Well, Here is the News (SPOILERS?)

[jjpor]

I'm not sure it really counts as a spoiler, because it is literally all over the media by now and the chances anybody might have of remaining unspoiled right up until it actually happens are, well, slim to none, I would say. If you have sufficient access to media that you have heard of Doctor Who at all, you are nigh-on inevitably going to be exposed to this story some time soon. Nevertheless, in the interests of playing nice, warning that there may be BIG spoilers on the other end of this link:

www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-22741493

So, my initial thoughts would be that *I find this news simultaneously sad and exciting. Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of Eleven and of Matt Smith as an actor, but at the same time I can't wait to see who now gets the role and what direction the programme takes with a new lead. And while I'll miss Eleven, imho it's all part of the great cycle of Who, and hopefully will continue to be as long as there is such a thing as Who in some medium being followed and enjoyed by fans.

As for who will be Twelve, I'll get my retaliation in first and say Paterson Joseph (he won't be, but I said that last time too...and he wasn't then, either).*

Anyway, thoughts?

[Maggadin]

So Moffat is staying on, I gather?

I wonder what this means in terms of... certain characters.

[clocketpatch]

I should've put a warning beside that in the c-box shouldn't I? My bad. Though as you say, I think it's utterly impossible to NOT be spoiled for this. Heck, I wasn't even in a fandom area of the internet when I saw the news. O.o

*I'm going to put my bid for twelve down on Richard E. Grant. I know it won't happen (because how confusing would that be? If he'd shown up in just the one episode, maybe, but I don't think reoccuring actors get to come back as reoccuring actors; just random one-off actors like Harry, and Martha, and Six... But I do want Shalka!Doctor to be canon again! I love him so much! And they could make some kind of plotty thing where the GI has imprinted on Eleven's timestream or something...?

I've got an odd idea, given what Moffat has said about 'fresh starts' and the whole re-occurring 'time can be rewritten' theme that we might end up with some kind of reboot event in the fiftieth anniversary that rewrites the timeline and has the next season start in a junkyard on Totter's Lane... Just theorizing mind. If that happened I... I really don't know what my reaction would be. End White Text

[jjpor]

Jun 2, 2013 17:00:40 GMT Maggadin said:

So Moffat is staying on, I gather?

I wonder what this means in terms of... certain characters.

So I gather, anyway. But then again, until this morning *my understanding was that it was definite that the boy Smith was signed up until 2014 and committed to S8* so honestly, who knows?

As for other characters - again, who knows? I keep thinking that's the last of her...but to date, I'm always wrong.

Clocket, *I wouldn't rule REG out entirely, for the precedents you state, but you're right that there'd probably have to be some sort of in-universe handwave to explain the new Doctor's unusual appearance for the audience, to take into account the fact that not only is the previous role a recurring one, but, y'know, it's Richard E Grant. He's not exactly unrecognisable.

I have a strong feeling, though, that it's going to be another relative "unknown", like Matt Smith was. And I mean, Tennant wasn't exactly an unknown, he'd been around for quite a few years in one thing or another, but I don't think he was an instantly recognisable, household name sort of actor when he was cast as Ten. At that point he was mainly known, if at all, for starring in Casanova, which was reasonably successful on the BBC. I mean, I don't think even Christopher Eccleston was as famous in 2005 as some of the names being bandied about in the tabloids today (see below), but he was a reasonably well-known and respected "serious" actor with quite a film and television career behind him, and I think maybe RTD needed an established star like that to sell the new series to the Beeb suits back then.

But now, I think they'll go again for someone of more moderate fame rather than a "name". I could be wrong, though.

And if Moffat really does go down that route in the 50th...I don't think I'd like that. I don't think I'd like that at all. The whole point of the new series is that it isn't a reboot - in theory if not in actual fact, it's the same series it was in 1963-1989, there was just a gap in the middle. No, Moffat doesn't get to retroactively write previous stories and so on out of the in-universe history of the series. And if he tries...well, I shall send him a strongly-worded communication telling him not to do it again. You see if I don't.*

Oh, and as said above, it's begun already. The runners and riders:

www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-22745398

And, is it really a spoiler? I know some people will cry "spoiler" at just about any news, even stuff the BBC itself wants you to know about upcoming episodes. But you know, this is a real-life event, surely? Can an actor's real-life career decision count as a spoiler? As I said above, there is flat-out no way at all people who take even a passing interest in Who are not going to find out about this within hours or days unless they completely cut themselves off from all media and communications. So I wouldn't worry that much, Clocket.

[Maggadin]

I want someone over 40 again!

[IMForeman]

I'm going to make an executive decision and say it's not a spoiler. ;D I will miss Matt Smith, but I'm curious to see how they'll cast next.

[jjpor]

Jun 22, 2013 5:01:54 GMT IMForeman said:

I'm going to make an executive decision and say it's not a spoiler. ;D

Good to have a ruling from the umpire.

It's all gone a bit quiet on this story - there was a probably entirely false rumour that they were on the point of making an announcement and a shortlist of fairly unlikely names was bandied about. And then there was a story that may or may not have been completely separate with a halfway plausible actor named as the definite choice, but nothing came of that either. Still waiting for more updates - but that whole "90 missing episodes found in Africa" rumour has been clogging up the Who grapevine for the past week or so. And that one now looks like having been a load of, er, boloids as well...

[Maggadin]

To be perfectly honest, I was much more interested in the rumours about the missing episodes than in Mr Smith's resignation/the new Doctor.