Christopher Eccleston: Sack Russell T. Davies and I’ll Come Back
Christopher Eccleston certainly doesn’t mince words. Over the years, the Ninth Doctor actor has revealed more about why he has never returned to the role on TV.
At a recent panel, he was asked what it would actually take for him to return, and he bluntly responded, “Sack Russell T. Davies, sack [executive producers] Jane Tranter, sack Phil Collinson, sack Julie Gardner, and I’ll come back. So, can you arrange that?”
Asked if he found it hard to be associated with the character, he responded, “Not at all. I love being associated with the character; I just don’t like being associated with those people and the politics that went on in the first series. The first series was a mess, and it wasn’t to do with me or Billie [Piper]. It was to do with the people who were supposed to make it, and it was a mess.”
He further commented on the challenges faced in the inaugural series of any show. Drawing a parallel, he mentioned Billie Piper’s experience with Secret Diary of a Call Girl, noting how initially, nobody was interested. “The BBC were like, ‘We’re going to keep a big distance from this.’ And then, as soon as it was a success, they were all up close, going, ‘I was responsible for that.'”
“But they were all like at a distance, like, ‘This is a folly. Eccleston’s folly. Piper’s folly. Russell T. Davies’s folly.’ And then, when it worked, suddenly, ‘Oh yeah, I worked on that.’ They wouldn’t come anywhere near us, and then they jump on the bandwagon. Those kind of politics, I’m not very good at handling. I can’t swallow that shit.”
This isn’t the first time Eccleston has set terms, and the list only seems to be getting larger over the years! So far, the conditions are:
- An apology from the BBC
- Hell freezes over
- It has to be directed by Joe Ahearne and…
- …It’s the 100th anniversary
- It has to be a solo only adventure (no Multi-Doctor)
- And finally, sack RTD and the current production team
So there we have it. Quite a tall order!
