by Shannon Lush
Last time, we took a peek at the first four actors to play
The Doctor on TV, and appropriately, we ended on Tom Baker, the most popular
actor to this day. This week, we shift our focus to the glitzy, superficial
1980's, and we will end off on the era that could have been, the so-called
'American Doctor Who', headed by Paul McGann.
THE FIFTH DOCTOR: PETER DAVISON (Duration: 3 years, 1982 to
1984)
Who To Credit: By the time that Tom Baker had quit as The
Doctor, producer John Nathan-Turner had firmly become the 'hands-on' creative
force behind 'Doctor Who'. As the first producer to truly understand the power
of the media to promote the show, JN-T utilized every opportunity to
shamelessly plug it in a variety of interesting ways. In addition to
instructing Baker to 'let slip' that the producers were strongly considering
casting a female as his successor, for no reason other than it added to the
intensity of the media scrutiny when Baker announced his departure, JN-T also arranged for the creation and
transmission of a special retrospective. 'The Five Faces Of Doctor Who' thus
became the first compilation package of 'best of' episodes chosen from the
past, allowing British audiences to watch episodes featuring all four previous
Doctors while they waited for the debut of the new Fifth Doctor, and that
episode, ultimately entitled 'Castrovalva', was the cherry on top.
JN-T also had arranged for the production of the first-ever
spin-off series concept, producing the pilot episode of an intended new series,
'K-9 And Company'. Actress Elizabeth Sladen had declined to re-join 'Doctor
Who' when invited by JN-T, who was afraid that Tom Baker's large and loyal fan
following would stop watching now that he was gone; therefore, JN-T needed to
give them another reason to remain loyal by bringing back the most popular
companion character ever, Sarah Jane Smith. She did, however, accept his second
offer, to co-star in the spin-off. Along with voice actor John Leeson, who gave
life to K-9, Sladen returned as Sarah Jane in the pilot episode of 'K-9 And
Company', in an episode entitled 'A Girl's Best Friend'. While ratings were
strong given the whimsical K-9's popularity with children and the Sarah Jane
character's popularity with just about everyone, the BBC decided to pass on an
option of commissioning a series. Nevertheless, its very existence remains a
testament to JN-T's thought processes at the time, to maximize 'Doctor Who' at
every opportunity.
As producer, JN-T would go on to become, to this day, the
most controversial, visible, fan-friendly, and important creative person behind
the ups and downs of 'Doctor Who' throughout the 1980's. And his first big
decision, the one he wanted above all others, the one that had contributed to
on-set arguments with Tom Baker frequently, and the one that he lay awake at
night dreaming about was: he wanted to cast his own Doctor. And essentially,
that's exactly what he did.
Why He Accepted: Peter Davison is the stage name of Peter
Moffett, who by the time he was approached by JN-T to become The Doctor was
beginning to become a familiar face on British TV screens, if not yet a
household name. Discovering that he could not apply to become an actor under
his real name due to the actor's union Equity's rule disallowing this due to
the director of the same name (who would later direct Davison in 'Doctor Who',
in fact), Moffett changed it to Davison, and it is under that name Whovians
would come to recognize him. The rules have since been changed, allowing
Davison's own daughter to not only appear in 'Doctor Who' under the surname
Moffett, but to also marry David Tennant, who played The 10th Doctor!
In a very definite attempt to get away from the overwhelming
and iconic image of Tom Baker's 4th Doctor, JN-T wrote a shortlist of the
qualities and traits he wished to emphasize with the 5th Doctor. Among them
were that he must have short hair, preferably blonde! Recognizing, as previous
producers of the show had, that nobody wins by casting a 'poor man's' carbon
copy of the previous Doctor, JN-T was eager to get as far away from the acting
style, overall physical look, and even larger-than-life and booming vocals of
Tom Baker and his version of the Doctor. To this end, he recalled enjoying an
actor who he had previously worked with in the TV series 'All Creatures Great
And Small', an actor who fit the bill in every way that JN-T wanted: Peter
Davison. A publicity photo of Davison in cricketing outfit taken for a charity
event during that show that just happened to be hanging in JN-T's office even
inspired the final design of the 5th Doctor's clothing. It appeared to be
written in the stars.
