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00:00Hello, Only Me. Just before we started, I want to give a quick shout out to Skillshare,
00:04who we are happy to be working with here on WhoCulture to help you access all sorts of
00:09amazing classes. But more on that later.
00:13On stage in Melbourne, Australia, Christopher Eccleston spoke about the possibility of his
00:18return to the role of the Ninth Doctor for the 60th anniversary of Doctor Who.
00:23Eccleston denounced the idea of multi-doctor stories as a cash grab, and said that if he
00:27was to return, it would be as a solo Doctor. It marks a significant shift in his original
00:32assertion that he'd return to the role when hell freezes over, but it also feels like
00:37his return to the TV series is as far away as ever.
00:40The circumstances of Eccleston's departure from the Who show is something of an ongoing
00:44mystery in Doctor Who. Originally, it was assumed to be a simple case of a decision
00:49not to renew his contract. After all, he wasn't known for sticking around in popular series
00:53for long. His character in Cracker was memorably written out after one season, for example.
00:59In the years that have followed, however, more information has come out via interviews,
01:03unofficial sources, and Eccleston's own autobiography.
01:06So with that in mind, then, I'm Ellie with WhoCulture, and let's take a look at the
01:10true story behind Christopher Eccleston's Doctor Who exit.
01:149. 2003 He's back, and it's about time!
01:20In 2003, the 40th anniversary year, it was announced that Doctor Who would be returning
01:25to the BBC with a brand new series. Twice.
01:28The Paul Cornell-scripted, Richard E. Grant-starring Scream of the Shulker was announced in July
01:34as a new animated era for the show. It was a bold new vision, pairing an emotionally
01:39traumatised Doctor with a robotic master as a sort of buddy duo. Shulker's thunder was
01:44soon stolen by a bigger, bolder announcement, however.
01:48Two months later, in September, it was announced that Doctor Who would be coming back to BBC
01:52One as a proper television series. It would be creatively spearheaded by acclaimed screenwriter
01:58Russell T Davies.
01:59Between 26th September 2003 and 26th March 2005, Doctor Who fandom was reinvigorated
02:06by the possibilities of the new series. Discussing potential casting, sharing various production
02:12rumours and set photos on message boards, and renewing their dormant Doctor Who Appreciation
02:17Society memberships, it was a very exciting time to be a Doctor Who fan.
02:238. Eccleston is cast for Doctor Who's second coming
02:27Names thrown around as a potential ninth Doctor included Tom Baker and Judi Dench. As Russell
02:32T Davies nodded along to these suggestions, he was harbouring a desire to cast Hugh Grant
02:36in the role. Quite what the battle-scarred Doctor would be like in the hands of Grant
02:40is anyone's guess, as Grant declined the offer, something he's said to have later
02:44regretted after seeing how successful the show became.
02:47A name that nobody had even considered was Christopher Eccleston, an actor known for
02:52his work in grounded, realistic, seminal dramas like Our Friends in the North and Cracker.
02:57He was not an actor known for the lightness of touch many expected from the character
03:01of the Doctor. In an interview to announce his casting, Eccleston noted that,
03:05"...I don't think he's going to be as eccentric and foppish as he was in some of
03:09his incarnations."
03:11Eccleston was cast after he emailed Davies to register his interest. Having previously
03:15worked on the second coming with RTD, Eccleston told the press he was excited to be working
03:20with him again.
03:22Number 7. Filming begins with Aliens of London
03:25With Eccleston cast as the Doctor and former pop star and full-time actor Billy Piper cast
03:30as his companion Rose, the 21st century incarnation entered production on the 18th July 2004.
03:37Filming at Cardiff Royal Infirmary, doubling for Albion Hospital, Eccleston's first scenes
03:41as the Doctor was him chasing the space pig down the corridor. And there's nothing more
03:46Doctor-ish than that.
03:48Alongside the filming of the series, a companion show, Doctor Who Confidential, was documenting
03:52the production and provided valuable insights into Eccleston's brief time on the show.
03:57In his interviews, he clearly grasps the character, noting the Doctor's open-mindedness as a
04:02great quality for a television hero, while also highlighting his brutal alien pragmatism.
