What will be the effect of the 2016 Hiatus?
stocklen
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What do you think the effect of the 2016 Hiatus will be? Good or Bad?
It seems like there has been a change in viewership over the last couple of years with Dr Who.
Personally, I have no issue with Peter Capaldi’s 12th Doctor - and this thread is not about his relative merits or otherwise. Although he isnt my ‘favourite’ he certainly is OK in the role (as they all have been in my opinion). Im not one for bashing certain actors or incarnations as they all bring something different to the role. I will always continue watching regardless.
For me, the introduction of the 12th doctor was a slight misstep as I think for a lot of ‘casual viewers’ they dialled up the ‘inaccessible’ element a bit too far and a lot of people seem to have given up and not come back. I know several people who used to watch religiously but now have completely stopped. The 9th series was a lot better and made him a bit lighter in places (though I wasnt a fan of the scruffy t-shirt-y and hoody look) and the Husbands of River Song was positively light hearted compared to his character in recent series. He is now 'the doctor' for me... but that took a long time!! usually they settle in after a couple of episodes.
But I digress…..
Like it or not - from a ratings perspective things are not quite as strong as they once were.
So, what will this 1 year (or 15 month) break mean for the series…
Will it lose even more viewers as the malaise has set in - with even fewer bothering to come back now.
Or, will it be a case of ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder’ and people will return in their droves having missed it for so long.
Im hoping it will be the latter - but the problem is there seems little prospect of grabbing those who we have lost - series 10 will be more of the same - same Doctor, same showrunner, but new companion… is the new companion enough?
Im happy to see it return to the spring, and i think that would ordinarily help the viewing figures but it seems so few people watch ‘live’ anymore and there is an irreversible trend to lower viewing figures anyway.
So to summarise - the year long Hiatus:
Pros
Arguably will end up in a better time slot, and better time of year.
For some, they will be clamouring for more by then so will be tuning in.
The new companion might be a big enough pull to keep people interested (introduced in the Christmas Special 2016 perhaps).
Theres bound to be a lot of publicity for the new series, new timeslot etc. Im pretty sure the BBC have no interest in Dr Who failing at all.
Cons
Same Doctor (sorry, Peter!)
Same Showrunner (sorry, Steven!)
Long delay between seasons - might be the final nail in the coffin for people who stuck with series 9 and weren’t too impressed. They wont bother to come back at all after such a gap.
I do think that Steven Moffat is staying one year too long…. especially with the Hiatus its a perfect opportunity for things to return after a break with a fresh new feeling and direction (if not a new Doctor).
I think it would be very different if series 10, in the spring of 2017 was, Chris Chibnall’s first year as showrunner, with a brand new Doctor… but its not.
It seems like there has been a change in viewership over the last couple of years with Dr Who.
Personally, I have no issue with Peter Capaldi’s 12th Doctor - and this thread is not about his relative merits or otherwise. Although he isnt my ‘favourite’ he certainly is OK in the role (as they all have been in my opinion). Im not one for bashing certain actors or incarnations as they all bring something different to the role. I will always continue watching regardless.
For me, the introduction of the 12th doctor was a slight misstep as I think for a lot of ‘casual viewers’ they dialled up the ‘inaccessible’ element a bit too far and a lot of people seem to have given up and not come back. I know several people who used to watch religiously but now have completely stopped. The 9th series was a lot better and made him a bit lighter in places (though I wasnt a fan of the scruffy t-shirt-y and hoody look) and the Husbands of River Song was positively light hearted compared to his character in recent series. He is now 'the doctor' for me... but that took a long time!! usually they settle in after a couple of episodes.
But I digress…..
Like it or not - from a ratings perspective things are not quite as strong as they once were.
So, what will this 1 year (or 15 month) break mean for the series…
Will it lose even more viewers as the malaise has set in - with even fewer bothering to come back now.
Or, will it be a case of ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder’ and people will return in their droves having missed it for so long.
Im hoping it will be the latter - but the problem is there seems little prospect of grabbing those who we have lost - series 10 will be more of the same - same Doctor, same showrunner, but new companion… is the new companion enough?