Not so fast. When contacted by JN-T out of the blue, Davison
was astonished by two points made during the conversation. First, that not only
was Tom Baker leaving the show that Davison had often fantasized about
guest-starring in once his acting career took off...but that JN-T wanted a 'personality
actor' to play the 5th Doctor. 'Never in a million years did I see myself as a
personality actor', Davison recalled, 'someone who just came with a ready-made
personality to a role'. And yet, by JN-T's reckoning, that was exactly the type
of actor he was looking for, and what's more, Davison was 'exactly' the actor
he was looking for. Despite massive reservations, Davison eventually accepted.
Why? 'If I had turned it down, and they had casted someone else, I couldn't
very well tell anyone then that I'd been asked to play it first'. From day one,
Davison felt he was too young, too unsuited to the role, and often wondered why
he was given the simple instructions from producers, directors, and writers of
'you are The Doctor. Now go and do it!', as he recalled years later. Perhaps
JN-T truly felt that Davison the 'personality actor' would simply play it as
himself..?
The only true inspiration Davison got from this time was
from, perhaps appropriately, a child. During a press launch to announce his
appointment as The Doctor, he chanced to be speaking in front of a crowd of
children. When he asked them 'how should I play it?', the answers ranged from
bland to repetitive. Except one boy, who said he should play it 'like Tristan,
only brave', in reference to the character of Tristan Farnan from 'All
Creatures Great And Small', the show that had brought Davison to not only
JN-T's attention, but had been Davison's break-out role. 'I quite liked that
suggestion', Davison said, 'it was simple, to the point. I thought 'if only I
can catch onto that idea!'
It is not well known now, but at the time that Davison
played The Doctor, he was in fact quite busy as an actor, alternating between
the TARDIS and the ITV drama series 'Sink Or Swim' at the same time, consequently
becoming the only Doctor actor to pull double-duty on another series as a
regular while working in 'Doctor Who'. This would perhaps hurt his credibility
as The Doctor, as audiences could see Davison not only in two regular series
airing at the same time, but also in a series of guest-starring roles, small
film roles, even as the voice of animated features, all while he battled
Daleks, Cybermen, and Matthew Waterhouse. While a boon for the actor to have
such a variety of high profile acting jobs, it had the unfortunate side-effect
of watering down The Doctor and rendering him less than 'special' if one could
see the same man in ordinary situations on the other channel.
Perhaps as another side-effect to this steady work was
Davison's approach to the role, as he simply did not have adequate time to
truly stress over being The Doctor. Unlike Tom Baker, who came to obsess over
minute details in scripts and lines, Davison's Doctor was younger, fresher,
less complex and by far the most 'human' in terms of character than all of his
predecessors. Though being a hero to millions of children meant he was released
from a lucrative television advertising contract by Guinness Beer, and the ads,
which had already been filmed, were erased.
In the end, Davison accepted the role, as he viewed it as an
acting challenge. He accepted that, as Tom Baker's replacement, he would be
required to fill big shoes and win over a hard core Baker fan base, and
realized that he would utilize the opportunity that playing the lead in 'Doctor
Who' would give his career, as he likely would never have such a highly-visible
part offered to him again. But there was the small matter of typecasting..
As has been noted, Patrick Troughton met Davison in the
parking lot of the BBC car park, congratulated him, and told him to 'only do
three years'. Davison would adhere to the advice of Troughton, one of the small
number of men who had been exactly where Davison was going. His Doctor was
youthful and naive, with flashes of stubbornness and quick-temperedness. But he
always intended it to last only three seasons.
