Russell T Davies: Difference between revisions

From Tardis Wiki, the free Doctor Who reference
No edit summary
(Undo revision 2717348 by Mmmmsexy (talk))
Line 1: Line 1:
fuck you[[es:Russell T Davies]]
{{real world}}
{{Infobox Person
|image      = RTDAllons-y.jpg
|aka        = Stephen Russell Davies
|birth date = [[27 April (people)|27 April]] [[1963 (people)|1963]]
|job title  = [[Executive producer]], [[head writer]]
|story      = [[#Selected credits|See all episodes section]]
|non dwu    = ''{{iw|queerasfolk|Queer as Folk (UK TV series)|Queer as Folk}}'', ''Cucumber''
|time      = 2005-2011
|imdb      = 0203961
|clip      = David Tennant interviews Russel T Davies - Doctor Who Confidential - BBC
|clip2      = Frank Skinner & Russell T Davies "You're like a gay Shakespeare."
|clip3      = Russell T Davies & Steven Moffat Talk Rose and The Day of the Doctor Doctor Who
}}
'''Russell T Davies OBE''' (born '''Stephen Russell Davies''' in [[Swansea]] on [[27 April (people)|27 April]] [[1963 (people)|1963]]<ref>[[DWDVDF 133]]</ref>) was [[head writer]] and [[executive producer]] on ''[[Doctor Who]]'' from [[Series 1 (Doctor Who)|series 1]] in 2005 to [[Series 4 (Doctor Who)|series 4]] in 2007-10, and was creator and executive producer of spin-off series ''[[Torchwood (TV series)|Torchwood]]'' and ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]'', having written or co-written six episodes of ''Torchwood'' and three episodes (two stories) of ''The Sarah Jane Adventures''. Prior to this, in 1996, he had written the [[Virgin New Adventures]] novel ''[[Damaged Goods (novel)|Damaged Goods]]''.
 
He is the single most prolific producer of televised entertainment in [[Doctor Who universe|DWU]] history. His position is virtually unassailable because he was producing ''Torchwood'', ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'' and ''Doctor Who'' simultaneously.
 
A [[Wales|Welshman]] himself, his commitment to producing ''Doctor Who'' in Wales has led to a massive expansion of the television production capacity in that nation. His deliberate inclusion of recognisable Welsh landmarks in ''Doctor Who'' has increased tourism in the country. As such, his net impact on the economy of Wales is profound.
 
== Biography ==
=== Previous work ===
Russell's first major success was the [[CBBC]] fantasy adventure serial {{wi|Dark Season}}, which contained strong similarities to ''[[Doctor Who]]''. Davies would create another children's supernatural drama series, {{wi|Century Falls}}. He created the award-winning original ''{{iw|queerasfolk|Queer as Folk (UK TV series)|Queer as Folk}}'' (which includes several {{iw|queerasfolk|Doctor Who|references to ''Doctor Who''}}) and a supernatural drama for adults, {{wi|The Second Coming (TV serial)|The Second Coming}}, which starred the future [[Ninth Doctor]], [[Christopher Eccleston]], as a reborn Christ.
 
=== ''Doctor Who'' and related work ===
Davies' first professional involvement in ''Doctor Who'' was in 1996, when he wrote the [[Virgin New Adventures]] novel ''[[Damaged Goods (novel)|Damaged Goods]]''. The novel connected to Davies' previous work by featuring a cameo by [[Marcie Hatter]] from ''Dark Season''.
 
==== Revival and work on spin-offs ====
After 2005, when the newly revived ''Doctor Who'' franchise executive produced by Davies flourished, Davies created two spin-off series: ''[[Torchwood (TV series)|Torchwood]]'' and ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]''. He wrote or co-wrote the debut episodes of each. Unlike ''Doctor Who'', his writing involvement in these two shows has been minimal (in ''[[Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale]]'' Davies writes that he was to have written ''[[Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang (TV story)|Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang]]''; he provided a pre-credits sequence involving a [[Blowfish]] driving through [[Cardiff]]). Davies was also a regular contributor to ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'', for which he wrote a regular column in which he often dropped hints about upcoming stories, usually in the form of random snatches of dialogue or listing words that would appear in the script.
 