04:08Eccleston and Piper also clearly get on very well together, and are regularly seen smiling
04:13and laughing between takes in the short glimpses of filming.
04:16In his autobiography, I Love the Bones of You, Eccleston reflects on his working relationship
04:21with Piper, stating,
04:22"'What truly amazes me is I know how nervous Billy was at the start. She thought I was
04:27some big serious performer and she didn't have the belief in herself as an actor. She
04:31proved herself, of course, to be way better than any of the rest of us."
04:35Now, at the beginning of this video, I told you that we have partnered with Skillshare.
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05:08a little bit crazy, it can sometimes be hard to stay creative and avoid burnout. But this
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05:28Now, we really want you to have the same experience as us and have access to these classes. So,
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06:12thank you to Skillshare, but for now, back to the video.
06:16Number six, Ecclestone embarks on the promotion trail. In the run-up to Doctor Who's premiere
06:21on the 26th March 2005, Christopher Ecclestone embarked on the promotional trail for the
06:27new series. The return of Doctor Who was a big deal. There were billboards, specially
06:32shot trailers, and teasers. Ecclestone and Piper were front and centre in all of this
06:37promotion. On top of this, there were also media appearances on some stalwart British
06:42shows. Ecclestone sat on the Blue Peter sofa to talk about how he felt about taking on
06:46such an iconic role, stating,
06:48"'I was very excited. I felt ready to take on something with that sort of responsibility
06:53because the scripts are that strong."
06:55He also appeared on a special Doctor Who-themed episode of Mastermind to present the winner
07:00with the trophy. On being introduced by host John Humphries as Doctor Who, Ecclestone offhandedly
07:05quips,
07:06"'Well, for now.'"
07:08Throughout these appearances, he's effusive about what drew him to the role, the scripts,
07:12the monsters, and the importance of the Doctor. What nobody knew at this point, however, was
07:17that Ecclestone had already filmed his final scene as the Doctor.
07:215. Rose Ayres, Two Days Later, Ecclestone Is Gone
07:26On the 26th of March 2005, Doctor Who triumphantly returned to screens. Not even the leak of
07:36the first episode or an interruption from Graham Norton could take the sheen off the
07:40staggering 10.81 million viewers that tuned in to watch Rose.
07:45Two days later, the tabloids published reports that Ecclestone had already departed the series
07:50and the search for a new Doctor was on. The BBC responded to these rumors two days later
07:54on the 30th of March, stating that Ecclestone left the role for fear of being typecast.
07:59It wasn't true.
08:00The following Monday, BBC Head of Drama and Commissioning Jane Tranter had to publicly
08:05apologize to Ecclestone, stating that,
08:07The BBC regrets not speaking to Christopher before it responded to the press questions
08:11on Wednesday the 30th of March. The BBC further regrets that it falsely attributed a statement
08:16to Christopher and apologizes to him.
08:19It was a sour note that undercut the joy of Doctor Who being back on TV and more popular
08:24than ever. The casting of David Tennant and the series' increasing popularity certainly
08:28dispelled much of this unpleasantness. However, the BBC's decision to misquote Ecclestone
08:33and upset him further is a real failing on their part, especially given how much work
08:37he did to promote the series.
08:404. Stories of on-set troubles emerge in the years after Ecclestone's departure
08:46The abrupt nature of Ecclestone's departure and the poor handling of the announcement
08:50by the BBC has led to it being revisited in various interviews with the actor.
08:55In June 2010, Ecclestone hit the headlines when, while promoting a drama about John Lennon,
09:00he was asked about his departure.
09:02In response, he stated that,
09:03"...I didn't enjoy the environment and the culture that we, the cast and crew, had
09:07to work in. I thought if I stay in this job I'm going to have to blind myself to certain
09:11things that I thought were wrong."
09:13As an actor who is from a staunch, working-class, trade union background, it's unsurprising
09:18that he left rather than be complicit in a perceived toxic workplace.
09:22It's unclear if this refers to Series 1's overrunning shoots, Ecclestone's rumoured
09:26disagreements with director Keith Boak, or something else entirely.
