We were all abuzz with that this morning (Nick being the king of Doctor Who spoilers) but I didn’t want to deal with it on my blog.
It’s the way of Doctor Who, though; if he’d stayed too long, the whole shape of the programme would have shifted. The regeneration idea is what keeps it alive.
He could have stayed as long as Tom Baker, though.
The problem with regeneration is getting audiences to accept it. We all did with the original series, but this new series has a whole new audience. That’s why I think having Christopher Eccleston, who I loved, leave after one season was an excellent idea, but now I’m seeing many comments along the lines of “That’s it, the show’s jumped the shark/I’ll never watch again/He was the only one who was really the Doctor.”
That seems a shame to me.
Tom Baker was Doctor from 1974 to 1981: at seven years, he was the longest running Doctor.
But Tennant, at four years (since he only did the Christmas special in 2005) is the third longest-running Doctor, after Baker and Jon Pertwee (five years); he’s well ahead of William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, Peter Davison, Colin Baker (thankfully!), and Sylvester McCoy.
you’re right that is a shame….and perhaps says something about contemporary audiences and their attitude to change…I enjoyed christopher eccleston a lot too and was sad when he went…but it’s good when actors realise it’s time to go..for themselves and for the show…i’m guessing there’s a lot of discussion going on out there as to who should replace tennant?
We were all abuzz with that this morning (Nick being the king of Doctor Who spoilers) but I didn’t want to deal with it on my blog.
It’s the way of Doctor Who, though; if he’d stayed too long, the whole shape of the programme would have shifted. The regeneration idea is what keeps it alive.
He could have stayed as long as Tom Baker, though.
I have to say one of my first thoughts when I read it was “what will catriona and nick think??”
the regeneration though is an excellent idea…and keeps the show from getting stale
how long did tom baker stay for?
The problem with regeneration is getting audiences to accept it. We all did with the original series, but this new series has a whole new audience. That’s why I think having Christopher Eccleston, who I loved, leave after one season was an excellent idea, but now I’m seeing many comments along the lines of “That’s it, the show’s jumped the shark/I’ll never watch again/He was the only one who was really the Doctor.”
That seems a shame to me.
Tom Baker was Doctor from 1974 to 1981: at seven years, he was the longest running Doctor.
But Tennant, at four years (since he only did the Christmas special in 2005) is the third longest-running Doctor, after Baker and Jon Pertwee (five years); he’s well ahead of William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, Peter Davison, Colin Baker (thankfully!), and Sylvester McCoy.
you’re right that is a shame….and perhaps says something about contemporary audiences and their attitude to change…I enjoyed christopher eccleston a lot too and was sad when he went…but it’s good when actors realise it’s time to go..for themselves and for the show…i’m guessing there’s a lot of discussion going on out there as to who should replace tennant?
I’ve seen some vague speculation, but nothing concrete. There’ll be the usual flurry, I imagine. It’s a sought-after gig.
I doubt we’ll know anything for months.
yes i imagine they may attempt to keep it a secret even if a decision is made? difficult probably!
great post on your blog on this. very important to have the whole thing set in historical context of the program