Doctor Who Confidential

Doctor Who Confidential
The Doctor Who Confidential logo used in 2011 for series 6
Format	Documentary Science Fiction
Narrated by	Russell Tovey (2010–11) Alex Price (2010) Anthony Head (2006–10) Noel Clarke (2009) Mark Gatiss (2005–06) Simon Pegg (2005) David Tennant (2005) (See list)
Country of origin	UK
Language(s)	English
No. of episodes	87
Production
Producer(s)	Gillane Seaborne
Running time	30 min (Series 1 and 2) 45 min (Series 3 onwards) 5-15 min (Cutdowns)
Broadcast
Original channel	BBC Three (2005 – 11) BBC HD (2009 – 11)
Picture format	PAL 576i (2005-2008) 1080i (2009-11)
Original run	26 March 2005 – 1 October 2011
Chronology
Related shows	Doctor Who Torchwood Declassified
External links
Website

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 television episode on BBC One. The running time of the first two series was 30 minutes, being extended to 45 minutes in the third.^[1] BBC Three also broadcast a cut-down edition of the programme, lasting 15 minutes, shown after the repeats on Sundays & Fridays and after the weekday evening repeats of earlier seasons.

Described as focusing on the human element of the series, Confidential features behind-the-scenes footage on the making of Doctor Who through clips and interviews with the cast, production crew and other people, including those who have participated in the television series over the years of its existence. Each episode deals with a different topic, and in most cases refers to the Doctor Who episode that preceded it.

There have also been two episodes of Doctor Who Confidential broadcast apart from the showing of Doctor Who episodes: in November 2006 an edition subtitled "Music and Monsters" was produced going behind the scenes of a televised concert of soundtrack music produced as part of that year's Children in Need appeal, and on 3 January 2009, a special edition was broadcast to announce the actor chosen to play the Eleventh Doctor.

In September 2011, BBC controller Zai Bennett cancelled the series as a cost-cutting measure.^[2] Within 24 hours of the show being officially cancelled, pages on both Facebook and Twitter were established in an attempt to save the show, both with links to a petition gaining over 20,000 signatures within the same 24 hour period. ^[3] People involved with the show such as Neil Gaiman who wrote "The Doctor's Wife" and Tom MacRae who wrote "The Girl Who Waited" have also expressed their concern with the axing of the programme.^[4]

Series 1 (2005)

The first season was narrated by Simon Pegg (who played the Editor in "The Long Game") and produced and directed by Gillane Seaborne, airing at 7.45pm. In addition to being broadcast on BBC Three, each episode of Confidential was also made available for viewing on the Doctor Who Confidential website. Initially, repeat airings of the series were the full length episodes; however, beginning with Episode 6, BBC Three broadcast fifteen-minute versions, entitled Doctor Who Confidential: Cut Down, containing only the new series-related footage. These more easily clearable versions – since they contained no old series clips or pop music tracks, there were few licensing issues to overcome for commercial release – were released on the Series 1 DVD box set. There are no plans to release the full versions of the episodes in any format. Two documentary specials were made for broadcast on BBC One, incorporating material from the Confidential episodes. The first was broadcast on the evening of the first episode, "Rose", and was narrated by David Tennant, prior to his being named as the Tenth Doctor. The second was broadcast immediately prior to the final episode, "The Parting of the Ways", and was narrated by Pegg. These episodes were not given the Confidential title, and are therefore separate from the series proper. Thirdly, a special DVD-only episode of the series, containing behind-the-scenes information on "The Christmas Invasion", was also made by the production team for release on the set.

