The War Doctor

[poliphilo]

I'm guessing that John Hurt's War Doctor was inserted into the timeline because of Christopher Eccleston's refusal to show up for the Anniversary. If Eccleston had been available it seems likely we would have seen him regenerating from Paul McGann, fighting in the Time War and then emerging as the damaged character we encountered in the first season of the revived show. That, anyway, would have been the shortest route from A to B.  If such was the original plan then what we have with the War Doctor is an inspired bodge- a repair to the fabric of the story necessitated by events beyond the show runner's control. Making a creative virtue out of necessity has been an especial glory of Dr Who. You lose the services of William Hartnell so you give the Doctor the power to regenerate- and so create a narrative that need never end and which receives a refreshing infusion of the new and unexpected every two or three years.

It would have been nice to see Eccleston again, but one can't regret the invention of the War Doctor or the casting and performance of John Hurt. They have enriched the mythos. Sometimes- and especially with a show like Dr Who that has a history- even an ethic- of improvisation- accidents turn out to be really lucky. 

Comments

[artkouros.livejournal.com]

Such rambling - I have no idea.

[shewhomust.livejournal.com]

You'll think me very slow - but it had not occurred to me that John Hurt might have been anyone's second choice! And I thought it a sneaky little jab at the fans, who have been fretting about the only-13-regenerations rule, to say 'aha! but your numbering has been wrong all along...'

I do regret Christopher Ecclestone, who I liked best of the New Doctors - and the scenes with Billie Piper would have worked vety well that way. I'm sure you're right...

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Not slow at all. It's not something I've read anywhere. And I could be wrong.

I imagine Eccleston said "No" and Moffat went "Right, who's the biggest name we can get?"

I suspect Hurt was a long shot. He doesn't do very much TV. I read an interview with him in which he suggested he wasn't automatically convinced.

[setsuled.livejournal.com]

It's not something I've read anywhere.

I read or heard several times Eccleston sat down with Moffat and they'd talked but Eccleston had ultimately refused to appear. But considering how much misinformation Moffat proliferated, I didn't know how much I ought to trust the info. But it looks now to have been true.

I agree it's worked out to the show's advantage--John Hurt's War Doctor has a certain cold weariness Eccleston didn't have. And the contrast with the sort of manic exuberance in Eccleston's early episodes is interesting now. It looks like he's already trying to break away from the man who did what the Doctor ought never do.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Eccleston's a very good actor- with a reputation for being difficult. I'm not sure he's always been lucky or wise in his career choices. Revisiting Who would have softened his image as an awkward sod- and perhaps that's exactly what he didn't want. He's been on the verge of international stardom several times and always missed out. Dr Who could have been his ticket into the big time- and he handed it back. One gets the feeling he equates popular success with selling out.

[setsuled.livejournal.com]

One gets the feeling he equates popular success with selling out.

Maybe. Though he was just recently in Thor: The Dark World. Hard man to analyse.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Hmmmm...

[browngirl.livejournal.com]

That makes total sense (said this girl surfing by).

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Thanks. Nice to see you again. :)

[(Anonymous)]

Huh. That is an inspired insight. I suspect you are right, that it was an inspired bodge forced by a lack of Eccleston. Certainly Eccleston's raw, menacing, and not a little unbalanced take on the Doctor would very much make sense if he were freshest out from being forced to destroy his own people to save the universe.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Thanks.

It's a shame Eccleston pulled away from Who so early, but it's rather what one expects of him. He has a reputation for being a member of the awkward squad.

[faunhaert.livejournal.com]

its rare i get a show to com win that ins't a old rerun
pbs doesn't seem to buy the new ones
thinking finding out what happened to the missing one
would be a good story to go after
I am curious what he's up to
he's more famous by saying no.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Eccleston does a lot of British TV. He had problems with the way Who was being run- but has never said what they were. He's a difficult, prickly man- or, at least, that's the impression one gets.

[faunhaert.livejournal.com]

went looking to see which dr he was.

"it really wasn't his cup of tea"
is i remember being said about him
when he started.
but once he was snared
he did do a good effort at be the Dr.

its not a easy role
and he does have many other things going
he doesn't need to revisit something
that was contrary to his career path-
but I do think he gain more fans just by being Who too.

there's got to be some controversy
if being a no show is it and nothing worse
that's ok.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Playing Dr Who- like playing Jesus- can be a career-killer.

[faunhaert.livejournal.com]

know of at least 3 guys
that never got past playing JC in SC Superstar
it was for them.

being the lead in a kids show
does seem to do that too.

[qatsi.livejournal.com]

From a continuity point of view, a story could have been constructed with McGann as the War Doctor - and he made himself available for the mini-episode prequel. So it was an interesting but inspired choice, bodge or otherwise. (I think I read somewhere that Eccleston said "the scheduling didn't work out" which I interpret in the same way Soviet leaders were said to be suffering from "a slight cold" or that Geoffrey Howe described something as "disappointing").

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Well, quite. David Tennant- who must be one of the busiest actors in Britain right now- managed to find room in his diary.

[tamnonlinear.livejournal.com]

Eccleston was still a fresh incarnation when we first met him. He checks out his news ears in Rose's flat. So he hadn't been wearing that face for long.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I'd forgotten that. It probably snuffs out my theory. Drat!

[butterscotch711.livejournal.com]

I've read a theory that the Eccleston Doctor does that in the mirror because he's paying attention to his human form for the first time. Perhaps Time Lords don't necessarily have a human appearance, but do to human eyes.

I'm not sure RTD had that in mind at the time, but it does fit with the arc of Rose's re-humanising of the Doctor. (Even with the War Doctor in the timeline, maybe the Eccleston Doctor spent some time mopping up Time War fallout for a while before meeting Rose.)

I also think the War Doctor adds a lot. He's so subdued, but also funny and sweet. I like that he was set up as this menacing figure, but turns out to be approachable and maybe kind of innocent (despite spending so long fighting the Time War - given slow Time Lord aging and how young he is when he first regenerates, it must have been a very long time).

And it would have been nice to see Eccleston Doctor again, but I think it makes sense that it's actually his regeneration which is too raw and menacing to be revisited, and not, it turns out, the War Doctor's.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Thank you for saving my theory :)

I imagine RTD wanted to start with as clean a slate as possible. The Time War was his way of drawing a line between classic Who and new Who. He was saying "That was then and this is now and there's a cataclysmic event in between." I don't suppose he had any plans to deal with the War itself.

I thought it was a nice touch that McGann regenerated into a young John Hurt and not into Hurt as he is now.