Why He Quit: Despite his puzzlement over JN-T's insistence
that he was a 'personality actor', Davison maintained that he was, simply, an
actor. One who looked for work and one who, hopefully, was always working. At
no point did he ever give 'Doctor Who' or The Doctor character the type of
attention and/or obsession that others did. He was eager to avoid the pitfalls
of typecasting which had plagued every previous Doctor actor to one degree or
other, and instead of foregoing other work in order to fully concentrate on
'Doctor Who', Davison, as noted, successfully juggled lead roles in two
different shows at once. Due to this outlook, Davison made it clear that he
would play the role for only 3 years.
Other mitigating factors in his decision to leave, above and
beyond his self-imposed deadline, were that he felt the 'budget was never
enough, just barely adequate', that certain stories, particularly within his
second season, were not good, dramatic stories that as an actor he could be
proud of, and that union strikes hampered the show and left him 'at the point
of exhaustion'. He claimed to be 'relieved' when he was finished with the grind
of 'Doctor Who'. He 'had' asked for a period of contemplation over whether he
would return for a 4th season, and at one point had even contacted JN-T to
indicate he was leaning towards doing so. JN-T told him that he had already instructed
the wardrobe, script, and casting departments to prepare for a new actor as The
Doctor, and thus Davison reverted to his previous decision to leave.
'I do miss it, from time to time', Davison said. He noted
that 'strikes delayed my last stories so that I was wore out by the time it was
all over, but yes, one does suffer the odd pang'. As the youngest Doctor to
that point, Davison's era is best remembered for the introduction of glitzy new
FX, the 'two episodes a week' format that ultimately worked against the success
of the show in the long term, the 20th anniversary 'The 5 Doctors' special, and
for being the only televised instance where a future Doctor appeared as a
character other than The Doctor, when Colin Baker played Maxil in 'Arc Of
Infinity'. Perhaps Davison's finest performance came in his final, swan-song
story, 'The Caves Of Androzani'.
THE SIXTH DOCTOR: COLIN BAKER (Duration: 2 years, 1984 to
1986)
Who To Credit: John Nathan-Turner, once again. By this point
having overseen the casting of his own Doctor with Peter Davison, JN-T had
become comfortable in this particular aspect of the perks that come with being
producer of 'Doctor Who', and once more relished the idea of casting his own
man in the lead. As a senior producer who rose through the ranks on various BBC
and independent series, JN-T was friends with a great many people in the
British television landscape, both in front of and behind the camera. While
quietly considering who to approach to take over the series during the period when
Davison had requested more time to mull over whether he wished to remain for a
fourth year, JN-T happened to attend the wedding of a former assistant floor
manager of his. Coincidentally, Colin Baker, who had worked with both JN-T and
Davison on 'Arc Of Infinity' barely a year and half previously, also was in
attendance. Little did he know it, but JN-T was mentally 'auditioning' Baker
from the moment they both sat together. 'I thought, if he can keep a roomful of
hardened show-business professionals entertained for hours at a time, he could
do the same to an audience of millions', JN-T would recount later. Baker
himself, recalling how JN-T had asked him to 'tone down the acting in the
background, please', while playing Maxil in 'Arc', nevertheless also noted that
it was that very performance that put him on the producer's radar. 'Maxil was
an over-the-top performance', Baker said, 'so much so, John remembered it
vividly and thought of me when Peter decided after all he would leave'. A
clandestine meeting, far from the prying eyes of press and Whovians alike, was
set up a local pub later in order for Baker and JN-T to further discuss the
little matter of casting a new Doctor. 'He told me Peter was leaving, which I
didn't know at the time', Baker recalled. 'Suddenly, who appears but Peter! I
had to pretend I was there for a completely different reason, like I'm there to
clean the windows!', Baker laughed. When finally offered the role, Baker
accepted without hesitation. 'I had contacted my agent when I heard Tom was
leaving, saying 'look, there's a job going at the BBC and I'd very much like
it, so get on it', but by the time he got through to them, Peter had been
casted already', Baker said, indicating his desire to play the role extended
for years. In fact, his association with 'Doctor Who' in general can be traced
back to decades before he ever assumed the lead. In addition to being a
roommate and good friend of Patrick Troughton's son David for ten years, Baker
had also narrowly missed being cast as Jellico, the assistant to the evil
Winters in 'Robot', Tom Baker's first story. When the time came, he finally
realized a dream of sorts when he was cast as Maxil, never actually considering
that it would be this role that would lead him indirectly to becoming the
Doctor himself. 'Many people suggested that my true audition for the part was
shooting Peter!’ he joked, 'the unofficial rule being if you zap the incumbent,
you get to be the next one!'.
