Doctor Who

[Zarius]

The new Doctor is Ncuti Gatwa

Ncuti Gatwa: BBC names actor as next Doctor Who star

The star of Netflix's Sex Education will replace Jodie Whittaker in the BBC science fiction show.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Hymie]

Haven't watched Sex Education myself, but everyone who has says he's the best part. Along with 3 BAFTA nominations, I think this was a good choice. Can't wait to see what he brings to the table.

 

[MusicEd921]

The new Doctor is Ncuti Gatwa

Ncuti Gatwa: BBC names actor as next Doctor Who star

The star of Netflix's Sex Education will replace Jodie Whittaker in the BBC science fiction show.

www.bbc.co.uk

I hope our new Doctor gets a chance at a better run than Jodie did (granted I am very far behind in her run, but I've heard from a lot that she is good, the writing is not).

 

[addiesin]

I think this show has a problem of cherry picking good writers to be their showrunners (at least Moffatt and Chibnall) and the skill set doesn't always transfer, and in fact the new role burdens the original role so the showrunners become worse writers. But they insist on being in charge of everything, after all they know best, they're the showrunner. Then they write too much instead of trusting a staff of writers to follow a plan. Maybe there has been no plan. Impossible to tell. I think BBC picked up on this problem, hence getting Davies back. Moffatt tried to imitate his show, Chibnall tried to reinvent its wheel. Hopefully Davies isn't here to end things and will instead put forth something that pushes the story forward that the next fool with a heart of gold can try to follow.

I don't hate any era of the Doctor but man in the court of public opinion Chibnall wasn't able to bring everyone on board. At the very least I hope a Davies can get the show to regenerate its own popularity it had in his heyday.


I don't mean to sound grumpy. I really just want consistent drip feeds. Make more and I'll watch. But make it good and others will watch...

 

[Zarius]

I don't hate any era of the Doctor but man in the court of public opinion Chibnall wasn't able to bring everyone on board. At the very least I hope a Davies can get the show to regenerate its own popularity it had in his heyday.

In my opinion the world has changed so drastically that Doctor Who will never quite recapture that same audience. The show is associated with 'selling out' to the more radicalized corners of the left and their current year ideology in the same vein as Disney Star Wars and Kurtzman Star Trek.

And Jodie I feel ought to shoulder the blame. I know some have defended her, but even Capaldi and Smith were fed crap scripts in their day and they elevated them so well many are convinced all of their series were of a more consistent quality. Jodie simply wasn't able to take s*it and turn it into salad.

I wish Davis and Ncuti the best of luck though, I've seen Sex Education and he would not feel out of place on any of RTD's dramas. He's a star.

 

[addiesin]

Doctor Who will never quite recapture that same audience

And Jodie I feel ought to shoulder the blame.

I have to disagree with the second point here, an actor is only a small piece of the puzzle. I like Jodie just fine, with better direction she would have shined.

As for the first point, it's all about marketing. I hate to say it but it's true. The show needs to be hyped up, ads everywhere, then it needs to be released on a predictable, dependable schedule, and made accessible to global audiences even if that's behind a subscription to something. If money's a problem they need to partner up with Warner and HBO Maxx specifically. I know BBC partnering up isn't unheard of. BBC America seems like it's been wandering off doing its own thing since Orphan Black ended so might as well go for the big money. If they get the show in front of enough faces and keep a baseline of quality, it'll be a hit again.

From what I've read, BBC just doesn't put money in. So I don't know what "we" (the royal we, everyone) keep expecting to get out without a genuine shakeup.

 

[Hymie]

The BBC have given production control over to Bad Wolf (RTD's production company) and they are now owned by Sony, so money shouldn't be a problem and we know Davies is a promotion hound (he's even admitted he already planted fake stories in the press over the last couple of months to stir up conversations). Chibnall definitely took on too much writing responsibility, but the show was terribly marketed and its inconsistent scheduling definitely affected the ratings.

As for the idea that Doctor Who has "sold out", its always been a show that's pushed boundaries and spoken out against injustices in the world. If you now have a problem with it for whatever reason, don't blame the show for doing what its always done. With RTD back in charge, we're likely to get even more diverse representation and depictions on the show as we did when he first ran things.

 

[addiesin]

The BBC have given production control over to Bad Wolf (RTD's production company) and they are now owned by Sony, so money shouldn't be a problem and we know Davies is a promotion hound (he's even admitted he already planted fake stories in the press over the last couple of months to stir up conversations). Chibnall definitely took on too much writing responsibility, but the show was terribly marketed and its inconsistent scheduling definitely affected the ratings.

