Partners in Time

An article in today's Manchester Evening News called "Meet the partners in time!" notes that, unlike in previous years, "the masterful, male Time Lord and his submissive, female assistant will be history-surfing companions boasting identical billing." "They really are written as a team. They have level pegging," producer Russell T Davies tells the News about the Doctor and Rose. "You couldn't have him as the dominant man and her as the humble assistant in this day and age." Davies notes that this Doctor has a sense of humour: "I think it's magnificent and it's very funny. It's not a knock-about farce, but it's laugh-out-loud funny. That's partly because Christopher Eccleston knew he had a reputation as a very serious actor and wanted to do it because he wished to reinvent himself and show how funny he could be. At the same time as being funny, he brings a tremendous weight. There's a good example in a scene where he is arguing with an alien. It's not tongue in cheek or ironic. He brings a real seriousness. And then, in the more everyday dialogue, he can have laugh." The article also discusses Rose's first entry into the TARDIS -- Davies' "absolute favourite" scene, which he calls "magnetic" -- and actress Billie Piper in general. "She's the hardest-working woman I have ever dealt with. People have this preconception about her being a former pop star, but she has an absolutely brilliant future as an actress. The scene where she walks into the Tardis is beautifully shot and beautifully acted. It's stunning." The article also mentions that the recent reports about the Daleks not saying "Exterminate!" is nonsense (also noted in the Sci-Fi Online article) and that viewers shouldn't expect heavy-handed morality tales: "It's fun, it's lively, it's for Saturday night. We don't want to bring in drama like global warming because no-one is going to watch. It's not about that at all - it's about fighting monsters but having a good drama along the way." You can read the full article by clicking on the link. (Thanks to Paul Engelberg, Tim Brook, Steve Tribe)