Series 4 (Doctor Who 2005): Difference between revisions

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(Series 4 ended in July - the series boxset is out without The Next Doctor)
(Series 4 box is out without The next Doctor)
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Series 4 of ''[[Doctor Who]]'' started on the [[5th April]] [[2008]]. It was preceded by two specials: ''[[Time Crash]]'' and ''[[Voyage of the Damned]]''  which while not officially considered part of Series 4 have been grouped together with the later episodes for the subsequent Series 4 DVD release.
The '''2009 Specials''' will be broadcast between the end of Series 4 and the beginning of Series 5.  Five specials will be broadcast at various points in 2008-2009. Of the five specials, one has been scheduled for Christmas 2008, one for Easter 2009, and one for Christmas 2009, leaving the other two unscheduled. These five specials will be overseen by [[Russell T Davies]] and [[Julie Gardner]], but traditional line producer, [[Phil Collinson]], will not be returning for them. All will reportedly star [[David Tennant]].<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/news/cult/news/drwho/2007/09/03/48471.shtml Official website's 2007 bulletin about Series 5]</ref>


[[David Tennant]] stayed on as the Tenth Doctor, and Catherine Tate reprised her role as Donna Noble, following her one off in the [[The Runaway Bride]].  
David Tennant announced that after the 2009 specials he would leave ''Doctor Who''. Rumoured actors to replace Tennant were James Nesbitt <ref>[http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/cult/a69179/nesbitt-to-become-next-doctor.html Cult - News - Nesbitt to become next Doctor? On the 3rd of January, it was announced that Matt Smith will become the Eleventh Doctor. - Digital Spy<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>, Robert Carlyle <ref>[http://www.williamhillmedia.com/index_template.asp?file=10285 Who Will Be Next Dr Who? | William Hill Press Office<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>, [[David Walliams]] (who was the leading choice) <ref>[http://www.askmen.com/men/entertainment_250/287_david_walliams.html David Walliams - AskMen.com<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>, [[Harry Lloyd]] <ref>[http://www.pr-inside.com/new-doctor-who-unveiled-r207167.htm NEWS NEW DOCTOR WHO UNVEILED Music, movie & Entertainment News<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>, [[David Morrissey]] (who previously played [[Jackson Lake]] in the [[The Next Doctor|2008 Christmas special]]) <ref>http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-news/breaking-news/2008/07/04/liverpool-actor-david-morrissey-could-be-next-doctor-who-64375-21227910/</ref> <ref>http://www.kasterborous.com/news.asp?id=1795</ref> and [[Paterson Joseph]]<ref>http://blog.wired.com/underwire/2008/10/theres-yet-anot.html</ref><ref>http://www.bbcamerica.com/content/23/anglophenia.jsp?bc_id=1249</ref><ref>http://liveforfilm.blogspot.com/2008/10/next-dr-who-could-be.html</ref>. Bill Nighy has stated he would love to take over from Tennant once he leaves if the producers approach him <ref name=autogenerated3>[http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/nighy%20eyes%20doctor%20who%20role_1059948 Bill Nighy - Nighy Eyes Doctor Who Role<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>. On the 3rd January 2009, it was announced that 26 year old actor [[Matt Smith]] would be portraying the [[Eleventh Doctor]] for the duration of [[Series 5 (Doctor Who)]]. It is currently unknown whether the regeneration from the Tenth to Eleventh Doctor will occur in the last special, or at the beginning of the 5th series.


This series featured several (former) companions returning; [[Freema Agyeman]], returned as [[Martha Jones]] for five episodes of the series, which began with ''[[The Sontaran Stratagem]]'' following her three episode spell with [[Torchwood]]. [[Jack Harkness]] crossed over from ''[[Torchwood]]'' for a second time later in the series. [[Billie Piper]] returned as [[Rose Tyler]] for a three episode stint starting with ''[[Turn Left]]'', all three returned in ''[[The Stolen Earth]]'' along with [[Elisabeth Sladen]] as [[Sarah Jane Smith]]. These were further joined by [[Noel Clarke]] and [[Camille Coduri]] in ''[[Journey's End]]''.
For the 2009 Specials, the Doctor will be traveling alone, each episode starring a one-off companion.


