The Time of the Doctor: More details and pictures
Thursday, 12 December 2013 - Reported by John Bowman
Interview
had been cast as the next Doctor.
How did you find the readthrough? Was it emotional?
It was a very emotional read-through. Just going through the process of saying goodbye was difficult. The script itself is very emotional, but also joyous. But saying those words and saying goodbye was never going to be easy.
Is there a sense from the start of the episode that we're moving towards a regeneration?
It's very much an adventure, but it goes off on a different track. People watching will know that it's Matt's last episode, but it doesn't loom over from the start.
We were introduced to Clara as the impossible girl last year. Are we going to find out more about her family background?
Absolutely. I think there had to be a sense of mystery last year to make the plot work. What's really interesting is that it does feel like we're starting again and we get to see her home life as well as her life with the Doctor.
From a few pictures that have been released there are some of you cooking Christmas dinner. Have you ever done that in real life?
My mum does the Christmas cooking. It couldn't be any other way.
Are you looking forward to filming next year with Peter?
It will be a different show next year. We have a bit of a gap before we start filming the new series, so I have time to get my head around it all. Me and Peter will get together before Christmas to start rehearsing and the scripts will start coming in. I think when I came in there was just a week off in production where Arthur and Karen left, so that would have been a strange shift.
This episode is very much about Matt and the 11th Doctor and Clara and the 11th Doctor and their last adventure together. I have no idea where we're going to next series!
Where will you be watching the special this year? Will you be at home?
Yeah, I think so. Last year the whole family got a cottage together where mum still did the Christmas cooking. We'll definitely all be together.
What was your reaction when you heard the next Doctor was Peter Capaldi?
It was kind of that moment "Of course, makes sense." It's funny as I don't think he was one of the names that was originally being speculated about and it wasn't until the week before that his name came up. He's going to be so different to Matt and take the show in an interesting direction.
When were you told?
Matt and I were told together during the royal visit to Roath Lock studios. We could tell something was going on and we managed to pin the producers down and get it out of them!
How hard was it to keep the secret?
I think I've learnt my lesson in that the best thing to do is not to tell anybody and then you don't have your own paranoia that you've let something out.
What will you miss about working with Matt?
Everything! When you're reading a scene with him he can turn anything on its head. He's so inventive, clever and very funny. There's just so much that I'll miss about him.
It was a very emotional read-through. Just going through the process of saying goodbye was difficult. The script itself is very emotional, but also joyous. But saying those words and saying goodbye was never going to be easy.
Is there a sense from the start of the episode that we're moving towards a regeneration?
It's very much an adventure, but it goes off on a different track. People watching will know that it's Matt's last episode, but it doesn't loom over from the start.
We were introduced to Clara as the impossible girl last year. Are we going to find out more about her family background?
Absolutely. I think there had to be a sense of mystery last year to make the plot work. What's really interesting is that it does feel like we're starting again and we get to see her home life as well as her life with the Doctor.
From a few pictures that have been released there are some of you cooking Christmas dinner. Have you ever done that in real life?
My mum does the Christmas cooking. It couldn't be any other way.
Are you looking forward to filming next year with Peter?
It will be a different show next year. We have a bit of a gap before we start filming the new series, so I have time to get my head around it all. Me and Peter will get together before Christmas to start rehearsing and the scripts will start coming in. I think when I came in there was just a week off in production where Arthur and Karen left, so that would have been a strange shift.
This episode is very much about Matt and the 11th Doctor and Clara and the 11th Doctor and their last adventure together. I have no idea where we're going to next series!
Where will you be watching the special this year? Will you be at home?
Yeah, I think so. Last year the whole family got a cottage together where mum still did the Christmas cooking. We'll definitely all be together.
What was your reaction when you heard the next Doctor was Peter Capaldi?
It was kind of that moment "Of course, makes sense." It's funny as I don't think he was one of the names that was originally being speculated about and it wasn't until the week before that his name came up. He's going to be so different to Matt and take the show in an interesting direction.
When were you told?
Matt and I were told together during the royal visit to Roath Lock studios. We could tell something was going on and we managed to pin the producers down and get it out of them!
How hard was it to keep the secret?
I think I've learnt my lesson in that the best thing to do is not to tell anybody and then you don't have your own paranoia that you've let something out.
What will you miss about working with Matt?
Everything! When you're reading a scene with him he can turn anything on its head. He's so inventive, clever and very funny. There's just so much that I'll miss about him.
Orla Brady talks about her character and what it was like working with Matt Smith.
What drew you to the role of Tasha Lem?
