- 18/05/2025
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00:00Hello, only me! Just before we started, I want to give a quick shout out to Skillshare,
00:05who we are happy to be working with here on Who Culture to help you access all sorts of amazing
00:10classes, but more on that later. On stage in Melbourne, Australia, Christopher Eccleston
00:16spoke about the possibility of his return to the role of the ninth doctor for the 60th anniversary
00:21of Doctor Who. Eccleston denounced the idea of multi-doctor stories as a cash grab and said
00:27that if he was to return, it would be as a solo doctor. It marks a significant shift in his
00:32original assertion 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. The circumstances of Eccleston's departure from the
00:42Who show is something of an ongoing mystery in Doctor Who. Originally, it was assumed to be a
00:47simple case of a decision not to renew his contract. After all, he wasn't known for sticking around in
00:52popular series for long. His character in Cracker was memorably written out after one season,
00:58for example. In the years that have followed, however, more information has come out via
01:02interviews, unofficial sources, and Eccleston's own autobiography. So with that in mind then,
01:07I'm Ellie with Who Culture, and let's take a look at the true story behind Christopher Eccleston's
01:12Doctor Who exit.
01:139. He's back, and it's about time
01:19In 2003, the 40th anniversary year, it was announced that Doctor Who would be returning
01:25to the BBC with a brand new series. Twice. The Paul Cornell-scripted Richard E. Grant-starring
01:31Scream of the Schalke was announced in July as a new animated era for the show. It was a bold new
01:37vision, pairing an emotionally traumatised Doctor with a robotic master as a sort of buddy duo.
01:43Schalke's thunder was soon 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 One
01:52as a proper television series. It would be creatively spearheaded by acclaimed screenwriter
01:57Russell T. Davies. Between 26th September 2003 and 26th March 2005, Doctor Who fandom was
02:05reinvigorated by the possibilities of the new series, discussing potential casting, sharing various
02:11production rumours and set photos on message boards, and renewing their dormant Doctor Who
02:16Appreciation Society memberships. It was a very exciting time to be a Doctor Who fan.
02:238. Eccleston is cast for Doctor Who's Second Coming
02:26Names thrown around as a potential ninth Doctor included Tom Baker and Judi Dench. As Russell T.
02:32Davies nodded along to these suggestions, he was harbouring a desire to cast Hugh Grant in the role.
02:37Quite what the battle-scarred Doctor would be like in the hands of Grant is anyone's guess,
02:41as Grant declined the offer, something he's said to have later regretted after seeing how
02:46successful the show became. A name that nobody had even considered was Christopher Eccleston,
02:51an actor known for his work in grounded, realistic, seminal dramas like Our Friends in the North and
02:56Cracker. He was not an actor known for the lightness of touch many expected from the character of the
03:02Doctor. In an interview to announce his casting, Eccleston noted that,
03:05I don't think he's going to be as eccentric and foppish as he was in some of his incarnations.
03:10Eccleston was cast after he emailed Davies to register his interest. Having previously worked
03:15on The Second Coming with RTD, Eccleston told the press he was excited to be working with him again.
03:217. Filming begins with Aliens of London
03:24With Eccleston cast as the Doctor and former pop star and full-time actor Billy Piper cast as his
03:30companion Rose, the 21st Century Incarnation entered production on 18 July 2004. Filming at
03:37Cardiff Royal Infirmary, doubling for Albion Hospital, Eccleston's first scenes as the Doctor
03:42was him chasing the space pig down the corridor. And there's nothing more Doctor-ish than that.