Episode #	Original airdate (UK)	Episode title	Doctor Who episode	Webcast link
S1	26 March 2005	"A New Dimension"	Preview
1	26 March 2005	"Bringing Back the Doctor"	"Rose"	link
2	2 April 2005	"The Good, the Bad and the Ugly"	"The End of the World"	link
3	9 April 2005	"TARDIS Tales"	"The Unquiet Dead"	link
4	16 April 2005	"I Get a Side-Kick Out of You"	"Aliens of London"	link
5	23 April 2005	"Why on Earth?"	"World War Three"	link
6	30 April 2005	"Dalek"	"Dalek"	link
7	7 May 2005	"The Dark Side"	"The Long Game"	link
8	14 May 2005	"Time Trouble"	"Father's Day"	link
9	21 May 2005	"Special Effects"	"The Empty Child"	link
10	28 May 2005	"Weird Science"	"The Doctor Dances"	link
11	4 June 2005	"Unsung Heroes and Violent Death"	"Boom Town"	link
12	11 June 2005	"The World of Who"	"Bad Wolf"	link
13	18 June 2005	"The Last Battle"	"The Parting of the Ways"	link
S2	18 June 2005	"The Ultimate Guide"	Episodes 1-12
14	DVD only	"Backstage at Christmas"	"The Christmas Invasion"

Series 2 (2006)

A second season of Doctor Who Confidential was commissioned to accompany the 2006 series. Mark Gatiss replaced Pegg as narrator. A special episode of the programme was produced for BBC's Doctor Who Night on 9 April 2006. Due to a wide range of schedule changes that either delayed or altered transmission of Doctor Who, the series aired at various times during its run. Unlike the first series, no episodes were webcast. These were also released on the DVD in edited-down format (once again subtitled Cut Down); the first episode of the season, "One Year On", was not released to DVD. A documentary special was made for broadcast on BBC One on the day of the 2006 Christmas Special, "The Runaway Bride". The special was broadcast with the Confidential title (albeit with "Christmas Special" attached), opening theme, and unique titles (with images from "The Runaway Bride") – it was narrated by the series three narrator, Anthony Head, and followed the creation of the Doctor Who: A Celebration concert. This is noteworthy as being unrelated to its companion episode – although a brief preview of the episode appeared as part of the concert.

Episode #	Original airdate (UK)	Episode title	Doctor Who episode
S3	9 April 2006	"One Year On"	—
15	15 April 2006	"New New Doctor"	"New Earth"
16	22 April 2006	"Fear Factor"	"Tooth and Claw"
17	29 April 2006	"Friends Reunited"	"School Reunion"
18	6 May 2006	"From Script to Screen"	"The Girl in the Fireplace"
19	13 May 2006	"Cybermen"	"Rise of the Cybermen"
20	20 May 2006	"From Zero to Hero"	"The Age of Steel"
21	27 May 2006	"The Writer's Tale"	"The Idiot's Lantern"
22	3 June 2006	"You've Got the Look"	"The Impossible Planet"
23	10 June 2006	"Myths and Legends"	"The Satan Pit"
24	17 June 2006	"The New World of Who"	"Love & Monsters"
25	24 June 2006	"The Fright Stuff"	"Fear Her"
26	1 July 2006	"Welcome to Torchwood"	"Army of Ghosts"
27	8 July 2006	"Finale"	"Doomsday"
28	25 December 2006	"Music and Monsters"	Doctor Who: A Celebration & "The Runaway Bride"

Series 3 (2007)

Anthony Head (who played Mr Finch/Brother Lassar in "School Reunion") replaced Gatiss as narrator for this series, whilst David Tennant did the entirety of the series' tenth episode himself. The episode running length was increased to 45 minutes, with 30-minute and 15-minute versions also prepared for broadcast. The 15-minute versions are available for download from the official website. As per previous seasons, all regular episodes were edited down into shorter versions for inclusion on the DVD release; for the first time, however, a complete Confidential episode was included on the DVD release: the "Music & Monsters" special. One episode, covering the making of the Children in Need special "Time Crash" was posted on the Children in Need website after the scene's airing. A 30-minute special, created by the Confidential team, was shown as part of the BBC's arts' season, entitled "Designs On Doctor Who". It was narrated by Tom Baker.^[5] After the 2007 Christmas Special "Voyage of the Damned", an episode was broadcast on BBC Three, again narrated by Anthony Head.

