I've been vocal in the past on my opinions of the BBC's treatment of Doctor Who but I'll say it again.
There really is no reason why series 7 was split into 2. It's insulting to the fans for the BBC to keep spouting out what seems to be lies about the state of the show. At the end of the day Doctor Who gets record viewing figures, sells across the Globe and probably makes them God knows how much in merchandise so it should be high up on the BBC's priorities.
What lies?
The show is so high up the BBC's priorities that they're not running the cast and crew into the ground.
The BBC cite production cuts, yet order a full series of Merlin?!? I know Merlin has fans too, but the same number as Doctor Who? Also look at the names announced for the new Neil Gaiman episode, hardly cheap. It seems to me the BBC know the fans will watch, no matter what, so treat them badly.
The BBC have never cited production cuts. Merlin is more of an ensemble show with far fewer locations. The active 'fans' are a very small percentage of the audience. Nobody's been treated badly.
People also mention the actors/crew suffering burnout. What a load of rubbish. There are people who would give and arm and a leg to work on the show, let alone star in it. Plus the actors these days have it easy if you compare them to the Hartnell/Troughton era were the job really was demanding. I don't think this is the case though.
Specious. So the criteria for working on the show should be 'can you guarantee 14 episodes a year'? The old schedule nearly killed Hartnell, even when he got to disappear in the middle of a story for a holiday. TV production is also different in every single way now.
I know we should be grateful for any Doctor Who we get, especially after 50 years, but I really cannot see any valid reason for this split, and essential loss of an entire series. Especially when other shows suffer no losses, and the BBC gives money to fund some right crap shows on BBC3.
We've not lost anything that was ever announced. BBC Three's budget is entirely separate from BBC One, and is being cut more than prime time drama.
Oh shush. Next year looks like we'll have 8 eps of Series 7b, at least one 50th Special, maybe the first 5 or so of Series 8, an Xmas special, Gatiss's BBC4 drama, countless audios, books, toys etc etc etc
There's been a weird gap obviously, maybe something financial that we won't know about until Moffat and co spill the beans in a few years time. And maybe Sherlock really has created this gap. Then the huge production team changes from Series 6 to 7 may have caused a gap.
Unless people are careful to separate what has been said by the BBC, and what has been unfounded and unconfirmed, speculation and rumour, I don't see how claims of 'lying' can be substantiated. 'Confused', certainly, even 'secretive', definitely.
Oh shush. Next year looks like we'll have 8 eps of Series 7b, at least one 50th Special, maybe the first 5 or so of Series 8, an Xmas special, Gatiss's BBC4 drama, countless audios, books, toys etc etc etc
There's been a weird gap obviously, maybe something financial that we won't know about until Moffat and co spill the beans in a few years time. And maybe Sherlock really has created this gap. Then the huge production team changes from Series 6 to 7 may have caused a gap.
All this whinging... for what?
Here here.
Even if we only get the eight episodes we know we're getting and one special in November, I refuse to be annoyed at Doctor Who being both on air and one of the BBC’s most successful shows for its 50th anniversary.
I meant that the BBC were not producing spin but simply lying to us.
My post isn't really 'guesswork' the only DW episodes slated for 2013 are the 8 episodes, anniversary special and Christmas special.
I know a lot of people on here believe that some magical official series 8 will appear but 7B hasn't even begun filming yet so they still need to film 8 episodes and 2 specials so please don't kid yourself that your getting any more than that. That's not guesswork, just common sense.
Hasn't even begun filming? Where have you been living these past few months, they are almost finished! :cool:
If someone could throw in an "It's more than we had between 1990 and 2004" I'll have a full line on my Bingo card.
Ha ha! The thing is - you're right.
Some people are getting in a huge strop over this, as if they have some sort of right to watch 13 new episodes of Who every year, plus a Christmas special. No-one has that right.
While we're doing cliched statements, I'll throw in 'It's Only A TV Show' - frankly we are lucky that it's being made at all. The BBC is under huge pressure to cut costs at every turn, but the writers, production team and stars are determined to deliver as much Doctor Who as is humanly possible while still retaining their sanity and health.
So, 7B, or series 8, whatever you want to call it, does it really matter? No. We shall see more Doctor Who when they've finished making more episodes. And after that we shall see some more, whenever those episodes get made. And that's it.
Moffat, Matt, the BBC, whoever is involved, do not owe us fans anything whatsoever. They are simply making a TV show, under increasingly difficult conditions, and we will get to see it when they are ready. That's it. And why should we expect anything more.