03:47Alongside the filming of the series, a companion show, Doctor Who Confidential,
03:51was documenting the 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 great
04:02quality 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 and
04:13laughing between takes in the short glimpses of filming. In his autobiography, I Love the Bones of
04:18You, Eccleston reflects on his working relationship with Piper, stating,
04:22What truly amazes me is I know how nervous Billie was at the start. She thought I was some big serious
04:28performer and she didn't have the belief in herself as an actor. She proved herself, of course, to be
04:32way better than any of the rest of us. Now, at the beginning of this video, I told you that we have
04:38partnered with Skillshare, and for those of you who don't know, Skillshare is a huge online learning
04:43community with thousands of classes in illustration, video, design, photography, cooking, crafts, and
04:51pretty much anything else that you can think of. Now, we are absolutely delighted to be working with
04:56Skillshare here on WhoCulture, because we've actually used some of their classes to help us with our own
05:01videos here on the channel. For example, Thomas Frank's Productivity for Creators. Now, with the world
05:08still being a little bit crazy, it can sometimes be hard to stay creative and avoid burnout. But this
05:14class was absolutely amazing. It helped us to keep a creative mindset, to build up some really good
05:21creative habits, and even just to optimise the workspace in order for you to be as productive
05:27as you can be. Now, we really want you to have the same experience as us and have access to these
05:33classes. So, the first 1,000 WhoCulture subscribers to click the link in the description below will be
05:40given a one-month free trial on Skillshare so that you can explore your creativity too. Just click the
05:48link in the description below, and if you are one of the first 1,000 to do so, you will be given
05:52unlimited access to thousands of classes run by some truly wonderful teachers for an entire month
05:59for free. So, if you are a creative pro like me or a haphazard hobbyist also like me, you too can get
06:08your creative juices flowing. Once again, a massive thank you to Skillshare, but for now, back to the
06:15video. Number 6. Eccleston embarks on the promotion trail. In the run-up to Doctor Who's premiere on the
06:2226th of March 2005, Christopher Eccleston embarked on the promotional trail for the new series. The return of
06:28Doctor Who was a big deal. There were billboards, specially shot trailers, and teasers. Eccleston and
06:34Piper were front and centre in all of this promotion. On top of this, there was also media
06:40appearances on some stalwart British shows. Eccleston sat on the Blue Peter sofa to talk about how he felt
06:46about taking on such an iconic role, stating,
06:48I was very excited. I felt ready to take on something with that sort of responsibility because
06:53the scripts are that strong. He also appeared on a special Doctor Who-themed episode of
06:58Mastermind to present the winner with the trophy. On being introduced by host John Humphreys as Doctor
07:04Who, Eccleston offhandedly quips, well, for now. Throughout these appearances, he's effusive about
07:10what drew him to the role. The scripts, the monsters, and the importance of the Doctor.
07:14What nobody knew at this point, however, was that Eccleston had already filmed his final scene
07:19as the Doctor.
07:21Number 5. Rose airs. Two days later, Eccleston is gone.
07:25On the 26th of March 2005, Doctor Who triumphantly returned to screens.
07:31Christopher Eccleston is the new Doctor Who.
07:35Not even the leak of the first episode or an interruption from Graham Norton could take the
07:40sheen of the staggering 10.81 million viewers that tuned in to watch Rose.
07:45Two days later, the tabloids published reports that Eccleston had already departed the series and
07:50the search for a new Doctor was on. The BBC responded to these rumours two days later,
07:54on the 30th of March, stating that Eccleston 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
08:05apologise to Eccleston, stating that the BBC regrets not speaking to Christopher before
08:10it responded to the press questions on Wednesday, 30th of March. The BBC further regrets that
08:15it falsely attributed a statement to Christopher and apologises 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 dispelled
08:29much of this unpleasantness. However, the BBC's decision to misquote Eccleston and upset him
08:34further is a real failing on their part, especially given how much work he did to promote the series.
08:404. Stories of on-set troubles emerge in the years after Eccleston's departure
08:45The abrupt nature of Eccleston's departure and the poor handling of the announcement by the BBC
08:50has led to it being revisited in various interviews with the actor.
08:54In June 2010, Eccleston hit the headlines when, while promoting a drama about John Lennon,
09:00he was asked about his departure. In response, he stated that,
09:03"...I didn't enjoy the environment and the culture that we, the cast and crew, had to work in.
