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Murray Gold is the composer for the revived series of ''[[Doctor Who]]''. He has made two editions of the theme music and has composed all the incidental music for ''Doctor Who'' as well as major work on music for ''[[Torchwood]]'' and ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]''. He has also written three songs for the series: Song For Ten ("[[The Christmas Invasion]]"), Love Don't Roam ("[[The Runaway Bridge]]") and The Stowaway ("[[Voyage of the Damned]]"). Two soundtracks for ''Doctor Who'' featuring his music have been released.
{{real world}}
{{Infobox Person
|image          = Murray_Gold.jpg
|birth date      = [[28 February (people)|28 February]] [[1969 (people)|1969]]
|role            = [[Guitarist (Voyage of the Damned)|Guitarist]], [[Murray Gold (in-universe)|Murray Gold]]
|job title      = [[Composer]]
|time            = 2005-2017, 2023-present
|non dwu        =
|imdb            = 0325050
|twitter        = murraygold
|clip            = Murray Gold Conversations With Composers
|clip2          = Composing music - Dr Who Confidential - BBC sci-fi
|clip3          = Interview with Murray Gold Composer of Doctor Who Soundtracks
}}
'''Murray Gold''' (born [[28 February (people)|28 February]] [[1969 (people)|1969]]<ref>[https://guide.doctorwhonews.net/person.php?name=MurrayGold Doctor Who Guide]</ref>) was the [[composer]] for the revived series of ''[[Doctor Who]]'' from 2005 to 2017 and since 2023. He also composed for ''[[Torchwood (TV series)|Torchwood]]'' in its [[series 1 (Torchwood)|first]] and [[series 4 (Torchwood)|fourth series]].


[[Category:Crew]]
During his time working for [[BBC Wales]] ''Doctor Who'', Gold arranged many versions of the "[[Doctor Who theme|''Doctor Who'' theme]]", as heard on ''Doctor Who'', ''[[Doctor Who Confidential]]'', ''[[Doctor Who Extra]]'' and ''[[Totally Doctor Who]]''. He also composed the [[theme music]] for ''Torchwood'', ''[[Torchwood Declassified]]'', ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]'' and ''[[Sarah Jane's Alien Files]]''.
 
== ''Doctor Who'' ==
Gold was assigned as Doctor Who's composer in 2004 after an email from [[Russell T Davies]] who asked him to work on the show. Gold immediately took up the offer. The music from Series 1 was composed and created by himself using sampled instruments at his digital music studio in his flat in Frognal (Hampstead), London. All of the music was created digitally, except for Gold's use of the [[Crouch End Festival Chorus|Crouch End Festival]] Chorus for heavy choral parts, most notably the [[:Dalek#Music|Dalek motifs]]. He went on to form a good relationship with the choir, as demonstrated in his further use of them in the following seasons.
 
Shortly after the airing of Series 1, Gold and the producers proposed that the music should be written and adapted to be performed orchestrally. The show’s growing popularity and increased budget catered for this and so Gold began his involvement with [[Ben Foster]] and the [[BBC National Orchestra of Wales]], which continued until partway through [[Series 9 (Doctor Who 2005)|series 9]], though the National Orchestra of Wales, under conductor and orchestrator [[Alastair King]], continued to work with Gold for future stories. The [[:The Christmas Invasion (TV story)|2005 Christmas Special]] was the first episode to feature orchestral music, however Gold continued creating many minor pieces completely digitally using sampled instruments until around Series 3.
 
In 2007 Gold moved to, and mainly based himself in New York and Los Angeles, though he often travels between the US and the UK. As shown in a 2008 [[:Doctor Who Confidential|Confidential]] episode, recording sessions of music were viewed by him through a digital video link in order for him to communicate with the orchestra, conductor and music team.
 
Gold's most prominent work for the [[Doctor Who universe|DWU]] has likely been new arrangements of the "[[Doctor Who theme|''Doctor Who'' theme]]". He has arranged multiple different versions of the theme for broadcast and several more for live performance. Gold has therefore created more official arrangements of the theme than any other ''Doctor Who'' franchise composer.
 
Gold has also written seven non-score based lyrical songs for the series: "[[Song for Ten]]" (''[[The Christmas Invasion (TV story)|The Christmas Invasion]]''), "[[Love Don't Roam]]" (''[[The Runaway Bride (TV story)|The Runaway Bride]]''), "[[My Angel Put the Devil in Me]]" (''[[Daleks in Manhattan (TV story)|Daleks in Manhattan]]''), "[[The Stowaway]]" (''[[Voyage of the Damned (TV story)|Voyage of the Damned]]''), "[[Song of Freedom]]" (''[[Planet of the Ood (TV story)|Planet of the Ood]]'' and ''[[Journey's End (TV story)|Journey's End]]''), "[[Vale Decem]]" (''[[The End of Time (TV story)|The End of Time]]'') and "[[Doctor Who - A Christmas Carol (soundtrack)|Abigail's Song (Silence Is All You Know)]]" (''[[A Christmas Carol (TV story)|A Christmas Carol]]''). Murray Gold also appeared, in a cameo role, as a guitarist in ''[[Voyage of the Damned (TV story)|Voyage of the Damned]]'' ([[DWMSE 20]]).
 
