Oct 9, 2018
@TinDogPodcast reviews TV #DoctorWho #TheWomanWhoFellToEarth
277 – "The Woman Who Fell to Earth"277 – "The Woman Who Fell to
Earth"Doctor Who episodeDoctor Who Series 11 Episode 1 The Woman
Who Fell to Earth.jpgPromotional image for the episode, displaying
Yasmin (Gill), Ryan (Cole), The Doctor (Whittaker), Graham (Walsh)
and Grace (Clarke)CastDoctorJodie Whittaker (Thirteenth
Doctor)CompanionsBradley Walsh (Graham O'Brien)Tosin Cole (Ryan
Sinclair)Mandip Gill (Yasmin Khan)OthersSharon D. Clarke –
GraceSamuel Oatley – Tim ShawJohnny Dixon – KarlAmit Shah –
RahulAsha Kingsley – SoniaJanine Mellor – JaneyAsif Khan – Ramesh
SunderJames Thackeray – AndyPhilip Abiodun – DeanStephen MacKenna –
DennisEveral A Walsh – GabrielProductionDirected by Jamie
ChildsWritten by Chris ChibnallScript editor Nina MétivierProduced
by Nikki WilsonExecutive producer(s) Chris ChibnallMatt StrevensSam
HoyleIncidental music composer Segun AkinolaSeries Series 11Length
63 minutesOriginally broadcast 7 October 2018Chronology← Preceded
by Followed by →"Twice Upon a Time" —Doctor Who episodes
(1963–1989)Doctor Who episodes (2005–present)"The Woman Who Fell to
Earth" is the first episode of the eleventh series of the British
science fiction television programme Doctor Who. It is written by
new head writer and executive producer Chris Chibnall, directed by
Jamie Childs, and was first broadcast on BBC One on 7 October 2018.
It is the first episode to star Jodie Whittaker in her first full
appearance as Thirteenth Doctor, and introduced her new companions
– Bradley Walsh as Graham O'Brien, Tosin Cole as Ryan Sinclair, and
Mandip Gill as Yasmin Khan. The episode also guest stars Sharon D.
Clarke, Johnny Dixon and Samuel Oatley.
The story focuses on a group of people who come across a new alien
threat together within Sheffield, and find themselves banding
together with the recently regenerated Doctor, who has been
separated from the TARDIS since the events of "Twice Upon a Time".
As the group seek to understand the threat, they find themselves in
danger as well, and discover that the recently arrived aliens are
planning a hunt upon a single human, leading the Doctor to
co-ordinate an attempt to prevent this happening and save the group
from danger.
This episode is the first to be led by Chibnall, alongside
executive producers Matt Strevens and Sam Hoyle, after Steven
Moffat and Brian Minchin stepped down at the conclusion of the
tenth series, while marking the third production era of the revived
series, following Russell T. Davies' run from 2005–2010, and
Moffat's from 2010–2017. This episode marked a change in the
programme's broadcasting schedule, with both it and subsequent
episodes being broadcast regularly on Sundays, instead of Saturdays
as had been done since Doctor Who was revived, while the episode
premiered without the traditional opening credits, as had occurred
before with "The Day of the Doctor" (2013) and "Sleep No More"
(2015). Since its first broadcast in the UK, the episode has
received positive reviews from critics, as well as an overnight
rating of 8.20 million viewers, the highest since "The Time of the
Doctor" (2013).
Contents1 Plot2 Production2.1 Development2.2 Casting2.3
Filming2.4 Promotion3 Broadcast and reception3.1 Television3.2
Cinemas3.3 Ratings3.4 Critical reception4 References5 External
linksPlotRyan, a dyspraxic young man, struggles to ride a bike and
throws it off the hill in frustration. Searching for it, he touches
some strange lights, causing a blue pod to appear. Concerned, Ryan
calls the police, receiving help from PC Yasmin Khan, an old school
friend. Meanwhile, Ryan’s grandmother, Grace, her husband, Graham,
and another passenger, Karl, find themselves trapped onboard their
train with a floating orb of writhing tentacles and electricity.
They call Ryan, and he and Yasmin head for the train, arriving just
as the Doctor suddenly falls through the carriage ceiling. The orb
departs after hitting everyone with an energy bolt.
Karl leaves, but the others follow the Doctor, who suffers from
post-regeneration amnesia. She discovers the orb implanted DNA
destroying bombs into each of them, liable to explode at any time.
Finding the pod has disappeared, they track it down to a warehouse.
They learn that the warehouse belonged to Rahul, a local man who
took the pod he connected with the disappearance of his sister but
was killed when a second alien emerged from it. The Doctor, missing
her sonic screwdriver, constructs another from spare parts.
The group intercepts the orb creature, revealed to be a mass of
biological data-gathering coils. The second alien suddenly appears,
revealing himself as Tzim-Sha, a Stenza warrior hunting humans for
sport, Rahul's sister the target of a previous hunt. A furious
Doctor demands Tzim-Sha leave the planet, but he collects the data
of his target, Karl, from the coils and teleports away.
The group track down Karl, a crane operator, to a construction
yard. The Doctor, Ryan, and Yasmin climb another crane to save Karl
before Tzim-Sha can reach him. Tzim-Sha captures Karl, but the
Doctor, recalling her identity, orders Tzim-Sha to leave him, or
face losing the pod's recall device and being stranded on Earth.
Tzim-Sha detonates the DNA bombs, but the Doctor reveals that she
transferred the bombs into the Coils, unwittingly self-implanted by
Tzim-Sha when he downloaded the data. The Doctor thrusts the recall
device at Tzim-Sha and he transports himself away. Grace
successfully destroys the coils but is fatally injured after
falling from the crane.
