| The following article is written from an Out of Universe perspective. |
Season 49 of Doctor Who premiered in Autumn of 2014. The season was the fifteenth of Chapter Three.
Ronald D. Moore and Jane Espenson took over as joint-showrunners, whilst Samantha Bond joined as the Fourteenth Doctor after making her full debut in Doctor Who: Genesis. Montserrat Lombard and Bernard Cribbins also joined the show as, new companions, Erin Stevenson and Hogan Cox respectively.
The season was the first to be split into two parts, with the first half airing from the Autumn of 2014 and the second airing from the Spring of 2015.
Overview
A Female Doctor
The Fourteenth Doctor was the first, in the show's history, to be played by a woman. Before Samantha Bond, however, the idea of a female Doctor had been explored.
The idea that a female actor could take the role of the Doctor was first publicly introduced by John Nathan-Turner and Tom Baker in 1980. By Baker's suggestion, he told the press, "I certainly wish my successor luck, whoever he—or she—might be." Peter Davison was cast as the Fifth Doctor, but the idea remained alive.
The Ninth Doctor stated that he could end up as anyone "man, woman, child or even a decrepit old codger..." (DW: The Chimes of Midnight).
Setting the Scene
In 2011, Christopher Biggins' character on Panopticon, Francis, regenerated into a female incarnation, refereed to as Frances (PAN: The Rules of the Game). This was a controversial move at the time, but the fact that it was successful, certainly opened the gates for the Doctor Who production team to make the Doctor a woman.
As part of the Doctor's resurrection, Phaedra is revealed to be an alternate universe version of the Doctor's consciousness after ascension, who herself is in female form (PAN: Put Your Dreams Away). This can be seen to provide somewhat of an in-universe explanation for a female Doctor.
The New Companion
The Doctor's latest companion was to be Erin Stevenson, played by Montserrat Lombard. She was devised by Moore and Espenson to be a departure from many previous companions, not only being from not just the past, but the recent past but also being an 'out and out' rebel, initially a punk rocker.
With Erin, Moore and Espenson decided would come a family life too. Susannah Harker and Trevor Cooper were cast as her parents, and William Moseley was cast as her boyfriend, Kyle Harrison.
Changes in Production
New executive producers and showrunners, Ronald D. Moore and Jane Espenson, took over for this season, after running Panopticon since its fourth season. In addition, Ken MacQuarrie, came on as an executive producer, replacing Faith Penhale. Ira Steven Behr, stayed on for his last season as executive producer and franchise executive, smoothing over the production from Chapter Three to Chapter Four. In 2020, this was later changed as the season was included in Chapter Three.
Instead of one producer producing the entire season. Moore and Espenson hired three separate producers to produce the new season. He first hired Brian Minchin who Moore and Espenson had worked with before on Panopticon. Second, on the advice of Behr, Moore and Espenson hired Cold Front producer Nikki Wilson. Who in the eyes of Behr and Cold Front showrunner Chris Carter seen to be a competent producer. Finally, to bring new talent to the show. Moore and Espenson looked at the BBC's producer's workshop and came across Derek Ritchie and hired him on.
Production for this season moved from Wales to Scotland, being produced by BBC Scotland. Moore’s reasoning was that for the stories he wanted to tell, he wanted the plethora of locations that Scotland could offer, and while Wales did offer locations of a similar degree, most had been exhausted by 2014, due to Doctor Who using them before. However, despite mainly being production in Scotland, other locations for this season would include London, Germany and the US (filming with the CBS crew).
Other Notable Changes
Title Sequence
As is standard practice at the beginning of a new era of the show, this season featured a brand-new title sequence. It included a vast array of clips from across the season, with credits running over the top, for the first time in a Doctor Who title sequence, the wider ‘above the line’ production crew would be credited, and due to standard BBC rules everyone, but cast, who are credited in the opening titles should not be also credited in the closing titles. In addition, the top 3 billed Guest Stars from each episode would be given a short credit in the opening titles after the principal cast.
Theme Music
To go along with the new titles, a new theme tune arrangement was commissioned. It was arranged by new in-house composer, Bear McCreary, which takes a bold new take on the iconic theme giving us a fresh interpretation, including the removal of the iconic sting and replacing it with a new drum roll.
Logo
At the time, the season was the first of Chapter Four, Moore, Espenson and Behr decided to discard with the previous logo used between 2003 and 2013, opting to commission a new specially designed logo for the season and Chapter Four as a whole. The new logo was designed by Red Bee Media, and was a lot thinner and streamlined than the previous logo.
