Producers don't want old Doctors for 50th anniversary

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Digital Spy

Doctor Who's Sylvester McCoy: 'Producers don't want old Doctors back'
Published Wednesday, Apr 10 2013, 1:59pm EDT | By Justin Harp |41 comments
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Doctor Who stars Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy have again expressed doubts about whether they will feature at all in the 50th anniversary special.

Baker, McCoy and Eighth Doctor actor Paul McGann are currently in Australia, while an anniversary episode starring Matt Smith, Jenna-Louise Coleman and David Tennant is being shot in the UK.

Doctor Who: Colin Baker

© BBC

Colin Baker
Doctor Who: Sylvester McCoy

© BBC

Sylvester McCoy


The classic series actors were asked about the 50th anniversary special while appearing on Channel Nine in Australia, but both McCoy and Baker cautioned fans not to expect them to appear alongside Smith and Tennant.

"There actually making it now as we're here [in Australia], so the likelihood is [we're not in it]," Baker joked.

McCoy added: "All the fanbases all over the world believe [we should be involved], but not the producers [of Doctor Who]."

Former Sixth Doctor actor Baker went on admit that he understands why the older Doctors were not invited back for the anniversary.

"I look nothing like what I looked like originally, so the viewers would be very confused," Baker explained.

David Tennant and Matt Smith at 'Doctor Who' 50th read-through

© BBC

David Tennant and Matt Smith at 'Doctor Who' 50th read-through


McCoy previously denied any involvement in the special while speaking to Digital Spy, revealing that he had not received any contact from the BBC.

"All of us want to do it, just for the fans - because that's what they want," McCoy explained. "But we've heard nothing - Tom Baker's heard nothing, Colin Baker, Peter Davison, Paul McGann... none of us have heard anything."

The BBC also told Digital Spy that Christopher Eccleston had chosen not to be involved in the special episode after "a couple" of meetings with showrunner Steven Moffat.

Doctor Who's golden anniversary will feature the return of Billie Piper to the role of Rose Tyler and Jemma Redgrave as Kate Stewart, daughter of the iconic Brigadier.

Classic shape-shifting villains the Zygons will also appear in the highly-anticipated episode.

Doctor Who continues on Saturday on BBC One in the UK and BBC America in the US with 'Cold War', written by Mark Gatiss.

Watch Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy and Paul McGann discuss the anniversary below:

So, do you consider this a good thing or bad thing?

[Stark]

Awesome. Best news of the season.

[Losonti Tokash]

Are they just ruling out the old ones that are still alive or all of them? And did Eccleston already tell them to get lost ?

[Gandalf]

How on Earth would one utilise the older actors anyway? They don't seem to look like their old selves any more.

Maybe it'll be a clip show?

"Hey Clara, one time I fought [MONSTER]"
*cut to clip*

[Stark]

'One time I was sad about stuff, but a part of me feels I'm too creatively bankrupt to relive it now, sorry.'

[Broomstick]

I always thought that if they included the old Doctors at all it would be as they did in "The Almost People" where they used voice clips from Tennant and Tom Baker. They actually reference the prior regenerations a lot with the Matt Smith run (see "Venusian Akido" or whatever it was pose in "The Rings of Akhaten", as just one example, the old library card with Hartnell's face in "The Vampires of Venice", and so forth) without actually involving the old Doctors.

So... voice overs, old clips (perhaps some timey-whiney viewer?), and the like but the brutal fact is the older Doctors who are still alive don't really look much like their old selves. Tom Baker is what, 80 now? The first three are dead. Sylvester McCoy might be passable but he was number 8, relatively recent for the Old Who guys. Maybe McGann though admittedly I don't know what he looks like these days. That leaves Eccelston (who has long expressed disinterest in revisiting Who) and Tennant for actual appearances.

Theoretically it might be possible, with voice-overs, clips, and various references (like an old library card) to touch on every single regeneration of the Doctor in one episode... but it would be hard to pull off without looking entirely contrived. And you still won't make every happy. You never make everyone happy.

[The Romulan Republic]

Sylvester McCoy is the Seventh Doctor, not the Eight Doctor.

I don't care weather they have every Doctor or not. But I would like McGann to appear for two reasons. First of all, he never had much of a chance to play the Doctor on-screen, though I understand he's done it on radio since then. He was just in one movie. So I feel that if anyone deserves another chance, its him. Secondly, I want at least one Doctor from before the new series as a tribute to the earlier parts of the show.

Having Eccleston would be nice, but I would be fairly content with just McGann, Tenant, and Smith.

[B5B7]

This actually sounds more sensible. Cramming all those extra Doctors into the show wouldn't look right, especially with the short episode format used in new Doctor Who.

[The Romulan Republic]

I think it would be nice if there's something like the Atraxi's hologram of the first ten Doctors in The Eleventh Hour. They could include all the Doctors without bringing all the actors back, replacing the ones who are dead, and having all of them appear in one episode.

Edited for accuracy.

[Captain Seafort]

I don't care weather they have every Doctor or not. But I would like McGann to appear for two reasons. First of all, he never had much of a chance to play the Doctor on-screen, though I understand he's done it on radio since then. He was just in one movie. So I feel that if anyone deserves another chance, its him. Secondly, I want at least one Doctor from before the new series as a tribute to the earlier parts of the show.

Agreed, but it would be good to have one from the original run back as well, probably McCoy since he's changed least, and I wouldn't put it past any of them for this to be a bit of misdirection.

[Scrib]

I don't think DW has enough CGI in it's budget to not stop this from being ridiculous. TRON did and even then it wasn't convincing.

[The Imperator]

Don't want them back as the Doctor. Though McCoy's idea of having old actors come back as new villains would be rather cool.

[Captain Seafort]

Or maybe old villains. I wonder if Commander Maxil survived the destruction of Gallifrey?

[Stark]

Who didn't?