Quote:
Originally Posted by Mick Fisher
Not really, I've seen series that were far better than the current Dr Who series get canned or partially canned. F1 comes to mind.
Viewer numbers are not the whole story, there is also the cost factor. The current Who series looks to be relatively cheap to produce and so in the present economical clime may be on the back burner when it comes to the axe swinging.
Of course everything mediawise is extremely subjective.....
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Again, you're trying to understand the process through the highly subjective prism of 'better'. What is 'better' though?
Doctor Who is by no means cheap to make. Back in 2005 it was costing about a million per episode. The whole production was re-tooled for HD a couple of years ago and is quite possibly now costing even more.
However, the series makes the BBC an absolute fortune in worldwide sales to other broadcasters and merchandising. Making profitable telly is not a core charter obligation on the BBC but it certainly helps keep those shows that are profitable on the air. Doctor Who's UK audience is as strong as ever and its commercial value is as strong as ever. On those bases, there is no danger of it getting canned any time soon, even if you think the last series wasn't very good.