DOCTOR WHO
THE CHRISTMAS DOCTOR WHO SPECIAL IS BACK AND RUSSELL T DAVIES IS IN FULL FESTIVE MODE
HE’S THE man of the moment – and that moment is Christmas, quite frankly. You’ve barely had time to catch your breath from three 60th anniversary specials but there’s a new Doctor, a new companion and a new beginning to look forward to this Christmas Day. The new era has properly begun so without further ado – he’s a busy man, and every (printable) word’s a gem – we give you the showrunner of Doctor Who, Russell T Davies.
Tease the Christmas episode…
♦ It’s completely a reinvention. Reinvention of the show, brand new, but not a reboot, it’s the same old show, everything starts again, everything’s seen through the eyes of Ruby Sunday and it’s that lovely feeling of here we go, a new era beginning. Lovely. Kind of goes into territory we’ve never touched before. In many ways that’s more… fresher than special two. We’ve never done this before.
How important is the festive season and Christmas Day slot to you?
♦ It’s always been my favourite time of year. It’s always my favourite telly. Literally, I’m that kind of viewer round about June, I start thinking, “I wonder what Christmas specials we’ve got coming up? I wonder what baby will be born on Call The Midwife this year? I wonder who’s in the Strictly special?” I am that fool, I’m a fool for it! I’m literally sitting here thinking, when shall I put my Christmas tree up? And we are talking on November the 10th. So I love it.
It’s funny how Doctor Who just fits Christmas. The moment it came along and was a success in 2005, I mean, look, I put a Christmas special into the very first season, before Christmas specials existed. I did the Dickens episode. I was so convinced! That never gets listed among Christmas specials. Probably because it went out in April. That’s how intrinsic I think it is. That’s how much I think the TARDIS suits snow and carols and celebrations that I did it before they even existed. It’s like I was pitching for a Christmas special. I wasn’t, but that’s how it worked out. I’m a fan.
Are there storytelling rules that you wouldn’t do during the year?
♦ I think there are. I don’t pay attention to many rules particularly but you’re just aware that it gets an audience that isn’t watching the rest of the time. That happens with two things. Children In Need, which is usually the highest viewing figure of the year, I think, for Doctor Who – that’s why we’re keen to always contribute to that. You will have seen that by now, and the attendant fuss that goes with it, that should be fun. [Laughs] The same for Christmas. There’s just more people; it’s a great scoop, it’s a great chance to say look, if you en
