Scott Matthewman » Doctor Who

Destiny, Death, Delirium and Despair: Drabbles a decade on

Scott Matthewman — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 19:12:05 +0000

The beauty of using my blog to keep track of stuff I’ve written elsewhere is that it allows, when time permits, to reflect on the writer I used to be. As I’ve been explaining on Twitter, I usually think that what I wrote in the past is better than what I write now, whether it’s ten years old or ten days.

Perusing some of the neglected categories in my blog (of which there are many - if you’re reading this on the page rather than in a feed reader, the full list is at the bottom right as you scroll down) I came to realise that three very short pieces of fiction are almost exactly a decade old.

They are drabbles - short stories of exactly 100 words in length. These particular ones are ‘fan fiction’ (or fanfic for short), unlicensed exploration of other people’s fictional creations. As you scour the internet, you discover that much fanfic is unremittingly awful - but some is not. And from that minority, an even smaller proportion has spawned writers who have gone on to write professionally for the same characters (yes, this is a hint to buy The Ghosts of Christmas while stocks last. I still savour that review in DWM, even if my story was summed up in three words, one of which was “and”).

In this case, the subject was Doctor Who crossing over with the Endless family from Neil Gaiman’s Sandman comic books.

Reading them again, they do hold up quite well - although of the three, one relies on a punchline that no longer packs the punch it once did and one just has me a feeling a bit meh. The third, though, includes possibly my favourite sentence in Doctor Who ever. That sounds like egotism, and it may be, but it feels like the line was written by somebody else. Which, I suppose, it was (I hope he won’t mind if I nick it, should the possibility of ever using it again arise).

Anyway, the three drabbles - to be read in no particular order - are:

If you have no idea who Neil Gaiman’s Endless characters are, a guick google should set you aright. And if you’re a fan of great storytelling, remind me to lend you The Sandman novels some time (or buy your own)…

This is the end, but was the moment prepared for?

Scott Matthewman — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 16:16:17 +0000

A couple of weeks ago, in the regular list of notable radio programmes I prepare each week, I plugged Radio 2’s relay of a recent live performance of Jeff Wayne’s War of the Worlds. That mention spurred me to listen once more to the album. This prog rock opera contains some of the most well-known riffs and melodies, but what really makes it is Richard Burton’s narration — and even more so, HG Wells’ original story.

It’s not for nothing that the original novel has become known as one of the greatest in the history of science fiction literature. It has a real sense of terror occurring in the most mundane of places — Martians landing in Woking, of all places. And while the anonymous journalist who is our narrator makes his way to a similarly ravaged London, it’s the effect on individuals that still resonate.

The ending, though? The ending sucks.

(Despite the novel being over 100 years old, I should warn you now — there be spoilers ahead…)

Devoid of all hope, the journalist heads for the Martians, to sacrifice himself because there is now nothing left to live for. Humanity is being routed, and he effectively chooses suicide rather than waiting for exterminaton to come to him.

And the machines start to die. Exposed to Earth’s bacteria to which they have no resistance, the invaders suddenly grind to a halt, and the Earth is saved.

And that’s it. The ‘defeat’ of the invading Martian hordes bears no relation to anything that has preceded it in the novel. I’d always found it deeply unsatisfying in book form, and listening to Burton’s narration in the Jeff Wayne version just reminded me how annoying that abruptness is. It’s one of the best examples of a deus ex machina plot device in science fiction.

The use of deus ex machina devices is a criticism often levied by fans against Doctor Who’s outgoing head writer Russell T Davies. It’s a charge which, with the possible exception of Series 1’s Boom Town, he has always resisted, as far as I know. And if you compare his stories against Wells’s invasion story, you can see that Russell’s right.

That’s not to say his endings are perfect. As I said in my write-up of Doctor Who Series 2’s first episode, New Earth:

In both [New Earth and The End of the World] it’s as if the production team are saying to us, “forget the sci-fi, it’s not important; look at the character work, that’s the real story”. And they’re right, in a way. In both cases, the subplots that benefit from the extra screen time (the fate of the Doctor’s people, the redemption of Cassandra) involve superb writing and acting from both leads and guests. But the rushed endings leave the whole episodes with the impression that they’re missing something.

I pretty much stand by that. As faults go, though, “so much going on that one has to concentrate on character rather than ‘plot’” isn’t a bad one to have. And no matter how many times I rewatch them, or how may times I reread War of the Worlds, I will always prefer Davies’ endings to Wells’.

