The Star Beast was a documentary that covered the production of 2023's first 60th Anniversary special, The Star Beast [+]Russell T Davies, adapted from Doctor Who and the Star Beast (Pat Mills and John Wagner), Doctor Who 2023 specials (BBC One and Disney+, 2023)..
It was the first full-length episode of Doctor Who: Unleashed to be broadcast on BBC Three.
Main subject[]
The production of The Star Beast.
Topics covered[]
- How the reunion of Donna Noble and the Doctor came about through the Doctor Who: Lockdown! Tweetalong.
- Russell T Davies re-introducing David Tennant as the Doctor, now in his fourteenth incarnation, and notes that the question of why this has happened is a thread that will run throughout the three 2023 specials.
- Catherine Tate and Tennant's opinions on returning to their roles.
- Yasmin Finney as Rose Noble.
- A graphic of the Noble family is shown.
- Finney's difficulties filming the deadnaming scene.
- The adaption of The Star Beast from Doctor Who Weekly's Doctor Who and the Star Beast, and Davies' love of the original comic.
- Dave Gibbons and Pat Mills's visit to the set to watch the filming of The Star Beast, with Tennant's meeting of the pair and request for them to sign a copy of the original magazine, and their reactions to meeting the Meep.
- The design, construction (by Millennium FX) and operation (requiring 6 people) of the Meep.
- The fact that Cecily Fay, the performer inside of the Meep cannot see, hear or breath when the head is on.
- The use of an earpiece for Fay to communicate with creature choreographer Paul Kasey.
- The role of Loren Clark and Elaine Morris as the costume creators/dressers.
- The role of Second Puppeteer Gerrard Moore to operate the eyes and ears of the Meep.
- The role of puppeteer Brian Herring to operate the mouse and nose of the Meep and provide the on-set voice.
- The role of Miriam Margolyes to provide the voice of the Meep.
- The role of Untold Studios to finish of the Meep in post-production.
- The role of Angharad Evans as 2nd Assistant Sound.
- The new TARDIS interior.
- A preview of the next episode, Wild Blue Yonder.
People interviewed[]
- David Tennant, The Doctor
- Catherine Tate, Donna Noble
- Russell T Davies, Writer & Executive Producer
- Yasmin Finney, Rose Noble
- Dave Gibbons
- Pat Mills
- Cecily Fay, Creature Performer
- Paul Kasey, Creature Choreographer
- Loren Clark, Costume Creator/Dresser
- Elaine Morris, Costume Creator/Dresser
- Gerard Moore, Second Puppeteer
- Brian Herring, Puppeteer & On-Set Voice
- Miriam Margolyes, Voice of the Meep
- Angharad Evans, 2nd Assistant Sound
Crew[]
| Executive Producer Jo Pearce |
| Executive Producer Doctor Who Russell T Davies |
| Series Producer & Editor Ian Durham |
| Presented by Steffan Powell |
General production staff
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Camera and lighting department
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General post-production staff
Sound
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| With special thanks to Doctor Who Cast and Crew and Bad Wolf LTD. |
| Not every person who worked on this episode was credited. The absence of a credit for a position doesn't necessarily mean the job wasn't required. The information above is based solely on observations of the actual end credits of the episodes as broadcast, and does not relay information from IMDB or other sources. |
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Produced by Bright Branch with BBC Studios Productions |
Releases[]
The episode received the following broadcasts:[1]
| Day | Time | Channel |
|---|---|---|
| 25 November 2023 | 19:30 | BBC Three |
| 23:45 | BBC One except Scotland and Scotland HD | |
| 26 November 2023 | 1:00 | BBC One Scotland and Scotland HD only |
| 3:25 | BBC Three | |
| 21:00 |
Notes[]
to be added
External links[]
- Official The Star Beast listing on bbc.co.uk
References[]
- ↑ BBC Three - Doctor Who: Unleashed, 60th Anniversary Specials, The Star Beast. bbc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 November 2023. Retrieved on 26 November 2023.