Were you aDoctor Whofan as a kid?
(laughs) Thats exactly what happened.
As well as K-9.
As much as I loved Tom Bakers Doctor when that metal dog appeared I really started to worry!
Its terrible to admit, but I never did get my head around him.
And yet you ended up writing him.
That sounds about right.
So how did you feel about the show when it came back?
For me it was eighty percent soap to twenty percent science-fiction and that wasnt what I wanted.
That first series fits very comfortably within the landscape of TV in 2005.
Ive always felt theres a bigShameless/Paul Abbott influence in those first few episodes.
Its very domestically focused and as a dyed-in-the-wool sci-fi fan I reacted against that to begin with.
It wasnt until we got toDalekthat I started to think, Wow, this IS science fiction.
And then by the end of the season it was full on!
Which is a roundabout way of saying: Russell knew exactly what he was doing.
You came aboard just as the empire they were building down at BBC Wales was seriously expanding.
Obviously, in addition toSarah Janethere was alsoTorchwood, which you wrote for during its second series.
Thats right, although originally I was going to write a totally different episode.
I love that episode.
An alien-possessed Nerys Hughes getting shot with a laser by John Barrowman is a marvelous TV moment.
I find that episode divides people down the middle.
There are people who love it and people who HATE every moment of it!
(laughs)
Id say that episode was indicative of a much more consistent and entertaining second season.
WhenTorchwoodstarted it was commissioned very quickly and no one seemed to really know what it was.
UnlikeThe Sarah Jane Adventures, which seemed to know what it was right out the gate.
Im interested to know what you think about howThe Sarah Jane Adventuresdeveloped as time went on.
For me, its the third series where the show really starts to fly.
Theres more confidence and maturity in those episodes.
Id like to think trend continued up until the very last episode.
How did that commission come about?
Again, it was another call from Julie Gardner!
I see a common theme forming here!
Yes, I do miss those phone calls.
(laughs)
Is it right thatThe Waters of Marswas originally going to be a Christmas special?
That was always the plan.
So a bit Ray Bradbury again then?
As a result the story was pretty much set early on and fundamentally it never really changed.
In fact, during the four drafts I wrote it was still a Christmas episode.
It was only when Russell took it over that it changed.
Its hard to imagine it as a Christmas episode.
Well, I did say during the writing that it was a very dark story for Christmas.
Its a very dark story, full stop.
And also one of the very best since the series came back in 2005.
Personally, I think its probably David Tennants finest hour as the Doctor.
I would tend to agree, but then David had so many finest hours.
But the last ten minutes of the episode in particular…
Well, that was all Russell.
Well, hes the monster of the episode.
At what point in all this wasWizards vs Aliensfirst mooted?
It came about when Lis Sladen fell ill.
It didnt exist before then?
No, it didnt.
Call it naive, but thats genuinely how we thought it would play out.
And the idea ofWizards vs Aliensliterally grew from that.
It really was one of those lightning in the bottle moments.
Was this planned as a long-term show at this point?
And that was just a bolt out of the blue.
Obviously that changed the nature of the development process.
Oh, without a doubt.
How long did you spend honing the concept?
We spent a long time working on those first two scripts.
I think both parts went to seventeen drafts.
Nothing else Ive written has gone to seventeen drafts!
But it was well worth it in the end.
At what point was the show commissioned for two series?
That sort of up-front order seems unusual.
It is unusual, but a lot of it came from Fremantle coming onboard as our distributor.
And lets be honest, Russells name was attached to it and that carries a lot of weight.
This is the first show youve created/co-created.
To be honest, Im just incredibly proud to have co-created it with Russell.
But to go back and answer the first question: oh God, yes!
How do you feel the first series has gone?
Im massively proud of what weve achieved.
Im astonished by the ambition of the show and how weve realized that ambition on screen.
That crew always seems to go the extra mile.
In terms of whats worked…
I think pretty much most things have worked.
I thinkWvAis definitely a lot more boy oriented as a show than many people were expecting.
Id agree with that.
At its heart, whereasSarah Janewas a show about family, this is primarily a buddy show.
The challenge going forward is to continue to find new ways of reinforcing both of those things.
The tension between science and magic is certainly fertile ground for future stories.
Do you have a roadmap for where its all going?
I think we do.
The second season continues that, but takes it off down different avenues.
Thats a big difference.
Clearly the show has done wonders for you profile and career standing.
What else are you currently working on alongsideWvA?
Probably nothing I can talk about!
(laughs) Ive got a show in America, which hopefully will come to fruition soon.
Ive also got another couple of projects in various stages of development.
What are your dream projects?
Oh, theres a couple.
WhileCaptain Scarletwas my favourite of the Gerry Anderson puppet shows,UFOwas always my favourite of the live-action shows.
I just think theres a lot of scope there for doing something quite current and quite adult.
What people forget now is thatUFOwas never a kids show even though it was broadcast pre-watershed.
Im sensing this is something you really want to do!
Oh, I have treatments and a five-year arc for it!
(laughs)
Phil Ford, thank you very much!
Read thefirst part of our Phil Ford interview, here.
