Doctor Who (series 5)
Encyclopedia
The fifth series of British
science fiction television
series Doctor Who
began on 3 April 2010 with "The Eleventh Hour
" and ended with "The Big Bang
" on 26 June 2010. The series was led by head writer and executive producer Steven Moffat
, who took over after the departure of Russell T Davies. The series comprises 13 episodes, six of which Moffat wrote. Piers Wenger
and Beth Willis
served with Moffat as executive producers, while Tracie Simpson
and Peter Bennett
served as producers. Referred to by Doctor Who Magazine
as Series Thirty-One, the series was produced as Series One, although BBC Programme listings, iPlayer, DVDs and Blu-rays refer to it as Series 5.
This is the first series to feature Matt Smith as the eleventh incarnation
of the Doctor, an alien who travels through time and space in his TARDIS
, which appears to be a British police box
on the outside. It also introduces Karen Gillan
as the Doctor's companion
Amy Pond
and her fiancé Rory Williams
(Arthur Darvill
) who is in six episodes and travels with the Doctor and Amy. Alex Kingston
returns as River Song
, a mysterious woman from the Doctor's future who in this series summons the Doctor on two occasions. The series contains a main story arc
concerning a pattern of cracks in the universe which appear over several episodes, sometimes going unnoticed by the characters. It is discovered that they have the power to erase things from existence, and this happens to Rory, causing Amy to forget him. In the series finale it is revealed that the cracks were caused by the TARDIS exploding and the Doctor is forced to reboot the universe to the state which it was without the cracks.
The seven episodes of the series which were not written by Moffat were penned by guest writers. Mark Gatiss
, Toby Whithouse
, Simon Nye
, Richard Curtis
, Gareth Roberts
each wrote one episode each, while Chris Chibnall
wrote a two-episode story. The series was meant to be fantastical to stand out among other science fiction and fantasy shows and the production team pushed a fairy-tale quality because Moffat believed media aimed at children was some of the most popular among adults. The episodes were directed by directors who were all new to Doctor Who. The series began filming in late July 2009 and lasted for approximately nine months and was filmed mostly in Wales with the exception of "The Vampires of Venice
" and "Vincent and the Doctor
", who had scenes filmed in Trogir
, Croatia
. The series underwent many design changes, including a new logo, title sequence, variation of the theme music
, interior and exterior of the TARDIS, and version of the Doctor's sonic screwdriver
.
The series premiere was watched by 10.08 viewers, the highest watched premiere since "Rose
" of the first series
, and also broke records on BBC America
in the United States and BBC's online iPlayer. Though overnight ratings had declined, one writer calculated that viewership had not declined based on time-shifted ratings. The series received generally positive reviews, with praise going to Moffat's story arc as well as the acting of Smith, Gillan, and Darvill. However, many reviewers noted that Amy lacked character development and the series did not contain as much heart and emotion as previously in the show. The series gained many awards and nominations; "Vincent and the Doctor" and the two-part finale were both nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form) with the award going to the latter. Smith also became the first actor portraying the Doctor to be nominated for a BAFTA award, though he did not win. The series was accompanied with a soundtrack as well as tie-in books and video games, four of which were released episodically on the BBC's website and advertised as additional episodes of the series.
All viewing figures taken by BARB. The table includes total ratings, with BBC One ratings and simulcast BBC HD
ratings in brackets.
, played by Matt Smith. This followed the departure of David Tennant
as the Tenth Doctor
, who left the role to help ease the transition from Davies to Moffat's showrunning. Moffat was looking to cast a middle-aged actor, who was "young enough to run but old enough to look wise". However, Smith, who was only 26 when cast, was the third person to audition and the production team knew "[they] had their man". Smith's agent had called him and suggested that he try out for the role. Moffat later stated that Smith did not appear to be youthful at all. The producers were cautious about casting Smith because they felt that a 26-year-old actor could not play the Doctor adequately; BBC Head of Drama and executive producer Piers Wenger
shared the sentiment, but noted that Smith was capable enough to play the role. Smith's casting in the role was revealed during an episode of Doctor Whos companion show Doctor Who Confidential
, during which he described the role as "a wonderful privilege and challenge that I hope I will thrive on".
Karen Gillan
was cast as Amy Pond
, the Doctor's companion
. Andy Pryor, the casting director, suggested Gillan to Moffat after her performance in the fourth series
episode "The Fires of Pompeii
", in which she played a soothsayer
, but Moffat originally thought she was "short and dumpy". Later, however, he stated that she was "exactly right for the role" but she portrayed the character differently than how Moffat originally wrote. Gillan auditioned for the role in both her natural Scottish
accent and an English
one, and it was not until after she was cast that it was decided Amy would be Scottish. Gillan commented that she felt the Scottish accent better suited the character. For the first and last episodes, a young version of Amy, known as "Amelia", was played by Gillan's real-life 10-year-old cousin Caitlin Blackwood. Although the two actresses did not meet until the set of the show, Gillan recommended Blackwood for the role, although Blackwood had to undergo rigorous auditions first.
Alex Kingston
, who played the character River Song
in the fourth series episodes "Silence in the Library
" and "Forest of the Dead
", reprised her role in the two-part stories "The Time of Angels"/"Flesh and Stone" and "The Pandorica Opens"/"The Big Bang". Kingston did not expect the return, but Moffat always intended for River to return to the series. Arthur Darvill
also appeared in six episodes as Rory Williams
, Amy Pond's fiancé, and was also a companion in five of those episodes. Darvill had previously worked with Smith on a play called Swimming with Sharks. For his audition, Darvill received two scenes from the first episode and one from the sixth, but beyond the fact Rory was Amy's boyfriend he was not infomed of details of the character. Moffat stated that what stood out about Darvill's audition was "just how funny" he was. Darvill felt "privileged" to be part of the show, and was pleased with Rory's storyline.
Notable guest stars included James Corden
, Annette Crosbie
, Tony Curran
, Iain Glen
Daisy Haggard
, Terrence Hardiman, Toby Jones
, Helen McCrory
, Neve McIntosh
, Ian McNeice
, Stephen Moore
, Bill Nighy
, Sophie Okonedo
, Bill Paterson, Meera Syal
, and Nina Wadia
.
stated that the costume was broken down and distressed. Over the course of the first episode, the Eleventh Doctor would find his own identity and pick out his own costume. Smith tried on a wide variety of things to find one he would feel comfortable and confident in and would identify the Doctor. Smith brought in braces
(suspenders) and a tweed jacket; Holman believed that the tweed jacked was "a bit old for him" but showed that he was a "professor and student at the same time" and gave him "that quality that the Doctor’s still learning, but also has some authority. Smith suggested a bow tie, which Holman and others did not approve of, but once Smith had put it on they decided they had the costume. The men's clothing store Topman
reported that their bow tie sales had rise 94% for the month of April 2010, connected to when the series begun airing.
Gillan had a lot of input into Amy's costume, as well as her hair and make-up. In the first episode, Holman stated that Amy's identity was not clear and she wore her own clothes later on. Gillan thought that Amy had inner confidence to wear clothes that showed "a bit of skin from time to time". Gillan said she tried on many things, but when it came to short skirts she "just thought it was right" and showed that Amy was "comfortable and confident about her look". She believed that the skirts reflected what young women typically wear at her age. Executive producer Piers Wenger also noted that Amy's '70s flying jacket, which she wears "quite a lot", reflected Gillan was a "born adventurer" and Amy developed a love for travel and adventure.
as executive producer and head writer, and Julie Gardner
was replaced as executive producer by Piers Wenger
, who had previously replaced Gardner as Head of Drama for BBC Wales. Beth Willis
also serves as an executive producer, and the series is produced by Tracie Simpson
and Peter Bennett
. However, Murray Gold
stayed on as composer for the new series.
When Doctor Who was relaunched in 2005, the new series was marketed as series 1
, although it had been on BBC television for 26 years from 1963 to 1989. When this series was confirmed by the BBC in September 2007, it was referred to as 'series five', following on from series 4
in 2008. In August 2009 Doctor Who Magazine
announced that this series was to be produced and marketed as 'Series One'. The January 2010 edition featured an interview with Steven Moffat, in which he called Series One "exciting", Series Thirty-One "awe-inspiring" and Series Five "boring and a lie". In the same issue, he jokingly referred to the season as "series Fnarg", an ongoing joke in subsequent issues. The March edition, referring to it as Series Thirty-One, confirmed production codes in the range 1.1 to 1.13. BBC Programme listings the BBC iPlayer
and DVDs refer to it as "Series 5".
and Toy Story
. He considered the "most popular form of entertainment" to be a children's story. Of the series, he said they "pushed the fairytale side of it" as Doctor Who "now has to be the most fantastical of the fantasy shows" to be more vibrant and "bonkers" than any other fantastical show.
Moffat wrote six episodes for the series. The rest were penned by guest writers, as Moffat believed that Doctor Who benefited from different voices. However, he stated that the concepts of the episodes were mostly supplied by him, as he had a "pretty good idea" of what would happen in each episode slot. Moffat knew all of the guest writers "to some degree" and called meeting with them "quite joyous". However, Matthew Graham
was not able to write an episode as he was slated to because he did not believe he would have enough time. Moffat later contacted him and asked him to write a two-part episode for the next series, which became "The Rebel Flesh
"/"The Almost People
".
With the first two episodes, Moffat intended to introduce the Eleventh Doctor and have him establish his new identity while the second was intended to show the Doctor's need for a companion and Amy's importance to him. For the third episode, he asked Mark Gatiss
to write an episode concerning "Churchill versus the Daleks". Moffat wanted to incorporate the popular Daleks into the new series and was also considering redesigning them. Gatiss and Moffat as well as the production team worked together to create Daleks that were big and more colourful, similar to the Daleks found in the films of the 60s
.
For the fourth and fifth episode, Moffat planned a two-part sequel to his 2007 episode "Blink
", which featured the Weeping Angels
. These two episodes, "The Time of Angels" and "Flesh and Stone", were intended to be a more action-oriented than "Blink", and also showed the Angels had a plan rather than scavenging. He also decided to flesh out the Angels as villains themselves and show more of what they can do. "Flesh and Stone" ends with Amy attempting to seduce the Doctor; Moffat believed this was consistent with the character that had been built up from the first episode.
Whithouse originally planned to write a different episode
, but Moffat and Wenger thought it was too similar to other episodes in the series and Whithouse wrote "The Vampires of Venice" instead, while his original episode was pushed to the next series
. Instead, Whithouse was asked to write "a big bold romantic episode" that would be a "sort of reboot episode" and a "good jumping off point" for new viewers to Doctor Who. Moffat figured that in the middle of the series a viewer could "start watching it again" and that it should be "something romantic and funny". For the next episode, Moffat asked comedy writer Simon Nye
to write an episode that challenged the relationship between Amy and the Doctor. The episode, titled "Amy's Choice", was intended to be Amy's decision between excitement with the Doctor or life with Rory. The scene in which Rory dies in the false reality was intended to be when Amy realised her feelings for him. Nye wanted to stress that Amy really did love Rory and he was not "just a cypher boyfriend or fiancé".
Moffat contacted Chris Chibnall
to write a two-part episode involving the Silurian
s, villains who had not appeared in the show for over 25 years. As the Silurians were not as well-known as other monsters, Moffat instructed Chibnall to reintroduce them. The Silurians featured were intended to be a different branch than those previously seen and bore a different design, which used expensive facial prosthetics and eliminated their third eye. Richard Curtis
, who had previously worked with Moffat in the 1999 Comic Relief
special Doctor Who and the Curse of Fatal Death
, was contacted by Moffat to return the favour and write an episode. Curtis had the idea of an episode about van Gogh for "a long while" and was interested in the fact that van Gogh never knew he was famous. Gillan noted that there was a different approach and style to the episode, and it was more character-driven. Curtis openly asked Moffat to criticise "everything and anything" about the script, and said that Moffat was very honest. Curtis commented that it was "fun" to work within boundaries rather than doing it all by himself.