Me, I'm just grateful for any new Who. As a long standing fan I never thought it would come back after 1989, so anything we get these days is a bonus.
Unless people are careful to separate what has been said by the BBC, and what has been unfounded and unconfirmed, speculation and rumour, I don't see how claims of 'lying' can be substantiated. 'Confused', certainly, even 'secretive', definitely.
Steven Moffat very publicly refuted what the controller of BBC One said about it all. He said that what Cohen said was "unacceptable". If Moffat thought it unacceptable I don't see why others should pretend all was rosy.
While we're doing cliched statements, I'll throw in 'It's Only A TV Show' - frankly we are lucky that it's being made at all. The BBC is under huge pressure to cut costs at every turn, but the writers, production team and stars are determined to deliver as much Doctor Who as is humanly possible while still retaining their sanity and health.
I don't actually disagree with most of what you wrote, though a lot of it was Straw Man arguments against things (most) people aren't saying but this part is utter rubbish.
The BBC make a fortune off Doctor Who, so no, making it is not some charitable action on their part and no, we shouldn't be grateful for every scrap and crumb tossed our way.
Let me ask you a question; do you think the BBC wanted to find themselves in a position where there had only one series of the show to sell in two years, with the concurent loss in merchandising sales on top of that?
The series has been plagued with production problems since Moffat took over, exacerbated by the fact that he's incapable of working on two series at the same time, hence (as confirmed by the Controller of BBC1 himself) the split.
And rather than keeping their mouths shut or admitting the reality of the situation, the response from Cardiff has been spin and obfuscation.
The show is so high up the BBC's priorities that they're not running the cast and crew into the ground.
The BBC have never cited production cuts. Merlin is more of an ensemble show with far fewer locations. The active 'fans' are a very small percentage of the audience. Nobody's been treated badly.
Specious. So the criteria for working on the show should be 'can you guarantee 14 episodes a year'? The old schedule nearly killed Hartnell, even when he got to disappear in the middle of a story for a holiday. TV production is also different in every single way now.
We've not lost anything that was ever announced. BBC Three's budget is entirely separate from BBC One, and is being cut more than prime time drama.
Either Cohen gave an accurate reason or he didn't. Cohen was speaking the truth or Moffat was. They can't possibly both have been right. I don't like saying "lying", its a bit harsh. But Moffat had no problem saying it was "unacceptable" , "outrageous" and agreeing that he was being shafted.
The BBC did formally announce a full thirteen plus special series for 2012. This was gratefully received by people who had read the press story of there being less than a full series. The BBC had to retract that formal announcement of a full series in 2012 and clarify that there wouldn't be a full series run in 2012.
I don't think fans have been treated badly. It's nothing to do with us. But the BBC have cocked things up a bit for themselves. And decided to discuss it partly in public.
I really don't see how anyone can consider that the BBC has come out of this particularly well.
Imo, they got into trouble with production costs, cut back, put out a load of spin (or lies, if we are caling a spade a spade) about why the series must be split put out some more lies about how we'll be getting more DW than ever, when we are in fact getting less, (perhaps they think we can't add up. Well, in some cases they seem to be right), argued in public then backtracked etc etc.
Nebo and I were right about what we would get in 2012. I hope we'll get more than I expect to get in 2013, but I bet I'm right again. That would be 8 episodes of series 7. One or Two episodes for the anniversary and a Christmas special. Plus Gatiss' docu-drama, which, though I'm looking forward to, isn't actually DW.
Maybe they'll show some Classic Who as well. Other media doesn't count, (unless the EDAs are on the radio, of course.:D).
I had a long argument once on the broadcasting forum about why some people feel they must defend the BBC at all costs, when what they do sometimes seems idiotic and incompetent. I still don't get it. I don't hate the BBC, far from it, but why can't people face the fact that they make some really bad decisions?
No, of course making Doctor Who is not some sort of charity work, but as far as I can see, everyone who works on the show is extraordinarily dedicated to delivering the very best they can. Noticeably more so than on other tv shows. That's more what I was getting at, and it's the almost absurdly enormous expectations of fans that's actually causing the disappointment, rather than the series that we are actually getting.
However, stcoop, you raise an extremely interesting point about Who being a cash cow for the BBC. Have we ever seen actual figures for how much Doctor Who actually costs? And also how much does it actually generate in terms of revenue from sales, merchandising etc etc? And how much of this revenue is actually ploughed back into the programme itself?
