The End of Time (TV story)

The End of Time is the title of the two-part Doctor Who special that will be broadcast during the 2009–2010 Christmas season. This will be the last story for David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor prior to the character's regeneration into his eleventh incarnation, who will be played by Matt Smith. It will also be the last Doctor Who story written by Russell T Davies, who shepherded the series' return to British television in 2005 and has been the series' executive producer and chief writer since. Davies will be succeeded as executive producer and showrunner by Steven Moffat.

The title The End of Time was first attributed to this story in a trailer unveiled at the San Diego ComicCon in July 2009; it was subsequently confirmed as the proper title for Part 2 in Doctor Who Magazine #412. On 19 November, the BBC announced that both parts will carry the title The End of Time, marking the first occasion since Survival in 1989 that the same title has been used for more than one episode. .

Part 2
The Doctor faces the end of his life as the Master's plans hurtle out of control. With the sound of drums growing louder, and an ancient trap closing around the Earth, the Doctor and Wilf must fight alone. But sacrifices must be made, and the deadly prophecy warns: "He will knock four times."

Part 1
The Doctor arrives on the Ood Sphere, and sees that the Ood have progressed further technologically than they should have. Ood Sigma takes the Doctor to the Ood Elders who show him visions of the Master returning. He sees an old woman taking the Master's ring and he realises that the essence of the Master survived his non-regeneration during their last encounter. The Doctor rushes to Earth in the TARDIS to try and stop his arch-enemy. Since her last appearance, Lucy Saxon has been imprisoned. One of the warders is Miss Trefusis, the woman who retrieved the Master's ring. On Christmas Eve night, the prison governor brings Lucy to a chamber where it is revealed that most of the staff are fanatics of the Master who have been working ever since his apparent death to bring about his resurrection. With the help of the ring and a biometric imprint taken from Lucy, the Master reappears in a swirl of energy, but Lucy and some other warders have prepared for this eventuality and Lucy hurls a harmful potion at the Master. The Doctor arrives to find the prison obliterated by the resulting explosion. The Master survives the blast, but his life force is left in a state of constant depletion, forcing him to drain the vitality of a number of homeless people on a desolate construction site. Like the Ood and many others on Earth, Wilfred Mott has experienced faded visions of the Master, and has been scouring London with other pensioners, under the group name the "Silver Cloak", to track down the Doctor. Wilf and the Doctor re-unite and the Doctor reveals that a prophecy has been made predicting his death. Later encountering the Master, the Doctor discovers that the drumming in his head is not a symptom of insanity, but perfectly real. A squad of troops suddenly appear, sedating and kidnapping the Master and taking him to the mansion of billionaire Joshua Naismith. Naismith and his daughter, Abigail, are in possession of the "Immortality Gate", which has restorative powers enabling the healing of injuries and, as Naismith hopes, the resurrection of the dead. Wanting to secure immortality for Abigail, Naismith enlists the assistance of the Master to mend the malfunctioning Gate. Infiltrating the Naismith estate, the Doctor and Wilf discover that two of Naismith's staff are undercover Vinvocci, members of the race which originally owned the Gate, and that its healing abilities can extend to the whole population of any given species across a whole planet. She and her partner are pressured into explaining the Immortality Gate is a device that heals lifeforms across entire planets. The Doctor realises the Master is going to harm to the Human race and goes to stop him. He gets to the immortality gate but is captured. After the Master breaks out of his straight jacket and flies into the gateway then because he has set the gateway to Human and he is in the the machine every Human on Earth then becomes copies of the Master with the exception of Wilf who is shielded in the control room and Donna, who due to the last time she travelled with the Doctor is half human - half Timelord. However as Donna witnesses her mother and her fiancée turn into clones of the Master she starts to remember everything that was erased from her memory. As the Master steps out of the gateway he tells the Doctor that he has turned the Humans into the "Master Race" as he looks round and everyone is the Master. As the Doctor looks round and every Master is laughing at him.

As the camera fades to black, the Narrator claims the Master and his removal of Humanity is only a small part of an approaching conflict. The Narrator then appears on-screen and it is revealed that he is a Time Lord by way of his robes, and is shown to addressing a large hall of fellow Time Lords and Time Ladies. The Time Lord proclaims that Gallifrey is restored, that the Time Lords have returned, and that this heralds the end of time itself.