Series 4 featured several milestones.  It is the 30th ever broadcast season of Doctor Who, and features the 750th broadcast episode, which was ''[[The Stolen Earth]]'', the 50th new series episode, ''[[The Unicorn and the Wasp]]'', and the 200th broadcast story of Doctor Who, ''[[Midnight (TV story)|Midnight]]''. The finale episodes ''The Stolen Earth'' and ''Journey's End'' also took the revived series to new heights of popularity, scoring the highest viewership ratings since the [[Tom Baker]] era and according to the media both episodes scored Appreciation Index ratings unprecedented for an ongoing scripted drama series.
==2009 specials==


In terms of production, the season marked the first production of a "Companion-lite" episode, ''[[Midnight]]'' (as opposed to the usual "Doctor-lite" episodes), although a Doctor-lite episode, ''[[Turn Left]]'' was also produced. This was necessitated by the need to film several episodes at the same time, including an unprecedented 15th episode, ''[[The Next Doctor]]'', which would air as the 2008 Christmas special (however, ''The Next Doctor'' is not considered part of Series 4, but instead is considered one of the 2008-2009 [[2009 specials|gap year]] specials.
===Television stories===
*[[The Next Doctor]] (broadcast 25 December 2008) - although filmed during the production of Series 4, it is considered part of the Specials season. ''The BBC have confirmed that these 'specials' are part of Series Four via the iPlayer (see next subsection).''
*[[Planet of the Dead (TV story)|Planet of the Dead]] -- announced title of Easter 2009 special (broadcast date TBA)
*Special 3 (date and title TBA)
*Special 4 (date and title TBA)
*Special 5 (date and title TBA)


As with the preceding three seasons, Series 4 incorporated several ongoing story arcs or background threads which were resolved in the finale episodes. In Series 4 these threads included: Donna Noble's evolution, Rose Tyler's attempts to return to her original world and the Doctor, the disappearance of bees from planet Earth, recurring references to planets and moons disappearing, and the coming of "The Darkness".  
===Series numbering===
Although it was initially thought that the "interval" season of specials might come to be known as Series 5, or Series 4.5, however at present it appears that the BBC will not be assigning a series "number" to the specials, much as the previous Christmas specials and mini-episodes do not technically belong to any particular season. This, however, is contradicted by Russell T Davies himself in his book ''[[The Writer's Tale]]'', where he calls ''The Next Doctor'' the fourteenth episode of the fourth series (likely due to the fact it was produced during the production of Series 4).''DWM confirmed the specials would be coded 4.14, 4.15, 4.16 ect. Also, the BBC iPlayer page for The Next Doctor on it's Christmas Day release stated the episode was part of 'Series Four'.''


Series 4 marked the last full season to be produced by [[Russell T Davies]], [[Phil Collinson]] and [[Julie Gardner]]. Collinson left following ''Journey's End'', and Davies and Gardner have announced they will depart following production of a series of specials planned for 2008-2009 in lieu of a regular season. When the show resumes weekly broadcast in [[2010]], [[Steven Moffat]] will be its head writer and show-runner. It also marks the last full season featuring [[David Tennant]] as [[Tenth Doctor|The Doctor]] as in October 2008 he announced his intention to leave the role following the production of the 2008-2009 specials; in January 2009 [[Matt Smith]] was announced as his successor.
===Writers===
[[Russell T Davies]] is solely writing only the Christmas 2008 special and two others.<ref name=Gardner>[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2008/07/11/nosplit/bvtvwho11.xml ''Daily Telegraph'' interview with Julie Gardner] 11 July 2008.</ref> One of the specials will be co-written by [[Gareth Roberts]], and one will be co-written by [[Phil Ford]].<ref>[http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/cult/a115043/doctor-who-specials-writers-announced.html? Rawson-Jones, Ben.  "'Doctor Who' specials writers announced".] digitalspy.co.uk.  25 July 2008.  ''reporting on news originally broken in [[DWM Issue 398|''Doctor Who Magazine'' #398]].</ref>  These particular specials will be historic in that they will be the first two episodes of the [[BBC Wales]] production of ''Doctor Who'' to formally credit a co-writer.  With the inclusion of Ford, 2009 will mark the fifth straight year that ''Doctor Who'' has included at least one new writer for the show, and make Ford the only writer other than RTD himself to write for ''Torchwood'', ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'' and ''Doctor Who''.


