October 10, 2024
The Eighth Doctor speaks to Doctor Who Magazine about his legacy after the show's return in 2005, and his endless adventures with Big Finish...
Classic Doctor Who fans were recently treated to a live recording of The Stuff of Legend, a new series of audio adventures from Big Finish Productions. Eighth Doctor Paul McGann was joined by his companion India Fisher as Charley Pollard, in a special event at Cadogan Hall in London in September.
Doctor Who Magazine caught up with Paul McGann during rehearsals, and spoke to him about the Eighth Doctor's legacy after Doctor Who: The Movie and the series' return in 2005 - scroll on for an exclusive extract from the interview...
The latest edition of Doctor Who Magazine (DWM) is on sale as of Thursday 10th October. It is available to order as a subscription, either physical or digital, here.
Eighth Doctor Paul McGann on handing over the keys to the TARDIS…
“The rumours began to solidify that the TV series would come back,” says Paul McGann of Doctor Who’s return in the mid-2000s. “I was thinking, ‘Am I suddenly going to get a phone call?’ I was curious. I thought, ‘Well, surely the tradition is that there’s a regeneration.’
“I thought maybe they’d ask me to come and do a day on this thing. But no! [Laughs.] That’s proper ‘sad actor’ isn’t it? When actors aren’t working, they sit in a room, looking out of a window, waiting for the phone to ring. And that was me for all those years. And the phone didn’t ring!
“After a while, they were up and running with the TV series, and we carried on [doing audio dramas for Big Finish Productions]. But that’s when these other layers suddenly began to appear. Around the same time, I was being educated about the presence of the novels and the artwork stories. There were all these different levels of it…”
Eighth Doctor Paul McGann and his companion India Fisher are interviewed by Tom Spilsbury in the new issue of Doctor Who Magazine out on Thursday 10 October.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
EXCLUSIVE! The latest addition to the TARGET BOOKS range – THE EVIL OF THE DALEKS by Frazer Hines is included with this issue!
PLUS! A full-length Eighth Doctor audio drama download
- Eighth Doctor PAUL McGANN and companion INDIA FISHER talk about their roles and their wider Doctor Who career in a break from rehearsing for the live performances of audio play The Stuff of Legend.
- RUSSELL T DAVIES brings us an update on Ncuti Gatwa’s second series…
- THE WAR BETWEEN THE LAND AND THE SEA – an exclusive preview of this Doctor Who spin-off including a message from producer Edo Ferretti, and executive producer Phil Collinson on the cast.
- Monster magic! The performers behind the creatures stalking the latest Doctor Who Prom share their experiences with DWM.
- Script to Screen on the episode Boom – discover the design process behind the deadly Villengard ambulance.
- The Fact of Fiction – It’s been an endless source of fascination for DWM over the years – Alan Barnes scrutinises the Fifth Doctor two-parter Black Orchid.
- This Month In… 1977. Find out the newspapers’ initial reaction to K9!
- Stand-up comedian Alison Zrada considers the pitfalls of leaving home to travel with the Doctor…
- Comic strip action with the Fifteenth Doctor and Ruby.
SEASON 25 BLU-RAY – SPECIAL FEATURES!
- A story-by-story guide to the reimagined versions of Remembrance of the Daleks, The Happiness Patrol, Silver Nemesis and The Greatest Show in the Galaxy included in the forthcoming Season 25 Blu-ray release.
- A look back at daytime TV’s celebration of the 25th Anniversary.
- We talk to producer Eric Luskin about the documentary – that he made for the New Jersey Network in the eighties – covering the making of Silver Nemesis…
- Rounding up our coverage of Season 25, we speak to Dick Fiddy and Justin Johnson about the BFI screening of The Happiness Patrol.
REGULAR FEATURES
- Gallifrey Guardian – the latest news from the Whoniverse.
- Shelf Life – including reviews of the latest books and audio releases.
- Other Worlds – the essential guide to new stories in Doctor Who’s expanded universe.
- Prizes to be won including the new Season 25 Blu-ray box set, The Gold Archive hardback and a new audio adventure for the Fifteenth Doctor and Ruby.
The latest edition of Doctor Who Magazine (DWM) is on sale as of Thursday 10th October. It is available to order as a subscription, either physical or digital, here.
