Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 17:59:55 GMT
I've only recently learnt that during the early nineties an actor by the name of David Burton was publicly advertising himself as 'the new Doctor Who' and supposedly appeared as the title character in a 1988 pilot production, 'Doctor Who and the Monsters of Ness' which was an attempt by one company to make their own version of the programme.
I know that during the early nineties after the cancellation of the show a number of independent production companies where vying for the rights to the series but I gather the David Burton rumour is widely considered to be a hoax.
However I've read that the special edition of Inferno contains an interview with David Burton where he still maintains he appeared in the said pilot episode but the production was secretive and the pilot was wiped sometime later. So this is either a bit of a joke on his part or this independently produced pilot was actually filmed but was abandoned and subsequently forgotten about. Either way its an interesting and curious story especially considering that the original series was still on the air at the time when this pilot production was allegedly made. Supposing for one second that it is true I'd be fascinated to see this effort.
The only other information I can find is this extract from a New Zealand fansite.
One of the strangest rumours involving independent bids emerged in July with the news that an unknown actor called David Burton was publicly advertising himself as 'the new Doctor Who'. Burton was later linked with independent film and TV makers, Handmade Films, who had made an unsuccessful bid for the show in 1990.
Is it beyond the realms of plausibility that an independent production company did unofficially film a pilot Doctor Who episode only to abandon it due to rights issues preventing it being released or even its existence being widely known? Or is it more likely that this is just an amusing albeit interesting hoax?
|
|
|
Post by Richard Bignell on Jun 16, 2013 18:20:33 GMT
David Burton isn't Australian. He comes from south-east England and his story had nothing to do with Handmade Films. You might want to take a look at the following, which I posted up on the Nothing at the End of the Lane website last night. www.endofthelane.co.uk/burton.html
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 18:36:03 GMT
David Burton isn't Australian. He comes from south-east England and his story had nothing to do with Handmade Films. You might want to take a look at the following, which I posted up on the Nothing at the End of the Lane website last night. www.endofthelane.co.uk/burton.htmlThanks for that article it certainly sheds more light on this intriguing affair and after reading it I think its fairly safe to say that this pilot production never actually existed but all the same I'd love to be proved wrong and if it did exist it'd probably be better than the new series at any rate (but I don't want to get into that!).
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 21:12:49 GMT
I wonder whether the gentleman in question appeared in a student film version. I only mention this because one of the productions he lists is "Last Stop Dartmoor", which has been referred to on another forum by a poster who said: "I did a Student Film once called 'Last Stop Dartmoor' whereby I play a Prison Warden...." The post was made in 2006 and Mr Burton's CV suggets he was in a film of the same name in 2002. Just speculation. Interesting and reasonable speculation. If 'Doctor Who and the Monsters of Ness' did exist I think it far more likely that it was a amateur fan made project because the article linked above doesn't seem to be able to find any evidence of it ever having officially existed. However if it was a proper studio production venture why are the facts concerning it so elusive as though all official record of it has been erased from existence leaving only the testament of the gentleman in question? Why does nobody ask David Burton specific questions such as who else appeared in it with him and what the story was about (Zygons possibly)? Also why has all record of it seemingly disappeared and what actually became of it and if it was wiped then why?
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 21:20:28 GMT
I do remember this being featured in DWM around the time. It caused much speculation and I recall Burton was driving around in a car with a banner stating "the new Doctor Who" or something along those lines. He did get interviewed but was very evasive and gave very little away. I assumed back then and still think to this day that this was Burton staging some kind of a prank. A bit too convenient the supposed episode he filmed no longer exists...
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 21:34:56 GMT
A bit too convenient the supposed episode he filmed no longer exists... What is even more convenient is the way in which nobody seems to have asked David Burton just why it no longer exists? There must have been quite decisive reasons for wiping it from existence if it ever did exist. All this makes me wonder as easy as it is to dismiss it all as some amusing prank devised by someone part of me thinks there might just be more to this story than we think.... Going into outright conspiracy theory mode here perhaps it was made but the BBC ordered it to be wiped and have suppressed and erased all official record of it ever having existed leaving only the testament of David Burton which without evidence to support his claims is open to ridicule. You never know....