The implication is always that the show is seen by the BBC bean counters as being very expensive, but does the revenue generated actually justify or outweigh the cost?
FWIW, I'm not happy with any little crumb of Who tossed our way. I too would like a full series every year if at all possible. But if it's not possible for all sorts of reasons (Moffat has spread himself too thin, budget squeezes, whatever the reason) then I don't see any point in moaning that we've somehow been cheated out of Doctor Who. We simply don't know the full behind the scenes story as to how this series is made, so we don't know the reasons why we are getting 7A, 7B, whatever. But then we don't really need to know. And also, I do agree that confusing, and contradictory, statements from the production team / BBC are not the slightest bit helpful. And we've had rather too many of these!
No specifics, I don't think, but I'm sure that not too long ago Moffat was talking about the merchandise profits making up what extra the BBC wasn't willing to put in.
However, stcoop, you raise an extremely interesting point about Who being a cash cow for the BBC. Have we ever seen actual figures for how much Doctor Who actually costs? And also how much does it actually generate in terms of revenue from sales, merchandising etc etc? And how much of this revenue is actually ploughed back into the programme itself?
In RTD's day the series received exactly the same budget as any other drama series and boosted that a bit with money from Canada, much as they do now with money from BBC America. They certainly don't get any special provision for CGI and Prostethic costs that other shows don't have, which is why they like to shoot as much as possibly on location and recycle the sets they do use. (How many times has the TARDIS corridor turned up in Series 6 & 7?)
You can can find the revenue figures in BBC Worldwide's annual statements where it comes out at the front along with Top Gear.
Money doesn't, actually can't, go directly into DW but all profits go to help run the BBC and fund the stuff that doesn't make the big bucks.
People seem to think I'm more angry than I actually am.
I am obviously grateful for Dr Who being around, as it wasn't for so long, however it is now, and it is also making a fortune for the Beeb and has a whole new era of fans to please as well us old timers. We shouldn't expect new Who every year but the reality is we were getting it. Every March/April since 2005 we had 13 episodes and everyone was happy. Yes there was a blip with the specials but this was advised to the fans and for the most part, we were all OK with it.
This time round though, no one can get the story straight so someone is lying to us. Yes it is a harsh word, but it is true. The BBC announced 13 episodes for 2012 which soon was changed to 5. Moff had some pretty strong feelings on it, but nothing was ever given as to 100% why the series was split.
Even if I hated Doctor Who, I'd still wonder what the hell was going on. From a business perspective you'd want as many episodes of one of your biggest selling shows out per year as possible. Why the hell do you think we had Torchwood and the Sarah Jane Adventures? More cash to milk out of a popular show thats why.
I guess what I really want is transparancy from the BBC. A simple "we need to take break due to x" would have been far better than this mish mash of stories and half truths we got. Even if 7a was made into 3 specials like in the Tennant era it would have been better than a series with a 6 month break. Series 7 could then have started in 2013 and no one would have been annoyed.
Either Cohen gave an accurate reason or he didn't. Cohen was speaking the truth or Moffat was. They can't possibly both have been right. I don't like saying "lying", its a bit harsh. But Moffat had no problem saying it was "unacceptable" , "outrageous" and agreeing that he was being shafted.
The BBC did formally announce a full thirteen plus special series for 2012. This was gratefully received by people who had read the press story of there being less than a full series. The BBC had to retract that formal announcement of a full series in 2012 and clarify that there wouldn't be a full series run in 2012.
I don't think fans have been treated badly. It's nothing to do with us. But the BBC have cocked things up a bit for themselves. And decided to discuss it partly in public.
A quick Google on this leads me to conclude:
Cohen was joking. Ill-advisedly, given that his words would be pored over by fans. Moffat was annoyed at BBC News taking Cohen out of context.
Private Eye said that the second half of series 6 wouldn't be ready in time for the end of 2011. (They were wrong.) They also said that there were only going to be four specials in 2012. (Also wrong.)
The BBC subsequently announced that full series 7 had been commisoned. They later clarified that "a good chunk" of them would show in 2012.
I don't know how defending the BBC in the face of a series of clear cock ups is supposed to help them. Surely better to admit they've had some problems and move on. Raking it all up with all this denial simply results in reminders of what actually happened. The formal announcement of a full 2012 series, the retraction of that, Cohen giving a reason, Moffat saying it was a lie, Moffat saying there would be more Who than ever before, the slow dripfeed of info about of what that actually means etc etc.