Neil Gaiman
had written an episode
, but it was pushed to the next series due to budget constraints and was replaced with "The Lodger" instead. "The Lodger" was adapted from a comic strip of the same name writer Gareth Roberts had done for Doctor Who Magazine, although he said most of it started "from scratch" The story was inspired by wishing to see the Doctor in normal, every-day human circumstances, as well as Roberts' enjoyment of stories set on Earth rather than in space. Roberts was interested in doing a television version of the story, but he never mentioned it. However, Moffat was a fan of the comic story and immediately asked to adapt it into an episode when he became showrunner.
The finale ends with the wedding of Amy and Rory. Moffat stated that he had always intended for them to get married "from the off". The finale also left many questions that would be answered with the next series, concerning the identity of River Song and "The Silence
" which appeared to cause the TARDIS to explode.
, and composer Murray Gold wanted it to "sound a bit reckless". The new variation, composed by Gold, incorporated a new melody played by electronic trumpets and a faster tempo. The new theme angered fans, with the BBC receiving 70 complaints as of 18 April 2010. In response, a Doctor Who spokesman stated,
A new TARDIS prop was used, featuring the St John's Ambulance logo that had been used in the early days of the show as well as in the Peter Cushing
films of the early 60s, which Moffat was a fan of. Moffat said it was one thing he "really wanted to do" and it was for "no other reason than that [he] thought it was prettier" and he wanted the St. John's Ambulance sticker on the front.
A new set of the interior of the TARDIS was also designed, which Moffat estimated was three times bigger than the previous set. Moffat did not decide to create the new interior specifically for the new Doctor, but the brief to the set designer was to create a design that would suit Smith's Doctor. Piers Wenger said that it took "quite a long time to get the design right" and they were careful not to make it too futuristic-looking, as "futuristic" meant nothing to the Doctor. In the first episode the sonic screwdriver
is destroyed, and a new version, featuring a green light and metal claws, was created. Smith liked to keep the prop with him at all times "twirling it around and flicking it" which resulted in him breaking four of them. The noise made by the screwdriver was added in post-production using a synthesizer
. Moffat described the changes as starting with a "clean slate" which made sense after the previous cast and crew had left.
and Andrew Gunn
each directed two episodes.
Filming of the series lasted approximately nine months. Production blocks
were arranged as follows:
When rehearsing episodes four and five, the first episodes to be produced, director Adam Smtih suggested that Smith and Gillan "have an adventure" where they could experience something exciting and laugh and scream. He took them to a "real white knuckle ride" on a boat in Cardiff Bay
. Filming began on 20 July 2009 on Southerndown
beach, Vale of Glamorgan
in scenes for "The Time of Angels" and "Flesh and Stone". Moffat wrote that typically with television the first day of filming "will probably be something fairly inconsequential and involve a minor character getting shot, or a close up of a hand or something" which differed from the "iconic" scene involving the Doctor, Amy, River Song and the TARDIS. Forest scenes in "Flesh and Stone" were filmed at Puzzlewood
in the Forest of Dean
over nine nights in July 2009.
Episodes two and three made up the second production block. Scenes in "The Beast Below" were filmed in an orangery
at Margam Country Park
, Port Talbot
during a night shoot on 22 September 2009. Half of a scene in "The Pandorica Opens" featuring a character in "The Beast Below" was filmed there as well. Scenes for Amy and Rory's town of Leadworth in the first episode, "The Eleventh Hour", were filmed in the village of Llandaff
in Cardiff
over various datesi in the autumn of 2009: 29 September, 5-7 October, and 20 November.
The fourth production block, consisting of "The Hungry Earth" and "Cold Blood", was filmed in October and November 2009 with location filming done in Llanwynno
, Wales. Scenes for "Cold Blood" were also filmed at the Plantasia
botanical garden in Swansea
on 13 November 2009. "The Vampires of Venice" and "Vincent and the Doctor" were filmed mainly in the town of Trogir
in Croatia
, which was used as Venice and Paris respectfully. Though a small crew did go to Venice to take wide shots of coastal buildings, the episode was not filmed there because it would take too long to cover up the modern shops in present-day Venice. The gondolas were filmed in the moat on Caerphilly Castle
and inserted with CGI
.
The grounds for the estate at Margam Country Park was then used for the placement of "Foamhenge", a lightweight replica of Stonehenge
for "The Pandorica Opens". The Pandorica chamber was filmed on set in the Upper Boat Studios
, the largest set ever built there. "Amy's Choice" was partially filmed in Skenfrith
, Wales to represent "Upper Leadworth".
version of which was shown in cinemas with Alice in Wonderland
. A version was shown on BBC Two during the evening of 21 February giving a transmission date of 3 April, but the BBC subsequently stated that the exact date was still to be confirmed. The date of 3 April was officially confirmed by Moffat on BBC Breakfast
on 19 March. Also on 19 March, satrailer shown at the press screening of episode one was released online. BBC America
, who would show the series in the United States, released an extended trailer on 21 March. Promotional touring for the series began on 29 March and ended the 31st, with Smith and Gillan presenting their first episode in Belfast
, Inverness
, Sunderland
, Salford
, and Northampton
. Touring in New York City took place on 14 April, where the first episode was screened in the Paley Center for Media and the Village East Movie Theatre.
on 3 April 2010 with "The Eleventh Hour", an extended 65-minute episode. It concluded with "The Big Bang" on 26 June. The sixth episode, "The Vampires of Venice", was broadcast at 6:00 p.m., the earliest start time for an episode of Doctor Who since its return in 2005.
's iView
service, launching at midnight on 16 April 2010 before airing on ABC1
on 18 April 2010. It began airing in the United States on 17 April 2010 on BBC America
and in Canada on the same date on Space. In New Zealand, the series began airing on Prime from 2 May 2010.
A complete collection of the series' episodes was released on DVD and Blu-ray in Region 2 on 8 November 2010. It was released in Region 1 one day later on 9 November. In Region 4, the boxset was released 2 December 2010. The boxset contained the two "Meanwhile in the TARDIS" additional scenes, profiles of various enemies in "The Monster Files", cut down versions of Doctor Who Confidential, out-takes, in-vision commentaries, video diaries, and trailers and promos for the series. The commentaries were a departure from the previous releases, as it only had six instead of a full thirteen.
" and the eighth highest figure for an episode of Doctor Who since it was revived in 2005. In the US, the first episode set a record for BBC America, with an average of 1.2 million viewers and 0.9 in the adults aged 25-54 demographic, a record for the network. Within one week of broadcast, "The Eleventh Hour" received 1.27 million hits on BBC's online iPlayer service, the record for most requests in a week. It went on to become the most requested show of 2010 with 2.2 million views; Doctor Who was also named the most watched programme of the year on the service.
Based on overnight ratings, the series was reported as averaging six million viewers, a drop of 1.2 million from the previous series. However, managers at the BBC claimed that that overall viewing numbers had not declined as more people watched it online or after recording it. Stephen Bray of Den of Geek decided to "put things straight" and figured that, with final ratings taken into account of the first eleven episodes of the series (the final two ratings not having been released when the article was published), the series averaged 7.8 million viewers, beating the average of all the episodes of the second series
(7.5 million), the third series
(7.7 million) and the first eleven episodes of the fourth series (7.7 million).
gave the entire series a "great" rating of 8.5 out of 10, saying that it "mightn't have been perfect" but rebooted the show "with a burst of creative energy" and "got bold, exciting, witty, smart, home-grown event television back on the small screen". He praised Smith for "[dazzling] with a performance that painted the Doctor as thoroughly alien" and the "effortless" character development of the Doctor, but was more critical of the character of Amy Pond. He thought that she was "thoroughly watchable" with Gillan's acting abilities and chemistry with Smith, but criticised the character for being "frequently painted in largely two-dimensional strokes that made for a brash, sometimes irritating turn" and the series as a whole for lacking "heart to ground the elaborate sci-fi trimmings". Of the story, he praised Moffat's story arc and narrative complexities, as well as the episodes of "The Eleventh Hour", "The Time of Angels"/"Flesh and Stone", "Amy's Choice", and "The Pandorica Opens"/"The Big Bang". However, he found "Victory of the Daleks", "The Vampires of Venice" and "The Lodger" weak and "The Beast Below" too ambitious.
Zap2it
's Sam McPherson gave the series an A and thought it was the show's strongest series since its revival in 2005. He praised Smith and Gillan, though he noted that Amy did not have much character development, as well as Darvill, who he thought "might just be one of the best actors on television currently". As for the monsters, he said that the Atraxi from the first episode were the "only really terrible ones" and "looked horrible", while the Daleks and Silurians were "not-that-threatening". He considered the best to be the Star Whale, as it was "a fantastic parallel to the Doctor"; the Weeping Angels for being as solid as they had been in their original episode and for continuing to evolve; and the Dream Lord from "Amy's Choice". However, he noted that most of the episodes took place on Earth or spaceships, and wished to see the Doctor, Amy and Rory "branch out more in the future".
In a review of the first six episodes, Dan Martin of The Guardian
thought that they were strong and it was "generally funnier [and] appears to have rewritten the rule that said Doctor Who had to out-epic itself every year". However, he was critical of the lack of emotion that had previously inhibited the show, and did not yet empathise with Amy. When reviewing the first eleven episodes, Martin noted that the series had been put at a high expectation due to the quality of Moffat's previous Doctor Who episodes, which may have caused disappointment to those who expected "dark, adult versions of Who every week" as Moffat took more of a fairy-tale approach and his dialogue was "less soapy and more spiky" than that of Davies. Revisiting previous issues, he noted that there was less emotion but "when someone did die...it ploughed heavy into the heart" and Amy was "a revelation", though she sometimes "felt a little one-note".
Gem Wheeler of Den of Geek gave the series five out of five stars, particularly praising Smith's Doctor. Wheeler noted that Amy "seemed a little underwritten at first, but the series finale helped to fill in the apparent gaps in her personality" and also praised Darvill. Slice of SciFi
reviewer Micheal Hickerson praised Moffat's "facinating" story arc which made the series seem more consistent, as it gave the audience answers as it went along and also explored its impact on the characters. He called it "the best season of the new series" though "there has yet to be a perfect season of the show. This one just comes closer than a lot of others".
The A.V. Club
ranked Doctor Who the 25th best show of 2010, saying that it "lacked a truely weak episode" and highlighting "The Time of Angels"/"Flesh and Stone", "Vincent and the Doctor", and "The Lodger" as the best episodes. Digital Spy
ranked the programme the third best of 2010, commenting that it "gave us some terrific episodes - the beautifully tragic 'Vincent and the Doctor', the wonderfully-paced opener and the well-imagined finale...but also the multi-colored monstrosity 'Victory of the Daleks'. Overall, a decent enough start for the new team, but with such a strong pedigree, we couldn't help but feel a little underwhelmed."
in a skimy policewoman outfit who watched the Doctor undress and change into his new costume, it was reported that several viewers had criticised the character and her occupation online and that it was "not fitting for a family show". Wenger defended the character, saying that, "The whole kissogram thing played into Steven's desire for the companion to be feisty and outspoken and a bit of a number. Amy is probably the wildest companion that the Doctor has travelled with, but she isn't promiscuous." Gillan also defended her character, claiming that girls Amy's age often wore short skirts and Amy was a "strong female" and a "normal girl with normal impulses". The BBC also received 43 complaints over the scene in "Flesh and Stone" in which Amy attempts to seduce the Doctor. A member of pressure group Mediawatch-uk
also commented that the scene seemed "slightly out of place in a children's programme".
"/"The Doctor Dances
", "The Girl in the Fireplace
", and "Blink
". "Vincent and the Doctor" was nominated for the Bradbury Award
for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation at the 2010 Nebula Awards, but it lost to the film Inception
.
In Canada's Constellation Awards, Doctor Who fifth series received six nominations. Smith and Tony Curran (Vincent van Gogh) were both nominated for Best Male Performance in a 2010 Science Fiction Television Episode, while Gillan was nominated for Best Female Performance for "Amy's Choice". Doctor Who was nominated for Best Science Fiction Television Series but lost to Stargate: Universe. Moffat and Curtis were both nominated for Best Overall 2010 Science Fiction Film or Television Script for "The Eleventh Hour" and "Vincent and the Doctor" respectfully. Gold was the only winner, nominated for his music in the Best Technical Accomplishment in a 2010 Science Fiction Film or Television Production category.
