Options
what if, in 1984, Davison had been replaced by McCoy, not Colin Baker?
adam_fransella
Posts: 1,660 Forum Member
✭✭✭
Upon first glance, this seems like a frightening thought, as it could make "The Twin Dilemma" (which should have debuted a year after "The Caves Of Androzani", NOT a week after) more unwatchable (even if McCoy runs around like a clown, rather than being angry and trying to strangle Peri).
BUT, given that the theory which suggests Baker was fired from the role of The Doctor, due to his soon-to-be-ex-wife Liza Goddard beginning an affair with Michael Grade (who thus forced him out of the BBC altogether before tensions boiled after), has more foundation to it than has previously been suggested...if McCoy took over, there is no way he could have been fired from the role in 1986, since HE had no connections with Grade that would have affected his tenure on "Doctor Who".
Furthermore, Baker was extremely surprised to be able to audition for the role of a Time Lord in the first place, since his role as Commander Maxil in "Arc Of Infinity" could have meant playing The Doctor was now out of the question.
BUT, given that the theory which suggests Baker was fired from the role of The Doctor, due to his soon-to-be-ex-wife Liza Goddard beginning an affair with Michael Grade (who thus forced him out of the BBC altogether before tensions boiled after), has more foundation to it than has previously been suggested...if McCoy took over, there is no way he could have been fired from the role in 1986, since HE had no connections with Grade that would have affected his tenure on "Doctor Who".
Furthermore, Baker was extremely surprised to be able to audition for the role of a Time Lord in the first place, since his role as Commander Maxil in "Arc Of Infinity" could have meant playing The Doctor was now out of the question.
0
Comments
McCoy only acted like a clown because he had very little time to prepare for the role and find out how he wanted to play the role. Also he was encouraged to play the role in a "lighthearted" way - neither of these would have happened if he had been cast in 1984.
Another question is, what would have happened if Peter Davison had stuck around for another year?
On the plus side, Davison's era would seem less short, and so he would not have come and gone too quickly.
On the minus side, as well as not exiting on a high (which he did in the end), he would feel affected somehow by the attempts made to cancel the series.
Perhaps "The Caves Of Androzani" could have ended not with a regeneration, but with a return to Gallifrey, and the end of the series itself?
- a return to Saturday evenings which caused a drop in viewers
- his costume
- concerns about the levels of violence in the show
- stories that were too insular (Attack of the Cybermen is so entrenched in Who continuity that even fans struggled with parts of it)
So I am not sure having a different actor would have necessarily saved the show from its fate. And if Davison had stayed on, I am not sure season 22 would have been that different or any more successful.In terms of violence, Davison's final year (season 21) had been pretty brutal and bloody and I don't think season 22 became more violent just because there was a new Doctor.
I also don't believe the 6th Doctor was disliked while season 22 was being broadcast. There were no newspaper stories at the time about the 6th Doctor being hated or unpopular, or that viewers thought casting Colin had been a mistake. If anything, I think his big, brash personality freshened up the show.
I think much of the criticisms of Colin were retrospective after he was fired. I think if he'd done three years uninterrupted, like Davison, without the 18 month hiatus and the cut in episode numbers, he would be remembered far more favourably. I think his tenure, sadly, is linked to the show failing and so he is remembered poorly as a result. But I don't think this is reflective of how viewers felt about his Doctor when his episodes were actually being shown.
A lot of what happened at that time was really about Grade, not public reactions to Colin.
He's a much more likeable Doctor these days in the Big Finish audios. If only they'd started him off as less prickly I think he'd have been much more popular.
Im suprised gutless Grade actually got away with it.
In this day and age Colin would of sued him for unfair dismissal.
In Colin's case, the contract ran for three years from the beginning of production on The Twin Dilemma. He was paid for his time (not sure if this was the full fee or just a retainer during the hiatus) and the contract expired before production on the (awful) 24th season.
Unfair dismissal wouldn't have come into it, then or now. An actor who's out-of-contract has no automatic right to continuous employment. That's showbiz!
Matt Smith's three-year contract must be up for renewal about now. While I sincerely doubt Moffat will 'axe' him, the fact remains that Smith would have no legal claim if his contract is not renewed.
This ^^