Why He Accepted: In addition to his admiration for 'Doctor
Who' and his memories of being a fan growing up in England, which made him the
first Doctor to have actually been such prior to being the lead actor, Baker
also realized the career opportunity it afforded him. Perhaps his
highest-profile work prior to 'Doctor Who' had been a drama series called 'The
Brothers', which, in his own words, 'was a bit like the 'Dallas' set-up, only
they didn't sit around pools freezing and pretending it was hot!' A series
about a hauling company comprised of a fleet of trucks run by two brothers,
Baker's character, Paul Merrony, came into the series half way through its run.
'I was J.R before J.R was! In England, I was the man the fans loved to hate!'.
While consistently topping fan polls as the 'best bad guy on TV' at the time in
the late 1970's, when the series ended Baker found himself 'out in the cold', type
casted and overlooked for parts dissimilar to the ruthless and unethical banker
role he had played. By the 1980's, after appearing in guest-starring roles in
both 'Doctor Who' and 'Blake's Seven', Baker nevertheless found the bulk of his
work in the theatre, and jumped at the chance to be a part of what he called 'something
that has left an indelible print on generations'. Promised by the head of BBC
Drama at the time, David Reid, to be given 'a four year contract, as Peter had
left after three, and they wanted to get a bit more continuity out of it',
Baker would find himself instead a victim of what he termed 'power politics'.
Why He Quit: As a victim to everything from a new running
time for his episodes (45 minutes, instead of the traditional 22, effectively halving
his seasons and ensuring 'Doctor Who' was no longer a permanent and familiar
fixture on British television for long periods), to the costume he was forced
to wear ('an explosion in a rainbow factory', he described it as), to the implementation
of controversial efforts to 'darken' the nature of the series and specifically
of the Doctor, ('we do want to give the Sixth Doctor more of an acid wit', JN-T
said during the press launch), to the shifting nature of BBC funds allocations
going to a new daytime programming format instead of on its nigh time
programming, which resulted in the cancellation of several series and the
'pausing' of 'Doctor Who' for 18 long months, Colin Baker endured daily
upheaval in the role he always dreamed of playing. 'For a brief period there, I
had the best job on television, and like any child who has his toy taken away
before he's done playing with it, I was more than a little cross when they took
it away from me', he would fume. As the only televised Doctor to be officially
'axed' from the role thanks to instructions from BBC corporate suits like Michael
Grade and Jonathan Powell, who had replaced David Reid, Baker stated that the
'concession' that JN-T had won for him, to be invited back in order to film a
regeneration story, not only was insulting but that he would have been forced
to forego work in the meantime, due to the demands of the BBC contract. 'I've
always likened it to your girlfriend giving you the push but then saying 'you
can come spend a night with me again next year', he said. 'You know, if someone
else had been cast in that role in 1984, and I was playing it now, I'd still be
in that role for years to come', Baker summarized, chalking up his tenure to
being 'unlucky'. Perhaps his most amusing quote regarding his time as the
Doctor was the underwhelmed reaction of his wife. Upon being officially casted,
he went home in a triumphant mood. 'I burst through the door, put my hands on
my hips, and bellowed I AM THE DOCTOR!' he said. 'My wife said, 'oh, yes?
Listen, could you now take out the rubbish, please'?
THE SEVENTH DOCTOR: SYLVESTER MCCOY (Duration: 2 years on
BBC television, 1987 to 1989: 9 years as 'official BBC licensed Doctor' in
spin-off material).
