Moffat calls the BBC 'stupid'

[Candlelight]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/20/doctor-who-steven-moffat_n_4310768.html

"Doctor Who" showrunner Steven Moffat was not happy with the BBC when they canceled the series for 16 years back in 1989.
In the new "Doctor Who"-centric issue of Radio Times, Moffat wrote a piece celebrating the 50th anniversary of "Doctor Who."
"Ah, 50 years. What can one say about 50 years of 'Doctor Who'? Well, first of all, one can be pedantic," he wrote. "'Doctor Who' hasn’t been on for 50 years -- owing to the outright stupidity and unforgivable blindness of the BBC (sorry guys, it needs to be said), there was a 16-year gap.”
"Doctor Who" premiered in 1963 and amassed a devoted fanbase over the decades until it was canceled in 1989. The BBC General Director at the time, Michael Grade, defended his decision for canceling the series. "I cancelled it. It was absolutely the right decision at the time ... The show was ghastly. It was pathetic ... It lost its way."

As a kid I didn't notice anything wrong with the later years. Still, looking back I don't really watch anything above Pertwee anymore.

 

[diankra]

The Moffat quote is from his interview in Radio Times. The Grade quote is also from Radio Times, but taken in turn from his piece for the Behind the Sofa book (ie, its a reprint of something he said a year back, not really a response).

 

[DimesDan]

It's the Huff Post, not exactly the most reputable news service in the world.

 

[davejames]

I don't really see an issue with the 50 years thing. All that says is that Doctor Who has been around for that long, not that we've had 50 years of non-stop episodes (and we still count the Star Trek anniversaries the same, even though they've had longer gaps between series than DW).

And to be honest I can't really blame the BBC for cancelling the show back then. I know people like to defend certain episodes, but even at it's best the writing was still a far cry from what it used to be (or should have been).

 

[MacLeod]

Well why not here from the man himself Michael Grade

[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyXQX0P52MU[/yt]

Here is an idea why not increase it's budget.

 

[diankra]

He couldn't. That year's budget was spent on launching Eastenders, so they had to cancel other things: nnot just Who, also Lovejoy, Bergerac... Mostly happened before Grade arrived. He just stood up and defended the decision.

 

[sttngfan1701d]

The cancellation/hiatus took with it the silly harpsichord music and the glacially-slow storylines and the "Saturday morning" (at least from my American perspective) feel of the show in the late 80's. So it wasn't all bad. Aside from some dodgy decisions and hit-or-miss stylistic choices early on, the new show very much benefited from a long break and the changes that come with time.

 

[The Wormhole]

*Yawn*

Talk about making a mountain out of a mole hill. Moffat slams a decision made nearly 25 years ago and we have headlines declaring Moffat has called the BBC stupid. Slow news day?

 

[DimesDan]

*Yawn*

Talk about making a mountain out of a mole hill. Moffat slams a decision made nearly 25 years ago and we have headlines declaring Moffat has called the BBC stupid. Slow news day?

Not in the slightest, given the source of the "story" and it's not anywhere else. The Huff Post lets any Tom, Dick or Harry it seems Write a story.