==== Departure ====
On 20 May 2008, Davies publicly announced his departure from ''Doctor Who''. After the fourth series' specials ended with ''[[The End of Time (TV story)|The End of Time]]'' in January 2010, from [[Series 5 (Doctor Who)|series 5]], also airing in 2010, Davies was succeeded by [[Steven Moffat]] in his role as ''Doctor Who'' head writer and executive producer. Davies continued to executive produce ''Torchwood'' until its [[Series 4 (Torchwood)|fourth series]] and ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'' until its [[Series 5 (SJA)|fifth series]], both aired in 2011. Davies was also an executive producer for ''[[Sarah Jane's Alien Files]]''.
 
==== Further work on spin-offs ====
In 2015, Davies's 1996 novel ''[[Damaged Goods (novel)|Damaged Goods]]'' was [[Damaged Goods (audio story)|adapted for audio]] by [[Big Finish Productions]].
 
Davies worked with Big Finish Productions in the creation of ''Torchwood'' audio series ''[[Aliens Among Us]]'', helping co-create its characters.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bigfinish.com/news/v/new-series-5-of-torchwood-aliens-among-us |title=New Series 5 of Torchwood: Aliens Among Us! |date of source=6 May 2017 |website name=[[Big Finish]] |accessdate=6 May 2018}}</ref><ref>[[BFX]]: ''[[Aliens Among Us 3]]''</ref>
 
He wrote the novelisation of his first ''Doctor Who'' episode, ''[[Rose (novelisation)|Rose]]'', for the revived [[Target Books]] line.
 
==== Inclusion of LGBT characters ====
With the exception of his work in children's television, he has written an openly and proudly [[gay]] character in all his work, and [[Doctor Who]] is no exception. He was the first to write about a confirmed transgender side character (''[[The End of the World (TV story)|The End of the World]]'') and confirmed male (''[[Aliens of London (TV story)|Aliens of London]]'') and female [[homosexuality]] (''[[Gridlock (TV story)|Gridlock]]''). While [[Steven Moffat]] holds the distinction of being the first writer to write about [[bisexuality]] (''[[The Doctor Dances (TV story)|The Doctor Dances]]''), Russell T Davies created [[Jack Harkness|Captain Jack]], the first openly omnisexual character in televised ''Doctor Who''. Several episodes of ''Doctor Who'' and ''Torchwood'' have featured same-sex couples, most notably ''Torchwood'' which established a relationship between Captain Jack and [[Ianto Jones]] in the second season.
 
==== ''Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale'' ====
In February 2007, Davies and ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'' writer [[Benjamin Cook]] agreed to exchange e-mails with the intention of creating a series of articles for [[DWM]] on the creation of select episodes from the then upcoming Series 4. This correspondence soon grew well beyond the confines of the magazine and in the autumn of 2008 the 512-page ''[[Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale]]'' was published. A second edition featuring some three hundred pages of additional material covering production of his final stories for ''Doctor Who'' was published in January 2010.
 
==== Significant additions to the ''Doctor Who'' universe ====
Russell T Davies came up with the concept of the [[Torchwood Institute]], the [[Slitheen]], the [[Judoon]] and the [[Cult of Skaro]]. He established a major piece of backstory, the [[Last Great Time War]] and the resulting destruction of [[Gallifrey]] and the [[Time Lord]] race.
 
He also created the Doctor's [[companion]]s [[Rose Tyler]], [[Jack Harkness]] (in conjunction with episode writer Steven Moffat), [[Martha Jones]], [[Donna Noble]] and [[Mickey Smith]] (as well as several one-off companions).
 
He devised the concepts, formats and regular characters (other than [[Sarah Jane Smith]]) for ''[[Torchwood (TV series)|Torchwood]]'' and ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]'' and established the idea of producing mini-episodes for special events.
 
He cast [[Christopher Eccleston]] and [[David Tennant]] as the [[Ninth Doctor|Ninth]] and [[Tenth Doctor]]s, as well as their associated companions.
 
