Doctor Who: 20 Things You Didn't Know About The Day Of The Doctor

18. The Episode Originally Began With A Voiceover

Doctor Who Christopher Eccleston The Day of the Doctor
BBC Studios

The Day of the Doctor begins with that iconic old-school Doctor Who title sequence, before transitioning into a scene of Clara teaching a class.

The quote she reads here ("Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be - be one") was director Nick Hurran's idea, and according to Steven Moffat, it took him absolutely ages to find.

Originally though, Moffat's script included a voiceover spoken by the Doctor (or somebody else, he wasn't fully sure), but this was abandoned simply because he didn't like it:

"Long ago, on the lost world of Gallifrey - the planet of the Time Lords - there was a legend much loved by the children. It told of a great hero who would return on their darkest day to save them all. But first, he would have to save himself."

Feels a bit too "Hollywood" doesn't it? A bit too on-the-nose. Definitely the right decision to cut it!

 
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Sometimes you hear my voice, sometimes you see my face and sometimes you read my words! But I’m usually away with the faeries and timelords! ?‍♀️

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Danny has been with WhatCulture for almost nine years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. He has been writing and video editing for 10+ years, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers and uploading them to YouTube (they're admittedly a bit rusty by today's standards). If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order or to tell you about the making of 1988's Remembrance of the Daleks, Danny is the person to ask.