Inspirations: The End of Time (I & II)

The End of Time is the only two-part story since 2005 which does not have a separate title for each instalment.

It was designed to see out not just David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor, but pretty much the whole production team behind him. The biggest change behind the scenes was the stepping down of Russell T Davies as show-runner after 5 years, 2 Doctors and 3 full-time companions.

As we've previously mentioned, the quantity and scheduling of the 2009 specials remained fluid for quite some time - the only "known" being that the last of them would inevitably be the regeneration story.

It was finally decided that the story would be shown over the festive period of 2009, and when it became clear that it would be a two-parter, the decision was made to show it on Christmas night and on New Year's night, of 2010. Steven Moffat would then launch his new series, with new Doctor Matt Smith, in the Spring of 2010. At one point it had been thought that The End of Time could be shown in two parts on the same night - in the same way the soaps had split double episodes on Christmas night.

Thoughts had been given to including the Master in one of the Specials, and RTD decided to make him the main villain for the final one. Tennant and John Simm had enjoyed working with each other, and the actor had expressed an interest in returning for a final time. Simm actually turned down a major stage role to reprise the Master.

In resolving his story arc - explaining away the drumming in his head which hadn't been a feature of any previous incarnation - it was also decided to bring back the Time Lords. They were the obvious culprits.

They had been categorically wiped out back in Series 1, off screen in the gap between the Eighth and Ninth Doctors in the Time War, but it was possible to depict them at a point just before the Doctor destroyed them. RTD reasoned that they would have gone to extreme measures to survive the War, and so would no longer be the aloof, peaceful observers of previous years. They had embarked on a war to the death for a start.

RTD could have had Borusa resurrected to lead them, but elected to go with Rassilon instead. Whilst only seen once as an elderly (dead?) man, dialogue in The Five Doctors had suggested that he may have been something of a tyrant, who was turned against by his own people for his cruelty.

The idea of using lesser species to fight for his entertainment certainly did not sit well with him being an enlightened ruler.

The role would be ideal for a big name guest artist - and what better than a James Bond.

As far as a companion was concerned, RTD wanted to resolve Donna's story, but she had been left in the condition that recalling her travels with the Doctor would kill her. She could be included, but be oblivious to events surrounding her. RTD had previously liked the idea of an older female companion, had he gone with the hotel storyline that might have starred Helen Mirren or Judy Dench. Why not an older male one? This story would allow him to give the hugely popular Bernard Cribbins a significant role as Donna's grandad Wilf Mott.

Cribbins had been disappointed not to have had a scene in the TARDIS in Series 4.

RTD had decided on the Tenth Doctor's final words as far back as September 2007, when planning for the story had begun. Later that year he met with Moffat to discuss the handover, promising to set up the Doctor at a point which suited his replacement to take over (in the TARDIS, and wearing a tie). They also discussed elements to be included in the Specials which ought to be avoided if Moffat intended to include them in Series 5.

The original idea for the story was much more low key - RTD thinking that the Doctor's demise should arise from a fairly mundane event. He would save the life of an alien who was travelling on a spaceship with his family - the Doctor sacrificing his own life and suffering radiation poisoning. 

There were shades of Terminus in that the spaceship's destruction might trigger the birth of the Solar System or even of Gallifrey.

Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter pushed for something more spectacular, and so it was decided to have a rematch with the Master.

The scene with someone picking up the Master's ring (containing his genetic material) from his funeral pyre in Last of the Time Lords had been included by RTD in case someone wanted to bring the character back - little realising at the time that it would be him.

RTD was inspired by the closing scene of Flash Gordon - the 1980 film version - which hinted at Ming the Merciless' survival.

The seemingly occult resurrection of the Master was inspired by that of Voldemort in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

At a very early stage RTD decided on the Doctor's "farewell tour" of old companions. Moffat was going to start with a clean slate, and it might be the last time we saw some of them in the parent series, although The Sarah Jane Adventures and Torchwood were still in production at this time.

Which characters appeared depended on actors' availability. Elton Pope from Love & Monsters was one possibility, and it was decided that Jessica Hynes appearance could be dispensed with if she wasn't free to feature as Joan Redfern's granddaughter. 

Only Rose and Donna were essential for the tour.

Donna would finally get married, and would receive a winning lottery ticket as a gift - setting her up for the future.

Initial thoughts would be that all the companions sensed the Doctor's demise - including Rose and her Doctor on Pete's World.

Having killed off half of the Torchwood team, RTD had toyed with the idea of adding Mickey to the team now that he had returned from Pete's World in Journey's End. He and Martha were to be married now, so both actors had to be free on the same day for the filming of their scenes with a cameo from a Sontaran.

Captain Jack's scene was set in the city of Zaggit Zoo, on the planet Zog. RTD had previously used the planet Zog as an example of the sort of alien world which casual viewers would fail to engage with - hence his setting of every story of Series 1, and most of 2, on or near Earth.

The bar could be filled with a variety of old monsters, and was inspired by the Star Wars cantina sequence.

Wilf taking to the spaceship cannons was another Star Wars inspiration.

Early thoughts saw the Doctor and Master teaming up, and the latter sacrificing himself to save the Doctor. The two Time Lords may have body-swapped at one point, though RTD realised he had done this on New Earth. 

The cliffhanger to Part 1 might have been the apparent destruction of Earth.

Once the story took shape, things could be threaded through the earlier episodes to prefigure events here. These began with the Ood warning that the Doctor's song would be ending soon in Planet of the Ood, and the appearance of Ood Sigma at the conclusion of The Waters of Mars. The End of Time would begin with the Doctor visiting the Ood-Sphere. Here he would mention marrying Queen Elizabeth - which went back to The Shakespeare Code.

"He will knock four times" was said by Carmen in Planet of the Dead. Fans would be led to think that this referred to the Master's drumming sound, but would eventually be seen to be Wilf - in a scene which began life with the aborted spaceship family scenario. Wilf wasn't always going to be the one trapped in the booth. It might have been an ordinary technician (named Keith) whom the Doctor sacrificed himself to save.

The alien Vinvocci were green-skinned cousins to the red-skinned Zocci, one of whom we met in Voyage of the Damned. Their spaceship was named the Hesperus - from the Tennyson poem The Wreck of the Hesperus.

RTD liked to simply reuse concepts for his subsidiary aliens - like putting animal heads on men in boiler suits.

Rassilon's plan was originally going to be swapping the Earth with Gallifrey, putting us into the Time War in its place.

The Woman in White was the Doctor's mother as far as RTD was concerned, though this would never be stated on screen - leaving fans to decide themselves who she might be (Susan or Romana perhaps).

Next time: new Doctor, new companion, new TARDIS, new titles, new producers, new show-runner, new era...