Smith was nominated for Leading Actor in the television division of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts
awards, becoming the first actor portraying the Doctor to gain a BAFTA nomination. He lost to Daniel Rigby
for his work in the television film Eric and Ernie
. At the BAFTA Cymru
awards, Mark Hutchinson won the "Lighting" category for his work on "The Eleventh Hour", while Barbara Southcott was nominated for "Make Up & Hair" for "Vampires of Venice" and William Oswald was nominated for the "Editing: Fiction" category for "The Time of Angels".
; Gold stated that the previous "double album" had been popular and Silvia Screen allowed another one. The tracks are presented in episode order, which Gold said "should give a sense of roaming through this gigantic scope".
and revitilisation of the television series, six novels were released corresponding to the series. On 22 April 2010 the first three, Apollo 23
by Justin Richards
, Night of the Humans
by David Llewellyn
, and The Forgotten Army
by Brian Minchin were released, featuring the Eleventh Doctor and Amy. On 8 July 2010 three more novels were released, Nuclear Time
by Oli Smith, The Glamour Chase
by Gary Russell
, and The King's Dragon
by Una McCormack, each featuring the Doctor and Amy with Rory.
Science fiction writer Michael Moorcock
, who had watched Doctor Who since the beginning, also wrote a novel. Entitled The Coming of the Terraphiles
, the novel was an extended 345 pages and was released 14 October 2010. BBC Books
also released The Brilliant Book of Doctor Who 2011, a guide to the series that featured behind-the-scenes information. The book was made available in the UK on 30 September 2010.
had signed a £10 million contract for Doctor Who games for Wii
and DS
. The games were marketed to Nintendo as the brand was known for being family-oriented and the Wii in particular was something families played together. The BBC also was certain to monitor the games and make sure they did not contain anything too violent. Doctor Who: Evacuation Earth
was released for the DS and featured the Daleks, whereas Doctor Who: Return to Earth
featured the Cybermen and was released for the Wii. Both games featured the Eleventh Doctor and Amy Pond, voiced by Smith and Gillan respectfully. Evacuation Earth was released 12 November 2010, while Return to Earth followed on 19 November. Additionally, Wii remotes and DS styluses modeled after the sonic screwdriver were released to accompany the games.
In April 2010, the BBC announced The Adventure Games
, four interactive episodes available free-to-download on the BBC Doctor Who website featuring the Doctor and Amy voiced by Smith and Gillan. Piers Wenger referred to them as four extra episodes in the series and everything included was part of the Doctor Who universe. The game was developed by Charles Cecil
and Sheffield
-based game company Sumo
, while the games were written by Phil Ford
and James Moran
and overseen by Moffat and the producers of the show. Cecil was contacted by BBC Wales Editor of Interactive Iain Tweedale, who asked him about developing a Doctor Who game. Smith and Gillan's movements and actions were captured by rotoscoping.
As the Doctor was a pacifist and did not use the guns commonly found in video games, The Adventure Games untilised a more strategy and puzzle-based gameplay. Much of the first game was based around stealth, exploration, and puzzle-solving. The Doctor was also equipped with his sonic screwdriver, but as this was often used as skeleton key
the game employes the solving of puzzles to advance instead of simply using the screwdriver.
The first installment, "City of the Daleks", was originally scheduled to be released 5 June 2010, but was made available two days earlier. The BBC explained the early release as a testing procedure, and final tweaks were expected to be made prior to official release. Within the first twelve days of avaliability, the game was downloaded over 500,000 times, and the traffic on the site had increased as a result. The second game, "Blood of the Cybermen", was released on 26 June, after the airing of the series finale. This was followed by the third game, "TARDIS", on 27 August and "Shadows of the Vashta Nerada" on 22 December.
Additionally, a mobile game app was developed by Tag Games for BBC Worldwide
. Like The Adventure Games, it allowed the gamer to play as both the Doctor and Amy and involved time travel, defeating enemies, and solving problems. It featured over 100 puzzles, seven locations to travel to, music from the show, and the enemies being the Daleks, Cybermen, and Silurians. The app was released for Apple IOS devices on 16 December 2010 and for Android on 17 August 2011.
British television
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science fiction television
Science fiction on television
Science fiction first appeared on a television program during the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary world not limited by the constraints of reality; this makes television an excellent medium...
series Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
began on 3 April 2010 with "The Eleventh Hour
The Eleventh Hour (Doctor Who)
"The Eleventh Hour" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on BBC One and BBC HD on 3 April 2010....
" and ended with "The Big Bang
The Big Bang (Doctor Who)
"The Big Bang" is the 13th and final episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is the second part of a two-part season finale started with "The Pandorica Opens", at the end of which The Doctor is trapped, the TARDIS destroyed, and Amy Pond has been shot...
" on 26 June 2010. The series was led by head writer and executive producer Steven Moffat
Steven Moffat
Steven Moffat is a Scottish television writer and producer.Moffat's first television work was the teen drama series Press Gang. His first sitcom, Joking Apart, was inspired by the breakdown of his first marriage; conversely, his later sitcom Coupling was based upon the development of his...
, who took over after the departure of Russell T Davies. The series comprises 13 episodes, six of which Moffat wrote. Piers Wenger
Piers Wenger
Piers Wenger is a British television producer who has been Head of Drama at BBC Wales since January 2009. His work includes the BAFTA-winning Victoria Wood drama Housewife, 49 and the 2007 adaptation of Noel Streatfeild's novel Ballet Shoes....
and Beth Willis
Beth Willis (producer)
Beth Willis is a British television producer, although she has worked as a script editor on Agatha Christie's Poirot and The Amazing Mrs Pritchard....
served with Moffat as executive producers, while Tracie Simpson
Tracie Simpson
Tracie Simpson is a British television producer. Her career had predominantly been as a production manager, in which capacity she worked on the revived series of Doctor Who until 2007...
and Peter Bennett
Peter Bennett (producer)
Peter Bennett is a British television producer, although he has predominantly worked as a first assistant director. His credits as a first AD include numerous feature films, such as The Mummy, The Mummy Returns, Alexander and Syriana, as well as the television series Minder, Agatha Christie's...
served as producers. Referred to by Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine is a magazine devoted to the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
as Series Thirty-One, the series was produced as Series One, although BBC Programme listings, iPlayer, DVDs and Blu-rays refer to it as Series 5.
This is the first series to feature Matt Smith as the eleventh incarnation
Eleventh Doctor
The Eleventh Doctor is the eleventh incarnation of the protagonist of the BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. Matt Smith plays this incarnation, replacing David Tennant's Tenth Doctor in the 2010 episode "The End of Time, Part Two"...
of the Doctor, an alien who travels through time and space in his TARDIS
TARDIS
The TARDISGenerally, TARDIS is written in all upper case letters—this convention was popularised by the Target novelisations of the 1970s...
, which appears to be a British police box
Police box
A police box is a British telephone kiosk or callbox located in a public place for the use of members of the police, or for members of the public to contact the police...
on the outside. It also introduces Karen Gillan
Karen Gillan
Karen Sheila Gillan is a Scottish actress and former model who is best known for her current portrayal of Amy Pond in the British science fiction series Doctor Who.-Early life:...
as the Doctor's companion
Companion (Doctor Who)
In the long-running BBC television science fiction programme Doctor Who and related works, the term "companion" refers to a character who travels with, and shares the adventures of the Doctor. In most Doctor Who stories, the primary companion acts as both deuteragonist and audience surrogate...
Amy Pond
Amy Pond
Amelia Jessica 'Amy' Pond is a fictional character portrayed by Karen Gillan in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
and her fiancé Rory Williams
Rory Williams
Rory Williams is a fictional character portrayed by Arthur Darvill in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Having been introduced at the start of the 5th series, Rory joins the Eleventh Doctor as a companion in the middle of Series 5...
(Arthur Darvill
Arthur Darvill
Thomas Arthur Darvill is an English actor, known professionally as Arthur Darvill. He is noted for his work in the plays Terre Haute and Swimming with Sharks , but is probably best known for his role as the Eleventh Doctor's Companion Rory Williams in the television series Doctor Who.-Early and...
) who is in six episodes and travels with the Doctor and Amy. Alex Kingston
Alex Kingston
Alexandra Elizabeth "Alex" Kingston is an English actress. She is most widely known for her roles as Dr. Elizabeth Corday on the NBC medical drama ER and as River Song in Doctor Who.-Early life and education:...
returns as River Song
River Song (Doctor Who)
River Song is a fictional character played primarily by Alex Kingston in the British science-fiction series Doctor Who. River Song was introduced to the series as an experienced future companion of series protagonist the Doctor, an alien Time Lord who travels through time in his TARDIS...
, a mysterious woman from the Doctor's future who in this series summons the Doctor on two occasions. The series contains a main story arc
Story arc
A story arc is an extended or continuing storyline in episodic storytelling media such as television, comic books, comic strips, boardgames, video games, and in some cases, films. On a television program, for example, the story would unfold over many episodes. In television, the use of the story...
concerning a pattern of cracks in the universe which appear over several episodes, sometimes going unnoticed by the characters. It is discovered that they have the power to erase things from existence, and this happens to Rory, causing Amy to forget him. In the series finale it is revealed that the cracks were caused by the TARDIS exploding and the Doctor is forced to reboot the universe to the state which it was without the cracks.
The seven episodes of the series which were not written by Moffat were penned by guest writers. Mark Gatiss
Mark Gatiss
Mark Gatiss is an English actor, screenwriter and novelist. He is best known as a member of the comedy team The League of Gentlemen, and has both written for and acted in the TV series Doctor Who and Sherlock....
, Toby Whithouse
Toby Whithouse
Toby Whithouse is an English actor, stand-up comedian and screenwriter. His highest-profile work has been the creation of the BBC Three supernatural television series Being Human. He also created the Channel 4 television drama series No Angels , and has written for BBC One's Hotel Babylon and...
, Simon Nye
Simon Nye
Simon Nye is an English comic television writer, best known for creating the hit sitcom Men Behaving Badly, writing all of the four ITV Panto, co-writing the 2006 film Flushed Away, co-writing Reggie Perrin and creating the latest adaption of William Brown in the Just William CBBC...
, Richard Curtis
Richard Curtis
Richard Whalley Anthony Curtis, CBE is a New Zealand-born British screenwriter, music producer, actor and film director, known primarily for romantic comedy films such as Four Weddings and a Funeral, Bridget Jones's Diary, Notting Hill, Love Actually and The Girl in the Café, as well as the hit...
, Gareth Roberts
Gareth Roberts (writer)
Gareth John Pritchard Roberts is a British television screenwriter and novelist, best known for his work related to the science-fiction television series Doctor Who...
each wrote one episode each, while Chris Chibnall
Chris Chibnall
Chris Chibnall is a British playwright, television writer and producer. He is best known for his work on the science-fiction series Torchwood....
wrote a two-episode story. The series was meant to be fantastical to stand out among other science fiction and fantasy shows and the production team pushed a fairy-tale quality because Moffat believed media aimed at children was some of the most popular among adults. The episodes were directed by directors who were all new to Doctor Who. The series began filming in late July 2009 and lasted for approximately nine months and was filmed mostly in Wales with the exception of "The Vampires of Venice
The Vampires of Venice
"The Vampires of Venice" is the sixth episode in the fifth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was broadcast on 8 May 2010. It was written by Toby Whithouse, who previously wrote "School Reunion". Rory Williams returns to the series in this episode, this time...
" and "Vincent and the Doctor
Vincent and the Doctor
"Vincent and the Doctor" is the 10th episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 5 June 2010...
", who had scenes filmed in Trogir
Trogir
Trogir is a historic town and harbour on the Adriatic coast in Split-Dalmatia County, Croatia, with a population of 12,995 and a total municipality population of 13,322 . The historic city of Trogir is situated on a small island between the Croatian mainland and the island of Čiovo...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. The series underwent many design changes, including a new logo, title sequence, variation of the theme music
Doctor Who theme music
The Doctor Who theme is a piece of music composed by Ron Grainer and realised by Delia Derbyshire at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. Created in 1963, it was one of the first electronic music signature tunes for television and after nearly five decades remains one of the most easily...
, interior and exterior of the TARDIS, and version of the Doctor's sonic screwdriver
Sonic screwdriver
The sonic screwdriver is a fictional tool in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spinoffs. It is a multifunctional tool used by The Doctor. Its most common function is that of a lockpick, but can be used to perform other operations such as performing medical scans,...