Part 2
to be added

Cast

 * Tenth Doctor - David Tennant
 * Wilfred Mott - Bernard Cribbins
 * The Master - John Simm
 * Donna Noble - Catherine Tate
 * The Narrator - Timothy Dalton
 * The Woman - Claire Bloom
 * Joshua Naismith - David Harewood
 * Sylvia Noble - Jacqueline King
 * Lucy Saxon - Alexandra Moen
 * Eleventh Doctor - Matt Smith
 * The Visionary - Brid Brennan
 * The Second - Joe Dixon
 * The Partisan - Julie Legrand
 * Verity Newman - Jessica Hynes
 * Jack Harkness - John Barrowman
 * Sarah Jane Smith - Elizabeth Sladen
 * Luke Smith - Tommy Knight
 * Rose Tyler - Billie Piper
 * Jackie Tyler - Camille Coduri
 * Minnie Hooper - June Whitfield
 * Oliver Barnes - Barry Howard
 * Shaun Temple - Karl Collins
 * Addams- Sinead Keenan
 * Alonso Frame - Russell Tovey
 * Rossiter- Lawry Lewin
 * Time Lord/Leader of Council - Roger Bailey
 * Miss Trefusis - Sylvia Seymour
 * Governor - Teresa Banham
 * Nerys - Krystal Archer
 * Mr Danes - Simon Thomas
 * Σ|Ood Sigma - Paul Kasey
 * Ood Voices - Silas Carson
 * Ood Elder - Ruari Mears
 * Voice of Ood Elder - Brian Cox
 * Voice of Judoon - Nicholas Briggs
 * Trinity Wells - Lachele Carl
 * Winston Katusi - Allister Bain
 * Tommo -Pete Lee-Wilson
 * Abigail Naismith - Tracy Ifeachor
 * Bev - Eirlys Bellin
 * Serving Woman - Lacey Bond
 * Teenager - Max Benjamin
 * Ginger - Dwayne Scantlebury
 * Neighbour - Jeanie Gold
 * Monster - Jimmy Vee
 * Harriet Jones-Penelope Wilton

Crew
to be added

Airdates
On 1 December 2009, the BBC officially confirmed that Part One will air on 25 December 2009, followed by Part Two on 1 January 2010.

Both BBC America and the Canadian Space network have confirmed plans to air the two parts during the Christmas season. Part 1 airs on BBC America on 26 December 2009, followed by Part 2 on 2 January 2010. In Canada, Space has announced that both Part 1 and 2 will air on 2 January 2010. Airdates for Australia and New Zealand have yet to be announced as of 25th December 2009, although ABC1 in Australia is expected to show it in 2010.

Story Notes

 * This will be David Tennant's last appearance as the Doctor and also Matt Smith's first appearance.
 * The second part is confirmed to be 75 minutes, 4 longer than DW: Voyage of the Damned. Thus it will be the new holder of the title of third longest single episode, behind the 85 minute long DW: TV movie and the 90 minute long DW: The Five Doctors.
 * David Tennant has revealed that not all the episode will be set on Earth. Sure enough, part 1 features scenes on the Ood-Sphere and a preview clip of part 2 features scenes set on Gallifrey.
 * With this, his final Doctor Who story, Davies will have written or co-written no less than 10 consecutive episodes (this number counts two-parters as separate and also includes a mini-episode, but does not include Torchwood), an unprecedented accomplishment in the history of the franchise.
 * This is the first story of more than one episode since DW: Survival to have one overarching title. It is unknown if this is one-off or will be continued under Steven Moffat.
 * The Time Lords return after their apparent destruction in the Last Great Time War.
 * This is, along with the DW: TV Movie and DW: The Deadly Assassin are the only Doctor Who stories to feature narration. While the original episodes of the Tom Baker series suyndicated in America featured narration by Howard DaSilva, it did not appear in the original BBC broadcasts.
 * There is no traditional celebrity cameo in the story. Instead, a stand-in plays US President Barack Obama and stock audio from a speech of his is dubbed in.
 * The opening credits list David Tennant, John Simm and Bernard Cribbins. Simm is the first person to be credited in the opening credits for playing a villain.
 * It is interesting to note that despite this being David Tennant's last broadcast story as the Doctor, the last story he actually filmed for was SJA:The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith.
 * In the Doctor Who Confidential for this episode, the TARDIS in the opening titles bears the St. Johns Ambulance badge, a nod to the Eleventh Doctor.

Ratings

 * 10.0 Million - According to unofficial overnight figures. It achieved 42.2% of the audience share behind Eastenders and the Royal Family.

