Initially, Russell T. Davies intended the Ninth Doctors Regeneration at the end of the Series 1 finale The Parting Of The Ways to be the programmes first surprise Regeneration. Even going so far as to write and shoot a fake ending where a Tardis scan revealed that Rose was dying that ultimately went unused. However, the eagerness of the BBCs publicity department put a stop to this when they announced Christopher Ecclestons departure from the series before the first episode was even broadcast, ruining any chance of Doctor Who having a surprise Regeneration and making the fake ending completely useless.
16. The Six Doctors
The Five Doctors is widely loved as a fun celebration of Doctor Whos twentieth anniversary featuring a huge range of companions, monsters, and the first appearance of legendary Time Lord Rassilon. The first draft however, was a lot different. Written by Robert Holmes, The Six Doctors would have focussed on the Cybermen attempting to extract the DNA of the five incarnations of the Doctor and become Cyberlords. The Sixth Doctor of the title would have been a robotic duplicate of the First Doctor. After disagreements with Holmes on the story, the BBC commissioned seasoned Who writer Terrence Dicks to rewrite the episode which went on to become the anniversary special that we all know and love.
JG Moore is a writer and filmmaker from the south of England. He also works as an editor and VFX artist, and has a BA in Media Production from the University Of Winchester.