Russell T Davies and Euros Lyn talk Doctor Who and Torchwood

Scott Matthewman — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 16:34:31 +0000

Cross-posted to TV Today

Over on US TV blog Televisionary, Jace has been interviewing Torchwood and Doctor Who writer/producer Russell T. Davies and director Euros Lyn. After all the Comic-Con madness and the ‘Save Ianto’ hubbub, it’s nice to hear them talk about more general matters regarding both series — and for Euros to get some attention: both Russell and John Barrowman have such large personalities that he was on the verge of being ignored at some recent press events.

The video that Jace shot is embedded below, in two parts (if you’re using an RSS reader, you may need to click through to the blog to see it). The sound level’s a little low, but it’s well worth watching.

(NB: contains some spoilers for future Doctor Who episodes)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkIDKw8CDe0

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-6sQEuSwzw

The tryanny of the canon

Scott Matthewman — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 08:13:22 +0000

Via Stuart, I’ve spent the last half hour reading a long and eloquent piece about the concept of show ‘canonicity’, with special attention to the concept around a show like Doctor Who:

We’ve moved from a canon which didn’t exist because nobody got round to establishing one, to a canon which doesn’t exist because the only person who could establish one himself rejects both the idea and the very logic of writerly authority on which it stands.

While this is going on, the TV series itself is making direct and explict reference to events, concepts, continuity points, planets, companies and foodstuffs from the novels and comics while establishing that Time is in flux (The Unquiet Dead) and that stable facts aren’t meant to exist (Utopia). Which means that if there was a Doctor Who canon (and assuming the Welsh Series was part of it) then it would paradoxically include the fact that there was no Doctor Who canon.

With quotes not only from Russell T Davies but new showrunner Steven Moffat, TV episode writer Paul Cornell and tie-in novel authors Paul Magrs and Lance Parkin, it’s a powerful argument against the type of rigid thinking that has no place, not only in the Doctor Who universe, but in fiction in general.

Teatime Brutality: Canon and Sheep Shit: Why We Fight

Torchwood, Ianto and fandom’s big heart

Scott Matthewman — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 21:42:17 +0000

Spoiler warning: Don’t read further if you have not yet seen episode 4 of Torchwood: Children of Earth. Of course, if you want to watch it, chances are you already have, but still…

Fans of any persuasion can be an odd bunch. I know, I am that person. There are so many huge benefits to be had from bonding with other people over your love of something, whether it’s football (a passion I must admit I don’t share) or Doctor Who (which I do).

I get it. And I’ve come into contact with the best of fandom in recent years. From reviewing the BBC’s Any Dream Will Do every week, I came into contact with many subgroups: fans of Daniel Boys (his ‘kittens’), who took my good-natured comments about them being “quite mad” in the spirit it was intended. And of course there are the Loppies — fans of that series’ eventual winner, Lee Mead, who started talking to each other in the comments section of our blog and have stayed with us ever since.

There are negative associations, of course. If you incur the wrath of the hardcore supporter, then you know about it sharpish. On TV Today we’ve been on the receiving end from fans of Rupert Grint and Jonas Armstrong. In neither case were the attacks particularly justified, but there comes a point where, to the hardcore fans, that hardly matters.

Something similar happened over the last few weeks, following Torchwood: Children of Earth’s fourth episode, in which regular character Ianto Jones (Gareth David-Lloyd) came to a sticky end. A lot of anger was directed at Torchwood writer James Moran, on his blog and on Twitter, not because he wrote the episode (he didn’t) but because he had an open door policy with his web communications.

Thankfully, that particular method of attacking individuals died down pretty quickly, although it has led to James taking a step back from his blog — and please read that link, it expresses his feelings and reasons far better than I could.

But the hardcore Ianto fans are not giving up. They have set up a website, SaveIantoJones.com, in order to coordinate various forms of peaceful, polite protest.

And one way they’ve decided to show their support for their favourite character is unusual — by raising money for the BBC’s resident charity, Children in Need. As I write, the total they have raised to date is just under £3,000. And that’s an impressive amount of money whatever the reason for its collection.

Again, it shows that within fandom, there is the potential for much goodness. Although I do believe that the organisers are mistaken when they say:

While the BBC have remained polite and well-mannered, in response to a very peaceful campaign, Mr. Davies has made it clear in recent interviews that he views his fans with contempt, and as disposable, which saddens us.