Filming Locations
to be added

Rumours

 * All the Tenth's Doctor's companions have been seen as appearing, except Martha and Mickey.
 * Prior to the BBC's official announcement in mid-November, it was unclear whether Part 1 and Part 2 would both carry the same title (as prior to this only the title of Part 2 had been confirmed by the network). Following the broadcast of DW: The Waters of Mars, Russell T. Davies was quoted in the media as saying the title of Part 1 would have six words, leading to speculation over what it might be before it was announced that the two chapters would share the title The End of Time.
 * It was hinted by Russel T. Davies that Donna Noble and/or Wilfred Mott will die, mentioning "Donna's final words" and speaking grimly of Wilf's fate in The End of Time; the plot summary mentions that sacrifices will be made
 * It has been rumoured that Harriet Jones will re-appear, but as of December 2009, nothing has been confirmed. She was also apprently killed of in DW: Journey's End. Judging by the off-screen nature of her apparant death, it may be possible.
 * It was rumored that Anthony Hopkins may appear due to a similar looking actor appearing in promo pictures. In truth, this was a fan attempt to start a wild rumor and he is not in the special.

The Immortality Gate

 * The Gate was mentioned by The Trickster in SJA: The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith
 * The Gate was also mentioned in an interview given by Russell T. Davies with the Radio Times in 2008 for the release of DW: The Next Doctor. He said: "But oh, what a Christmas that’s going to be. Let’s just say that dark forces are gathering already. The Gate is waiting and life will never be the same again…”
 * Another mention to 'The Gate' was made in another Radio Times interview, given by Davies. He said: "The Master's return is just the start of our biggest, most heart-breaking story yet. The Immortality Gate is waiting."

Trailers

 * A teaser trailer was shown at Comic-Con 2009. The voiceover is provided by Timothy Dalton.


 * "It is said that in the final days of planet Earth, everyone had a bad dream". An unknown person laughs after this. We then see multiple clips, including those of the Tenth Doctor, what may be a crazed Ood, Donna Noble, Wilfred Mott, Sylvia Noble and Shaun Temple, Then The Master with his head rising (Fans speculated this was the Ninth Doctor), David Harewood as Joshua Naismith, and a hooded man. The mood is very dark. The voice of Miss Trefusis says, "He returns". Then the Master is shown, with a dyed, blonde hair. He says, "My name is the Master". The tag line at the end of the trailer is "The End of Time", "Christmas 2009".


 * A trailer has been shown at the end of DW: The Waters of Mars on 15th November, RTD has said in DWM Issue 415 that a well known Hollywood actor will be voicing an alien in the episodes and has be heard in the trailer. It is unknown if this will be Timothy Dalton (who has been confirmed as playing a character called The Narrator) or another famous actor. This actor was revealed in the 5th-11th Dec issue of Radio Times to be Brian Cox.


 * The trailer at the end of Waters of Mars depicts the Master laughing insanely and somebody screaming silently, the Doctor on what appears to be a spacecraft or possibly in the immortality gate, an Ood saying "Every night, Doctor, we have bad dreams", Joshua Naismith in a large house, the Doctor on a construction site, the Doctor talking to Wilf in a cafe, Donna, an explosion in the middle of a town and the Doctor falling over, Lucy Saxon in prison, the Doctor in Naismith's mansion, Wilf closing his eyes as if he doesn't want to see the thing in front of him, the Doctor holding someones hand, the Master on a construction site in a black hoodie, the Doctor saying "I'm going to die", Donna on her phone crying or screaming as the camera zooms in on her eyes, the Doctor on a construction site, the Master's eyes, the Master saying "My name is the Master", the Doctor on a construction site with a load of explosions and electricity, the Master laughing and his flesh phasing out, revealing his skeleton beneath, and the Doctor staring with his face full of horror. A voice plays over the trailer: "Because a shadow is falling over Creation, and something vast is stirring in the dark... the darkness heralds only one thing... the end of Time itself."


 * A specially packaged preview of the first episode will be shown as part of the BBC Children in Need telethon on Friday 20th November. It was originally rumoured that the pre-credits teaser would be shown; however, Russell T Davies has confirmed in DWM Issue 415 that this sequence is too plot heavy to be broadcast out of context.


 * The Doctor arriving on the Ood Sphere dressed in his brown suit, wearing a cowboy hat and necklace of flowers. Ood Sigma is waiting for him, the Doctor is in a funny mood, Ood Sigma tells the Doctor he "should not have delayed", the Doctor replies that he's not going to go rushing to his death. The Doctor follows Sigma to a city built by the Ood. Sigma reveals that it has been a hundred years since the Doctor's last visit. The Doctor looks around in surprise and says that they could not have advanced that much in such a small amount of time (showing themselves to the Doctor in another time, building the city, telepathy). Sigma continues to say that the Ood mind is troubled, and every night they have bad dreams. Sigma then takes the Doctor to the Ood Elder (an Ood dressed in white with a larger brain) who is talking more to himself than anyone else saying it is returning and he is returning and they are returning, The Ood tell the Doctor to join them. The Doctor sits down and holds hands with them. The Doctor sees the image of the Master laughing. He says defiantly and darkly "That man is dead".


