http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertain...s/10312426.stm

"I didn't enjoy the environment and the culture that we, the cast and crew, had to work in."

Ouch.

"I thought if I stay in this job, I'm going to have to blind myself to certain things that I thought were wrong."

Hmmmm... wonder what he meant by this?

I really liked his Doctor...sounds like its good he left when he did though. if he felt that way about it, it would have started to show in the preformance

Wish he was less coy. So what was it about the environment & culture?

there were quite a lot of teething problems with the filming of series 1, probably relates to that.

Anyway, aside from that he makes it clear he was proud to have been connected to the role:


So I hope we don't get people slagging him off for that, as usually happens in these threads.

I soooooooo wish he'd done a second series. Ah well, DT wasn't a bad replacement.

Maybe Chris didn't like having to spend so many months in Wales. He's a family man and maybe found it difficult?

FX: Sniff, sniff. What's that smell.

On the plus side -

Ecclestone was probably the best representation of the Doctor, a time-worn multi-lifetime alien, that there has ever been. He bought a maturity and gravitas to the character that had never been seen before. He had fantastic chemistry with Rose. Millions all believed in him as the Doctor.

On the negative side -

Ecclestone quit, at least a year too early. Even now, he seems to believe that having played the Doctor is far more important than the time he stayed in the role. Important him, that is, not for the character or series or fans. I believe he's wrong, and is seen as someone who opportunistically used the role to try and further his own career, like a smash and grab raid. Now, he's still making excuses which absolve himself from possibly the most stupid choice he's ever made as an actor.

He didn't need the show to further his career. Your trying to make things fit that don't because you have a misguided sense of entitlement.

I suspect the long hours, trying to make 13 complex episode (6 and a bit movies in effect!) in 9 short months with such a lot of green screen/cgi acting involved where everyone was trying to learn how to make the show on whatever budget they had probably all took its toll on him.

I've posted some promo pics of Eccleston from next week's Lennon Naked here:

http://blogtorwho.blogspot.com/2010/...non-naked.html

The likeness is incredible.

Very interesting. I thought he said that he only ever signed on for one season?

Still a shame he left and I would love to pin him down over a beer and find out the dirt

His description of working on the show is somewhat at odds with the cheerful and upbeat view given by Doctor Who Confidential at the time. What a shock.

It's fairly established that the BBC doesn't do far future commitments (except to stuff like EE and anything involving a hospital), given it was the first series they wouldn't have guaranteed a second until they saw how it was received. My guess is that while they may have given BP a one year with an option to extend, CE would have been in a position to say either 2 years or 1 year.

It's notable that sometimes these contracts are very one sided - IIRC Paramount used to give 5 yr one-way locked contracts to Star Trek TNG/DS9 main cast, and got away with it. OTOH whoever made Friends ended up paying silly money.

Doesnt Doctor who shoots have long working hours and an heavy 9 month (?) committment that may have been what he referred to as the culture of the show. I can imagine that ecclestone probably prefers to do short series and one off dramas rather than long continuing dramas like Who.

Indeed, Christopher Ecclestone really needed the show to further his dismal and unsuccessful career...

It's good he's proud of what he did, he was a fantastic Doctor. So, uh, did he get on well with the cast/ crew?

It seems quite obvious that he is talking about the difficulties that they all faced, it was the first year, and so I can understand that they must have been put through hell....shame that.....but its nice to hear from him, and very nice to know, although it was obvious he was proud of his role, its nice to hear it or read it should I say....



He was already profolic actor...he didn't need to use it as vehicle for becoming famous....it was the other way round actually, Doctor Who needed some of his Calibre....



As always thanks so much Cameron! And yes the likeness is great!!!


If it is something that they wanted to avoid talking on confidentail to put up a pretence.....then when he is free to talk about it now, why doesn't he? Its obvious that whatever had an impact on the environment and culture of the show, which affected cast and crew.....was something obviously more deeper than the topics being discussed on confidentail (and if series 5 are pparently going through difficulties like the bufgets and stuff, hardly any of that gets mentioned on Confidentail does it, or is it that series five cast and crew are really having the time of their life with not a single problem at all?)....and none of them certainly suugested that they were having the time of thier life in terms of the difficulties faced when filming, but were just proud to be part of the show, which Chris still is....

The Daily Mash have covered this and i think it answers all the questions. Their journalistic integrity is second to none.

(Caution: Article contains swear words.)

http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/a...-201006152814/

I never believed that.


I never believed that either.

I'm sure I saw or read an interview with Barrowman ages ago, where he said the whole atmosphere changed when CE left and DT came in.

From dour and serious to fun and enthusiastic.

Sounds to me like mutual misunderstandings went on. CE wasn't a fan and didn't "Get" DW - DT was and did.

After coming across the Sun's Head line to that story in my mail box, not sure I want to bother with a daily fail article too....there is only so much my mind can take!!!


No, that has been more or less exaggerated.....JB and CE were just different personalities...and he had more in common with DT.....but to say that it wasn't fun on set, well if you watch Billie's video diaries....John seems to be having fun....and so does CE with the cast and crew....
The rest of the atmosphere would have changed because they wouldn't have had as many problems as series 1 did, nothing to do with Chris....if you read Euros Lyn's interview, he had high respect for the professionalism that CE showed on set in a DWM magazine about the EOT....so that just goes to show how most remember him fondly, so does RTD....

It's well known that the first series was bloody hard work to make: all plans went out of the window, schedules were torn up, mistakes were made. CE would have been front and centre of all of that. Given his history in working in less effects-heavy productions at that time, the chances are he would have felt the pressure.

It would have been good if those comments were a bit less cagey though. I am surprised that there hasn't been more Davies-bashing as a result of this (give it time).

Of course the image presented in DW Comfidential, DW Magazine, and other publicity machines, emphasised the positive! DWC, DWM (etc) all have a job to do, and don't want to get caught up in the nittygritty of the complexities of TV production. Everything has to look fund and effortless: it's all part of the package. (I don't watch DWC).

Maybe. Having respect for someone's professionalism doesn't necessarily equate to remembering them fondly.

Lyn and RTD are both too professional to slag off a former colleague, I hope.

And things can be omitted from video diaries.

Anyway, he's gone now, and without him going we perhaps wouldn't have got the lovely DT, so I don't really mind why he went.

True they are too profressionals to say anything nasty....but why start talking about Chris in an interview about the End of TIme? or RTD talking about him to Ben Cook informally through emails, something which he didn't think every word would get put in? If he can lose all that profressionalism and slag of the press, yet then come the next press showing and he is all smiles again, knwoinf full well that most of the press now know what he thinks of them.....what was to stop him form slagging of Chris if he genuinly felt like that?

As for video diaries...true things can be omiited....but it also proves that there were days when fun things happend....

I thought he did very well as DW and it was a pity he left after 1 season. It's a shame he did'nt feel comfortable with some aspect of the production.

Anyway that's when I stopped watching the show . Things seem a bit quiet on the CE scene since then as I haven't seen him on TV or any publicity for his stage work since.

He had a decent stint in the West End, and is about to be John Lennon on the BBC. He seems to have taken some time off. Good for him!