Im happy to see it return to the spring, and i think that would ordinarily help the viewing figures but it seems so few people watch ‘live’ anymore and there is an irreversible trend to lower viewing figures anyway.
So to summarise - the year long Hiatus:
Pros
Arguably will end up in a better time slot, and better time of year.
For some, they will be clamouring for more by then so will be tuning in.
The new companion might be a big enough pull to keep people interested (introduced in the Christmas Special 2016 perhaps).
Theres bound to be a lot of publicity for the new series, new timeslot etc. Im pretty sure the BBC have no interest in Dr Who failing at all.
Cons
Same Doctor (sorry, Peter!)
Same Showrunner (sorry, Steven!)
Long delay between seasons - might be the final nail in the coffin for people who stuck with series 9 and weren’t too impressed. They wont bother to come back at all after such a gap.
I do think that Steven Moffat is staying one year too long…. especially with the Hiatus its a perfect opportunity for things to return after a break with a fresh new feeling and direction (if not a new Doctor).
I think it would be very different if series 10, in the spring of 2017 was, Chris Chibnall’s first year as showrunner, with a brand new Doctor… but its not.
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Comments
And it'll just be more of the same when it comes back anyway. Other than by avid fans, I really doubt the show will be missed at all.
If the next series begins in January 2017, that's only 4 months later than usual. Even it doesn't start until March that's only a 6 month delay. And the Christmas episode will plug the gap to some extent.
I'm not happy about such a delay, but it's not like the series is being delayed by a year. Just by some months.
Quality-wise though Moffat has a bit of extra time to deliver a fantastic final series and with Capaldi in the lead role I'm sure it will be worth the wait.
I think anyone who would have tuned in for series 9 is probably going to tune in for series 10, whenever it might air. Doctor Who's been back for ages, and it's been doing the same thing for a while now - why is anyone in the UK suddenly going to say, "It's been on for over ten years now but I really think it's about time I got round to watching Doctor Who?" I think the fickle audience has more or less gone, now - but what we're seeing in the ratings is an admirable and enviable number of loyal viewers.
I think if Chibnall started right after 2016 in 2017 on a BBC Saturday night, spring where it should be. That it would of had plenty of time to refresh and come back for all new start and hype and trailer and that would get more people to be like you know what might aswell check this out like in 2010.
I don't really understand why Doctor Who would be any different, or why there is an ever-present expectation of a series every calendar year.
BTW, it's not really a hiatus (in terms of it being a break in continuity of a work or series). It's simply a longer period of time between series (as suffered/endured by other programmes).
But the last big gap was filled by 4 specials. This time its just the one christmas special.
And, also we weren't in this 'decline' in viewing figures and in an 'era' where sadly and demonstrably some of the audience are switching off and not coming back.
So, an extended gap between series under the current circumstances will have some kind of consequence.
That fact that it will have been off screen for twelve months means that effectively it is.
Personally I don't think it will do the show any favors. Those who left because they didn't like Capaldi won't be spurred to return; if they've made do without DW for a year then there is no sudden need to watch it again. I don't expect figures to pick up at all for series ten, however, provided that series eleven is promoted in the right way and features a new Doctor then I think it could claw back a lot of viewers.
Yes. I think Capaldi will leave with Moffat.
(Back in the day it would often take me a few years to realise that a show I liked had been cancelled!)
But the show is off air for nine months of every year anyway and no-one calls that a nine month hiatus do they?
I'm not really bothered what people call the break, it just seems odd to me, to refer to what is only a 3 or 4 month delay in production and broadcast as a year long hiatus. Seems a bit of an exaggeration to me, that's all...
Good point Michael. Most people who will watch Doctor Who will notice when it's back on. They may idly think that it's been a while since they last saw it, but I seriously doubt that the vast majority of viewers will be bothered.
The same applies to the change of showrunner. It's a big deal to a tiny minority of hard core fans, but I bet that 99% of those who watch simply couldn't care less, and probably won't even notice at all.