|
|
|
Post by Richard Bignell on Jun 16, 2013 22:04:54 GMT
If 'Doctor Who and the Monsters of Ness' did exist I think it far more likely that it was a amateur fan made project because the article linked above doesn't seem to be able to find any evidence of it ever having officially existed. As I mention in the article, the fact that Burton says that it was directed by Paul Bernard, was a three-month engagement and shot out of a warehouse in Kensington - one of the most expensive parts of London - would rather indicate that it wouldn't have been either a fan or student project.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 22:13:58 GMT
If 'Doctor Who and the Monsters of Ness' did exist I think it far more likely that it was a amateur fan made project because the article linked above doesn't seem to be able to find any evidence of it ever having officially existed. As I mention in the article, the fact that Burton says that it was directed by Paul Bernard, was a three-month engagement and shot out of a warehouse in Kensington - one of the most expensive parts of London - would rather indicate that it wouldn't have been either a fan or student project. However considering no reference can be found in relation to Paul Bernard directing this from either official records or from his own dairies I'm rationalising that David Burton might be possibly exaggerating the extent of this feature (if not just plain making it all up?!) which may have been in reality no more than a amateur production? But this doesn't chime either with David Burton's claims or my own gut feeling. So I put it to you that it was a genuine production which was actually made but for some reason the BBC ordered it to be wiped and have sought to then suppress and erase all record of it having existed perhaps possibly because they did not endorse it and didn't want anyone else making Doctor Who? All that is left is David Burton's testament which without proof nobody is going to take too seriously. I certainly don't want to call David Burton a liar so I'm going for this alternative conspiracy theory explanation!
|
|
|
Post by Richard Bignell on Jun 16, 2013 22:24:38 GMT
Absolutely no chance. The BBC honestly wouldn't order any such thing and wouldn't have any need or desire to suppress any such independent offering. Not that anyone would spend three months funding and shooting two unsolicited pilots on the off-chance. And even if they did, there would still be a paper trail at the BBC. Not that that would stop anyone who worked on such a project mentioning it sometime in the past 20+ years.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 22:50:37 GMT
Absolutely no chance. The BBC honestly wouldn't order any such thing and wouldn't have any need or desire to suppress any such independent offering. Not that anyone would spend three months funding and shooting two unsolicited pilots on the off-chance. And even if they did, there would still be a paper trail at the BBC. Not that that would stop anyone who worked on such a project mentioning it sometime in the past 20+ years. Well your obviously in on the conspiracy yourself But seriously I find it suspicious that no one has ever asked David Burton the pertinent questions of why the episode's where wiped, who where his co-stars and why on earth is there no official record of this production ever having existed? Its almost as if interviewers are getting orders from above not to ask anything 'too specific' to try and keep all knowledge of this as vague as possible. If not that then it must be out of politeness! I know I'd be asking specific questions and demanding detailed answers. I'm still in favour of the conspiracy theory explanation.
|
|
|
Post by Richard Bignell on Jun 16, 2013 22:58:36 GMT
Even just supposing that it was real for a moment, there would be no reason why an actor would be privy to the first and last questions you put. That would be down to the production company, not the hired hands.
As you would have seen in his interview, Burton is very evasive when he talks about his companions. They were twins, but he can't recall their names but he thinks that they were Jenny and Judy something. The reason why he's evasive is that he's making it up. He can't pluck real actors names out of the air because it would only be the work of a moment to confirm that they had nothing to do with it.
And having worked on the feature, I can categorically tell you that no one was under any "orders" about what or what not to ask.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 23:15:52 GMT
And having worked on the feature, I can categorically tell you that no one was under any "orders" about what or what not to ask. Ah well you've just dashed my conspiracy theory and I was hoping to write a book about it but then again you would say that.... Well it looks like the whole David Burton saga has been deconstructed to show it for the memorable invention that it is but regardless of whether or not 'Doctor Who and the Monsters of Ness' is real I'd still like to have the plot synopsis for it? Have the details of the story ever been divulged beyond the title?
|
|
|
Post by Tim Burrows on Jun 17, 2013 11:14:21 GMT
Watch Thunderball, then Never Say Never Again. Apply the same treatment to Terror of the Zygons, et voila!
|
|
|
Post by Timothy Austin on Jun 17, 2013 11:35:49 GMT
I remember reading about David Burton in Doctor Who Magazine in the early nineties. Even then I thought this guy was a dreamer and was talking rubbish. Having seen the feature and interview with the man on a recent Doctor Who DVD extra, I still feel it was a load of rubbish. As far as I'm aware there is NO visual or sound evidence from any recordings done. Not even any photographs! Quite frankly I'm not convinced and am sure that it's all crap from someone who's a bit of a dreamer and quite deluded.
|
|