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DWO interviews Classic Series Writer, Robert Banks Stewart,
regarding his Classic Series stories, his thoughts on the New Series and his brand new
book title; 'The
Hurricane's Tail'.
When you wrote Terror Of The
Zygons, and having seen how well they translated on screen, did you
ever, or were you ever tempted to write a follow up story featuring the
Zygons, and how does it feel to know they will be making a long-awaited
return in the 50th Anniversary Special?
The reaction to both Terror of the Zygons and
The Seeds of Doom did not come until that
particular season was shown on air. However I regarded both as being
one-offs. Of course I realised later that I might have been tempted to
write a follow-up featuring the Zygons, but by then I was very busy
writing scripts for other series. Lucky me! Also, I think it be true to
say that I wasn't quite as skilled - in the Doctor Who sense - as other
writers at sci-fi. Having said that, I did create my very first TV
series, Undermind, many years earlier, and the theme was the irrational
behaviour of people whose minds had been taken over by some evil,
unknown cosmic force, and the chaos and crime it caused.
I'm absolutely delighted that the Zygons will be making a long-awaited
return in the 50th anniversary special, especially as the new DVD of
Terror of the Zygons will be going worldwide
very soon.
Did either of your televised stories
(Terror Of The Zygons & The Seeds Of Doom) change much from script to
screen?
Although the scripts remained substantially the same I'm sure changes
were made in the course of production of both Terror of the
Zygons and The Seeds of Doom.
Producer Philip Hinchliffe and Story editor
Robert Holmes were highly creative, brimming with extra ideas.
And the director, Douglas Camfield, was also terrific
in the touches he added when shooting.
What do you think of the New Series
of Doctor Who and are you an avid viewer?
I think the new series of Doctor Who is tremendously good
technically, thanks to CGI; the creative ideas and writing are of a very
high quality. My only reservation is that it no longer seems to be made
to principally entertain children. It feels as if it is inviting,
through action and special effects, a bigger international audience, and
often doffs its cap to an American audience in particular. Having said
that, kids today belong in an entirely different age. I have to admit
I'm not a regular viewer, finding the lead characters sometimes too
puppet-like.
You have a new novel out ('The
Hurricane's Tail') can you tell us a bit more about it?
My new book, The Hurricane's Tail, is a
wide-ranging thriller set in London, Paris and the Caribbean, one my
favourite parts of the world. Call it a beach thriller. It's my first
novel, after years of creating television thrillers, and I thoroughly
enjoyed plotting and writing it. The hero is a West Indian who's never
been to the West Indies.
Finally, if you could have one round
trip in the TARDIS, anywhere in time and space, where would you go and
why?
I guess if I could make a round trip on the TARDIS anywhere in time and
space, my choice would be the lost city of Atlantis - and I would be
there when it would be in existence, meeting the people who lived and
worked there. How different would that be, compared to archaeological
guesswork?
The Hurricane's Tail is available now, priced
£9.99 in paperback and £5.99 as a
Kindle ebook.
For more information visit
www.kaleidoscopepublishing.co.uk
©
Copyright Doctor Who Online, 2013. |
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Interview with:
Robert Banks Stewart
(Classic Series Writer)
Added:
19/4/2013
Conducted by:
Doctor Who Online |
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