So how is the anniversary year any different to any other year?
The only thing that would've made it interesting for me was the recovery of classic Who episodes, but that doesn't seem to be happening now and the rest of it is just a damp squib. The Hartnell drama I'm looking forward to, but the 50th anniversary episode? Not really.
I didn't say it was, I said there was stuff to look forward to.
I'm not getting into an argument over what we're not getting this year. I'd rather focus on some of the stuff we are getting.
No, what I see is the same old same old argument over and over again.
"There's hardly anything going on for the 50th anniversary"
"yes there is, convention, merch, books, radio, 2 specials, documentary,..."
"most of that stuff doesnt count!"
"why not? It's all Doctor Who, and the majority of it has been planned as part of a blanket of DW related media for the 50th anniversary"
"Cos nothing except new episodes of the series counts as REAL doctor who thats why! :mad:"
"But some people think..."
"sod some people, most people agree with me cos I say so. This so-called anniversary isnt being celebrated properly at all and its a disgrace."
"but perhaps making a new series wasn't feasible because... "
"oh yes it was! Neither of us know the real facts, but let's pretend that I do and you dont for a moment because that means I can argue that a full series in 2012 was perfectly do-able and they didnt make one because Moffat was too lazy and the crew couldnt be bothered. It's all a disgraceful attempt to cancel the series!"
"but"
"But arguing with me means you cant accept my opinion!"
"your opinions are based on your own assumption that you alone know all the facts and can therefore verify your hyberbolic statements about how the show is being driven into the ground when the ratings AI and soforth show that it actually isn't."
... over and over again. :yawn:
Hey Davros, Long time etc....
Wow, you're not usually so aggressive. Anyway, I'll be brave.
1 - yes there are conventions - we get them every year. (plus they cost a lot and only a tiny percentage of fans will be able to attend any)
2 - yes there are books - we get books every year. (plus they cost extra)
3 - the prom - how many Doctor Who proms have there been in none anniversary years? several....
The question is really- what have we had that is specifically for the anniversary year?
Not a lot.
11 episodes less than a normal (13 ep series + Christmas special) year. (Yes I know they showed 8 others but we all know that they were from last year - which only had five eps)
So minus 11 episodes + 1 docudrama
WOW
The production crew must be totally knackered with all that work. Who knows, they may even be given a year off after working so hard in 2012. Imagine the pressure, having to produce a whole two episodes. Gosh, my heart goes out to them.
But hey, remember we're getting a 3D anniversary special that 0.5% of the fans will be watching. I wonder how much extra it cost shooting in 3D? Would it have been enough to have produced more 2D material? ie a longer special or a 2 parter even. God, how we can wish.
But please, Davros, don't shout too hard. If they get wind that some fans really believe that producing 2 episodes a year is so bloody great they may try it every year. But hey, don't worry, you'll still have books and conventions, just like we did in the 90's.
I didn't say it was, I said there was stuff to look forward to.
I'm not getting into an argument over what we're not getting this year. I'd rather focus on some of the stuff we are getting.
Fair enough, but the thread's topic is why there's been almost sod all done specfically for the 50th anniversary, especially as it was supposed to be 'taking over the TV', or whatever BS Moffat came out with.
Fair enough, but the thread's topic is why there's been almost sod all done specfically for the 50th anniversary, especially as it was supposed to be 'taking over the TV', or whatever BS Moffat came out with.
To be fair, what I reckon actually happened was something like this.
1 - The BBC decided they needed to cut back on costs but didn't want to admit it.
2 - Moffat promised more DW than ever before and also that DW would take over television. He did this to attempt to shame the BBC into changing it's mind.
3 - The BBC ignored Moffat's promises knowing that he would look a prat when we realised the truth.
It would have been a lot easier for everyone if the BBC had been up-front from the start. They could have made a public statement to the effect that they have to cut costs for a couple of years promising to return to the 13 episode series format in 2014. That way we'd have all known how things stood and wouldn't have been disappointed with false promises.