==Television stories==
===Rumours===
*''The Sun'' newspaper in the UK reported [[Paul McGann]] is to make an appearance as the [[Eighth Doctor]] in one of the specials.<ref>[http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/article1673189.ece ''Sun'' reports McGann return]</ref>  However, on 12 September 2008, the BBC refuted this allegation, saying, "There is no truth to the story at all."<ref name=Mcgann>[http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/cult/a130094/bbc-refutes-mcgann-dr-who-return-story.html Rawson-Jones, Ben. ''BBC refutes McGann 'Dr Who' story''] 12 September 2008.</ref> However, a brief clip of McGann as the Doctor ''did'' appear in ''[[The Next Doctor]]'' as part of a recap of all of the Doctor's incarnations.
*Actor Patrick Stewart may also appear in the 2009 specials, playing the renegade [[Time Lord]], [[The Monk]].<ref>[http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/article1770729.ece Blackburn, Jen. "Star Trek hero to play Time Lord". ''The Sun''. 6 October 2008.]</ref>  At least one source believes that "the BBC has offered him the role and are willing to wait for Stewart's schedule to clear".  Stewart could therefore appear in ''either'' the specials or the 2010 series.<ref>[http://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/view/53502/Patrick-Trek-to-Tardis/ "Patrick Trek to TARDIS". ''Daily Star'' 5 October 2008]</ref>
*In a recent issue of [[Doctor Who Magazine]], Russell T Davies confirmed that the title of the first special will be revealed at the end of the ''The Next Doctor''. It consists of four words, and one of them begins with a 'D'.<ref>'''D' is for...?'' [[Doctor Who Magazine]] issue 403, 13th December 2008.</ref> ''In the credits of [[The Next Doctor]], the title of the next special was revealed as [[Planet of the Dead (TV story)|Planet of the Dead]]''
*The Nimon may return in one of the specials as hinted by Russell T. Davies in an excerpt from The Next Doctor Podcast. ''It is possible that they will appear in [[Planet of the Dead (TV story)|Planet of the Dead]], since a characteristic of the [[Nimon]] is that they are parasitic and use up a planet's resources.''
*It is rumoured that News Reporter  [[Trinity Wells]], played by [[Lachele Carl]], who has appeared in every series, since series 1, will appear. Davies said in an interview that The Doctor may meet her and she may sacrifice herself for the Earth.
*With Tennant having announced his imminent departure from the series, and the identity of the actor succeeding him currently scheduled to be revealed on 3 January 2009, rumours  persist that despite Tennant's announcement in which he stated he would be appearing in all the specials, that the regeneration might occur sooner. ''The Next Doctor'' was the first special to fall prey to such rumours; in this case the rumour was debunked as the episode unfolded.
*Although initial media coverage of the "gap year" indicated that all the specials would air in 2009, with Tennant's announcement of his pending departure in October 2008 came media references (yet to be officially confirmed) that the final special, and the final episode to feature Tennant, may not air until early 2010. Julie Gardner has confirmed that the first special will be broadcast during the Easter Holidays.
*Two mini-episodes (''[[Children in Need Special]]'' and ''[[Time Crash]]'') and two interactive mini-episodes (the online game ''[[Attack of the Graske]]'' and the audience-participation ''[[Music of the Spheres]]'') have been produced since Tennant joined the series; the possibility exists that another mini-episode may be produced during the Specials season, although as of January 2009 there has been no indication of this.
*Georgia Moffett will return as Jenny, The Doctor's Daughter in one of the specials and may become companion to [[Matt Smith]]'s [[11th Doctor]] as Steven Moffat saved her from being killed off.