Episode #	Original airdate (UK)	Episode title	Doctor Who episode
29	31 March 2007	"Meet Martha Jones"	"Smith and Jones"
30	7 April 2007	"Stage Fright"	"The Shakespeare Code"
31	14 April 2007	"Are We There Yet?"	"Gridlock"
32	21 April 2007	"A New York Story"	"Daleks in Manhattan"
33	28 April 2007	"Making Manhattan"	"Evolution of the Daleks"
34	5 May 2007	"Monsters Inc."	"The Lazarus Experiment"
35	19 May 2007	"Space Craft"	"42"
36	26 May 2007	"Alter Ego"	"Human Nature"
37	2 June 2007	"Bad Blood"	"The Family of Blood"
38	9 June 2007	"Do You Remember the First Time?"	"Blink"
39	16 June 2007	"'Ello, 'Ello, 'Ello"	"Utopia"
40	23 June 2007	"The Saxon Mystery"	"The Sound of Drums"
41	30 June 2007	"The Valiant Quest"	"Last of the Time Lords"
S4	10 November 2007	"Time Crash Confidential"[6]	"Time Crash"
S5	12 December 2007	"Designs On Doctor Who"	Series 3, Torchwood
42	25 December 2007	"Confidential at Christmas"	"The Christmas Invasion", "The Runaway Bride" and "Voyage of the Damned"

Series 4 (2008)

Doctor Who Confidential title card as used until 2010

Doctor Who Confidential Cut Down title card as used until 2010

Anthony Head narrated the series for the second year in a row.^[7] Each episode had its own unique title sequence, with behind-the-scenes shots from that week's episode of Doctor Who. The 2008 Christmas special was the first to be accompanied by its own Confidential episode. The final episode reviewed all 10 previous incarnations of the Doctor, and exclusively revealed Matt Smith as the actor who would portray the then-upcoming Eleventh Doctor. A special episode of Confidential, going behind the scenes at the proms, was available by red button on 1 January 2009.^[8]

Episode #	Original airdate (UK)	Episode title	Doctor Who episode
43	5 April 2008	"A Noble Return"	"Partners in Crime"
44	12 April 2008	"The Italian Job"	"The Fires of Pompeii"
45	19 April 2008	"Oods and Ends"	"Planet of the Ood"
46	26 April 2008	"Send in the Clones"	"The Sontaran Stratagem"
47	3 May 2008	"Sontar-Ha!"	"The Poison Sky"
48	10 May 2008	"Sins of the Fathers"	"The Doctor's Daughter"
49	17 May 2008	"Nemesis"	"The Unicorn and the Wasp"
50	31 May 2008	"Shadow Play"	"Silence in the Library"
51	7 June 2008	"River Runs Deep"	"Forest of the Dead"
52	14 June 2008	"Look Who's Talking"	"Midnight"
53	21 June 2008	"Here Come the Girls"	"Turn Left"
54	28 June 2008	"Friends and Foe"	"The Stolen Earth"
55	5 July 2008	"End of an Era"	"Journey's End"
56	25 December 2008	"Christmas 2008 Special"	"The Next Doctor"
S6	25 December 2008	"Top 5 Christmas Moments"	"The Unquiet Dead", "The Christmas Invasion", "The Runaway Bride", "Voyage of the Damned" and "The Next Doctor"
S7	1 January 2009	"At The Proms"	"Doctor Who Prom"
S8	3 January 2009	"The Eleventh Doctor"	Revealing of the actor to play the Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith

2009–10 specials

The first Confidential edition attached to the 2009 specials, covering "Planet of the Dead", was narrated by Noel Clarke, although Anthony Head returned to narrate "Is There Life on Mars?". This special featured improved graphics in its opening and closing credits sequences, as a result of the move to high definition format; this was the first Confidential edition broadcast on BBC HD as well as BBC Three. Head continued to narrate the Christmas and New Year specials. A 30-minute "best moments" feature was included on the DVD release of the Cybermen Collection.