There`ll be loads of the usual cheapo BBC tat that they`re famous for. There`ll be the Doctor who bargain hunt special, a doctor who cookery show special and a crappy doctor who quiz special or two.
Basically crap you won't bother looking up on youtube
2 specials, 1 docudrama, 1 chatty thing, 1 radio documentary, a special proms programme, special web extras with the potential for special BBC1 idents on the day, not to mention the convention, the merchandise range, the novel reprints the Big Finish special, the exclusive stamp sets, plus lots more stuff I haven't mentioned....
The 50th anniversary is being celebrated in more ways than you can count. This will become more obvio0us as the date itself approaches, wich is a far more appropriate time to celebrate the milestone, rather than now, 4 3/4 months early
but that is my point we was told we would get doctor who stuff all through the year
Wow, you're not usually so aggressive. Anyway, I'll be brave.
1 - yes there are conventions - we get them every year. (plus they cost a lot and only a tiny percentage of fans will be able to attend any)
2 - yes there are books - we get books every year. (plus they cost extra)
3 - the prom - how many Doctor Who proms have there been in none anniversary years? several....
The question is really- what have we had that is specifically for the anniversary year?
Not a lot.
11 episodes less than a normal (13 ep series + Christmas special) year. (Yes I know they showed 8 others but we all know that they were from last year - which only had five eps)
So minus 11 episodes + 1 docudrama
WOW
The production crew must be totally knackered with all that work. Who knows, they may even be given a year off after working so hard in 2012. Imagine the pressure, having to produce a whole two episodes. Gosh, my heart goes out to them.
But hey, remember we're getting a 3D anniversary special that 0.5% of the fans will be watching. I wonder how much extra it cost shooting in 3D? Would it have been enough to have produced more 2D material? ie a longer special or a 2 parter even. God, how we can wish.
But please, Davros, don't shout too hard. If they get wind that some fans really believe that producing 2 episodes a year is so bloody great they may try it every year. But hey, don't worry, you'll still have books and conventions, just like we did in the 90's.
My first post was very aggressive and may have offended some posters, in the same manner that I feel offended by being referred to as having drooling rants inside my head etc.
However, I am SHOCKED that the general response to my posts is "that's not the general feeling at all!" -- Have these posters been to GB recently? Or for instance nyder, we both know that if I were to respond to your post by saying "I am glad of anything who related in the 50th anniversary year, and anything produced this year (even if we get it in non-anniversary years anyway), will undoubtedly be linked to the anniversary to make it even more special..." -- I would be shouted down and ridiculed in the same way that others feel I have ridiculed and shouted them down -- THAT's hypocrisy for you.
And the punchline is that we could have arrived at this point far faster if I were to use the words "sense of entitlement" -- which I didn't want to use because these days they are basically the starting point for a forum wide witch hunt of anyone who shares the same view.
Btw thank you for noting that I am not usually this aggressive, I doo feel hurt by the suggestion/ implication from some replies that I usually am. My main issue is that I prefer this forum for discussion -- it is usually far less heated here than on GB, but GB has all the spoilers so what are you gonna do? On GB the pessimists rule, and anyone who dares show a shred of positivity is immediately gunned down by the forum elitsts who denounce them as not knowing what they are talking about. This thread, whilst perfectly innocent of this, was the straw that broke the camels back and sent me over the edge, resulting in my first post. I apologise for this, but would also like to say that at the time it felt like a much more expressive way of posting my views, worry and frustration with GB than simply using 3 words that were bound to cause more disruption.
but that is my point we was told we would get doctor who stuff all through the year
We may only be getting a trickle now, but we will get more. The Regenerations DVD set is the latest thing they have come out with, and yes I agree it is a shameless money-spinner, a waste of cash that I won't be buying anytime soon. However, they claim it is to encourage people to view the classic series, and introduce people to the DVD range who may not have bought it before. Whether or not you believe them, if it does that for even 1 person it's worth it -- the more people we convert to DW the better :D
My first post was very aggressive and may have offended some posters, in the same manner that I feel offended by being referred to as having drooling rants inside my head etc.