===Children in Need mini-episode===
===Broadcast dates===
*[[Time Crash]]
 
===Specials===
*[[Voyage of the Damned]]
 
===Episodes===
*[[Partners in Crime]]
*[[The Fires of Pompeii]]
*[[Planet of the Ood]]
*[[The Sontaran Stratagem]] / [[The Poison Sky]]
*[[The Doctor's Daughter]]
*[[The Unicorn and the Wasp]]
*[[Silence in the Library]] / [[Forest of the Dead]]
*[[Midnight (TV story)|Midnight]]
*[[Turn Left]]
*[[The Stolen Earth]] / [[Journey's End]]
 
===Mini-episode===
*[[Music of the Spheres]]
 
==The Cast==
===Primary Cast===
*[[The Doctor]] - [[David Tennant]]
*[[Donna Noble]] - [[Catherine Tate]]
 
===Secondary Cast===
*[[Martha Jones]] - [[Freema Agyeman]]
*[[Rose Tyler]] - [[Billie Piper]]
*[[Jack Harkness]] - [[John Barrowman]]
*[[Sarah Jane Smith]] - [[Elisabeth Sladen]]
*[[Fifth Doctor]] - [[Peter Davison]]
*[[Astrid Peth]] - [[Kylie Minogue]]
 
*[[Wilfred Mott]] - [[Bernard Cribbins]]
*[[Sylvia Noble]] - [[Jacqueline King]]
*[[Francine Jones]] - [[Adjoa Andoh]]
*[[Ianto Jones]] - [[Gareth David-Lloyd]] 
*[[Luke Smith]] - [[Tommy Knight]]
*[[Gwen Cooper]] - [[Eve Myles]]
 
*[[Mickey Smith]] - [[Noel Clarke]]
*[[Jackie Tyler]] - [[Camille Coduri]]
*[[Harriet Jones]] - [[Penelope Wilton]]
*[[Jackson Lake]] - [[David Morrissey]]
 
==Novels==
[[Image:2_books.JPG|thumb|right|Two of the Series 4 Books]]
*[[Ghosts of India]]
*[[Shining Darkness]]
*[[The Doctor Trap]]
*[[Beautiful Chaos]]
*[[The Eyeless]] (however this book and the six listed below may end up occurring during the timeframe of the [[2009 Specials (Doctor Who)|2009 Specials]])
*[[Judgement of the Judoon]]
*[[The Slitheen Excursion]]
*[[Prisoner of the Daleks]]
*[[The Taking of Chelsea 426]]
*[[The Krillitane Storm]]
*[[Autonomy]]
 
== Aliens and Enemies ==
*[[Max Capricorn]]
*[[Heavenly Host|Hosts]]
*[[Hardaker|Captain Hardaker]]
*[[Matron Cofelia]]
*[[Adipose]]
*[[Lucius Petrus Dextrus]]
*[[Pyrovile]]
*[[Ood]]
*[[Klineman Halpen]]
*[[Staal]]
*[[Luke Rattigan]]
*[[Sontaran|Sontarans]]
*[[Cobb|General Cobb]]
*[[Hath]]
*[[Vespiform]]
*[[Vashta Nerada]]
*[[Node]]
*[[Midnight Entity]]
*[[Sky Silvestry]]
*[[Time Beetle]]
*[[Fortune Teller]]
*[[Davros]]
*[[Dalek|Daleks]]
*[[Dalek Caan]]
 
==External Links==
[http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/s4/ BBC website page for series 4]
 