Who To Credit: While anxious to finally depart 'Doctor Who'
as it's producer, having performed as such since the dying days of Tom Baker's
reign, JN-T was forced to carry on when the BBC made it clear it was either
that, or be removed as a staff producer. To quote Colin Baker again, 'the BBC
mixed it up: they kept the guy who didn't want to stay, and fired the guy who
did!'. Handcuffed to the series at a time when he felt he had given it a
significant portion of his life, JN-T's weary approach to casting his third
Doctor in 8 years was reflected in the casting of light entertainer Sylvester
McCoy.
Born in Scotland as Percy James Patrick Kent-Smith, McCoy
was raised in a household that did not even own a television! Working in insurance
initially, and gravitating towards show business due to his job as an usher in
a movie theatre, McCoy found his talents for farce and comedy would come into
play often. Adept at odd facial expressions (the regeneration sequence in the
FOX TV film featured McCoy contorting his face naturally, without the need for
FX to assist!), being able to play the spoons, juggling...all became a part of
his act, as he began touring with comedy theatre groups. In addition to
'stuffing ferrets down my trousers', as he said, he adopted the stage name 'Sylvester
McCoy' after a reviewer mistook the name as his, as he was billed as that
fictional actor on a poster as an 'in-joke'.
It was playing the Pied Piper in theatres that he was
spotted by JN-T, and McCoy has said he felt it was the fact that the Piper wore
multi-colored costumes similar to those worn by Colin Baker as the Doctor that
may have caught JN-T's eye. Once he became aware of the possible interest, he
instructed his agent to call JN-T directly to place him into nomination for the
role. Coincidentally, a mutual friend of theirs had just before called to
himself vouch for McCoy as an ideal candidate for the next Doctor. Suspecting
collusion, JN-T was nevertheless intrigued enough to agree to meet with McCoy and
sound him out for the role.
Showing up to the meeting wearing a cream-colored jacket,
paisley scarf, and tweed hat quite similar to the clothing worn by the
character that would become his Seventh Doctor, McCoy won JN-T over to the idea
of casting him. Despite his lack of extensive television experience and
name-value recognition, McCoy not only was friends with Bonnie Langford, who he
would inherit from Colin Baker as his Doctor's first companion, but his appeal
to children was what JN-T would cite as a major factor. 'I hadn't watched
'Doctor Who' in years', McCoy said, and what memories he did have centered
around Patrick Troughton, which informed his decision to 'play it for laughs',
as he admitted.
His initial year, season 24, is generally regarded as among
the worst in the series' history, as the Doctor became an impish, clown-like
figure, featuring multiple moments of hat-doffing, not to mention pratfalls.
The introduction of the character of Ace in 'Dragonfire' and the arrival of new
script editor Andrew Cartmel, who would significantly 'darken' the McCoy years
with the blessings of both McCoy and JN-T, extended the series' lifespan
further than perhaps it would have under McCoy's initial characterization. In its
final seasons as a BBC drama series, McCoy would give 'Doctor Who' some of his
strongest performances in excellent stories such as ‘Remembrance Of The
Daleks', 'The Curse Of Fenric', and 'Battlefield'. Once the series was placed
on 'hiatus' again by the BBC in 1989, the expansion of the character further in
numerous books and comics permanently shifted the 7th Doctor into the dark,
foreboding figure of enigma and 'cosmic chess playing' that JN-T had attempted
and failed to do to anyone's satisfaction with Colin Baker.
Why He Accepted: As noted, Sylvester McCoy was quite keen to
attach himself to a venerable but still money-making and moderately successful
BBC series, even more so when he discovered that JN-T, having been stung by the
public and fan's refusal to accept a darker Doctor and adult-oriented stories
with the Sixth Doctor's era, was open to the idea of not only 'playing it for
laughs', but for incorporating elements of McCoy's own act into the Doctor
(hence, the newly-regenerated Doctor's bizarre decision to pratfall away from
the Rani in his debut 'Time And The Rani'). JN-T, in perhaps an over-reaction
to the drama associated with Baker's dismissal, decreed that they would be
forced to 'play it safe', and present a Doctor who was virtually 'kid
friendly'; as noted, the result was the bland and childish stories of season
24.
