Dr Who

[Myopic Bookworm]

I cannot avoid mentioning that the Dr Who Christmas Special aired today, and the new Doctor, Ncuti Gatwa, was seen dancing in a kilt.

[STEVIE]

Hi MB, I think I will watch it before I comment.
I have gone from avid fan as a kid, rediscovery as an adult and more recently TV dropout, the box kind.
Steve.

[denimini]

Yes I used to watch it but it has got too intellectual for me now as I don't understand it.

[rivegauche]

I watch Dr Who because I feel I have to - it hasn't really delivered for years. I noticed the new Doctor in the kilt, dressed in a way that would hardly be noticed in Scotland. But there was a band in the same scene and one of the band members appeared to be a man in a dress or a skirt who then got into a taxi with the Doctor. My memory of this is hazy and I didn't record it.

[rivegauche]

Watched the repeat tonight on BBC3. The male singer was in two scenes. He had long straight hair and in the first scene a dark brown print dress. In the second slightly longer scene (featuring the Doctor in a kilt), the singer was in a shortish pleated green dress with spotty sheer tights which we saw clearly when he later got in the taxi, appearing a bit inexperienced in sitting in a short skirt. The new assistant was playing the keyboards in the first scene but was in the audience in the second.

[greenboots]

Yes I used to watch it but it has got too intellectual for me now as I don't understand it.

I lived the original series. If the relaunch, David Tennant was the best so far. I watched many of the Jodie Whitaker episodes and enjoyed her character (including the traditionally quirky fashion sense) but thought she was hampered by the overly intense scriptwriting. I’d be interested to see how the new series develops with Russell T Davies.

[MrSoapsud]

Watched the repeat tonight on BBC3. The male singer was in two scenes. He had long straight hair and in the first scene a dark brown print dress. In the second slightly longer scene (featuring the Doctor in a kilt), the singer was in a shortish pleated green dress with spotty sheer tights which we saw clearly when he later got in the taxi, appearing a bit inexperienced in sitting in a short skirt. The new assistant was playing the keyboards in the first scene but was in the audience in the second.

I think you'll find the "male singer" is actually a trans woman called Mary Malone.

[FranTastic444]

More info here.

I've actually recently severed (Internet / Facebook) contact with a longstanding friend over Dr. Who (among related matters). As a self-described Dr. Who nut (should that be Whovian?), he has nevertheless turned his back on the show that he has loved since early childhood because of the "woke indoctrination being forced down our throats". For him, Dr. Who can only be a white guy. Not a woman or a black guy and any character that does not conform to his world view as being acceptable (i.e., gay, trans) is an indelible stain on the show. He has similarly complained in the past about "cancel culture", using the fact that golliwogs no longer appear on bottles of Robertson's jam as a prime example.

Many writers of fiction follow the long-established advice of writing what they know about and I think that Russell T. Davies is no exception. Why shouldn't he inject non-mainline topics / characters that are part of his real-world life into his fiction? Or would you argue that well-established / much-loved characters such as Dr. Who and James Bond should not be tampered with in this way?

[Barleymower]

Your friend is not wrong about the wokiness of Dr Who , although I have no beef with the Dr being black. A black women or a transgender teenager. He can be whatever they choose. But I watched the Christmas Special and at one point it turned into a musical! What the Hell???

[FranTastic444]

Woke is a subject in its own right that I'm sure that we could argue about for hours here. In recent years (where the likes of Trump and Farage have been in the ascendant), a common tactic has been to simplify a topic down to a single word that can then be thrown about as an insult without any fear of getting into the muddy waters of the detail behind a topic.

Was Dickens "being woke" when he wrote about Victorian poverty? Or Harper Lee when she wrote To Kill a Mockingbird?

[rivegauche]

Watched the repeat tonight on BBC3. The male singer was in two scenes. He had long straight hair and in the first scene a dark brown print dress. In the second slightly longer scene (featuring the Doctor in a kilt), the singer was in a shortish pleated green dress with spotty sheer tights which we saw clearly when he later got in the taxi, appearing a bit inexperienced in sitting in a short skirt. The new assistant was playing the keyboards in the first scene but was in the audience in the second.

I think you'll find the "male singer" is actually a trans woman called Mary Malone.

Thank you for the correction and apologies to Ms Malone. Been reading about Dr Who and it seems that enthusiasts in the UK hate being called Whovians, regarding this as an American abomination. I am relaxed about the changes in gender, colour etc. People who think this is stretching things too far should remember that he (she) has two hearts, travels in time, and lives in a box that is bigger on the inside than the outside.

[Grok]

I would say that Jodie Whitaker did well in the role. It was a gamble that Dr. Who could be played by a woman, and it paid off.

One thing-as the first incarnation with a female body, your would think this would have required more adjustment on the part of the good doctor. I recall an article in a science fiction magazine that indicated, with such drastic change, it would be as if you were turned into a strange alien animal.

[rode_kater]

Your friend is not wrong about the wokiness of Dr Who , although I have no beef with the Dr being black. A black women or a transgender teenager. He can be whatever they choose. But I watched the Christmas Special and at one point it turned into a musical! What the Hell???

Just watched Doctor Who Unleashed and it literally had Russel Davies on this: if there's someone saying we should not do something, then it's something we have to do. You can't go back to a previous doctor? You can't have a trans character? You can't do a musical scene? Watch me.

It's science fiction, bordering on fantasy. It's actually the thing that sets Doctor Who apart from most other scifi series: it doesn't take itself too seriously. The number of people getting their knickers in a twist over the Isaac Newton scene was hilarious. It got a little serious the last few years. I hope RTD can bring back some of the old fashioned British fun into Doctor Who.

[Myopic Bookworm]

One thing-as the first incarnation with a female body, your would think this would have required more adjustment on the part of the good doctor. I recall an article in a science fiction magazine that indicated, with such drastic change, it would be as if you were turned into a strange alien animal.

Although Jodie Whitaker played the first female doctor to appear on screen, the 21st century Who universe has hinted that it is not the first time. I think it was the female incarnation of the Master who commented about the Doctor that she had known him "since he was a little girl".

[GothScot]

Wish the series was airing stateside on BBC America, still. Ncuti has been the first incarnation in the new series where, limited as my exposure to him has been, I felt like, "Okay. THIS is the Doctor Who I grew up with!" His portrayal seems more aligned with 3-7. Capaldi came close, but too much focus on Jenna Coleman's character Clara.