The BBC are famous for communicating very badly with the public. (As the editor of Newsnight and the new DG have recently reminded us.) Ironically Entwistle himself said that spin was a problem for the BBC and that he wants to see them improve in this area. When the DG himself says "this is something we get wrong" it's almost comical to see the lengths some BBC fans go to deny it.
I'm about as big a fan of the BBC it is,possible to get. I don't think it does them any favours to support them when they bullshit and obfuscate. There have been indications that the new management bought in to replace the previous Doctor Who production team are trying to communicate more effectively. Good luck to them.
Cohen was joking. Ill-advisedly, given that his words would be pored over by fans. Moffat was annoyed at BBC News taking Cohen out of context.
Private Eye said that the second half of series 6 wouldn't be ready in time for the end of 2011. (They were wrong.) They also said that there were only going to be four specials in 2012. (Also wrong.)
The BBC subsequently announced that full series 7 had been commisoned. They later clarified that "a good chunk" of them would show in 2012.
Nothing was taken out of context. Cohen was not joking. The audio recording of his words was posted online. The news story was accurate and given in context. Nothing had to be "pored over", it was accurately reported by the BBC news team and the full speech was posted on line and could be heard at ease by anyone. Moffat said the suggestion that Sherlock was getting in the way was "unacceptable". He was not complaining about the accuracy of the report.
I agree that Cohen's words were ill advised, but they were not a joke.
I agree that Cohen's words were ill advised, but they were not a joke.
They were also not official. This wasn't a press release, or a PR announcement. It's ridiculous to extrapolate anything other than a mistake out of this. It doesn't tell us anything about the politics behind the production of the show.
They were also not official. This wasn't a press release, or a PR announcement. It's ridiculous to extrapolate anything other than a mistake out of this. It doesn't tell us anything about the politics behind the production of the show.
He said "that is the genuine reason" in a composed and measured way with a completely straight voice, repeating himself, at a BBC event in his role as controller of BBC One. Moffat said it was outrageous, unacceptable and that he was being shafted.
How it can be construed by anyone as anything other than an indication of behind the scenes politics is an enduring mystery
I am hoping part two is shown quite early in 2013.
March 30th Easter Saturday would be perfect a treat for fans. We can see the new episode while tucking into easter eggs and hot cross buns. (I work in a bakery forgive me). That way the finale will be 7 weeks later at the end of may.
Not interupting any sport or other summer stuff BBC have planned . Then it's only 6 months to the anniversary special. Also hope a christmas special for the end of 2013. As for what comes after that don't know. Got a feeling we might get a 12th doctor in 2014. Untill then we have our box sets. Looking forward to seeing the new girl in 8 days on CIN. Plus trailer for Christmas Special happy days.
Comments
What lies?
The show is so high up the BBC's priorities that they're not running the cast and crew into the ground.
The BBC have never cited production cuts. Merlin is more of an ensemble show with far fewer locations. The active 'fans' are a very small percentage of the audience. Nobody's been treated badly.
Specious. So the criteria for working on the show should be 'can you guarantee 14 episodes a year'? The old schedule nearly killed Hartnell, even when he got to disappear in the middle of a story for a holiday. TV production is also different in every single way now.
We've not lost anything that was ever announced. BBC Three's budget is entirely separate from BBC One, and is being cut more than prime time drama.
Oh shush. Next year looks like we'll have 8 eps of Series 7b, at least one 50th Special, maybe the first 5 or so of Series 8, an Xmas special, Gatiss's BBC4 drama, countless audios, books, toys etc etc etc
There's been a weird gap obviously, maybe something financial that we won't know about until Moffat and co spill the beans in a few years time. And maybe Sherlock really has created this gap. Then the huge production team changes from Series 6 to 7 may have caused a gap.
All this whinging... for what?
Give it time
Here here.
Even if we only get the eight episodes we know we're getting and one special in November, I refuse to be annoyed at Doctor Who being both on air and one of the BBC’s most successful shows for its 50th anniversary.
Hasn't even begun filming?
Ha ha! The thing is - you're right.
Some people are getting in a huge strop over this, as if they have some sort of right to watch 13 new episodes of Who every year, plus a Christmas special. No-one has that right.