However, I am SHOCKED that the general response to my posts is "that's not the general feeling at all!" -- Have these posters been to GB recently? Or for instance nyder, we both know that if I were to respond to your post by saying "I am glad of anything who related in the 50th anniversary year, and anything produced this year (even if we get it in non-anniversary years anyway), will undoubtedly be linked to the anniversary to make it even more special..." -- I would be shouted down and ridiculed in the same way that others feel I have ridiculed and shouted them down -- THAT's hypocrisy for you.
And the punchline is that we could have arrived at this point far faster if I were to use the words "sense of entitlement" -- which I didn't want to use because these days they are basically the starting point for a forum wide witch hunt of anyone who shares the same view.
Btw thank you for noting that I am not usually this aggressive, I doo feel hurt by the suggestion/ implication from some replies that I usually am. My main issue is that I prefer this forum for discussion -- it is usually far less heated here than on GB, but GB has all the spoilers so what are you gonna do? On GB the pessimists rule, and anyone who dares show a shred of positivity is immediately gunned down by the forum elitsts who denounce them as not knowing what they are talking about. This thread, whilst perfectly innocent of this, was the straw that broke the camels back and sent me over the edge, resulting in my first post. I apologise for this, but would also like to say that at the time it felt like a much more expressive way of posting my views, worry and frustration with GB than simply using 3 words that were bound to cause more disruption.
Now you've quite confused me Davros. Why are you expressing your frustration about GB and GB posters on a DS forum? I've no idea what people say on there and nor shall I ever because I don't approve of forums that you have to join to read. The whole thing smacks of self importance if you ask me. In the words of the great Groucho Marx:
I don't want to belong to any club that will accept people like me as a member.
It was basically getting on my nerves, and tbh whilst DS is more pleasant, the attitude does crop up from time to time, and the whole who-is-shouting-down-who argument gets very tiresome. It all adds up
Fair enough, but the thread's topic is why there's been almost sod all done specfically for the 50th anniversary, especially as it was supposed to be 'taking over the TV', or whatever BS Moffat came out with.
It was basically getting on my nerves, and tbh whilst DS is more pleasant, the attitude does crop up from time to time, and the whole who-is-shouting-down-who argument gets very tiresome. It all adds up
Having seen how heated things got round here at times while series 7b was airing I dread to think how bad things get on GB
I had to Google Marcus Wilson to find out who he is. Does that make me a bad person?
Not at all. I wasn't deliberately trying to be all tingramretro about my vastly superior knowledge. I just couldn't think of another Doctor Who person called "Marc"... off top of head
Having seen how heated things got round here at times while series 7b was airing I dread to think how bad things get on GB
Gallifrey Base is basically the forum Doctor Who fans go to to moan about Doctor Who and other Doctor Who fans.
And yeah, the general attitude on there (well, specifically in the Infinite Quest (future Doctor Who) section) can be pretty horrendous at times. And I know that Davros is a member there*, so even though it's wrong I can sympathise with him conflating that DW forum with this DW forum.
Thankfully this DW forum is generally much nicer.
*If it's so horrible why would anyone be a member there? Well, they're pretty much the first group to get spoilers (though the spoiler thread at the moment is nothing but a big argument about what constitutes CGI...) and occasionally there's some reasoned discussion.
On GB the pessimists rule, and anyone who dares show a shred of positivity is immediately gunned down by the forum elitsts who denounce them as not knowing what they are talking about.
That's about as far from the truth as you can get.
Anyone on GB who posts anything even the slightest bit negative or critical, (hell even pointing out that the ratings have dipped very, very slightly from the past is enough) will be abused and bullied by a group of people who think they control the place (I could list their names for you if you like), whose goal is to drive anything but blind positivity from the forums.
I had a little private drinking game about who would use the phrase "sense of entitlement".
Now it's been used I can get my whisky out and have a dram.:)
@ davros, sorry, but I don't think you've got a leg to stand on. Unless the BBC pull something out of the hat as November approaches, they have let us down badly.
