- Published
Longtime Doctor Who writer and showrunner Russell T Davies has criticised the new BBC director general over comments he made about an AI-generated episode of the show.
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he → publish → show
Matt Brittin told a Royal Television Society conference in September that he had been sent a "pretty good" 50-minute unofficial Doctor Who episode.
"That's a clumsy thing to say in an industry where he's got writers and artists and it specifically affects people, they're the first to take the blow," Davies told BBC Radio 4's The Media Show.
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Davies → tell → Show
Addressing criticism he has received, Brittin told a staff meeting last week he was attempting to make a point around the "pace of change" while stressing he believed in "human creativity".
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he → address → creativity
The director general joked he had "got into trouble" over what he had said, but added: "I was just trying to make the point: Look at the pace of change and what this stuff can do."
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stuff → joke → what
He said: "I want to be really clear: Humans are leading, and I believe in human creativity, enhanced by whatever tools."
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I → say → tools
He emphasised human-led creativity would always be at the heart of the BBC's mission.
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creativity → emphasise → mission
But speaking to BBC Radio 4, Davies said that the new director general, who joined the BBC after a career at Google, "hasn't worked in television for that long and might not be so fruity with an opinion in future".
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who → speak → future
"My inbox went ping ping ping ping ping, so God knows what his was like," he added.
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he → go → what
Davies was also asked more broadly about AI, including how, or if, writers should use the technology.
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writers → ask → technology
"I have heard stories of some writers using AI prompts to do a first draft which I find shocking because I think... What are you paid for otherwise?
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you → hear → draft
What are you there to do?"
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you → do → ?
He said he did not use it to write his scripts but he "very much" worried it would start to replace writers, and in some circumstances that may already be the case.
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that → say → circumstances
Davies is one of the UK's most influential television writers - from the ground-breaking Queer as Folk to acclaimed dramas including It's a Sin, Years and Years and, more recently, Tip Toe, he has had a major impact on British TV.
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he → break → TV
In 2005, he brought the Timelord back after a 16-year absence after pitching it to the BBC's then-head of drama at a party in Manchester.
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he → bring → Manchester
He revived the show again in 2023, although he confirmed earlier this year he would be stepping away.
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he → revive → 2023
He told The Media Show there were times he "used to dread going on a Doctor Who set" because of the expensive special effects and "explosions going on, people pulling themselves in to prosthetics".
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people → tell → prosthetics
The BBC cancelled the planned Christmas special and Disney+ no longer co
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Disney+ → cancel → special
But Davies had good news for Doctor Who fans.
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Davies → have → fans
Another series is on the cards, he promised, even though he will not be involved.
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he → promise → cards
"You'll start to see production with a brand-new Doctor, a brand-new companion, summer next year."
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You → start → Doctor
Davies - who recently released his memoir 'The Queerest of Folk: A Life in Television' - got his first break aged 22 working in BBC children's TV "for £50 a day".
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who → release → 50
"It was the best training you could possibly have," he said.
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he → have → ?
The Swansea-born writer later honed his skills in the heyday of Granada Television "when Coronation Street was getting 18 million, 20 million [views]".
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Street → bear → million
Also in the interview, he revealed inspiration can come from the most unlikely sources - he "records the phone-ins on This Morning" and listens to them in the evening.
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he → reveal → evening
just a couple of times a year, you'll get an extraordinary human story or something very funny.
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you → get → story
One of my favourite ones about a year ago was a woman whose mother-in-law was insisting on wearing white to her wedding".
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law → insist → wedding
He believes he will get a script out of that "one day": "What a great little problem that is - two women just at war."
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that → believe → war
The Aporia