While we're doing cliched statements, I'll throw in 'It's Only A TV Show' - frankly we are lucky that it's being made at all. The BBC is under huge pressure to cut costs at every turn, but the writers, production team and stars are determined to deliver as much Doctor Who as is humanly possible while still retaining their sanity and health.
So, 7B, or series 8, whatever you want to call it, does it really matter? No. We shall see more Doctor Who when they've finished making more episodes. And after that we shall see some more, whenever those episodes get made. And that's it.
Moffat, Matt, the BBC, whoever is involved, do not owe us fans anything whatsoever. They are simply making a TV show, under increasingly difficult conditions, and we will get to see it when they are ready. That's it. And why should we expect anything more.
Me, I'm just grateful for any new Who. As a long standing fan I never thought it would come back after 1989, so anything we get these days is a bonus.
Cheers,
Richard
Steven Moffat very publicly refuted what the controller of BBC One said about it all. He said that what Cohen said was "unacceptable". If Moffat thought it unacceptable I don't see why others should pretend all was rosy.
I don't actually disagree with most of what you wrote, though a lot of it was Straw Man arguments against things (most) people aren't saying but this part is utter rubbish.
The BBC make a fortune off Doctor Who, so no, making it is not some charitable action on their part and no, we shouldn't be grateful for every scrap and crumb tossed our way.
Let me ask you a question; do you think the BBC wanted to find themselves in a position where there had only one series of the show to sell in two years, with the concurent loss in merchandising sales on top of that?
The series has been plagued with production problems since Moffat took over, exacerbated by the fact that he's incapable of working on two series at the same time, hence (as confirmed by the Controller of BBC1 himself) the split.
And rather than keeping their mouths shut or admitting the reality of the situation, the response from Cardiff has been spin and obfuscation.
And that's what makes people annoyed.
Either Cohen gave an accurate reason or he didn't. Cohen was speaking the truth or Moffat was. They can't possibly both have been right. I don't like saying "lying", its a bit harsh. But Moffat had no problem saying it was "unacceptable" , "outrageous" and agreeing that he was being shafted.
The BBC did formally announce a full thirteen plus special series for 2012. This was gratefully received by people who had read the press story of there being less than a full series. The BBC had to retract that formal announcement of a full series in 2012 and clarify that there wouldn't be a full series run in 2012.
I don't think fans have been treated badly. It's nothing to do with us. But the BBC have cocked things up a bit for themselves. And decided to discuss it partly in public.
Imo, they got into trouble with production costs, cut back, put out a load of spin (or lies, if we are caling a spade a spade) about why the series must be split put out some more lies about how we'll be getting more DW than ever, when we are in fact getting less, (perhaps they think we can't add up. Well, in some cases they seem to be right), argued in public then backtracked etc etc.
Nebo and I were right about what we would get in 2012. I hope we'll get more than I expect to get in 2013, but I bet I'm right again. That would be 8 episodes of series 7. One or Two episodes for the anniversary and a Christmas special. Plus Gatiss' docu-drama, which, though I'm looking forward to, isn't actually DW.
Maybe they'll show some Classic Who as well. Other media doesn't count, (unless the EDAs are on the radio, of course.:D).
I had a long argument once on the broadcasting forum about why some people feel they must defend the BBC at all costs, when what they do sometimes seems idiotic and incompetent. I still don't get it. I don't hate the BBC, far from it, but why can't people face the fact that they make some really bad decisions?
However, stcoop, you raise an extremely interesting point about Who being a cash cow for the BBC. Have we ever seen actual figures for how much Doctor Who actually costs? And also how much does it actually generate in terms of revenue from sales, merchandising etc etc? And how much of this revenue is actually ploughed back into the programme itself?
The implication is always that the show is seen by the BBC bean counters as being very expensive, but does the revenue generated actually justify or outweigh the cost?
FWIW, I'm not happy with any little crumb of Who tossed our way. I too would like a full series every year if at all possible. But if it's not possible for all sorts of reasons (Moffat has spread himself too thin, budget squeezes, whatever the reason) then I don't see any point in moaning that we've somehow been cheated out of Doctor Who. We simply don't know the full behind the scenes story as to how this series is made, so we don't know the reasons why we are getting 7A, 7B, whatever. But then we don't really need to know. And also, I do agree that confusing, and contradictory, statements from the production team / BBC are not the slightest bit helpful. And we've had rather too many of these!