I am one who thinks DW is primarily a TV programme. I don't read comics or DW books, listen to audios or attend conventions. So if it's not on TV then, basically, it's a dead loss.
Unfortunately it would be irresponsible for the BBC to fund Doctor Who more than it does any of it's other dramas just to keep up with fan expectations.
I'm not sure why they are only making one or two episodes this year but i'm almost certain it's outside of the producers control, maybe that's why they split the series so there wasn't an even bigger gap from the end of Series 7 till the 50th.
I reckon it's all down to cost and having an olympics and jubilee to fund worldwide coverage of in the same year probably took it's toll a little bit.
I've decided to just appreciate what we've got, I love Sherlock as do others but there is only 3 episodes of that every 2-3 years so it could be a lot worst for Doctor Who.
For me Doctor Who is more important than most things but what were those who are disappointed wanting?
Moffats comment was stupid indeed, I am not denying that but aside from his typically bad efforts at PR what would equate to enough for those that are disappointed?
Lets be realistic here. This isn't an event on a par with the Olympics...well it is for us but not generally speaking.
I wanted a few showings of classic episodes. A decent documentary of feature length. The Gatiss drama. And a movie length Anniversary episode. We might still get all that!
I will be disappointed to if all we get is a fifty minute special and a half arsed clips/talking rent a gob BBC 3 documentary alongside the Gatiss program. But I am hopeful.
Unfortunately it would be irresponsible for the BBC to fund Doctor Who more than it does any of it's other dramas just to keep up with fan expectations.
I'm not sure why they are only making one or two episodes this year but i'm almost certain it's outside of the producers control, maybe that's why they split the series so there wasn't an even bigger gap from the end of Series 7 till the 50th.
I reckon it's all down to cost and having an olympics and jubilee to fund worldwide coverage of in the same year probably took it's toll a little bit.
I've decided to just appreciate what we've got, I love Sherlock as do others but there is only 3 episodes of that every 2-3 years so it could be a lot worst for Doctor Who.
We know the reasons for the Sherlock delay. We weren't promised anything so we know where we stand. It's not any sort of special year for Sherlock.
Who is asking for more than other dramas?
I do think the Happiness Patrol tend to a) spectacularly miss the point and b) be a bit too ready to let the BBC (and Moffat) off the hook.
For me Doctor Who is more important than most things but what were those who are disappointed wanting?
Moffats comment was stupid indeed, I am not denying that but aside from his typically bad efforts at PR what would equate to enough for those that are disappointed?
Lets be realistic here. This isn't an event on a par with the Olympics...well it is for us but not generally speaking.
I wanted a few showings of classic episodes. A decent documentary of feature length. The Gatiss drama. And a movie length Anniversary episode. We might still get all that!
I will be disappointed to if all we get is a fifty minute special and a half arsed clips/talking rent a gob BBC 3 documentary alongside the Gatiss program. But I am hopeful.
I want the same as you. But no one at the BBC has hinted we will be getting it, as yet. So I am not hopeful
I want the same as you. But no one at the BBC has hinted we will be getting it, as yet. So I am not hopeful
(I would be delighted to be wrong).
Yeah me to. I fear the documentary is a non starter. And instead if anything we will get the dreaded BBC3 New Who clips show where Radio 1 DJs and minor panel show comedians are fed scripted lines like 'Remember that moment when like Rose was all like on the beach and crying and stuff! That was well emo. I nearly had a proper cry. Brilliant!'. Urggh.
I must add that while I buy a fair amount of merchandise and enjoy the books I am afraid that doesn't count for me. You can have all the Big Finish Audios you want but that its not the same. As Granny said DW is a TV show. The rest is delicious garnish.
We know the reasons for the Sherlock delay. We weren't promised anything so we know where we stand. It's not any sort of special year for Sherlock.
Who is asking for more than other dramas?
I do think the Happiness Patrol tend to a) spectacularly miss the point and b) be a bit too ready to let the BBC (and Moffat) off the hook.
