page_title: Rose (Doctor Who episode)
section_title: Background and casting
hierarchical_section_title: Rose (Doctor Who episode) / Production / Background and casting
caption_attribution_description: Russell T Davies
context_page_description: "Rose" is the opening episode of the first series of the revived British science fiction television programme Doctor Who. The episode was directed by Keith Boak and written by Russell T Davies who was also one of the three executive producers. It was first broadcast in the UK on BBC One on 26 March 2005. "Rose" was the first Doctor Who episode to air since the Doctor Who television film in 1996.
  In the episode, the London department store worker Rose Tyler gets caught in the middle of the alien time traveller the Doctor's plot to prevent an invasion of the Earth by the Nestene Consciousness and the Autons after the Doctor destroys Rose's workplace.
  The episode marked Eccleston's first appearance as the Doctor, succeeding several other actors who played the role, and Piper's debut as the Doctor's travelling companion Rose. Being the first episode of the revived series, several recurring characters were introduced: Camille Coduri as Jackie Tyler, and Noel Clarke as Mickey Smith. Viewers did not see the Doctor character regenerate from a previous incarnation, regeneration being a plot device in which the character of the Doctor changes appearance.
context_section_description: Doctor Who originally ran from 1963 to 1989, when it was cancelled after its twenty-sixth season. Television producer Russell T Davies had been lobbying the BBC in an attempt to revive the show from the late 1990s, and reached the discussion phase in 2002. It was announced in September 2003 that Doctor Who was returning and would be produced by BBC Wales via a BBC press release. The format of the programme was changed to 45-minute episodes, lightening the pace. Davies was inspired by American series such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Smallville, in particular by using Buffy's structure of season-long story arcs around a "Big Bad" villain.
  It was announced in March 2004 that Christopher Eccleston would be playing the Doctor. Jane Tranter, BBC Controller of Drama Commissioning, stated that casting an actor of Eccleston's reputation signaled "our intention to take Doctor Who into the 21st century, as well as retaining its core traditional values — to be surprising, edgy and eccentric." Eccleston had previously worked with Davies on The Second Coming and requested that Davies consider him for the role. Eccelston was attracted to the role as a way of shedding the image of him as a serious actor only. Eccleston is the ninth actor to play the Doctor since the programme started in 1963.  New actors are able to take over the role through a plot device of regeneration, introduced in 1966, in which the character of the Doctor changes body and identity. Russell T Davies decided to begin the revived series with a new Doctor rather than show the regeneration, as he believed it was "madness" to start with someone and then change him before the audience could build a relationship with him. Davies wanted to initially approach the revival as a "new programme". Eccleston's character is more "down-to-earth" than previous Doctors; Davies referred to him as "stripped down", while still having "fun and humour". Eccleston's costume of a battered leather jacket was in Davies' original pitch, but the clothing also went with Eccleston's desire not to have clothes dominating his time on the show. The Ninth Doctor's clothes do not dominate him, but rather create a simple silhouette and an "action man" vibe.
  Billie Piper's casting as Rose Tyler was announced in May 2004. According to executive producer Julie Gardner, former pop star Piper "fits the bill perfectly" as a "unique, dynamic partner for Christopher Eccleston". Davies described Rose as "the ordinary person who stumbles into something extraordinary and finds herself their equal." Camille Coduri and Noel Clarke were also cast to play Rose's mother and boyfriend then named Judy and Muggsy respectively; Davies wanted to include these characters to "make her real" and to "give her a life". Rose's family is also working-class, which had rarely been seen in companions on the show prior to "Rose".
caption: Russell T Davies, episode writer.
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