On his watch numerous original-series characters and enemies have been reintroduced to new audiences. The enemies he reintroduced were the [[Auton]]s, the [[Nestene Consciousness]], [[Dalek]]s, [[Cybermen (Pete's World)|Cybermen]], [[Macra]], [[the Master]], [[Sontaran]]s and [[Davros]]. The characters he reintroduced included [[Sarah Jane Smith]], [[K9]], Brigadier [[Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart|Lethbridge-Stewart]] and [[Jo Grant]]. The [[Fifth Doctor]] made a return appearance in an episode produced by Davies and his script for ''[[The Next Doctor]]'' incorporated a sequence incorporating footage of the first ten Doctors.
 
Although it has been a part of ''Doctor Who'' lore since its earliest days (see [[TV]]: ''[[The Aztecs]]'', for example), it was during Davies' tenure that the concept of certain events and people being "fixed points in time" and unalterable was solidified. This concept is important in explaining why events such as the Second World War and the Iraq War still occurred in the Whoniverse, though this seems to apply mainly to Earth-based events and not events such as Dalek invasions.
 
== Other information ==
* In 2008, Davies was awarded an {{w|OBE}}, the second ''Doctor Who'' producer to receive one ([[Verity Lambert]] received an OBE in 2002). <ref>[http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/honoured-for-services-to-dr-who-and-saturday-nights-846928.html Honoured: for services to Dr Who and Saturday nights, accessed 15-June-2008]</ref>
* In an interview he stated the [[Christmas]] episode slot was his favourite of the year.
* Davies is a skilled cartoonist and many ''Doctor Who''-related examples of his work can be found in ''[[Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale]]''.
* In 2009, Davies became one of the only ''Doctor Who''-related personnel to be depicted in a fictional and non-parody context when Robert Degas portrayed him in the comedy ''Hudson and Pepperdine Save the Planet'', an instalment of ''Afternoon Play'' which was broadcast on [[BBC Radio 4]] on 19 August 2009.<ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b009y1st</ref>
* The premiere episode of the 2008 BBC Wales series ''Merlin'' carries a "Special Thanks" credit for Davies, acknowledging his impact on reshaping Saturday evening television through ''Doctor Who''.
* His favourite classic series story is ''[[The Ark in Space (TV story)|The Ark in Space]]'', while his favourite Doctor is [[Tom Baker]]; he has also expressed admiration for [[Robert Holmes]], the writer of ''[[The Ark in Space (TV story)|The Ark in Space]]'' and many classic stories.
* He did not wish to write even a single line for the [[Eleventh Doctor]], as he felt he was [[Steven Moffat]]'s character; the new Doctor's dialogue after the regeneration in ''[[The End of Time (TV story)|The End of Time, Part 2]]'' was left blank for Moffat to fill in. However, he did write for the Eleventh Doctor in the ''Sarah Jane Adventures'' episode ''[[Death of the Doctor (TV story)|Death of the Doctor]]''. Matt Smith commented that Russell was "very good on writing Doctors." and that he immediately understood who Matt's Doctor was.
* In ''The Writer's Tale'', Davies reveals he was asked by ''[[Star Wars]]'' creator George Lucas to write a story for the popular animated spinoff series ''Star Wars: The Clone Wars'', but turned him down.
 
== Selected credits ==
=== Televised scripted drama ===
==== As writer ====
{{pcred|writer}}
==== As executive producer ====
{{pcred|executive producer}}
==== As actor ====
* ''[[The Gathering (TV story)|The Gathering]]'' - [[Radio announcer (The Gathering)|Radio announcer]]
 
=== Prose ===
==== Virgin New Adventures ====
* ''[[Damaged Goods (novel)|Damaged Goods]]''
 
==== Target novelisations ====
* ''[[Rose (novelisation)|Rose]]''
 
==== Nonfiction ====
* ''[[The Writer's Tale]]'' (with [[Benjamin Cook]])
* ''[[The Writer's Tale: The Final Chapter]]'' (with Benjamin Cook)
 
=== Audio ===
* ''[[Damaged Goods (audio story)|Damaged Goods]]'' (adapted to audio by [[Jonathan Morris]])
 
=== Television pastiches ===
==== As actor ====
* ''[[The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot (TV story)|The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot]]'' - As himself
 
=== Other ===
* Regular column in ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]''.
* Davies has also written short pieces for the various [[Doctor Who annual|''Doctor Who'' annual]] and ''[[Doctor Who Storybook]]'' published from 2005 onwards, most notably several instalments of ''[[A Letter from the Doctor]]''.
* He wrote the introduction for the 2011 republication of ''[[Doctor Who and the Auton Invasion]]''.
 