I don’t think anybody could be more wrong; I truly believe Russell gets it. Watch Love & Monsters, part of Series 2 of Doctor Who written by Russell T Davies, and you’ll see a group called L.I.N.D.A., a group of people who start meeting for one reason and gradually become people who meet up because they are friends. It’s one of the most perfect representations of fandom you’re ever likely to see. And anybody who writes like that really, truly, does not consider fans to be worthy of contempt. That doesn’t mean that fans are bigger than the subject of their support, though.

The SaveIantoJones fans are doing some great work and their fundraising efforts will do enormous good — even though their ultimate aim, of bringing a dead fictional character back to life, is doomed to fail. If their work brings them together as friends too, then that will be a further upside.

Paul Kasey: The man in the steel mask

Scott Matthewman — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 12:05:12 +0000

Originally published in The Stage

Costume actor Paul Kasey has played a variety of monsters on Doctor Who, from Autons to Ood. As he prepares to play the Cyberleader in this year’s Christmas special, he tells Scott Matthewman how he got the job

“I do get asked by children if I can go and put my Cyberman suite on. I’ve been asked by a couple as well, which caught me completely off guard. People think I’ve got them all hanging in my bedroom.”

He’s been one of the more regular cast members on Doctor Who since it returned to the screens in 2005, but unless you were a keen-eyed viewer of documentary series Doctor Who Confidential, the chances are that you wouldn’t recognise him. Paul Kasey is one of several actors who regularly play monsters in the series, and this Christmas is performing in a number of roles as a variety of Cybermen in the Christmas Day episode, The Next Doctor.

“I can’t wait to see it,” he says. “This time as well as the Cybermen, there are Cybershades, the Cyberleader and then there’s the Cyber controller. And I’ve been all of them.”

While this episode is set during a snow-laden Victorian Christmas, it was actually shot during the summer - but the costumes were not too uncomfortable, he says. “A lot of the time we were filming outside, and you tend to be the one that’s nice and cosy, while everyone else is putting jackets on and trying to keep warm. On interiors though, depending on how small the room or the set is, with all the lights and the people and everything, then it can become quite warm. But we drink lots of water, and when they’re setting up all the different shots we get plenty of breaks.”

Although he’s been playing monsters in Doctor Who for a number of years, his start in the profession was by no means out of the ordinary. “I originally trained at Laine Theatre Arts in Surrey, starting there in 1990 on a three year course, although I got awarded a scholarship so I did a fourth year. I trained in every aspect of dance, musical theatre, acting and singing.

“I was quite lucky, because at the time they allowed you to work as well as train, so I was working from my second year onwards. I did pantomime and summer seasons, but I also did trade shows with Kim Gavin, who at the time was choreographing Take That. He would come down to Laine’s and get students to do some of his fashion and trade shows as well.”

The work continued after he left college, at which point he also started auditioning for musicals. A two-year spell in Grease at the Dominion Theatre followed, and in 2000 he performed in Fosse in the West End for a year. “Fosse was just going on a world tour, which I wanted to do and never, ever wanted to leave it. But just coming up towards finishing that initial run, I auditioned for a role in the film Blade II, although I didn’t hear anything for a while. There was about a 15 week gap before Fosse went on tour, and I auditioned for and got a job on a cruise ship for 12 weeks, which would have fit in that gap perfectly. The contract for that was in the post, and then I had a phone call from the Blade II production company saying they’d like to offer me one of the parts.”

The role in the Wesley Snipes-led vampire sequel was of a Reaper, and would signal the start of a career in prosthetics work for Kasey. He followed it up with a role in British horror film 28 Days Later, in which he played an infected human. “I sort of went back to dancing after that, but at this point it was more sort of doing the odd choreographic work and lecturing as well.

“And then I auditioned for Doctor Who. They were looking for five main creature role people who had a background in prosthetics and costume work. And when they offered me the job, I really couldn’t say no to it, because it’s become something I’ve absolutely loved since getting my first taste of it on Blade II.”

Since featuring in the first episode of the revival as an Auton, a shop window dummy that comes to life, Kasey has worked on all four series of Doctor Who as well as spin-offs Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures. When it comes to developing a style of movement for each new species, the approach can vary slightly. “On Doctor Who, we have a choreographer called Ailsa Berk, and she deals with the movement of all the monsters and creatures like the Cybermen and the Ood. She gets the script and works out what’s needed with the director, then she rehearses with us. With something like Torchwood’s Weevil, I was just asked to do it. So I had to read the script and the breakdown of the creature itself, and while on set work with the director.