Most dramas are capped with 6-8 episodes airing a year, we're just used to 14 a year. So claiming we are not getting enough because we had 6 last year and 8 this year (so far...2 more to come) is asking for more than other dramas.
I don't think it's about letting people off the hook, the question is why are they on a hook on the first place???
Because Moffat made a comment a year or so back saying that he is planning the 50th year and it involves more Who on TV than ever?
I suspect he probably was expecting the BBC to recognise the 50th and was planning this year to be an all out Doctor Who-gasm (sorry I can't think of a less crude way of saying that now I wrote it that way) all over the BBC, then the higher up's told him their plans/budget and it wasn't much higher than the normal budget.
It's all about mis-communication, one person saying one thing at the planning stage which doesn't turn out to be the end result and another saying nothing at all about it. Leaving people not sure what's going on. They should be working together.
Moffat does have a tendency to just talk and then pick up the pieces afterwards. He should just let the BBC and thier PR Teams deal with all of that stuff. However if that's what he genuinely thought the plans were at the time then he was telling the truth when he spoke.
He's as much of a Doctor Who fan than most of us so probably isn't ecstatic about the way this has gone down either, it does seem very reigned in from what he was speaking about in the past.
Most dramas are capped with 6-8 episodes airing a year, we're just used to 14 a year. So claiming we are not getting enough because we had 6 last year and 8 this year (so far...2 more to come) is asking for more than other dramas.
I don't think it's about letting people off the hook, the question is why are they on a hook on the first place???
Because Moffat made a comment a year or so back saying that he is planning the 50th year and it involves more Who on TV than ever?
I suspect he probably was expecting the BBC to recognise the 50th and was planning this year to be an all out Doctor Who-gasm (sorry I can't think of a less crude way of saying that now I wrote it that way) all over the BBC, then the higher up's told him their plans/budget and it wasn't much higher than the normal budget.
It's all about mis-communication, one person saying one thing at the planning stage which doesn't turn out to be the end result and another saying nothing at all about it. Leaving people not sure what's going on. They should be working together.
Moffat does have a tendency to just talk and then pick up the pieces afterwards. He should just let the BBC and thier PR Teams deal with all of that stuff. However if that's what he genuinely thought the plans were at the time then he was telling the truth when he spoke.
He's as much of a Doctor Who fan than most of us so probably isn't ecstatic about the way this has gone down either, it does seem very reigned in from what he was speaking about in the past.
There's also been comments at least twice from various people high up at the BBC that they want their celebrations of Doctor Who to be inline with their coverage of the Jubilee / Olympics last year, so I remain cautiously optimistic about what will happen in November.
Comments
I didn't say it was, I said there was stuff to look forward to.
I'm not getting into an argument over what we're not getting this year. I'd rather focus on some of the stuff we are getting.
Hey Davros, Long time etc....
Wow, you're not usually so aggressive. Anyway, I'll be brave.
1 - yes there are conventions - we get them every year. (plus they cost a lot and only a tiny percentage of fans will be able to attend any)
2 - yes there are books - we get books every year. (plus they cost extra)
3 - the prom - how many Doctor Who proms have there been in none anniversary years? several....
The question is really- what have we had that is specifically for the anniversary year?
Not a lot.
11 episodes less than a normal (13 ep series + Christmas special) year. (Yes I know they showed 8 others but we all know that they were from last year - which only had five eps)
So minus 11 episodes + 1 docudrama
WOW
The production crew must be totally knackered with all that work. Who knows, they may even be given a year off after working so hard in 2012. Imagine the pressure, having to produce a whole two episodes. Gosh, my heart goes out to them.
But hey, remember we're getting a 3D anniversary special that 0.5% of the fans will be watching. I wonder how much extra it cost shooting in 3D? Would it have been enough to have produced more 2D material? ie a longer special or a 2 parter even. God, how we can wish.
But please, Davros, don't shout too hard. If they get wind that some fans really believe that producing 2 episodes a year is so bloody great they may try it every year. But hey, don't worry, you'll still have books and conventions, just like we did in the 90's.