.
The series premiere was watched by 10.08 viewers, the highest watched premiere since "Rose
Rose (Doctor Who)
"Rose" is the first episode of Series One of the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by show runner Russell T Davies and directed by Keith Boak, the episode was first broadcast on 26 March 2005....
" of the first series
Doctor Who (series 1)
The new first series of British science fiction series Doctor Who began on 26 March 2005 with the episode "Rose", which marked the end of the programme's 16-year absence from episodic television following its cancellation in 1989, and aired its finale episode "The Parting of the Ways" on 18 June 2005...
, and also broke records on BBC America
BBC America
BBC America is an American television network, owned and operated by BBC Worldwide, and available on both cable and satellite.-History:The channel launched on March 29, 1998, broadcasting comedy, drama and lifestyle programs from BBC Television and other British television broadcasters like ITV and...
in the United States and BBC's online iPlayer. Though overnight ratings had declined, one writer calculated that viewership had not declined based on time-shifted ratings. The series received generally positive reviews, with praise going to Moffat's story arc as well as the acting of Smith, Gillan, and Darvill. However, many reviewers noted that Amy lacked character development and the series did not contain as much heart and emotion as previously in the show. The series gained many awards and nominations; "Vincent and the Doctor" and the two-part finale were both nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form) with the award going to the latter. Smith also became the first actor portraying the Doctor to be nominated for a BAFTA award, though he did not win. The series was accompanied with a soundtrack as well as tie-in books and video games, four of which were released episodically on the BBC's website and advertised as additional episodes of the series.
List of episodes
All viewing figures taken by BARB. The table includes total ratings, with BBC One ratings and simulcast BBC HD
BBC HD
BBC HD is a high-definition television network provided by the BBC. The service was initially run as a trial from 15 May 2006 until becoming a full service on 1 December 2007...
ratings in brackets.
| Story No. | Episode | Title | Directed by | Written by | UK viewers (million) |
AI Appreciation Index The Audience Appreciation Index is a score out of 100 which is used as an indicator of the public's appreciation for a television or radio programme, or broadcast service, in the United Kingdom. Until 2002, the AI of a programme was calculated by BARB, the organisation that compiles television... |
Original air date | Production code |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Supplemental episodes
Two additional scenes were specially filmed for "The Complete Fifth Series" boxset which reveal what occurred between selected regular episodes. The first instalment is set between "The Eleventh Hour" and "The Beast Below", while the second is set between "Flesh and Stone" and "The Vampires of Venice".| Title | Directed by | Written by | UK viewers (million) |
Original air date | Production code |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Casting
The series introduced a new incarnation of the Doctor, the EleventhEleventh Doctor
The Eleventh Doctor is the eleventh incarnation of the protagonist of the BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. Matt Smith plays this incarnation, replacing David Tennant's Tenth Doctor in the 2010 episode "The End of Time, Part Two"...
, played by Matt Smith. This followed the departure of David Tennant
David Tennant
David Tennant is a Scottish actor. In addition to his work in theatre, including a widely praised Hamlet, Tennant is best known for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, along with the title role in the 2005 TV serial Casanova and as Barty Crouch, Jr...
as the Tenth Doctor
Tenth Doctor
The Tenth Doctor is the tenth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He is played by David Tennant, who appears in three series, as well as eight specials...
, who left the role to help ease the transition from Davies to Moffat's showrunning. Moffat was looking to cast a middle-aged actor, who was "young enough to run but old enough to look wise". However, Smith, who was only 26 when cast, was the third person to audition and the production team knew "[they] had their man". Smith's agent had called him and suggested that he try out for the role. Moffat later stated that Smith did not appear to be youthful at all. The producers were cautious about casting Smith because they felt that a 26-year-old actor could not play the Doctor adequately; BBC Head of Drama and executive producer Piers Wenger
Piers Wenger
Piers Wenger is a British television producer who has been Head of Drama at BBC Wales since January 2009. His work includes the BAFTA-winning Victoria Wood drama Housewife, 49 and the 2007 adaptation of Noel Streatfeild's novel Ballet Shoes....
shared the sentiment, but noted that Smith was capable enough to play the role. Smith's casting in the role was revealed during an episode of Doctor Whos companion show Doctor Who Confidential
Doctor Who Confidential
Doctor Who Confidential is a documentary series created by the British Broadcasting Corporation to complement the revival of the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Each episode was broadcast on BBC Three on Saturdays, immediately after the broadcast of the weekly...
, during which he described the role as "a wonderful privilege and challenge that I hope I will thrive on".
Karen Gillan
Karen Gillan
Karen Sheila Gillan is a Scottish actress and former model who is best known for her current portrayal of Amy Pond in the British science fiction series Doctor Who.-Early life:...
was cast as Amy Pond
Amy Pond
Amelia Jessica 'Amy' Pond is a fictional character portrayed by Karen Gillan in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
, the Doctor's companion
Companion (Doctor Who)
In the long-running BBC television science fiction programme Doctor Who and related works, the term "companion" refers to a character who travels with, and shares the adventures of the Doctor. In most Doctor Who stories, the primary companion acts as both deuteragonist and audience surrogate...
. Andy Pryor, the casting director, suggested Gillan to Moffat after her performance in the fourth series
Doctor Who (series 4)
The fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who began on 25 December 2007 with the Christmas special "Voyage of the Damned". Following the special, a regular series of thirteen episodes aired, starting with "Partners in Crime" on 5 April 2008 and ending with "Journey's End"...
episode "The Fires of Pompeii
The Fires of Pompeii
"The Fires of Pompeii" is the second episode of the fourth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was broadcast on BBC One on 12 April 2008....
", in which she played a soothsayer
Soothsayer
Soothsayer may refer to:* One practicing divination, including:** Fortune-teller** Oracle* The Soothsayer, an album by Wayne Shorter* "Soothsayer", a song by Buckethead from Crime Slunk Scene...
, but Moffat originally thought she was "short and dumpy". Later, however, he stated that she was "exactly right for the role" but she portrayed the character differently than how Moffat originally wrote. Gillan auditioned for the role in both her natural Scottish
Scottish English
Scottish English refers to the varieties of English spoken in Scotland. It may or may not be considered distinct from the Scots language. It is always considered distinct from Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic language....
accent and an English
English language in England
The English language in England refers to the English language as spoken in England. These forms of English are a subsection of British English, as spoken throughout Great Britain. Other terms used to refer to the English language as spoken in England include:...
one, and it was not until after she was cast that it was decided Amy would be Scottish. Gillan commented that she felt the Scottish accent better suited the character. For the first and last episodes, a young version of Amy, known as "Amelia", was played by Gillan's real-life 10-year-old cousin Caitlin Blackwood. Although the two actresses did not meet until the set of the show, Gillan recommended Blackwood for the role, although Blackwood had to undergo rigorous auditions first.
Alex Kingston
Alex Kingston
Alexandra Elizabeth "Alex" Kingston is an English actress. She is most widely known for her roles as Dr. Elizabeth Corday on the NBC medical drama ER and as River Song in Doctor Who.-Early life and education:...
, who played the character River Song
River Song (Doctor Who)
River Song is a fictional character played primarily by Alex Kingston in the British science-fiction series Doctor Who. River Song was introduced to the series as an experienced future companion of series protagonist the Doctor, an alien Time Lord who travels through time in his TARDIS...
in the fourth series episodes "Silence in the Library
Silence in the Library
"Silence in the Library" is the eighth episode of the fourth series of the revived British science fiction television series Doctor Who, first broadcast on 31 May 2008. It is the first of a two-part story, followed by "Forest of the Dead", and is the second two-parter Steven Moffat contributed to...
" and "Forest of the Dead
Forest of the Dead
"Forest of the Dead" is the ninth episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast by BBC One on 7 June 2008...
", reprised her role in the two-part stories "The Time of Angels"/"Flesh and Stone" and "The Pandorica Opens"/"The Big Bang". Kingston did not expect the return, but Moffat always intended for River to return to the series. Arthur Darvill
Arthur Darvill
Thomas Arthur Darvill is an English actor, known professionally as Arthur Darvill. He is noted for his work in the plays Terre Haute and Swimming with Sharks , but is probably best known for his role as the Eleventh Doctor's Companion Rory Williams in the television series Doctor Who.-Early and...
also appeared in six episodes as Rory Williams
Rory Williams
Rory Williams is a fictional character portrayed by Arthur Darvill in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Having been introduced at the start of the 5th series, Rory joins the Eleventh Doctor as a companion in the middle of Series 5...
, Amy Pond's fiancé, and was also a companion in five of those episodes. Darvill had previously worked with Smith on a play called Swimming with Sharks. For his audition, Darvill received two scenes from the first episode and one from the sixth, but beyond the fact Rory was Amy's boyfriend he was not infomed of details of the character. Moffat stated that what stood out about Darvill's audition was "just how funny" he was. Darvill felt "privileged" to be part of the show, and was pleased with Rory's storyline.
Notable guest stars included James Corden
James Corden
James Kimberley Corden is an English actor, television writer, producer and presenter. He is co-creator and star of BBC comedy shows Gavin & Stacey and Horne & Corden, and acted in the 2009 film Lesbian Vampire Killers....
, Annette Crosbie
Annette Crosbie
Annette Crosbie, OBE is a Scottish character actor.-Life and career:Crosbie was born in Gorebridge, Midlothian, Scotland, to Presbyterian parents who disapproved of her becoming an actor. Nevertheless, she joined the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School while still in her teens...
, Tony Curran
Tony Curran
Anthony "Tony" Curran is a Scottish actor.Curran was born in Glasgow, Scotland. He is an alumnus of Holyrood Secondary School and is a graduate of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama....
, Iain Glen
Iain Glen
Iain Glen is a Scottish film and stage actor.Iain Glen was born in Edinburgh, Scotland and trained at RADA where he won the Bancroft Gold Medal. He was married to Susannah Harker from 1993 to 2004; they have one son, Finlay...
Daisy Haggard
Daisy Haggard
-Family:The daughter of film director Piers Haggard and his wife Anna Slovsky, she was raised and educated in Dulwich, South London at the James Allen's Girls' School.-Career:...
, Terrence Hardiman, Toby Jones
Toby Jones
Toby Edward Heslewood Jones is an English actor.-Early life:Jones was born in Hammersmith, London, the son of actors Jennifer and Freddie Jones...
, Helen McCrory
Helen McCrory
Helen Elizabeth McCrory is a British actress. She portrayed Cherie Blair in both the 2006 film The Queen and the 2010 film The Special Relationship. She also portrayed Narcissa Malfoy in the final three Harry Potter films....
, Neve McIntosh
Neve McIntosh
-Early life:Born in Paisley, Neve McIntosh grew up in Edinburgh, where she attended Boroughmuir High School. She moved to Glasgow to attend the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, after which she was in repertory companies at Perth and at The Little Theatre on the Isle of Mull.-Theatre:She...
, Ian McNeice
Ian McNeice
Ian McNeice is a prolific English screen, stage, and television character actor.-Early life:McNeice was born in Basingstoke in Hampshire. McNeice's acting training started at the Taunton School in Somerset, followed by two years at the Salisbury Playhouse...
, Stephen Moore
Stephen Moore
Stephen Moore may refer to:* Stephen Moore , Irish politician*Stephen Moore * Stephen Moore , English actor* Stephen Campbell Moore , English actor...
, Bill Nighy
Bill Nighy
William Francis "Bill" Nighy is an English actor and comedian. He worked in theatre and television before his first cinema role in 1981, and made his name in television with The Men's Room in 1991, in which he played the womanizer Prof...
, Sophie Okonedo
Sophie Okonedo
Sophie Okonedo, OBE is a British actress, who has starred both in successful British and American productions. In 1991, she made her acting debut in the British critically acclaimed coming-of-age drama, Young Soul Rebels...
, Bill Paterson, Meera Syal
Meera Syal
Meera Syal MBE is a British comedienne, writer, playwright, singer, journalist, producer and actress. She rose to prominence as one of the team that created Goodness Gracious Me and became one of the UK's best-known Indian personalities portraying Sanjeev's grandmother, Ummi, in The Kumars at No...
