8. "There's Only One Reason I Would Tell Anyone My Name"
Two weeks after it had been announced that Steven Moffat would be taking over the showrunner's reigns from Russell T Davies, Forest Of The Dead both concealed and revealed a special future relationship between River Song and the Doctor; one even more intimate than his friendship with Rose Tyler. Viewers were left to speculate about what kind of bond the 51st century archaeologist would develop with the Doctor. We had no idea whether it would be left to conjecture or be followed up in future stories. The smart money was on River Song being the Doctor's wife, and predictably this caused more than a few rumblings of discontent among traditionalists who prefer their Doctor to remain unattached and asexual. It was impossible to lip read the Doctor's reveal of his name to River Song. The same cannot be said of Steven Moffat's giveaway spoiler at the San Diego Comic Con 2008. When asked by fellow panellist Julie Gardener, "Is she the Doctor's wife?" he leaned forward and in full view of those sitting on the left, clearly whispered "yes." Tut, tut Steven, River would not have approved... spoilers.
Paul Driscoll is a freelance writer and author across a range of subjects from Cult TV to religion and social policy. He is a passionate Doctor Who fan and January 2017 will see the publication of his first extended study of the series (based on Toby Whithouse's series six episode, The God Complex) in the critically acclaimed Black Archive range by Obverse Books. He is a regular writer for the fan site Doctor Who Worldwide and has contributed several essays to Watching Books' You and Who range. Recently he has branched out into fiction writing, with two short stories in the charity Doctor Who anthology Seasons of War (Chinbeard Books). Paul's work will also feature in the forthcoming Iris Wildthyme collection (A Clockwork Iris, Obverse Books) and Chinbeard Books' collection of drabbles, A Time Lord for Change.