While he had performed in TV series in the past as a guest
star, these had all been of the light-entertainment and children's educational
variety, thus McCoy was, on paper, an unsuitable choice for a producer striving
to present more mature stories, which would require a more experienced actor.
To his credit, McCoy, despite lacking in the finer points of acting and to his
end in the role exaggerating his natural Scots brogue, displayed strong performances
in several stories in the latter years of his tenure. McCoy championed the idea
of taking on the role despite the resentment it caused within his own family;
in a revealing interview with 'Doctor Who Magazine' years removed from his time
as the Doctor, he stated that his eldest son had come to 'hate' the Doctor
character, as his father grew more and more recognized for it. 'He said he
wished I had stayed in theatre and gained success there', McCoy admitted,
though he also said that being 'Doctor Who' gave him everything he would go on
to have in life. 'God, the money's appalling', he laughed.
Why He Quit: The Seventh Doctor is, essentially, split down
the middle in the eyes of many fans: there is the 'TV version', which
definitely grows and matures and gains not just a twinkle in his eye but a
streak of malevolence and hints of a dark past, of being 'more than just a
Timelord'. There is also the speculative expansion of the character once the
series itself ended, with the Doctor beginning to wield time itself as a weapon
in order to 'take the fight to the enemy', becoming ever more ruthless, to the
point that, when she encounters him again in the novel series, Mel slaps him,
sickened by what he's become and what lengths he will now go to in order to
justify his actions and achieve victory.
All of these elements introduced into the novels 'would'
have been presented, in some form, in the TV series, had it continued. As it
was, many former script editors, Terrance Dicks among them, contributed to the
'New Adventures' novels, and major revelations regarding the Doctor, his past,
and that of Gallifrey itself, had all been adapted from the original plans that
Andrew Cartmel had prepared for the TV series, the so-called 'Cartmel
Masterplan'. To all this, one must credit McCoy, who took the role 'as a
laugh', and ended up introducing a character closer to the First Doctor's style
and approach, of a 'wizard' to quote William Hartnell.
As an actor, he brought a satisfaction to those yearning for
the good old days with his performance. One such scene was, smiling
enigmatically, he held up a finger to shush his companion when she wonders
aloud, 'who are you?' in 'Silver Nemesis'.
And yet for all the hard work McCoy put in at a time when
'Doctor Who' was not only an old series but one in which the BBC sharks were
always circling, waiting to slash its budget, juggle it around the schedule,
put it on the shelf, and/or cancel it outright, it came to naught when the axe
finally came down. As the last televised Doctor in what is now called 'the
classic series', McCoy's Doctor remained the 'BBC Doctor' for longer in print
and spinoff materials than Tom Baker was the Doctor on TV.
And while he has indicated that he would have remained with
the series on TV for up to 5 years or perhaps more, it was his promise, once it
was made clear the BBC would not renew the series itself without an outside
partnership, that he would 'pass the torch' to another actor to assume the role
that remains, perhaps, McCoy's greatest contribution for Whovians. Fully 8
years from his last appearance in 'Survival', Sylvester McCoy gratefully
accepted the chance to play ‘The Old Doctor' in the FOX TV film, in order to
'pass' the role to his friend Paul McGann. He also took the opportunity to
record a special in order to reflect on his time and its passing, called
'Bidding Adieu'.
THE EIGHTH DOCTOR: PAUL MCGANN (Duration: less than 2 hours
in only televised appearance in FOX TV film; 9 years in spinoff material, 1996
to 2005; unrevealed final appearance; current 'Big Finish Audio' Doctor).