“But also, when I have the fittings at [costume creators] Millennium FX, you get a good sort of idea of how you want a creature to move in your own mind’s eye. And obviously, as time progresses, you can tweak it as you go along. Having the background in dance and movement is a great asset, just to have that knowledge and that physical awareness of how creatures move.”

The costumes Kasey has been given to wear all vary substantially, he says. “Some of them may have an animatronic head, you might have gloves, or they can be a full suit like the Cybermen. They’re all challenging in their own way. There are never two monsters which are exactly the same. They are comfortable - very comfortable - and any potential problems get sorted out at fittings prior to filming.

“You do have to be careful though, especially with costumes like the Slitheen or the Cybermen. In the suits we’re quite big, so you have to look after the suits, making sure you sit down carefully. When we’re up on set, a team from Millennium FX is there looking after everyone and making sure everyone’s okay. I do get very well looked after.”

Maybe it’s just as well that he has a team around him, as other people tend to shy away from the characters he plays. “What can tend to happen, and often does, is that you’ll go up on set and people can back away and not really want to speak to you. Even though they know someone’s inside, or they know who’s inside, on the outside we look completely different and they react to that. They’re not intentionally trying to alienate you, you know, but it can tend to happen.

“When I did 28 Days Later, and the sequel 28 Weeks Later [in which he also acted as a movement adviser], at lunch people wouldn’t sit with you. But when you’re covered in blood and look that gruesome, that’s completely understandable. So the only people that would tend to sit and talk to you are the people who have made the prosthetics, or the make-up artists who have made you up, because they’re quite used to it.”

Being encased in a costume also brings a degree of anonymity. “When I was the Weevil in Torchwood and we first started filming, I’d be there with my head on, which had to be glued down and all painted in. So none of the cast members had actually seen me and didn’t really know what I looked like. What tends to happen is that you go in the dinner queue and no-one really knows who you are, which is quite funny.” A positive aspect to the anonymity is the prospect of repeat work on Doctor Who. “Once you’ve been seen, and possibly killed, on Doctor Who, then you can’t really come back. If something was to come along and someone was to say, ‘We’d like you to play this part,’ and it wasn’t a creature, then I’d be all up for it. But it’s not like I’m desperate to get out and be me, if you see what I mean. I’m definitely in my element and loving it. It’s great fun.”

Outside of the Doctor Who stable, Kasey can also be seen (albeit in costume again) as a Minotaur in the current film Inkheart, starring Brendan Fraser and Helen Mirren. 2009 will see him perform in BBC3’s supernatural drama Being Human, but he remains tight-lipped about his precise role. “I’m playing a creature, a very good one,” is all he can say at the moment.

While a full series of Doctor Who is not on the cards for transmission in 2009, a number of specials are due to be filmed before production starts on the fifth series later in the year. For Kasey, “Doctor Who starts up again just after Christmas. I’ve been asked to do the first recording block, which starts in January. There are three or four specials being filmed and then they go straight into the fifth series, so there’s not much of a rest for me.”

Along with the rest of the country, it seems, Kasey has also been caught up in the speculation about which actor will succeed David Tennant in the role. “I get asked all the time who it’s going to be, and I don’t know. Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant are completely different as actors, and in terms of how they bring the Doctor alive, but each is as fantastic as the other, really. I’m sure whoever comes in to play the Doctor after David will bring something as exciting and special as David and Christopher have.

“But it’s very exciting, isn’t it? And it’s making the news as well, which just goes to prove how big Doctor Who is. It came back, and just exploded! I know I’m part of it and everything but Saturday nights just aren’t the same now without watching a series of Doctor Who. It’s become such a big part of people’s lives and what they watch. Each episode in so completely special in its own way, and just as exciting as the last.”

The Ghosts of Christmas

Scott Matthewman — Sat, 24 Nov 2007 09:46:01 +0000

As I said back in October, my short story, Tell Me You Love Me is going to be included in the forthcoming anthology, Doctor Who Short Trips: The Ghosts of Christmas.

The Big Finish page for the book now includes an image, as well as a free PDF of one story from the collection — Faithful Friends, Part 1, by the book’s editors, Cavan Scott and Mark Wright.

It’s sad, though: my story features William Hartnell’s Doctor and the original TARDIS crew. Characters that were created at least in part by, and wouldn’t be remembered today without the inimitable talents of, the late Verity Lambert, who died on Thursday.

Thank you, Verity, for creating such a remarkable series, and for letting the likes of me play in the sandbox from time to time.

Why write?