He was interviewed about his DW music by [http://www.soundonsound.com "Sound On Sound"] magazine in the June 2007 issue. (See [http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jun07/articles/drwho.htm])
 
Gold remained as composer for the [[Steven Moffat]] era, composing two versions of the ''Doctor Who'' theme for the [[Eleventh Doctor]] and one for the [[Twelfth Doctor]].
 
He also contributed to the charity reference book ''[[Behind the Sofa: Celebrity Memories of Doctor Who]]''.
 
Gold initially left his role as composer after the 2017 [[Christmas Special]] and the final Moffat era story ''[[Twice Upon a Time (TV story)|Twice Upon a Time]]''. [[Segun Akinola]] took over as composer from [[Series 11 (Doctor Who 2005)|series 11]] until the BBC [[Centenary Special]] ''[[The Power of the Doctor (TV story)|The Power of the Doctor]]'', consisting of [[Chris Chibnall]]'s entire run as [[head writer]]. Gold returned for the second Russell T Davies era, starting with the [[2023 specials]], again collaborating with the National Orchestra of Wales and Alastair King. Gold had a second cameo appearance, this time as [[Murray Gold (in-universe)|himself]], in {{cs|The Devil's Chord (TV story)}}.
 
== Soundtrack releases ==
Several soundtracks for Gold's ''Doctor Who'' work have been released. He has been active in the production of each release.
 
* [[Doctor Who - Series 1 and 2 (soundtrack)|Doctor Who - Series 1 and 2]]
* [[Doctor Who - Series 3 (soundtrack)|Doctor Who - Series 3]]
* [[Doctor Who - Series 4 (soundtrack)|Doctor Who - Series 4]]
* [[Doctor Who - Series 4 - The Specials (soundtrack)|Doctor Who - Series 4 - The Specials]]
* [[Doctor Who - Series 5 (soundtrack)|Doctor Who - Series 5]]
* [[Doctor Who - A Christmas Carol (soundtrack)|Doctor Who - A Christmas Carol]]
* [[Doctor Who - Series 6 (soundtrack)|Doctor Who - Series 6]]
* [[Doctor Who - Series 7 (soundtrack)|Doctor Who - Series 7]]
* [[Doctor Who - The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe and The Snowmen (soundtrack)|Doctor Who - The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe and The Snowmen]]
* [[Doctor Who - The Day of the Doctor and The Time of the Doctor (soundtrack)|Doctor Who - The Day of the Doctor and The Time of the Doctor]]
* [[Doctor Who - Series 8 (soundtrack)|Doctor Who - Series 8]]
* [[Doctor Who - Series 9 (soundtrack)|Doctor Who - Series 9]]
 
Additionally, two soundtracks for spin-off series ''[[Torchwood (TV series)|Torchwood]]'' have been released since 2008, with Murray Gold working alongside fellow ''Torchwood'' composer, [[Ben Foster]], on [[Torchwood - Series 1 and 2 (soundtrack)|the initial release]].
 
As of 2024, the soundtrack for [[Series 10 (Doctor Who 2005)|Series 10]], has not been released, despite the release of Akinola's soundtracks and the fans demanding the final soundtrack of Gold's era. It is unknown if the lack of release is down to the BBC, Silva Screen or Gold himself. However, Gold has hinted that he is working on potentially having the soundtrack produced. On an interview for BBC Radio Solent, Murray confessed his hesitation to work on a Series 10 Soundtrack due to the Series 9 Soundtrack being leaked prior to release, additionally claiming it takes 2 months to work on a soundtrack release to which he hadn't had 2 free months since 2017.
 
== Spin-offs ==
Gold has written the theme for both ''[[Torchwood (TV series)|Torchwood]]'' and ''[[The Sarah Jane Adventures]]'', as well as ''[[Torchwood Declassified]]'' and ''[[Sarah Jane's Alien Files]]'' which featured re-arrangements of the themes of their parent series. Although two ''Torchwood'' CDs have been released, none have been released for ''SJA'' as of 2011. Gold also composed the theme for the [[Whoniverse ident]] which opens most ''Doctor Who'' content as of 2023.
 
He has not been heavily involved in the [[incidental music]] scores for the spin-offs. With the exception of a few early episodes in the first series of ''Torchwood'', he has mostly only scored the parent programme. However, he was the main composer for ''[[Torchwood: Miracle Day]]''.
 