Who To Credit: The very nature of the FOX TV film meant the
approach to casting the lead role was vastly different than it had been in John
Nathan-Turner's time. To begin with, 'Doctor Who' had been a long-running BBC
series, and the job of casting was unofficially given to whomever the producer
was at the time, subject to not only contributions from the creative staff, but
with final approval from the BBC itself; in the long history of the series, no
casting choice made was ever overturned or rejected by the BBC big wigs in
charge at the time it was made. For the FOX film, however, other, loftier
considerations came into play.
By this point in 1995, 'Doctor Who' was unofficially 'dead'
as an ongoing concept wholly owned and transmitted by the BBC 'in-house'; even
during the McCoy years, the BBC were quietly negotiating with companies such as
Coast-To-Coast Productions (who later became Daltenrays, co-owned and financed
by Roger Daltry, lead singer of the British band The Who), in order to 'farm
out' the series for co-production funding, either to continue as a series or
else a film or film series.
There was also the fact that JN-T had departed 'Doctor Who'
as the last of its 'classic series' producers, and was not even given a
perfunctory consulting call or appointment in the negotiations that would lead
to the marriage of BBC Worldwide, the American production company Amblin
Entertainment, and the FOX Television stations, all of whom had their hands in
the pie when it came to the funding and realization of a brand-new adventure
for a brand-new Doctor.
The TV producer Philip Segal, who is British, was employed
by Amblin Entertainment, and was among the first to champion the idea of
bringing 'Doctor Who' to American audiences; counting the syndication of the
classic series beginning with Tom Baker on PBS channels, and the current
attempts made through BBC America, SPACE channel in Canada, and SyFy in the
United States, it is the third time in Whoniverse history that someone,
somewhere, tried to forcibly crack the elusive North American market with the
good Doctor.
Segal had badgered his boss, Steven Spielberg, for
permission to 'go after' the rights to 'Doctor Who', and Spielberg had agreed
to lend his name to the cause. 'Spielberg's golden name is what got me in the
door with the BBC', said Segal. Eager to begin a partnership with the legendary
director and his company, who had at the time sold two moderately successful,
and certainly glitzy, SF series to the NBC Network, 'SeaQuest DSV' and 'Earth
Two', both of which Segal had received producing and co-producing credits on,
the BBC overcame their objections to allowing the 'quintessentially British'
series to be reformatted to appeal to North American audiences.
After ABC passed on the idea, FOX optioned the film as a
'backdoor pilot', intending to gauge audience reaction and use it to measure
whether they wished to commit to either a full season of a new series, or else
a series of TV films. In the end, its underwhelming ratings initially in the
United States came as little surprise to Whovians who understood that FOX had a
tendency to abruptly cancel promising projects when they did not immediately
make a ratings splash.
Coupled with stiff competition from ABC in the form of a
'Roseanne' episode centered on main character Dan having a heart attack and
virtually 'no' advance publicity on the part of FOX 'or' Amblin, alongside
actor Eric Roberts, who played the Master, feeling the role was so 'cartoon terrible'
that one month prior to the film's broadcast he did not utter a single word
about it while appearing on David Letterman's show, which was watched by
millions of North Americans, the film was doomed to failure. In the home of
'Doctor Who', however, nearly 10 million people watched it, many of whom had
purchased the VHS which was placed on sale in England prior to its debut on
television there!
One of the most contentious issues was, in a film intended
to launch a brand-new series, for an audience not whatsoever familiar with
'Doctor Who', and with three different production entities each with their own
list of preferred candidates...who would play the Doctor? The most extensive
casting sessions ever for the role of 'The Doctor' was undertaken, with
numerous suggestions of 'name value' actors, both British 'and' American.
Reflecting the earliest scripts, Peter O'Toole was sounded
out for the role of Rassilon, which in this 're-imagined' Whoniverse, was to be
the Doctor's father. He expressed initial interest, but nothing was ever
signed. Alan Rickman turned it down. Harrison Ford was considered. Christopher
Eccleston, in 1995 mind you, appeared on a list as possible young actors
considered 'too off the mark' by marketing departments.