 * A new trailer was released on the 16th December, immediately after the Never Mind the Buzzcocks Doctor Who special, in which David Tennant was the host, with Catherine Tate and Bernard Cribbins as panellists.


 * A shot of the planet Earth, before cutting to the Doctor and the Ood circle, where, after seeong a vision of the Master, declares "that man is dead", the Master with his hood up, with a blond woman announcing "Tonight, he returns", the Master with a red collar around his neck, stating that "My name...is the Master", the Doctor saying how "...a part of him survived", the Master announcing "...never dying, the never ending drums, can't you hear it, the noise, the drumbeat, louder than ever before!", with shots of sparks flying from the TARDIS console, Donna on the phone and walking back slowly as if in fear, Lucy Saxon, the Doctor, the Master being resurrected, culminating with the Master hitting the Doctor in the chest with a lightning bolt. It ends with the Ood Elder stating that "Time is bleeding...the darkness heralds only one thing...the end of time itself".


 * A preview clip for The End of Time part 2 depicts the Time Lords during the Time War. A Time Lady known as The Visionary tells prophecies of the Time Lords losing the Time War, and another debates whether the Time Lords have lived long enough, before she is erased by the Narrator as he shouts I will not die!" The clip also showns partially-destroyed Gallifrey in ruins, and several Time Lords discussing the Doctor around a table in a darkened room, presumably hiding from the war and the Daleks.


 * An alternate trailer for Part 2 depicts the Doctor stating "Sometimes I think a Time Lord can live too long", a voiceover saying how "The day is almost upon us. This is the Doctor's final battle" a scene of Wilf using a advanced gun turret, Wilf handing the Doctor his gun as he says, sobbing "I don't want you to die", a window smashing open with great force, the Master saying "This is going to be...spectacular!", The Narrator chanting "Gallifrey rises!" to his fellow Time Lords, the Doctor informing Wilf that the Time Lords are returning, the Narrator stating "At last, we are gathered, for the end", with shots of the Master circling a room, and the Doctor looking terrified.

Discontinuity, Plot Holes, Errors

 * When the Master is restored to life, it is with a growth of facial hair, which he did not have prior to his death. (He had stubble when he regenerated into the Harold Saxon version of the Master, so arguably he is simply returning to the "default state" of this regeneration.)
 * He also has blond hair. (As the Master's bio metric data was needed for his resurrection, the only source was Lucy Saxon his wife, so it is possible her bio metric data was mixed in as well. Though actually when you first see the Master returning, he has his normal hair, and it is suggested that he dyed his hair blond as a disguise, as he would be too recognisable as Harold Saxon, a former Prime Minister of the country otherwise.)
 * Both Lucy's voice and personality seem dramatically different. (Since Lucy has been in jail she has had time to think about her actions with the Master, and has seen how evil see he was. Arguably, the first inklings of this "new" personality occur as far back as DW: Last of the Time Lords when she shoots and kills the Master.)
 * How does the sight of the Master make Donna remember? She has never met him before. (In DW: Journey's End, Donna gained all of the Doctor's memories and knowledge. She is thus well acquainted with the Master despite never having met him in person before.)
 * Barack Obama's name is pronounced wrong by Trinity Wells, who as an American news anchor would be well-versed in how to say the President's name. (Just because she is an American news anchor does not mean she has to pronounce names correctly all the time, it has been known for new anchors to make mistakes.)

Continuity

 * The fall of Torchwood is mentioned. Given that the Immortality Gate is involved and it was found at Mount Snowdon it would refer to DW: Army of Ghosts / Doomsday, or the recent fall of Torchwood 3 in Children of Earth
 * The Immortality Gate was previously referenced in SJA: The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith, as "the Gate"
 * When Donna remembers the Doctor several things from her time with him appear, included are Empress of the Racnoss, (DW: The Runaway Bride), the Adipose (DW: Partners in Crime), Ood (DW: Planet of the Ood), the Vespiform (DW: The Unicorn and the Wasp), Sontarans (DW: The Sontaran Stratagem/ The Poison Sky) and Davros (DW: The Stolen Earth / Journey's End). The Judoon (DW: The Stolen Earth) talking can also be heard in her memories.

DVD Release

 * It has been announced that the four specials plus The Next Doctor will be released in North America on both DVD and Blu-Ray in a box set on 2nd February 2010.