Doctor Who: 12 Steven Moffat Quotes You Might Not Have Heard
12. On His Own Scripts...
Whilst a lot of his haters seem to think the Moff is a critic-ignoring narcissist when it comes to his own scripts, in interviews he's always been very cagey to actually call his own work "Good", preferring to big up Matt Smith or the direction. When pressed for answers though, as he often was on the Doctor Who Forum, he's given some interesting insights into his work for the show. These are quotations that haven't been broadcast over the internet, but they still provide fascinating little observations of the pressure he must feel, writing the BBC's biggest export.
" I thought it was good, in so far as you can ever really judge these things. I worried about the lack of action, because nobody really breaks into a trot in it - even the monsters are inanimate objects. I thought, 'My God, this is just people standing in rooms being semi-urgent!' I'm genuinely surprised and faintly troubled by how popular it was. Because it means I know nothing. You've overturned every single possible rule of Doctor Who: there's no Doctor in it, the companion is an old-fashioned snob, who's posh and doesn't like the modern world. It couldn't be less like Doctor Who, yet it was a hugely successful show."
The Doctor Who Forum
"Today, I feel inclined to say 'The Big Bang' . Apart from the fact it has a filthy joke in the title that only I knew about at the time (if you work out when River Song was conceived)... atrocious... I just thought it was a great fun, funny, witty episode. I was proud of that one."
Gallifrey 2013 convention
" I always thought of it as a love story... the 'mind meld' scene (we all called it mental sex) was put in in the second draft, which hardly makes it a late addition. Actually it was one of the first ideas I had, but I couldn't find a place for it first time round. Still quite surprised how well it's gone down as an episode. I thought I'd get lynched, but this is good too."
The Doctor Who Forum
"Least favourite episode's probably easier . I think 'The Beast Below' is a bit of a mess."