Episode #	Original airdate (UK)	Episode title	Doctor Who episode
57	11 April 2009	"Desert Storm"	"Planet of the Dead"
58	15 November 2009	"Is There Life on Mars?"	"The Waters of Mars"
59	25 December 2009	"Lords and Masters"	"The End of Time, Part 1"
60	1 January 2010	"Allons-y!"	"The End of Time, Part 2"

Greatest Moments

Three themed specials were produced by the Confidential team under the banner title Doctor Who's Greatest Moments. These three specials are each an hour long, with 40-minute cut-down versions.^[9] No clips of the original series are included. Each episode was later separated into three 15-minute editions. These specials are included in the DVD release of the animated story Dreamland.

Episode #	Original airdate (UK)	Episode title	Doctor Who episode
GM1	20 August 2009	"Greatest Moments: The Doctor" ("Time Travel", "Hostile Humans", "The Aliens")	Series 1-4
GM2	27 August 2009	"Greatest Moments: The Companions" ("Rose", "Donna", "Martha")	Series 1-4
GM3	3 September 2009	"Greatest Moments: The Enemies" ("The Daleks", "The Cybermen", "The Master")	Series 1-4

Series 5 (2010)

Alex Price is the narrator for this series,^[10] while Russell Tovey narrated the Christmas special.

Episode #	Original airdate (UK)	Episode title	Doctor Who episode
61	3 April 2010	"Call Me the Doctor"	"The Eleventh Hour"
62	10 April 2010	"All About the Girl"	"The Beast Below"
63	17 April 2010	"War Games"	"Victory of the Daleks"
64	24 April 2010	"Eyes Wide Open"	"The Time of Angels"
65	1 May 2010	"Blinded By the Light"	"Flesh and Stone"
66	8 May 2010	"Death in Venice"	"The Vampires of Venice"
67	15 May 2010	"Arthurian Legend"	"Amy's Choice"
68	22 May 2010	"After Effects"	"The Hungry Earth"
69	29 May 2010	"What Goes on Tour..."	"Cold Blood"
70	5 June 2010	"A Brush with Genius"	"Vincent and the Doctor"
71	12 June 2010	"Extra Time"	"The Lodger"
72	19 June 2010	"Alien Abduction"	"The Pandorica Opens"
73	26 June 2010	"Out of Time"	"The Big Bang"
74	25 December 2010	"Christmas Special 2010"	"A Christmas Carol"

Specials 2010

Episode	Original Airdate	Title	Doctor Who Episode
AS1	17 April 2010 (exclusive to BBC America)	"The Ultimate Guide"	Series 1-5
S9	6 September 2010	"Backstage at the Proms"	Doctor Who 2010 Prom

Series 6 (2011)

One 15-minute themed special was produced by the Confidential team under the banner title My Sarah Jane: A Tribute to Elisabeth Sladen to commemorate Elisabeth Sladen.

Episode #	Original airdate (UK)	Episode title	Doctor Who episode
EST	23 April 2011	"My Sarah Jane: A Tribute to Elisabeth Sladen"[11]	—

A new series of Confidential started broadcasting on 23 April 2011 with a brand new title sequence. Russell Tovey continues to narrate the episodes. On 28 September 2011 BBC Three announced it was cancelling the series following the end of its sixth season. The final episode, which aired on 1 October 2011, incorporated a mini-episode, Death is the Only Answer, written by a group of schoolchildren who won a contest co-sponsored by Confidential.

Episode #	Original airdate (UK)	Episode title	Doctor Who episode
75	23 April 2011	"Coming to America"	"The Impossible Astronaut"
76	30 April 2011	"Breaking the Silence"	"Day of the Moon"
77	7 May 2011	"Ship Ahoy!"	"The Curse of the Black Spot"
78	14 May 2011	"Bigger on the Inside"	"The Doctor's Wife"
79	21 May 2011	"Double Trouble"	"The Rebel Flesh"
80	28 May 2011	"Take Two"	"The Almost People"
81	4 June 2011	"The Born Identity"	"A Good Man Goes to War"
82	27 August 2011	"River Runs Wild"	"Let's Kill Hitler"
83	3 September 2011	"About a Boy"	"Night Terrors"
84	10 September 2011	"What Dreams May Come"[12]	"The Girl Who Waited"
85	17 September 2011	"Heartbreak Hotel"[13]	"The God Complex"
86	24 September 2011	"Open All Hours"[13]	"Closing Time"
87	1 October 2011	"When Time Froze"[13]	"The Wedding of River Song"