I don't think the hiatus will matter that much. Certainly it won't build interest in the show. That's going to be season 11 in 2018!
I think there is a mainstream vieweship you can depend upon to secure healthy viewing figures/viewer share. Those people matter far more than the relatively small number of people online that talk about the show, and even with Series 9 hitting a bit of a decline it wasn't a devastating blow. The show still performed healthily enough, and a new slot with some more regular better scheduling may yet only do good.
Aside from a very decent first trailer, Series 9 simply lacked strong promotion as well. Subsequent trailers tactlessly described the show as "same old, same old", whilst there wasn't even the usual lead cast/TARDIS promo shot released for the series. Better promotion could help a great deal, and may be a bit easier if absence makes the heart grow fonder and people are glad to see the show back upon its return. Judging by the very good ratings for the Christmas special this year as well, I don't think the hiatus is very much to worry about in terms of the welfare of the show.
And i imagine season 10 to have better advertising than season 9 which was simply non existent.
Most of the worst moments have been the product of other writers (my God, the egg-moon business, the travesty in the forest and the completely inexplicable Sleep No More) and I suspect exhaustion has set in when it comes to gate-keeping. On the other hand he clearly has had a hand in setting the morbid tone and byzantine plotting. Lets hope that after the ever darkening winters of 2014 and 2015 we will have a Spring-like revived and optimistic Who in early 2017.
For those that make the show, they also deserve a long break.
Because it ran just fine, like clockwork with a Series every year for 26 years, which is the vast majority of years and seasons that the show has been running. The production was so consistent and predictable (with the first six seasons each having over 40 episodes apiece!) for so long. And, then the first four Series ran just like clockwork as well. The inability of Doctor Who production to be anywhere near this dependable in the Moffat era (RTD had Doctor Who, Torchwood, Sarah Jane, etc.. and they ran with amazing clockwork) just shows how poorly he and/or the BBC manage the show these days.
That's not really true about Classic Who, though, is it? What with the Colin Baker cancellation/hiatus fiasco, the switch to weeknights, to twice a week, to weekends again, back to weeknights, the changes in which weeknights it's on, the complete lack of advertising in later seasons...
Makes me feel a bit embarrassed at my own 'glass half empty' view.
Dont get me wrong, I will watch again - i will never stop watching I'm certain. However the 18 month break from the end of season 9 to the start of season 10 is a pretty long one (ignoring the christmas special of course).
And yes, people deserve a rest etc etc - and its not as if the series is in mothballs - production is starting in the next few months - a companion will be cast and revealed etc.
Although the 'die hards' will return in spring 2017, I just hope that the casual viewers do too.
I foresee a big advertising push - emphasising a lighter hearted 12th Doctor to try to lure back lost viewers.
Imagine, though, that series 10 is even lower in the ratings than series 9. The press will be all over that fact that viewing figures are declining. Although Chris Chibnall's 11th series is presumably guaranteed, I wonder what changes he would be forced to make in order to make it more appealing to the masses (shudder... ;-))
This is actually good news for the show.
1. A late spring filming will mean consistent weather which will be better for the cast and crew.
2. The slot shouldn't change much in the sprint as the BBC lost The Voice to ITV
3. It's a 3 month gap
4. Longer gap means better writing
More importantly, by switching to spring, we can avoid the ludicrously late and variable timeslots that I'm sure are a major reason for the drop in casual viewers. Doctor Who is a family show, and needs to start at 7pm at the latest.
Fair enough but....
1. Perhaps - but with unpredictable UK weather this can never be a guaranteed thing whatever time of year they chose to do the outside filming.
2. Not sure what that sentence even means!?
3. No its not. its a 6 month gap. Take from when the new series starts.... If a new series started the same time each year there would be a 9 month gap from the end of the last to the beginning of the next. This is a 15 month gap (glass half full again )
4. Well theres no guarantee of that at all is there!! We might well end up with another planet-wide forest that appears overnight and disappears with no structural damage - or the moon is an egg and the newborn thingy poos out another egg the same size as the old moon.....
The fact that the BBC has lost The Voice next year will free up some scheduling slots.