More like this
Who cares who dies in new Doctor Who?
Writer Steven Moffat promises one of his four leading characters will die in series six
As Doctor Who returns to television later this month, the series' head writer Steven Moffat has been teasing fans by revealing that one of four lead characters will be "killed off".
In a bravado performance in which he pulled all the right ratings-boosting strings, Moffat told Doctor Who magazine that the series 6 opener would also be the Doctor's "darkest hour".
The episode, a two-parter, will introduce a new enemy called the Silents, and feature Richard Nixon and the Moon Landings.
On the chopping block are the Doctor, played by Matt Smith, his Companion Amy Pond (Karen Gillan), Pond's husband Rory Williams (Arthur Darvill) and River Song, played by Alex Kingston.
"We're not lying, we're not cheating. One of those four people is going to die," says Moffat.
"The Doctor's darkest hour is coming. Shows like Doctor Who should have big colourful, memorable moments that make you go, 'What the hell?' Well, this is one of them."
Cynical fans of the show may be forgiven for shrugging at news of an impending character elimination. It's not like death in the Doctor Who universe is any kind of bar to appearing in future episodes.
River Song has already died - in series 4. But thanks to the vagaries of time travel she continues to pop up. Rory Williams, meanwhile, was erased from history in the last series, but was later brought back by the Doctor.
Matt Smith and Karen Gillan have both signed contracts that run until the end of series 6, so any sticky end that befalls them is also likely to be temporary. A fairly plausible scenario that has been doing the rounds of fan forums is one in which the opening episode features two versions of the Doctor, one of whom is killed.
As pointless as death is in Doctor Who, it's easy to sympathise with Moffat's attempts at ratings-grabbing. As he says himself: "It's hard to create shock in Doctor Who when we've already blown up the universe a couple of times. What do you do next?"
To which the obvious answer must be: how about the Hollywood solution - a reboot and origins tale? ·