Fair enough, but the thread's topic is why there's been almost sod all done specfically for the 50th anniversary, especially as it was supposed to be 'taking over the TV', or whatever BS Moffat came out with.
To be fair, what I reckon actually happened was something like this.
1 - The BBC decided they needed to cut back on costs but didn't want to admit it.
2 - Moffat promised more DW than ever before and also that DW would take over television. He did this to attempt to shame the BBC into changing it's mind.
3 - The BBC ignored Moffat's promises knowing that he would look a prat when we realised the truth.
It would have been a lot easier for everyone if the BBC had been up-front from the start. They could have made a public statement to the effect that they have to cut costs for a couple of years promising to return to the 13 episode series format in 2014. That way we'd have all known how things stood and wouldn't have been disappointed with false promises.
Basically crap you won't bother looking up on youtube
but that is my point we was told we would get doctor who stuff all through the year
I had to Google Marcus Wilson to find out who he is. Does that make me a bad person?
My first post was very aggressive and may have offended some posters, in the same manner that I feel offended by being referred to as having drooling rants inside my head etc.
However, I am SHOCKED that the general response to my posts is "that's not the general feeling at all!" -- Have these posters been to GB recently? Or for instance nyder, we both know that if I were to respond to your post by saying "I am glad of anything who related in the 50th anniversary year, and anything produced this year (even if we get it in non-anniversary years anyway), will undoubtedly be linked to the anniversary to make it even more special..." -- I would be shouted down and ridiculed in the same way that others feel I have ridiculed and shouted them down -- THAT's hypocrisy for you.
And the punchline is that we could have arrived at this point far faster if I were to use the words "sense of entitlement" -- which I didn't want to use because these days they are basically the starting point for a forum wide witch hunt of anyone who shares the same view.
Btw thank you for noting that I am not usually this aggressive, I doo feel hurt by the suggestion/ implication from some replies that I usually am. My main issue is that I prefer this forum for discussion -- it is usually far less heated here than on GB, but GB has all the spoilers so what are you gonna do? On GB the pessimists rule, and anyone who dares show a shred of positivity is immediately gunned down by the forum elitsts who denounce them as not knowing what they are talking about. This thread, whilst perfectly innocent of this, was the straw that broke the camels back and sent me over the edge, resulting in my first post. I apologise for this, but would also like to say that at the time it felt like a much more expressive way of posting my views, worry and frustration with GB than simply using 3 words that were bound to cause more disruption.
We may only be getting a trickle now, but we will get more. The Regenerations DVD set is the latest thing they have come out with, and yes I agree it is a shameless money-spinner, a waste of cash that I won't be buying anytime soon. However, they claim it is to encourage people to view the classic series, and introduce people to the DVD range who may not have bought it before. Whether or not you believe them, if it does that for even 1 person it's worth it -- the more people we convert to DW the better
Now you've quite confused me Davros. Why are you expressing your frustration about GB and GB posters on a DS forum? I've no idea what people say on there and nor shall I ever because I don't approve of forums that you have to join to read. The whole thing smacks of self importance if you ask me. In the words of the great Groucho Marx:
Thought I would never get the chance!
*takes a drink*
Having seen how heated things got round here at times while series 7b was airing I dread to think how bad things get on GB
Not at all. I wasn't deliberately trying to be all tingramretro about my vastly superior knowledge. I just couldn't think of another Doctor Who person called "Marc"... off top of head
Gallifrey Base is basically the forum Doctor Who fans go to to moan about Doctor Who and other Doctor Who fans.
And yeah, the general attitude on there (well, specifically in the Infinite Quest (future Doctor Who) section) can be pretty horrendous at times. And I know that Davros is a member there*, so even though it's wrong I can sympathise with him conflating that DW forum with this DW forum.
Thankfully this DW forum is generally much nicer.
*If it's so horrible why would anyone be a member there? Well, they're pretty much the first group to get spoilers (though the spoiler thread at the moment is nothing but a big argument about what constitutes CGI...) and occasionally there's some reasoned discussion.