In RTD's day the series received exactly the same budget as any other drama series and boosted that a bit with money from Canada, much as they do now with money from BBC America. They certainly don't get any special provision for CGI and Prostethic costs that other shows don't have, which is why they like to shoot as much as possibly on location and recycle the sets they do use. (How many times has the TARDIS corridor turned up in Series 6 & 7?)
You can can find the revenue figures in BBC Worldwide's annual statements where it comes out at the front along with Top Gear.
Money doesn't, actually can't, go directly into DW but all profits go to help run the BBC and fund the stuff that doesn't make the big bucks.
I am obviously grateful for Dr Who being around, as it wasn't for so long, however it is now, and it is also making a fortune for the Beeb and has a whole new era of fans to please as well us old timers. We shouldn't expect new Who every year but the reality is we were getting it. Every March/April since 2005 we had 13 episodes and everyone was happy. Yes there was a blip with the specials but this was advised to the fans and for the most part, we were all OK with it.
This time round though, no one can get the story straight so someone is lying to us. Yes it is a harsh word, but it is true. The BBC announced 13 episodes for 2012 which soon was changed to 5. Moff had some pretty strong feelings on it, but nothing was ever given as to 100% why the series was split.
Even if I hated Doctor Who, I'd still wonder what the hell was going on. From a business perspective you'd want as many episodes of one of your biggest selling shows out per year as possible. Why the hell do you think we had Torchwood and the Sarah Jane Adventures? More cash to milk out of a popular show thats why.
I guess what I really want is transparancy from the BBC. A simple "we need to take break due to x" would have been far better than this mish mash of stories and half truths we got. Even if 7a was made into 3 specials like in the Tennant era it would have been better than a series with a 6 month break. Series 7 could then have started in 2013 and no one would have been annoyed.
A quick Google on this leads me to conclude:
Cohen was joking. Ill-advisedly, given that his words would be pored over by fans. Moffat was annoyed at BBC News taking Cohen out of context.
Private Eye said that the second half of series 6 wouldn't be ready in time for the end of 2011. (They were wrong.) They also said that there were only going to be four specials in 2012. (Also wrong.)
The BBC subsequently announced that full series 7 had been commisoned. They later clarified that "a good chunk" of them would show in 2012.
The BBC are famous for communicating very badly with the public. (As the editor of Newsnight and the new DG have recently reminded us.) Ironically Entwistle himself said that spin was a problem for the BBC and that he wants to see them improve in this area. When the DG himself says "this is something we get wrong" it's almost comical to see the lengths some BBC fans go to deny it.
I'm about as big a fan of the BBC it is,possible to get. I don't think it does them any favours to support them when they bullshit and obfuscate. There have been indications that the new management bought in to replace the previous Doctor Who production team are trying to communicate more effectively. Good luck to them.
Nothing was taken out of context. Cohen was not joking. The audio recording of his words was posted online. The news story was accurate and given in context. Nothing had to be "pored over", it was accurately reported by the BBC news team and the full speech was posted on line and could be heard at ease by anyone. Moffat said the suggestion that Sherlock was getting in the way was "unacceptable". He was not complaining about the accuracy of the report.
I agree that Cohen's words were ill advised, but they were not a joke.
Series 8 more than likely won't air until 2014.
They were also not official. This wasn't a press release, or a PR announcement. It's ridiculous to extrapolate anything other than a mistake out of this. It doesn't tell us anything about the politics behind the production of the show.
He was asked a question. He answered it.
He may have spoken in a light-hearted manner but there's nothing to indicate he was joking, beyond Moffat and his chums claiming he was.
And the reality of the broadcasting situation backs Cohen up far more than it does Moffat.
He said "that is the genuine reason" in a composed and measured way with a completely straight voice, repeating himself, at a BBC event in his role as controller of BBC One. Moffat said it was outrageous, unacceptable and that he was being shafted.
How it can be construed by anyone as anything other than an indication of behind the scenes politics is an enduring mystery
It was the sodding Controller of BBC1 answering a question about the series. You can't get more official than that.
March 30th Easter Saturday would be perfect a treat for fans. We can see the new episode while tucking into easter eggs and hot cross buns. (I work in a bakery forgive me). That way the finale will be 7 weeks later at the end of may.
Not interupting any sport or other summer stuff BBC have planned . Then it's only 6 months to the anniversary special. Also hope a christmas special for the end of 2013. As for what comes after that don't know. Got a feeling we might get a 12th doctor in 2014. Untill then we have our box sets. Looking forward to seeing the new girl in 8 days on CIN. Plus trailer for Christmas Special happy days.