I asked this question on the other similar thread on (male/female) Doctor but wanted to raise it to its own thread as I wanted to add some further questions - do you think it even matters or could it add another dimension to the show? I'm curious to know the answer to the main OP with regards to Classic or New Who.

I immediately thought of Jane Baker for the classic Era and Wiwik_Anggraini added: "Barbara Clegg wrote Enlightment, the third installment of the Black Guardian Trilogy."

I don't want this to become a race or sex debate, I'm just genuinely interested on the impact or lack of impact a generally male white writing team has had on the episodes? Interested to hear any comments.

surely every writer is unique. I don't see why race or sex would factor into writing ability. similarly, just like with the actors involved, I think ability is all that should matter. I dont think anyone should be hired as a gimmick, like hiring a bunch of sub par writers just because they are women and they don't think they have enough, or something like that

Well the answer to your question is freely available on the internet so why ask it here? Seems more like an excuse to start a contentious thread. But carry on.

Edit- sorry. That sounded needlessly argumentative. But it seems odd that you say you don't want to start a race and gender debate...what else is this thread for?

Also its known fact and history that two of the most important figures in the shows history were a woman and a person of colour (and a gay man as well) at a time when such a thing was far more revolutionary than it is now.

I tend to believe that the show hires the best people for the job whether that be actors or writers of directors or costume designers or composers.

If a female writer came up with an amazing script then they would use it. The more pertinent question would be why are there a lack of female writers and people of different ethnicity writing science fiction? I would say its due to the history of the genre. And this has changed. There is an entire generation of girls and women in particular who have embraced science fiction in recent years...partly thanks to Doctor Who,,,who will come through in the years to come and will one day write for the show. Its just a matter of time.

Has the fact the majority of the writing team been white and male impacted on the show? Short answer? No.

Inevitably it will make a difference; it's got nothing to do with writing ability. It's about background and cultural referencing. People write what they know.

Thanks Saladfingers, hopefully by now I have shown that while I do start many threads(!) I try not to deliberately start a thread just to launch a pointless argumentative debate, I'm asking genuinely as a fan. I also hope its clear that I am a fan of scouring the net to look for information that already answers a question posed, I'm always trying to just answer posts by other members simply by linking to the web were the information is there already For example this page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Doctor_Who_writers has everything I need to know.

However, I will concede, I suppose I was just deliberate to get us thinking that their has indeed been a lack of female or non-white writers in recent years and I couldn't work out why. I asked for example in the New Who era but without checking I'm fairly certain that there aren't any, but I didn't want to come out and say so that just in case it sounded like I was trying to accuse the BBC of some kind of "ism", which I'm not.

Indeed I liked your second post saladfingers You always seem to express what's in my mind better than I can even attempt to! Its not that I think the show needs it, rather I wanted to know why their aren't any non-white or female writers producing scripts nowadays. Is there really a dearth in Doctor Who and Sci fi generally?? Is it that there are scripts but they're not just good enough??

I think its a pity.

Interesting point. Its certainly true that any good writer will draw on their own experience and even in science fiction use a bit of subtext so someone who has directly experienced being a minority could draw on that when writing for the show in a more truthful and powerful way than someone who hadn't.

In the same way as some of RTD's writing drew on his experiences as a gay man. Some people...otherwise known as homophobes...called this a 'gay agenda'. Erm no. Its a writer using their own life experiences in their writing. Which is perfectly right.

I forget where it was. Guardian maybe? But there was an article asking the same question. My googling has failed to find it. That one seemed to suggest something more sinister as to the reasons why. I don't believe that. Especially not in Doctor Who. I think since day one its been a show that is inclusive to all both in front of and behind the camera.

I think Helen Raynor is the only female New Who writer. Her episodes were badly received in general or at least that's my perception. Personally I didn't like them. I didn't care that she was a woman. They just sucked. I actually think you have raised an interesting issue but as I say. Not with regards to DW as much as the genre in general. Fact is that sci-fi and horror have been dominated by white males for many years and are probably lagging behind other genres in that respect. But it will change. I am sure of it. And when it does it will be because the talent is thereby. Not because of any box ticking exercise.

Certainly with regards to the gender issue I know far more passionate and committed fans of DW who are female. Maybe that's coincidence. But was that the case in the seventies and eighties? I don't know. Maybe someone with more knowledge can answer. I would guess not though.

Thanks saladfingers, but also thanks lady_xanax you have hit the nail of a key feature I had hoped would come from this thread. I think seeing things from another persons perspective based on their references and experience is very rewarding and refreshing, which is why I hope we agree it is a pity that there is a dearth of female and non-white writers for whatever the reasons are.

i think as a writer there are certain abilities which are there no matter who is writing: the ability to dream up an imaginary alien world, the ability to put the doctor and his companions in peril, the ability to interweave sciencey timey wimey concepts into a story, the ability to write comedic/scary events and/ or drama into a scene etc

However, certain things like - what it means to be gay but to hide it from people close to you out of fear, what it really must be like to meet an alien being kept slave to a superior race on their planet, what it means to be the only woman on a spaceship travelling through space and time with a wacky man, etc., etc I'm just trying to explain my point here, not necessarily suggest stories I want to see.

Anyway, I hope this thread doesn't offend anyone I just wanted to suggest atleast in my mind I think we are missing out a bit, but like you say saladfingers the tide does seem to be turning

Because screen writing is still a bit of a boy's club along with a lot of the TV and film industry (the publishing industry is a completely different matter where it's far more even). I'm sure there are many female screenwriters out there who could do a far better job at DW than some of the current writers but unless they know the right people or have the right breaks...

...........

Certain programmes attract certain writers. All I care about is good stories. Diversity is always good, but not at the expense of quality. You can't just force a talented female or non-white writer to work for Doctor Who, nor can you accept a below-par submission to be seen to be inclusive. This can be quite a divisive subject when not approached with a sensible mind.

I don't think anyone's suggesting we 'force' people to write for the show. What's to say that there isn't a whole bunch of women and non-white writers who would want to write for the programme but feel as if it's 'not for them'?

Even then you see a lot of female writer's publishing under a male pseudonym.