As the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) is facing budget cuts of up to 20%, many shows are being cut from the variety of BBC channels in the UK – this includes the beloved Doctor Who Confidential.
Doctor Who Confidential was a documentary series created by the BBC – a behind-the-scenes look at the making of Doctor Who through interviews with the cast and crew. Confidential was created to complement the reboot of Doctor Who in 2005, with Christopher Eccleston as the ninth doctor.
The BBC is trying to focus more on creating original programs and increasing priority for the 9 and 10 p.m. time slots. Since Confidential was created as a “spin-off” of Doctor Who, it falls under the category of un-original programming and unfortunately, that means the BBC feels its budget could be better utilized on other projects.
For Whovians, Doctor Who Confidential was a necessary and enjoyable party of the Doctor Who experience every week, as one hour each week simply wasn’t enough. Now, Whovians will have to survive with only one hour each week. (Even then, the new season doesn’t premiere until late 2012!)
It was Doctor Who Confidential that introduced each new Doctor throughout the first six seasons of the rebooted series, as well as the companions. In addition to the professional interviews with cast and crew, Confidential also let Whovians see the quirky side of the cast members. In seasons five and six these quirky sides are even more pronounced with Matt Smith as The Doctor and Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill as the companions. Where else will we see Darvill swim with sharks? Or see Smith’s and James Corden’s bromance?
Overall, the show will definitely be missed, but it’s useless to dwell on the loss – we should just enjoy the show on its own. Although the shenanigans will be missed, Doctor Who has enough shenanigans of its own.