{{Series 4}}


{| class="browser"
{| class="browser"
|-
|-
| class="prev"|'''Previous Season''':<br />[[Series 3 (Doctor Who)|Series 3]]
| class="prev"|'''Previous series''':<br />[[Series 4 (Doctor Who)|Series 4]]
| class="next"|'''Next Season''':<br />[[2009 Specials (Doctor Who)|2009 Specials]]
| class="next"|'''Next series''':<br /> [[Series 5 (Doctor Who)|Series 5]]
|}
|}


==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Doctor Who seasons]]
[[Category:Doctor Who seasons]]

Revision as of 15:01, 12 January 2009

File:2007 S3 title Logo.jpg


The 2009 Specials will be broadcast between the end of Series 4 and the beginning of Series 5. Five specials will be broadcast at various points in 2008-2009. Of the five specials, one has been scheduled for Christmas 2008, one for Easter 2009, and one for Christmas 2009, leaving the other two unscheduled. These five specials will be overseen by Russell T Davies and Julie Gardner, but traditional line producer, Phil Collinson, will not be returning for them. All will reportedly star David Tennant.[1]

David Tennant announced that after the 2009 specials he would leave Doctor Who. Rumoured actors to replace Tennant were James Nesbitt [2], Robert Carlyle [3], David Walliams (who was the leading choice) [4], Harry Lloyd [5], David Morrissey (who previously played Jackson Lake in the 2008 Christmas special) [6] [7] and Paterson Joseph[8][9][10]. Bill Nighy has stated he would love to take over from Tennant once he leaves if the producers approach him [11]. On the 3rd January 2009, it was announced that 26 year old actor Matt Smith would be portraying the Eleventh Doctor for the duration of Series 5 (Doctor Who). It is currently unknown whether the regeneration from the Tenth to Eleventh Doctor will occur in the last special, or at the beginning of the 5th series.

For the 2009 Specials, the Doctor will be traveling alone, each episode starring a one-off companion.

2009 specials

Television stories

  • The Next Doctor (broadcast 25 December 2008) - although filmed during the production of Series 4, it is considered part of the Specials season. The BBC have confirmed that these 'specials' are part of Series Four via the iPlayer (see next subsection).
  • Planet of the Dead -- announced title of Easter 2009 special (broadcast date TBA)
  • Special 3 (date and title TBA)
  • Special 4 (date and title TBA)
  • Special 5 (date and title TBA)

Series numbering

Although it was initially thought that the "interval" season of specials might come to be known as Series 5, or Series 4.5, however at present it appears that the BBC will not be assigning a series "number" to the specials, much as the previous Christmas specials and mini-episodes do not technically belong to any particular season. This, however, is contradicted by Russell T Davies himself in his book The Writer's Tale, where he calls The Next Doctor the fourteenth episode of the fourth series (likely due to the fact it was produced during the production of Series 4).DWM confirmed the specials would be coded 4.14, 4.15, 4.16 ect. Also, the BBC iPlayer page for The Next Doctor on it's Christmas Day release stated the episode was part of 'Series Four'.

Writers

Russell T Davies is solely writing only the Christmas 2008 special and two others.[12] One of the specials will be co-written by Gareth Roberts, and one will be co-written by Phil Ford.[13] These particular specials will be historic in that they will be the first two episodes of the BBC Wales production of Doctor Who to formally credit a co-writer. With the inclusion of Ford, 2009 will mark the fifth straight year that Doctor Who has included at least one new writer for the show, and make Ford the only writer other than RTD himself to write for Torchwood, The Sarah Jane Adventures and Doctor Who.