== External links ==
{{imdb name|id=0203961}}
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7453623.stm BBC News - Profile: Russell T Davies]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20050322182022/http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/news/drwho/2004/08/10/13635.shtml BBC.co.uk website interview with Russell T Davies, 10 January 2004]
 
== Footnotes ==
{{reflist|2}}
{{NameSort}}
 
 
[[es:Russell T Davies]]
[[fr:Russell T Davies]]
[[fr:Russell T Davies]]
[[pt:Russell T Davies]]
[[pt:Russell T Davies]]

Revision as of 23:55, 8 May 2019

RealWorld.png

Russell T Davies OBE (born Stephen Russell Davies in Swansea on 27 April 1963[1]) was head writer and executive producer on Doctor Who from series 1 in 2005 to series 4 in 2007-10, and was creator and executive producer of spin-off series Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures, having written or co-written six episodes of Torchwood and three episodes (two stories) of The Sarah Jane Adventures. Prior to this, in 1996, he had written the Virgin New Adventures novel Damaged Goods.

He is the single most prolific producer of televised entertainment in DWU history. His position is virtually unassailable because he was producing Torchwood, The Sarah Jane Adventures and Doctor Who simultaneously.

A Welshman himself, his commitment to producing Doctor Who in Wales has led to a massive expansion of the television production capacity in that nation. His deliberate inclusion of recognisable Welsh landmarks in Doctor Who has increased tourism in the country. As such, his net impact on the economy of Wales is profound.

Biography

Previous work

Russell's first major success was the CBBC fantasy adventure serial Dark Season, which contained strong similarities to Doctor Who. Davies would create another children's supernatural drama series, Century Falls. He created the award-winning original Queer as Folk (which includes several references to Doctor Who) and a supernatural drama for adults, The Second Coming, which starred the future Ninth Doctor, Christopher Eccleston, as a reborn Christ.

Doctor Who and related work

Davies' first professional involvement in Doctor Who was in 1996, when he wrote the Virgin New Adventures novel Damaged Goods. The novel connected to Davies' previous work by featuring a cameo by Marcie Hatter from Dark Season.

Revival and work on spin-offs

After 2005, when the newly revived Doctor Who franchise executive produced by Davies flourished, Davies created two spin-off series: Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures. He wrote or co-wrote the debut episodes of each. Unlike Doctor Who, his writing involvement in these two shows has been minimal (in Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale Davies writes that he was to have written Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang; he provided a pre-credits sequence involving a Blowfish driving through Cardiff). Davies was also a regular contributor to Doctor Who Magazine, for which he wrote a regular column in which he often dropped hints about upcoming stories, usually in the form of random snatches of dialogue or listing words that would appear in the script.

Departure

On 20 May 2008, Davies publicly announced his departure from Doctor Who. After the fourth series' specials ended with The End of Time in January 2010, from series 5, also airing in 2010, Davies was succeeded by Steven Moffat in his role as Doctor Who head writer and executive producer. Davies continued to executive produce Torchwood until its fourth series and The Sarah Jane Adventures until its fifth series, both aired in 2011. Davies was also an executive producer for Sarah Jane's Alien Files.

Further work on spin-offs

In 2015, Davies's 1996 novel Damaged Goods was adapted for audio by Big Finish Productions.

Davies worked with Big Finish Productions in the creation of Torchwood audio series Aliens Among Us, helping co-create its characters.[2][3]

He wrote the novelisation of his first Doctor Who episode, Rose, for the revived Target Books line.

Inclusion of LGBT characters

With the exception of his work in children's television, he has written an openly and proudly gay character in all his work, and Doctor Who is no exception. He was the first to write about a confirmed transgender side character (The End of the World) and confirmed male (Aliens of London) and female homosexuality (Gridlock). While Steven Moffat holds the distinction of being the first writer to write about bisexuality (The Doctor Dances), Russell T Davies created Captain Jack, the first openly omnisexual character in televised Doctor Who. Several episodes of Doctor Who and Torchwood have featured same-sex couples, most notably Torchwood which established a relationship between Captain Jack and Ianto Jones in the second season.

Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale

In February 2007, Davies and Doctor Who Magazine writer Benjamin Cook agreed to exchange e-mails with the intention of creating a series of articles for DWM on the creation of select episodes from the then upcoming Series 4. This correspondence soon grew well beyond the confines of the magazine and in the autumn of 2008 the 512-page Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale was published. A second edition featuring some three hundred pages of additional material covering production of his final stories for Doctor Who was published in January 2010.

Significant additions to the Doctor Who universe

Russell T Davies came up with the concept of the Torchwood Institute, the Slitheen, the Judoon and the Cult of Skaro. He established a major piece of backstory, the Last Great Time War and the resulting destruction of Gallifrey and the Time Lord race.

He also created the Doctor's companions Rose Tyler, Jack Harkness (in conjunction with episode writer Steven Moffat), Martha Jones, Donna Noble and Mickey Smith (as well as several one-off companions).

He devised the concepts, formats and regular characters (other than Sarah Jane Smith) for Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures and established the idea of producing mini-episodes for special events.

He cast Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant as the Ninth and Tenth Doctors, as well as their associated companions.

On his watch numerous original-series characters and enemies have been reintroduced to new audiences. The enemies he reintroduced were the Autons, the Nestene Consciousness, Daleks, Cybermen, Macra, the Master, Sontarans and Davros. The characters he reintroduced included Sarah Jane Smith, K9, Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart and Jo Grant. The Fifth Doctor made a return appearance in an episode produced by Davies and his script for The Next Doctor incorporated a sequence incorporating footage of the first ten Doctors.

Although it has been a part of Doctor Who lore since its earliest days (see TV: The Aztecs, for example), it was during Davies' tenure that the concept of certain events and people being "fixed points in time" and unalterable was solidified. This concept is important in explaining why events such as the Second World War and the Iraq War still occurred in the Whoniverse, though this seems to apply mainly to Earth-based events and not events such as Dalek invasions.

Other information

  • In 2008, Davies was awarded an OBE, the second Doctor Who producer to receive one (Verity Lambert received an OBE in 2002). [4]
  • In an interview he stated the Christmas episode slot was his favourite of the year.
  • Davies is a skilled cartoonist and many Doctor Who-related examples of his work can be found in Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale.
  • In 2009, Davies became one of the only Doctor Who-related personnel to be depicted in a fictional and non-parody context when Robert Degas portrayed him in the comedy Hudson and Pepperdine Save the Planet, an instalment of Afternoon Play which was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on 19 August 2009.[5]
  • The premiere episode of the 2008 BBC Wales series Merlin carries a "Special Thanks" credit for Davies, acknowledging his impact on reshaping Saturday evening television through Doctor Who.
  • His favourite classic series story is The Ark in Space, while his favourite Doctor is Tom Baker; he has also expressed admiration for Robert Holmes, the writer of The Ark in Space and many classic stories.
  • He did not wish to write even a single line for the Eleventh Doctor, as he felt he was Steven Moffat's character; the new Doctor's dialogue after the regeneration in The End of Time, Part 2 was left blank for Moffat to fill in. However, he did write for the Eleventh Doctor in the Sarah Jane Adventures episode Death of the Doctor. Matt Smith commented that Russell was "very good on writing Doctors." and that he immediately understood who Matt's Doctor was.
  • In The Writer's Tale, Davies reveals he was asked by Star Wars creator George Lucas to write a story for the popular animated spinoff series Star Wars: The Clone Wars, but turned him down.

Selected credits

Televised scripted drama

As writer

As executive producer

As actor

Prose

Virgin New Adventures

Target novelisations

Nonfiction

Audio

Television pastiches

As actor

Other

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ DWDVDF 133
  2. ↑ New Series 5 of Torchwood: Aliens Among Us!. Big Finish (6 May 2017). Retrieved on 6 May 2018.
  3. ↑ BFX: Aliens Among Us 3
  4. ↑ Honoured: for services to Dr Who and Saturday nights, accessed 15-June-2008
  5. ↑ http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b009y1st
Retrieved from "https://tardis.wiki/w/index.php?title=Russell_T_Davies&oldid=2717356"