== Relationship with RTD ==
Gold has enjoyed a long working relationship with [[Russell T Davies]] and has scored virtually all of RTD's productions since 1999, including ''{{iw|queerasfolk|Queer as Folk}}'', {{wi|The Second Coming (TV serial)|The Second Coming}} with [[Christopher Eccleston]] and [[Lesley Sharp]], and {{wi|Casanova (2005 TV serial)|Casanova}} with [[David Tennant]], [[Shaun Parkes]] and [[Nina Sosanya]], directed by [[Sheree Folkson]], and {{wi|It's a Sin (TV series)|It's a Sin}} with [[Lydia West]] and [[Keeley Hawes]] and directed by [[Peter Hoar]].
 
== Other work ==
Despite a close relationship with RTD, Gold is far from "RTD's composer". He has gained notoriety on a variety of non-RTD projects. For instance, he started work on the TV series {{wi|Shameless (British TV series)|Shameless}} at about the same time as ''Doctor Who'', and has been scoring both series for the same amount of time. In the early 2000s, his theme music for {{wi|Clocking Off}} — a show that featured the talents of actors [[Christopher Eccleston]], [[Lesley Sharp]] and [[Sarah Lancashire]], and [[Director (crew)|director]] [[Geoffrey Sax]] — was RTS-nominated. More recently, he was the composer on [[David Tennant]]'s {{wi|Single Father (TV series)|Single Father}} mini-series and of the [[Suranne Jones]]/[[Lesley Sharp]] police procedural, {{wi|Scott & Bailey}}.
 
== Awards ==
Though nominated four times for different projects, including ''[[Doctor Who]]'', Gold has never won a [[BAFTA]] award. He has, however, won a [[Royal Television Society Award]] for his work on ''Queer as Folk''.
 
== Credits ==
=== Music ===
{{pcred|music}}
=== Title music ===
{{pcred|theme}}
 
== External links ==
{{imdb name|id=0325050}}
{{twitter|murraygold}}
{{elx|wiki=queerasfolk|wiki name=Queer as Folk Wiki}}
{{elx|wiki=musketeers|wiki name=BBC Musketeers Wiki}}
 
== Footnotes ==
{{reflist}}
{{NameSort}}
[[fr:Murray Gold]]
 
[[Category:Doctor Who composers]]
[[Category:Doctor Who instrumentalists]]
[[Category:Doctor Who theme arrangers]]
[[Category:Doctor Who non-speaking actors]]
[[Category:Doctor Who actors who played themselves]]
[[Category:Torchwood composers]]
[[Category:SJA composers]]
[[Category:Doctor Who: A Celebration music crew]]
[[Category:Doctor Who at the Proms music crew]]
[[Category:RTS Craft & Design Award winners]]
[[Category:BAFTA Cymru award nominees]]
[[Category:BAFTA award nominees]]
[[Category:Crew members interviewed on Doctor Who Confidential]]
[[Category:Behind the Sofa contributors]]
[[Category:People interviewed on Doctor Who: Unleashed]]

Latest revision as of 13:01, 4 November 2024

RealWorld.png

Murray Gold (born 28 February 1969[1]) was the composer for the revived series of Doctor Who from 2005 to 2017 and since 2023. He also composed for Torchwood in its first and fourth series.

During his time working for BBC Wales Doctor Who, Gold arranged many versions of the "Doctor Who theme", as heard on Doctor Who, Doctor Who Confidential, Doctor Who Extra and Totally Doctor Who. He also composed the theme music for Torchwood, Torchwood Declassified, The Sarah Jane Adventures and Sarah Jane's Alien Files.

Doctor Who[[edit] | [edit source]]

Gold was assigned as Doctor Who's composer in 2004 after an email from Russell T Davies who asked him to work on the show. Gold immediately took up the offer. The music from Series 1 was composed and created by himself using sampled instruments at his digital music studio in his flat in Frognal (Hampstead), London. All of the music was created digitally, except for Gold's use of the Crouch End Festival Chorus for heavy choral parts, most notably the Dalek motifs. He went on to form a good relationship with the choir, as demonstrated in his further use of them in the following seasons.

Shortly after the airing of Series 1, Gold and the producers proposed that the music should be written and adapted to be performed orchestrally. The show’s growing popularity and increased budget catered for this and so Gold began his involvement with Ben Foster and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, which continued until partway through series 9, though the National Orchestra of Wales, under conductor and orchestrator Alastair King, continued to work with Gold for future stories. The 2005 Christmas Special was the first episode to feature orchestral music, however Gold continued creating many minor pieces completely digitally using sampled instruments until around Series 3.