, and Nina Wadia
Nina Wadia
-Television and film:Wadia first came to prominence in BBC sketch show Goodness Gracious Me, playing characters such as Mrs "I can make it at home for nothing!" and one half of The Competitive Mothers...
.
Costumes
During the first episode, the Eleventh Doctor still wears his previous incarnation's costume, but costume designer Ray HolmanRay Holman
Raymond Anthony Holman is an acclaimed musician, composer, pannist and performer from Trinidad.-Person:In 1957, Ray Holman began playing steelpan at the age of thirteen with the Invaders Steel Orchestra, led by Ellie Mannette for whom he composed his first pan piece - "Ray's Saga" recorded by...
stated that the costume was broken down and distressed. Over the course of the first episode, the Eleventh Doctor would find his own identity and pick out his own costume. Smith tried on a wide variety of things to find one he would feel comfortable and confident in and would identify the Doctor. Smith brought in braces
Suspenders
Suspenders or braces are fabric or leather straps worn over the shoulders to hold up trousers. Straps may be elasticated, either entirely or only at attachment ends and most straps are of woven cloth forming an X or Y shape at the back. Braces are typically attached to trousers with buttons...
(suspenders) and a tweed jacket; Holman believed that the tweed jacked was "a bit old for him" but showed that he was a "professor and student at the same time" and gave him "that quality that the Doctor’s still learning, but also has some authority. Smith suggested a bow tie, which Holman and others did not approve of, but once Smith had put it on they decided they had the costume. The men's clothing store Topman
Topman
TOPMAN is the stand-alone fashion business counterpart of Topshop that caters exclusively to men’s clothing. A part of the Arcadia Group, which also owns Burton, Miss Selfridge, Wallis, Evans, British Home Stores and Dorothy Perkins, Topman has a chain of high-street men's clothing stores located...
reported that their bow tie sales had rise 94% for the month of April 2010, connected to when the series begun airing.
Gillan had a lot of input into Amy's costume, as well as her hair and make-up. In the first episode, Holman stated that Amy's identity was not clear and she wore her own clothes later on. Gillan thought that Amy had inner confidence to wear clothes that showed "a bit of skin from time to time". Gillan said she tried on many things, but when it came to short skirts she "just thought it was right" and showed that Amy was "comfortable and confident about her look". She believed that the skirts reflected what young women typically wear at her age. Executive producer Piers Wenger also noted that Amy's '70s flying jacket, which she wears "quite a lot", reflected Gillan was a "born adventurer" and Amy developed a love for travel and adventure.
Crew and series numbering
Doctor Who was renewed for a fifth series in September 2007. Russell T Davies was succeeded by Steven MoffatSteven Moffat
Steven Moffat is a Scottish television writer and producer.Moffat's first television work was the teen drama series Press Gang. His first sitcom, Joking Apart, was inspired by the breakdown of his first marriage; conversely, his later sitcom Coupling was based upon the development of his...
as executive producer and head writer, and Julie Gardner
Julie Gardner
Julie Gardner is a Welsh television producer. Her most prominent work has been serving as executive producer on the 2005 revival of Doctor Who and its spin-off shows Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures...
was replaced as executive producer by Piers Wenger
Piers Wenger
Piers Wenger is a British television producer who has been Head of Drama at BBC Wales since January 2009. His work includes the BAFTA-winning Victoria Wood drama Housewife, 49 and the 2007 adaptation of Noel Streatfeild's novel Ballet Shoes....
, who had previously replaced Gardner as Head of Drama for BBC Wales. Beth Willis
Beth Willis (producer)
Beth Willis is a British television producer, although she has worked as a script editor on Agatha Christie's Poirot and The Amazing Mrs Pritchard....
also serves as an executive producer, and the series is produced by Tracie Simpson
Tracie Simpson
Tracie Simpson is a British television producer. Her career had predominantly been as a production manager, in which capacity she worked on the revived series of Doctor Who until 2007...
and Peter Bennett
Peter Bennett (producer)
Peter Bennett is a British television producer, although he has predominantly worked as a first assistant director. His credits as a first AD include numerous feature films, such as The Mummy, The Mummy Returns, Alexander and Syriana, as well as the television series Minder, Agatha Christie's...
. However, Murray Gold
Murray Gold
Murray Gold is an English composer for stage, film, and television and a dramatist for both theatre and radio.-Television:Gold has been nominated for a BAFTA four times in the category Best Original Television Music, for Vanity Fair , Queer as Folk , Casanova and Doctor Who...
stayed on as composer for the new series.
When Doctor Who was relaunched in 2005, the new series was marketed as series 1
Doctor Who (series 1)
The new first series of British science fiction series Doctor Who began on 26 March 2005 with the episode "Rose", which marked the end of the programme's 16-year absence from episodic television following its cancellation in 1989, and aired its finale episode "The Parting of the Ways" on 18 June 2005...
, although it had been on BBC television for 26 years from 1963 to 1989. When this series was confirmed by the BBC in September 2007, it was referred to as 'series five', following on from series 4
Doctor Who (series 4)
The fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who began on 25 December 2007 with the Christmas special "Voyage of the Damned". Following the special, a regular series of thirteen episodes aired, starting with "Partners in Crime" on 5 April 2008 and ending with "Journey's End"...
in 2008. In August 2009 Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine is a magazine devoted to the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
announced that this series was to be produced and marketed as 'Series One'. The January 2010 edition featured an interview with Steven Moffat, in which he called Series One "exciting", Series Thirty-One "awe-inspiring" and Series Five "boring and a lie". In the same issue, he jokingly referred to the season as "series Fnarg", an ongoing joke in subsequent issues. The March edition, referring to it as Series Thirty-One, confirmed production codes in the range 1.1 to 1.13. BBC Programme listings the BBC iPlayer
BBC iPlayer
BBC iPlayer, commonly shortened to iPlayer, is an internet television and radio service, developed by the BBC to extend its former RealPlayer-based and other streamed video clip content to include whole TV shows....
and DVDs refer to it as "Series 5".
Writing
With the changes to the show, Moffat wanted to reassure the audience that "nothing has really been lost" and it was the same show and the same character of the Doctor. The story arc of the cracks in the universe was inspired by a crack in the bedroom wall of Moffat's son. Moffat wanted to make sure the show appealed to even young children; if they could not follow the plot, there would be "big pictures" to entertain them. Moffat believed that Doctor Who was fundamentally for children but it was something everybody loved, comparing it to Star WarsStar Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
and Toy Story
Toy Story
Toy Story is a 1995 American computer-animated film released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is Pixar's first feature film as well as the first ever feature film to be made entirely with CGI. The film was directed by John Lasseter and featuring the voices of Tom Hanks and Tim Allen...
. He considered the "most popular form of entertainment" to be a children's story. Of the series, he said they "pushed the fairytale side of it" as Doctor Who "now has to be the most fantastical of the fantasy shows" to be more vibrant and "bonkers" than any other fantastical show.
Moffat wrote six episodes for the series. The rest were penned by guest writers, as Moffat believed that Doctor Who benefited from different voices. However, he stated that the concepts of the episodes were mostly supplied by him, as he had a "pretty good idea" of what would happen in each episode slot. Moffat knew all of the guest writers "to some degree" and called meeting with them "quite joyous". However, Matthew Graham
Matthew Graham
Matthew Graham is a British television writer, and the co-creator of the BBC/Kudos Film and Television science fiction series Life on Mars, which debuted in 2006 on BBC One and has received international critical acclaim....
was not able to write an episode as he was slated to because he did not believe he would have enough time. Moffat later contacted him and asked him to write a two-part episode for the next series, which became "The Rebel Flesh
The Rebel Flesh
"The Rebel Flesh" is the fifth episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 21 May 2011 on BBC One and on BBC America in the United States...
"/"The Almost People
The Almost People
"The Almost People" is the sixth episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and was first broadcast on BBC One on 28 May 2011...
".
With the first two episodes, Moffat intended to introduce the Eleventh Doctor and have him establish his new identity while the second was intended to show the Doctor's need for a companion and Amy's importance to him. For the third episode, he asked Mark Gatiss
Mark Gatiss
Mark Gatiss is an English actor, screenwriter and novelist. He is best known as a member of the comedy team The League of Gentlemen, and has both written for and acted in the TV series Doctor Who and Sherlock....
to write an episode concerning "Churchill versus the Daleks". Moffat wanted to incorporate the popular Daleks into the new series and was also considering redesigning them. Gatiss and Moffat as well as the production team worked together to create Daleks that were big and more colourful, similar to the Daleks found in the films of the 60s
Dr. Who and the Daleks
Dr. Who and the Daleks was the first of two Doctor Who films made in the 1960s. It was followed by Daleks' Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D....
.
For the fourth and fifth episode, Moffat planned a two-part sequel to his 2007 episode "Blink
Blink (Doctor Who)
"Blink" is the 10th episode of the third series of the new production of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on 9 June 2007, and is the only episode in the 2007 series written by Steven Moffat; the episode is based on a previous short story written by...
", which featured the Weeping Angels
Weeping Angels
The Weeping Angels are a fictional ancient race of aliens from the Doctor Who television series, featured in the Tenth Doctor episode "Blink", and the Eleventh Doctor episodes "The Time of Angels", "Flesh and Stone" and in a cameo appearance in Series 6's "The God Complex"...
. These two episodes, "The Time of Angels" and "Flesh and Stone", were intended to be a more action-oriented than "Blink", and also showed the Angels had a plan rather than scavenging. He also decided to flesh out the Angels as villains themselves and show more of what they can do. "Flesh and Stone" ends with Amy attempting to seduce the Doctor; Moffat believed this was consistent with the character that had been built up from the first episode.
Whithouse originally planned to write a different episode
The God Complex
"The God Complex" is the eleventh episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on BBC One, BBC America and Space on 17 September 2011.-Plot summary:...
, but Moffat and Wenger thought it was too similar to other episodes in the series and Whithouse wrote "The Vampires of Venice" instead, while his original episode was pushed to the next series
Doctor Who (series 6)
The sixth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who was shown in two parts. The first seven episodes were broadcast from April to June 2011 and the final six episodes from August to October. Matt Smith, Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill continued their roles as The Doctor, Amy...
. Instead, Whithouse was asked to write "a big bold romantic episode" that would be a "sort of reboot episode" and a "good jumping off point" for new viewers to Doctor Who. Moffat figured that in the middle of the series a viewer could "start watching it again" and that it should be "something romantic and funny". For the next episode, Moffat asked comedy writer Simon Nye
Simon Nye
Simon Nye is an English comic television writer, best known for creating the hit sitcom Men Behaving Badly, writing all of the four ITV Panto, co-writing the 2006 film Flushed Away, co-writing Reggie Perrin and creating the latest adaption of William Brown in the Just William CBBC...
to write an episode that challenged the relationship between Amy and the Doctor. The episode, titled "Amy's Choice", was intended to be Amy's decision between excitement with the Doctor or life with Rory. The scene in which Rory dies in the false reality was intended to be when Amy realised her feelings for him. Nye wanted to stress that Amy really did love Rory and he was not "just a cypher boyfriend or fiancé".
Moffat contacted Chris Chibnall
Chris Chibnall
Chris Chibnall is a British playwright, television writer and producer. He is best known for his work on the science-fiction series Torchwood....
to write a two-part episode involving the Silurian
Silurian (Doctor Who)
The Silurians are a fictional race of reptile-like humanoids in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The species first appeared in Doctor Who in the 1970 serial Doctor Who and the Silurians...
s, villains who had not appeared in the show for over 25 years. As the Silurians were not as well-known as other monsters, Moffat instructed Chibnall to reintroduce them. The Silurians featured were intended to be a different branch than those previously seen and bore a different design, which used expensive facial prosthetics and eliminated their third eye. Richard Curtis
Richard Curtis
Richard Whalley Anthony Curtis, CBE is a New Zealand-born British screenwriter, music producer, actor and film director, known primarily for romantic comedy films such as Four Weddings and a Funeral, Bridget Jones's Diary, Notting Hill, Love Actually and The Girl in the Café, as well as the hit...
