How Long is the 50th Anniversary Special?
Just how long is Doctor Who’s 50th anniversary special? Fans have been wondering that ever since Steven Moffat denied it was just 60 minutes as that poster
Unfortunately we’re no still closer to answers. As ever Moffat remains his usual teasing self refusing to give a straight answer.
In the latest issue of DWM he says: “People keep asking how long the Anniversary special is, and it’s a fair question. I don’t actually know, because the answer is, it’s as long as it needs to be.
He adds: “The script is quite long though. I’m looking at it now. Ooh, that’s quite long.”
Elaborating on how long average scripts are: “In theory a 45-minute episode of Doctor Who ought to be about 55 pages. But it’s a fast-paced show, you need something to cut, so let’s say 60 pages. And that, let me tell you, is wrong. The script for The Time of Angels was 70 pages long, and it came in short at 40 minutes, even with added material. The script for The Snowmen has almost the same page count as A Scandal in Belgravia (sorry to mention The Other One) but one is an hour and the other is 90 minutes. Thank God, the BBC is kind to us. Our notion of 45 minutes has veered between 39 minutes and 57 (I think, roughly this is from memory).
[Thanks to Michael!]
