On Christmas Day, Peter Capaldi’s tenure as the Twelfth Doctor came to a close. The Doctor was finally convinced to regenerate, but in true New Who fashion, he was rewarded by a visitation from previous companions – including Jenna Coleman as Clara Oswald.
His memories of her are back, and it’s all thanks to the Testimony.
Now, showrunner, Steven Moffat has disclosed that Jenna’s scene was the final one filmed for the Twelfth Doctor’s era… and Capaldi wasn’t even present! The writer said:
“My last real moment of production wasn’t any of the ones anyone thinks it was; it was in the Top Gear office at the old TV Centre – which is now the BBC Worldwide offices – with a skeleton crew, and Rachel, and Jenna. That was my very final moment on Doctor Who. At the old TV Centre. As it should be.”
(We miss the lovely old BBC TV Centre too. That was surely one of the worst decisions the BBC has made in recent times. But I digress.)
Director, Rachel Talalay has further revealed that Clara’s part in Twice Upon A Time was once destined to be longer, but Jenna’s full schedule on hit ITV drama, Victoria, permitted this:
“Peter had to play to a tennis ball, and so did Jenna, on green screen later, in the [former] Top Gear office in the middle of London, with fire engines going by. Both of them had to find that whole history together, their two years together, with neither of them being together. It’s incredibly hard making those things match up so that it really felt like they were in the same space. But I think we pulled it off.
“The fact that the Doctor, having lost his memories of her, got them back in the Christmas episode, I just felt was so brilliant.”
And it was a very nice touch, however you feel about cameos.
Of course, this isn’t the first time a final scene is somewhat underwhelming for cast or crew. David Tennant’s, for instance, featured him falling through the sky, the Doctor taking the (frankly loony) decision to jump from a speeding spaceship.
Twice Upon A Time is out on DVD and Blu-ray on 22nd January 2018.