Rumours

  • The Sun newspaper in the UK reported Paul McGann is to make an appearance as the Eighth Doctor in one of the specials.[14] However, on 12 September 2008, the BBC refuted this allegation, saying, "There is no truth to the story at all."[15] However, a brief clip of McGann as the Doctor did appear in The Next Doctor as part of a recap of all of the Doctor's incarnations.
  • Actor Patrick Stewart may also appear in the 2009 specials, playing the renegade Time Lord, The Monk.[16] At least one source believes that "the BBC has offered him the role and are willing to wait for Stewart's schedule to clear". Stewart could therefore appear in either the specials or the 2010 series.[17]
  • In a recent issue of Doctor Who Magazine, Russell T Davies confirmed that the title of the first special will be revealed at the end of the The Next Doctor. It consists of four words, and one of them begins with a 'D'.[18] In the credits of The Next Doctor, the title of the next special was revealed as Planet of the Dead
  • The Nimon may return in one of the specials as hinted by Russell T. Davies in an excerpt from The Next Doctor Podcast. It is possible that they will appear in Planet of the Dead, since a characteristic of the Nimon is that they are parasitic and use up a planet's resources.
  • It is rumoured that News Reporter Trinity Wells, played by Lachele Carl, who has appeared in every series, since series 1, will appear. Davies said in an interview that The Doctor may meet her and she may sacrifice herself for the Earth.
  • With Tennant having announced his imminent departure from the series, and the identity of the actor succeeding him currently scheduled to be revealed on 3 January 2009, rumours persist that despite Tennant's announcement in which he stated he would be appearing in all the specials, that the regeneration might occur sooner. The Next Doctor was the first special to fall prey to such rumours; in this case the rumour was debunked as the episode unfolded.
  • Although initial media coverage of the "gap year" indicated that all the specials would air in 2009, with Tennant's announcement of his pending departure in October 2008 came media references (yet to be officially confirmed) that the final special, and the final episode to feature Tennant, may not air until early 2010. Julie Gardner has confirmed that the first special will be broadcast during the Easter Holidays.
  • Two mini-episodes (Children in Need Special and Time Crash) and two interactive mini-episodes (the online game Attack of the Graske and the audience-participation Music of the Spheres) have been produced since Tennant joined the series; the possibility exists that another mini-episode may be produced during the Specials season, although as of January 2009 there has been no indication of this.
  • Georgia Moffett will return as Jenny, The Doctor's Daughter in one of the specials and may become companion to Matt Smith's 11th Doctor as Steven Moffat saved her from being killed off.

Broadcast dates

Previous series:
Series 4 		Next series:
Series 5

References

  1. ↑ Official website's 2007 bulletin about Series 5
  2. ↑ Cult - News - Nesbitt to become next Doctor? On the 3rd of January, it was announced that Matt Smith will become the Eleventh Doctor. - Digital Spy
  3. ↑ Who Will Be Next Dr Who? | William Hill Press Office
  4. ↑ David Walliams - AskMen.com
  5. ↑ NEWS NEW DOCTOR WHO UNVEILED Music, movie & Entertainment News
  6. ↑ http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-news/breaking-news/2008/07/04/liverpool-actor-david-morrissey-could-be-next-doctor-who-64375-21227910/
  7. ↑ http://www.kasterborous.com/news.asp?id=1795
  8. ↑ http://blog.wired.com/underwire/2008/10/theres-yet-anot.html
  9. ↑ http://www.bbcamerica.com/content/23/anglophenia.jsp?bc_id=1249
  10. ↑ http://liveforfilm.blogspot.com/2008/10/next-dr-who-could-be.html
  11. ↑ Bill Nighy - Nighy Eyes Doctor Who Role
  12. ↑ Daily Telegraph interview with Julie Gardner 11 July 2008.
  13. ↑ Rawson-Jones, Ben. "'Doctor Who' specials writers announced". digitalspy.co.uk. 25 July 2008. reporting on news originally broken in Doctor Who Magazine #398.
  14. ↑ Sun reports McGann return
  15. ↑ Rawson-Jones, Ben. BBC refutes McGann 'Dr Who' story 12 September 2008.
  16. ↑ Blackburn, Jen. "Star Trek hero to play Time Lord". The Sun. 6 October 2008.
  17. ↑ "Patrick Trek to TARDIS". Daily Star 5 October 2008
  18. ↑ 'D' is for...? Doctor Who Magazine issue 403, 13th December 2008.
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