, who had previously worked with Moffat in the 1999 Comic Relief
Comic Relief
Comic Relief is an operating British charity, founded in 1985 by the comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Lenny Henry in response to famine in Ethiopia. The highlight of Comic Relief's appeal is Red Nose Day, a biennial telethon held in March, alternating with sister project Sport Relief...
special Doctor Who and the Curse of Fatal Death
Doctor Who and the Curse of Fatal Death
Doctor Who and the Curse of Fatal Death is a four-episode special of Doctor Who made for the Red Nose Day charity telethon in the United Kingdom, and broadcast on BBC One on 12 March 1999...
, was contacted by Moffat to return the favour and write an episode. Curtis had the idea of an episode about van Gogh for "a long while" and was interested in the fact that van Gogh never knew he was famous. Gillan noted that there was a different approach and style to the episode, and it was more character-driven. Curtis openly asked Moffat to criticise "everything and anything" about the script, and said that Moffat was very honest. Curtis commented that it was "fun" to work within boundaries rather than doing it all by himself.
Neil Gaiman
Neil Gaiman
Neil Richard Gaiman born 10 November 1960)is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels, audio theatre and films. His notable works include the comic book series The Sandman and novels Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book...
had written an episode
The Doctor's Wife
The Doctor's Wife, known in Japanese as , is a noted novel by Sawako Ariyoshi written in 1966.The partly historical novel is based on the life of noted male physician Hanaoka Seishū. Though much is based on fact, many events were added for dramatic purposes. The novel follows the protagonist, here...
, but it was pushed to the next series due to budget constraints and was replaced with "The Lodger" instead. "The Lodger" was adapted from a comic strip of the same name writer Gareth Roberts had done for Doctor Who Magazine, although he said most of it started "from scratch" The story was inspired by wishing to see the Doctor in normal, every-day human circumstances, as well as Roberts' enjoyment of stories set on Earth rather than in space. Roberts was interested in doing a television version of the story, but he never mentioned it. However, Moffat was a fan of the comic story and immediately asked to adapt it into an episode when he became showrunner.
The finale ends with the wedding of Amy and Rory. Moffat stated that he had always intended for them to get married "from the off". The finale also left many questions that would be answered with the next series, concerning the identity of River Song and "The Silence
Silence (Doctor Who)
The Silence is a fictional religious order or movement in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who.Executive producer Steven Moffat created the Silence, intending them to be "scarier" than past villains in Doctor Who...
" which appeared to cause the TARDIS to explode.
Design changes
The series introduced a new logo, which was announced in October 2009. According to the BBC, it is the eleventh version of the logo to be shown in the series. Moffat stated that the insignia of "DW" in the shape of the TARDIS was "something really new". The logo was incorporated in a new title sequence, which was not revealed to an audience outside of the BBC until first transmission of "The Eleventh Hour"; previous press screenings and previews had used a variation of the previous sequence. Moffat wanted a new version of the the theme tuneDoctor Who theme music
The Doctor Who theme is a piece of music composed by Ron Grainer and realised by Delia Derbyshire at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. Created in 1963, it was one of the first electronic music signature tunes for television and after nearly five decades remains one of the most easily...
, and composer Murray Gold wanted it to "sound a bit reckless". The new variation, composed by Gold, incorporated a new melody played by electronic trumpets and a faster tempo. The new theme angered fans, with the BBC receiving 70 complaints as of 18 April 2010. In response, a Doctor Who spokesman stated,
A new TARDIS prop was used, featuring the St John's Ambulance logo that had been used in the early days of the show as well as in the Peter Cushing
Peter Cushing
Peter Wilton Cushing, OBE was an English actor, known for his many appearances in Hammer Films, in which he played the handsome but sinister scientist Baron Frankenstein and the vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing, amongst many other roles, often appearing opposite Christopher Lee, and occasionally...
films of the early 60s, which Moffat was a fan of. Moffat said it was one thing he "really wanted to do" and it was for "no other reason than that [he] thought it was prettier" and he wanted the St. John's Ambulance sticker on the front.
A new set of the interior of the TARDIS was also designed, which Moffat estimated was three times bigger than the previous set. Moffat did not decide to create the new interior specifically for the new Doctor, but the brief to the set designer was to create a design that would suit Smith's Doctor. Piers Wenger said that it took "quite a long time to get the design right" and they were careful not to make it too futuristic-looking, as "futuristic" meant nothing to the Doctor. In the first episode the sonic screwdriver
Sonic screwdriver
The sonic screwdriver is a fictional tool in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spinoffs. It is a multifunctional tool used by The Doctor. Its most common function is that of a lockpick, but can be used to perform other operations such as performing medical scans,...
is destroyed, and a new version, featuring a green light and metal claws, was created. Smith liked to keep the prop with him at all times "twirling it around and flicking it" which resulted in him breaking four of them. The noise made by the screwdriver was added in post-production using a synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
. Moffat described the changes as starting with a "clean slate" which made sense after the previous cast and crew had left.
Filming
All of the directors of the series were new to Doctor Who. Moffatt commented that he wanted to "shake things up" and it was "never too early to get rid of the safety net." Adam Smith directed the first episode as well as the fourth and fifth. Ashley WayAshley Way
Ashley Way is a film and television director born in Cardiff, Wales, in 1971.-Director:*Filligoggin *Belonging *Hoodlum & Son *Doctor Who...
and Andrew Gunn
Andrew Gunn
Andrew Gunn is a British television director. He was born in Staffordshire and later grew up on Tyneside before attending film school in Surrey and Dorset...
each directed two episodes.
Filming of the series lasted approximately nine months. Production blocks
Production blocking
Production blocking is a common problem in brainstorming groups. It is a tendency for one individual to block or inhibit other people during a group discussion. For example, if six people are in a group and one person is talking about his or her idea, then the other five people are "blocked" and...
were arranged as follows:
| Block | Episode Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Time of Angels" "Flesh and Stone" |
Adam Smith | Steven Moffat | Tracie Simpson Tracie Simpson Tracie Simpson is a British television producer. Her career had predominantly been as a production manager, in which capacity she worked on the revived series of Doctor Who until 2007... |
1.4 1.5 |
| 2 | "The Beast Below" "Victory of the Daleks" |
Andrew Gunn | Steven Moffat Mark Gatiss |
Peter Bennett Peter Bennett (producer) Peter Bennett is a British television producer, although he has predominantly worked as a first assistant director. His credits as a first AD include numerous feature films, such as The Mummy, The Mummy Returns, Alexander and Syriana, as well as the television series Minder, Agatha Christie's... |
1.2 1.3 |
| 3 | "The Eleventh Hour" | Adam Smith | Steven Moffat | Tracie Simpson | 1.1 |
| 4 | "The Hungry Earth" "Cold Blood" |
Ashley Way | Chris Chibnall | Peter Bennett | 1.8 1.9 |
| 5 | "The Vampires of Venice" "Vincent and the Doctor" |
Jonny Campbell | Toby Whithouse Richard Curtis |
Tracie Simpson Patrick Schweitzer |
1.6 1.10 |
| 6 | "The Pandorica Opens" "The Big Bang" |
Toby Haynes | Steven Moffat | Peter Bennett | 1.12 1.13 |
| 7 | "The Lodger" "Amy's Choice" |
Catherine Morshead | Gareth Roberts Simon Nye |
Tracie Simpson Patrick Schweitzer |
1.11 1.7 |
When rehearsing episodes four and five, the first episodes to be produced, director Adam Smtih suggested that Smith and Gillan "have an adventure" where they could experience something exciting and laugh and scream. He took them to a "real white knuckle ride" on a boat in Cardiff Bay
Cardiff Bay
Cardiff Bay is the area created by the Cardiff Barrage in South Cardiff, the capital of Wales. The regeneration of Cardiff Bay is now widely regarded as one of the most successful regeneration projects in the United Kingdom. The Bay is supplied by two rivers to form a freshwater lake round the...
. Filming began on 20 July 2009 on Southerndown
Southerndown
Southerndown is a village in South Wales to the southwest of Bridgend, close to St Brides Major, Llantwit Major and Ogmore-by-Sea. It is mostly known for its beach , which is a popular tourist destination during the summer months and since 1972 has been designated a Heritage Coast and is part of...
beach, Vale of Glamorgan
Vale of Glamorgan
The Vale of Glamorgan is a county borough in Wales; an exceptionally rich agricultural area, it lies in the southern part of Glamorgan, South Wales...
in scenes for "The Time of Angels" and "Flesh and Stone". Moffat wrote that typically with television the first day of filming "will probably be something fairly inconsequential and involve a minor character getting shot, or a close up of a hand or something" which differed from the "iconic" scene involving the Doctor, Amy, River Song and the TARDIS. Forest scenes in "Flesh and Stone" were filmed at Puzzlewood
Puzzlewood
Puzzlewood is an ancient woodland site, near Coleford in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England. The site, covering 14 acres, shows evidence of open cast iron ore mining dating from the Roman period, and possibly earlier....
in the Forest of Dean
Forest of Dean
The Forest of Dean is a geographical, historical and cultural region in the western part of the county of Gloucestershire, England. The forest is a roughly triangular plateau bounded by the River Wye to the west and north, the River Severn to the south, and the City of Gloucester to the east.The...
over nine nights in July 2009.
Episodes two and three made up the second production block. Scenes in "The Beast Below" were filmed in an orangery
Orangery
An orangery was a building in the grounds of fashionable residences from the 17th to the 19th centuries and given a classicising architectural form. The orangery was similar to a greenhouse or conservatory...
at Margam Country Park
Margam Country Park
Margam Country Park is a country park estate in Britain, of around 850 acres . It is situated in Margam, about 2 miles from Port Talbot in south Wales it was once owned by the Mansel Talbot family and is now owned and administered by the local council, Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council...
, Port Talbot
Port Talbot
Port Talbot is a town in Neath Port Talbot, Wales. It had a population of 35,633 in 2001.-History:Port Talbot grew out of the original small port and market town of Aberafan , which belonged to the medieval Lords of Afan. The area of the parish of Margam lying on the west bank of the lower Afan...
during a night shoot on 22 September 2009. Half of a scene in "The Pandorica Opens" featuring a character in "The Beast Below" was filmed there as well. Scenes for Amy and Rory's town of Leadworth in the first episode, "The Eleventh Hour", were filmed in the village of Llandaff
Llandaff
Llandaff is a district in the north of Cardiff, capital of Wales, having been incorporated into the city in 1922. It is the seat of the Church in Wales Bishop of Llandaff, whose diocese covers the most populous area of South Wales. Much of the district is covered by parkland known as Llandaff...
in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
over various datesi in the autumn of 2009: 29 September, 5-7 October, and 20 November.
The fourth production block, consisting of "The Hungry Earth" and "Cold Blood", was filmed in October and November 2009 with location filming done in Llanwynno
Llanwynno
Llanwynno is a hamlet high up in the mountains between the historic mining valleys of the Rhondda and Cynon Valleys in Rhondda Cynon Taf deep in the heart of the South Wales Valleys ....
, Wales. Scenes for "Cold Blood" were also filmed at the Plantasia
Plantasia
The Plantasia is a large public hothouse located in the Parc Tawe retail park, Swansea, Wales.- Exhibits :It exhibits a wide range of tropical plants and insects. It opened in 1990....
botanical garden in Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
on 13 November 2009. "The Vampires of Venice" and "Vincent and the Doctor" were filmed mainly in the town of Trogir
Trogir
Trogir is a historic town and harbour on the Adriatic coast in Split-Dalmatia County, Croatia, with a population of 12,995 and a total municipality population of 13,322 . The historic city of Trogir is situated on a small island between the Croatian mainland and the island of Čiovo...
in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, which was used as Venice and Paris respectfully. Though a small crew did go to Venice to take wide shots of coastal buildings, the episode was not filmed there because it would take too long to cover up the modern shops in present-day Venice. The gondolas were filmed in the moat on Caerphilly Castle
Caerphilly Castle
Caerphilly Castle is a medieval castle that dominates the centre of the town of Caerphilly in south Wales. It is the largest castle in Wales and the second largest in Britain after Windsor Castle...
and inserted with CGI
Computer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
.