As for the idea that Doctor Who has "sold out", its always been a show that's pushed boundaries and spoken out against injustices in the world. If you now have a problem with it for whatever reason, don't blame the show for doing what its always done. With RTD back in charge, we're likely to get even more diverse representation and depictions on the show as we did when he first ran things.

To me that all sounds like the right choices are being made.

 

[Zarius]

The BBC have given production control over to Bad Wolf (RTD's production company) and they are now owned by Sony, so money shouldn't be a problem and we know Davies is a promotion hound (he's even admitted he already planted fake stories in the press over the last couple of months to stir up conversations). Chibnall definitely took on too much writing responsibility, but the show was terribly marketed and its inconsistent scheduling definitely affected the ratings.

As for the idea that Doctor Who has "sold out", its always been a show that's pushed boundaries and spoken out against injustices in the world. If you now have a problem with it for whatever reason, don't blame the show for doing what its always done. With RTD back in charge, we're likely to get even more diverse representation and depictions on the show as we did when he first ran things

From what he's been saying to the press, RTD wants it to have things to say, but to always be about The Doctor against the monsters. This is crucial wording. Docto Who should be for everyone, and it should be about escapism. Not about the political statement of the week. There's no appetite for it anymore from most audiences, they get enough of that in the world from radicalized activists and they want a fun time and a distraction from it

If RTD can manage that, but squeeze in his messaging in a more subtler fashion so it doesn't overtake the story, we'll be in for a ride.

 

[Zarius]

Doctor Who: David Tennant and Catherine Tate to return

The pair are currently filming for sci-fi show's 60th anniversary, which it will celebrate in 2023.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Hymie]

I think Davies might be doing something similar to what I had in mind for the 60th, with the Doctor going through a regeneration crisis of sorts where they keep regenerating into previous incarnations. This would allow previous Doctors from all eras to return without having to come up with an explanation, while allowing for a greatest hits sorts of transition between eras. The end could see Gatwa finally taking charge and taking over, leading into the Christmas special as his first proper episode.

Apparently at least one other previous Doctor has been spotted in Cardiff within the last couple weeks, so I think we'll be getting quite a few familiar faces hopefully for the 60th.

 

[Zarius]

A couple of weeks ago, a leak was sprung on reddit that accurately detailed everything we're presently seeing in filming.

 

[Hymie]

Yeah, with what came out yesterday throughout the day it seems to be the case. Not as terribly exciting as I would have hoped, but I'm sure they'll make it work.

 

[LastSurvivor]

They better get Paul McGann back... that's all I'm saying

 

[TM2YC]

They better get Paul McGann back... that's all I'm saying

I would love that.

I thought just occurred, given the recent popularity of "multiverses", they could do a special adventure to other realities where the various Doctors hadn't died yet e.g. the universe where McGann is still the doctor but older, or any of the other actors. Or the Peter Cushing and Richard E. Grant realities.

 

[lapis molari]

[...] "multiverses", [...] Richard E. Grant realities.

Ooh, I would watch that. I always enjoy Richard E. Grant's delivery.

 

[TM2YC]

I'm (kind of) looking forward to hate-watching the new 1-hour conversation with Michael Grade included on the Season 22 blu-ray set. I hope Matthew Sweet doesn't go too easy on him.

The new trailer for a cinema re-release of 4K versions of the Cushing DW movies is an impressive piece of editing. It makes them look like the most exciting films ever made. I feel bad for young DW fans seeing this trailer and then paying to go to see the most boring, most dated movies they're likely to encounter .

The groovey 60s colours look wild though.

 

[TM2YC]

I watched the Michael Grade interview. Matthew Sweet doesn't go too hard on him, to be fair Grade did show up.

I'm slightly ashamed to say I smiled when Grade looked genuinely depressed when he was talking about people introducing, or describing him as "the man who cancelled Doctor Who" instead of all his other many achievements in broadcasting. Interviewer Mathew Sweet chuckles and to break the tension replies "You eat one foot and they call you a cannibal!" .

Another highlight of the blu-ray set so far is a new re-edited version of 'A Fix with Sontarans'. "He who shall not be named" has been edited out with some new FX and vocal lines, to create a proper cliffhanger plus end titles, making it feel more like a proper mini-episode. Baker, Fielding and the now grown up kid from the episode Gareth Jenkins do a lovely commentary track too.