Broadcast
The season would be broadcast into two parts, Part one would air from September to November, 2014. And part two would air from January to March, 2015.
Cast
Regular
Recurring
- Danielle Stevenson - Susannah Harker
- Roger Stevenson - Trevor Cooper
- Kyle Harrison - William Moseley
- Caitrin Ryan - Gillian Anderson
- Amanda Theodore - T'Nia Miller
- The Governor - David Warner
- The Master - Jason Issacs
- Gemma Legato - Emer Kenny
Guest
- Mary, Queen of Scots - Nell Hudson
- Bastian Pagez - Stanley Weber
- Earl of Bothwell - James Marsters
- Dr Edward Carter - Simon Callow
- Penelope Carter - Alexandra Moen
- Uncle Reg - David Ryall
- Sergeant Wilson - Bradley Gardner
- Colonel Lafayette - Julian Dutton
- Private Maynard - Ian Hallard
- Arunzell - Samuel Oatley
- Captain Maion - Chris Stanton
- Kazie Boiell - Maureen Lipman
- Suzie Q - Lucie Jones
- Commentator - Graham Norton
- Fenton - Christopher Fairbank
- PC Forrest - Jessica Hayles
- Obergruppenführer Sennheiser - Ben Miller
- Sofia Lukas - Rosie Day
- Karl Lukas - Rory Kinnear
- Tasker - Justin Sallinger
- Dahh-Ren - Peter Caulfield
- Gouildeir - Shane Gately
- Enrico Amid - Ameet Chana
- Florence Nightingale - Emily Speed
- Anderson - Ifan Meredith
- Adelaide Brook - Lindsay Duncan
- Ed Gold - Peter O'Brien
- Yuri Kerenski - Aleksandar Mikic
- Mia Bennett - Gemma Chan
Television Stories
Main Season
Mini-Episode
| Title | Writer | Director | Air Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| I Don't Want Tomorrow | Simon Guerrier | Kurt Pongratz | 23 May 2015 |
Production
Crew
To be added.
Shooting Blocks
| Block | Episodes | Director | Producer | DOP | Editor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1.03, 1.01, 1.05 | Richard Clark / John Dahl | Nikki Wilson | Owen McPolin / David Higgs | Peter H Oliver / Michael O'Halloran |
| 2 | 1.02, 1.07, 1.10, 1.13 | Metin Hüseyin | Brian Minchin | Edward J. Pei | Christopher Cooke |
| 3 | 1.04, 1.06 | Douglas Mackinnon | David Higgs | Peter H Oliver | |
| 4 | 1.08, 1.09, 1.15, 1.16 | Rachel Talalay | Nikki Wilson | Stuart Biddlecombe | Will Oswald |
| 5 | 1.12 | Euros Lyn | Derek Ritchie | Rory Taylor | |
| 6 | 1.11, 1.14 | Richard Clark / Nick Hurran | Owen McPolin | Christopher Cooke |
Filming
To be added.
Aliens and Enemies
- Raston Assassin Robot
- Earl of Bothwell
- Dr Edward Carter
- J’taria
- Sky Heads
- Mind Leaches
- Lava Spiders
- Arunzell
- The Carrionites
- The Boneless
- The Nazis
- Obergruppenführer Sennheiser
- The Gaians
- The Governor
- The Yarra
- The Drahvins
- The Flood
- Lady Matilda
- Queen Mary
- The Master
Viewing Figures
| No. | Title | Official BARB Figures (7-day) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consolidated (m) | Weekly Rank | ||
| 1 | God Save the Queen | 10.54 | 1 |
| 2 | The Darnley Conspiracy | 9.14 | 2 |
| 3 | At the Tip of Your Fingers | 9.04 | 4 |
| 4 | Tomahawk | 8.86 | 4 |
| 5 | The Food of Love | 8.41 | 3 |
| 6 | Flatline | 8.22 | 4 |
| 7 | Fire and Fury | 7.97 | 6 |
| 8 | Those Who Lead, Part I | 7.51 | 10 |
| 9 | Those Who Lead, Part II | 8.92 | 3 |
| 10 | The Lady with the Lamp | 8.10 | 6 |
| 11 | One Giant Leap | 7.33 | 13 |
| 12 | The Waters of Mars | 8.41 | 4 |
| 13 | Queen of Nine | 7.84 | 10 |
| 14 | Remnants | 8.09 | 6 |
| 15 | Destiny of the Gaians, Part I | 8.78 | 2 |
| 16 | Destiny of the Gaians, Part II | 9.95 | 1 |
| Series Average | 8.569 | ||
Home Media
To be added.