I saw a tweet today from journalist Nigel Pauley)..:
Doctor Who’s ratings decline a big worry for BBC bosses .. despite being sandwiched between rating hits Countryfile and Call The Midwife it managed just over 4m viewers .. over 1m down on both shows.
...to which the SDP's Patrick O'Flynn replied:
Another victim of the Woke Orthodoxy. It's become a major turn off. I vote Laurence Fox to be the new Doctor - and watch those ratings soar.
The latest series reached peak 'preachy wokeness' last week with Orphan 55, an episode with a a Planet of the Apes-style 'twist': It was as Earth all along. The message? Do something about global warming now or you'll destroy Planet Earth and 'left behind' humanity will evolve into Dregs - monsters with bad teeth and no dentists.
Now, long-term fans of the programme will recall that the Jon Pertwee era had a strong environmentalist agenda at times and that his Doctor could wag his finger at humanity from time to time, but this was a huge clunking fist being rammed into viewers' faces, culminating in a long speech from Doctor Jodie that could have been read from a U.N. lectern. No wonder people called it 'the Greta Thunberg episode'. "Tonight's episode of Doctor Who was brought to you in association with Extinction Rebellion", someone else wrote. Subtle it wasn't.
I was away from the blog last week but still managed to monitor the social media reaction (via my mobile phone). I've never seen such an overwhelmingly negative response. About half the people though it too preachy and too badly-written but, curiously, a good chunk of those sympathetic to its message also felt it failed because of its badly-written heavy-handedness. Few people seem to have just enjoyed it, with most of those wholeheartedly approving of it doing so simply because of its message and the stridency of its advocacy.
None of that will have helped its viewing figures.
Oddly though, this week's episode (focusing on Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison) was pretty good, and by far the best of the Chris Chibnall era. (He didn't write it).
Anyhow, for fans of funny, sweary videos, here's someone else's take on Orphan 55 (h/t Biased BBC). It is spot-on:
Now, long-term fans of the programme will recall that the Jon Pertwee era had a strong environmentalist agenda at times and that his Doctor could wag his finger at humanity from time to time, but this was a huge clunking fist being rammed into viewers' faces, culminating in a long speech from Doctor Jodie that could have been read from a U.N. lectern. No wonder people called it 'the Greta Thunberg episode'. "Tonight's episode of Doctor Who was brought to you in association with Extinction Rebellion", someone else wrote. Subtle it wasn't.
I was away from the blog last week but still managed to monitor the social media reaction (via my mobile phone). I've never seen such an overwhelmingly negative response. About half the people though it too preachy and too badly-written but, curiously, a good chunk of those sympathetic to its message also felt it failed because of its badly-written heavy-handedness. Few people seem to have just enjoyed it, with most of those wholeheartedly approving of it doing so simply because of its message and the stridency of its advocacy.
None of that will have helped its viewing figures.
Oddly though, this week's episode (focusing on Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison) was pretty good, and by far the best of the Chris Chibnall era. (He didn't write it).
Anyhow, for fans of funny, sweary videos, here's someone else's take on Orphan 55 (h/t Biased BBC). It is spot-on:
Patrick's right! Laurence Fox would make for a fine Dr Who. He's got all the right moves, I'd say.
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