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Doctor Who: Steven Moffat on Billie Piper, What Makes a Good Doctor

Former Doctor Who showrunner/writer Steven Moffat on Billie Piper's Season 2 finale "regeneration" and what makes for a good Doctor.



Article Summary

  • Steven Moffat weighs in on Billie Piper's rumored Doctor Who regeneration and fan speculation.
  • Moffat clarifies he has no insider info on whether Billie Piper is officially the Sixteenth Doctor.
  • He describes the Doctor as attractive, odd, slightly incompetent, and deeply reassuring to children.
  • Moffat calls for a Doctor who is both kindly and dangerous, blending Indiana Jones with Willy Wonka.

It's been how many months now, and fans are still debating and speculating about whether Billie Piper is the new Doctor Who. It's the stuff of clickbait and endless discussion, endless engagement onlin,e which is probably good for the show and its prospects for coming back, whenever that's going to be. And it's time for former showrunner Steven Moffat to weigh in about that regeneration because The Radio Times just has to ask him. First, he put one big question to rest: No, he doesn't know if she's officially the Sixteenth Doctor since she wasn't introduced in the credits as such.

What Makes a Good Doctor Who, According to Steven Moffat

"I genuinely don't have any insider information," said Moffat. "But they have hedged their bets. They've not said she's the Doctor, so I don't know. I don't even know if they know!" So there you have it. Believe it or not, that's up to you. Moffat does have his ideas for what makes a good Doctor, whoever ends up playing them: "Attractive, but odd. There's something utterly odd, a sort of benevolent, kindly, slightly incompetent impersonation of a human being. The Doctor is never quite right. He's really trying, or she's really trying. [They're] not quite there. 'I'm really cool because I got a bow tie. ' 'I've got a nice suit.' 'I put my trainers on.' There's just something off-kilter about them. Above all, it's someone that little kids would want to run up and take that person's hand and feel absolutely safe. That's what the Doctor's about. Somewhere between Indiana Jones and Willy Wonka."

"But also there's got to be an edge," he added. "Slightly dangerous – the most dangerous [person] in the universe. All of those things. It's a tall order." Well, we've said this before: Moffat already wrote a template for Piper to play The Doctor when she played a Gallifreyan doomsday bomb with a conscience called The Moment in the 50th Anniversary Special "The Day of the Doctor."


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Adi TantimedhAbout Adi Tantimedh

Adi Tantimedh is a filmmaker, screenwriter and novelist. He wrote radio plays for the BBC Radio, “JLA: Age of Wonder” for DC Comics, “Blackshirt” for Moonstone Books, and “La Muse” for Big Head Press. Most recently, he wrote “Her Nightly Embrace”, “Her Beautiful Monster” and “Her Fugitive Heart”, a trilogy of novels featuring a British-Indian private eye published by Atria Books, a division Simon & Schuster.
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