4 Hopes for Spin-Off Class

Guest contributor Dan Peters shares his hopes for the Doctor Who spin-off.

Late last year, many of us kept our Twitter accounts open for hours after hearing the announcement that… there was going to be an announcement. Being Doctor Who Fans we are often bombarded with new reveals and announcements, but the excitement never gets old. What could it have been: A new companion? Capaldi leaving (god forbid)? Lost episodes unearthed? It was certainly a talking point. After a lot of waiting, teasing and refreshing, those of us still awake were rewarded, when the following statement was unveiled:

‘A new 8×45 Doctor Who spin-off from the acclaimed young adult author Patrick Ness, to be aired on BBC Three. London is unprotected. With all the action, heart and adrenalin of the best YA fiction (Buffy, Hunger Games), this is Coal Hill School and Doctor Who like you’ve never seen it before ’

It’s fair to say that fans felt that this was an odd decision and are still in two minds about the concept. After all, there are so many more conventional spin off ideas; ‘The Paternoster Gang’, further Eighth Doctor adventures or even a fifth series of the hugely popular series ‘Torchwood’. However if all the elements work it could be a worthy part of the ‘Whoniverse’. I for one am already excited, I know it’s still early speculation, but isn’t that what ‘Whovians’ enjoy doing most?

A Stellar Cast

It may seem obvious but the cast makes the show. However good the scripts, sets, prosthetics, CGI and costumes are, if the cast isn’t top notch, the whole show isn’t. From what we can already decipher ‘Class’ is going to be set in Coal Hill School, meaning it is quite clear that the cast will be predominantly made up of younger actors. Now, I’m not saying this is the norm, but I think many will agree that a there are a fair few child actors in a fair few dramas that can’t be described as anything more than wooden. ‘Waterloo Road’ and, ‘The Sarah Jane Adventures’ though are great examples of shows, whose younger actors get it just right. There is a load of young talent out there that they could use for this. One to make a note of is Ellis George’s Courtney Woods who I think would be great and keep the link to the main show going.

Aliens New (& Old)

Lead writer Patrick Ness expressed an interest in introducing a new monster to the ‘Whoniverse’ at the same level of the terrorising Weeping Angels – a tough task. In fact he has revealed:

“I want to have new things that maybe we haven’t seen before. That’s my goal. That’s what I’m aiming for — shock you with something new.’

This is great news right, how could it not be? The thing about this show is there is so much room for creativity, so many things that haven’t been done-all of time and space in fact. However I do think that some cameos from some adversaries wouldn’t go amiss. ‘SJA’ had a great mix of old and new, from the Slitheen and Sontarans to the Bane and Trickster. As the statement suggests, I get the feeling that these are going to be small scale incursions, rather than big scale invasions, Interesting!

Great Storytelling

One of the truly interesting things about this announcement was that author Patrick Ness will be writing it. Known for his ‘Chaos Walking’ trilogy and novel ‘A Monster Calls,’ he’s a talent that’s yet to realised on TV, and I feel it’s a brave and clever move to appoint him with running duties when there is so many more accomplished and well-known TV writers that could have been chosen.

I also think some people are failing to fully grasp what the age range of the show’s audience is actually intended to be. Ness has said that the series be along the lines of his novel ‘A Monster Calls’ tonally – that coupled with the fact that it’s to be broadcast BBC Three, shows that this is going to struggle for even a ‘12’ rating. I get the impression that the show will delve into some pretty adult topics, detailing the struggles of teenage life. I do hope this is done subtly and suitably, and doesn’t go over the line of being tacky, with storylines about Slitheen taking drugs or an Ood doing time in a prison cell (as interesting as this sounds!). I like the concept that some of the issues that young people face can seem as big and as an alien invasion.

Doctor Who References

After reading the few details we currently have, it’s hard to see what clear links ‘Class’ will have with the main show. Obviously it will be set in Coal Hill, a school that we are introduced to in the show’s very first episode, and have since appeared in a lot of recent adventures, including ‘The Caretaker’.

Obviously, we know that Clara isn’t going to be continuing her teaching duties, but surely we will see a return of some staff and more importantly the illusive ‘I. Chesterton’?

I know ‘London is unprotected’ but it would be pretty unbelievable if a group of kids are able to save the Earth from Aliens every week without having UNIT on speed dial.

Perhaps even the Doctor himself can make a cameo, as the caretaker, there’s got to be some blocked drains that need fixing. I loved his appearances in ‘SJA’, admittedly he would have looked out of place in ‘Torchwood’, but I don’t see why he should feature here. Like the spin-offs before it this could be a great way of getting a different demographic of viewers into the main show.

When re-reading this article, I began to realise that in essence I have described ‘Doctor Who’, and all the features that make it so loved. This isn’t a bad thing, after all I wouldn’t be sat here writing an article about a third spinoff of a programme that didn’t work. However I think it’s important that ‘Class’ stands out as something new, expanding the ‘Whoniverse’ and bringing a new audience with it. Hopefully it will be a class-act! (….sorry.)

Thanks for reading! Were you excited by the announcement? What are your hopes for Class? Let me know below!