Specials 2011

Episode	Original Airdate	Title	Doctor Who Episode
AS2	23 April 2011 (exclusive to BBC America)	"Doctor Who Rewind"[14]	Series 5
AS3	30 April 2011 (exclusive to BBC America)	"Doctor Who in America"[14]	"The Impossible Astronaut" and "Day of the Moon"
AS4	13th August 2011 (exclusive to BBC America)	"Doctor Who: Best of the Doctor"[15]	Questions answered by celebrities and devoted viewers at SDCC 2011.
AS5	20th August 2011 (exclusive to BBC America)	"Doctor Who: Best of the Monsters"[15]	Questions answered by celebrities and devoted viewers at SDCC 2011.
AS6	27th August 2011 (exclusive to BBC America)	"Doctor Who: Best of the Companions"[15]	Questions answered by celebrities and devoted viewers at SDCC 2011.

List of narrators

Narrator	Year(s)	Series
David Tennant	2005	Preview: "A New Dimension"
Simon Pegg	2005	1
Mark Gatiss	2006	2
Anthony Head	2006–2010	3, 4, specials
Noel Clarke	2009	1 special: "Desert Storm"
Alex Price	2010	5
Russell Tovey	2010 – 2011	1 special: "Christmas Special 2010", 6

Other shows in Confidential format

Following the popularity of Doctor Who Confidential, Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood was produced with its own set of backstage documentaries entitled Torchwood Declassified.

The BBC also broadcast Heroes Unmasked in the same format, narrated by Anthony Head, to complement the NBC series Heroes on BBC Two, and Greek Uncovered, narrated by Fearne Cotton, for the comedy-drama Greek when it was shown on BBC Three.

The BBC Radio 7 broadcasts of Big Finish Doctor Who audio dramas are followed by a 15-minute backstage programme called Beyond the Vortex.

References

1. ^ "Doctor Who Confidential now 45 minutes". Doctor Who Magazine #380. 
2. ^ Foster, Patrick (28 September 2011). "Doctor Who Confidential axed by BBC". http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/sep/28/doctor-who-confidential-axed. Retrieved 28 September 2011. 
3. ^ "Save Doctor Who Confidential". 28 September 2011. http://www.petitionbuzz.com/petitions/savedwc. Retrieved 28 September 2011. 
4. ^ "Doctor Who Confidential: Was the BBC right to axe it?". 28 September 2011. http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/s7/doctor-who/blog/a342958/doctor-who-confidential-was-the-bbc-right-to-axe-it.html. Retrieved 28 September 2011. 
5. ^ www.eeww.org (now defunct)
6. ^ Doctor Who, Series 3 Companion By Panini Comics.
7. ^ Doctor Who Magazine; issue 394, page 15. "Doctor Who Confidential counts down to the new series".
8. ^ Total Tv Guide, January 2009 Issue.
9. ^ TV And Satellite Magazine, Issue 22–28 August 2009.
10. ^ http://www.radiotimes.com/ListingsServlet?event=10&channelId=45&programmeId=113185612&jspLocation=/jsp/prog_details_fullpage.jsp
11. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0112hzr
12. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b014j9x7
13. ^ ^{a b c} [1], DWConfidential Facebook status at 15:00 BST on 6/9/2011.
14. ^ ^{a b} http://press.bbcamerica.com/program-highlights.jsp?id=26651
15. ^ ^{a b c} http://blogs.bbcamerica.com/anglophenia/2011/08/03/watch-exclusive-sneak-peek-at-bbc-americas-original-doctor-who-specials/

External links

BBC portal

• Doctor Who Confidential at BBC Online
• Doctor Who Confidential on TARDIS Index File, an external wiki
• Doctor Who Confidential at TV.com
• Doctor Who Confidential at the Internet Movie Database
• Doctor Who Confidential at the Doctor Who Reference Guide