So you're sitting in your dressing room on an ordinary day (well, ordinary for an actress) playing a normal person who makes breakfast and loses her purse sometimes. Then along comes a call to play a galactic nun and whizz around the universe with Matt Smith. Now what girl wouldn't be drawn to that?
Can you tell us anything about how we first meet your character?
The Doctor goes to see Tasha as they are old friends. He needs her help and knows he will find it with her, as although she is fearsomely powerful she is loyal to her friend.
What can you tell us about your costume and make-up? Did you work closely with the costume designer?
The designer Howard Burden knows the Doctor Who world inside out and had an image of Tasha that I loved from the start, so there was very little need for me to suggest anything. I just climbed into it really. Emma Cowen created a look that was a little spooky, referencing "Blade Runner" a little. We both wanted her to look as she is described in the writing: imposing, human, but with a touch of alien.
In this special a whole host of the Doctor's most famous enemies come together, including Cybermen, The Silence, Weeping Angels and Daleks - how did you find filming opposite these monsters? Have you had to do anything similar for previous roles?
Most of my acting life I have played ordinary women so obviously monsters haven't factored much. However, I did love getting to face off with one of this lot in "The Time Of The Doctor".
How did you find working with departing Doctor Matt Smith?
Joyous. I had heard through friends that he was a nice guy - and he is - but what struck me most is how enthusiastic and engaged he was in his role, in every single scene we played. It so often happens that someone playing a character for years sits back a bit. He didn't. He was as full of energy and inventiveness as someone on their first day and it was truly good to be around.
Did you meet the next Doctor Peter Capaldi?
Yes. Peter came to set for the first time and it was good to see him again as we had briefly played boyfriend and girlfriend years ago and he was hilarious. He has an air about him, that man. Can't wait to see what he will do with his Doctor.
How was it filming in Cardiff?
Would it be obvious to say rainy? It was a place I had never been to, I didn't know anyone and was staying in a hotel which can be a bit glum. However, the thing I discovered about Cardiff is that it is the friendliest place I have ever been. Ever. The Capital of Friendly. I could live there now I think . . . but I would buy a new raincoat.
And finally, where will you be watching the Christmas special?
My mum and brothers are insisting on watching it on Christmas Day, but I find it excruciating to watch things I'm in with other people, so I will go for a pint with a friend.
So you're sitting in your dressing room on an ordinary day (well, ordinary for an actress) playing a normal person who makes breakfast and loses her purse sometimes. Then along comes a call to play a galactic nun and whizz around the universe with Matt Smith. Now what girl wouldn't be drawn to that?
Can you tell us anything about how we first meet your character?
The Doctor goes to see Tasha as they are old friends. He needs her help and knows he will find it with her, as although she is fearsomely powerful she is loyal to her friend.
What can you tell us about your costume and make-up? Did you work closely with the costume designer?
The designer Howard Burden knows the Doctor Who world inside out and had an image of Tasha that I loved from the start, so there was very little need for me to suggest anything. I just climbed into it really. Emma Cowen created a look that was a little spooky, referencing "Blade Runner" a little. We both wanted her to look as she is described in the writing: imposing, human, but with a touch of alien.
In this special a whole host of the Doctor's most famous enemies come together, including Cybermen, The Silence, Weeping Angels and Daleks - how did you find filming opposite these monsters? Have you had to do anything similar for previous roles?
Most of my acting life I have played ordinary women so obviously monsters haven't factored much. However, I did love getting to face off with one of this lot in "The Time Of The Doctor".
How did you find working with departing Doctor Matt Smith?
Joyous. I had heard through friends that he was a nice guy - and he is - but what struck me most is how enthusiastic and engaged he was in his role, in every single scene we played. It so often happens that someone playing a character for years sits back a bit. He didn't. He was as full of energy and inventiveness as someone on their first day and it was truly good to be around.
Did you meet the next Doctor Peter Capaldi?
Yes. Peter came to set for the first time and it was good to see him again as we had briefly played boyfriend and girlfriend years ago and he was hilarious. He has an air about him, that man. Can't wait to see what he will do with his Doctor.
How was it filming in Cardiff?
Would it be obvious to say rainy? It was a place I had never been to, I didn't know anyone and was staying in a hotel which can be a bit glum. However, the thing I discovered about Cardiff is that it is the friendliest place I have ever been. Ever. The Capital of Friendly. I could live there now I think . . . but I would buy a new raincoat.
And finally, where will you be watching the Christmas special?
My mum and brothers are insisting on watching it on Christmas Day, but I find it excruciating to watch things I'm in with other people, so I will go for a pint with a friend.
In addition, seven more pictures from the episode were released, shown above and here:
