Doctor Who Confidential

Doctor Who Confidential
The Doctor Who Confidential logo used in 2011 for series 6
Based on	Doctor Who
Narrated by	David Tennant (2005) Simon Pegg (2005) Mark Gatiss (2005–06) Anthony Head (2006–10) Noel Clarke (2009) Alex Price (2010) Russell Tovey (2010–11)
Country of origin	UK
Original language(s)	English
No. of episodes	87
Production
Producer(s)	Gillane Seaborne
Running time	30 min (2005-06) 45 min (2007-2011) 5–15 min (Cutdowns)
Release
Original network	BBC Three BBC One (Music & Monsters and The Eleventh Doctor) BBC HD (2009–11)
Picture format	PAL 576i (2005–08) 1080i (2009–11)
Original release	26 March 2005 – 1 October 2011
Chronology
Followed by	Doctor Who Extra
Related shows	Doctor Who Torchwood Declassified
External links
Website

Doctor Who Confidential is a documentary series created by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) to complement the revival of the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Each episode was broadcast on BBC Three on Saturdays, immediately after the broadcast of the weekly television episode on BBC One. The first and second series episodes ran 30 minutes each; third series installments ran 45 minutes. BBC Three also broadcast a cut-down edition of the programme, lasting 15 minutes, shown after the repeats on Sundays and Fridays and after the weekday evening repeats of earlier seasons.

Described as focusing on the human element of the series, Confidential features behind-the-scenes footage on the making of Doctor Who through clips and interviews with the cast, production crew and other people, including those who have participated in the television series over the years of its existence. Each episode deals with a different topic, and in most cases refers to the Doctor Who episode that preceded it.

There have also been two episodes of Doctor Who Confidential broadcast apart from the showing of Doctor Who episodes: in November 2006 an edition subtitled "Music and Monsters" was produced going behind the scenes of a televised concert of soundtrack music produced as part of that year's Children in Need appeal, and on 3 January 2009, a special edition was broadcast to announce the actor chosen to play the Eleventh Doctor.

In September 2011, the BBC announced the cancellation of the series as a cost-cutting measure. Fans attempted to reverse the decision using an online petition but to no avail. The decision was criticised by writers for the show and the incumbent Doctor, Matt Smith. In 2012, it was announced that small behind-the-scenes features would be released on the BBC's Doctor Who website to compensate for the loss of Confidential.

In February 2013, Doctor Who Confidential was voted the best BBC Three show of all time in a Radio Times poll on their website.

On 20 August 2014, it was announced that a series of 10-minute behind-the-scenes featurettes would accompany the twelve episodes of the eighth series, under the title of Doctor Who Extra. These featurettes were made available on the BBC's iPlayer and Red Button services.