Scott Matthewman — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 06:33:15 +0000

It may be a tough question to answer, but I love Neil Gaiman’s attempt:

The best thing about writing fiction is that moment where the story catches fire and comes to life on the page, and suddenly it all makes sense and you know what it’s about and why you’re doing it and what these people are saying and doing, and you get to feel like both the creator and the audience. Everything is suddenly both obvious and surprising (“but of course that’s why he was doing that, and that means that…”) and it’s magic and wonderful and strange.

I wouldn’t dare try and compare myself to Gaiman — I doubt I’ll ever achieve anything like one thousandth of his talents. I’m really looking forward to Stardust, my excitement only being tempered by the thought that the film can’t possibly compare to the novel (what film ever does?). That said, I do know what he means. Tell Me You Love Me will be my first published fiction work and a short story, but there were times writing it where I just got swept up and everything came out at speed. It’s happened before with the fanfic short stories I’ve written before; the pleasure increases slightly when you know you’re being paid for it, though.

Looking back at the proof PDF which I was sent last week, those points in the story still stand out as the best bits for me. It’s the portions where I had to include exposition, to write and rewrite and rewrite again to make sure that there was sufficient explanation, that stutter and falter. In contrast, I really love the opening few pages, which are largely unchanged from the very first draft. And reading it back, months now after I first wrote them, I can really detect the influence of Gaiman’s writing style upon my own. Hopefully, as I carry on writing that will develop into my own writing style, rather than an inferior copy of somebody else’s.

I was so scared, too, that as a first time writer, my work would stick out from that of the experienced writers with whom I’m contributing to The Ghosts of Christmas. But I’ve read the whole draft of the book several times now, and am beginning to feel less like the fraud I thought I may be when I was first offered the commission.

Next up, I have to decide if I’m going to have time to devote to NaNoWriMo this year. Other pressures last year meant that I just had no spare time to devote to writing, and I’m hoping that I can spend November 2007 writing 50,000 words of a first draft.

Coming soon: The Ghosts of Christmas

Scott Matthewman — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 11:08:07 +0000

I’ve mentioned bits and pieces about getting a short story published, without going into further detail. Now, though, my publisher has announced full details, so I can officially go public. My story, Tell Me You Love Me, is going to be published in Big Finish’s forthcoming short story anthology, Short Trips: The Ghosts of Christmas.

I’ve been so excited about this, ever since Cavan and Mark first asked me to pitch. From that point on, really, I’ve had to keep pinching myself to believe that it was actually happening.

Thanks to Mark and Cavan, who gave me some great notes back from my early drafts, I’m really quite happy with the way the story has come out. Since handing it over and getting the final draft signed off, I’ve looked back at it and wondered if I could have done various bits better (I’m sure the answer will be ‘yes’ on all fronts). I suspect, though, that I’d never be completely happy with it.

The Ghosts of Christmas will be published in December.

A 100-word biography

Scott Matthewman — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 21:42:58 +0000

As I mention on my About page, I’ve recently been lucky enough to have received a commission for my first professional piece of fiction — a short story for an anthology based around a certain TV show.

The story itself has been approved, is currently being typeset and the (small but historic) cheque has long since been cashed. The book itself will be out in a few months, but today, my editor emailed me asking for a 100 word biography for the frontispiece.

Initially, I couldn’t really think of what to include. My name, of course. Great. Only 98 words to go. Beyond that, though, what? It’s not like I can do what many other writers do, and wax lyrical about their wife, three kids (mention them all by name, it all adds to the word count) and sounds-palatial-but-I’m-a-writer-so-it’s-rather-more-squalid-than-that house somewhere in the Home Counties. And as this will be my first fiction work, I can’t list any previous achievements in that field.

So I figured the best thing to do is to concentrate on what writing achievements I have made (establish my credentials), make a passing reference to the subject matter at hand (signifying that I do, in fact, know what I’m talking about) and end on a joke (so that it’s not completely dull).

So this is what I came up with:

Scott Matthewman is Assistant Editor of The Stage, the British newspaper covering all aspects of the performing arts. In 2004, his website covering gay issues was named Best Political Weblog by The Guardian, and he now contributes on a regular basis to TV Today, The Stage’s blog about British television. He specialises in coverage of Saturday night entertainment, even when it doesn’t involve a time-travelling police box — although he remains convinced that musical theatre reality shows are part of a devious plan for world domination by aliens with jazz hands.

Tell Me You Love Me is Scott’s first published fiction.

Fingers crossed that’ll do.