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Post by iank on Jul 20, 2022 21:33:49 GMT
He certainly had Grade pegged, no doubt about it.
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Post by Cyggy on Jul 20, 2022 21:57:48 GMT
It's Sylvester's first American convention in 1987 - and JN-T is asked "What was the primary reason for Colin Baker leaving the programme?" at 5:45....
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Post by WildcatMatt on Jul 29, 2022 2:18:25 GMT
It entirely depends on what lens you want to use.
From the perspective of the fans and the mythos of the show, dumping Colin Baker was a terrible idea. His energy and enthusiasm were a huge asset and it's still sad that it went to waste. Clearly he wasn't the problem; the circumstances surrounding Eric Saward's departure alone should have sent up red flags that the production office was toxic and needed significant attention. Unfortunately, Colin made a sizeable target as the outspoken public face of the program. The manner and terms of the move of course made it even worse. Effectively making JN-T an offer he couldn't refuse was a dirty deal and is the kind of sleazeball move I would expect from an American network rather than the upper echelons of the BBC.
From the perspective of BBC Management though, he absolutely had to go after being critical of Auntie Beeb in the press. There had to be a fall guy, and it was either CB or JN-T. (Actually, I believe had the BBC been committed to the show and had anyone else they could call in on short notice it would have been both.) The alternative would be to admit to having made mistakes and given what a fustercluck the whole cancellation and the follow-on became, sometimes I think it's amazing the show made it past Season 23 at all.
Ultimately it's a shame because at the end of the day everyone lost. Having Colin be inside the tent pissing out was always going to be better than having him be outside the tent pissing in. Having the Corporation look stupid in the aftermath was an own goal on the part of the BBC. And it killed any momentum the show and the production staff had (which admittedly wasn't much after the staff imploded during the production of Trial). That the show rebounded as far as it did by Season 25 (whether you think that was very far at all or not) is still impressive to me given the obstacles everyone faced.
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Post by Cyggy on Jul 30, 2022 21:58:27 GMT
I remember reading this at the time, as it was the first inkling that Colin might be going. Including a couple of intriguing (supposed) quotes from the Trought and Jon.... Full sizeI notice that this was published the same day as the first part of " The Ultimate Foe" was broadcast. Poor Colin. What a nightmarish period it must have all been.
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Post by Cyggy on Jul 30, 2022 22:08:58 GMT
More whiffs of Pat and Jon being keen to maybe take over..... Full size
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Post by Cyggy on Aug 2, 2022 7:48:05 GMT
Catching up with a philosophical Colin in May 1987, during the tour of "Corpse" and four months before "Time and the Rani" would air..... Full size
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Post by profh0011 on Aug 27, 2024 14:11:42 GMT
The percentage of "good" elements during Colin's run were sadly far outweighed by the "bad" elements. As in anything, the man in charge is responsible-- and that's JNT.
Colin had lots of potential. I immediately took to him despite some of the GHASTLY, AWFUL writing and other things going on. He was BETTER-SUITED for the character than Peter Davison ever was. And there's 4 stories of his that remain favorites of mine: "The Two Doctors", "Revelation of the Daleks", "The Mysterious Planet" and "Terror of the Vervoids". But the last 2 would have been infinitely better without the "Trial" involved. (I also like "The Ultimate Foe", PART ONE. But only PART ONE. What a way for Robert Holmes to go out.)
The best thing about Colin being fired was it gave us Sylvester McCoy, who I liked INTENSELY before I ever saw any of his stories. Many over the years have said his era had great writing but a terrible Doctor. I say they've got that BACKWARDS. At least half of his stories seriously needed another script draft to bring it up to speed... and that includes the supposedly "best ever" thing, "The Curse Of Fenric". That one looks so good... until you THINK about it too much. Knowing it was written by the same amateur fanboy who did "Dragonfire" really explains what's wrong with it.
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Post by GC on Oct 13, 2024 16:35:09 GMT
The Truth About Doctor Who’s Hiatus
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