Former Doctor Who showrunner, Russell T Davies, says he has no regrets about his time on the franchise.
During an interview, Davies was asked whether, if he had a TARDIS, he go back in time and change anything he did during his time at the helm of Doctor Who a second time. Russell replied:
“Nothing. I loved what I did. I mean, I’d grab that TARDIS and take flight to Mars, frankly – all the places to go, why go back to earlier in your job? Come on — to Mars and Neptune and the great beyond.”
I can’t help but agree and disagree with him, but there we are. Yes, you’d absolutely explore wider vistas in such a hypothetical question; but the real crux of the matter was somewhat diverted: putting the TARDIS to one side, the core question is of regrets and whether he’d actually change anything he did.
Davies, of course, helped to bring the show back to screens in 2005, then Steven Moffat took over the role of showrunner from 2010’s Series 5. Davies then returned for the show’s 60th anniversary specials in 2023, ushering in first the Fourteenth Doctor (David Tennant) era then the Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) era.
It seems unlikely that there’s nothing he’d change — for one thing, you’d think something could be done about the deal with Disney, which ultimately fell through after two seasons plus a spin-off. Another thing, perhaps, would be not having a three-season plan, when only two seasons had been properly commissioned.
As is, Davies’ time as showrunner ended with The Reality War, and the programme is being put out to tender by the BBC.
