Shaun Sutton: Difference between revisions

'''Shaun Sutton''' ([[14 October (people)|14 October]] [[1919]]-[[14 May (people)|14 May]] [[2004]]) was a major creative force in the [[British Broadcasting Corporation]] from the [[1950s]] to the early [[1990s]].   By the early [[1960s]], he had established himself as a [[producer]]. [[Sydney Newman]] offered him the opportunity to be ''[[Doctor Who]]''{{'}}s first producer. When he declined, the job fell instead to [[Verity Lambert]]. In [[1966]], he became the BBC's [[Head of Serials]] — a position that effectively made him the intermediate boss between Newman and then-producer of ''Doctor Who'', [[Innes Lloyd]]. He was thus the de-facto, if uncredited, [[executive producer]] of ''[[Doctor Who]]'', occupying a position somewhat similar to those of [[Julie Gardner]] and [[Piers Wenger]] in the [[BBC Wales]] version of the programme.

He was particularly well known for his role in the transition from [[William Hartnell]] to [[Patrick Troughton]]. A fierce advocate of Troughton, he had to negotiate with Newman — who strongly disagreed with the choice — to win Troughton the role and to find a tone for the characterisation of the [[Second Doctor]] that Newman found acceptable.  

When Newman left as Head of Drama in [[1967]], Sutton succeeded him. At first,  Newman was ''both'' Head of Serials ''and'' Acting Head of Drama; he maintained a close supervisory role on ''Doctor Who'' until [[1969]], when he fully transitioned to the position of Head of Drama. Thus, he also had a significant role in picking [[Jon Pertwee]] for the role of the [[Third Doctor]].

Despite his increased distance from the day-to-day operations of ''[[Doctor Who]]'', his value to the programme was frequently noted by [[1970s]] producer, [[Barry Letts]]. (''[[Who and Me]]'')  Among other things, he suggested [[Tom Baker]] when Letts was casting the [[Fourth Doctor]]. Famously, Sutton took Letts to a movie theatre near the BBC to watch ''The Golden Voyage of Sinbad'' as a "screen test" for Baker. (''[[Who on Earth is Tom Baker?]]'')  

After his retirement, Sutton opined in [[The Doctors: 30 Years of Time Travel and Beyond|a 1995 documentary]] that Pertwee was his favourite incarnation of [[the Doctor]].  

{{imdb name|id=0840404|name=Shaun Sutton}}