That's about as far from the truth as you can get.
Anyone on GB who posts anything even the slightest bit negative or critical, (hell even pointing out that the ratings have dipped very, very slightly from the past is enough) will be abused and bullied by a group of people who think they control the place (I could list their names for you if you like), whose goal is to drive anything but blind positivity from the forums.
I had a little private drinking game about who would use the phrase "sense of entitlement".
Now it's been used I can get my whisky out and have a dram.:)
@ davros, sorry, but I don't think you've got a leg to stand on. Unless the BBC pull something out of the hat as November approaches, they have let us down badly.
I am one who thinks DW is primarily a TV programme. I don't read comics or DW books, listen to audios or attend conventions. So if it's not on TV then, basically, it's a dead loss.
I'm not sure why they are only making one or two episodes this year but i'm almost certain it's outside of the producers control, maybe that's why they split the series so there wasn't an even bigger gap from the end of Series 7 till the 50th.
I reckon it's all down to cost and having an olympics and jubilee to fund worldwide coverage of in the same year probably took it's toll a little bit.
I've decided to just appreciate what we've got, I love Sherlock as do others but there is only 3 episodes of that every 2-3 years so it could be a lot worst for Doctor Who.
Moffats comment was stupid indeed, I am not denying that but aside from his typically bad efforts at PR what would equate to enough for those that are disappointed?
Lets be realistic here. This isn't an event on a par with the Olympics...well it is for us but not generally speaking.
I wanted a few showings of classic episodes. A decent documentary of feature length. The Gatiss drama. And a movie length Anniversary episode. We might still get all that!
I will be disappointed to if all we get is a fifty minute special and a half arsed clips/talking rent a gob BBC 3 documentary alongside the Gatiss program. But I am hopeful.
We know the reasons for the Sherlock delay. We weren't promised anything so we know where we stand. It's not any sort of special year for Sherlock.
Who is asking for more than other dramas?
I do think the Happiness Patrol tend to a) spectacularly miss the point and b) be a bit too ready to let the BBC (and Moffat) off the hook.
I want the same as you. But no one at the BBC has hinted we will be getting it, as yet. So I am not hopeful
(I would be delighted to be wrong).
Yeah me to. I fear the documentary is a non starter. And instead if anything we will get the dreaded BBC3 New Who clips show where Radio 1 DJs and minor panel show comedians are fed scripted lines like 'Remember that moment when like Rose was all like on the beach and crying and stuff! That was well emo. I nearly had a proper cry. Brilliant!'. Urggh.
Most dramas are capped with 6-8 episodes airing a year, we're just used to 14 a year. So claiming we are not getting enough because we had 6 last year and 8 this year (so far...2 more to come) is asking for more than other dramas.
I don't think it's about letting people off the hook, the question is why are they on a hook on the first place???
Because Moffat made a comment a year or so back saying that he is planning the 50th year and it involves more Who on TV than ever?
I suspect he probably was expecting the BBC to recognise the 50th and was planning this year to be an all out Doctor Who-gasm (sorry I can't think of a less crude way of saying that now I wrote it that way) all over the BBC, then the higher up's told him their plans/budget and it wasn't much higher than the normal budget.
It's all about mis-communication, one person saying one thing at the planning stage which doesn't turn out to be the end result and another saying nothing at all about it. Leaving people not sure what's going on. They should be working together.
Moffat does have a tendency to just talk and then pick up the pieces afterwards. He should just let the BBC and thier PR Teams deal with all of that stuff. However if that's what he genuinely thought the plans were at the time then he was telling the truth when he spoke.
He's as much of a Doctor Who fan than most of us so probably isn't ecstatic about the way this has gone down either, it does seem very reigned in from what he was speaking about in the past.
There's also been comments at least twice from various people high up at the BBC that they want their celebrations of Doctor Who to be inline with their coverage of the Jubilee / Olympics last year, so I remain cautiously optimistic about what will happen in November.