09:30In 2018, Ecclestone elaborated further, suggesting that something had gone very badly wrong between
09:36when he excitedly emailed RTD to offer to play the Doctor and his eventual departure,
09:41stating,
09:42"...my relationship with my three immediate superiors, the showrunner, the producer and
09:46co-producer, broke down irreparably during the first block of filming and it never recovered.
09:52They lost trust in me and I lost faith and trust and belief in them."
09:563. Ecclestone meets with Moffat for Day of the Doctor
10:00In his autobiography, Ecclestone feels that Russell T Davies didn't quite know what
10:04he wanted from the Doctor, but is incredibly complimentary of Stephen Moffat, saying that
10:09his scripts delivered my best work, bringing me closer to finally knowing exactly who the
10:13Doctor was than any other time during the shoot.
10:16It's no surprise that he was open to meeting Moffat about appearing in 2013's 50th anniversary
10:23special The Day of the Doctor.
10:24Ultimately, Ecclestone turned the role down because he felt it didn't do justice to
10:28the Ninth Doctor.
10:30He's glad he did, because it left room for John Hurt's phenomenal turn as the War
10:34Doctor, whom Ecclestone believes is a far better actor than me.
10:38It was a promising first step towards Ecclestone donning the leather jacket once more, but
10:42the role still held a great deal of trauma for the actor.
10:45Furthermore, Ecclestone's struggles with mental health and body dysmorphia were intrinsically
10:50linked with the role, observing in the autobiography that,
10:53"...people love the way I look in that series, but I was very ill.
10:56The reward for that illness was the part, and therein lies the perpetuation of the whole
11:01sorry situation."
11:022.
11:04Ecclestone Begins Attending Conventions
11:06Five years after the huge 50th anniversary celebrations, Christopher Ecclestone made
11:11his first convention appearance.
11:13Rather than a full-on Doctor Who convention, it was the London Film and Comic Con, and
11:17fans could get their photo taken with the Ninth Doctor for the princely sum of £95.
11:24Ecclestone's appearances on the convention circuit also opened up the opportunities for
11:28him to bump into other Doctor actors like Matt Smith, with their very tactile and lovely
11:32meeting going viral on social media.
11:35Aside from the obvious financial gain, Ecclestone was clearly attracted to the convention circuit
11:40by the opportunity to meet his fans.
11:42In a 2016 video for BBC Raw to discuss the A-word, Ecclestone talks with fan Gerard Groves
11:48about the series, autism, and is visibly moved when Groves talks about the impact his
11:53portrayal of the Doctor had on his childhood.
11:56It chimes with Ecclestone's own reflections on the impact of the role on those kids that
12:00were growing up in 2005, watching him as the Ninth Doctor, stating,
12:04"'Everywhere I go, Cornwall, Belfast, Glasgow, I now get people of a certain age, mid-twenties,
12:10coming up to me.
12:11You were my doctor, they tell me.'"
12:141.
12:15If You Want Me Back, Get Me On My Own
12:17As Ecclestone continued to make convention appearances, he came into contact with Big
12:21Finnish Chairman Jason Haig-Ellery at the Gallifrey One convention in early 2020.
12:27Since that fateful meeting, Ecclestone has recorded a full 12-episode series as the Ninth
12:31Doctor, with another one on the way.
12:34It's certainly a positive sign that he's been able to move on from the damage and strain
12:38that playing the part put upon him.
12:40As for a potential return in the 60th anniversary, it's a bit more complicated than that.
12:45At the Supernova convention in Melbourne, Ecclestone put out an open offer to the BBC.
12:50If you want me back, get me on my own.
12:53With rumours of a potential anniversary anthology series with past Doctors, he may get his wish.
12:58And what better tribute to Christopher Ecclestone, the man who re-established Doctor Who and
13:02ensured its continuing legacy, than by having him return in 2023, 20 years after the show
13:08was recommissioned?
13:11And there you have it!
13:12If you can think of any other juicy details, then do let us know in the comments below.
13:16And while you're there, don't forget to like and subscribe and tap that notification
13:19bell.
13:20Also, head over to Twitter and follow us there, and I can be found across various social medias
13:24just by searching Ellie Littlechild.
13:26I've been Ellie with WhoCulture, and in the words of River Song herself, goodbye sweetie.