In 2007 Gold moved to, and mainly based himself in New York and Los Angeles, though he often travels between the US and the UK. As shown in a 2008 Confidential episode, recording sessions of music were viewed by him through a digital video link in order for him to communicate with the orchestra, conductor and music team.

Gold's most prominent work for the DWU has likely been new arrangements of the "Doctor Who theme". He has arranged multiple different versions of the theme for broadcast and several more for live performance. Gold has therefore created more official arrangements of the theme than any other Doctor Who franchise composer.

Gold has also written seven non-score based lyrical songs for the series: "Song for Ten" (The Christmas Invasion), "Love Don't Roam" (The Runaway Bride), "My Angel Put the Devil in Me" (Daleks in Manhattan), "The Stowaway" (Voyage of the Damned), "Song of Freedom" (Planet of the Ood and Journey's End), "Vale Decem" (The End of Time) and "Abigail's Song (Silence Is All You Know)" (A Christmas Carol). Murray Gold also appeared, in a cameo role, as a guitarist in Voyage of the Damned (DWMSE 20).

He was interviewed about his DW music by "Sound On Sound" magazine in the June 2007 issue. (See [1])

Gold remained as composer for the Steven Moffat era, composing two versions of the Doctor Who theme for the Eleventh Doctor and one for the Twelfth Doctor.

He also contributed to the charity reference book Behind the Sofa: Celebrity Memories of Doctor Who.

Gold initially left his role as composer after the 2017 Christmas Special and the final Moffat era story Twice Upon a Time. Segun Akinola took over as composer from series 11 until the BBC Centenary Special The Power of the Doctor, consisting of Chris Chibnall's entire run as head writer. Gold returned for the second Russell T Davies era, starting with the 2023 specials, again collaborating with the National Orchestra of Wales and Alastair King. Gold had a second cameo appearance, this time as himself, in The Devil's Chord [+]Loading...["The Devil's Chord (TV story)"].

Soundtrack releases[[edit] | [edit source]]

Several soundtracks for Gold's Doctor Who work have been released. He has been active in the production of each release.

Additionally, two soundtracks for spin-off series Torchwood have been released since 2008, with Murray Gold working alongside fellow Torchwood composer, Ben Foster, on the initial release.

As of 2024, the soundtrack for Series 10, has not been released, despite the release of Akinola's soundtracks and the fans demanding the final soundtrack of Gold's era. It is unknown if the lack of release is down to the BBC, Silva Screen or Gold himself. However, Gold has hinted that he is working on potentially having the soundtrack produced. On an interview for BBC Radio Solent, Murray confessed his hesitation to work on a Series 10 Soundtrack due to the Series 9 Soundtrack being leaked prior to release, additionally claiming it takes 2 months to work on a soundtrack release to which he hadn't had 2 free months since 2017.

Spin-offs[[edit] | [edit source]]

Gold has written the theme for both Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures, as well as Torchwood Declassified and Sarah Jane's Alien Files which featured re-arrangements of the themes of their parent series. Although two Torchwood CDs have been released, none have been released for SJA as of 2011. Gold also composed the theme for the Whoniverse ident which opens most Doctor Who content as of 2023.

He has not been heavily involved in the incidental music scores for the spin-offs. With the exception of a few early episodes in the first series of Torchwood, he has mostly only scored the parent programme. However, he was the main composer for Torchwood: Miracle Day.

Relationship with RTD[[edit] | [edit source]]

Gold has enjoyed a long working relationship with Russell T Davies and has scored virtually all of RTD's productions since 1999, including Queer as Folk, The Second Coming with Christopher Eccleston and Lesley Sharp, and Casanova with David Tennant, Shaun Parkes and Nina Sosanya, directed by Sheree Folkson, and It's a Sin with Lydia West and Keeley Hawes and directed by Peter Hoar.

Other work[[edit] | [edit source]]

Despite a close relationship with RTD, Gold is far from "RTD's composer". He has gained notoriety on a variety of non-RTD projects. For instance, he started work on the TV series Shameless at about the same time as Doctor Who, and has been scoring both series for the same amount of time. In the early 2000s, his theme music for Clocking Off — a show that featured the talents of actors Christopher Eccleston, Lesley Sharp and Sarah Lancashire, and director Geoffrey Sax — was RTS-nominated. More recently, he was the composer on David Tennant's Single Father mini-series and of the Suranne Jones/Lesley Sharp police procedural, Scott & Bailey.

Awards[[edit] | [edit source]]

Though nominated four times for different projects, including Doctor Who, Gold has never won a BAFTA award. He has, however, won a Royal Television Society Award for his work on Queer as Folk.

Credits[[edit] | [edit source]]

Music[[edit] | [edit source]]

Title music[[edit] | [edit source]]

External links[[edit] | [edit source]]

Footnotes[[edit] | [edit source]]

  1. ↑ Doctor Who Guide
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