The grounds for the estate at Margam Country Park was then used for the placement of "Foamhenge", a lightweight replica of Stonehenge
Stonehenge
Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument located in the English county of Wiltshire, about west of Amesbury and north of Salisbury. One of the most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is composed of a circular setting of large standing stones set within earthworks...
for "The Pandorica Opens". The Pandorica chamber was filmed on set in the Upper Boat Studios
Upper Boat Studios
Upper Boat Studios is a television studio complex operated by BBC Wales and based in Upper Boat, a village on the outskirts of Pontypridd, Rhondda Cynon Taf in Wales. The studios were officially opened on 27 July 2006 by Welsh Enterprise Minister Andrew Davies, for the purpose of producing Doctor...
, the largest set ever built there. "Amy's Choice" was partially filmed in Skenfrith
Skenfrith
Skenfrith is a small village in Monmouthshire, south-east Wales, in the United Kingdom. It is located on the River Monnow, close to the border between Wales and England, about 6 miles north-west of Monmouth.- History and amenities :...
, Wales to represent "Upper Leadworth".
Promotion
The first trailer for the fifth series was shown on television and released online shortly after the broadcast of the second part of The End of Time on 1 January 2010 . On 17 February, a new promotional image was released. A second teaser trailer was released on 20 February, a 3D3-D film
A 3-D film or S3D film is a motion picture that enhances the illusion of depth perception...
version of which was shown in cinemas with Alice in Wonderland
Alice in Wonderland (2010 film)
Alice in Wonderland is a 2010 American computer-animated/live action fantasy adventure film directed by Tim Burton, written by Linda Woolverton, and released by Walt Disney Pictures...
. A version was shown on BBC Two during the evening of 21 February giving a transmission date of 3 April, but the BBC subsequently stated that the exact date was still to be confirmed. The date of 3 April was officially confirmed by Moffat on BBC Breakfast
BBC Breakfast
BBC Breakfast is the morning television news programme simulcast on BBC One and the BBC News channel. It is presented live from BBC Television Centre in White City, West London, and contains a mixture of news, sport, weather, business and feature items...
on 19 March. Also on 19 March, satrailer shown at the press screening of episode one was released online. BBC America
BBC America
BBC America is an American television network, owned and operated by BBC Worldwide, and available on both cable and satellite.-History:The channel launched on March 29, 1998, broadcasting comedy, drama and lifestyle programs from BBC Television and other British television broadcasters like ITV and...
, who would show the series in the United States, released an extended trailer on 21 March. Promotional touring for the series began on 29 March and ended the 31st, with Smith and Gillan presenting their first episode in Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, Inverness
Inverness
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
, Sunderland
Sunderland Point
Sunderland, commonly known as Sunderland Point, is a small village among the marshes, on a windswept peninsula between the mouth of the River Lune, and Morecambe Bay, in the City of Lancaster district of Lancashire, England...
, Salford
City of Salford
The City of Salford is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Salford, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Eccles, Swinton-Pendlebury, Walkden and Irlam which apart from Irlam each have a population of over...
, and Northampton
Northampton
Northampton is a large market town and local government district in the East Midlands region of England. Situated about north-west of London and around south-east of Birmingham, Northampton lies on the River Nene and is the county town of Northamptonshire. The demonym of Northampton is...
. Touring in New York City took place on 14 April, where the first episode was screened in the Paley Center for Media and the Village East Movie Theatre.
Broadcast
The fifth series of Doctor Who debuted on BBC OneBBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
on 3 April 2010 with "The Eleventh Hour", an extended 65-minute episode. It concluded with "The Big Bang" on 26 June. The sixth episode, "The Vampires of Venice", was broadcast at 6:00 p.m., the earliest start time for an episode of Doctor Who since its return in 2005.
International broadcast
The series was shown in Australia on the ABCAustralian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
's iView
ABC iView
ABC iview is a video on demand and Catch up TV service run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The service became available on 24 July 2008. This was the next step after the podcasting of programmes since July 2006. Currently, this site is only viewable to users in Australia. The site...
service, launching at midnight on 16 April 2010 before airing on ABC1
ABC1
ABC1 was a United Kingdom based television channel from Disney using the branding of the Disney owned American network, ABC.The channel initially launched exclusively on the British digital terrestrial television platform Freeview on 27 September 2004. On 10 December 2004 it was launched on...
on 18 April 2010. It began airing in the United States on 17 April 2010 on BBC America
BBC America
BBC America is an American television network, owned and operated by BBC Worldwide, and available on both cable and satellite.-History:The channel launched on March 29, 1998, broadcasting comedy, drama and lifestyle programs from BBC Television and other British television broadcasters like ITV and...
and in Canada on the same date on Space. In New Zealand, the series began airing on Prime from 2 May 2010.
Blu-ray and DVD release
On 7 June 2010, the first volume of Series 5 was released on DVD and Blu-ray format in Region 2, containing the episodes "The Eleventh Hour", "The Beast Below" and "Victory of the Daleks". The second volume of the series was released on 5 July on DVD and Blu-ray, containing the episodes "The Time of Angels", "Flesh and Stone" and "The Vampires of Venice". "Amy's Choice", "The Hungry Earth", and "Cold Blood" followed on the third volume, which was released in DVD and Blu-ray on 2 August 2010. The fourth and final volume, containing "Vincent and the Doctor", "The Lodger", "The Pandorica Opens" and "The Big Bang" was released on DVD and Blu-ray on 6 September.A complete collection of the series' episodes was released on DVD and Blu-ray in Region 2 on 8 November 2010. It was released in Region 1 one day later on 9 November. In Region 4, the boxset was released 2 December 2010. The boxset contained the two "Meanwhile in the TARDIS" additional scenes, profiles of various enemies in "The Monster Files", cut down versions of Doctor Who Confidential, out-takes, in-vision commentaries, video diaries, and trailers and promos for the series. The commentaries were a departure from the previous releases, as it only had six instead of a full thirteen.
Ratings
Final consolidated viewing figures showed that the premiere, "The Eleventh Hour", was watched by 10.08 million viewers, the highest-watched premiere since "RoseRose (Doctor Who)
"Rose" is the first episode of Series One of the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by show runner Russell T Davies and directed by Keith Boak, the episode was first broadcast on 26 March 2005....
" and the eighth highest figure for an episode of Doctor Who since it was revived in 2005. In the US, the first episode set a record for BBC America, with an average of 1.2 million viewers and 0.9 in the adults aged 25-54 demographic, a record for the network. Within one week of broadcast, "The Eleventh Hour" received 1.27 million hits on BBC's online iPlayer service, the record for most requests in a week. It went on to become the most requested show of 2010 with 2.2 million views; Doctor Who was also named the most watched programme of the year on the service.
Based on overnight ratings, the series was reported as averaging six million viewers, a drop of 1.2 million from the previous series. However, managers at the BBC claimed that that overall viewing numbers had not declined as more people watched it online or after recording it. Stephen Bray of Den of Geek decided to "put things straight" and figured that, with final ratings taken into account of the first eleven episodes of the series (the final two ratings not having been released when the article was published), the series averaged 7.8 million viewers, beating the average of all the episodes of the second series
Doctor Who (series 2)
The second series of British science fiction series Doctor Who began on 25 December 2005 with the Christmas special "The Christmas Invasion". Following the special, a regular series of thirteen episodes was broadcast, starting with "New Earth" on 15 April 2006...
(7.5 million), the third series
Doctor Who (series 3)
The third series of British science fiction series Doctor Who was preceded by the 2006 Christmas special "The Runaway Bride". Following the special, a regular series of thirteen episodes was broadcast, starting with "Smith and Jones" on 31 March 2007...
(7.7 million) and the first eleven episodes of the fourth series (7.7 million).
Reviews
Matt Wales of IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave the entire series a "great" rating of 8.5 out of 10, saying that it "mightn't have been perfect" but rebooted the show "with a burst of creative energy" and "got bold, exciting, witty, smart, home-grown event television back on the small screen". He praised Smith for "[dazzling] with a performance that painted the Doctor as thoroughly alien" and the "effortless" character development of the Doctor, but was more critical of the character of Amy Pond. He thought that she was "thoroughly watchable" with Gillan's acting abilities and chemistry with Smith, but criticised the character for being "frequently painted in largely two-dimensional strokes that made for a brash, sometimes irritating turn" and the series as a whole for lacking "heart to ground the elaborate sci-fi trimmings". Of the story, he praised Moffat's story arc and narrative complexities, as well as the episodes of "The Eleventh Hour", "The Time of Angels"/"Flesh and Stone", "Amy's Choice", and "The Pandorica Opens"/"The Big Bang". However, he found "Victory of the Daleks", "The Vampires of Venice" and "The Lodger" weak and "The Beast Below" too ambitious.
Zap2it
Zap2it
Zap2it is an American website and affiliate network that provides news, photos and video, local TV listings and movie showtimes. The site is produced by Tribune Media Services , part of the publishing division of the Chicago-based Tribune Company...
's Sam McPherson gave the series an A and thought it was the show's strongest series since its revival in 2005. He praised Smith and Gillan, though he noted that Amy did not have much character development, as well as Darvill, who he thought "might just be one of the best actors on television currently". As for the monsters, he said that the Atraxi from the first episode were the "only really terrible ones" and "looked horrible", while the Daleks and Silurians were "not-that-threatening". He considered the best to be the Star Whale, as it was "a fantastic parallel to the Doctor"; the Weeping Angels for being as solid as they had been in their original episode and for continuing to evolve; and the Dream Lord from "Amy's Choice". However, he noted that most of the episodes took place on Earth or spaceships, and wished to see the Doctor, Amy and Rory "branch out more in the future".
In a review of the first six episodes, Dan Martin of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
thought that they were strong and it was "generally funnier [and] appears to have rewritten the rule that said Doctor Who had to out-epic itself every year". However, he was critical of the lack of emotion that had previously inhibited the show, and did not yet empathise with Amy. When reviewing the first eleven episodes, Martin noted that the series had been put at a high expectation due to the quality of Moffat's previous Doctor Who episodes, which may have caused disappointment to those who expected "dark, adult versions of Who every week" as Moffat took more of a fairy-tale approach and his dialogue was "less soapy and more spiky" than that of Davies. Revisiting previous issues, he noted that there was less emotion but "when someone did die...it ploughed heavy into the heart" and Amy was "a revelation", though she sometimes "felt a little one-note".
Gem Wheeler of Den of Geek gave the series five out of five stars, particularly praising Smith's Doctor. Wheeler noted that Amy "seemed a little underwritten at first, but the series finale helped to fill in the apparent gaps in her personality" and also praised Darvill. Slice of SciFi
Slice of SciFi
Slice of SciFi is a podcast and website and part of the FarPoint Media Network that looks into the world of science fiction, fantasy and horror...
reviewer Micheal Hickerson praised Moffat's "facinating" story arc which made the series seem more consistent, as it gave the audience answers as it went along and also explored its impact on the characters. He called it "the best season of the new series" though "there has yet to be a perfect season of the show. This one just comes closer than a lot of others".
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
ranked Doctor Who the 25th best show of 2010, saying that it "lacked a truely weak episode" and highlighting "The Time of Angels"/"Flesh and Stone", "Vincent and the Doctor", and "The Lodger" as the best episodes. Digital Spy
Digital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....
ranked the programme the third best of 2010, commenting that it "gave us some terrific episodes - the beautifully tragic 'Vincent and the Doctor', the wonderfully-paced opener and the well-imagined finale...but also the multi-colored monstrosity 'Victory of the Daleks'. Overall, a decent enough start for the new team, but with such a strong pedigree, we couldn't help but feel a little underwhelmed."
Criticism
After the broadcast of "The Eleventh Hour", which introduced Amy as a kissogramKissogram
A kissogram, also called kissagram , is a message delivered along with a kiss usually arranged as a fun surprise for a person for a special occasion...
in a skimy policewoman outfit who watched the Doctor undress and change into his new costume, it was reported that several viewers had criticised the character and her occupation online and that it was "not fitting for a family show". Wenger defended the character, saying that, "The whole kissogram thing played into Steven's desire for the companion to be feisty and outspoken and a bit of a number. Amy is probably the wildest companion that the Doctor has travelled with, but she isn't promiscuous." Gillan also defended her character, claiming that girls Amy's age often wore short skirts and Amy was a "strong female" and a "normal girl with normal impulses". The BBC also received 43 complaints over the scene in "Flesh and Stone" in which Amy attempts to seduce the Doctor. A member of pressure group Mediawatch-uk
Mediawatch-uk
Mediawatch-uk, formerly known as the National Viewers' and Listeners' Association, is a pressure group in the United Kingdom, which campaigns against the publication and broadcast of media content that it views as harmful and offensive, such as violence, profanity, sex, homosexuality and...
also commented that the scene seemed "slightly out of place in a children's programme".
