David Tennant Dives Into Classic 'Doctor Who' In Celebration of the Show's 60th Anniversary
Fourteen Doctors for the "Doctor Who" 60th Anniversary
(Photo: BBC)
Landmark science fiction series Doctor Who is celebrating its 60th anniversary this November, and the BBC is going all out to mark the occasion. Former Tenth Doctor David Tennant returning to play a (allegedly) new Fourteenth incarnation of the Time Lord in three new specials that will air next month, new Doctor Ncuti Gatwa will debut in a festive outing at the end of the year, and 800 episodes --- including spinoffs and specials --- will soon be available on BBC's iPlayer. A musical special (Doctor Who @60: A Musical Celebration) just aired on BBC Radio 2, with a filmed broadcast reportedly set to stream on iPlayer at an as yet undetermined future date.
It's a great time to be a Whovian, is what I'm saying. And this isn't even everything --- once and current showrunner Russell T. Davies has promised continued surprises for fans all month long. One of which appears to be a guide to classic Doctor Who history, starring one of the franchise's most popular faces.
Yes, not content to simply command the TARDIS once more, Tennant is also set to host a BBC4 documentary celebrating the history of the iconic franchise. Talking Doctor Who will serve as one one-part retrospective and one part field guide for new fans, offering a nostalgic journey through the years known lovingly as "classic Who". The show will feature archival interviews from actors who have previously played the famous Time Lord, from First Doctor William Hartnell to Seventh incarnation Sylvester McCoy.
David Tennant in "Doctor Who"
(Photo: BBC)
Here's the program's synopsis.
As part of the 60th anniversary celebrations of Doctor Who, David Tennant time travels back through the BBC archives to tell the story of the Doctor’s classic era, with a selection of rarely seen interviews and clips covering William Hartnell’s first incarnation right through to the seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy.
On the way, David compares some of his own experiences with the actors who came before him and shares special archive moments that reveal, amongst other things, how to film a regeneration, which actor was a master of modern gadgetry – including a collapsible caravan – and what the factors were that helped to decide how a Doctor selects his own individual and distinctive costume.
Tennant is, obviously, the perfect choice to host this special --- not only is he currently playing the Doctor for the second time, but he grew up a fan of the show and once dreamed of being part of it. (And, not for nothing, his father-in-law is actually the Fifth Doctor himself, Peter Davison, so I think we can only imagine the stories he's heard around the family dinner table.)
Talking Doctor Who is set to air on BBC4 on November 1, serving as something of a kickoff event to the series' anniversary celebrations over the course of the month, including the three special episodes in which Tennant himself stars. There's no word on how or when (or even if) the documentary will be available to watch in America, though with Doctor Who's impending move to Disney+, it's certainly more than likely that this will be part of the 60th anniversary content that it brings along with it.
Doctor Who itself will also return this November, though there's still no date set yet for any of the upcoming anniversary specials. But, given that November 23 is the actual 60th anniversary of the series premiere, it seems a pretty safe bet that particular Thursday will be involved in some way.