09:08I thought if I stay in this job, I'm going to have to blind myself to certain things that I thought
09:12were wrong." As 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. It's unclear if this refers to
09:23Series 1's overrunning shoots, Eccleston's rumoured disagreements with director Keith Boak, or something
09:29else entirely. In 2018, Eccleston elaborated further, suggesting that something had gone
09:34very badly wrong between when he excitedly emailed RTD to offer to play the Doctor and his eventual
09:40departure, stating,
09:41"...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.
09:51They lost trust in me, and I lost faith and trust and belief in them."
09:563. Eccleston meets with Moffat for Day of the Doctor
09:59In his autobiography, Eccleston feels that Russell T Davies didn't quite know what he wanted from the
10:05Doctor, but is incredibly complimentary of Stephen Moffat, saying that,
10:09"...his script delivered my best work, bringing me closer to finally knowing exactly who the Doctor
10:14was than any other time during the shoot."
10:17It's no surprise that he was open to meeting Moffat about appearing in 2013's 50th anniversary
10:22special The Day of the Doctor. Ultimately, Eccleston turned the role down because he felt it didn't
10:27do justice to the Ninth Doctor. He's glad he did, because it left room for John Hurt's phenomenal
10:33turn as the War Doctor, whom Eccleston believes is a far better actor than me.
10:37It was a promising first step towards Eccleston donning the leather jacket once more, but
10:42the role still held a great deal of trauma for the actor. Furthermore, Eccleston's struggles
10:47with mental health and body dysmorphia were intrinsically linked with the role, observing
10:51in the autobiography that,
10:53"...people love the way I look in that series, but I was very ill. The reward for that illness
10:57was the part, and therein lies the perpetuation of the whole sorry situation."
11:022. Eccleston Begins Attending Conventions
11:06Five years after the huge 50th anniversary celebrations, Christopher Eccleston made his
11:11first convention appearance. Rather than a full-on Doctor Who convention, it was the London
11:16Film and Comic Con, and fans could get their photo taken with the Ninth Doctor for the princely
11:21sum of £95.
11:22Eccleston's appearances on the convention circuit also opened up the opportunities for him to bump
11:28into other Doctor actors like Matt Smith, with their very tactile and lovely meeting going viral
11:33on social media. Aside from the obvious financial gain, Eccleston was clearly attracted to the
11:39convention circuit by the opportunity to meet his fans. In a 2016 video for BBC Raw to discuss
11:45the A-word, Eccleston talks with fan Gerard Groves about the series, autism, and is visibly moved
11:51when Groves talks about the impact his portrayal of the Doctor had on his childhood. It chimes
11:57with Eccleston's own reflections on the impact of the role on those kids that were growing
12:00up 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. You were my Doctor, they tell me."
12:131. If you want me back, get me on my own
12:17As Eccleston 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.
12:26Since that fateful meeting, Eccleston has recorded a full 12-episode series as the Ninth Doctor,
12:32with another one on the way. It's certainly a positive sign that he's been able to move
12:36on from the damage and strain that 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, Eccleston put out an open offer to the BBC.
12:50If you want me back, get me on my own. With rumours of a potential anniversary anthology
12:55series with past Doctors, he may get his wish. And what better tribute to Christopher Eccleston,
13:00the man who re-established Doctor Who and ensured its continuing legacy,
13:04than by having him return in 2023, 20 years after the show was recommissioned.
13:10And there you have it. If you can think of any other juicy details,
13:14then do let us know in the comments below. And while you're there, don't forget to like
13:17and subscribe and tap that notification bell. Also, head over to Twitter and follow us there,
13:22and I can be found across various social medias just by searching Ellie Littlechild.
13:26I've been Ellie with Who Culture, and in the words of Riversong herself, goodbye, sweetie.
13:31Who Culture, and in the words of Riversong herself, goodbye, sweetie.
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