10 Things Everyone Always Gets Wrong About Modern Doctor Who

When River Song was first introduced back in Silence in the Library, there were many prevailing questions about who River was. A future companion, the Doctor's wife, or the Doctor themselves? These questions lingered, with confirmations sprinkled throughout the show until the Series 6 mid-series finale, A Good Man Goes to War, where we are told that, in good old Moffat fashion, River or Melody Pond, is, in fact, the daughter of the Ponds.

You may have heard some of this story: as this was a big reveal, Steven Moffat understandably wanted to keep it under wraps so it wouldn't leak out, and he had written multiple endings and reveals. Some even included The Doctor's "true name". 

This meant that not everyone on set knew the true identity. It was believed that this extended to both Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill, which is not true. While Matt Smith and Alex Kingston were alerted to the true identity before the episode's script reading, Karen and Arthur were privately informed of the twist by Moffat. As an Actor, the writer and director must give you as much information as possible to deliver the best possible performance; hiding such an important piece of information from the actors who need to emote through such a series-defining scene would, in short, be shooting themselves in the foot.