You can hope all you like.
But, and this might be news to you, hoping for something really hard, and banging on and on and on about it until you've p*ssed everyone off, doesn't make it any more likely to happen.

Meanwhile, in the real world, as far as I can see most fans appear to be looking forward to what the forthcoming season will actually contain, and not what your dopey wet dreams seem to wish for.

Ha ha I like that analogy

So putting aside all the usual guff about Eccleston having a bad time on set etc etc for one second the main difference as I see it between Eccleston and the others is that Tennant and Capaldi were fans of the show, before, during and after their eras, whereas I don't think Eccleston ever was a particular fan of the show.

Serious question… When auditioning for future Doctors do you think it's important that they only cast people who consider themselves fans of the show, (and thus pretty much guaranteeing future anniversary appearances), or should they just cast the best actor for the job?

Oh most definately the latter for me, every time. Matt was hardly aware of the show growing up, for obvious reasons, and was a wonderful Doctor.

Clearly the best actor for the role should be cast. Worrying about potential future anniversary mash ups of Doctors is best left to silly fans (who thankfully have no control over the show at all).

IF the actor happens to be a big fan too, then that's a massive bonus (just look at how much FUN Capaldi is having with the role, and how he interacts with fans), but this really shouldn't be the main reason to cast anyone. That way lies madness...

Matt wasn't a fan of the show and he turned out to be one of the very best Doctor's (IMO, of course), so I don't think being a fan is a necessity. He now says he loves the show and will always watch it.

Yes. But like the War Doctor, he redeemed himself.

Are we actually seriously going back down the 'CE Hates Who' Rabbit Hole again? For what the third time this year already? It's pathetic. Is this forum really so moribund that the same people need to rehash the same dull played out arguments again? All it does is give Dalekbuster something to do for a few hours.

Stuff those boring sods. 10 years on air is something to celebrate.

Well go and sit in your bedroom and break out your action figures and you can play your own little game of Fiftieth Anniversary Episode. You can even bring Captain Jack back. Meanwhile the rest of the world can enjoy new episodes that move the show forward instead of another self congratulatory exercise in navel gazing.

The longer the show goes on there will be more anniverarys and tributes and milestones. More actors will pass on. The way some people carry on the show will soon end up resembling the television equivalent of a Births/Marriages/Deaths page in the local newspaper.

But it's been running for 52 years #itsallthesameshow

Still got a lot of hate at the time. It's too soon to say whether or not Chris will redeem himself. Time is a great healer

Well exactly. Who became more and more self referential in the 80s to the extent that it increasingly appeared to, heh, alienate the more casual viewers. And we know what happened next.

And this is the Capaldi era that has just begun. There's got to be a sensible balance. Personally delighted that we're getting a full blooded Zygon story, as they've hardly been overused, but we need new monsters and villains and vistas along with nods to the past.

Surely you've realised by now half the people on here aren't happy unless they're complaining and speculating endlessly about things they cannot change and that they know absolutely nothing about. It's pure bitterness because CE broke their little geeky hearts by making them love him and cruelly tearing himself away never to be seen in the leather jacket again. Because apparently being in one role for 9 months means you owe everyone that has seen it something forever. Just ridiculous.

He's certainly persistent. Even DariaM gave up on the "Post-2005 series is not canon" thing eventually.

There is a certain irony in the constant defamation of a man for his "hatred". I've never seen Christopher Eccleston express hatred towards the show itself or its fans. Dalekbuster523, however, has repeatedly made his outright hatred of Eccleston very clear indeed.

Sigh. I thought I was setting up a friendly speculative thread where people might chip in their thoughts, not one that would be hijacked by Eccleston haters. It's well known the man actually had conversations about the possibility of returning, but in the end politely declined. He wouldn't even have considered it at all if he truly hated the show. I was disappointed by his decision not to be involved, but I respect that it was up to him.

I'm surprised that most seem to think that Matt smith would automatically return. Certainly I'd think Tennant and Capaldi would both jump at the chance, but with Smith I'm really not so sure. As I said in my opening post, although he did everything expected of him during his time and talked up the show whilst he was on it, gave interviews etc I never really got the impression that it was anything more than just another job to him.

That and the fact that if his career goes as he hopes, he may have a big film career by that time.

I'm not saying he wouldn't return exactly, just that I wouldn't be half as certain of his potential willingness as I would be of Tennant and Capaldi.

I particularly enjoy the angry cries of "X got a bigger/better tribute than Y".

I think there would be a huge international demand to see the "Class of 2010" reunited, now that Smith, Gillan, Darvill and Kingston have all gone on to work on high-profile genre movies and TV shows.

I agree with other posters, Matt was one of my favourite Doctors, but it also seems that he needed a little persuasion to even carry on in the role long enough to be the Doctor for the 50th! So I also agree that's it by no means a forgone conclusion that he will return to the role in the future. Imagine the 50th without Doctors 9 & 11! Oh well, at least the hate could have been shared

Also to return to your original question, if Matt were to return I think his Doctor would be the easiest to write in, as they could pluck him from any point in his time stream when he was ageing on Trenzalore.

Great isn't it! That's what makes the (unbelievably) continuing pissing contest amongst some fans about whether or not Sarah Jane or the Brig deserved the best send off so strange/disrespectful/crass. What's it going to be like in a few years time if the shows on the air and we are losing signficant former cast members more and more reguarly. It is gonna happen. Every episodes going to have to come with a Memorial Title card. Oh but then that's not enough because they have to acknowledge it in show. That'll be a delight won't it? It'll make Death in Heaven resemble The Unicorn and the Wasp.

Capaldi would probably depend on how long he had been out of the role,if a few years he might look a bit old,I don't think modern viewers are so forgiving as to put up with a very obvious age difference.
Tennant could possibly get away with it as he does seem to age well,plus you have the alternate Universe version to explain away aging.
Given his age Matt is probably favourite especially as his Doctor was shown to have lived to very old age.

Not that I think the chances are high of it happening at all,but then again I never thought in a million years we would see Eight back on screen,so who knows

Come to think of it has no one ever asked Matt if he would return? Seems strange that he hasn't been asked seeing as Chris seems to get asked at every interview that he does.

Matt in May 2014;

Speaking at the Calgary expo, he said: “I love the idea of other Doctors coming back. Also that gives me the opportunity to come back, which I totally will by the way!”

“I’m just waiting for the next anniversary. I spoke to Steven the other day and said ‘what’s the quickest one we can do?'”

Sounds like Matt. Quite surprised at comments that he was reluctant to stay on for the 50th as that's news to me. I suspect from comments I've seen from him, like "Oh Nooo. Have I made a terrible mistake?" however amusingly meant, that he thought long and hard about doing a 4th series, as indeed did David.

Haha love it!

Bring on the 60th then...