going to be a bad gay stereotype calling everyone 'honey' and mincing around in a tight top. Basically RTDs dreamboy.

{{ Well the song they released from the xmas special, about goblins it seems, seems to indicate RTD wasn't joking when he said it was now going to be less scifi and more fantastical. Only thing about this clip gives me any encouragement is that Ncuti seems pretty good here, I like his response of "Amazing" to what's going on rather than Ruby's more human response, that's nicely alien and Doctory at least.



Not a fan of the new sonic, looks like a cross between the worst most uncomfortable mouse and a tv remote, mind you still betters than Jodies sex toy! }}

{{ Eccleston didn't hold back at a q and a with Billie piper, when asked by an audience member if he'd ever come back to Who he replied, "Sack Russel T Davies. Sack Jane Trantor. Sack Phil Collinson. Sack Julie Gardener. And I'll come back."

After the 'specials' I might start a petition on his behalf! }}

Pettytyrant101 wrote:{{ Eccleston didn't hold back at a q and a with Billie piper, when asked by an audience member if he'd ever come back to Who he replied, "Sack Russel T Davies. Sack Jane Trantor. Sack Phil Collinson. Sack Julie Gardener. And I'll come back."

After the 'specials' I might start a petition on his behalf! }}

Funnily enough I'm watching that video right now:



Eccleston's brutal honesty is really refreshing, he was a fantastic Doctor (and remains one of the UK's greatest living actors i.m.o)...but wow he's intense wouldn't want to get on his bad side! It seems time hasn't mellowed his feelings towards RTD wonder if RTD has ever actually reached out and given his side of the story...

Interesting that both leave the door open for a reunion in the Big Finish audios (I haven't listened to any of the 9th doctor audios Eccleston has done so far-but they are all set before Series 1 and the Doctor meeting Rose) fingers crossed its only a matter of time...I doubt John Barrowman will be joining them though...

{{ The impression Eccleston always gives me is of someone who has worked incredibly hard for his career, takes his profession incredibly seriously and expects others to do the same, and above all showing respect for those around him.

Also given his working class roots I doubt very much he had any time for Barrowman's arty-farty airs never mind his penchant for whipping his cock out and waving it at people at work.
And from other things I've read the production crew pretty much abandoned him during the filming and RTD was particularly useless in helping him find the role of the Doctor. Caring more says Eccleston about Roses character and giving Piper plenty time and help. In one interview he says he didn't really understand or get who his Doctor was until he got Moffat's Empty Child script. That's when he finally got a handle on what he was supposed to be doing, no thanks to the actual production team.
But worse was to come, when he told them he was leaving he agreed to say nothing abut his unhappiness on set, or to do anything to bad mouth the show. And then they announced he was leaving without consulting him before the first series had even aired, then they put it about the industry he was 'difficult' to work with. Which as Eccelston said is industry code to every director to not work with this person. And it cost him work in the UK forcing him to go to the US for work.
All this of course caused a great deal of stress, emotional wear and tear and mental health issues. Not to mention the knock on effect that has on his family and such.
So I get why he hasn't forgiven them. Nor would I. I think they acted like utter scum regards his time on the show. }}

Yeah I was already aware of all of that. Speaking as someone from a working class background who has dealt with my own long term mental health issues I find my respect and appreciation for Eccleston growing more each year, he certainly speaks his mind and dosen't take any shit from anyone, if anything it sometimes feels fans take him for granted-they keep asking him to return to the show that gave him so much grief rather than treasure what he has already given us. I'd rather Eccleston decline any oppurtunities to return to the show if he truly didn't want to, there's no point in coming back just to tick a box or for lazy fanservice, glad he's doing the audios though hopefully they can develop the 9th Doctor like they have done with the 6th/8th.

Eccleston views acting as a job first and foremost and takes it seriously but never forgets how lucky/hard he had to work to get there in the first place, some actors flaunt their success I feel and forget how out of touch they can be. I remember when he first signed onto to do the Big Finish audios and admitted that the money he was offered was one of the main factors (he praised the qulaity of the scripts too) lots of fans got annoyed at that...not sure why, he dosen't owe us anything as fans and he's paid to do his job same as the rest of us.


Eccleston once commented in an interview he felt 'his face didn't fit' with the production of Dr Who, I definitely feel there was some class snobbery at play, it sometimes feels like RTD really had his heart set on Tennant's more human/romantic lead style Doctor from the start and was glad to get rid of Eccleston, after all these years you have to wonder whether RTD has actually reached out and tried to make ammends? Not saying Eccleston is entirely in the right (there are two sides to every story) but nearly 20 years later and we still don't know the full picture, Colin Baker was actually fired from the show yet never distanced himself in the way Eccleston did for years.

The 9th Doctor remains something of an odd one out in the line up and I think becomes one of the more interesting Doctors because of it (Eccleston has commented he's not a fan of the romance angle with companions...I wonder how they would have written Rose in Series 2 if he had done it...).

Series 1 is rough around the edges (some of the CGI/humour has dated horribly) and has some weaker stories, but it remains my favourite of the first RTD run there's an an engergy and heart to it that rings more true than Tennant's gurning and sad moping in the rain.

Eccleston's contribution to the franchise is really overlooked i.m.o, Tennant/Smith were able to take the show where it went because of him bringing the character back so well.

Speaking as someone from a working class background- Malick

{{same on that front, and I've never known a working class job where it would be 'just a laugh' to creep up behind people unawares and lay your penis on their shoulder. And I very much doubt Eccleston had either. I think that sort of thing going on for so long and being acceptable behaviour on the Who set is indicative of the way it was being run. And you only need to hear the lyrics to the Ballad of Russel and Julie to see it wasn't just accepted, but celebrated as a joke by the production team who made the video, and it speaks volumes to a lack of professionalism on the part of the production team, as was their handling of the situation (excuse the pun) in ignoring complaints for so long about his behaviour. I think that lack of professionalism and the hypocrisy of that sort of middle class viewpoint, they present in their work this ideal of equality and improving people but act in ways, that from a working class point of view, is disrespectful and unprofessional. It's not how you behave in the work place. There's no pride in the work. Like how RTD wrote a series that had a strong focus on relationship, and two people who would come to respect one another, look out for and defend each other no matter what, whilst at the same time in reality totally abandoning Eccleston and failing to support him in any way in the role. It's not just betraying the professionalism and pride in the work he clearly has, but it's making the art hypocrisy when you know how they really act.
From some things he has said I think it's that class clash that annoys him the most, the hypocrisy and falseness of it. And it was cemented for him when they agreed one thing to his face and stabbed him in the back as he walked out the door. }}



{{relevant lines if you cant be bothered with the song- }}

(Character of RTD)- I can't do it, I can't do it-
The pressure of the BBC.
I must email some young male
To alleviate the stress on me.
I can't block out, please lock out,
Images of Johnny B getting his cock out...

...Writer's block. Please don't mock,
It takes my mind off other things.
It's so lame, I must blame,
Dirty thoughts I'm having about Midshipman Frame.
I can't do it, I can't do it tonight.