In the end, the decision was made to 'cheap out' slightly on
the Doctor in order to put the money into the 'bad guy' of the film, who was to
be The Master. Thus, Eric Robert's salary for a few weeks’ worth of acting in
what he considered so beneath him he didn't breathe word one of it to a
national TV audience weeks prior to its debut, surpassed that of every other
actor chosen, including that of the Doctor himself, Paul McGann! Let us also
point out Eric Roberts is the lead in a film entitled 'Sharktopus', in which he
wails 'damn you, sharktopus'!. Just sayin'.
Paul McGann satisfied the concerns of Philip Segal, who was,
like JN-T before him, aware of the large and vocal Whovian population that were
making their opinions known as to the 'Americanization' fears of this new
project. McGann was British, and had a healthy respect for 'Doctor Who',
immediately attending conventions even before filming began, in order to 'get
on the pulse of it'. McGann was a respected actor from a family of actors, and
his own brother had even screen tested for the Doctor!
He was familiar with the character and the history,
comfortable enough with the fans, and had delved into SF before, having
appeared in one of the 'Aliens' films. 'I knew it would have an immediate
impact', McGann said, and has recently stated that had the series gone ahead,
he would have been 'delighted' to continue to play the role. As it is, his
Eighth Doctor remains the longest serving in audio play form, being the
'flagship' Doctor for the Big Finish range.
Why He Accepted: In numerous panels across numerous fan
conventions, McGann has made it clear what initially attracted him to the role
was that it was 'so very British'; 'everyone knows Doctor Who, the young and
old alike', he said. It would be his most high-profile role, and he had hoped
that it would lead to a new series. Financially, the film paid well and the
opportunity to perform before a North American audience also factored into his
agreement.
Why He Quit: Technically, Paul McGann is 'still' playing the
role of the Doctor. Due to complicated rights issues that arose with the
parties involved in funding and broadcasting the film, impediments were in
place for several years that prevented the BBC from moving forward with
regenerating the character into (what would become) the Eccleston Doctor.
Before the BBC were able to finally regain the full rights to the likeness,
their stop-gap solution was to create a briefly-official 'Ninth Doctor' with
the 'Scream Of The Shalka' webcast, in order to side-step the matter
altogether.
When the decision was made to bring the series back, one of
the first decisions new producer Russel T Davies attempted to address was what became
of the Eighth Doctor and why is there not a regeneration scene? Approached by
Davies, Pannini Books, a division of the sticker company that produced 'Doctor
Who' licensed comics and comic strips, had briefly planned to write and
illustrate a 'bridging story' linking the Eighth Doctor to the Ninth and
presenting a regeneration. Apparently, Davies himself supplied the script, but
when tasked with this momentous Whoniverse event, the editors passed, fearful
that the limited page count afforded them was not sufficient to properly give
the story justice.
Thus, as he has really never 'stopped' playing the role,
McGann continues, in both Big Finish and BBC Radio drama plays, one of which
acted as a 'teaser' for the new series and features the McGann Doctor becoming
exasperated with an alien race that claims that he should be wearing a 'black
leather jacket', and proclaiming 'what kind of a fashion sense nightmare do you
think I become??'. Now that the rights issues have been cleared, the Eighth
Doctor's stories continue to entertain Whovians who appreciate his charismatic,
friendly approach to the Doctor. Official 'canonicity' was attained, much to
the chagrin of embittered long-time Whovians who had refused to acknowledge the
Eighth Doctor as 'official' until he appeared within 'Doctor Who' on BBC One
itself, when the character did just that several times now, represented both in
the artwork of 'The Book Of Impossible Things' in the Tennant era, as well as
visually as a flashback/roll-call of past Doctors in Matt Smith's debut 'The
Eleventh Hour'.
We are going to skip the post-2005 series Doctors, as they
are all rather recent and their respective history has been extensively covered
elsewhere; in Smith's case, of course, it is still ongoing. I do hope you have
enjoyed this look back at the actors who played the Doctor, and join me again
soon for another blog entry chock full of 'Doctor Who' goodness!
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