Following Grace's funeral, the Doctor tells the group she must find
the TARDIS. After building a teleport, she bids the group goodbye,
but inadvertently brings them with her into deep space.
ProductionDevelopmentIt was announced in January 2016 that the
tenth series would be Moffat's final series as executive producer
and head writer, after seven years as showrunner, for which he was
replaced in the role by Chris Chibnall in 2018.[1] Matt Strevens
serves as executive producer alongside Chibnall, as well as Sam
Hoyle.[2][3]
A new logo was unveiled at the BBC Worldwide showcase on 20
February 2018. This logo was designed by the creative agency Little
Hawk, who also created a stylized insignia of the word "who"
enclosed in a circle with an intersecting line.[4] Murray Gold
announced in February 2018 that he would step down as the
programme's composer, having served as the musical director since
2005, and that he would not be composing the music for the eleventh
series.[5] On 26 June 2018, producer Chris Chibnall announced that
the musical score for the eleventh series would be provided by
Royal Birmingham Conservatoire alumnus Segun Akinola.[6]
Casting
Whittaker at the 2018 San Diego Comic-Con, where she promoted her
first full series.The episode introduces Jodie Whittaker as the
Thirteenth Doctor. Her predecessor Peter Capaldi departed from his
role as the Twelfth Doctor after the tenth series, having played
the role for three series.[7] His final appearance was in the 2017
Christmas special, "Twice Upon a Time".[8] Moffat stated in
February 2017 that Chibnall tried to persuade the actor to continue
into the eleventh series, but despite this, Capaldi still decided
to depart.[9]
The search for the actor to portray the Thirteenth Doctor, led by
Chibnall, began later in 2017, after he completed work on the third
series of the ITV series Broadchurch, for which he is also the head
writer and executive producer. Chibnall had the final say on the
actor, although the decision also involved Charlotte Moore and
Piers Wenger, the director of content and head of drama for the BBC
respectively.[10] Media reports and bookmakers speculated as to who
would replace Capaldi as the Thirteenth Doctor, with Ben Whishaw
and Kris Marshall among the most popular predictions.[11] On 16
July 2017, it was announced after the 2017 Wimbledon Championships
men's finals that Whittaker would portray the thirteenth
incarnation of the Doctor.[7]
The episode also introduces a new set of companions, including
Bradley Walsh, Tosin Cole, and Mandip Gill as Graham O'Brien, Ryan
Sinclair and Yasmin Khan, respectively.[12][13] Actress Sharon D.
Clarke also appears as Ryan's grandmother and Graham's wife,
Grace.[12][14][15] The episode also guest stars Johnny Dixon and
Samuel Oatley.[16][17]
FilmingJamie Childs directed the first and seventh episode of the
series in the opening production block, having directed Whittaker's
introduction video as the Thirteenth Doctor.[3][18]
Pre-production for the eleventh series began in late October
2017.[3] After filming for the series was expected to begin in late
2017,[10][2][19] it officially began with the first episode in
November 2017.[20] The eleventh series was shot using Cooke and
Angénieux anamorphic lenses for the first time in the series'
history, a creative decision made in order to make the show look
more cinematic.[21]
PromotionThe first teaser for the series was released during the
final of the 2018 FIFA World Cup on 15 July 2018, almost exactly a
year after the announcement of Whittaker as the Thirteenth
Doctor.[22][7] Whittaker, Gill, Cole, Chibnall and Strevens
promoted the show with a panel at the San Diego Comic-Con on 19
July 2018,[23] where the first trailer was released.[24]
Broadcast and receptionProfessional ratingsAggregate scoresSource
RatingRotten Tomatoes (Average Score) 8.19[25]Rotten Tomatoes
(Tomatometer) 91%[25]Review scoresSource RatingDaily Mirror 4/5
stars[26]IGN 8.7[27]IndieWire B-[28]New York Magazine 4/5
stars[29]Radio Times 3/5 stars[30]The A.V. Club B[31]The Telegraph
4/5 stars[32]The Guardian 4/5 stars[33]The Independent 4/5
stars[34]Television"The Woman Who Fell to Earth", the first episode
of the eleventh series, runs for a total of 63 minutes, while the
remaining episodes will run for an average of 50 minutes each,
after the episode count dropped from twelve to ten for this
series.[19][35] The episode was simulcast in the United States on
BBC America.[36] It breaks with previous practice in not using any
opening credits, similar to "The Day of the Doctor" (2013) and
"Sleep No More" (2015).[37]
CinemasThe premiere of the new series was held at Light Cinema in
Sheffield on 24 September 2018, as part of a red carpet event for
the episode and eleventh series.[38][39] "The Woman Who Fell to
Earth" will be released in select Australian cinemas on 8 October
2018,[40] and in the United States from 10–11 October.[41]
RatingsThe episode was watched by 8.20 million viewers overnight,
making it the highest overnight viewership since "The Time of the
Doctor" (2013), which received 8.30 million overnight viewers. The
episode had an audience share of 40.1% also.[42][43] It also marked
the highest overnight figure for a series premiere since "Partners
in Crime" (2008), the opening episode of the fourth series,
achieved 8.40 million viewers.[44]
Critical receptionThe episode currently holds a score of 91% on
Rotten Tomatoes, with an average score of 8.19. The site's
consensus reads "Jodie Whittaker easily embodies the best of the
titular time traveler in "The Woman Who Fell To Earth" and proves
that change can be a very, very good thing."[25]