Awards and nominations
"Vincent and the Doctor" and "The Pandorica Opens"/"The Big Bang" were nominated for the 2011 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form), with the award going to the latter. This was the fifth Hugo Award for Doctor Who and the fourth for Moffat, after "The Empty ChildThe Empty Child
"The Empty Child" is an episode in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 21 May 2005. It is the first of a two-part story. The concluding episode, "The Doctor Dances", was broadcast on 28 May...
"/"The Doctor Dances
The Doctor Dances
"The Doctor Dances" is an episode in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 28 May 2005. It is the second of a two-part story and saw Jack Harkness, played by John Barrowman, join the Doctor as a companion. The first part, "The Empty Child", was...
", "The Girl in the Fireplace
The Girl in the Fireplace
"The Girl in the Fireplace" is the fourth episode of the second series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on 6 May 2006, and is the only episode in the 2006 series written by Steven Moffat...
", and "Blink
Blink (Doctor Who)
"Blink" is the 10th episode of the third series of the new production of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on 9 June 2007, and is the only episode in the 2007 series written by Steven Moffat; the episode is based on a previous short story written by...
". "Vincent and the Doctor" was nominated for the Bradbury Award
Bradbury Award
The Ray Bradbury Award is presented by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America to recognize excellence in screenwriting...
for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation at the 2010 Nebula Awards, but it lost to the film Inception
Inception
Inception: The Subconscious Jams 1994-1995 is a compilation of unreleased tracks by the band Download.-Track listing:# "Primitive Tekno Jam" – 3:23# "Bee Sting Sickness" – 8:04# "Weed Acid Techno" – 8:19...
.
In Canada's Constellation Awards, Doctor Who fifth series received six nominations. Smith and Tony Curran (Vincent van Gogh) were both nominated for Best Male Performance in a 2010 Science Fiction Television Episode, while Gillan was nominated for Best Female Performance for "Amy's Choice". Doctor Who was nominated for Best Science Fiction Television Series but lost to Stargate: Universe. Moffat and Curtis were both nominated for Best Overall 2010 Science Fiction Film or Television Script for "The Eleventh Hour" and "Vincent and the Doctor" respectfully. Gold was the only winner, nominated for his music in the Best Technical Accomplishment in a 2010 Science Fiction Film or Television Production category.
Smith was nominated for Leading Actor in the television division of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts
British Academy of Film and Television Arts
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...
awards, becoming the first actor portraying the Doctor to gain a BAFTA nomination. He lost to Daniel Rigby
Daniel Rigby
Daniel Rigby is an English television and stage actor.He attended Cheadle Hulme School and studied performing arts at Stockport College. He became one of the youngest students from the college to be accepted by the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art...
for his work in the television film Eric and Ernie
Eric and Ernie
Eric and Ernie is a 2011 television film produced by BBC Wales on the early career of the British comic double-act Morecambe and Wise. It completed production in 2010 and premiered on BBC Two on 1 January 2011.-Selected cast:*Bryan Dick - Ernie Wise...
. At the BAFTA Cymru
BAFTA Cymru
BAFTA Cymru is the Welsh branch of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.Formed in 1991, they hold an annual awards ceremony to recognise achievement by performers and production staff in Welsh-made films and television programmes...
awards, Mark Hutchinson won the "Lighting" category for his work on "The Eleventh Hour", while Barbara Southcott was nominated for "Make Up & Hair" for "Vampires of Venice" and William Oswald was nominated for the "Editing: Fiction" category for "The Time of Angels".
Soundtrack
A 2-disc soundtrack containing 63 tracks of the score from this series (from "The Eleventh Hour" to "The Big Bang"), as composed by Murray Gold, was released on 8 November 2010 by Silva Screen Records. It was the second "double album" following the previous releaseDoctor Who: Original Television Soundtrack - Series 4: The Specials
Doctor Who: Original Television Soundtrack - Series 4: The Specials is a 2-Disc release from Silva Screen Records featuring music from the 2008-2010 specials of Doctor Who. It was released on 4 October 2010 in the United Kingdom. When purchased from the iTunes store, it also includes a digital...
; Gold stated that the previous "double album" had been popular and Silvia Screen allowed another one. The tracks are presented in episode order, which Gold said "should give a sense of roaming through this gigantic scope".
Books
In the BBC Doctor Who New Series Adventures line, a range of spin-off novels that begun in 2005 with the Ninth DoctorNinth Doctor
The Ninth Doctor is the ninth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He is played by Christopher Eccleston....
and revitilisation of the television series, six novels were released corresponding to the series. On 22 April 2010 the first three, Apollo 23
Apollo 23
Apollo 23 is a book in the New Series Adventures. It was the first book in the series to feature the Eleventh Doctor and Amy Pond as his companion.-Plot:...
by Justin Richards
Justin Richards
Justin Richards is a British writer. He has written science fiction and fantasy novels, including series set in Victorian or early-20th-century London, and also adventure stories set in the present day...
, Night of the Humans
Night of the Humans
Night of the Humans is a book in the Doctor Who New Series Adventures line, released on 22 April 2010. It features the Eleventh Doctor and Amy Pond as his companion.-Plot:...
by David Llewellyn
David Llewellyn
David Llewellyn may refer to:*David Llewellyn , member of the Parliament of Tasmania*David Llewellyn , British Member of Parliament for Cardiff North 1950–1959...
, and The Forgotten Army
The Forgotten Army
The Forgotten Army is a BBC Books original novel written by Brian Minchin and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
by Brian Minchin were released, featuring the Eleventh Doctor and Amy. On 8 July 2010 three more novels were released, Nuclear Time
Nuclear Time
Nuclear Time is a BBC Books original novel written by Oli Smith and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
by Oli Smith, The Glamour Chase
The Glamour Chase
The Glamour Chase is a book in the Doctor Who New Series Adventures collection, and is the sixth novel to feature the Eleventh Doctor. It saw the reappearance of the Glamour which debuted in Ghosts of India.-Plot:...
by Gary Russell
Gary Russell
Gary James Russell is a freelance writer and former child actor. As a writer, he is best known for his work in connection with the television series Doctor Who and its spin-offs in other media...
, and The King's Dragon
The King's Dragon
The King's Dragon is the 41st Doctor Who New Series Adventures novel, published on 8 July 2010 by BBC Books and written by Una McCormack. It features the Eleventh Doctor with Amy Pond and Rory Williams as his companions.-Synopsis:...
by Una McCormack, each featuring the Doctor and Amy with Rory.
Science fiction writer Michael Moorcock
Michael Moorcock
Michael John Moorcock is an English writer, primarily of science fiction and fantasy, who has also published a number of literary novels....
, who had watched Doctor Who since the beginning, also wrote a novel. Entitled The Coming of the Terraphiles
The Coming of the Terraphiles
The Coming of the Terraphiles is a Doctor Who novel written by Michael Moorcock, featuring the Eleventh Doctor and Amy Pond. It was the first special release of a Doctor Who novel by BBC Books in a lengthier hardback format to that of the previous New Series Adventures.-Plot:In order to avert the...
, the novel was an extended 345 pages and was released 14 October 2010. BBC Books
BBC Books
BBC Books is an imprint majority owned and managed by Random House. The minority shareholder is BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation...
also released The Brilliant Book of Doctor Who 2011, a guide to the series that featured behind-the-scenes information. The book was made available in the UK on 30 September 2010.
Video Games
In March 2010, it was reported that NintendoNintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
had signed a £10 million contract for Doctor Who games for Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
and DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
. The games were marketed to Nintendo as the brand was known for being family-oriented and the Wii in particular was something families played together. The BBC also was certain to monitor the games and make sure they did not contain anything too violent. Doctor Who: Evacuation Earth
Doctor Who: Evacuation Earth
Doctor Who: Evacuation Earth is a video game for the Nintendo DS based on the BBC TV series Doctor Who.The game is written by Doctor Who writer Oli Smith and features Matt Smith and Karen Gillan providing voices for their characters....
was released for the DS and featured the Daleks, whereas Doctor Who: Return to Earth
Doctor Who: Return to Earth
The game was panned by critics. Official Nintendo Magazine, scoring only 19% and branded 'an insult to Doctor Who fans'.However it ranked at 11 on the UK Wii sales charts for the week....
featured the Cybermen and was released for the Wii. Both games featured the Eleventh Doctor and Amy Pond, voiced by Smith and Gillan respectfully. Evacuation Earth was released 12 November 2010, while Return to Earth followed on 19 November. Additionally, Wii remotes and DS styluses modeled after the sonic screwdriver were released to accompany the games.
In April 2010, the BBC announced The Adventure Games
Doctor Who: The Adventure Games
Doctor Who: The Adventure Games is a series of episodic third-person adventure games, based on the BBC TV series Doctor Who and developed by Sumo Digital. Charles Cecil served as executive producer and worked with Sean Millard and Will Tarratt on the design...
, four interactive episodes available free-to-download on the BBC Doctor Who website featuring the Doctor and Amy voiced by Smith and Gillan. Piers Wenger referred to them as four extra episodes in the series and everything included was part of the Doctor Who universe. The game was developed by Charles Cecil
Charles Cecil
Charles Cecil MBE has worked in the interactive entertainment industry for 25 years. He is currently operating as Managing Director for UK based company Revolution Software which has released such critical and commercial hits as Beneath a Steel Sky and the Broken Sword series...
and Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
-based game company Sumo
Sumo Digital
Sumo Digital Ltd. is an independent game development studio based in Sheffield, United Kingdom. Set up in 2003 following the closure of Infogrames Studios Sheffield/Gremlin Interactive...
, while the games were written by Phil Ford
Phil Ford (writer)
Phil Ford is a British television writer. He was the head writer for the second series of The Sarah Jane Adventures, broadcast in 2008, and wrote "The Waters of Mars", one of the 2009 special episodes of Doctor Who, with Russell T Davies.-Television:...
and James Moran
James Moran (writer)
James Moran is a British screenwriter for television and film, who wrote the horror-comedy Severance. He works in the horror, comedy, science-fiction, historical fiction and spy thriller genres.-Breaking in:...
and overseen by Moffat and the producers of the show. Cecil was contacted by BBC Wales Editor of Interactive Iain Tweedale, who asked him about developing a Doctor Who game. Smith and Gillan's movements and actions were captured by rotoscoping.
As the Doctor was a pacifist and did not use the guns commonly found in video games, The Adventure Games untilised a more strategy and puzzle-based gameplay. Much of the first game was based around stealth, exploration, and puzzle-solving. The Doctor was also equipped with his sonic screwdriver, but as this was often used as skeleton key
Skeleton Key
Skeleton Key is a rock band based in New York City. The band is the brainchild of bassist and singer Erik Sanko, who is the only constant member of the band...
the game employes the solving of puzzles to advance instead of simply using the screwdriver.
The first installment, "City of the Daleks", was originally scheduled to be released 5 June 2010, but was made available two days earlier. The BBC explained the early release as a testing procedure, and final tweaks were expected to be made prior to official release. Within the first twelve days of avaliability, the game was downloaded over 500,000 times, and the traffic on the site had increased as a result. The second game, "Blood of the Cybermen", was released on 26 June, after the airing of the series finale. This was followed by the third game, "TARDIS", on 27 August and "Shadows of the Vashta Nerada" on 22 December.
Additionally, a mobile game app was developed by Tag Games for BBC Worldwide
BBC Worldwide
BBC Worldwide Limited is the wholly owned commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation, formed out of a restructuring of its predecessor BBC Enterprises in 1995. In the year to 31 March 2010 it made a profit of £145m on a turnover of £1.074bn. The company had made a profit of £106m...
. Like The Adventure Games, it allowed the gamer to play as both the Doctor and Amy and involved time travel, defeating enemies, and solving problems. It featured over 100 puzzles, seven locations to travel to, music from the show, and the enemies being the Daleks, Cybermen, and Silurians. The app was released for Apple IOS devices on 16 December 2010 and for Android on 17 August 2011.