Doctor Who star Peter Davison, who played the Time Lord from 1982 to 1984, has criticised recent series of the long-running programme for their “huge gaps in narrative”.
Davison, 74, who followed Tom Baker as the fifth incarnation of the character, has questioned the quality of the science-fiction show since the BBC rebooted it in 2005.
“For some reason, in science fiction, they feel like they need to go at 100 miles per hour,” the actor told The Lewis Nicholls Show.
“They’re just leaping onto the next bit and your brain is meant to fill in the gaps... Maybe if you’re young and healthy, you can do that. I don’t know.”
Davison compared recent episodes of Doctor Who to “a trailer” for something “you’d like to watch later”.
He said that network bosses’ concern over “people’s attention spans” could be contributing to what he believes is a worsening state of TV.
“If something isn’t happening every two minutes, they think people are going to turn off, which I don’t believe is true,” he continued.
However, Davison did acknowledge that returning showrunner Russell T Davies has “cured” old Doctor Who’s oft-criticised habit of underusing the lead character’s companion. But he said the show now prioritises visual effects over story.
“As the special effects got even better, there’s a danger that it becomes just about them,” he remarked.
Davison has remained a Doctor Who fixture over the years, reprising his role for a brief cameo in Jodie Whittaker’s final episode back in 2022. Whittaker herself returned for a brief appearance in Ncuti Gatwa’s swansong last month.
Davison has also recorded an audio special alongside David Tennant, another ex-Doctor Who star who led the series from 2005 to 2010. The stars have a link away from the show – Davison’s daughter, Georgia, has been married to Tennant since 2011.
Tennant met Georgia after appearing on the BBC show together in 2008 episode “The Doctor’s Daughter” – and, in 2020, admitted he “felt a bit stupid” marrying the child of a fellow Doctor Who star.
“Because Doctor Who had run through my life like a stick of rock, to end up marrying the daughter of one of the doctors, it all felt a bit stupid – there were a lot of things against it,” the Scottish actor said about their relationship on broadcaster Gaby Roslin’s podcast.
However, Georgia said she was “very much the driving force” for their relationship, stating: “Had I not worked quite so hard, it might not have happened.”
